Iran Analysis: Twisting & Turning to Prove the Leader is Supreme (Verde)

On Wednesday we noted a speech by Ayatollah Jannati, the head of the Guardian Council, but our takeaway line was his "conspiracy theory" that the US and Saudi Arabia were paying $1 billion and putting up a bounty of another $50 billion for regime change in Tehran.

Mr Verde has gone through the speech and discovers that the bigger but untold story of Jannati's speech is even more interesting, given its connection with the Supreme Leader's "I am the Rule of the Prophet" fatwa:

There is a lot of mention of God in the speech, with the point being that God has saved the Revolution from its enemies. Jannati says, “God gave up Imam Khomeini” and adds later, “In the same way that he protected Moses from danger, God saved Imam [Khomeini] and the Revolution." He uses the example, "The events of Tabas [the site of the failed attempt by US forces to rescue the US Embassy hostages in 1980] which was help from God, showed that God himself is the protector of the Revolution and this invisible help has been a reoccurring theme in the history of the Revolution”.

Jannati then talks about the attempted assassination of Ayatollah Khamenei in the early 1980s  and says that although al the doctors and Khamenei himself did not believe that he would live, God saved him. He says, “At the time of the passing of Imam Khomeini, God delivered the position of the leader of the revolution to the Supreme Leader [Khamenei], and he was tasked by God to protect this revolution and this regime and to continue the path of [the first Shia] Imam Ali.

Jannati then links challenges past and present to show that God will ensure the Supreme Leader will overcome “in addition to the enormous sedition of 88 [post-2009 election protests], other seditions took place during the leadership of Grand Ayatollah Khamenei too which in some cases came close to overthrowing the regime, but the same God that was the protector of the Revolution in the events of Tabas [1980] again saved the Revolution."

Interpretation

1. Note Jannati's constant references to God's protection of the regime, intervening at time to save it. This could be a sign that regime officials are being forced to rely more on this claim and less on the reassurance that the regime is popular and upheld by the people. It is worth watching for signs of this in speeches by other officials.

2. Jannati uses the title “Grand Ayatollah” for Khamenei. This is not the first time this has occurred, but it may be relevant to the “I am the Rule of the Prophet” fatwa.

3. Jannati's statement that God delivered the leadership to Khamenei supports the Supreme Leader's claim in his fatwa that his authority is like that of the Prophet.

4. Jannati's reference to the post-election protests as “enormous sedition of 88” contradicts the main regime line is that the protestors were few in number and that there never was a crisis.

5. Note Jannati's revelations that the regime was on the brink of overthrow on several occasions during the leadership of Khamenei. As far as I know, this is the first time any regime official has even talked about the possibility of the toppling of the regime, yet alone speak of "several occasions" and linking this to post-election protests.

6. Jannati's proclamation of the $1 billion "regime change" payment and the promised $50 billion is even more ridiculous than his other declarations. Up to now such claims were about millions of dollars; now it seems the rates have risen sharply.

Iran's Haircuts Special: The Revenge of the Mullets

There has been tremendous interest in our coverage of Iran's new guidelines for appropriate haircuts for men, identifying transgressors such as Imam Ali, Shi'a Islam's first Imam.

Well, our EA hair correspondents --- always a cut above the rest --- have this update. It appears that a Million Mullet Army (mullet: a hairstyle that is short at the front and sides and long behind) is being formed to put the case for the men's look that is "business in the front, party in the back".



There are some powerful backers of this hirsute challenge. It's high times again for US musical icon ("Achy Breaky Heart") Billy Ray Cyrus, a.k.a. Hannah Montana's Dad:

Proving that England footballers still have some purpose in life, Mr Chris Waddle is on-board:


But the heartbeat (hair-pulse?) of this movement is, of course, Mr and Mrs America (joined by Little Androgynous Child America):

Iran's New Haircut Law: First Culprit Identified!

On Monday, EA helped break the news that Iran's Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance had unveiled the "proper" haircuts that should be sported by Iranian men:



Now EA's hard-working Iranian correspondents bring you an exclusive. The Iranian authorities have already posted a photograph of the first rule-breaker....



The suspect, we understand, is one Imam Ali. So far, it is unknown whether Iranian officials will accept the defense that, since the accused is the first Shi'a Imam, he might know a thing or two about whether shoulder-length hair and Islam can live together peacefully.