The Latest from Iran (12 May): Defending the Indefencible?

2100 GMT: The Executions (Arresting the Students Special). RAHANA reports, "At least 15 female and male students have been arrested since Tuesday May 11, in Marivan [in Kurdistan], and taken to unknown locations. The arrests follow two days of rallies at Payam Nour University in Marivan as well as widespread calls for a province-wide strike on May 13 over the execution of 5 political prisoners."

2050 GMT: The Executions. The Iranian Independent Workers Union has issued a statement on the hanging of teacher Farzad Kamangar: "Execution of Farzad and other political prisoners will only add hatred and disgust of workers, teachers, and all Iranian’s towards the current situation more than ever. Freedom seeking shouts of Farzad will turn into screams of million teachers, workers and students to achieve a society free of death penalty."

And the Tehran Bus Workers Union declares, "We are mourning a teacher whose equipment was chalks and pens, one who taught kids, many of whom put their heads hungry on their pillows at night. His crime was standing for human rights."

NEW Iran Update: The Aftermath of the Executions
NEW Iran Document: Maziar Bahari’s Response to His 13-Year (and 74-Lash) Sentence
NEW Iran Special: A Renewal of Protest for 12 June?
The Latest from Iran (11 May): Opposition Surfaces

2040 GMT: Economy Watch. With the Ahmadinejad subsidy cuts imminent, a sign of things to come? Khabar Online reports:

During the last days, some gas stations in Tehran have installed notices saying they lack unsubsidized gasoline. The announcements have caused the bewilderment of customers who can not meet their demands by rationed gasoline.

As the gas stations avoid selling unsubsidized gasoline, the head of Iran's Association of Gas Station Owners declares that the problem is due to the shortage of "special unsubsidized gasoline cards".

Khabar adds the pointed fact, "Lacking sufficient oil refineries, Iran imports 40 percent of its gasoline for local consumption."



2030 GMT: More on the Karroubi Statement (1515 GMT). In his meeting with the family of the imprisoned journalist Ali Malihi, Mehdi Karroubi focused on the Government's loss of legitimacy because of transgressions and abuses: “They have not yet resolved the cases of Kahrizak Prison and the sexual abuses; the ambiguities surrounding that case still exist and they are increasing." Karroubi continued:

Lack of trust it at its lowest point ever, and the regime’s behaviour is such that an unprecedented crack has emerged between the people and the state. I swear to God we never thought country’s fate would turn out to be this way ... The people are moving in one direction and the state in another

1840 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Arsalan Abadi, an engineering student at Qazvin International University, has been sentenced to 9 1/2 years in prison.

1830 GMT: Mousavi's Latest. Mir Hossein Mousavi, speaking with Rah-e-Sabz, has emphasised that the Green Movement is a peace movement", supporting the Iranian people's demands for fulfillment of the Constitution.

Mousavi criticised the lack of independence in Iran's judiciary, said that reform depends on a free media, and noted the torture of and forced confessions from detainees.

1740 GMT: The Executions. A reader points us to Fars News' article with further details of the "case of the five terrorists", found guilty of bombing of centres of government and the people of Iranian cities.

1515 GMT: Is Human Life This Cheap? Mehdi Karroubi, visiting the family of a detained journalist, has asked, "Is human life so cheap that one can take it so easily, without the slightest legal consideration and hidden from the public?" He continued, ""When human life becomes so cheap that they [the authorities] open fire on people on the street only because of some civil protest, then such behaviour is not so much out of the norm."

Asked about a statement by Gholam-Hossein Elham, a member of the Guardian Council, that Mir Hossein Mousavi is pursuing "mohareb" (war against God), Karroubi replied: "We should cry for Islam that Elham and his disciples have become its spokesmen. "

1320 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. Faezeh Hashemi, the daughter of former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, has declared that those who have to be purified are "those who stand against the law, people and religion, not me".

1315 GMT: Executions. Muhammad Sahimi has a long article in Tehran Bureau, "Capital Punishment, Capital Fear", pulling together the strands of information on Sunday's executions and their aftermath.

1300 GMT: Diversion. Amidst the internal tension and developments, today's Presidential distraction....

"You should know that your resolutions are not worth a penny," Ahmadinejad said in a message to the big powers.

"If you think that by making fuss and propaganda you can force us to withdraw, you are wrong. The Iranian nation will not withdraw even one inch from its stance," he said in a speech to a crowd in southwestern Iran.

