Iran's top leader appoints fresh head of armed forces, commander of Revolutionary Guard

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Iranian supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei named Revolutionary Guards general Ali Abdollahi head of the country’s armed forces on Monday, while also confirming a new commander of the Guards, putting his imprimatur on the country’s military.

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Abdollahi had previously led the Khatam al-Anbiya, Iran’s inter-branch central military command tasked with coordinating operations.

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An statement on Khamenei’s website announced that “Major General Ali Abdollahi has been appointed chief of staff of the armed forces. Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi has also been appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with the rank of major general.”

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The pair represent Khamenei’s first senior military appointments since being named supreme leader early in the Middle East war after the death of his father in US-Israeli strikes.

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Abdollahi has issued bellicose threats over the course of the war, warning regional neighbours earlier this month that “any country serving as a defensive shield for criminal and aggressive America will be engulfed by the flames of war.”

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AFP

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