{{Short description|Iranian Ambassador and politician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2022}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Nasrollah Entezam | native_name = {{nobold|نصرالله انتظام}} | image = Nas entezam.jpg | alt = A middle-aged man wearing a suit. He has a mustache and slicked-back hair and is looking just to the camera's left. | office1 = [[France–Iran relations|Iranian Ambassador to France]] | term_start1 = February 1958 | term_end1 = February 1962 | office2 = 22nd [[List of ambassadors of Iran to the United States|Iranian Ambassador to US]] | term_start2 = 22 October 1953 | term_end2 = January 1956 | predecessor2 = [[Abbas Aram]] | successor2 = [[Ali Amini]] | office3 = 19th [[List of ambassadors of Iran to the United States|Iranian Ambassador to US]] | term_start3 = 10 June 1950 | term_end3 = 22 September 1952 | predecessor3 = [[Hossein Ala'|Hosein Alā]] | successor3 = [[Allah-Yar Saleh]] | office4 = [[Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations]] | term_start4 = 1 April 1947 | term_end4 = 1 April 1950 | predecessor4 = [[Hassan Taqizadeh]] | successor4 = [[Aligholi Ardalan]] | office5 = President of the [[United Nations General Assembly]] | term_start5 = 1 January 1950 | term_end5 = 1 January 1951 | predecessor5 = [[Carlos P. Romulo]] | successor5 = [[Luis Padilla Nervo]] | birth_date = {{birth date|1900|2|16|df=y}} | birth_place = [[Tehran]], [[Qajar Iran|Guarded Domains of Persia]] | death_date = {{death date and age|1980|12|19|1900|2|16|df=y}} | death_place = Tehran, [[Iran]] | resting_place = [[Behesht-e Zahra]] | party = [[Iran Novin Party|New Iran Party]]<br />[[Rastakhiz Party]] | relations = [[Abdollah Entezam]] (brother)<br>[[Hume Horan]] (nephew) | alma_mater = [[University of Tehran]]<br>[[University of Paris]] | occupation = Ambassador<br>Diplomat<br>Politician<br>Minister | caption = Entezam in 1950 | native_name_lang = fa }}
'''Nasrollah Entezam''' ({{langx|fa|نصرالله انتظام}}; also spelled '''Naṣr-Allāh Enteẓām'''; 16 February 1900 – 19 December 1980) was a diplomat, politician, and minister, as well as Iranian Ambassador to the [[United States]] and [[France]].<ref name=bio/><ref name=encyclopedia/> He was the first Iranian Ambassador to the [[United Nations]] from 1947 to 1950 and President of the UN General Assembly during its [[Fifth session of the United Nations General Assembly|fifth session]] in 1950.<ref name=bookbio/><ref name=azizi/>
==Biography== ===Early life=== Nasrollah Entezam was born in [[Tehran]], Iran on 16 February 1900 into a [[Qajar Iran|Qajari]] family.<ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/> His father Al-Saltanah Entezam and older brother [[Abdullah Entezam]] were also diplomats and politicians and his grandfather was the Minister of Order under [[Naser al-Din Shah Qajar]].<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=azizi/><ref name=voa>{{cite web|url=https://ir.voanews.com/a/nasrollah-entezam-iranian-un-general-assembly-president-/1506572.html|title=ریاست یک ایرانی بر مجمع عمومی سازمان ملل متحد|date=2021-03-02|publisher=VOA News|last=Surasrafil|first=Behrooz|access-date=2022-02-20|language=fa}}</ref> His mother, Khorshid Laqa Ghaffari, was descended from the Ghaffari family of [[Kashan]].<ref name=azizi/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ghaffaris.com|title=About|date=n.d.|publisher=Ghaffaris.com|access-date=2022-02-25}}</ref> Nasrollah and his brother both studied at the [[German Embassy School Tehran#History|German Embassy School in Tehran]].<ref name=iranica>{{cite web|url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/entezam|title=ENTEẒĀM, ʿABD-ALLĀH and NAṢR-ALLĀH|date=2011|publisher=Encyclopaedia Iranica|access-date=2022-02-24}}</ref> Entezam then studied political science at the [[University of Tehran]] and law at the University of Paris.<ref name=bio/><ref name=voa/><ref name=azizi/><ref>{{cite thesis |last=Imseis|first=Ardi|date=2018|title=The United Nations and the question of Palestine: A study in international legal subalternity|type=Dissertation|publisher=University of Cambridge|url=https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1810/290775/PhD%20Thesis%20to%20be%20Bound%20Imseis.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|access-date=2022-02-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121023834/https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1810/290775/PhD%20Thesis%20to%20be%20Bound%20Imseis.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|archive-date=2022-01-21}}</ref>