1230 GMT: The Family of the Executed. Fereshteh Ghazi updates on alleged regime harassment of the family of Shirin Alamhouli, executed on Sunday (see 1130 GMT). Alamhouli's sister and mother are reportedly out on bail, but Ghazi says her grandfather, uncle, and cousin have now been arrested and are held in the Ministry of Intelligence. The family's phone has been disconnected since yesterday., the house is surrounded, and a curfew is in place.

1215 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Fereshteh Ghazi has a full account of Sunday's trial of Mohammad Davari, the imprisoned editor of Mehdi Karroubi's Saham News, with Davari's statement, “They want to sacrifice someone over the issue of raping detainees, and didn’t find anyone better than me.”

Davari was arrested on 26 September when the headquarters of Karroubi's Etemade Melli party were raided, less than two months after Karroubi publicly raised allegations of abuse and rape of post-election detainees. The Official charges against Davari include “disseminating propaganda against the regime" and "conspiracy to disrupt national security and public order".

Davari's lawyer, Mina Jafari said that her client, who is reportedly in poor health, is under pressure to confess against Mehdi Karroubi but has refused to do so.

According to Jafari, Davari said at his trial on Sunday, "In the past 8 months in prison, I judged my own actions more than you judged them, and I concluded that I didn’t do anything to discredit the regime. In fact, all of my actions added to the regime’s credibility.” The lawyer asked Karroubi to intervene to seek Davari's freedom.

1130 GMT: The Executions. Nazila Fathi of The New York Times follows up this morning on her reporting of Sunday's executions of five Iranians.

The centrepiece is an interview with Khalil Bahramian, lawyer for the three of the five slain prisoners. Bahramian said that authorities are refusing to release the bodies and asserted, in line with reports from the family, that the sister and mother of the executed Shirin Alamhouli, were arrested at their home in northwestern Iran. (They were later reportedly released on bail.) He also said the family was not aware of the execution until Monday afternoon.

Bahramian noted, “They [the authorities] even turned down my request to allow the families to be present while they are burying them [the executed].”

Fathi also draws from Rah-e-Sabz to report that Abdoljabar Karami, member of Parliament for Sanandaj, the capital of Iranian Kurdistan, was threatened by the provincial governor when he tried to stop the executions and was unable to secure the release of the bodies.

1025 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Peyke Iran claims that Hossein Rassayian, physics professor at Qazvin International University and a Mir Hossein Mousavi supporter, has been arrested.

1020 GMT: The Executions. Human Rights Activists News Agency claims that authorities are trying to arrest members of the family of Farzad Kamangar, one of the 5 Iranians put to death on Sunday.

1010 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Rah-e-Sabz offers a round-up amidst summons of bailed protesters to return to the courts. Zahra Jabbari has been acquitted of "mohareb" (war against God), but human rights activist Abolfazl Abedini has been sentenced to 11 years in prison. Emaduddin Baghi, Badressadat Mofidi, and other journalists are seriously ill and need medication.

Baghi's lawyer, Hassan Ali Abutalebi has contrasted the treatment of his client with that of Kayhan editor Hossein Shariatmardari, acquitted of all charges of libel earlier this week.

0945 GMT: President Be Gone? Ezzatollah Sahabi, former minister and member of Parliament, editor of the banned journal Iran-e Farda, and leader of Iran’s Nationalist-Religious political alliance, makes the declaration --- published in both Rah-e-Sabz and Khabar Online --- that the dismissal of President Ahmadinejad is necessary to preserve Iran and the Islamic Republic.

Reformist member of Parliament Darius Ghanbari has said that the prolongation of Ahmadinejad's presidency "is a joke" and the characteristic of his government is that "it doesn't tolerate critique".

0825 GMT: Dealing with Detainees. Writing in The National, Michael Theodoulou draws from our analysis to assess that the three detained US hikers, and the Iranian decision to allow their mothers to see them, are linked to Tehran's manoeuvres with the US over Iran's nuclear programme: "Hikers Seen as Bargaining Chips".

0815 GMT: On the International Front. Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani has returned from Turkey and the meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference with the declaration that a Qods Committee on Palestine will be established and assertion of agood relationship with Turkey, but with not a word on uranium enrichment.

Following a pattern, President Ahmadinejad has used a speech to look away from internal matters, asking, "Who is Israel to stand against us?" and declaring, "No one will attack us, there is nobody."

0530 GMT: Responding to the Defence of the Indefencible. I had not posted my response to the latest column of Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett, using an attack on Nazila Fathi of The New York Times to maintain "official justifications" of Sunday's executions, as I did not wish to offer any oxygen for their views. Instead I had commented in a personal capacity on other websites and in discussion with members of Gulf 2000.

