Iran Feature: The Week in Civil Society --- At Neda's Grave (Arseh Sevom)

What's the story behind this lion cub? See last entry in the round-up....

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Neda Remembered

The 20th of June marked the third anniversary of the violent death of Neda Agha Soltan, caught on film.

Neda’s family was never allowed a decent memorial service because of “security concerns,” but her grave has now become a site of pilgrimage for many activists and dissidents in Iran. Last week, despite pressure, Neda’s family and some of her friends and relatives gathered at her grave in Behesht-e Zahra cemetery outside Tehran to remember a girl who, as recounted in this piece from our civil society magazine, was “unlike most of the national heroes of Iranian patriarchal society”. She was a young woman who “became the face of the nation. She was special because she was not special at all. She was the Iranian girl next door; one world apart from the image endorsed by the Islamic Republic.”

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Remember Iran Flashback: 20 June 2009 --- The Death of Neda...And Many Others

Protest and a gunshot victim in Tehran, 20 June 2009

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1915 GMT: A few hours ago, we posted a video of a woman "badly injured" by a gunshot in today's demonstrations. The footage is so graphic that we have moved to the "jump page" after the More... tag.

I have just read more information on The New York Times blog about the incident. The woman was a bystander watching events; according to a doctor who witnessed the event, a paramilitary Basiji deliberately fired at her chest. She died within moments of the shooting.

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Iran Feature: Lost Files --- Families of 55 Post-Election Victims Still Seek Justice (Alinejad)

Amir Javadifar, killed in Kahrizak Prison, July 2009On the eve of the third anniversary of the 2009 [Presidential] elections, families of the victims of post-election protests, who have filed claims against authorities demanding accountability and are disappointed at the futility of their struggle, speak of their plight.

During the demonstrations that broke out in the aftermath of June 2009 presidential elections in Iran, many protesters lost their lives as they were shot point-blank, severely beaten, as they inhaled tear gas, pushed off bridges or buildings, or run over by security forces’ trucks. Many others were arrested and killed in detention as a result of fatal beatings and lack of medical attention, according to their families and even official records released by the judiciary and armed forces. The coroner’s reports released to the victims’ families confirm the victims’ deaths by firearms.

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Iran Letter: An Imprisoned Blogger Writes the Supreme Leader

Hossein Ronaghi MalekiI am of the belief, every human being’s silence against oppression and injustice is a betrayal of the innocent blood of the martyrs of this land....

I will repeat a quote from the Exalted Prophet Mohamad: “The land and government will survive under blasphemy but will not last under oppression.”

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Iran Photo Feature: Is Supreme Leader Crying for These Women as Well? (Peyke Iran)

This week the Islamic Republic has been holding ceremonies for Fatemeh Zahra, the daughter of the Prophet Mohammad. Peyke Iran notes the mourning of the Supreme Leader and his colleagues and wonders if they are thinking of other women in Iran:

Iran's Women Political Prisoners

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Iran Snapshot: When Protester Mina Met Basij Mohammad (Hafezi/Hosseinian)

Iranian Protesters Raise Flowers, 30 July 2009Mina and Mohammad stood on opposite sides of the political barricades when protests against Iran's rulers erupted into mass street violence; she, a student demanding democratic reform, he a member of the hard-line Basij militia that helped crush the greatest challenge ever to the Islamic Republic.

Now the two, both 27, are brought together for the first time in a small sitting room in central Tehran. Two years have passed. Iran faces painful trade sanctions over its nuclear program, prices soar, the opposition is silenced and parliamentary polls loom for Mina as an empty promise of democracy.

They greet each other warily, these representatives of two estranged sides of Iran, the victor, perhaps, and the vanquished. Both smile courteously, refusing offers of tea to ease the awkwardness.

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The Latest from Iran (9 January): A Sideshow in Latin America

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2115 GMT: You Can Never Start 'Em Too Young. Shargh claims that the the authorities are launching "Chastity and Hijab" programmes in kindergartens.

