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

• Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei addresses Friday prayers in Tehran:  
  • "Of course, we also have weaknesses which we must address... Our vulnerabilities are threats that we are facing in our path; threats which have been there and we must stop them in future. The first weakness is inclination to worldliness which has haunted some of us. Some of us, the authorities, have become worldly and materialist. The hideousness of wealth, luxury, makeup, ceremony and aristocratic lifestyle has gradually disappeared. When we become like this, it will also spread among the people... Also about social justice, which is the will of Islam and our will, we have not reached our goal which is among our weaknesses... We should all feel responsible... and we should not point finger at each other. It should not be so that whenever there is a shortcoming somewhere the parliament says it is the fault of the government and the government says it is the fault of the parliament. One says it is the fault of the Judiciary. No, the responsibilities are clear. The Constitution has clarified the lines and everyone's responsibility is clarified."
  • "Elections immunize the country. What preserves the prestige of this nation, presents its spiritual power to the enemies and deters them and threatens them is popular presence, one of whose symbols is this election. Another symbol is the February 11th Revolution Day which we have ahead of us."
  • "The third issue. I announce this: Those who are disqualified are not necessarily unqualified individuals. People should not think that because this person was disqualified from elections, it means he is totally unqualified. No, according to the law, he cannot participate in elections as a candidate, but it is possible that those authorities who have disqualified him are mistaken. It is possible that he was not qualified for this job, but is qualified for many other positions..."
  • "The last issue relating to the elections: The authorities should not ignore the conspiracies of the enemies against the elections. Those who do not receive enough votes in the elections should also be aware and should not be fooled like those who did not get any votes in 2009. They should not be deceived... Don't blame the elections, don't help the enemy, and an atmosphere of conflict and hopelessness should not be displayed in the campaign so we can, God willing, have a good election." 
• Gholam-Ali Rajaei, political activist, writes that the late Grand Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic, is "concerned about the legacy he has left behind." Rajaei adds that in circumstances where Rafsanjani can't make Friday prayer sermons and Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karrubi are under house arrest, the late Khomeini is "concerned." 
• Emad Afrough, a former parliamentarian now teaching at the Tarbiat-e Moddares University:
  • "One should not confuse the Guardianship of the Jurist with the monarchy. That would be an insult against the Guardianship... This is not how he [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] perceives himself and we should not look at him as if he was one speaking with him with fear... If there is no criticism... authority will decay from within... One can't correctly administer the country without the help of the elites, or without criticism..." 

Diplomacy

• Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei addresses Friday prayers in Tehran:
  • "In Tunisia and Egypt, the people voted for Islam... This means that all the efforts of the Americans and the Westerners, and the propaganda machinery of Hollywood and the like which they utilized to defy the Islamic Republic... have been futile and the people want Islam... Among these nations, the Bahraini nation is the most oppressed because they have unfortunately been subjected to the silence and boycott of all the media of the world. Their demands are not unacceptable according to any humane and global logic. It is rather a just demand, but they are oppressed. They are totally marginalized by [the media]... Indeed, there is constant propaganda against them. Of course, it is not effective and that nation too will, with divine approval, be victorious... Let me use the occasion to say this sentence: The rulers of Bahrain claim that Iran is interfering in the affairs of Bahrain. This is a lie. No, we are not intervening. When we interfere we will bluntly say so. We intervened in opposition to Israel and the result of which was the victory of the 33 Days War and the victory of the 22 Days War. From now on, any nation or group which fights against the Zionist regime and opposes it, we will support it and we are not afraid of saying so. This is the truth of the matter. But now, the ruler of the island of Bahrain saying that Iran is intervening in the affairs of Bahrain, no, this is not right… Had we intervened in Bahrain the situation in Bahrain would have been different." 

Military and Security

• According to BBC Persian, the security forces have arrested 49 activists urging boycott of the parliamentary elections in different cities of Khuzestan province. One reportedly died in the custody. 
• Hossein Salami, Revolutionary Guards deputy, says the Hamian-e Velayat [Supporters of Guardianship] war game is a response to the "strong statements of the Supreme Leader at the Friday prayer and his strategy to counter regional and extra regional threats."
  • According to Salami, the war game displayed the "latest offensive and defensive doctrine of the Revolutionary Guards Ground Forces deploying 33rd Al-Mahdi airborne brigade." 
• Student News Agency quotes an unnamed bodyguard of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as saying that he loves Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to the degree that should Khamenei order him, he would "bring him Sayyed Hassan [Nasrallah's severed] head." 
• Al-Alam News, quoting Al-Masry Al-Yom, writes 18 Egyptian youth who had participated in the Islamic Awakening Conference in Tehran were arrested upon their return to Egypt. 
• Iran launches the Navid satellite into orbit. 
• [E] Iran on Monday unveiled 21 new home-made achievements and projects in defensive and technological fields.

Economy

• According to Asr-e Iran, the Iranian government is considering raising the amount of cash handouts. 
• Ahmad Tavakoli, Parliamentary Research Center director, calls the Ahmadinejad government's latest budget proposal as "stupendous." 

Trade

• Asr-e Iran reports bottleneck problems in Iran's port facilities. 
• [E] Pakistani Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh in a meeting with Iranian Vice-President for International Affairs Ali Saeedlou underscored that Islamabad is eager to boost its cooperation with Tehran, especially in the field of energy. 

Media

• According to Morteza Esmaeili-Taba, Qom province Islamic Propagation director, six million Iranians are members of online social networking associations. 

Photos of the Day

• Friday prayers in Tehran led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.