TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran's state TV is reporting that Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, head of the Expediency Council advisory body to the country's Supreme Leader, has died at the age of 70. </s> Former Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani died on Sunday aged 82 after suffering a heart attack, according to state media.

Rafsanjani was a key figure in the foundation of the Islamic republic in 1979, and served as president from 1989 to 1997.

He was taken to the Shohada hospital, in northern Tehran, earlier on Sunday with heart problems, the ISNA and Fars news agencies reported.

"Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was transferred to hospital after a heart attack," said Reza Soleimani, a speaker of the Expediency Council, Iran's main political arbitration body which Rafsanjani chaired.

"Despite the efforts of the doctors he died," he said, quoted by state broadcaster IRIB.

READ MORE: Dear Iran

Al Jazeera's Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Tehran, said Rafsanjani's death was described as a "huge loss" by Iranian officials.

"His death couldn't come at a worse time for the country because there are disputes between the current government and the judiciary and Rafsanjani was seen as a mediator," she said.

"He would advise on how to deal with such situations in the country. With the news of his death many people are in absolute shock."

Following the announcement of Rafsanjani's death, a crowd gathered outside the hospital in Tehran's Tajrish neighbourhood where the former president had been taken.

'Difficult and overwhelming'

Rafsanjani was born on August 25, 1934, in the village of Nough, in southern Iran, into a wealthy family.

He studied theology in the holy city of Qom before entering politics in 1963 after the shah's police arrested the founder of the Islamic republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

A confidant of Khomeini, Rafsanjani was the speaker of parliament for two consecutive terms until Khomeini's death in 1989.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, paid tribute to Rafsanjani as a "companion of struggle" despite differences between them.

"The loss of my companion of struggle, whose cooperation with me dated back 59 years, is difficult and overwhelming," Khamenei said in a statement quoted by the state broadcaster's website.

"The different opinions and interpretations at time in this long period could never entirely break up the friendship" between us, he added.

READ MORE: Iran 37 years later - Any hope for reforms?

Rafsanjani was an influential figure in Iran, and headed the Expediency Council, a body which is intended to resolve disputes between the parliament and the Guardian Council.

He was also a member of the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body that selects the supreme leader, Iran's most powerful figure.

Rafsanjani has been described as "a pillar of the Islamic revolution".

His pragmatic policies, economic liberalisation, better relations with the West and empowering Iran's elected bodies, appealed to many Iranians but was despised by hardliners.

His death is a big blow to moderates and reformists, depriving them of their most influential supporter in the Islamic establishment.

He is survived by his wife and five children. </s> A man weeps during a mourning ceremony for former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died on Sunday after suffering a heart attack, at the Jamaran mosque in north Tehran, Iran, Monday, Jan. 9, 2017.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran is holding an hours-long funeral ceremony for the late Iranian president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, following his death over the weekend at the age of 82.

Thousands of Tehran residents and government officials have gathered on the Tehran University campus, where Rafsanjani's casket is on display. Authorities have declared Tuesday a public holiday so Iranians can commemorate Rafsanjani.

 

 Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will hold prayers by Rafsanjani's casket.

Rafsanjani will be buried in mausoleum of the late leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Rafsanjani, a close aide to both Khomeini and Khamenei, served as president from 1989 to 1997. He was a major supporter of moderate President Hassan Rouhani and served as a go-between for reformers seeking outreach to the world and hard-liners. </s> Funerals began Friday morning in the Iranian capital for 17 victims of two attacks this week by Islamic State militants, the first time in recent memory Sunni jihadists managed to strike the heart of the Shiite Islamic Republic.

Six attackers died — including five men and a woman who blew herself up — and several were detained in connection with the attacks at Iran’s parliament and the tomb of Iran’s revolutionary leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. More than 50 people were wounded in the morning attack on parliament, which was in session.

