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

• Presidential crisis in Iran:
  • Ahmadineajd attending the cabinet meeting on Sunday calls his long absence from politics "distance working" from home, and says "the path of the Guardian Jurist is the path of the Imam of the Era."
    • Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi "was unable to attend the cabinet meeting because of his visit to Qom."
  • Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei addresses city council representatives: "One must abstain from any deed and action which enchants the enemy and saddens friends."
  • Parliamentary Speaker Ali Larijani addresses parliament: "Legitimacy of all those working in this country, including the parliament, the executive and the judiciary is dependent on those powers being in the path of the Guardian Jurist and working in the thought orbit of the Guardian Jurist."
  • Hojjat al-Eslam Zolnour, the Supreme Leader's deputy representative to the Revolutionary Guards: "Today Mashaei is the real president. Intervention in the cabinet ministries and intelligence affairs is because of his meddling..."
  • Alef News editorializes: "Bani-Sadr was not a traitor from the beginning... First he was president, and then he became traitor... God, don't give power to those who can't handle it!" 
  • Asr-e Iran editorializes:
    • "The truth is that the presidential candidates - in 2005 as well as in 2009 - had each had their social and political bases. Apart from the post-election events, one must say that the fundamental base of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were the Hezbollahi forces. This does not mean that everyone who voted for Ahmadinejad was necessarily a Hezbollahi. The voters had many and at times conflicting motives.”
    • "Even among the clergy, the greatest support was granted to Ahmadinejad. A support which was not granted to Ahmadinejad's predecessor who was himself a cleric."
    • "During his presidency, the Supreme Leader, showed Ahmadinejad and his government the most overt and greatest support, including the famous sentence uttered at the Friday prayer after the election in which he said that 'Ahmadinejad's viewpoint is closer to mine.'"
    • "Therefore, it is the greatest injustice and ingratitude, that in the wake of the recent affairs, the entourage of the president complain and express themselves against the president's previous supporters in prose and poetry and accuse them of breaking Ahmadinejad's heart and the like..."
  • Pro-Ahmadienjad journalist Mojtaba Navandi says he met Ahmadinejad last Saturday where Ahmadinejad told him that he desired to "disclose economically corrupt individuals" on national television. http://navandi.blogfa.com/post-114.aspx
  • Vice President Ali Aqa-Mohammadi says a list of the names of "real estate speculators" will soon be released. http://www.irna.ir/NewsShow.aspx?NID=30361927 

 Military and Security

• Hassan Firouz-Abadi, chief of the General Staff: "Any regional security arrangement without Iran is illegitimate."
• Gholam-Reza Jalali, head of a military unit in charge of combating sabotage:
  • "In the past, military attacks against the economic infrastructure were considered economic warfare. Today, attacks with economic and technological means against the economy is considered economic warfare..."
  • "Economic warfare is the main tactic of the United States against Iran..."
  • "The United States economic warfare against Iran is directed from the United States Treasury Department..."
  • "However, because of the ability of Iran to bypass the sanctions... even American decision-makers doubt about the efficacy of the sanctions..."
  • "More than 8,000 Iranian commercial business units are active in Dubai..."
  • "This[American monitoring] center has stopped the economic activities of some companies in Dubai and has stopped activities of some private sector companies..."
  • "Another initiative of the United States is concentration on financial activities of Iranian citizens to the degree that cash transactions above $500 are monitored..."
  • "The West is trying to encircle Iran economically and reduce and control our country's capacity to engage in trade and financial transactions with neighboring countries..."
  • "Activities of some companies in Europe have also been stopped..."
  • "Most countries pursue their own national interest, don't follow Washington and try to engage with Iran economically..."
• The Oil Ministry signs - on no bid basis - a $1 billion project with Khatam al-Anbia Construction Base of the Revolutionary Guards.

Trade

• Abbas Ali-Abadi, Iran's Power Plant Projects director, says Iran has finished building a power plant in Iraq and will engage in building more plants. Ali-Abadi also says Iran will build power plants in Ghana, Algeria and Syria.

Photo of the Day

• Ahmadinejad back in office.