the West, it is General Mohammed Ali Jafari, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Hardened by torture in the prisons of the former Shah, Jafari was among the students who stormed the US Embassy in Tehran on Nov. 4, 1979. He later fought in the Iran-Iraq War, and in 2007 Jafari, who has a de

tary force than the regular army. Of the 21 ministers in the Iranian cabinet, 13 have completed Pasdaran training. Within this group of hardliners, Jafari, 55, is seen being particularly unyielding. In 2009, for example, he declared that Iran would fire missiles at Israel's nuclear research center in

mad Ali Jafari, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, about what Zarif said were Iran's limited military capabilities. "I respect Gen. Jafari's remarks, his views, and I expect him to have differences of views with me," he said. He also noted that some hard-liners in Iran who oppose a dea

d expectations of an attack among Iranians, who are typically accustomed to dismissing such talk. When reformist MP Mohammed Reza Tabesh criticized Jafari's remarks in parliament, the hard-line majority shouted him down with cries of "Allahu Akbar." "When people see their top military commander and of

Iranians, who are EFTA_R1_00482803 EFTA01990235 typically accustomed to dismissing such talk. When reformist MP Mohammed Reza Tabesh criticized Jafari's remarks in parliament, the hard-line majority shouted him down with cries of "Allahu Akbar." "When people see their top military commander and o