According to an Iranian government statement, the male attackers had returned to the country last summer after fighting for Islamic State in Mosul, Iraq, and Raqqah, Syria, and had “intended to carry out terrorist operations in religious cities.” The statement did not say if the attackers were Iranian citizens.

Reza Seifollahi, deputy chief of the Supreme National Security Council, told the independent newspaper Shargh that the male attackers were Iranian.

Before a funeral procession at parliament early Friday for guards killed there, Iran's supreme leader said the attacks will add to Iranians’ hatred of the United States and Saudi Arabia. In the wake of the attacks, Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard also released a statement implying that the U.S. and Saudi Arabia were to blame.

Khamenei said the Wednesday attacks, "Will not damage the Iranian nation's determination and the obvious result is nothing except an increase in hate for the governments of the United States and their stooges in the region like Saudi."

Saudi Arabia has denied responsibility for the attacks.

Ali Larijani, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, also spoke out ahead of the funerals.

“Daesh is an international danger," he said, using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State.

Mourners gathered outside the parliament complex Friday to watch the funeral procession, which followed a downtown candlelight vigil overnight.

Mohammad Rasouli, 66, sitting on the ground with a group across the street, said it was his duty to attend the procession and an afternoon funeral expected at 2 p.m. during weekly prayers.

"I came with my friends to show our solidarity with our supreme leader and nation. From here we go to Friday prayers. If we do not go there, Daesh will be emboldened," he said.

During the procession through parliament, the heads of Iran’s executive, legislative and judiciary branches all paid their respects, including President Hasan Rouhani, Larjani and the head of the judiciary, Sadeq Larijani Amoli.

Parliamentary staff who survived the attack also attended the procession under tight security. They stood alongside friends and family of the victims, who dressed in black. </s> TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran is holding an hours-long funeral ceremony for the late Iranian president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, following his death over the weekend at the age of 82.

Thousands of Tehran residents and government officials have gathered on the Tehran University campus, where Rafsanjani’s casket is on display. Authorities have declared Tuesday a public holiday so Iranians can commemorate Rafsanjani.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is later to hold prayers by Rafsanjani’s casket.

Rafsanjani will be buried in mausoleum of the late leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Rafsanjani, a close aide to both Khomeini and Khamenei, served as president from 1989 to 1997. He was a major supporter of moderate President Hassan Rouhani and served as a go-between for reformers seeking outreach to the world and hard-liners. </s> TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran's state TV is reporting that Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, head of the Expediency Council advisory body to the country's Supreme Leader, has died at the age of 70.

The Monday report said Shahroudi was long sick and hospitalized in north Tehran. Reportedly, he was suffering from gastrointestinal cancer.

Shahroudi, a relatively moderate cleric, was appointed as chairman of the Expediency Council in 2017 by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The body arbitrates on differences between parliament and the Guardian Council, a constitutional watchdog.

Shahroudi was also chief of the judiciary from 1999 to 2009.

Born and raised in Najaf, Iraq, Sharoudi was close to the late leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomenei, who spent years in exile there. </s> Story highlights Rafsanjani died Sunday at the age of 82

He will be buried in Khomeini's crypt

Tehran (CNN) Hundreds of thousands of Iranians gathered in and around Tehran University Tuesday for the funeral of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.

State television showed crowds pouring onto the streets around the campus where the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, led prayers for Rafsanjani despite the differences between the two men.

President Hassan Rouhani, parliament speaker Ali Larijani and his brother, judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, joined the prayers.

Rafsanjani died Sunday at the age of 82 after suffering a heart attack.

Three days of official mourning began on Monday.

JUST WATCHED Mohsen Milani, professor of politics at the University of South Florida, talks about Rafsanjani's legacy. Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Mohsen Milani, professor of politics at the University of South Florida, talks about Rafsanjani's legacy. 04:31

Read More </s> Mourners pay respects to former Iranian leader Rafsanjani

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Mourners are paying respect to former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as Iran observes three days of mourning following his death.

President Hassan Rouhani and his administration on Monday appeared at a mosque in northern Tehran, where Rafsanjani's body was brought.

