{"id":4810,"date":"2026-08-19T21:03:23","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T04:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tehranbureau.com\/?p=4810"},"modified":"2026-08-19T21:03:23","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T04:03:23","slug":"quds-force-in-white-collars-meet-the-executives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resanegar.com\/en\/quds-force-in-white-collars-meet-the-executives\/","title":{"rendered":"Quds Force in White Collars: Meet the Executives"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The individuals and organizations behind one of Iran\u2019s most secretive business networks<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The death last year of Iran\u2019s General Qasem Soleimani brought global attention to the Quds Force, the elite IRGC unit he headed. Our previous investigation of Soleimani\u2019s business network<\/a> reveals that he and his comrades were canny businessmen who used their power and connections to launch private business ventures subsidized by the civilian government. An airline, a bank, a car manufacturer, and dozens of engineering firms in Kerman Province are just some of the businesses that enable the Quds Force to finance its elaborate foreign missions.\u200c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is a detailed overview of the individuals and organizations behind one of Iran\u2019s most secretive business networks.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1. Parent company: Mola al-Movahedin Charity (MMC)<\/strong><\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This charitable organization, or bonyad, forms the heart of the Quds Force\u2019s domestic economic activities. Untaxed and unaccountable to the civilian government, this organization forms the ideal legal framework for the Quds Force\u2019s secretive financial transactions.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, several trustees have IRGC service records. Other executives are either current or retired members of the IRGC or related to IRGC officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The organization has no website and a total of two business public registry records. The only sources of information on its members are media interviews<\/a>\u00a0in which an MMC official<\/a> names the trustees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Mola-al-Movahedin<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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MMC Trustees and Executives<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hossein Marashi<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Chairman of Board of Trustees, Trustee<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A cousin of Effat Marashi, Hashemi Rafsanjani\u2019s wife, Hossein Marashi served as the governor general of Kerman for nearly a decade\u00a0and has held other positions such as vice president for cultural heritage and tourism, Hashemi Rafsanjani\u2019s chief of staff, and MP for Kerman in the Majles. Marashi is the founder of Mola al-Movahedin Charity (MMC) and Mahan Air. He was friends<\/a> with Qasem Soleimani, according to Khabar Online.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Qasem Soleimani<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>\u2013 Trustee<\/span>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span> (IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

It is not clear how long Soleimani was a trustee of MMC, but his brother Sohrab is still affiliated with MMC subsidiaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mohammad Ali Karimi<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Chairman of Board of Trustees (IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Before becoming the governor general<\/a> of Kerman Province\u00a0(Oct. 17, 2001\u2013Sept. 16, 2004) in the Khatami administration, Karimi was the intelligence and political deputy of the governor general of Kerman.\u00a0He has also served as an IRGC\u00a0commander<\/a> in Kerman Province. Karimi was the MP for Kerman and Ravar (Qasem Soleimani\u2019s hometown) in the 8th Majles and Hassan Rouhani\u2019s campaign manager for Kerman<\/a> in the 2016 election. He is the son-in-law of the late influential Kerman cleric Seyyed Reza Khoshrou.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He founded the Development and Liberation of Kerman Province party<\/a> along with two other MMC colleagues (see below for more information).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karimi is the current board chairman of Kerman-Bandar Abbas Freeway Construction, Operation and Maintenance Co.<\/strong>, which, in addition to undertaking the Kerman-Bandar Abbas Freeway project and benefiting from its completion, is involved in \u201ccontracting, urban planning, establishing any and all factories and production lines, construction, any and all economic, trade, industrial, service and contracting work, import-export of any and all products and obtaining international and domestic loans.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karimi represents the interests of MMC on the board of several companies. He is the CEO and vice chairman of the Omran Alavi Kerman Development Group<\/strong>.<\/span>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n

