Iran's Parliament Approves Akhlaqi as Defence Minister, Ending Months of Interim Leadership at the Ministry
TEHRAN — Iran's parliament approved aerospace industry veteran Mehrdad Akhlaqi Ketabchi as defence minister on Sunday, Reuters reported on October 18, citing Iranian state media.
The approval ends months of interim leadership at the ministry and places a former head of the country's Aerospace Industries Organisation in charge of its defence production and procurement apparatus, Reuters said. Akhlaqi replaces Majid Ebn al-Reza, who took over in an interim capacity after then Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh was killed by US-Israeli strikes in February. Akhlaqi has spent decades in Iran's defence industry and has held senior roles in its aerospace and missile sectors; he is subject to US and EU sanctions over his work in Iran's defence sector. (GSM, from Reuters reporting)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：伊朗议会（国民咨议会）大楼资料照片。照片：Mahdifa33，Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0。Photo: the National Consultative Majlis building in Tehran, Iran (file photo). Photo by Mahdifa33 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
