Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Regime Pretends it is 1979
Instead of dealing with real problems, the regime unleashes Basij elements to storm the British embassy in a sad attempt to pretend like we are living in 1979. Instead of presenting a positive image of Iran around the world and attempting to improve relations with other countries, the regime resorts to acts of desperation to distract from their own crimes and failures.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Regime Turns on Itself
Not content about suppressing the Iranian people, the regime continues to turn on itself as the conflict between the Ahmadineajd and Khamenei blocs continue. Ahmadinejad advisor Ali Akbar Javanfekr humiliated at his own press conference. Here is the full story:
Judicial authorities in Iran have attempted to arrest a close ally of the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in what is widely being viewed as the latest twist in the struggle for power at the top of the Iranian regime.
A group of officials raided the offices of the daily government newspaper Iran on Monday in order to arrest Ali Akbar Javanfekr, the president's media adviser. Javanfekr is also the head of the state news agency, Irna.
At the weekend, a court in Tehran had sentenced him to one year in jail and a three-year ban on working for the press after "publishing materials contrary to Islamic norms".
According to the semi-official Mehr news agency, Javanfekr was handcuffed but his arrest was "temporarily halted" after government officials intervened. Mehr did not specify who had stepped into the dispute, but some accounts attributed the intervention to Ahmadinejad.
Javanfekr was reportedly conducting a press conference when the judiciary officials tried to detain him. The conservative website Tabnak said the newspaper's staff gathered in his office and tried to prevent the president's top media aide being led away in handcuffs. The officials used teargas to disperse the staff and arrested about 30 of them.
"The judicial authorities threw teargas and tried to force their way into the [newspaper's] building," Javanfekr told Isna news agency following the incident. "They arrested some of our reporters and took them away and hit one of my colleagues with an electric baton.
"My colleagues were traumatised, some of them were hurt … I'm a representative of the government and the president's adviser … If they had summoned me, I would have gone to them. They did not need to do these kind of actions."
Ahmadinejad fell foul of conservatives with Iran after a series of public confrontations with the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the ultimate power in Iran.
Since then, the president has lost a degree of influence in Iranian politics, particularly in the parliament and the judiciary which are both under influence of Khamenei.
In the wake of the power struggle, many of Ahmadinejad's supporters have distanced themselves from him, but a handful, including Javanfekr, have stood firm.
Javanfekr was put on trial after the publication of a series of articles about the chador, a garment that Iranian women wear to cover them from head to toe.
In one article, Ahmadinejad's former media adviser, Mehdi Kalhor, criticised the black colour of Iranian chadors, saying they did not originate from the Persian culture but were rather imported from the west.
Javanfekr also gave an interview to an Iranian reformist newspaper, Etemaad, on Saturday which led to its temporary closure for two months.
In the interview, he criticised opponents of the president and supported Ahmadinejad's chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, whom the conservatives have accused of revolutionary deviancy and corruption.
In response to one of Etemaad's questions about the recent power struggle, Javanfekr said the president has come "to serve the people" and "will stay till the end, till martyrdom".
He also criticised the judiciary for arresting Ahmadinejad's allies in recent months and shed light on some of the unseen dimensions of Iran's internal power struggle.
The parliamentary elections in March 2012 and presidential vote in 2013 have escalated the rift between Ahmadinejad and his supporters on one side and the conservatives close to Khamenei on the other side, fighting with each other for more influence over Iranian politics.
Judicial authorities in Iran have attempted to arrest a close ally of the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in what is widely being viewed as the latest twist in the struggle for power at the top of the Iranian regime.
A group of officials raided the offices of the daily government newspaper Iran on Monday in order to arrest Ali Akbar Javanfekr, the president's media adviser. Javanfekr is also the head of the state news agency, Irna.
At the weekend, a court in Tehran had sentenced him to one year in jail and a three-year ban on working for the press after "publishing materials contrary to Islamic norms".
According to the semi-official Mehr news agency, Javanfekr was handcuffed but his arrest was "temporarily halted" after government officials intervened. Mehr did not specify who had stepped into the dispute, but some accounts attributed the intervention to Ahmadinejad.
Javanfekr was reportedly conducting a press conference when the judiciary officials tried to detain him. The conservative website Tabnak said the newspaper's staff gathered in his office and tried to prevent the president's top media aide being led away in handcuffs. The officials used teargas to disperse the staff and arrested about 30 of them.
