(Tony Blair Institute for Global Change) Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi, 60, who assumed Iran's presidency on August 5, is expected to further empower the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) with key ministerial and bureaucratic positions in his new government. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 82, the supreme leader of the Islamic Republic, is seen to be laying the ground for his successor who, according to all signs so far, will be Raisi. By expanding the IRGC's power, Raisi is seeking to consolidate his support base for when the moment comes to select Khamenei's successor. Raisi is fully aware that he will need the IRGC's backing - not least because anti-regime dissent is surging in Iran and the IRGC is Khamenei's iron fist.
2021-08-05 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive