Prominent hardline Iranian cleric dies at 85

Ayatollah Ali Meshkini, a founding member of Iran's Islamic regime and leader of an assembly that oversees the country's supreme leader, died Monday. He was 85 years old. State television said he died of a lung infection.

The ayatollah was the head of the Assembly of Experts. The 86-member government body can in theory reprimand or even dismiss Iran's supreme leader, a position currently held by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. (AP)