Iran News Round Up

(E) = Article in English

Rafsanjani calls for unity in Iran against foreign threats; Iran’s Foreign Minister says seizing Shirin Ebadi’s Nobel prize ‘not political but tax issue’; Iranian leaders blast Russia, China over IAEA vote; California-based insurance companies reportedly invest $12 in Iran; Ahmadinejad blames West for failure of nuclear negotiations; Iranian police warn against National Student Day unrest; Iranian newspaper editor gets nine-year jail term for vote protest

Politics

• Rafsanjani in Mashhad:

  • "We have certain conditions in Iran, and foreign problems have worsened those conditions..."
  • "An alliance seems to have been formed against Iran..."
  • "All the great powers in the Security Council have aligned themselves with each other to deny us our natural right to use peaceful nuclear energy, while countries like Israel, Pakistan and India have illegally acquired nuclear weapons. But we desire to use nuclear energy peacefully under supervision of the IAEA..."
  • "Under such conditions the greatest priority in Iran is unity. If they [the foreign enemies] sense that we are disunited they will be tempted to increase their mischief..."
  • "One can no longer hide it. The problem of [internal] division is serious...Historically the clergy has always been the refuge of the people. Whenever the people faced problems in their dealings with the state they would seek refuge of the clergy..."
  • "We should see to it that there is no division between the people and the clergy, especially when it comes to the educated classes who shape public opinion..."
  • "In my opinion, no one other than the Supreme Leader is capable of creating unity and we must all help the Leader to create an atmosphere of solidarity which satisfies the people..."
  • "God forbid if the colonialists attempt to divide the clergy and the people. This is what happened during the Constitutional era. This is why I found this place, near the tomb of Imam Reza appropriate to discuss the issue of unity..."
    

• Ayatollah Jannati to lead this Friday prayer in Tehran.

• Ayatollah Hadi Khamenei, brother of the Supreme Leader, criticizes the Islamic Republic for ignoring the Constitution:
  

  • "Our problem is from two to three quarters. One is the official institutions which ignore the Constitution. Secondly, the Guardian Council which should be the main guardian of the Constitution,..but has not understood its spirit..."
  • "Another problem is the parliament. Members of the parliament should know the Constitution and should abide by it and follow the legal path, and if there is disagreement, it should be within the path of the law.
    

• Foreign Ministry Spokesman Mehmanparast says confiscation of Shirin Ebadi's Nobel prize account was not a political issue but a tax issue: "She had not paid certain taxes and she had continuously abstained from participating at meetings to attend to her tax debts."

• Mojahedin-e Enghelab faction in a letter to the Intelligence Ministry protests against prohibition against its annual conference in Tehran.

• According to Jomhouri-ye Eslami, Judge Said Mortazavi will soon be appointed head of the Legal Inspectorate Bureau of the Presidency.
  

Diplomacy

• Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi: "Russia and China are not our friends; they are the friends of their own interests."

  • Mohammd Sadr, former Deputy Foreign Minister: "It is natural that Russia...has certain cards which it uses in different circumstances. One these cards is the Iran card, especially because of sensitivity of the United States. A related issue is the Bushehr power plant...[ Russia] partially accommodates wishes of the United States to sanction Iran and extracts certain concessions - the most important of which was the missile defense program which was pursued by Bush and had developed into a serious issue between Russia and the United States. One of the great concessions made by Obama to Russia was in this regard, and it is only natural that Russia is reciprocating the United States and delaying the start of operations of the Bushehr plant must be analyzed in this context...The most important issue is that the government of Mr. Ahmadinejad had an unrealistic trust in Russia and had calculated too much on this country with regard to the issue of the Security Council, the sanctions and resolution..."
    

Economy

• Abrar reports increase in the price of red meat and chicken in the Iranian market.

• Ahmad Maghsoud proposes establishment of certain insurance companies to protect the Iranian economy against increased sanctions.
  

Trade

• California-based insurance companies have invested $12 billion in Iran.

• Abrar-e Eghtesadi reports 87 percent increase in Iran's electricity export to neighboring countries.
  

