Iran’s supreme leader has appointed a new chief of the country’s Revolutionary Guard, picking a general with a history of threatening the US just days after America designated the paramilitary force a terrorist organisation.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s decision replaces the commander of a force that controls the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile program and has had tense encounters with US warships.
The decision comes as Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers is in tatters following Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the US from the accord and restore crippling sanctions, which has sparked outrage in Iran.
Taking over will be General Hossein Salami, a 59-year-old who had been serving as a deputy commander in the Guards. General Salami joined the Guard at the outbreak of the 1980s Iran-Iraq war, later rising in the ranks to head its air forces.
He replaces General Mohammad Ali Jafari, who had been in charge of the Guard for more than 11 years. Leaders of the force have typically served for about 10 years.
Ayatollah Khamenei said he picked General Salami on the outgoing commander’s advice.
The Guard is separate from Iran’s standing military and runs its own intelligence operations.
Read the article by Amir Vhadat in The Australian (AP).