"The judicial authorities threw teargas and tried to force their way into the [newspaper's] building," Javanfekr told Isna news agency following the incident. "They arrested some of our reporters and took them away and hit one of my colleagues with an electric baton.
"My colleagues were traumatised, some of them were hurt … I'm a representative of the government and the president's adviser … If they had summoned me, I would have gone to them. They did not need to do these kind of actions."
Ahmadinejad fell foul of conservatives with Iran after a series of public confrontations with the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the ultimate power in Iran.
Since then, the president has lost a degree of influence in Iranian politics, particularly in the parliament and the judiciary which are both under influence of Khamenei.
In the wake of the power struggle, many of Ahmadinejad's supporters have distanced themselves from him, but a handful, including Javanfekr, have stood firm.
Javanfekr was put on trial after the publication of a series of articles about the chador, a garment that Iranian women wear to cover them from head to toe.
In one article, Ahmadinejad's former media adviser, Mehdi Kalhor, criticised the black colour of Iranian chadors, saying they did not originate from the Persian culture but were rather imported from the west.
Javanfekr also gave an interview to an Iranian reformist newspaper, Etemaad, on Saturday which led to its temporary closure for two months.
In the interview, he criticised opponents of the president and supported Ahmadinejad's chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, whom the conservatives have accused of revolutionary deviancy and corruption.
In response to one of Etemaad's questions about the recent power struggle, Javanfekr said the president has come "to serve the people" and "will stay till the end, till martyrdom".
He also criticised the judiciary for arresting Ahmadinejad's allies in recent months and shed light on some of the unseen dimensions of Iran's internal power struggle.
The parliamentary elections in March 2012 and presidential vote in 2013 have escalated the rift between Ahmadinejad and his supporters on one side and the conservatives close to Khamenei on the other side, fighting with each other for more influence over Iranian politics.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Mohammad Javad Larijani Goes on Lying Tour
Mohammad Javad Larijani, part of the crazy Larijani brothers, is on a lying tour at the UN making himself look like a fool. At a press conference, Larijani denied Mousavi and Karroubi are under house arrest:
“Well, nobody is in house arrest without trial and without court order. Incitement to violence is a major cause against them, and this is quite apparent for everybody.” Larijani added that the details of Mousavi’s and Karroubi’s charges will come out once court proceedings begin and noted that they were also charged with other “illegal activities,” which he did not name.
Numerous human rights groups and family members say that Mousavi and Karroubi are under house arrest. The saddest part of this whole thing is that Larijani is head of the High Council for Human Rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran. His allegience should be to the Iranian people and defending their human rights as opposed to his brothers the head of the judiciary and head of the parliament.
Under Article 33 of the Iranian constitution, "No one can be banished from his place of residence, prevented from residing in the place of his choice, or compelled to reside in a given locality, except in cases provided by law." Also under Article 37, "Innocence is to be presumed, and no one is to be held guilty of a charge unless his or her guilt has been established by a competent court."
Mousavi and Karroubi have never been charged with a crime and have not been in a court room to even here charges against them. According to the constitution Larijani is supposed to uphold, they are to be treated as innocent until proven guilty and not treated as criminals.
“Well, nobody is in house arrest without trial and without court order. Incitement to violence is a major cause against them, and this is quite apparent for everybody.” Larijani added that the details of Mousavi’s and Karroubi’s charges will come out once court proceedings begin and noted that they were also charged with other “illegal activities,” which he did not name.
Numerous human rights groups and family members say that Mousavi and Karroubi are under house arrest. The saddest part of this whole thing is that Larijani is head of the High Council for Human Rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran. His allegience should be to the Iranian people and defending their human rights as opposed to his brothers the head of the judiciary and head of the parliament.
Under Article 33 of the Iranian constitution, "No one can be banished from his place of residence, prevented from residing in the place of his choice, or compelled to reside in a given locality, except in cases provided by law." Also under Article 37, "Innocence is to be presumed, and no one is to be held guilty of a charge unless his or her guilt has been established by a competent court."
Mousavi and Karroubi have never been charged with a crime and have not been in a court room to even here charges against them. According to the constitution Larijani is supposed to uphold, they are to be treated as innocent until proven guilty and not treated as criminals.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Can Syria Bring Down the Iranian Regime
Everyday Syria is moving closer and closer to Civil War. As the Iranian regime backs Assad in his brutal suppression of his people, more and more members of his security state are defecting to the Free Syrian Army. The Arab League has suspended Syria and will put in place sanctions in coming days if the situation does not improve. All this indicates that the regime change train has left the station and there is no turning back for Assad and his thugs.
