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, e-mail [email protected].

(E) = Article in English

Supreme Leader calls on elite to clarify stance towards enemy; Rafsanjani given ‘ultimatum’ to correct behavior; Iran’s ambassador to Russia warns enemy propaganda may affect relations between Moscow, Tehran; Iran sends humanitarian aid to Haiti; Tehran considering downgrading relations with Britain; Iran’s navy to expedite mission to Gulf of Aden; Iran to unveil new satellites within weeks; government’s subsidy plan likely to push up prices; Iran says world powers showing ‘traces of realism’ in nuclear talks

Politics

• Supreme Leader Khamenei addresses the "elites" while receiving representatives of the Islamic Propaganda Council Coordination Committee to discuss planning for the commemoration of the Revolution Day:

  • "Presence of millions of people [in Revolution Day rallies] is a symbol of the Islamic Revolution and the regime rising from it. It is supported by the people and their faith. It also shows the helplessness of the enemy when it comes to destabilizing the Islamic regime..."

  • "The enemies are trying to cover up this cohesion and unity. Through their agents and propaganda campaigns, they claim that the cohesion has degenerated into factionalism..."

  • "This is also true about the Quds [Jerusalem] Day, which is founded to oppose the Zionist regime. But a small, misguided group chanted slogans against Palestine and in favor of the Zionist regime. Also on [Student Day] in which the Iranian nation expresses its hatred towards American imperialism, they chanted slogans against this movement, against the Islamic regime and against Islamism..."

  • "The enemy is trying to destabilize this great national wealth [of unity], and, therefore, one must be present in the scene with all force and move in a wise way..."

  • "One must abstain from ambiguous talks...The enemies are always against a transparent atmosphere, because they can achieve their goals only in an atmosphere of discord...Under present circumstances, all political movements and inclinations within the regime must clarify their borders with the enemy in a clear way. And in this context, the responsibility of the elites, especially elites who have a great impact, is greater than others...When the heads of imperialism and injustice and occupiers of Islamic lands enter the arena and take a position, ambiguity is not right, since it must be clear what position individuals within the regime have adopted and if they are ready to distance themselves from the enemy...When some, in the dusty atmosphere of discord, in their words refute Islam, and in their deeds refute republicanism of the regime by questioning the elections, what one expects from the elites is to clarify their borders and position..."

  • "Thanks to divine blessing and mercy, the Iranian nation has gone through many difficult paths and will also do so in the future..."

• Ayatollah Vaez Tabasi, Representative of the Supreme Leader in Khorasan, says it is a mistake to "alienate the grandees of the regime."

• Security authorities return the Ghoba Mosque to source of emulation Ayatollah Dastgheib.

• Vatan-e Emrouz reports Assembly of Experts members have given Rafsanjani an "ultimatum" to correct his behavior.

• Ahmadineajd corrects his Chief of Staff Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei's statements about the Prophet Noah.  (Link on request).

• JARAS discusses imprisoned advisers of Mir-Hossein Mousavi: Ghorban Behzadiannezhad, Mohammad Bagherian, Alireza Hosseini Beheshti, Mohammadreza Hosseini Beheshti, Mohammadreza Tajik, Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, Hassan Abedi Ja'fari, Mohammadreza Va'ez Mahdavi, Ardeshir Amirarjomand, Ali Arabmaziar Yazdi, Farshad Mo'emeni and Hamzeh Ghalebi.

• JARAS publishes article about Sheikh Ali Tehrani, son-in-law of Supreme Leader Khamenei.

• Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi addressing public sector executives from Bushehr visiting Qom, warns of enemy conspiracies against the principle of the rule of the Guardian Jurist.

Diplomacy

• Ahmadinejad receiving Georgia's Foreign Minister:

  • "The two countries can establish lasting and strong cooperation through continuous consultations..."

  • "All regional issues and problems can be solved through cooperation and engagement by the countries within the region..."

  • "Interventions of foreign powers in the region are because of their pursuit of their own interests, but they will not benefit from such acts. The future belongs to the nations of the region..."

