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

Politics

• Just one third of Iran's parliamentarians accepted Ahmadinejad's invitation to a joint meeting between the executive and the legislative branches.
• Mousavi criticized Ahmadinejad’s government: "Who gave you the right to alienate the entire world by your adventurism and tyranny and create the sorry state in the economy and politics of the country?... Arrange a referendum so you can see whether or not the people will continue to accept these destructive policies."
• Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani is rumored to have departed London for the United Arab Emirates, but he left behind his second wife, Nafiseh Eshraghi - sister of Zahra Eshraghi, the wife of Mohammad Khatami's.

Military and Security

• Hassan Abbasi, key strategist for the Revolutionary Guards, explained that the Islamic Republic's support for “proxy wars” in Lebanon and Hamas is an investment in Iran's security. Abbasi concluded: "The Lebanese and Palestinians fight for Iran."
• Revolutionary Guards adviser Mohammad-Hossein Saffar Harandi, speaking in Kerman, predicted the collapse of the United States.
• [E] A senior Iranian Foreign Ministry official asked all third parties to stay outside Iran-UAE disputes over the three Iranian islands of Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb and the Lesser Tunb in the Persian Gulf, cautioning that their interfering remarks could negatively impact the region's security.
• [E] Pakistani Minister of Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira warned of Islamabad's strong reaction to any further violation of the country's territorial integrity by the NATO Forces.
• [E] President Ahmadinejad states that if there is nothing fishy about the 9/11 events, Washington must let a fact-finding team probe into the incidents.
• [E] Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast has dismissed claims that Tehran is not open to talks with the West over its nuclear program.
• [E] Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador and Nicaragua announced support for Iran's Nuclear Program - ALBA Group

Economy

• Plainclothes agents attacked the Jeweler’s Bazaar in Tehran. Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDS0r4OsSrk

Trade

• Donya-ye Eghtesad reported violent fluctuations in the foreign exchange market, saying that Iranian money dealers will not sell more than $2000 worth of merchandise to any one buyer. Donya-ye Eghtesad also reported the continuation of the strike in the Jeweler's Bazaar, which has been closed in protest against the introduction of a Value Added Tax.
  • According to Abrar-e Eghtesadi, money dealers purchase U.S. dollars from the Central Bank at an exchange rate of 10750 Rial per dollar but sell dollars at a rate of 10800 Rial to the public, leading to protests by the Central Bank.
• Ahmadinejad addressed crowds in Gorgan:
  • "Through propaganda, they have attempted to interfere with trade. When the foreign exchange rises 100 Touman, imports and exports are disrupted. Let me tell the dear Iranian nation: The foreign exchange reserve of Iran today is without historical precedence. I am saying this to the opportunists who are trying to use the current situation to their own advantage, or who are engaged in manipulations... Even if the demand increases by fifty times in the foreign exchange market, Allah be praised, there is now so much reserve that the country could continue to be well administered for years..."
  • "I am telling this to the people. Be vigilant. There are no extraordinary conditions in the country, and if some people think that they can hide products in order to disrupt the market, they should know that they are mistaken and they will be caught... If you know of any individual or group trying to disrupt the market, you should report them to a provincial headquarters. You must denounce those who want to tarnish the rights of the nation will be dealt with..."
• Energy Minister Majid Namjou said that the government has not ordered increased electricity prices.
• According to Mardomak, the price of a train ticket - especially for a ticket on a train going south - has increased between 30-40%.
  • Abrar-e Eghtesadi reports a general price increase in transportation costs.
• Oil Minister Masoud Mir-Kazemi announced that Iran and Lebanon are in discussions about oil and gas cooperation in Lebanon. Kazemi also said that  Lebanon asked to import of oil products including gasoline from Iran, which the Islamic Republic has accepted.
• Chinese contractor Sino Hydro is working with the Iranian Farab Company to build the Bakhtiari Dam. The dam project is financed by Chinese companies.
• Tehran-e Emrooz reported increased Chinese investment on the island of Qeshm.
• Iran and Egypt agreed to reestablish direct flights between Cairo and Tehran after thirty years.
• A Japanese research institute reported that Japan's sanctions against Iran have reduced Iran's export capacity by one quarter.