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Akbar Novruz

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French daily Le Figaro has reported that an alleged attempt to remove Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei from power took place on January 8–9, but ultimately failed, AzerNEWS reports.

According to the report, former Iranian president Hassan Rouhani reportedly convened a late night meeting that included several former government officials, among them ex foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, clerics from the city of Qom, and figures said to be close to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Sources cited by the newspaper claim that the plan collapsed at its final stage after it failed to secure the backing of Ali Larijani, who is described as holding the position of secretary of the Supreme National Security Council. To avoid any potential leaks, Iran’s current president Masoud Pezeshkian was reportedly not informed about the discussions.

The move reportedly collapsed because it lacked the support of Larijani, who was appointed in August as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. President Masoud Pezeshkian was kept out of the discussions to prevent the plan from being exposed, the report said. After it was uncovered, Rouhani and Zarif were allegedly placed under several days of house arrest, and reformist figures close to them were temporarily detained.

Le Figaro further reported that in the aftermath of the alleged events, Rouhani and Zarif were placed under house arrest for several days, while a number of reformist figures linked to them were briefly detained before later being released.

Iranian authorities have not publicly commented on the report, and the claims have not been independently verified.