TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s choice as first vice president, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, has walked away from the job.
Mashaie, a controversial politician and confidant of Ahmadinejad, has “resigned three days after his appointment” as first vice president, state-owned English-language channel Press TV reported. The channel initially sourced its report to the Education Ministry-funded news agency, Pana. In its news item, Pana said: “The content of his resignation letter will be published soon.”
The appointment was strongly opposed by people among Ahmadinejad’s own support base. Mashaie, whose daughter is married to Ahmadinejad’s son, is an outspoken figure who last year earned the wrath of hard-liners, including supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, for saying Iran is a “friend of the Israeli people.” In his current role as vice president in charge of tourism he sparked ire among MPs for reportedly watching a group of women dance at a congress in Turkey in 2007.
His nomination as first vice president had ruffled feathers among hard-liners deeply sensitive to any breach of the longstanding taboo on relations of any kind with archfoe Israel.
Since the announcement of Mashaie’s appointment on Friday, there has been a chorus of criticism from hard-liners.
Iran meanwhile released on bail a British Embassy staffer, who was among a group of nine arrested following disturbances after the hotly disputed June 12 presidential election.
“He just got released,” lawyer Abdolsamad Khoramshahi said by telephone from the precincts of Evin Prison where Hossein Rassam was held.
Bail was granted in lieu of one billion rials ($100,000).
