The story: Iran has named Hassan Kazemi-Qomi as its new top envoy to Afghanistan, reportedly replacing Ambassador Bahador Aminian. Said to be a veteran of the Quds Force—the expeditionary wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)—Kazemi-Qomi’s appointment follows a leak of criticism of the Taliban attributed to Aminian.

The coverage: The official IRNA news agency on Dec. 18 reported that Kazemi-Qomi had been named as Iran's new “ambassador” to Kabul.

• Government-run IRNA cited Abbas Badrifar, a diplomat at the Kabul embassy, as its source for the alleged ambassadorial appointment. This is while Badrifar had told the Afghan news channel TOLO TV a day earlier that Kazemi-Qomi would take over as “the head of mission,” refraining from referring to him as ambassador.
  
  
• Kazemi-Qomi has been serving as President Ebrahim Raisi’s special envoy for...