2107 GMT: A Message for the Supreme Leader? Former Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Alaei has spoken about the uprising of 9 January 1978 in Qom, suggesting that others should learn from the Shah's experience.

After the uprising, the Shah's security forces put political opponents under house arrest and shot dissenters, but of course this ultimately failed preserve the monarch's throne.

So who are the "others" whom Alaei thinks should learn from the historical example?

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The Latest from Iran (3 November): Threats, Threats, More Threats

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2135 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. More on the alleged Presidential assault on his rivals from the pro-Ahmadinejad site Dolate Ma --- the President reportedly said he could reveal 10% of his information now and 25% in the future, but it was "not advisable" to disclose the rest.

Ahmadinejad added that the "day of regret is near" and said his foes are going to "apologise for accusing the Government": "The current situation is not normal; we are approaching the final showdown."

As for the current financial scandal, including the $2.6 billion bank embezzlement, the President said "people were dissatisfied" with those who "came barefoot from the south of town [the south of Tehran is the poorer section of the capital] and are billionaires now".

Ahmadinejad continued, "If you allow me to handle them in my way, I will rebuke [the political wrongdoers in 1 month. Even Europe and the US together can't bring the Government to its knees."

And now the sting in the tail, of interest to those who specialise in following the in-fighting in Tehran. Ahmadinejad said, "In 2009 'they' wanted to congratulate the opposition [on victory in the Presidential election]."

And who does Ahmadinejad mean by 'they'? Well, soon after the election, it was claimed --- by the camp of opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi and later by other politicians --- that Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani had told Mousavi on Election Day that he won the vote. Other reports said the head of judiciary, Sadegh Larijani, also sent the message.

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The Latest from Iran (31 October): Arrested at Neda's Grave

Activists Peyman Aref, Asal Esmailzadeh, and Sharar Konoon Tabrizi --- arrested on Sunday at the grave of Neda Agha Soltan --- with Parvin Fahimi, the mother of Sohrab Arabi, who was killed during the first mass march on 15 June 2009

See also Iran Feature: The Chinese Telecom Giant Helping Tehran Track and Block Its Opponents
The Latest from Iran (30 October): When Talking Tough Is Not Enough....

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1630 GMT: Currency News. Mehr carries the news, put out by the reformist newspaper Shargh this weekend, that the Iranian rial has weakened beyond the 13000:1 level v. the US dollar. When the threshold was first crossed this summer, the Central Bank put dollars into the market to try and boost the flagging Iranian currency.

The website also says gold coins are becoming rare as people hoard them because of their rising value.

1620 GMT: All-is-Well Alert. The head of Iran's atomic energy programme, Fereydoun Abbasi, has said Tehran will announce "good nuclear developments in the near-future".

Abbasi asserted that neither the country's nuclear industry nor "activities in other domains" had been halted by US-led sanctions.

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Iran Video Special: Mothers of Victims Sohrab Arabi & Neda Agha Soltan Respond to Ahmadinejad's New York Statements

In his media interviews last week in the US, President Ahmadinejad declared that there were only 33 people who died in violence after the disputed 2009 Presidential election and that most of these were Basij militiamen.

Parvin Fahimi is the mother of Sohrab Arabi, killed on 15 June 2009 by security forces. (She was not told for weeks about the event or where she could find the body of her son.) Interviewed by Masih Alinejad, Fahimi responds to Ahmadinejad's assertion, "My son was not a Basij member or a rebel. My son was patriotic. He was going for his vote and rights. He was a real Iranian." She continues, "Mr Ahmadinejad is lying since he became President of Iran. He is lying all the time."

Hajar Rostami Motlagh is the mother of Neda Agha Soltan, killed by a member of the security forces on 20 June 2009. In New York, Ahmadinejad said, "We have evidence that proves that she was killed after the fact and BBC fabricated the news by editing the footage.”

Motlagh responded to Rooz Online: "I find this gentleman’s remarks comical."

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