Mohsen Rezaei, former IRGC commander, tapped to lead Iran's top security organization

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday appointed Mohsen Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, to lead Tehran’s top national security organization.

Mr. Rezaei led the IRGC for 16 years before stepping down in 1997. His tenure lasted through most of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War. He will now be the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei cited Mr. Rezaei’s “valuable experiences” while confirming his appointment to the organization that coordinates Tehran’s security and foreign policy.

“I hope you will achieve complete success in carrying out this important responsibility,” the ayatollah said in a decree, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.

Mr. Rezaei replaces Mohammad Zolghadr, who has been appointed political adviser to the ayatollah. He took over after the previous secretary, Ali Larijani, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the early stages of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.

“I would like to appreciate the round-the-clock efforts of our dear brother,” the ayatollah said of Mr. Zolghadr on X.

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Mr. Rezaei is wanted on an international arrest warrant and an Interpol “Red Notice” in connection with the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that killed 85 people.