===Career=== In 1918, following [[World War I]], Entezam joined the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Iran)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] before serving as the Secretary to the Iranian Legations in [[Paris]], [[Warsaw]], [[Bern]], and [[London]] between 1926 and 1929.<ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/><ref name=encyclopedia/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/ga/president/bios/bio05.shtml|title=Nasrollah Entezam (Iran)|date=n.d.|publisher=United Nations|access-date=2022-02-25|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170711025045/https://www.un.org/ga/president/bios/bio05.shtml|archive-date=2017-07-11}}</ref> He represented the Iranian government at the [[London Economic Conference|World Economic Conference]] in [[London]] in 1933 and was Iran's [[chargé d'affaires]] in Bern and deputy head of the Iranian delegation between 1934 and 1938.<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/> During the [[Anglo-Persian Oil Company]] dispute in 1932-1933, Entezam served as secretary to the Iranian delegation and accompanied [[Ali-Akbar Davar]] and [[Hossein Ala']] to Geneva to present Iran's case at the [[League of Nations]].<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=iranica/> Entezam left Bern in 1938 to return to Tehran, where he was the Director of the Political Department of the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Iran)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] for four years.<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/>
During the [[Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran|Anglo-Soviet occupation]] of Iran during [[World War II]], Entezam served in a number of positions, including [[Health minister|Minister of Public Health]], [[Ministry of Information and Communications Technology of Iran|Minister of Post and Telegraph]], [[Ministry of Roads and Urban Development|Minister of Roads]], and, in 1944-1945, [[Minister of Foreign Affairs (Iran)|Minister of Foreign Affairs]] under Prime Minister [[Morteza-Qoli Bayat|Bayat]].<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/><ref name=voa/> Following the occupation and [[Reza Shah]]'s abdication in September 1941, until the appointment of [[Mohammad Ali Foroughi]] as Court Minister in March 1942, Nasrollah was "fully in charge of the court" and developed close ties with [[Mohammad-Reza Shah]].<ref name=iranica/> In 1942, he was also appointed [[Grand Master of Ceremonies]] at the [[Golestan Palace|Imperial Palace]].<ref name=examiner/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,813419,00.html|title=International: The Nichevo Line|date=1950-10-02|publisher=Time|access-date=2022-02-24}}</ref> He continued in foreign affairs following the war by representing Iran at the [[San Francisco Conference]] in 1945, the gathering that established the [[United Nations]], and at the first session of the [[United Nations General Assembly|General Assembly]] in 1946.<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://avadiplomatic.com/en/archive/9934|title=UNIC, UNHCR, UNODC, UN-HABITAT, UNIDO, UNDP and IOM were set up and enthusiastically managed by the UN communications team|date=2016-10-20|publisher=AVA Diplomatic|access-date=2022-02-20}}</ref> In 1947, he became Iran's [[Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations|permanent representative]] to the UN and joined the [[United Nations Special Committee on Palestine]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Ben-Dror |first=Elad |title=UNSCOP and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: The Road to Partition |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2022 |isbn=978-1032059631 |location=London |language=English}}</ref> and in 1949 "served 'with distinction' as chairman of the Assembly's Special Political Committee."<ref name=bio/><ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=azizi/> He also chaired a UN sub-committee about the permanent UN headquarters location and in 1949 was an initial candidate for president of the UN General Assembly.<ref name=bio/><ref name=encyclopedia/> He eventually withdrew from the election in favor of [[Carlos P. Romulo]] of the Philippines "in interests of Asian unity."<ref name=bio/>
