Montazeri, whose status as Grand Ayatollah (the most senior of Shia Muslim theologians) gave him more religious authority than Khamenei, challenged Khamenei’s qualifications to issue fatwas (Islamic religious rulings) or to succeed Khomeini as Supreme Leader. Montazeri was placed under house arrest for six years; demonstrations of support for him were suppressed; and many of his disciples and close friends were imprisoned, tortured, killed, or forced to flee the country.