Iran names Abdollahi military chief, Vahidi Guards head

Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei named Revolutionary Guards general Ali Abdollahi chief of staff of the armed forces on Monday and appointed Ahmad Vahidi to lead the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

A statement on Khamenei's website said Abdollahi was appointed chief of staff of the armed forces. It also said Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with the rank of major general.

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

The appointments are Khamenei's first senior military appointments since he was named supreme leader early in the Middle East war after the death of his father in US-Israeli strikes.

Abdollahi issued threats during 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.”