Iran’s Khamenei goes hiking a month after surgery
Supreme leader says doctors recommended walks after prostate procedure to encourage recovery
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TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The official website of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Saturday he went hiking in the mountains north of Tehran just one month after undergoing prostate surgery.
The 75-year-old Khamenei, who is known to be fond of walks and hiking, was accompanied by his entourage on the hike early on Friday morning.
His website, khamenei.ir, said this was Khamenei’s first time hiking since the surgery. It quoted the top leader as saying the hike was arranged on the recommendations of his physicians as physical exercise beneficial to the recovery process.
Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters, has been Iran’s top leader since 1989. He is a powerful defender of Iran’s clerical rule established by his predecessor, the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Meanwhile US Secretary of State John Kerry, European Union negotiator Catherine Ashton and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will meet in Vienna on Wednesday for nuclear talks , the EU said.
Another negotiating round is expected shortly after to include Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia.
There are seven weeks to seal a comprehensive accord easing economic penalties against Iran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program. Failure could mean the process has fallen apart.
Iran has invested billions and says it won’t dismantle a program of energy production that it considers its inherent right.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.
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