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With the row over Iran's disputed election still bitterly dividing the country, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is now in a new dispute with fellow conservatives. It is an argument every bit as heated as the election row, and potentially even more damaging to the president.

The row is now having more lasting damage. On Sunday it was announced that Mr Ahmadinejad had sacked his intelligence minister, Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejeie, after what sounds like a heated argument in a cabinet meeting over Mr Mashaie's appointment.

At one point it was reported that four ministers had left the government. That was denied. Later, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad-Hossein Saffar-Harandi, announced he had resigned. It was said that Mr Ahmadinejad had not accepted that resignation, but as of Monday the situation remained unresolved.

Mr Saffar-Harrandi said the row over Mr Mashaie had weakened the government, and that is one of the more polite comments from within the conservative camp. The conservative newspaper Tehran Emrouz described it as a "chaotic" day for the government.