Mohammad Javad Fadaei Fathabadi<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Fadaei Fathabadi was the governor general of Kerman<\/a><\/span>3<\/sup><\/a><\/span> until November 11, 2020, when he was replaced.<\/span>4<\/sup><\/a><\/span> In addition to being an MMC trustee since at least 2009, he has represented the interests of MMC on the boards of various companies. Along with Karimi and several other MMC executives, for example, he has served on the board of the Kerman-Bandar Abbas Freeway Construction, Operation and Maintenance Co.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most notable is Fadaei Fathabadi and MMC\u2019s connection to Pars Aluminum Hanza, which is a subsidiary of Stratus Holding<\/a>, owned by the Sadr Hasheminejad family. One of the subsidiaries of Stratus Holding is Eqtesad Novin Bank<\/strong>. At one time, both Mohammad Sadr Hasheminejad and Fadaei Fathabadi served on the board of Aluminum Pars Hanza. While Fadaei Fathabadi is no longer on the board, MMC is still involved with the company via Kerman Development Organization and Omran Alavi Mahan Co.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conflict of interest<\/em>: At the time Fadaei Fathabadi was appointed governor of Kerman in November 2018, he was still on the board of Kerman-Bandar Abbas Freeway Construction, Operation and Maintenance; he remained in this position until June 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ali Mostafavi<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Mostafavi is affiliated with various Kerman-based charities and companies. He was the dean of Kerman\u2019s Bahonar University in the Khatami administration and has served as the head of the Coordination Council of Kerman Province Reformists. He is a trustee of the Bahmanyar University<\/a> as well as the Haj Ali Akbar Sanati Bonyad<\/a>. He is also one of the founders of the Development and Liberation of Kerman Province Party (DLKP)<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the exception of two individuals, the following men are both MMC trustees and members of its most recent board of executives:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hamid Arabnejad Khanouki<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, Board Treasurer (rumored IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Khanouki is the CEO of Mahan Air, a position he has held for nearly two decades. He also holds positions at several Mahan Air\/MMC\u2013affiliated companies, including Pardis Parham Kish and Pardis Lalim Development. Public records show Qasem Soleimani\u2019s brother Sohrab represented one of the subsidiaries of MMC on the board of Pardis Parham Kish while Khanouki was its board chairman. Sohrab Soleimani is still on the board of Pardis Lalim Development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khanouki is said to have been close to Qasem Soleimani by opposition news outlets in the diaspora. He is rumored to have an IRGC service record and has family members in the service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahmad Moradalizaeh<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, Board Chairman<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Moradalizadeh is involved with various MMC subsidiaries. He is the board chairman of Mahan Air and CEO of Kerman-Bandar Abbas Freeway Construction, Operation and Maintenance Co., which as noted above undertakes major development projects in Kerman. Over the years, Moradalizadeh has held important positions at vital national companies including the Tamin-owned National Iranian Copper Industry Co. and its numerous subsidiaries. He is also on the board of a company called Persian Gulf\u00a0Water Desalination and Transmission<\/a>, which aims to desalinate and transfer water from the Persian Gulf to Hormozgan, Yazd, Kerman, and Isfahan<\/a> provinces. Moradalizadeh is also an advisor<\/a> to the Ministry of Industries and Mines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shariyar Zolali<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, CEO, Board Member<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Zolali is on the board of various MMC entities, including Mahan Air (a position he has held for nearly two decades), Khayyer Kerman Trade Co., and Omran Mehr Shahdad. Zolali is also on the board of various Kerman-based charities along with members of the Arabnejad Khanouki family.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ali Ghazanfari<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, Board Secretary<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Ghazanfari was the governor of Kerman<\/a> from March 21, 1981, to March 20, 1987. He represents the interests of MMC with Hazar Kerman Trade Co. and Karmania Auto Co. and serves on the board of Saman Insurance, which belongs to Bank Saman. \u200cBank Saman and its subsidiaries are affiliated with Sadouq Bonyad<\/a>, which is overseen by the office of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei<\/a> and has ties to former president Seyyed Mohammad Khatami<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ali Pahlavanzadeh<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, Board Member<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

He is a member of the board of Kerman Drug Industries Co., which has ties to the Khomeini Shrine Bonyad<\/strong> and the Khomeini Works Publication House<\/strong>, <\/strong>both of which have received billions of tomans<\/a> in the Iranian budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mohammad Farshad<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 Trustee, Inspector<\/span>5<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Farshad was the governor of Kahnouj, Kerman Province, in the 1980s. His past positions<\/a> include director general of the Iranian National Tax Administration office of Guilan Province in the Rafsanjani and Khatami administrations, and intelligence and political deputy of the governor general of Kerman in the Khatami administration.