[caption id="attachment_153033" align="alignright" width="204"] Iran's President Hassan Rouhani visits Qom on Feb 25, 2015.[/caption]

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited Iran’s holy city of Qom, located about 130 kilometers (80 miles) southwest of Tehran, on Feb. 25. Qom is considered the religious capital of Iran for its seminary, the prominent presence of clerics and grand ayatollahs, and the Holy Shrine of Fatima Masoumeh, sister of the eighth Shiite Imam.

Grand ayatollahs living in Qom have made this city unique and also an important center of power that has played a pivotal role in Iran’s politics. Today, the religious capital of Iran is where some of the country's most significant decisions are made. The implications of the city's opinion on political issues cannot be underestimated.

In February 2015, a news story alleged that Iran’s Ministry of Culture issued a license for a solo female singer's album titled “Love You, O Ancient Land.” Following the news — which the ministry quickly denied — some of Qom's senior clerics protested the authorization of this album, though their objections were contrary to a decree issued by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic, that was in favor of solo female singing.

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This article was written by Rohollah Faghihi for Al-Monitor on March 13, 2015. Rohollah Faghihi is a journalist who has worked for various Iranian media organizations including the Entekhab news site.