A report in the French newspaper “Le Figaro” claims that former Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, attempted to push Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei out of the center of authority during a period of sweeping national turmoil. Their effort was ultimately blocked by senior official Ali Larijani, who has since taken on broad powers and is portrayed as the country’s primary decision-maker.

According to the report, the plan emerged during the night of January 7–8, just before nationwide demonstrations reached their peak in a wave of unrest that opposition sources say resulted in thousands of executions. The newspaper’s sources said Rouhani spearheaded the move alongside former administration allies, several clerics from Qom, and figures tied to the Revolutionary Guard.

A source told the paper that the intention was to exclude Khamenei from crisis-related deliberations.

The initiative fell apart, the report says, because it lacked Larijani’s backing. Appointed in August as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Larijani was positioned to halt the attempt. President Masoud Pezeshkian was reportedly kept unaware to avoid a leak. Once the plan surfaced, Rouhani and Zarif were said to have been placed under brief house arrest, while reformist associates were detained for short periods.

The New York Times reported that Khamenei granted Larijani overall responsibility for managing state affairs more than a month ago, effectively sidelining Pezeshkian. Since receiving this mandate, the 67-year-old has been functioning as Iran’s primary governing authority.

Larijani’s responsibilities have grown steadily. He directed the suppression of last month’s demonstrations and now oversees efforts to quell remaining unrest. He also manages coordination with Iran’s regional partners, including Russia, Qatar, and Oman, and leads nuclear discussions with the United States. Additionally, he is said to be drafting contingency plans should conflict with Washington erupt.

“Larijani is not the only one the supreme leader trusts. Ali Shamkhani, for example, is also there. So even if Larijani is dominant, he is not a ‘supreme ruler,’” Danny Citrinowicz, a research fellow at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and former head of the Iran branch in Israeli military intelligence told Ynet.

He warned that information emerging from Iran – especially when circulated by foreign media – must be approached with caution. If accurate, he said, the developments suggest the Iranian system is working to preserve continuity in case the supreme leader dies or becomes incapacitated.

“Even if that happens, there will not be another supreme leader in the same sense,” he said. “The principle of rule by Islamic jurist remains central to the regime.”

Citrinowicz added that the situation underscores Pezeshkian’s limited leverage, despite the fact that the presidency is supposed to draw its legitimacy from the public.

“In principle, the president’s status is more significant than that of the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council,” he said. “But Pezeshkian’s lack of experience, alongside the trust Larijani enjoys from the leader and his extensive experience, likely gives him the upper hand in the leader’s eyes.”

Before returning to his current position, Larijani served as an adviser to Khamenei. In November 2024, shortly before upheaval erupted in Syria, he met with then-Syrian President Bashar Assad and later traveled to Lebanon during clashes with Israel. During a follow-up visit in July, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun insisted that he would not tolerate Iranian involvement in Lebanon’s internal matters.

On August 5, Larijani was formally named secretary of the Supreme National Security Council; a role he previously held from 2005 to 2007. The position is widely viewed as second in influence only to the supreme leader and more powerful than the presidency, functioning as the leader’s chief implementer of policy.

Larijani earlier headed nuclear talks with Western countries before being removed by then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad following policy disagreements. He ran unsuccessfully for president three times and was barred from running in both 2021 and 2024 after the sudden death of President Ebrahim Raisi.

He is part of a prominent clerical family. His father, Ayatollah Mirza Hashem Amoli, was a high-ranking religious figure, and several of his brothers have held influential positions, including one who served as chief justice. Another brother has held senior religious and academic roles.

Members of the Larijani family, including Larijani himself, have studied in the United States. One of his daughters completed her education there and resides in the U.S. The fact that he and his siblings were born in the Iraqi city of Najaf – a detail present on their identity documents – has also drawn criticism among some Iranians.