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Possible conflict of interest<\/em>: Since August 27, 2017<\/a>, he has been the head<\/a> of Kerman City Council. Farshad was the board chairman of a company called Farazan Consulting Engineers until October 2019. According to its website<\/a>,\u00a0this firm has undertaken major Kerman development projects such as the Kerman Trade Chamber building, Kerman Seminary building, Zarand City Morgue, and the Zarand and Rafsanjan Zoorkhaneh<\/a>. Farazan Consulting Engineers was founded by Mohammad Javad Fadaei Fathabadi<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Farshad is also one of the founders and the secretary general of the Development and Liberation of Kerman Province Party (DLKP)<\/a> (see below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hamid Aslani<\/strong> \u2013 Vice Chairman (IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Aslani, an IRGC commander, has served as the deputy executive director of the IRGC command, head of the Sacred Defense Documents and Research Center, and vice chairman of the IRGC Retirees Co. He was recently appointed<\/a> executive director of the Majles by Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf<\/a>, himself a former Revolutionary Guard (for more information, see below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahmad<\/strong> Yousofzadeh<\/strong> \u2013 Alternate Inspector\u00a0<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Yousofzadeh is an academic and writer<\/span>6<\/sup><\/a><\/span> whose 2015 book, Those 23<\/em>, about his time as a POW in Iraq was publicly praised by Qasem Soleimani<\/a> in an open letter implying he had had personal contact with Yousofzadeh. He is one of the founding members of the Development and Liberation of Kerman Province Party (DLKP)<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yousofzadeh is the director of cultural affairs at Kerman\u2019s Shahid Bahonar University and was managing editor of Roudbar Zamin<\/em><\/a> newspaper, which recently went out<\/a> of business.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Mahan Air (MMC subsidiary)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mahan Air\u2014100 percent owned by MMC\u2014has been sanctioned by the US Treasury<\/a> since 2011 \u201cfor providing financial, material and technological support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The story of Mahan Air\u2019s founding, as told by Marashi, is a mind-boggling account of how the Rafsanjani administration unscrupulously transferred public funds to private businesses owned by Rafsanjani\u2019s relatives. Marashi recounted his version in a 2010 interview, a copy of which can be found on the Shafaf website<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the Rafsanjani presidency, Egyptian businessman Ibrahim Kamel approached MMC with a business venture. Kamel suggested starting an airline in Iran with four planes he already owned. After meeting with Marashi, the pair agreed on a 50-50 partnership, in which Kamal would cover 100 percent of the startup costs, half of which MMC would pay back over time.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later, MMC reneged on even this financial obligation when Marashi learned that Egypt owed the Iranian government millions of dollars in unpaid loans predating the Islamic Revolution. Marashi negotiated with then-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a relative of his, to allow Egypt to repay part of this loan directly to MMC by financing the startup costs of Mahan Air. Marashi claims to have repaid the rial equivalent of the debt to the government, but there are no public records of such a transaction ever taking place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mahan Air Board Members and Other Executives<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hamid Arabnejad Khanouki \u2013 CEO, Vice Chairman (rumored IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

(see above)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahmad Moradalizaeh \u2013 Board Chairman <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

(see above)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shariyar Zolali \u2013 Board Member\u00a0<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

(see above)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ali Arjomandi \u2013 Inspector\u00a0<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Arjomandi is the inspector for various other MMC subsidiaries including Omran Alavi Kerman Development Group. He was the CEO<\/a> of Sarcheshmeh Copper Investment Co. until November 2020. He was the vice chairman of Arman Catering<\/a>, which provides inflight meals for both Mahan Air and Aseman Air, which is a subsidiary of the National Retirement Fund. He continues to have extensive ties to Sarcheshmeh Copper Investment\u2019s many subsidiaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reza Namakshenas \u2013 Mahan CFO<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Namakshenas is the founder and a board member of several Mahan Air subsidiaries. He has shared business interests with the Arabnejad Khanouki family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hamid Aslani<\/a> \u2013 HR Deputy for Mahan Air (IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Aslani is currently the board chairman of Mahan Safir Mehr Co., which, according to public records, transports flight crews to and from airports, offers customs services, and is involved in import-export and construction and renovation activities. The company was founded by Reza Namakshenas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aslani is also the board chairman of Sepehr Kaveh Kish International, an import-export company registered on Kish Island, as are scores of Sepah Cooperative Foundation (BTS)<\/a> businesses.<\/span>7<\/sup><\/a><\/span> This company was also founded by Reza Namakshenas. Aslani was once on the board of a Mahan subsidiary called Pardis Parham Kish (see below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gholam Reza Shams Nouraei \u2013 Mahan Herasat (rumored IRGC<\/a>)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Herasat<\/a> are Intelligence Ministry branches established in every civilian organization and university in the country, tasked with identifying potential security threats. Herasat officials reportedly surveil employees (e.g., by monitoring their communications), act as informants, and influence hiring and firing practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to an Iran International report<\/a>, Shams Nouraei was appointed as the new head of the Mahan Air Herasat at the beginning of the pandemic after some Mahan flight crew went to the press about being forced to travel to China\u00a0during the early weeks of the COVID-19 crisis. It is widely believed that the airline trips to China and lax quarantine measures led to the spread of the virus among Mahan employees and their families. As his first order of business, Shams Nouraei added a confidentiality clause to the contracts of all Mahan employees to prevent them from talking to the press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shams Nouraei is also a member of the board of Omran Mehr Shahdad, which is an MMC subsidiary. Omran Mehr Shahdad is another multipurpose company that trains pilots, buys and sells airplanes, helicopters, and gliders, staffs airports, and rents airplanes in addition to being involved in unrelated activities such as \u201cagriculture, production, trade, import-export, tourism, livestock, construction and road and runway construction.