• Mahmoudreza Sajjadi, Iran’s Ambassador to Russia:

  • "It is natural that the Iranian side has some sensitivity regarding its bilateral relations, this is especially true when it comes to delivery of the S-300 air defense system and Russia's position in the Board of Governors of the IAEA when it comes to resolutions. The issue is sensitive and in such circumstances the behavior [of Russia] affects the public opinion and the position of the government of Iran..."

  • "If there is no systematic consultation at high levels it is possible that the propaganda and tricks of the opponents create misunderstandings in the trend of cooperation between the two countries... It is natural that they are not happy with the trend of expansion of relations between the two countries and because of their enmity and vengeance and in order to achieve their goals attempt at affecting the relation of the two countries..."

  • "Ten million Russians tourists visit abroad, but very few of them travel to Iran..."

  • "The Americans want to reestablish their influence in Iran...They are trying to use political and economic issues to pressure Russia..."

  • " I do not think that...the current leadership in the United States can make any deep impact on Iran/Russia relations..."

  • "In addition to this, Russia considers Iran a regional power and it is improbable that Moscow sacrifices its friendship with a trustworthy neighbor with costly instances of relations with Washington...An independent and stable Iran creates stability and security in the Caspian, Central Asia and the Caucasus. Iran has also created a strong barrier against fundamentalism and narcotics entering Russian soil. Therefore, I think both Iran and the United States have their places in Russia's foreign policy. It is only natural that under such circumstances, Russia will not sacrifice its long term interests to a few instances of smiles [of the United States.]..."

  • Answering the Russian reporter's question about anti-Russian sentiments in Iranian society the ambassador said: "Since the Westerners demand Russia to pursue a certain line, they engage in systematic propaganda, therefore, as a result of the behavior of Russia and creation of negative atmosphere by the Western press at various levels of thoughts and in certain quarters and political movements anti Russian sentiments are increased, but such movements are nurtured by Western propaganda and not official position of Iran."

  • "The position of some Western countries is like a thief who has forced his way to your home, but demands that you should give up your defensive arms before he leaves your house…! As I pointed out, the only rational deed is exchange of low enriched uranium with 20 percent uranium necessary for the Tehran research reactor taking place simultaneously on Iranian soil. If we export our uranium and receive nothing in return, what can we do then? Could this issue not become like tens of agreements to which the West has not lived up?"

• [E] Iranian Red Crescent Society officials announced that the country's first aid cargo had reached Haiti on Monday.  

• [E] South African Parliament Speaker Hon Max Vuyisile Sisulu is due to pay a visit to Iran this week.

• [E] Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman says Tehran is studying downgrading of its relations with Britain and will take action if it finds it necessary. "These relations might be lowered down or upgraded in any area or ground necessary, the foreign policy system will adopt the necessary measures after studying what has occurred and the approaches and positions (taken by the other side) anyway," Mehman-Parast told reporters. 

• [E] Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Palestine: "All the existing capacities of the Islamic World should be utilized to support and defend the rights of the oppressed Palestinian people, especially with respect to the ongoing human crisis in Gaza," Larijani said in a meeting with the Secretary-General of the Islamic Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

  • [E] Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on assistance to Gaza: "Now one year after the Gaza tragedy, it is necessary that we, as responsible members of the international community, fulfill our responsibility."

• [E] Secretary of Iran's Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaei says Iran and Turkey play significant roles in regional developments. "Collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of its role in the region as well as the US failure in establishing security and fighting terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq have multiplied the significance and importance of Iran and Turkey's roles," Rezaei said in a meeting with the Turkish Ambassador to Tehran, Salim Kara Othman Oglu.

Military and Security

• Navy to expedite a mission to the Gulf of Aden.

• Attempted suicide bombing near the General Governorate of Mashhad. The perpetrator is reported dead.

• Assadollah Badamchian, parliamentary National Security Committee member, warns against the threat of "further assassinations" at the hands of the "discord movement."

