Tehran: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday sacked the country's Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi, according to a news report.

State-run IRNA news agency reported that a caretaker interior minister has been appointed.

"The president has appointed Mahdi Hashemi as caretaker interior minister," the report said.

Hashemi will remain in his post until a candidate nominated by Ahmadinejad has been approved by the Iranian parliament.

Although, no official reason has been given for the minister's dismissal, there had been reports in the Iranian media in recent weeks that Pourmohammadi may be sacked.

According to one of the reports, Ahmadinejad had decided to dismiss him because he reported to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei without the president's approval or knowledge.

This is not the first dismissal of a top minister this year in Iran. In late April, economics minister, Davood Danesh Jafari, was dismissed over policy differences with the president.

 

Source : IANS