Ahmadinejad takes over oil ministry

TEHRAN, May 17 (UPI) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has declared himself caretaker oil minister after firing the current energy chief.

Ahmadinejad fired three ministers as part of a plan announced last week to merge several energy-related ministries.

"I am the caretaker of the Oil Ministry," the president was quoted by the official Islamic Republic News Agency as saying.

Masoud Mir Kazemi, the former oil minister and close ally to the president, was dismissed as part of the shake-up. Ahmadinejad, who is facing an internal back lash because of an apparent row with the country's supreme leader, said it was no longer possible to protect the interests of his allies during the ministerial repositioning.

The firing from Ahmadinejad brought criticism from members of Parliament who said he should have sought their approval first, Bloomberg News reports.

The government announced plans to reduce the number of ministries from 21 to 17 by 2015.