Latest from Iran (2 September): Who's Meddling in the Revolutions?

0020 GMT: The House Arrests. Yasser Khomeini, the grandson of the late Ayatollah Khomeini, and his wife have met the detained opposition figure Fatemeh Karroubi.

Khomeini said that the courage of Karroubi's husband Mehdi, also held under strict house arrest since mid-February, proved that he prefers people's interests to an easy life. Khomeini expressed hope for the speedy release of the Karroubis, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard, with an end to the restrictions on their activities.

An EA Correspondent assesses, "This meeting would not be possible without permission from above, i.e. the Supreme Leader. Is this another sign of the easing of pressure on the opposition ahead of the Parliamentary elections next March?"

1747 GMT: Ayatollah Namazi, a member of the powerful Assembly of Experts, has warned the government that use of libel, lies, deceit, and illegal money towards the influence of the elections would be considered " haram," banned by Islamic law. He warned that the next election would be a moral issue, and candidates should subscribe to strict morality in order to ensure that the fittest candidate won. He also said that this was imperative, because moral abuses threaten to discredit the legitimacy of the elections.

1740 GMT: The Armenian Church in Kerman, registered as a national treasure, has been destroyed. Here is a picture gallery of the church now.

1515 GMT: Energy Watch. Deutsche Welle reports that the construction of a gasoline refinery has been stopped after five years because the Ministry of Oil did not pay its assigned share of 70% of the cost.

According to the website, only 8% of the project had been completed. The halt to construction means the dismissal of 6200 employees.

1450 GMT: Elections Watch. Reformist journalist Abbas Safaeifar, in an audio interview with Deutsche Welle, claims that the Supreme Leader "fears elections" next March because of rifts within hardliners, the prospect of low participation, and inflation.

Safaeifar continued that Ayatollah Khamenei plans the elimination of the "deviant current" around President Ahmadinejad.

1445 GMT: Your Friday Prayer Summary. Hojetoleslam Seddiqi used the platform in Tehran today to wag a finger at the Ahmadinejad administration over the economy: "Ignoring people's subsistence is unfaithful, government must guarantee their well-being".

1440 GMT: Sanctions Watch. According to the pressure group United Against Nuclear Iran, yet another construction equipment manufacter --- Konecranes of Finland --- has terminated its business in Iran.

Several companies have pulled out of Iran because of the publicity over the use of cranes for public hangings.

1430 GMT:Claim of Day. According to Fars, Ali Samari, a former advisor to President Ahmadinejad, has said that the Supreme Leader gave the Government an "ultimatum" on its performance during his meeting with Ahmadinejad and the Cabinet this week.

1420 GMT: Priority Watch. MP Laleh Eftekhari explains that the question of compulsory black chador for women is more important than the nuclear issue today in Iran.

1410 GMT: How to Become a Cleric. Khabar Online offers advice to aspiring clergymen in Iran: commitment to velayat-e faqih (clerical supremacy), no contact w deviant groups, no pyramid companies.

0600 GMT: According to Shargh News, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast has denied allegations that the Quds Force is actively engaged in Syria. However, a leak in the Iranian government is suggesting that Iran is threatened by the situation, and is pressuring Assad to ease the violence:

An unnamed source tells the German News Agency that the Islamic Republic, in a letter to the Syrian leadership, has urged them to "decrease security measures," against the protesters.

Meanwhile, Jomhouri Eslami, a newspaper closely linked to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, is warning against "'the imperialists' who 'always and under all circumstances try to create deviations in popular revolutions.'" The newspaper argues that imperialism is hard at work in Libya, and elsewhere in the region, and it implies that those same imperialist forces are working to destroy governments that the Islamic Republic of Iran feels are legitimate (which, reading between the lines, refers to Iran and Syria).

So, with Syria in the spotlight, it will be interesting to see whether the regime continues to distance itself from Assad, or whether hardliners identify with Syria and accuse the west of interference. In some ways, the Iranian government is pursuing both goals, but each goal seems to be somewhat the antithesis of the other. The more the regime argues that the actions of the Syrian government are over the top, the less credibility the regime will have when it argues that "imperialist" forces are behind the unrest. On the other hand, the more Iran points the finger towards the "West", the more it appears to be defending Assad.

And so the beat goes on. Updates will be scarce for a few hours. As always, thanks for the comments.