[[Image:Mohammad Mossadegh, Trygve Lie, and Nasrollah Entezam.jpg|thumb|left|Entezam with Prime minister [[Mohammad Mosaddegh]] (right) and [[Trygve Lie]] (center)]]
During the third session of the General Assembly in 1948, he was chairman of the [[United Nations Trusteeship Council]] and the Special Committee on Methods and Procedures.<ref name=bookbio/> In 1948, he was chairman of the ad hoc Political Committee and in 1950, he was a member of the Cease Fire Committee for Korea and was elected President of the Assembly.<ref name=bookbio>{{cite book|editor=Christian E. Burckel|title=Who's who in the United Nations: Volume 1|url={{Google books|1pVaAAAAIAAJ|page=140|plainurl=yes}}|page=140}}</ref><ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/> The [[Korean War]] occurred during his presidency and Entezam, wanting both economic aid from the USA and improved relations with Russia, strove to "tread a delicate path while maintaining a judicious appearance of fairness to all."<ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/> The Assembly also passed the [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution 377|Uniting for Peace]] resolution during this time, and Entezam helped establish a committee to consider granting UN membership to [[China]] and passed a resolution "guaranteeing Korea's postwar freedom, unity, and independence."<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/> In 1952, he was expected to become the UN's next [[Secretary-General of the United Nations|Secretary-General]] but [[Dag Hammarskjöld]] was instead elected.<ref name=encyclopedia/>
Entezam was given the title [[Ambassador#Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary|Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary]] by the United States in 1950 for serving as a diplomat at the [[Embassy of Iran, Washington, D.C.|Embassy]] in the USA.<ref>{{cite book|author=United States Congress|title=Official Congressional Directory: Volume 82|url={{Google books|yTUDvqrHWu4C|page=534|plainurl=yes}}|page=534}}</ref> He was the first non-Christian diplomat at the General Assembly in New York and served as [[List of Iranian Ambassadors to the United States|Iran ambassador to the United States]] until 1952, when he was removed and replaced by [[Allah-Yar Saleh]] under Prime Minister [[Mohammad Mosaddegh]].<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=azizi>{{cite web|url=https://www.independentpersian.com/node/21701/%D8%B3%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%B3%DB%8C-%D9%88-%D8%A7%D8%AC%D8%AA%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B9%DB%8C/%D9%86%D8%B5%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%B8%D8%A7%D9%85%C2%A0%D8%AA%D9%86%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%A7%DB%8C%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%DB%8C-%D8%B1%D8%A6%DB%8C%D8%B3-%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%88%D9%85%DB%8C-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%84%D9%84|title=نصرالله انتظام: تنها ایرانی رئیس مجمع عمومی سازمان ملل|date=2019-09-23|last=Azizi|first=Arash|publisher=The Independent Persian|access-date=2022-02-20|language=fa}}</ref> Entezam was instead installed at the [[International Court of Justice]] in [[The Hague]].<ref name=voa/> Following the [[Operation Ajax|Iran coup of August 1953]], Entezam returned to his post in the USA.<ref name=encyclopedia/> He then worked as the [[France–Iran relations|Ambassador to France]] from 1958 to 1962.<ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=bio/><ref name=azizi/>
