, 2000 In 1994, a new constitution re-established the presidency. Rahmon was
elected to the post on 6 November 1994 and sworn in ten days later. During the civil war that lasted from 1992 to 1997, Rahmon's rule was opposed by the
United Tajik Opposition. As many as 100,000 people died during the war. He survived an assassination attempt on 30 April 1997 in Khujand, as well as two attempted
coups in August 1997 and November 1998. and Iran's president
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, January 2006 Following constitutional changes, he was
re-elected on 6 November 1999 to a seven-year term, officially taking 97% of the vote. On 22 June 2003, a
referendum was passed, allowing him to run for two more consecutive seven-year terms after his term expired in 2006. Rahmon was re-elected for a seven-year term in a
controversial election on 6 November 2006, with about 79% of the vote, according to official results. In a
cable dispatch that was
leaked in 2010, the
U.S. embassy in Dushanbe reported that Tajikistan's
largest bank was controlled by Rahmon and his family. The same leaked diplomatic cable also contains
confidential-marked information on how the Tajik president
diverts to himself most of the revenues from the country's biggest industries
hydroelectricity and
exported aluminum. On 6 November 2013, he was
re-elected for more seven years in office with about 84% of the vote, in an election process which the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe said lacked "genuine choice and meaningful pluralism". In December 2015, a law passed by Tajikistan's parliament gave Rahmon the title "Founder of Peace and National Unity – Leader of the Nation" (). The "Leader of the Nation" component is used frequently as a shorter title. In addition to granting Rahmon lifelong immunity from prosecution, the law also granted him many other lifelong privileges, including veto power over all major state decisions, the freedom to address the nation and parliament on all matters he deems important, and the privilege of attending all government meetings and parliamentary sessions. On 22 May 2016, a
nationwide referendum approved a number of changes to the country's
constitution. Among the main changes were the removal of presidential term limits for Rahmon, a ban on religious political parties such as the
Islamic Renaissance Party, and the reduction of the minimum eligibility age for presidential candidates from 35 to 30, enabling Rahmon's older son,
Rustam Emomali, to run for president any time after 2017. In January 2017, Rustam was appointed Mayor of Dushanbe, the country's largest city and capital. In November 2018, Rahmon launched a hydroelectric station to solve energy problems. In October 2020, he was once again
re-elected as president for a fifth term with a margin of 90.92%, amid fraud allegations. In July 2021, over 1,000 Afghan troops and civilians fled to Tajikistan after
Taliban insurgents
took control of many parts of
Afghanistan. In response, Rahmon ordered 20,000 reserve servicemen of the country's
Ground Forces to be sent to the
Afghan–Tajik border.
Religion policy in
Baku, December 2012 with Rahmon, 2015 Rahmon is a
Sunni Muslim and has frequently stressed his Muslim background even though his administration has suppressed public display of Islamic devotion. The government imposed bans on beards; attendance at
mosque for women and children under 18;
hajj for people under 40; studying in Islamic schools outside
Tajikistan; the production, import or export of Islamic books without permission, implemented in 2017; using loudspeakers to broadcast the
adhan;
veils;
madrassas; Islamist political parties; and
Arabic-sounding names, implemented in 2016. Furthermore, mosques are heavily regulated; providing unofficial Islamic teaching can lead to up to 12 years of imprisonment, and an arduous process is required to obtain a permit to establish an Islamic organisation, publish an Islamic book, or go on pilgrimage to Mecca. In January 2016, Rahmon performed an
Umrah with a number of his children and senior members of his government. It was his fourth pilgrimage to Mecca. His reply to critics of the election standards of the 2006 Tajikistani presidential election was: During a 2010
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation session in
Dushanbe, Rahmon spoke against what he called the misuse of Islam for political ends, claiming that "Terrorism, terrorists, have no nation, no country, no religion... Using the name 'Islamic terrorism' only discredits Islam and dishonors the pure and harmless religion of Islam." Membership in
Hizb ut-Tahrir, a militant Islamic party that aims to overthrow secular governments and unify Muslims under one Islamic state, is illegal and members are subject to arrest and imprisonment. The
Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRP) is a banned
Islamist political party and has been designated a
terrorist organization since 2015. In 2017, the government of Tajikistan passed a law requiring people to "stick to traditional national clothes and culture", which has been widely seen as an attempt to prevent women from wearing Islamic clothing, in particular the style of headscarf wrapped under the chin, in contrast to the traditional Tajik headscarf tied behind the head. By 2024, the
Salafi movement and
polygamy became popular in Tajikistan, despite both officially being banned by the government. ==Personal life==