Pezeshkian Nominates Mehrdad Akhlaqi as Defense Minister
TEHRAN — President Masoud Pezeshkian nominated Mehrdad Akhlaqi as defense minister in a letter to Parliament Speaker Muhammad-Bagher Ghalibaf on Monday.
Akhlaqi, a senior defense ministry official and former head of the Aerospace Industries Organization, will face a confidence vote after committee review. The post has been vacant since Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Aziz Nasirzadeh was assassinated by U.S.-Israeli forces at the outset of the 40-day war.