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Ahmadinejad sacks 4 Iranian ministers Published Date: July 27, 2009 TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly sacked four ministers yesterday, deepening Iran's political turmoil at a time when the Islamic republic is battling its worst crisis in three decades. The dismissals were reported variously by local news agencies and come just a few weeks before Ahmadinejad, re-elected for another four year term in a disputed vote last month, is due to finalize his new cabinet line-up. Those sacked are Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Mohammad-Hossein Saffar-Harandi, Labour and Social Affairs Minister Mohammad Jahromi, Health Minister Kamran Baqeri Lankarani and Intelligence Minister Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejeie, the local news networks said. Ejeie was sacked "following a verbal quarrel between the intelligence minister and the president in Wednesday's cabinet meeting over the appointment of (Esfandiar Rahim) Mashaie," the Mehr news agency quoted an informed source as saying. Rahim Mashaie, who last year said Iran was a "friend of the Israeli people," stepped down from post as first vice president on Saturday after his appointment by Ahmadinejad a week ago stirred controversy and angered hardliners. While the sacking of the four ministers was reported variously by Mehr, the Fars news agency and English language television station Press TV, the government's website said only Ejei's sacking was confirmed. No reasons were given for the dismissals, which came as Ahmadinejad was still smarting from being ordered by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to dismiss Rahim Mashaie, whom he had defended as a "trusted, devoted and pious" man. The impact of yesterday's sackings on Ahmadinejad's present government was not immediately clear. Iran's constitution stipulates that if half cabinet is replaced within a four-year term, the government has to secure a fresh vote of confidence. In his current term Ahmadinejad has already replaced 11 of his 21 cabinet ministers, even before yesterday's reported sackings. The president is to be sworn in on August 5, lawmaker Hamid Reza Haji-Babai told Mehr yesterday, and has two weeks after that to finalise his line-up. MP Ali Motahari urged Ahmadinejad to "control his nerves." "It looks as if he intentionally brings tension to the country. If the removal of the ministers is because of this (objections to Rahim Mashaie's appointment) it is an ugly act because then it becomes a personal matter and has nothing to do with the country's interests. The president meanwhile yesterday came in for a fresh lashing by hardliners, who said he had defied Khamenei by taking a week to obey the supreme leader's order to get rid of Rahim Mashaie. The conservative Justice Seeking Students Movement urged parliament to question Ahmadinejad on "why he was late in obeying the leader's order and accepted (Rahim Mashaie's) resignation instead of sacking him. Ahmadinejad was re-elected president last month but opposition leaders claim the vote was rigged and say they will refuse to recognize his new government. In the immediate aftermath of the June 12 vote, hundreds of thousands of protesters poured onto Tehran streets, opposing Ahmadinejad's victory. Official reports say at least 20 people were killed and scores wounded, while hundreds of demonstrators, political activists and journalists have been arrested in the crackdown by security forces. Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi yesterday laid down a fresh challenge to Ahmadinejad by seeking permission from the interior ministry to hold a ceremony to mourn those killed in protests over the election, the ISNA news agency said. The organizers, it added, planned to hold the ceremony in central Tehran's Grand Mosalla, an open prayer venue where religious ceremonies are regularly held. The website of Etemad Melli, the political party of Karroubi, said the ceremony was to be held on Thursday. The authorities have banned such gatherings since the violence that followed the election and have placed tight restrictions on foreign media.-- AFP [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
