On a US-based website backing the Iranian Government --- in an item reinforcing Tehran's line that the uprising of Egypt's people as a victory for Iran's leadership in the Middle East --- a comment catches the eye:
A key difference between the current protests in Egypt and the post-election protests in Iran in 2009. In Egypt, the people have not had an opportunity to elect their leaders in a democratic election.
In Iran, they did.
Hmm.... My reaction may have been affected because I saw this after covering the news of the detention of Hossein Karroubi, the son of the prominent opposition figure Mehdi Karroubi, and dealing all day with the execution of the Dutch-Iranian national Zahra Bahrami. However, I think that there may be another explanation for the persistence of the Iranian regime beyond "free elections".
Our German Bureau points us to an explanation, given by the Supreme Leader to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in a cartoon:
Mubarak: "How should I get out of this mess?"
Supreme Leader: "Nothing, give them their rights as we do."
