Iran News Round Up

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by Ali Alfoneh, Ahmad Majidyar and Michael Rubin.  To receive this daily newsletter, please subscribe online.
 
(E) = Article in English

 Politics

• Ayatollah Mohammad-Taqi Mesbah Yazdi praises Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, stresses that he loves Nasrallah because of "his total obedience to the Guardian Jurist," adds that the "following Nasrallah as the deputy of the deputy of the Imam of the Era (His Holiness Ayatollah Khamenei) is a religious necessity."

Diplomacy                                                                      

• Javan Online slams the State Department's launching of a "virtual Den of Espionage," a reference to the cyberspace based embassy to Tehran.
  • [E] Iran blocked the virtual embassy website launched online by the US administration shortly after the website officially started work.
• Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi interviewed by the German press says "the events in front of the British embassy in Tehran a few days ago will not be repeated."
  • Raja News suggests "seizure of the Foreign Ministry," following the "apologetic line of the Ministry" in the aftermath of the attacks against the British embassy compounds in Tehran.
• [E] The Spanish center for Andalusia studies voiced support for Iranian students' protests against the British embassy last week, describing their confrontation with the British government as an anti-colonialist move.

Military and Security

• Sobh-e Sadeq calls Baku, the capital of the Republic of Azerbaijan "a center of Zionist espionage against Iran."
• [E] A senior Iranian legislator blamed the U.S. officials for the recent increase in terrorist attacks in Afghanistan which have killed a large number of innocent civilians in the country, and said there are many documents proving that Americans have had meetings with terrorists in the war-torn country.
• [E] Head of the Supreme Leader's Office Hojatoleslam Mohammad Mohammadi Golpayegani praised Iran's Armed Forces for downing a US stealth aircraft being used for secret missions by the CIA, and said it displayed the high level of Tehran's deterrence power.

Economy

• Donya-ye Eqtesad says inflation is 19.8%.

Trade

• Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast:
  • "…We do not recognize that the United Arab Emirates has become a middle man exporting [European goods] to us..."
  • "We believe that our trade and economic relations have shifted from Europe to Asia, and not to the United Arab Emirates… China, India, Turkey, Japan and the like are some examples of such countries..."
• "If we make a retreat in the nuclear issue, they will say, great, now, let's attend to the human rights issue. We ask, what are human rights? They will say: Why do you execute people. We answer, someone has committed a murder, and it is the right of the people and the family of the victim must agree [before the murderer is pardoned]. They will say, no! You have to do what we dictate to you until the human rights problem is solved in your country. Imagine that we say that we will do anything you say concerning the human rights. What else? Is it all? They will announce, No! You must solve the democracy problem in your country. They also want to shape democracy in their own image... Even if we do as they say, they will next demand: Solve the homosexuality problem. Their demands are infinite..."
• Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi says he is not concerned about the European Union sanctioning Iran's oil exports, says the OPEC summit will discuss reductions in Saudi oil production.
• [E] The volume of trade relations between Iran and the European countries amounted to €19bln in the first 9 months of 2011 despite the US-led western sanctions against Tehran.

Religion, Society and Culture

• Shafaf News slams travel agencies offering holiday tours to Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey during Ashura.
• HIV/AIDS in Sistan va Balouchestan is "twice the countrywide average."

Photo of the Day

•  Ashura in Kashan.