Mir-Hossein Mousavi on 2 March 1942 in Khameneh, East Azerbaijan, Iran. He is an ethnic Azerbaijani, whose family originated from Tabriz. His father, Mir-Ismail, was a tea merchant from Tabriz. Mousavi grew up in Khameneh, and moved to Tehran following his graduation from high school in 1958. Mousavi is a relative of fellow Khameneh native Ali Khamenei: Mousavi's grandmother is Khamenei's paternal aunt. He earned his undergraduate degree in architecture from the National University of Tehran (now Shahid Beheshti University), and in 1969 was awarded his master's degree in architecture from the National University of Tehran, focusing primarily on traditional Iranian architecture.
Timeline of the 2009 Iranian election protests watched by about 90,000 spectators and for the sixth straight time ended in a tie. The spectators accused the teams of collusion. They also chanted "Ya Hossein, Mir Hossein" in support of the opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi. The Slogans could be heard on State TV. Police had previously warned against any political activity, even cutting off cellphone service in the area, and some people were reportedly arrested. Unrelated to the Tehran derby, 18 students who were part of a pro-democracy movement were arrested in Tehran. The Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) wrote a letter to Ayatollah