The election of Hassan Rouhani as President of Iran is one of many events that prepares the way for the start of the tribulation. I believe that Rouhani is the leader mentioned in the Book of Daniel:

[Daniel 8]
{8:1} In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision appeared to me. After that which I had seen in the beginning, I, Daniel,
{8:2} saw in my vision, that I was in the capital city of Susa, which is in the region of Elam, yet I saw in the vision that I was over the gate of Ulai.
{8:3} And I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, a single ram stood before the marsh, having two high horns, and one was higher than the other and growing higher still.
…
{8:19} And he said to me, “I will reveal to you what the future things are in the earlier tribulation, for the time has its end.
{8:20} The ram, which you saw to have horns, is the king of the Medes and Persians.

The ram represents the Arab/Muslim nations of the Middle East and northern Africa. The two horns are the two leaders who will unite those nations as one group and lead them in World War 3 against the U.S., Europe, and Allies. Persia is Iran, and Media is Iraq. The two horns are the two “kings”, i.e. two leaders, the one leader of Iraq and the other leader of Iran.

In my view, Rouhani is the leader of Iran, the great or high horn that grows greater still, spoken of by Daniel. (More in my booklet: The Great Catholic Monarch and the Angelic Shepherd)

Edited (7/9/13) to add: After Rouhani takes office, I think that he will attempt to increase his power by assassinations. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is one probable target. Also, I believe that Rouhani will be the next “Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution”, after Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dies (or is assassinated). So Rouhani will soon have both political and spiritual power in Iran. And that is enough power to start the apocalyptic war that Rouhani and others believe is needed to bring about the appearance of the 12th Imam and the Islamic end times.

by
Ronald L. Conte Jr.
Roman Catholic theologian and
translator of the Catholic Public Domain Version of the Bible.