A career soldier, former defence minister and the current head of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Vahidi represents the hardliners within Iran's regime and stands as the chief opponent of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf on negotiating with America in the 2026 war. A former Israeli intelligence officer who worked on Iran has called him "an end-of-days man", a reference to the Shia millenarianism that some reckon guides him. Vahidi believes America will only tighten the noose and Iran should resist while it can; he argues that war would keep people indoors and could rally some behind the regime.
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