On 30 August 1981 , President Rajai held a meeting of Iran 's Supreme Defence Council , along with the Prime Minister Mohammad Javad Bahonar . Witnesses later stated that a trusted aide brought a briefcase into the conference room , set it between the two leaders , and then left . Another person opened the case , triggering a bomb that set the room ablaze and killed Rajai , Bahonar , and three others . This attack occurred two months after the Hafte Tir bombing . The assassin was identified as Massoud Keshmiri , an operative of the People 's Mujahedin of Iran ( also known as the MKO , MEK and PMOI ) , who had infiltrated the Prime Minister 's office in the guise of a state security official . Rajai was buried in Behesht-e Zahra
Hafte Tir bombing
Hafte Tir bombing
Mohammad-Ali Rajai