The Role of Ayatollah Khamenei in The Holy Defense during the Presidency (1981-1988)

The eight-year war of the Ba'ath regime in Iraq against the Islamic Republic of Iran, is one of the greatest honors in the history of the Iranian nation. Ayatollah Khamenei played important roles in policymaking, strategic and tactical levels from the early hours of the imposed war to its end. In the first year of the war, he appeared on the fronts as a representative of the Imam in the Supreme Council of Defense and in military uniform. In the second period, it is related to his presidency that due to the prohibition of Imam Khomeini, it was not possible for him to be on the fronts, but as the second official of the country, he played a role in decisions related to the holy defense. The present study seeks to answer the question of what were Ayatollah Khamenei's major roles in the holy defense during the presidency? The hypothesis is that his main roles include managing the affairs of the country as president, presiding over the Supreme Defense Council, presiding over the Supreme Council for The Support of War, respecting the affairs of the army and the Irgc, and leading foreign policy. Research based on the results is an applied type and documents and information from reliable sources have been collected by library method. Historical descriptive method has been used to analyze the data.