I have asked by readers, however, to post my response:

In the spirit of the intellectual honesty that the Leveretts claim, I note that they --- in the guise of an attack on Nazila Fathi's journalistic honesty --- have defended the "official justifications" of Iranian state media over Sunday's execution of 5 Iranians, denying any substantiated claims of the deprivation of human rights.

I therefore offer extracts of and links to only a few of many pieces of evidence for consideration:

"Khalil Bahramian, Kamangar’s lawyer, said: 'Nothing in Kamangar’s judicial files and records demonstrates any links to the charges brought against him.'

Bahramian, who was present during the closed-door court hearing, described it as 'lasting no more than five minutes, with the Judge issuing his sentence without any explanation and then promptly leaving the room'. He added, I have seen absolutely zero evidence presented against Kamangar. In my forty years of legal profession, I have never witnessed such a prosecution.'"

2. "Khalil Bahramian, Kamangar’s attorney, in an interview before knowing about the execution said: 'Mr. Kamangar and his interrogator told me that there are changes in the case and under review by the prosecutor and execution is out of the question. I inquired more than ten times and they told me the case is under review. But the intelligence officer had told Farzad that execution had been revoked.' Later being notified of the execution after the fact, Bahramian said in an interview: 'The rules call for notification of the lawyers on carrying out the death penalty. In case of two of my clients, Farzad Kamangar and Mehdi Eslamian, I was not notified at all.'"

3. "Mehdi Islamian's brother was executed last year, convicted of cooperation with the Monarchist Group. Mehdi was convicted of giving financial aid to his brother before his arrest."

4. The last letter of Farzad Kamangar before his execution

5. The last letter of Shirin Alamhouli before her execution

In the spirit of intellectual honesty, and more importantly in the spirit of respect for human rights, I ask the Leveretts to set aside their diversionary attack on Nazila Fathi and to provide evidence, beyond the official account of Fars News and the Islamic Republic News Agency, that due process was followed from arrest to execution in the case of these five Iranians.

(The Leveretts have subsequently replied on Gulf 2000 --- the first time they have ever engaged with my comments --- without providing any evidence on the case, and I have responded.)

0425 GMT: Culture Corner. Golnaz Esfandiari of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports on "Banned Music Banned":

Rasul Abbasi, the director-general for transportation and traffic coordination of Iran's municipalities, has told the Borna news agency that taxi drivers are not allowed to play banned music in their taxis.

Abbasi said that if they did so, they would be dealt with according to the law, which could lead to the cancellation of their taxi permit and confiscation of their cars.

The Iranian official added that the law in this regard has not been implemented for the past few years. He called on the managers of organizations supervising taxis in Iran to oversee the performance of their drivers.

Moshtaq, a taxi driver in Tehran, commented on the announcement:

It is one of the most important human rights for one to be able to choose what he listens to and no one has the authority to determine that. What would one want to listen to in his free time, for instance, whether banned or not. Who is the one to actually decide what should be banned and what should not? On what basis is this determined?

0420 GMT: While looking for further signs of the political fallout from Sunday's executions of five Iranians, we post an update on the latest developments.

Comments

[M.Ali]

So your "evidence" is that the lawyer and the defendants claimed they were innocent?

[Observer]

No, M.Ali, innocence or guilt is not the issue. The attorney states that IRI did not follow proper legal procedure, the effect of which denied defendants their constitutional rights. Do you think that the attorney a liar in this matter? If so what 'evidence' do you have to support that notion?

[Kurt]

I appreciate your first inclination to ignore them, Scott, but after fending of a few of their fans at another site myself, they are a force that simply refuse to be ignored. And their only defense time and time again is that they alone are privy to the true (Farce and Voice and Visage) "facts" and leave it at that.

It's nice that they've moved from doing low hanging hit-jobs and arguing straw men to tussling with the likes of you - truth is, I hear they were once respectable scholars; before they became more concerned with their career's legacy of rapprochement - above all else (and conflating support for the opposition with somehow being against that aim, or conflating the nuclear issue, or twisting history, etc).

My problem with them isn't that they have a viewpoint, but that they present it as "Fair & Balanced," dispassionate, and beyond reproach. Intellectual honesty, yes, that is what it comes down to. They, whether they like it or not, have in fact taken sides, and should at least stand by that.

[Catherine]

RE nuclear front
Iran terms nuclear fuel swap inside country as "objective guarantee"

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that exchanging nuclear fuel inside Iran's territory is an "objective guarantee" for Iran.

