Speaker of Iran's parliament and one of the most powerful men in the country. He rose through the ranks of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He heads the amalgarayan (pragmatist) faction within the regime, alongside fellow military veterans, swinging between radicalism and moderation as the moment demands.
According to observers he briefly took charge when Ali Khamenei went into hiding during the June 2025 war. Saeed Laylaz, an economist favoured by the regime, urged Khamenei to step aside in favour of a "Bonaparte" and named Qalibaf as a candidate for the role.
After Khamenei's death in February 2026 and Mojtaba Khamenei's elevation, Qalibaf is believed to be among those calling the shots alongside Ali Larijani while the new supreme leader remained hidden from view; both are former IRGC officers. Qalibaf may command deeper loyalties within the Guards than Larijani and enjoys a close relationship with Mojtaba.
On March 24th 2026 the National Security Council replaced the assassinated Larijani with Muhammad Zulghadr, an IRGC apparatchik, rather than elevating Qalibaf.
He is understood to be Donald Trump's interlocutor in exchanges about a potential deal. By the time of the April 2026 ceasefire, Qalibaf and a coterie of pragmatic IRGC generals appeared to occupy the most senior positions within the government. A leadership less wedded to Khamenei's anti-colonial diatribes may find it easier to repair relations with the West. His children have lived or tried to live in North America.
By late April 2026 Qalibaf had been designated chief negotiator for the resumed talks with America, with Abbas Araghchi as his lieutenant. His apparent readiness to negotiate provoked a backlash from hardliners within the IRGC and pro-regime crowds, who took to denouncing him publicly. Networks tied to Qalibaf are thought to control foreign-property portfolios and have attracted Islamist media scrutiny.
Qalibaf is sympathetic to businessmen counselling against escalation. Bombardment in the 2026 Iran-Israel war has crippled pharmaceutical, steel and petrochemical plants. As Tehran's mayor he did so many property deals that an Iranian businessman quipped he beat Trump. He prefers to steer around America's blockade while preserving the ceasefire; formal overland trade has surged since the Gulf closed, with Iraq, Turkey and Pakistan opening more crossings, and traders speaking of Gwadar in Pakistan as an alternative to Jebel Ali. His most fearsome opponent within the IRGC is Ahmad Vahidi—a career soldier, former defence minister and current head of the IRGC—described by a former Israeli intelligence officer as "an end-of-days man" who represents the hardliners.
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