Mojtaba Khamenei Names Iran's New Armed Forces Chief, IRGC Commander In Top-Level Shake-Up

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Monday appointed a new chief of the armed forces and a new commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), putting his stamp on the country’s military leadership amid the ongoing war with the United States.

Major General Ali Abdollahi was named chief of staff of the armed forces, while Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi was appointed commander-in-chief of the IRGC with the rank of major general, according to a statement on Khamenei’s website.

Abdollahi previously headed the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran’s inter-service military command responsible for coordinating operations.

The appointments are Khamenei’s first major military reshuffle since he became supreme leader following the

death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli strikes.

Abdollahi has issued strong warnings during the conflict. Earlier this month, he warned regional countries that any state acting as a “defensive shield” for the US would be “engulfed by the flames of war”.

Rezaei Gets Key Security Role

The appointments came a day after former IRGC commander Mohsen Rezaei was named secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, the country’s top security body.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian appointed Rezaei after Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr resigned as secretary and was moved to a new role as a political adviser to Khamenei.

Rezaei, 71, commanded the IRGC from 1981 to 1997, including during almost the entire Iran-Iraq war, and later held several senior political positions. He also served as a military adviser to Khamenei.

He said in July that control of the Strait of Hormuz, a key flashpoint in the current conflict, was “more important than dozens of atomic bombs”.

Zolghadr, also a former IRGC commander, had led the security council since March.

(With inputs from agencies)