1. Mehdi Khalaji is an Iranian-American writer, scholar of Islamic studies, political analyst, and a former Shia cleric.
13 Facts About Mehdi Khalaji
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Mehdi Khalaji has been researching at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy since 2005, and is a senior research fellow focusing on the politics of Iran and Shiite groups in the Middle East.
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Mehdi Khalaji has frequently contributed to media outlets such as The Guardian, BBC, The Washington Post, and The New York Times.
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From 1986 to 2000, Mehdi Khalaji trained in the seminaries of Qom, the traditional center of Iran's clerical establishment.
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In Qom, and later in Tehran, Mehdi Khalaji launched a career in journalism, first serving on the editorial board of a theological journal, Naqd va Nazar, and then the daily Entekhab.
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In 2000, Mehdi Khalaji moved to Paris where he studied Shiite theology and exegesis in the but didn't earn any degree or certificate Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes.
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In 2005, Mehdi Khalaji became a senior fellow at The Washington Institute, focusing on the politics of Iran and Shiite groups in the Middle East.
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Mehdi Khalaji is a frequent contributor in PolicyWatch and PeaceWatch segments submitted by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
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Mehdi Khalaji has participated in many panels including one in November 2006 when he appeared on a panel run by American Foreign Policy Council, titled "Understanding the Iranian Threat", along with James Woolsey, Ilan Berman, and Patrick Clawson.
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Mehdi Khalaji is a writer and contributor for numerous English-language and Persian-language media entities.
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Mehdi Khalaji teaches Persian-language webinars on Quran'ic interpretation for Tavaana: E-Learning Institute for Iranian Civil Society.
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Mehdi Khalaji, has expressed concerns similar to those of the Islamic Republic's reformists, particularly regarding the lack of political freedoms and the repression of dissent.
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Mehdi Khalaji, critiquing the Pahlavi moarchy often argues that the Shah's secular policies were one of the primary reasons for the Islamic Revolution.