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He is also the board chairman of Botia-Mahan Aviation College and the CEO of Malak Avin Investment, which states its business fields as \u201cany and all permissible trade activities, import-export, investment in other companies through partnership, acquisition or stocks, participation in economic domestic and international\u00a0projects . . . customs services, management consulting . . . and attracting foreign investment.\u201d Mahan CFO Reza Namakshenas is the board chairman of Malak Avin Investment.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sohrab Soleimani \u2013 Board Member of Mahan Subsidiaries<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The younger brother of Qasem Soleimani, Sohrab has worked for a long time in the Iranian prison system. He was director general of the Tehran Province prisons<\/a> until 2016, and is currently the board chairman of the Prisons Organization Employee Housing Co-op.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sohrab Soleimani is also a member of the Pardis Parham Kish Company, whose many activities include \u201cfounding any production, service, tourism, trade and urban development companies,\u201d \u201cstock trade,\u201d \u201ccompany mergers, ownership transfers and dissolutions inside the country and internationally,\u201d and \u201ccontracting and construction of commercial and residential units domestically and internationally,\u201d and \u201c any and permissible trade and business activities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pardis Parham Kish was founded by Hamid Arabnejad Khanouki (Mahan CEO), and Reza Namakshenas (Mahan CFO). The company is registered at a Kish Island address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sohrab Soleimani is the vice chairman of another Mahan subsidiary, Pardis Lalim Development, which, according to public records, \u201cbuilds tourist facilities, hotels and apartment hotels, fast-food and seafood restaurants, operates eco tours, related trade activities, participates in government and private tenders,\u201d in addition to \u201cobtaining loans and lines of credit from domestic or international banks and financial institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hamid Askari or Asgari ( Arjasi) \u2013 Board Member of Mahan subsidiaries (IRGC)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Askari was a close friend of Qasem Soleimani and was involved in creating the 41st Tharallah Division<\/a> in Kerman, which Soleimani commanded from its inception until the end of the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Askari is one of the founders and current board chairman of Arman Catering, which provides the inflight meals for Mahan. Its articles of incorporation state that the company can \u201cinvest in other companies\u201d and \u201cconduct any and all trade and business activities inside the country and abroad.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Askari is also the board chairman of Pouyesh Salehin Investment and a founding member of the Emdadgaran Ashura Charity of Kerman, a branch of the Emdadgaran Ashura Charity (EAC), founded by IRGC commander Yahya Rahim Safavi<\/a>. The EAC of Kerman charity states that it works for \u201csocial justice\u201d and \u201clays the foundation for providing aid, healthcare, education and financial consulting\u2026 to the underprivileged.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Askari\u2019s most notable business associations is with a company called Liner Transport Kish (LTK). This company was sanctioned by the US Treasury\u00a0in 2010 for aiding \u201cterrorist activities outside of Iran.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LTK\u2019s articles of incorporation state that it \u201cbuys, sells, operates, leases, rents ships and watercrafts for the transport of people, goods, fuel and water,\u201d among many other activities. Askari is the board chairman of LTK and founded the company along with Bahman Abolqasemzadeh (vice chairman) and Seyyed Jabbar Hosseini<\/a> (CEO, board member), the latter of whom was sanctioned by the US Treasury for coordinating Iranian shipments across the Levant as well as to Sudan in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is virtually no information available on Bahman Abolqasemzadeh with the exception of two photos of him<\/a> in military uniform<\/a> from the Iran-Iraq War, and a report on the Denmark-based Iranglobal website<\/a>, which claims that Abolqasemzadeh (aka \u201cBlack Bahman\u201d) was a key figure in the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Pouyesh Salehin Investment Holding (MMC affiliate)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Established in Kerman in 2005, Pouyesh Salehin Investment Holding<\/a> (PSIH ) has nine subsidiaries including Resalat Bank and Mohammadian Oil & Gas Co.<\/a>, which lists Mahan Air as one of its clients and which has received several \u201cjihadi management\u201d awards.<\/span>8<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Little information is available about PSIH shareholders, but one of its subsidiaries, Kerman Steel Industries, states on its\u00a0 website<\/a> that Kerman Steel Industries<\/span>9<\/sup><\/a><\/span> was \u201cgiven to PSIH, whose shareholders are families of martyrs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PSIH was founded by:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n