The Iranian regime seems to be realizing this and seems to be trying to hedge its bet for a Syria after Assad. The question turns to how does the current uprising in Syria effect the Iranian regime and can it help bring it down. The regime has already been greatly strategically hurt as its closet ally in the Middle East is in total chaos and there is nothing anyone can do to change that.
Those in power in Tehran are watching carefully to see what will happen and must wonder if they are next. If the Iranian people take inspiration from those in Syria and the rest of the Arab world, I think significant change is on the horizon in Iran. With things simmering underneath the surface in Iran, a major event such as the down fall of the Assad regime could be enough to also bring down its main supporter.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Karroubi Suffering Health Problems
After months of illegal detention, Mehdi Karroubi is suffering respiratory problems. This is how the regime treats an elederly cleric so let's hope for his speedy recovery. More here:
As previously communicated to our dear compatriots, security forces rejected the idea of our father being transferred to our house in Jamaran and instead detained him in a small business apartment for a period of 100 days, in the company of a number of security agents, without access to fresh air. Upon numerous requests by the family and in particular by our honorable mother, on Tuesday of last week, an agreement was finally reached to transfer my father to a house in one of the neighborhoods in Shemiran. According to the contract signed, one of the three units was made available to our father. Our family has agreed to pay a portion of the rent and the other portion will be paid by the Ministry of Intelligence given that their security agents will be deployed at the premises. Following the preparatory work, our father was transferred to this new location and the security officials also stated that our mother would be allowed to return to house arrest to be near our father. However, after our mother left today, we were informed that the security officials had not allowed her to stay with our father and they now insist that he remains in house arrest alone for an indefinite period of time.
Our mother confirmed today that Mr. Karroubi is suffering from respiratory problems as a result of lack of access to fresh air in the past 100 days. He is currently on medication prescribed by the physician of the Ministry of Intelligence. My mother reiterated that despite his ailing physical condition, our father remains in excellent spirits and he firmly stands behind the promise he made to the Iranian nation.
Mehdi Karroubi continues to be denied the basic rights afforded all prisoners in Iran, including access to newspapers, regular visitation with family members, the right to make phone calls, etc... Any access to fresh air, even after this recent transfer to a new location is only limited to inside the apartment in which he is being held. The truth is the manner in which our father has been treated in the past 9 months has been extremely contradictory and unconventionally strict. The fact that he has been deprived from being detained in his own house, has been forced to move to a new location without access to his family, coupled with the extreme efforts taken to ensure that he is isolated have greatly increased the family's concern regarding his well being. We expect the ruling government to clarify as soon as possible the scope and duration of this innovative form of arrest , the various aspects of which will surely be recorded in history.
همانطور که پیشتر به اطلاع هموطنان عزیز و علاقمندان رساندیم نیروهای امنیتی با انتقال پدر به منزل مسکونی شان در جماران موافقت نکردند و به اعمال حبس ۱۰۰ روزه در آپارتمانی اداری و کوچک بدون دسترسی به هوای آزاد و در کنار تعدادی از ماموران امنیتی مبادرت ورزیدند. بدنبال پیگیری های مکرر خانواده بویژه مادر بزرگوارم سه شنبه هفته گذشته قرارداد اجاره منزل مسکونی در یکی از محله های شمیران جهت گذراندن دوران حبس منعقد شد. بر اساس این قرارداد یک واحد از سه واحد استیجاری در اختیار پدر قرار گرفت. خانواده متعهد به پرداخت بخشی از مال الاجاره شد و بخش دیگر را وزارت اطلاعات بابت حضور نیروهایش بر عهده گرفت. بعد از فراهم شدن مقدمات، پدر به مکان جدید منتقل شد و مقامات امنیتی اجازه بازگشت مادر را به حبس دادند. بدنبال خروج امروز مادر مطلع شدیم که مقامات امنیتی اجازه ماندن وی در کنار پدر را نمی دهند و اصرار دارند آقای کروبی الباقی زمان نامعلوم حبس را به تنهایی بگذراند.ا
مادرم تاکید کردند وضعیت تنفسی آقای کروبی بدلیل شرائط نامساعد و عدم دسترسی به هوای آزاد در ۱۰۰ روز گذشته دچار مشکلاتی شده است که در حال حاضر ایشان از داروهای تجویز شده پزشک وزارت اطلاعات استفاده می کنند. ایشان همچنین اضافه کردند که بر خلاف ورود آسیب های جسمی، روحیه آقای کروبی نسبت به مسیر انتخاب شده و عهد خود با مردم بسیار عالی و کم نظیر است.ا