Residents in the Iranian capital also expressed their grief at the loss of Rafsanjani, who suffered a heart attack on Sunday and died at the age of 82.

CAPTION CORRECTS THE LOCATION OF THE CHILDREN - Hassan Khomeini, center, grandson of Iran's late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, mourns over the coffin of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, as Rafsanjani's son Mahdi, second left, comforts his sister Fatemeh, at the Jamaran mosque in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017. Rafsanjani died Sunday after a decades-long career in the ruling elite, where his moderate views were not always welcome but his cunning guided him through revolution, war and the country's turbulent politics. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Maziar Rezaei, a real estate agent, told The Associated Press: "I don't know who is going to fill his place. He kept Iran safe from hard-liners for so long."

Zahra Qorbani, a tailor, says she is worried about her children's future. She described the late leader as a "man who always tried to fix Iran's relations with neighbors and the world."

Hassan Khomeini, center, grandson of Iran's late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, mourns over the coffin of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani at the Jamaran mosque in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017. Rafsanjani died Sunday after a decades-long career in the ruling elite, where his moderate views were not always welcome but his cunning guided him through revolution, war and the country's turbulent politics. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Family members, relatives, and officials mourn while surrounding the coffin of Iran's former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, top left, at the Jamaran mosque in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017. Rafsanjani died Sunday after a decades-long career in the ruling elite, where his moderate views were not always welcome but his cunning guided him through revolution, war and the country's turbulent politics. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

FILE -- In this May 11, 2013 file photo, former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, waves to journalists, as he registers his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election, with his daughter Fatemeh, second right, at the interior ministry, in Tehran, Iran. Iranian state media said Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017 that Rafsanjani has died at age 82 after having been hospitalized because of a heart condition. Rafsanjani, who served as president from 1989 to 1997, was a leading politician who often played kingmaker in the country's turbulent politics. He supported President Hassan Rouhani. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

FILE -- In this Aug. 4, 2013 file photo, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani., right, and former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, wave, as they arrive for Rouhani's swearing-in ceremony at the parliament, in Tehran, Iran. Iranian state media said Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017 that Rafsanjani has died at age 82 after having been hospitalized because of a heart condition. Rafsanjani, who served as president from 1989 to 1997, was a leading politician who often played kingmaker in the country's turbulent politics. He supported President Rouhani. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File) </s> Iranians gather for funeral of former leader Rafsanjani

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran is holding an hours-long funeral ceremony for the late Iranian president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, following his death over the weekend at the age of 82.

Thousands of Tehran residents and government officials have gathered on the Tehran University campus, where Rafsanjani's casket is on display. Authorities have declared Tuesday a public holiday so Iranians can commemorate Rafsanjani.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is later to hold prayers by Rafsanjani's casket.

A man weeps during a mourning ceremony for former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died on Sunday after suffering a heart attack, at the Jamaran mosque in north Tehran, Iran, Monday, Jan. 9, 2017. Mourners from all walks of life in Iran ¿ from the country's president to passers-by on the street ¿ paid their respects Monday to the late Iranian leader Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Rafsanjani will be buried in mausoleum of the late leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Rafsanjani, a close aide to both Khomeini and Khamenei, served as president from 1989 to 1997. He was a major supporter of moderate President Hassan Rouhani and served as a go-between for reformers seeking outreach to the world and hard-liners.

Front pages of the Monday, Jan. 9, 2017, edition of Iranian newspapers, published with pictures of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died on Sunday after suffering a heart attack. Newspapers in Iran published front-page photographs of Rafsanjani, while state television aired archival clips of his comments and speeches. Mourners from all walks of life in Iran - from the country's president to passers-by on the street - paid their respects to him. The country is observing three days of mourning. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Former Prime Minister of Iran and one of the founders of OPEC Jamshid Amouzegar, who was involved in the 1975 OPEC siege, dies at the age of 93.