Habibollah Elghanian

Habibollah Elghanian was one of Iran's most prominent industrialists and the informal leader of the Iranian Jewish community. He founded PLASCO, a major plastics and manufacturing conglomerate that became one of Iran's largest private enterprises. He was widely respected as a philanthropist and community leader who built schools, hospitals, and synagogues.

Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Elghanian was arrested in early 1979. On 9 May 1979, he was tried before Sadegh Khalkhali's Islamic Revolutionary Court on charges of "corruption on earth" (Mofsed-e-filarz), espionage for Israel, and contact with Zionists. The trial lasted approximately twenty minutes. He was found guilty and executed the same day as part of the post-revolution executions of 1979.

His execution sent shockwaves through Iran's 80,000-strong Jewish community, triggering a mass emigration. Within two years, the vast majority of Iranian Jews had fled the country. His case became a landmark moment in the history of Iranian Jews and drew international condemnation.