کروبی کما فی السابق از حقوق اولیه یک زندانی مانند حق دسترسی به روزنامه، ملاقات منظم با نزدیکان، تلفن و … برخوردار نمی باشد. هوا خوری ایشان بعد از انتقال تنها در محدوده آپارتمان مجاز شمرده شده است. حقیقت این است که در ۹ ماه گذشته شاهد رفتار متناقض و سختگیری های غیر متعارف نسبت به پدر بوده ایم. محرومیت از حبس در منزل خود و تحمیل مکان دیگر به خانواده و تلاش در جهت تنها نگاه داشتن کروبی نگرانی خانواده را دوچندان کرده است. از حاکمیت انتظار داریم دایره و قلمرو این حصر ابداعی که ابعاد مختلف آن در تاریخ این کشور ماندگار خواهد شد را هر چه سریعتر مشخص کند.ا
As previously communicated to our dear compatriots, security forces rejected the idea of our father being transferred to our house in Jamaran and instead detained him in a small business apartment for a period of 100 days, in the company of a number of security agents, without access to fresh air. Upon numerous requests by the family and in particular by our honorable mother, on Tuesday of last week, an agreement was finally reached to transfer my father to a house in one of the neighborhoods in Shemiran. According to the contract signed, one of the three units was made available to our father. Our family has agreed to pay a portion of the rent and the other portion will be paid by the Ministry of Intelligence given that their security agents will be deployed at the premises. Following the preparatory work, our father was transferred to this new location and the security officials also stated that our mother would be allowed to return to house arrest to be near our father. However, after our mother left today, we were informed that the security officials had not allowed her to stay with our father and they now insist that he remains in house arrest alone for an indefinite period of time.
Our mother confirmed today that Mr. Karroubi is suffering from respiratory problems as a result of lack of access to fresh air in the past 100 days. He is currently on medication prescribed by the physician of the Ministry of Intelligence. My mother reiterated that despite his ailing physical condition, our father remains in excellent spirits and he firmly stands behind the promise he made to the Iranian nation.
Mehdi Karroubi continues to be denied the basic rights afforded all prisoners in Iran, including access to newspapers, regular visitation with family members, the right to make phone calls, etc... Any access to fresh air, even after this recent transfer to a new location is only limited to inside the apartment in which he is being held. The truth is the manner in which our father has been treated in the past 9 months has been extremely contradictory and unconventionally strict. The fact that he has been deprived from being detained in his own house, has been forced to move to a new location without access to his family, coupled with the extreme efforts taken to ensure that he is isolated have greatly increased the family's concern regarding his well being. We expect the ruling government to clarify as soon as possible the scope and duration of this innovative form of arrest , the various aspects of which will surely be recorded in history.
همانطور که پیشتر به اطلاع هموطنان عزیز و علاقمندان رساندیم نیروهای امنیتی با انتقال پدر به منزل مسکونی شان در جماران موافقت نکردند و به اعمال حبس ۱۰۰ روزه در آپارتمانی اداری و کوچک بدون دسترسی به هوای آزاد و در کنار تعدادی از ماموران امنیتی مبادرت ورزیدند. بدنبال پیگیری های مکرر خانواده بویژه مادر بزرگوارم سه شنبه هفته گذشته قرارداد اجاره منزل مسکونی در یکی از محله های شمیران جهت گذراندن دوران حبس منعقد شد. بر اساس این قرارداد یک واحد از سه واحد استیجاری در اختیار پدر قرار گرفت. خانواده متعهد به پرداخت بخشی از مال الاجاره شد و بخش دیگر را وزارت اطلاعات بابت حضور نیروهایش بر عهده گرفت. بعد از فراهم شدن مقدمات، پدر به مکان جدید منتقل شد و مقامات امنیتی اجازه بازگشت مادر را به حبس دادند. بدنبال خروج امروز مادر مطلع شدیم که مقامات امنیتی اجازه ماندن وی در کنار پدر را نمی دهند و اصرار دارند آقای کروبی الباقی زمان نامعلوم حبس را به تنهایی بگذراند.ا
مادرم تاکید کردند وضعیت تنفسی آقای کروبی بدلیل شرائط نامساعد و عدم دسترسی به هوای آزاد در ۱۰۰ روز گذشته دچار مشکلاتی شده است که در حال حاضر ایشان از داروهای تجویز شده پزشک وزارت اطلاعات استفاده می کنند. ایشان همچنین اضافه کردند که بر خلاف ورود آسیب های جسمی، روحیه آقای کروبی نسبت به مسیر انتخاب شده و عهد خود با مردم بسیار عالی و کم نظیر است.ا
کروبی کما فی السابق از حقوق اولیه یک زندانی مانند حق دسترسی به روزنامه، ملاقات منظم با نزدیکان، تلفن و … برخوردار نمی باشد. هوا خوری ایشان بعد از انتقال تنها در محدوده آپارتمان مجاز شمرده شده است. حقیقت این است که در ۹ ماه گذشته شاهد رفتار متناقض و سختگیری های غیر متعارف نسبت به پدر بوده ایم. محرومیت از حبس در منزل خود و تحمیل مکان دیگر به خانواده و تلاش در جهت تنها نگاه داشتن کروبی نگرانی خانواده را دوچندان کرده است. از حاکمیت انتظار داریم دایره و قلمرو این حصر ابداعی که ابعاد مختلف آن در تاریخ این کشور ماندگار خواهد شد را هر چه سریعتر مشخص کند.ا
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Does the Regime Want War?
