The Latest from Iran (2 May): Books and Politics

Banned: Cheshmeh Publishing House1910 GMT: Media Watch. Reza Moghadassi, the managing editor of the conservative site Mehr, has criticised the Government's media law for "restricting the free flow of information more and more each day".

Moghadessia claimed that the Government's decree would allow the Ministry of Communications to filter a website immediately after a ban was issued by the Media Supervisory Council.

1850 GMT: Gasoline and Price Rises Don't Mix. Earlier today (see 0930 GMT) we reported that the price of subsidised gasoline is set to quadruple from 100 Toman (just over $0.08 at official rate) to 400 Toman ($0.33).

Now ISNA reports that people are rushing gas stations in Tehran to buy the 100 Toman fuel while they can. There has been a 600% increase in consumption in the past two days, with police at some stations to control crowds.

1840 GMT: Parliament v. President. Speaking at a meeting of the Unity Front faction, leading MP Gholam Reza Mesbahi Moghaddam has described three Parliamentary moves against the Government to stop price rises.

However, it appears that the Guardian Council may have raised the stakes on another front. Spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei said the Council has rejected a Parliamentary measure to spur impeachment of the President if he fails to answer more than six questions satisfactorily.

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The Latest from Iran (18 July): Remembering Protest, Remembering the Victims

Poster for Majid Tavakoli2030 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. An activist reports that reformist Ahmad Reza Ahmadipour was arrested today in Qom in a raid of his home.

1920 GMT: Denial of the Day. Saeed Mortazavi, an advisor to President Ahmadinejad, has denied any responsibility for the Kahrizak prison abuses and deaths, which occurred while Mortazavi was Tehran Prosecutor General.

Families of post-election victims --- including prominent conservative Abdolhossein Ruholamini, the father of the slain Mohsen Ruholamini --- have complained that Mortazavi, who was technically suspended from his duties by a court, has not been punished for his part in the affairs.

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Iran Feature: The Political Struggle Moves to the Cinemas (Erdbrink)

Nader and SiminIn Iran, newspapers stay away from politically sensitive topics, more and more Web sites are being blocked and anti-government demonstrations have been declared illegal.

But the popular cinema is going strong, and in recent weeks, the screenings of two locally made films at theaters across the capital have become a popularity contest of sorts between supporters of the government and the grass-roots opposition movement.

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The Latest from Iran (4 April): Taking Away Zeroes

1725 GMT: Mona Lisa Watch. The head of the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization says Tehran has severed all ties with the Louvre Museum because the French art center has not fulfilled a promise to hold an exhibition in Iran.

Hamid Baghaei said that Iran had put on two exhibitions at the Louvre, one showcasing objects from the Safavid era and the other introducing the ancient Persian Civilization, and had given the French until the beginning of the Iranian year (21 March) for an exact date for the exhibition in Iran and a list of the artifacts to be displayed.

1715 GMT: A Stonewall on Oil. Khabar Online, the conservative website linked to Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani, features President Ahmadinejad's press conference answer to a question about $11 billion in missing oil funds: "What answer is there to give?"

Parliament's Energy Commission, the Supreme Audit Court, and other conservative publications have all raised questions about the shortfall in oil revenues.

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