Following his departure from Paris, he was a [[minister without portfolio]] under Prime Minister [[Asadollah Alam]].<ref name=bio/><ref>{{cite journal|last=Amini|first=Bahman|date=1993|title=Review: [Untitled]|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4283547|journal=Middle Eastern Studies|volume=29|number=1|pages=154–156|doi=10.1080/00263209308700940 |jstor=4283547 |access-date=2022-02-25|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Following the [[Indo-Pakistani War]] in 1965, Entezam served as a member and judge on the dispute over the boundaries of the warring nations, namely the [[Rann of Kutch]].<ref name=bio/><ref name=encyclopedia/> He was later elected chairman of the Inaugural Congress of the [[Rastakhiz Party]].<ref name=iranica/> According to a 1963 report by the [[United States Embassy in Teheran|United States Embassy]], Entezam and his brother Abdollah were informally active in [[Government of Ali Amini|Prime Minister Amini's Cabinet]] and met every Wednesday for twelve years.<ref name=iranica/> Where his brother was considered to be prestigious and deserving of respect, Nasrollah was seen as a "flamboyant and sartorially elegant bachelor... [he was] also considered to be a capable official."<ref name=iranica/>
===Final years and death=== Entezam retired in the late 1960s/early 1970s<ref name=encyclopedia/> but continued to serve the Shah in some capacity.{{citation needed|date=February 2022}} His final duties were as chairman of the [[United States Bicentennial]] celebration and co-chair of the Rastakhiz Party.{{citation needed|date=February 2022}} Several years later, following the [[Islamic Revolution of Iran|Islamic Revolution]], he returned to Iran from [[asthma]] treatment in [[Switzerland]] despite his family's pleas to stay abroad.<ref name=azizi/><ref name=voa/> He was immediately seized at the [[Mehrabad International Airport]] upon landing and arrested "on 'political charges'."<ref name=encyclopedia>{{cite book|title=The Palgrave Macmillan Dictionary of Diplomacy|last1=Berridge|first1=G.|last2=James|first2=Alan|last3=Lloyd|first3=Lorna|url={{Google books|xzTdwLE2mMcC|plainurl=yes}}}}</ref><ref name=voa/><ref name=azizi/> He was held in [[Evin Prison]], where he was tortured and later suffered a stroke, for which he was sent to the hospital.<ref name=voa/><ref name=encyclopedia/> Entezam died shortly after on 19 December 1980, though sources cannot seem to agree where he passed beyond it being in [[Tehran]]: at his house, at his sister's house, in prison, or at the hospital.<ref name=bio>{{cite book|last=Tucker|first=Spencer C.|title=The Encyclopedia of the Korean War: A Political, Social, and Military History, 2nd Edition [3 Volumes]: A Political, Social, and Military History|url={{Google books|1ZNxDwAAQBAJ|plainurl=yes}}}}</ref><ref name=voa/><ref name=azizi/><ref name=examiner>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s)/no by-line.--> |date=1981-02-13|title=Nasrollah Entezam|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/460545968|work=The San Francisco Examiner |location=San Francisco, CA, USA|access-date=2022-02-20|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He is buried in [[Behesht-e Zahra]].<ref name=azizi/>
Entezam's nephew, the son of his brother Abdollah, was American diplomat [[Hume Horan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/mss/mfdip/2004/2004hor02/2004hor02.pdf|title=Interview with Hume Horan|last=Kennedy|first=Charles Stuart|date=2001|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=2022-02-25}}</ref> Entezam was also a [[Freemasonry in Asia#Iran|freemason]].<ref name=voa/>
==References== * [http://www.ghaffaris.com/ ghaffaris.com] - Family website
{{Reflist}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Entezam, Nasrollah}} [[Category:20th-century Iranian diplomats]] [[Category:1900 births]] [[Category:1980 deaths]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Iran to the United States]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Iran to France]] [[Category:Presidents of the United Nations General Assembly]] [[Category:Permanent representatives of Iran to the United Nations]] [[Category:Iran Novin Party politicians]] [[Category:Rastakhiz Party politicians]] [[Category:Politicians from Tehran]] [[Category:Government ministers of Iran]] [[Category:Ministers of foreign affairs of Iran]] [[Category:Inmates of Evin Prison]] [[Category:Iranian Freemasons]] [[Category:Political prisoners in Iran]] {{s-start}} {{s-dip}} {{succession box | before=[[Carlos P. Romulo]] | title=[[President of the United Nations General Assembly]] | years= –1951 | after=[[Luis Padilla Nervo]] }} {{s-end}} {{Presidents of the UN General Assembly}} {{List of political prisoners of Iran}} {{Authority control}}