The publication of findings by the IAEA in the coming days which mostly like point to progress towards weponization of Iran's nuclear program as well as recent statements by Israeli officials have made the prospect of war dangerously real. This comes after heightened tension between Iran and the United States over an alleged assassination plot of the Saudi Ambassador. It seems that the regime in Iran is spiraling towards war with Israel that could drag the United States and other countries in.
In the first instance, those in power in Iran have to be criticized for taking the country to the brink of war and making enemies for the nation. It is clear that the regime actually would welcome a war since it will cause people to rally around the flag and create a distraction to the crimes they are committing inside the country. So we have to keep in mind that the regime actively wants a war to come and we have to be weary not to fall in their trap.
The regime's closest ally in the region, Syria, is on the brink of full scale civil war as the criminal Assad regime has lost more and more legitimacy with its people. The sanctions put in place by the international community have hurt the Iranian economy and have made life even more difficult for those in power. Domestic opposition is as pervasive and wide spread as ever, but is only kept from spilling in the streets at the point of a gun. Within the regime, those in power are fighting among themselves with strong divisions between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei. These factors make it clear that the regime's days are numbered and it will collapse sooner or later outside any major developments.
That is why the specter of war is so dangerous and throws a dangerous dynamic into the situation. We must recognize that those in power are doing all in their power to welcome war so that they can shore up their position. They know that Israel cannot and the United States will not commit to ground operations in Iran, but instead any war will be limited to air strikes. The regime is gambling that it can endure these strikes and come out stronger on the other end because it has shored up its domestic situation.
The protests of 2009 scared the regime because it saw how much support it has lost among the Iranian people. We should not ignore the prospect that the regime is on the path to cause other countries attack Iran so that its own domestic situation will become stronger. So before a military strike is take on Iran, we must remember that it may strengthen the very regime that it is targeting.
In the first instance, those in power in Iran have to be criticized for taking the country to the brink of war and making enemies for the nation. It is clear that the regime actually would welcome a war since it will cause people to rally around the flag and create a distraction to the crimes they are committing inside the country. So we have to keep in mind that the regime actively wants a war to come and we have to be weary not to fall in their trap.
The regime's closest ally in the region, Syria, is on the brink of full scale civil war as the criminal Assad regime has lost more and more legitimacy with its people. The sanctions put in place by the international community have hurt the Iranian economy and have made life even more difficult for those in power. Domestic opposition is as pervasive and wide spread as ever, but is only kept from spilling in the streets at the point of a gun. Within the regime, those in power are fighting among themselves with strong divisions between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei. These factors make it clear that the regime's days are numbered and it will collapse sooner or later outside any major developments.
That is why the specter of war is so dangerous and throws a dangerous dynamic into the situation. We must recognize that those in power are doing all in their power to welcome war so that they can shore up their position. They know that Israel cannot and the United States will not commit to ground operations in Iran, but instead any war will be limited to air strikes. The regime is gambling that it can endure these strikes and come out stronger on the other end because it has shored up its domestic situation.
The protests of 2009 scared the regime because it saw how much support it has lost among the Iranian people. We should not ignore the prospect that the regime is on the path to cause other countries attack Iran so that its own domestic situation will become stronger. So before a military strike is take on Iran, we must remember that it may strengthen the very regime that it is targeting.
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