The swap must be inside Iran's territory so that Iranians could have objective guarantees, Mehmanparast said in his weekly press briefing.

Iran has announced that the location of the swap should be inside Iran, he said, adding that so far, Iran has not received any proposals concerning the other locations for the fuel swap.
http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90854/6981519.html" rel="nofollow">http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90854/...

[Catherine]

Students force cancelling of speech by IRGC commander

Students at the Iran University of Science and Technology have forced university officials to call off a planned lecture which was to be delivered by Revolutionary Guards Commander and full time propagandist Saeid Ghasemi.

The lecture was planned for Monday at 1:30pm followed by the unveiling of a new book of lies and deceits about the post-election turmoil and the Green Movement. The book is called “The Velvet Green Movement.”
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/may/11/1857" rel="nofollow">http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/may/1...

[Catherine]

For the military nerds: Iran’s Ballistic Missile Capabilities: A net assessment
Press Statement by the Director General and Chief Executive of the IISS

The IISS Strategic Dossier on Iran’s Ballistic Missile Capabilities: A net assessment aims to contribute to the policy debate about Iran’s strategic challenges by establishing a shared understanding of the missile programmes. Produced by an international team of experts, the dossier offers the most detailed information available in the public domain about Iran’s liquid- and solid-fuelled missiles and its indigenous production capabilities. The dossier also analyses the military and strategic effectiveness of Iran’s potential arsenal, including both conventional and non-conventional warheads. By comparing Iran’s progress with that of missile-development programmes elsewhere, the dossier assesses the types of missiles Iran might try to develop in future, how long it could take, and what observable trends and indicators will allow other nations to monitor Iranian progress and to plan appropriate responses.

Read the assessment press release (a summary of the dossier):
http://www.defpro.com/news/details/15130/" rel="nofollow">http://www.defpro.com/news/details/15130/

[Catherine]

RE 0825 GMT: Dealing with Detainees. Michael Theodoulou draws from our analysis to assess that the three detained US hikers.. are linked to Tehran’s manoeuvres with the US over Iran’s nuclear programme: “Hikers Seen as Bargaining Chips”.

I wrote in a reply to Megan in The Latest from Iran (8 March), "By now I'm pretty sure that those American hikers were nabbed by the IR border patrol on purpose. At the time I thought they had just been foolishly careless, but after the ever increasing hostage-taking we've seen recently, not to mention the grand old "tradition" [US embassy hostages reference], I give the kids the benefit of the doubt." 2 months later i have not changed my mind.

[M.Ali]

I don't have any evidence to support that notion, like you don't have any evidence to believe him either.

What I DO KNOW though that I loathe the anti-Iranian PR that twists anything they can when it comes to Iran.

[WitteKr]

The problem with these elaborate pieces of work is how the press are handling them... These are some headlines since the publication of the dossier:
11 May 2010 - - Times - UK could be target for Tehran missiles ‘in four years’
11 May 2010 - - Arab Times - ‘Israel primed for war with Iran’
11 May 2010 - - Daily Telegraph - Iran could fire nuclear missile within two years, says think tank
11 May 2010 - - United Press International - Report downplays Iran's missile punch
10 May 2010 - - Guardian - Long-range Iranian missiles still a decade away
(from the IISS site: http://www.iiss.org/publications/strategic-dossiers/irans-ballistic-missile-capabilities/" rel="nofollow">http://www.iiss.org/publications/strategic-doss...)

[ScottLucas11]

Catherine,

Hopefully I'll show up here, working out all the issues with Disqus!

Gulf 2000's rules are that correspondence remains private until the person commenting wishes to make public. So I can't post the Leveretts' reply on EA --- I can, however, provide my subsequent reply to anyone who requests it by e-mail (or, if there if sufficient demand, as a comment here....)

S.

[Megan]

Catherine,

And I agreed with you then as I do now 110 percent.

[Catherine]

Scott,
So you're having "issues" with Disqus, too? :-) So far that's me, you, Bill ....

Is anyone else here seeing the old EA comments layout appear at random instead of the new Disqus layout? Or are you having frequent FF browser hard crashes while logged in to Disqus? Let the Disqus help desk know.

