In this Sept. 20, 2008 photo released by the semi-official Iranian Fars News Agency, Sunday, July 19, 2009, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, speaks with the then Vice-President Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, in a meeting in Tehran, Iran. Hard-line supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are criticizing him over a decision to appoint a controversial figure as vice-president. On Friday, Ahmadinejad appointed Esfandiar Rahim Mashai as his first vice-president. In 2008, Mashai angered hard-liners when he said Iranians were 'friends of all people in the world — even Israelis.' (AP Photo/Fars News Agency,Ali Rafiee) Leader Rejects Iran Vice President Appointment -- Yahoo News/AP
TEHRAN, Iran – President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stuck by his controversial appointment for a key top deputy on Wednesday in an unusual defiance of Iran's supreme leader who reportedly ordered the man's removal. His move deepens the dispute among the country's hard-line leadership.
Ahmadinejad's defiance will likely outrage his fellow conservatives and could cause an outright rift between him and his close ally Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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