Iran was on the brink of an extraordinary political transformation on Saturday night after the moderate cleric Hassan Rouhani sensationally secured enough votes to succeed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Rouhani's apparent victory delighted many reformers in Iran who have been desperate for a comeback to the forefront of Iranian politics after eight acrimonious years under Ahmadinejad.
It will also lift the spirit of a nation suffering from its worst financial crisis for at least two decades due to the unprecedented sanctions imposed by western powers in the dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme.
