Iran's religious leader Mojtaba Khamenei has reappointed the country's judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei for a five-year term. In a decree issued on Sunday, Khamenei praised Ejei's "valuable and sincere efforts" during his previous term.
Khamenei stated that in his new term, Ejei should further strengthen the judiciary in line with his own directives and those of his predecessor, the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Born in 1956 in the town of Ezhiyeh in Isfahan province, Mohseni Ejei studied theology at the conservative Haqqani Seminary in Qom. After holding various positions in the Intelligence Ministry in the 1980s, Ejei served as a prosecutor at Tehran's Special Clerical Court from 1995 to 1997 and rose to become chief prosecutor in 1998.
Appointed intelligence minister by then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2005, Ejei was dismissed in 2009 due to internal disputes. He became deputy judiciary chief in 2014 and was first appointed head of the judiciary by the late Ali Khamenei in 2021.
Ejei also served on the interim Leadership Council established on March 1 following the killing of Ali Khamenei in a joint US-Israeli attack on February 28. Serving alongside President Masoud Pezeshkian and Guardian Council member Ali Reza Arafi, Ejei remained in the role until Mojtaba Khamenei was elected as the new religious leader on March 8.
Known as one of the country's most hardline figures over his decades-long security and judicial career, Ejei has been accused by human rights organizations of grave violations including arbitrary arrests, politically motivated prosecutions, forced confessions, and unfair trials. He also made headlines in 2004 for biting a journalist on the shoulder.
During Ejei's tenure as judiciary chief, Iran saw a marked increase in executions. According to a report published by Amnesty International in May, Iran carried out at least 2,159 documented executions in 2025. The Norway-based Iran Human Rights organization recorded at least 373 executions so far in 2026.
Ejei repeatedly sought the death penalty for individuals accused of spying for Israel and the US. On June 28, Mojtaba Khamenei also instructed the judiciary to initiate legal proceedings regarding alleged war crimes committed by the US and Israel against Iran during the recent war.
Speaking at a book launch in Tehran about the new religious leader's life, Ejei vowed to punish US and Israeli leaders for the killing of Khamenei. "We will pursue them with determination, try them, and punish them; we will compel them to compensate the damages inflicted on the Iranian nation," he said.
The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Ejei in 2010, accusing him of serious human rights violations for his role in the 2009 protests. The European Union also began imposing sanctions on Ejei in 2011 on the same grounds.
