Executive Summary

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on 31 December 2025 appointed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) veteran Ahmad Vahidi Deputy Commander-In-Chief of the IRGC. Domestically known as one of the most repressive figures in Iran, Vahidi remains sanctioned from the European Union, designated by the U.S. Treasury, and is the subject of INTERPOL red notices going back to 2006. 

Amid nation-wide anti-regime protests, which started on 28 December 2025, Vahidi’s appointment likely indicates the IRGC’s prioritisation of repressive tactics to safeguard the regime’s security. In fact, his professional background includes violent repression against citizens protesting the death of Mahsa Amini, killed by the morality police in October 2022. His notable role as leader of the IRGC’s Quds Force positions him as a specialist of foreign operations and proxy cooperation, further indicating his appointment as a result of his history of domestic repression. 

Vahidi’s appointment also comes at a time of heightened tensions with Tel Aviv and Washington, likely strengthening Iran’s aggressive posture abroad, especially given his history with foreign proxy operations. The elevation of a highly sanctioned individual also communicates Iran’s prioritisation of projecting an image of power and security over diplomacy. Furthermore, this appointment likely reflects regime insecurity and a refusal to bow to international pressure in times of domestic instability and heightened foreign tensions.

Profile 

There is little information in publicly available sources on Vahidi’s personal life, but locatable biographic data includes:

Early Life: 

• Born 27 June 1958 (67 years old) in Shiraz, Iran. 

Education: 

• PhD in Strategic Studies from Imam Sadiq University
• Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering 
• Bachelor’s degree in Electronics 

Professional Life: 

• Appointed Deputy Commander-In-Chief of the IRGC (2025)
• Iran’s Minister of Interior (2021-2024)
• Director of the Supreme National Defence University (2016-2021)
• Appointed Foreign Affairs Strategic Council advisory body member (2014)
• Director of the Defence Strategic Research Centre, the research wing of the Armed Forces General Staff (2013-2016)
• Iran’s Minister of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics (2009-2013)
• Appointed chief deputy to defence minister (2005)
• Transferred to Ministry of Defence (1997)
• Commander of Quds Force (1988-1998)
• Played a key role in establishing the Ministry of Intelligence (August 1984)
• Joined the IRGC-Quds Force (1983)
• Appointed commander of the Balaal base (1981)
• Appointed Deputy Chief of Intelligence (1981)

Notable violent links:

• As Iran’s Minister of Interior, approved violence against civilians and initiated an internet shutdown amid protests Mahsa Amini (October 2022)
• Linked to the deadly attack on the U.S. embassy in Yemen through a reported alliance with al-Qaeda leaders in Sudan in the 1990s (2008)
• Suspected role in the recruitment of members involved in Hezbollah’s deadly bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia (1996)
• Oversaw the terrorist attack on the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association Jewish community center in Buenos Aires (1994)
• Linked to Hezbollah’s deadly bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut (1983)

Sanctions: 

• Sanctioned by the European Union for his role in the suppression of the ‘Amini’ protests (14 November 2022)
• Redesignated by the U.S. Treasury under Executive Order 13553 for human rights abuses linked to the ‘Amini’ protests (6 October 2022)
• Designated by the U.S. Treasury under Executive Order 13382 for his ties to Iran’s nuclear and WMD programs (16 June 2010)
• INTERPOL issued a red notice for Vahidi (renewed in 2022) for his role in the 1994 terrorist attack on the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (2006)

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