Why YOU should care about the anti-American elected to lead Iran's most powerful religious body

Ahmed Jannati is considered the most radical senior cleric of Islam.

After a Tuesday vote, Iran's Assembly of Experts elected 89-year-old Ahmed Jannati as its next supreme leader.

Jannati is famous for his extremely conservative views of Islam and is now in a position to choose Iran's next Supreme Leader.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Jannati received support from 51 of the 88 members of Iran's Assembly of Experts and will serve as the speaker for the next two years.

If there is any question concerning Jannati's views, keep in mind he is notorious for chanting "death to America and Israel" during Friday prayers and upholds Islam's righteous stance on domesticating women.

According to NBC News, Jannati has also called other Muslim countries to assassinate Salman Rushdie, author of "The Satanic Verses," which is considered a blasphemous work.

So why should the United States care that Jannati has come into more power? He now has the power to determine whether relations between the US and Iran will continue to head into friendly waters or if the relationship will sour.

Despite Iran having a president, the real power lies with its Supreme Leader, who Jannati will, in part, decide.

Should Jannati elect a hard-liner Supreme Leader, all the progress between the West and Iran - which includes the nuclear agreement - can be lost.

Unfortunately, Jannati's role now jeopardizes Iran's relationship with the West but whether the next Supreme Leader will destroy what little progress the country has made remains to be seen.

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