In a ceremony on Thursday, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei formally endorsed Hassan Rouhani as president for a second four-year tenure.

The ceremony, held at the Imam Khomeini Hussainia in Tehran, was attended by Parliament speaker, Judiciary chief and other senior military and government dignitaries.

In comments following the endorsement,  Rouhani pledged economic growth and employment.

The practice, enshrined constitutionally,  comes before Rouhani’s inauguration on Saturday as president.

High-profile delegations from around the world would attend the event. The oath of office will be administered by Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani.

According to reports, the level of foreign dignitaries taking part in Rouhani’s inauguration would be “unprecedented”.

Facing a strong challenge from principlist Ebrahim Raisi at the May 19 presidential election, Rouhani ultimately managed to secure more than 23 million (57%) of the votes, winning the election in a landslide.

In the 2013 presidential election, when he ran for office for the first time, Rouhani promised to revive the economy and remove the nuclear sanctions.

According to the Rouhani administration, all nuclear-related sanctions have been lifted after his foreign policy team, headed by Mohammad Javad Zarif, secured a historic nuclear agreement with six world powers.

Source:tehrantimes.com