The Latest from Iran (14 December): Power Plays

2030 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Lawyers Sara Sabaghian and Maryam Kianarsi have been released on bail.

Sebaghian, Kianarsi, and fellow attorney Maryam Karbasi were seized at Imam Khomeini Airport in mid-November as they returned from Turkey.

2025 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. More from the statement of Reza Khandan (see 1154 GMT), the husband of detained attorney Nasrine Sotoudeh, about his wife's situation....

Khandan explained the new charge in Sotoudeh's file of “failing to adhere to the Islamic code of dressing (hijab)”: “Two years ago Sotoudeh had been awarded a prize by the Italian Human Rights Committee and to express her gratitude, she had recorded a video message in Iran without covering her hair. The message was not shown in Iran.”

Khandan also denied the most recent claim of judiciary official Mohammad Javad Larijani that Sotoudeh had met with terrorist groups: "[She] has at no time been linked to terrorist groups and no such charge is in her file.”

1943 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Zeynab Bahraini, a campaigner for Mir Hossein Mousavi, has been released from prison.

1940 GMT: Sanctions Watch. The Swiss subsidiary of the chemical firm Transammonia has said it will not enter into new contracts with Iranian companies and wind down its business with Iran "as soon as possible."

1649 GMT: Foreign Minister Backlash Watch. The criticism is in full flow now: Khabar Online, linked to Ali Larijani, is featuring experts who claim the replacement of Manouchehr Mottaki by Ali Akbar Salehi is because President Ahmadinejad wants an obedient Foreign Minister.

1645 GMT: Subsidy Cuts Watch. Gholam-Reza Mesbahi Moghaddam, a leading MP on economic matters, has said that "economic sedition" is a meaningless concept. Instead, he said the danger is that the President is triggering inflation with his still-to-be-introduced subsidy cuts.

Mesbahi Moghaddam cites cases of up to 870% increase in electricity bills.

1640 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Journalist Kouhyar Goudarzi has been released from Rajai Shahr Prison after serving his sentence.

Goudarzi was recently honored with the John Auchobon Award for press freedom by the National Press Club.

1634 GMT: Here Comes the Backlash. More Parliamentary criticism of the firing of Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki....

The most significant remarks may be those of Ahmad Tavakoli, given his close relationship with Speaker Ali Larijani: "Mottaki's dismissal shows that no rationality reigns in country, and it weakens the Foreign Ministry".

Ahmadinejad ally on the committee Ismail Kowsari has expressed concern, "I do not support the way Mr. Mottaki was dismissed. He was on an official visit to Senegal."

An editorial in the conservative Tehran-e Emrouz asked about the "unjustifiable" action: "What credit or support does )a minister fired in the middle of a foreign mission) have to defend the country's national interests? What's the guarantee that his successor won't meet the same fate?"

1630 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. A report comes in that journalist Ali Moazzami has been sentenced to a one-year suspended prison sentence.

1625 GMT: Karroubi Speaks. The take-away quote from Mehdi Karroubi's message (see video at 1030 GMT) for Thursday's celebration of Ashura:

Our whole dispute is over the rigging of the elections. We say there was no election and the evidence of this is available. I announce here that I am a protester and willing to sit in debate in any city, mosque or university with anyone who claims that we are the cause of these killings and sedition.

1620 GMT: Sanctions Watch. In one of the more unusual sanctions episodes, three Iranian ships have been seized in Singapore with plans to sell them off.

The German-registered ships, worth about $144 million, belong to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines. They were seized after European insurers for the vessels withdrew because of US sanctions, leaving the IRISL in breach of mortgage agreements.

The owners of the ships are seeking a month's adjournment in court action so they raise a security deposit.

1240 GMT: Reaction to Mottaki. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that the sudden replacement of Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki will have no effect on nuclear discussions: "Whether one person or another is foreign minister is not as important as...what the policy of the Iranian government is in dealing with the international community on this very important matter."

Clinton added that last week's talks between Iran and the 5+1 Powers (US, UK, France, China, Russia, and Germany) were promising: "It wasn't more than [an introduction to issues], but it was a good start to a return to serious negotiations."

1154 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Reza Khandan, the husband of detained attorney Nasrine Sotoudeh, says the next hearing in her trial will be on 27 December.

Khandan said a new charge had been filed against Sotoudeh: "She did not have hejab while giving an interview."

1150 GMT: Bring It On. Minister of Culture Mohammad-Hossein Saffar Harandi has declared, "If people don't like the Islamic Republic, they should change it by a revolution."

1125 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. The mother of detained journalist Mohammad Davari has said that phone calls to her son are impossible and she has not been able to see him for months.

1030 GMT: Karroubi Speaks. Mehdi Karroubi has issued a video message for Thursday's religious day of Ashura: "Opposition to people's rights is the action of Yazid."

The death of Imam Hossein by Caliph Yazid in the 7th century is commemorated by Ashura.

1025 GMT: Mis-Understanding Events. I am wondering if some leading international media will ever notice that the replacement of Foreign Minister Motttaki was not solely about the nuclear issue and sanctions.

0910 GMT: Noticing Events. Press TV has now posted an item from this morning's press conference at the Foreign Ministry: "No Change in Iran Policies with New FM".

0750 GMT: Just Double-Checking. Yes, on the left, that is Mr Esfandiar Rahim-Mashai, who has no diplomatic status and is not a member of Iran's Foreign Ministry (but is the chief aide to President Ahmadinejad). And on the right is King Abdullah II of Jordan.

The two men discussed a possible summit between Abdullah and Ahmadinejad and "a number of regional and international issues and ways to address them in a manner that positively reflects on the interests of the Islamic world and on the security, stability and development [of] the region."

0745 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. Meanwhile, a little power play (to what effect?) from former President Hashemi Rafsanjani on Monday. Anticipating the religious day of Ashura on Thursday, Rafsanjani spoke of the blood of martyrs and the fight against oppression and injustice of Imam Hossein.

0720 GMT: We are still trying to get to grips with the dramatic show of power of President Ahmadinejad, backed by the Supreme Leader, on Monday, as he rudely fired Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. Mr Tehran has a special analysis considering the dynamics of power, both over yesterday's events and for the future.

On the surface, Ahmadinejad has planted a large flag for his authority, especially against his rivals in the Parliament. Still, this is only the opening act in this play: Speaker Ali Larijani might have been silent, but other leading MPs such as Alaeedin Boroujerdi and Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh expressed dismay and anger.

And there are curious silences and uncertainties in the Iranian media. Press TV, for example, wants to portray all as normal: "Israeli Occupation Supported by West", "Iran MP Slams UK for Jailing Students", and "Iran-Arab Ties on Right Course".

In that last story, there is a special omission. Press TV highlights the statement of former Lebanese Prime Minister Salim al-Hoss in a meeting with the Iranian Ambassador in Beirut. Nowhere does it mention the more important regional story: the visit of an Iranian delegation to Jordan. The head of that delegation? Ahmadinejad's right-hand man, Esfandiar Rahim-Mashai.

The pro-Ahmadinejad Islamic Republic News Agency also leaves out the Rahim-Mashai venture. Instead, it tries to forestall criticism from MPs and justify the President's sudden actions. It focuses on Mottaki's offer to resign this summer (without mentioning that Mottaki was infuriated by Ahmadinejad's appointment of special envoys such as Rahim-Mashai) and asserts that the President does have the power to dismiss his Foreign Minister.

And both IRNA and Fars (but not Press TV) try to portray all-is-well by featuring this morning's press conference by Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast: Foreign Minister Mottaki was a great guy, new Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi is a great guy, and there are no changes in Iran's great foreign policy.