TEHRAN, Iran — Ali Shamkhani is Iran’s new Supreme National Security Council secretary, a new role for the strong man who used to be Iran’s defense minister a decade ago, Iran’s navy commander two decades ago and the supreme leader’s military adviser only days ago. 

The “admiral” — as he is called here in Tehran — brings something much more interesting to the job than all his previous positions held. Shamkhani is an Arab, and this makes him the first Iranian Arab to be given such responsibility. Indeed, he was also the first Arab to be defense minister (1997-2005).

Shamkhani was born in 1955 in Ahwaz, the capital of the Khuzestan province in western Iran. When he was about 15 years old, he, his father and brothers visited the United States. They stayed to study, but he decided it was not meant for him to be there. Though young, it seemed he knew what was waiting for him. In the aftermath of the Islamic Revolution (1979), Shamkhani played a vital role in founding the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

During the eight-year war between Iraq and Iran (1980-1988), Shamkhani was the commander of the revolutionary guards in the Khuzestan region, and he was promoted to deputy commander-general when he was only 30 years old.