Khadijeh Saqafi

Khadijeh Saqafi (Persian: خدیجه ثقفی‎, nicknamed Quds of Iran; 1916 – 21 March 2009) was the wife of Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

Khadijeh Saqafi
خدیجه ثقفی
Born1916 (1916)
Tehran, Sublime State of Persia
Died21 March 2009(2009-03-21) (aged 92–93)
Tehran, Iran
Resting placeMausoleum of Ruhollah Khomeini
NationalityIranian
Known forSpouse of the Supreme Leader of Iran (1979–1989)
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1929; died 1989)​
ChildrenMostafa
Zahra
Sadiqeh
Farideh
Ahmad

Early life

Saqafi was the daughter of Hajj Mirza Mohammad Saqafi Tehrani a respected cleric.[1] Haj Mirza Mohammad Saqafi was the grandson of Agha Mirza Abolghassem Kalantar, mayor of Tehran under the Qajars in the middle of the nineteenth century.

Marriage and later years

Saqafi married Ruhollah Khomeini in 1929, when she was 13.[2] She gave birth to seven children with Khomeini during her life, though only five survived childhood.[3] Her son, Mostafa, died in Iraq in 1977, while a second son, Ahmad, died of a cardiac arrest in 1995 at the age of 49.[2]

Saqafi, who largely stayed out of the Iranian public's eye, has been described as a strong supporter of her husband's opposition to the Shah of Iran.[2] Former President of Iran Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, referred to Saqafi as the "closest and most patient" supporter for her husband."[2]

Death

Saqafi died on 21 March 2009, in Tehran after a long illness at the age of 93.[2] Thousands of people attended her funeral, including the Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei and then President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.[2] Saqafi was buried next to her husband at his Mausoleum in Behesht-e Zahra.[4] She was survived by her three daughters, Zahra, Sadiqeh, and Farideh.[2]

References
  1. Dabashi, H. (1993). Theology of discont (PDF). New York: New York University Press. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-15. Retrieved 2013-08-09.
  2. "Khadijeh Saqafi, Khomeini's Wife, Is Dead at 93". New York Times. Associated Press. 23 March 2009. Retrieved 28 March 2009.
  3. "'Mother of Islamic Revolution' passes away". Press TV. 21 March 2009. Archived from the original on 22 March 2009. Retrieved 28 March 2009.
  4. "Iranians mourn Khomeini's widow". BBC News. 22 March 2009. Retrieved 28 March 2009.
Honorary titles
First
New title
 Spouse of the Supreme Leader of Iran
1979–1989		 Succeeded by
Khojaste Bagherzadeh
as Wife of Ali Khamenei
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