Aug. 21 (Bloomberg) -- An Iranian official wanted by Interpol in connection with the 1994 bombing of an Argentine Jewish center has been nominated for promotion to defense minister in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s cabinet.

Ahmad Vahidi, currently deputy defense minister, is accused by Argentina of a role in the bombing of the center in Buenos Aires, the worst attack on a Jewish target outside Israel since World War II. The blast left 85 people dead and injured more than 150. Argentina is seeking his extradition. Among the other suspects is Mohsen Rezai, a former Revolutionary Guards Corps chief who challenged Ahmadinejad in the June 12 election.

Argentina’s Jewish leaders “express their strongest rejection and condemnation” of the move, DAIA, an association representing the nation’s Jewish community, said in an e-mailed statement.

“The decision taken by the Iranian president, who systematically denies the Holocaust and calls for the destruction of Israel, constitutes an incalculable offense against the victims of the massacre and their families, the Jewish community of Argentina, and the Argentine Republic,” the group said.

Interpol Notice

Vahidi has been subject to an Interpol “red notice” since November 2007. Such a notice is distributed to police agencies worldwide to request their assistance in detaining him, according to the Web site of Interpol, based in Lyon, France.

A message left at the press office of Argentina’s foreign ministry wasn’t immediately returned.

Phone calls to the Iranian Embassy in London weren’t immediately answered, nor were calls to the foreign ministry in Iran, where Friday is observed as the Muslim prayer day.

“This is yet another of Ahmadinejad’s actions that prove he is a person you cannot deal with,” Andy David, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman, said today in a telephone interview, referring to Vahidi’s Aug. 19 nomination. “The leadership of Iran is simply not willing to take the path of peace.”

Vahidi has been a senior member of the Revolutionary Guards and served as deputy to two defense ministers, the state-run Fars news agency reported. He is also a member of the Expediency Council, which has the final say in disputes on legislation. A parliamentary vote on Vahidi and the other cabinet nominees is scheduled for Aug. 30.

Signaling ‘Defiance’

Ali Akbar Javanfekr, a press adviser for Ahmadinejad, said the outrage from Argentina after the appointment was part of a “Zionist plot,” Agence France-Presse reported.

“Vahidi’s nomination represents not only the president’s choosing of a relatively narrow echelon of Iran’s security apparatus to top positions, but also signals his defiance and lack of care for the consequence of such key appointments on foreign policy,” Gala Riani, Middle East analyst for London- based business intelligence and forecasting company IHS Global Insight, said today in an e-mail.

“The appointment may be a strong signal by the embattled president against international and domestic pressure; on the other hand it may simply represent a continuation of Ahmadinejad’s well-trod path of defiance, or a combination of both,” she said.

The announcement that Ahmadinejad won a second term in the election triggered major street protests, after defeated candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karrubi claimed the ballot was rigged. Ahmadinejad has denied the allegation.

The Iranian government deployed police officers and members of the volunteer Basij militia armed with batons and tear gas to quell the mass protests. The demonstrations were followed by thousands of arrests and trials of some 140 leading opposition figures and supporters. The crackdown on protesters prompted international condemnation. The government said 30 people died in the unrest, while the opposition put the number at 69.

Ahmadinejad has been criticized by the opposition for stoking tension with the West over his rigid stance on Iran’s nuclear program and routinely questioning Israel’s right to exist and the extent of the Nazi Holocaust. Iran is under United Nations sanctions for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ali Sheikholeslami in London at alis2@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 21, 2009 16:02 EDT