Tyrant of the year 2025: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, has been the country’s leader for 36 years, so tyranny is in his blood. His years of perfecting autocracy were on full display following the death of Mahsa (Jina) Amini at the hands of the “morality police” in 2022 and the Woman, Life, Freedom protests that followed. His regime enforced a sharp crackdown on his opponents, many of whom were rounded up and jailed. But it’s not just views on feminism that anger the Ayatollah. This year thousands of lawyers, journalists and human rights defenders who spoke up during the Israel-Iran conflict were also arrested.

Detention though is far from the worst attack on his opponents. In November, the National Council of Resistance of Iran reported at least 311 executions in a single month and more than 1,700 for the year. This is the highest figure since the 1988 massacre, when between 2,800 and 5,000 were executed.

Khamenei’s attacks aren’t limited to Iran. In the last year, the intimidation of overseas journalists and dissidents have continued at pace, and he remains one of the leading figures behind the growing trend of transnational repression.

On 3 December Khamenei tweeted: “In Islam, the dignity of women and respecting women are some of the most essential elements.” There was no irony to his words and this was underlined just five days later when the organisers of a marathon were arrested for allowing women to run without hijab. There remains no hope of justice for the many currently imprisoned.

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The closing date is Monday 5 January 2026.

To view the other contenders for Tyrant of the Year, click here.