They are currently trying to figure out the first issue I mentioned, reported by Bill and me. If anyone is experiencing the problem below, feel free to refer to the # and use my description for your own new request at: http://disqus.zendesk.com/requests/new" rel="nofollow">http://disqus.zendesk.com/requests/new

#8634 Constant switching between old comments layout and new Disqus layout; inability to stay in new Discus layout and post

After the site above implemented Disqus, and despite having a Disqus profile and following all the Disqus instructions regarding 3rd party cookies and emptying browser cache in both FF and IE, the old comments layout of the site randomly appears when I open the home page and while I surf through the site - regardless of whether I am logged in to Disqus or not. Sometimes refreshing with ctrl F5 will return me to the Discus layout and comments box, but often this proves impossible and I am unable to post comments for hours on end. Please see a complete report, including html examples and replication of the problem, in the attachments.

RE Gulf 2000 - If possible I'd like to receive the Leverett's reply to you by e-mail and see your response here (or also by private e-mail if that's more discreet).

[Catherine]

Hi WitterKr,
Yes that's why I posted a link to the IISS assessment w/o any qualification of the contents. In fact, the only reason I even noticed the assessment was because of the wildly differing headlines all pointing to the same report! :-)

[Catherine]

Off Topic:
Very bad news for us here in the Netherlands: 61 Dutch killed in Libyan crash
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100512/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_libya_plane_crash_19" rel="nofollow">http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100512/ap_on_re_mi...

[Megan]

I suspected Farzad family members would be arrested. I heard his sister-in-law and his brother. They were full of pain and very defiant. I could not fathom the thought of being in their shoes. Even thinking about it hurt badly.

God of Iranian people has been on vacation for a long time………

[Megan]

Bobak,

I heard a few people were arrested. Do you know if they have been released?

[babak]

@Megan: Sorry, I haven't. The Norwegian media haven't even mentioned the demonstrations. It's not often embassies are attacked here in Norway, so it should make the headlines!

[ScottLucas11]

Babak,

Thank you for the Oslo footage.

S.

[Catherine]

Amnesty International: Iran must allow detained filmmaker to appear at Cannes

Amnesty International has urged Iran to release a filmmaker accused of criticizing the authorities and allow him to attend this week's Cannes Film Festival, where he has been invited as a member of the festival jury.

Award-winning director Ja’far Panahi is due to appear at the cinema showpiece in France on Wednesday but is detained in Tehran's Evin Prison, following his arrest on 1 March for making a film about the disputed presidential election of 2009.
More: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/iran-must-allow-detained-filmmaker-appear-cannes-2010-05-11" rel="nofollow">http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/iran...

[Catherine]

Revenge with Bad Hijab
The secretary-general of the Islamic Motalefe (Coalition) Society blasted opponents of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration, referring to them as “conspirators” who use inadequate hijab “as a tool in the soft war against society’s morals” on part of people he referred to as members of the “green cult.”
http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem/article/2010/may/12//humiliated-in-election-revenge-with-bad-hijab.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem...

[Catherine]

Pressure on Mohammad Davari in Prison to Deny Rapes

Mohammad Davari was the editor in chief of Saham News website, the official newspaper of Etemad Melli (National Trust) Party, and also a member of the Iranian Teachers Association. He was arrested on September 26 of last year after security agents raided the National Trust Party’s headquarters and has spent the past eight months behind bars.

Official charges against Davari include “disseminating propaganda against the regime and conspiracy to disrupt national security and public order.” According to Saham News, however, “The Saham News editor in chief has been arrested for collecting documents related to rape.”
More: http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem/article/2010/may/12//forced-confessions-from-a-war-veteran.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem...

[AZ]

I know that we are dealing with the Islamic Republic of Iran, but I can only assume that even there a suspect is considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. But then again, the legal system there is a bad joke.

[Gunniy]

to Mr. Ali the Taliban

Your comment shows the evidence that you even don’t have the foggiest notion what a righteous proceeding or trial it is. The Iranian Regime creates a legal black whole ore a legal vacuum to fight dissidents. Ali the Taliban – you are blind ore stupid?

[Gunniy]

Your are right - the iranian legal system is nothing more than a bad joke. The iranian regime, the goverment and the judges are acting like taliban ore terrorists. A five minute trial - even the judges have no arguments anymore -
nothing left than humdrum violence to protect the regime.

[Arshama]

@ 1840 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch

Khodnevis has a nice article entitled "America and the visas denied to Iranian mothers", blaming AN's government for giving visas to American mothers and dinner parties for a country, whose officials have called the IR rulers "a bunch of rascals" and prepares the fourth round of sanctions against Iran, while Iranian mothers, whose children are detained for months, do not receive any permit to visit them. http://tinyurl.com/35ot7gs" rel="nofollow">http://tinyurl.com/35ot7gs