• Legal proceedings against two unnamed individuals accused of being involved in planning the Ashoura unrest:

  • "The first individual has a BA degree, is single, Shi'a, and without any criminal record. The suspect is accused of supporting and having relations with the Monafeghin [Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization]; arranging a gathering and conspiring to commit crimes against national security in cooperation with Sarah, Reyhaneh and Mohsen; engaging in propaganda against the regime and to the benefit of the opponents such as the Monafeghin and the terrorists; illegally leaving the country; taking motion pictures of the tomb of Neda Agha-Soltan and Sohrab A'rabi twice and sending the movies to the Monafeghin, and receiving an e-mail from the Monafeghin in which the accused was urged to paint slogans on walls in Babolsar in support of the strike at Camp Ashraf."

  • The accused said in his defense:

    • "My brother was at the camp of Monafeghin. I went there twice two years ago in order to visit my brother. A lady called my mobile phone and told me she knew I was going to visit my brother. Since I was a drug addict, I had no job, and had no economic means to travel. Just for the sake of a trip abroad, I answered the phone to see what happens abroad..."

    • "My brother has been there for seven years. And when I went there, I also saw my uncle..."

    • "I was at Camp Ashraf for some 10 to 15 days..."

    • "At the camp, I was isolated because of my addiction. They would, for example, ask: Is this street open? But I could not answer them because I had spent two years working in Shahr-e Kord and was far away from the scene..."

    • "We [Sarah and the accused] had a phone conversation once and she also emailed me eight times..."

    • "Only five minutes after returning home, I was arrested and the footage I had taken was no longer on my camera..."

• [E] Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi on Tuesday reiterated the defensive nature of Iran's military power, and expressed the country's readiness to export its military weapons and products to the regional countries.

  • [E] Vahidi says Iran will unveil a series of new satellites within the next few weeks.

Economy

• The Central Bank is establishing a new bank, Korosh [Cyrus] Bank.

• Full text of the subsidy reform law.  

• Central Bank Executive Director Mahmoudreza Khavari says the government is incapable of paying its debts to the banking system, but the Central Bank has "provided the banks with certain means through non-interest guarantees."

• According to ISNA the number of people living under the poverty line in rural areas has increased from 819,763 people in 2002 to 2,640,222 individuals in 2008. In urban areas, the number of people under the poverty line has increased from 1,393,267 people to 4,235,601 people. ISNA also reports that the gap between the income of the rich and poor has been rapidly increasing in urban areas.

• The government’s subsidy reform plan is projected to push up gasoline prices.

• Bank-e Sepah says its website (www.ebanksepah.ir) is the safest place for electronic trade.

• Abrar reports a slight increase in the prices of eggs and fruits, a decrease in the price of domestic rice, and a minimal increase in the prices of red meat and chicken.

• Mohammad Madad, director of Iran Statistics, says families with one to ten members with individual incomes ranging from 788,381 rials to 1,303,003 rials can expect to receive cash aid from the government as a result of the reform of the subsidies system.

Trade

• Iran's share of the international shipping market is 2.8 percent.

• Abrar-e Eghtesadi reports that three oil refineries will be inaugurated within the next two years.

• Petroleum Minister Masoud Mirkazemi says the government is calculating the next year’s national budget with the oil price of $65 per barrel. Mirkazemi adds that the Islamic Republic is considering "$20-billion-worth proposals for foreign investments in Iran's oil and gas industry."

• [E] Azerbaijan piloted gas supplies to Iran after preliminary works and virtual operation of the pipeline proved satisfactory last week.

Media

• Hemmat, Mowj-e Andisheh and Farhang-e Ashti are banned. 

Nuclear Issue

• [E] Iran says world powers have failed to agree on new sanctions against Iran and that the parties involved in the UN-backed talks on Iran's nuclear program are now showing “traces of realism.”

•  [E] The Iranian foreign ministry on Tuesday denounced the comments by certain western officials on Iran's nuclear activities as “unconstructive”. 

Photos of the Day

• T-shirts in support of Supreme Leader Khamenei will be distributed on the occasion of the Revolution Day.