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 subscribe to this daily newsletter, please visit this page, fill out the "New Subscribers" section, and check "Iran News Round Up" listed under "Projects." 

(E) = Article in English

Politics

• An anonymous pamphlet distributed in Tehran attacks Rafsanjani and Tehran Mayor Qalibaf.
• Hojjat al-Eslam Sagha-ye Biria, Ahmadinejad's adviser:
  • "Return of the seditionists to the [political] arena of the regime is absolutely not acceptable..."
• Hojjat al-Eslam Ali-Reza Salimi:
  • "Some of the heads of the sedition such as [Mir-Hossein] Mousavi and [Mehdi] Karrubi are most certainly criminals, the criminal deeds of whom led to enchantment in enemy camp. They acted as the ground forces of the enemy and they must be tried..."
  • "The regime and the people will under no circumstance allow Mousavi and Karrubi - whose crimes are provem and who are today enemy operatives, to engage in [political] activities... [Mohammad] Khatami's role in sedition of 2009 must be analyzed in this very framework."

Military and Security

• Yadollah Javani, Revolutionary Guards Political Directorate chief, addresses an assembly of "political guides" in the Guards in Semnan:
  • "Every revolutionary faces two groups of enemies. The first group of enemies is those who from the very beginning of the revolution oppose its values, ideals and principles. Danger emanating from such groups is not very serious for the revolution. But the second group is much more dangerous. It is composed of those who are revolutionaries who participated in shaping of the revolution but who as time passed have distanced themselves and have slowly joined the enemy front. The current phase of our revolution is the phase of conflict with this group."
• Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei: "The German citizens [arrested by the Intelligence Ministry on espionage charges] are not accused of espionage. They may celebrate Christmas with their families."
• Army Chief Ataollah Salehi:
  • "During that [Rafsanjani's last] Friday prayer some of those assembled chanted slogans against the regime... During that Friday prayer the seditionists took the arena from us. Or when they shouted 'God is Great' from the rooftops, the hearts of our children shook at home and they would say: 'Can one arrest someone who shouts 'God is Great'? In the garrisons and in rooms of some soldiers there were pictures of the heads of the sedition. We would not tell them to tear them into pieces but we would tell the political/ideological indoctrination officers to cleanse their hearts of this."
• [E] Iran's Deputy Police Chief Ahmad Reza Radan says foreign spy agencies, especially the CIA and Mossad, have been involved in the Monday terrorist attacks on Iranian scientists.

Diplomacy

• [E] Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki asked the White House to make an explicit and official announcement on the authenticity of the documents released by the WikiLeaks website and openly declare if it approves the genuineness of these reports.

Nuclear Issue

• On nuclear negotiations with the 5+1:
  • Ahmadinejad:
    • "If you really are sincere and want a positive result in the negotiations, you should first and foremost recognize justice and respect. Secondly, you should recognize the rights of the Iranian nation and stop your enmity. Come and let's engage in constructive cooperation. We are ready to cooperate in economic, nuclear, and international security fields [along with] solving global problems..."
    • "This is an exceptional opportunity for you and we hope that the Western heads of state will be reasonable..."
    • We asked them some questions but they did not answer.. Not answering is also a kind of answer..."
    • "Our security agents will - thanks to divine wisdom - arrest perpetrators of the assassinations and deliver them to justice, but they should know that because of the Resolution in which they write the names of our scientists, we ascribe such happenings to them. You issue resolutions and write the names of our scientists. What has the scientist done? He is engaged in scientific work. Why do you write their names in your resolutions? When you do it, the Zionists bats assassinate them. We will consider you responsible."
  • Intelligence Minister Hojjat al-Eslam Heydar Moslehi:
    • "Unfortunately there are spy cells among the IAEA inspectors and they must address this. The United Nations must also answer why names of Iranian scientists are publicized as a result of the sanctions. This is what our enemies are pursuing."
  • Judiciary Chief Sadeq Laijani: "We consider the IAEA responsible [for assassinations] because they have done the worst imaginable deed in the realm of science and they have exposed our scientists to new dangers by releasing their names."
  • Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi, senior presidential adviser, at the memorial service of nuclear scientist Shahriari:
    • "It is remarkable that two prominent Iranian scientists are assassinated on the eve of negotiations between Iran and the 5+1 Group and the Western countries choose silence. Our questions is this: How come individuals mentioned in the appendix of the United Nations [Security Council] Resolution are assassinated?"
  • Five student groups call for the cessation of cooperation with the IAEA.
• Mashregh News condemns Ministry of Science, Research and Technology's release of names of Iranian nuclear scientists on its website.
• Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei's website releases Persian translation of a Wikileaks document referring to Mashaei's conversation with the Austrian Ambassador to Tehran.
• [E] Iran's atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi on Sunday stressed the country's ability to convert enriched uranium into fuel plates to supply fuel for the Tehran research reactor, saying the first consignment of 20-percent enriched fuel for the reactor will be ready as soon as the next year.
• [E] Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki urged the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) to display in the Monday talks in Geneva that they are serious about reaching an understanding with Tehran over different issues.

Religion, Society and Culture

• Two individuals in Semnan say they are the Hidden Imam
• Unnamed soccer players arrested at a mixed gender party in Tehran.

Media

• Sobh-e Dokouhe, a monthly now edited by Sara Zibakalam and previously edited by Masoud Dehnamaki, hits the kiosks again.

Photo of the Day

• Yellow cake transfer from Bandar Abbas to Isfahan