Hardline cleric Raisi sworn in as Iran president amid tensions with West

DUBAI: Hardline Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi took the oath of office before parliament on Thursday (Aug 5), with the Islamic Republic's clerical rulers facing growing crises at home and abroad.

The mid-ranking Shi'ite cleric formally started his four-year term on Tuesday when supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei endorsed his victory in the June election, when most prominent rivals were barred from standing.

With Raisi's presidency, all branches of power in Iran will be controlled by anti-Western hardliners loyal to Khamenei.

"In the presence of the holy Quran and before the nation, I swear to the omnipotent God to safeguard the official religion of the country and the Islamic Republic as well as the country’s Constitution," Raisi told parliament and foreign dignitaries in a ceremony broadcast live on state television.

Raisi, who is under US sanctions over allegations of human rights abuses when he was a judge, has pledged to take steps to lift broader sanctions that have cut Iran's oil exports and shut it out of the international banking system.

"The Iranian people expect the new government to improve their livelihoods ... All illegal US sanctions against the Iranian nation must be lifted," Raisi said after being sworn in, vowing to serve the nation and improve ties with its neighbours.

Iran has been negotiating with six major powers to revive a 2015 nuclear deal abandoned three years ago by then U.S. President Donald Trump, who said it was too soft on Tehran.

Under the deal, Iran agreed to curbs on its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of international sanctions, but Trump withdrew from the deal and reimposed sanctions that have crippled Iran's economy. Tehran has since breached limits imposed on its nuclear activities under the agreement.

Share this post