An Iranian to negotiate with: Who is Mohammad Qalibaf?
Fact-Check Results
“US President Donald Trump said on Monday that talks with Iran were taking place”
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— No evidence in archive to confirm or refute Trump's statements about Iran talks
“According to the US news website Axios, Egypt, Pakistan and Turkey had all mediated between the US and Iran on Sunday”
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— No evidence in archive to verify Axios' report on mediation efforts
“The leadership in Tehran, however, denied any such talks”
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— No evidence in archive to confirm Tehran's denial of negotiations
“According to the Wall Street Journal, thousands of US Marines will be deployed to the Middle East this Friday to secure the Strait of Hormuz”
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— No evidence in archive to verify WSJ's deployment report
“Qalibaf is a 64-year-old former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and a pilot”
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— No evidence in archive to confirm Qalibaf's military background
“He holds a doctorate in political geography and his dissertation explored the relationship between space, power, the state and security policy”
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— No evidence in archive to verify Qalibaf's academic credentials
“He fought in the Iran-Iraq war between 1980 and 1988 and climbed the ranks of the IRGC”
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INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
— No evidence in archive to confirm Qalibaf's Iran-Iraq War participation
“He became head of the Khatam al-Anbiya, the IRGC's engineering arm”
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INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
— No evidence in archive to verify Qalibaf's Khatam al-Anbiya role
“In 1997, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, appointed Qalibaf as commander of the IRGC air force”
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INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
— No evidence in archive to confirm Khamenei's 1997 appointment
“He was key in repressing Iran's 1999 student protests”
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INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
— No evidence in archive to verify Qalibaf's role in 1999 protests
“Photos were published showing them returning from Istanbul loaded with items for children described as 'newborn baby kits'”
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“Qalibaf is alleged to have transferred substantial sums from the city treasury to his wife’s foundation”
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“His application was denied in Canada”
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“In 2013, he ran for president again, this time losing to Hassan Rouhani”
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“His son Eshaq’s attempt to obtain permanent residency in Canada sparked debate among the Iranian public”
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“Qalibaf subsequently took over as mayor of the capital, a position he held from 2005 to 2017”
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“In 2017, he eventually withdrew his candidacy to support another conservative candidate”
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“Buyers are said to have included government officials as well as members of the Qalibaf family”
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“Journalists who reported on the matter were imprisoned”
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“His daughter and her family made headlines for a trip to Turkey”
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“Iranian journalists report that during his tenure in Tehran, many government-owned properties were reportedly sold well below market price”
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“Corruption allegations against Qalibaf were never fully probed due to his close relationship with Khamenei”
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“Qalibaf was driven by political ambition and ran for president three times”
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“Qalibaf is considered highly influential within the IRGC”
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“He became the country’s police chief a year later”
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“He signed a threatening letter to then-president Mohammad Khatami warning the government not to continue 'tolerating' the protests”
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“The foundation’s operations are not transparent”
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“In 2005, he lost to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who was then mayor of Tehran”
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“He has so far survived the US and Israeli attacks in Iran”
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