Iran News Round Up

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by Ali Alfoneh and Ahmad Majidyar. To receive this daily newsletter, please subscribe online.

(E) = Article in English   

Military and Security

• Two members of the Red Crescent in Chabahar are reportedly killed in a bombing incident at a mosque.
  • Zahedan Public Prosecutor slamming the terrorist attack at a mosque in Chabahar provided more details about the terrorist attack:
    • "At the time of the Friday prayer at the Imam Hussein Hosseiniyeh in Chabahar, an individual dressed in military uniform attempted to enter the mosque, but the guards at the entrance found him suspicious. The individual in question who was carrying explosives began to flee, and blew himself up while fleeing... Unfortunately, two Basij members were killed in the incident, while two kids and a policeman were wounded... The aim of such acts is creating divisions between the Shi'a and Sunni, and making the periphery regions look unsafe..."
• Commander Mohsen Kazemeini, Tehran Mohammad-Rasoul-Allah Revolutionary Guards unit commander, explains the Ela Beit al-Moqaddas war game:
  • "The war game takes place in order to demonstrate the strength and organizational abilities of the Basij in response to threats, and as a response to the insults of the Zionists against the Prophet."
  • "The Komeil, Hamzeh, Al-Zahra, Al-e Mohammad, the 27th Mohammad-Rasoul-Allah Division, Malek, Vali-ye Asr, Karbala and Saberin bases of the Basij along with the Cyber [Warfare] unit [of the Basij] will be engaged [in the war game] in eight separate operational zones. 120 combat brigades, 30 combat support [logistic] brigades, and 180 Al-Zahra and Ashoura brigades... will participate in the war game... which means participation of 15,000 individuals."
  • "This war game is planned according to the Mosaic Doctrine of the Guards, and the rapid reaction brigades and the Imam Hussein brigades are trained to face hard threats... Imam Ali brigades are trained to face security threats and unrest, while Ashoura and Al-Zahra brigades are trained for cultural and societal operations and the Saberin Brigade is trained for special operations including ambush and anti heliborne operations. Rescue brigades participate in order to train for emergencies..."
  • "This war game has nothing to do with the [June 2013 presidential] election, and we do not at all think about such things. The future election will taken place in total calm and without any incidents. This war game is a response to the insults and threats of the Zionist regime."
  • "This war game was meant to be called Imam Jafar-e Sadeq war  game, but since the Westerners insulted the Prophet of Islam, it was decided to call it Ela Beit al-Moqaddas."
    • Revolutionary Guards Deputy Hossein Salami elaborates on the importance of the Basij.
• Gholam-Reza Jalali, Passive Defense commander:
  • "Today, based on the people centric warfare theory, the enemy is concentrating its effort on the people and their needs… We must identify the fundamental needs of the public and prioritize them. The basic needs of the people must under all circumstances be provided so that the families do not lose their ability to administer themselves, and no economic pressure is exerted on the people. That would reduce the impact of the sanctions... Strategic reserves particularly when it comes to wheat, energy, medicine and the like, are an important issue, to which not enough attention has been paid in our country..."

• [E] Commander of Iran's Basij (volunteer) force Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi said that the recent penetration of a drone of the Lebanese Hezbollah deep into Israel's airspace was part of the movement's power and the Zionist regime should wait to see more advanced drones in its sky.
• [E] Tehran's provisional Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami stressed that sanctions and pressures cannot force the Iranian nation to surrender since Iranians have learned how to deal with problems.

Photos of the Day

• Ela Beit al-Moqaddas war game.