ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has appointed Hossein Taeb, the former head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Organization, as head of the Corps' paramilitary Basij Organization, semi-official Iranian media reported on Monday.
The appointment of Taeb, whose name has been tied to human rights violations against dissidents and who is sanctioned by the US, comes shortly after Khamenei appointed Mohsen Rezaei, another controversial figure, as secretary of Iran's powerful security body, the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC).
The semi-official Mehr News Agency reported that Khamenei on Monday issued a decree appointing Taeb as head of the IRGC's Basij Organization, a volunteer paramilitary force and one of the five primary branches of the IRGC, whose forces have for years been widely deployed to suppress nationwide anti-government protests.
Khamenei detailed that Taeb's tasks include “expanding the culture of the Basij and the resistance” against the “Zionist [Israeli] and American arrogance” to “build a strong and united Iran and safeguard the Islamic Revolution,” as well as strengthening the intelligence organization by “enhancing necessary skills and training” and “utilizing modern technologies for people-based defense against enemy threats.”
Taeb is widely regarded as one of the most controversial figures in Iran's security apparatus. During his tenure as head of the IRGC's intelligence organization, he built the agency into a power center rivaling Tehran's intelligence ministry, aggressively targeting political moderates, journalists and activists.
He was removed from his post in June 2022 following a series of high-profile intelligence failures. Taeb has also been sanctioned by the US, EU, and UK for human rights violations, chiefly his central role in suppressing the 2009 anti-government protests. Even after leaving his post, he remained an active hardline figure, continuing to push for tough security measures, anti-Western deterrence, and the targeting of political rivals.
Notably, the appointment of Taeb as head of the IRGC's Basij Organization comes less than a day after the Iranian supreme leader, on Tuesday, named Mohsen Rezaei - a veteran IRGC commander - as secretary of Iran's top decision-making body for national defense, foreign policy, and intelligence, the SNSC.
Rezaei, also a controversial figure both internationally and domestically, has drawn criticism for hawkish calls for aggressive military responses and, more recently, for urging Iran to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and close the strategic Strait of Hormuz - remarks often seen as threatening to Tehran's diplomatic efforts.
Last updated at 7:45 pm.