Military and Security

• Commander Fazli, Seyyed, ash-Shohada Revolutionary Guards unit Chief of Tehran province, says forces outside the capital were used to suppress the post election unrest in Tehran:
  

  • "Certain individuals had conspired and aligned themselves with the American George Soros Foundation and attempted to topple the regime. These individuals had organized four armies. One of them, the Vote Organization, had 300,000 members in Tehran and 150,000 members in the provinces which attempted to change the atmosphere of the tenth election to their benefit..."
  • "They were organized in security, unrest, labor, counter propaganda units and the like. They had also twenty sub committees encompassing all classes of the society..."
  • "Iran Freedom Movement, the National Party, Participation Front, Organization of the Holy Warriors of the Islamic Revolution and the Combatant Clergy Association along with the Kargozaran [technocratic] faction organized and directed the unrest..."
  • "The second step of these individuals was the Committee for the Defense of the Vote organized by [Ali-Akbar] Mohtashamipour...and the third step was communicating the lie to the people that should Mousavi be elected, nice, if not, we must demand new elections, and if no new election takes place we must go to the streets and force them to do so...They had organized 100,000 people to encircle the Interior Ministry..."
  • "But when they realized they were not allowed to get to the Interior Ministry the physical struggle began..."
  • "All the Basij members from Tehran province, from Pirouzkouh, Damavand, Boumehen, Pardis, Pakdasht, Rey, Eslamshahr, Robat-e Karim, Shahriyar, Shahr-e Ghods, Malard, Savojbolagh, Karaj and even from other provinces were summoned to suppress the unrest."
    

• Rajabzadeh, Greater Tehran Law Enforcement Chief, says the Police will not allow disturbances at the December 7, 2009 Student Day: "December 7th is the day of struggle against world imperialism, all the universities are ready to perform the ceremonies of this day and the police is also ready to guarantee the security at the universities...Where ever there should be unrest the police will be present there and will not allow insecurity..."

• Hassan Abbasi, Revolutionary Guards theoretician, explains geopolitics of Iran to Raja News Agency. Link upon request.

• Five British citizens arrested by the Revolutionary Guards Navy near Siri Island were released.
  

Nuclear Issue

• Ahmadinejad addresses crowds in Isfahan:
  

  • "The IAEA Board of Governors has illegally, contrary to its resolutions, contrary to reason and justice and because of a few seemingly mighty but defeated states, issued a resolution against Iran. But it is clear that the Iranian nation has no fear, not even when facing the united lot of them..."
  • "They have lost their faculty of reason and thought and they don't comprehend that they have hidden their heads under the snow and shout. They think whatever they say will be obeyed by governments..."
  • "They are controlled by the Taghout [the one who rebels against God, Satan], they are in darkness and they act against their interest. As we have said, these organizations are administered by a few countries, have never dealt justly [with us] and we are witnessing their double standards..."
  • "God has slapped the devils on their necks and they are proving our claims about them with their own deeds...In our view, Iran's nuclear issue is over...They are in pain because of another issue. We said, give us 20 percent enriched fuel since they are obliged to do so according to the regulations of the IAEA. We said, lets negotiate, but they demanded certain conditions. In response, we said that we will not accept conditions. If you don't give us the fuel, leave us to the blessings [of God] and go with peace. But they issued a resolution against us. This is the defeated logic of the medieval ages..."
  • "If you don't want to give us the fuel we need, don't do so. I announce here that the Iranian nation will get hold of 20 percent enriched fuel and whatever else it needs..."
  • "We proposed them negotiation. Whenever they come to their senses and respect the rights of the nations we will negotiate with them. But I must say, in the nuclear issue, even should their father be damned, should they burn and roast, Iran will not negotiate with you in the nuclear issue..."

• Russia's Energy Minister says "we can't constantly look at our wrist watch when it comes to the Bushehr Plant."
  

Human Rights

• Former Sarmayeh editor Said Leylaz sentenced to 9 years in prison due to "relations with employees at the British embassy."

• According to E'temad, the doctor at Kahrizak Detention Center who died under mysterious circumstances was poisoned by the salad he ate just before dying.
  

Photo of the Day

• Basij street theater: Reconstructing the murder of Neda Aghasoltan as a British plot.