Khadijeh Saqafi
Khadijeh Saqafi was an Iranian revolutionary and the wife of Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran and figurehead of the Iranian Revolution.
Early life
Saqafi was born in in Tehran, the daughter of Hajj Mirza Mohammad Thaqafi-e Tehrani, a respected cleric and merchant.Marriage and later years
Saqafi became the child bride of 29-year-old Ruhollah Khomeini in 1929 or 1931. They had seven children together, although only five survived childhood. The family resided in Qom until Khomeini's exile in 1964. Their son Mostafa died in Iraq in 1977 while in exile, while their second son Ahmad died of cardiac arrest in 1995.Throughout their marriage, Saqafi largely stayed out of the public eye, although she was described as being a strong supporter of her husband's opposition to the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, former President of Iran, referred to Saqafi as the "closest and most patient" supporter of her husband.