Wednesday
Jun232010
The Latest from Iran (23 June): Baghi Freed
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 16:53 
2010 GMT: We've posted the English text of this morning's meeting between Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi. Analysis is likely to follow tomorrow.1815 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Documentary filmmaker Mohammad Ali Shirzadi has been released from detention. He leaves prison on the same day as Emad Baghi, whom he served as cameraman during the journalist's interview with Grand Ayatollah Montazeri (for which Baghi was allegedly arrested).
NEW Iran Document: The Mousavi-Karroubi Meeting (23 June)
NEW Iran Eyewitness: An “Army of Strollers” and Allah-o-Akbar on 12 June (Tehran Bureau)
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard & the US: Oil Spills Are Thicker than Hostility?
Iran: To Lead or to Follow? 4 Cartoons on Mousavi and the Greens
The Latest from Iran (22 June): Rumbling On
1630 GMT: Mousavi-Karroubi Meeting. The Facebook page supporting Mir Hossein Mousavi has posted a Persian summary of this morning's discussion.
1340 GMT: Today's Nuclear Posture. Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, has declared, "We have already produced 17 kg of 20 percent enriched uranium, and we have the ability to produce 5 kg each month but we do not rush."
Salehi said in February that the Tehran medical reactor required around 1.5 kg of fuel per month. By early April Iran had produced 5.7 kg, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
1240 GMT: Mousavi & Karroubi Meet (and Even Bigger News --- Baghi is Free). Apologies for limited service because of academic business. Let's catch up....
The first item to note is one that might turn the day. Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi have met this morning to discuss plans.
But, for the moment and while we await further information, let's dwell on this information: journalist Emaduddin Baghi (pictured after his release) has been freed after six months in detention. According to his website, Baghi posted a $200,000 bail and is facing trial on 3 July.
1120 GMT: Economic Front. Central Bank Governor Mahmoud Bahmani has announced that Iran has doubled the denomination of its highest banknote to 100,000 rials (10,000 tomans or about $10).
The move has prompted speculation that it is due to inflationary pressures in Iran. The Iranian Government claims that the annual rise in prices is about 10 percent, though some analysts think the actual figure may be much higher.
0845 GMT: After a series of clashes within the "establishment", a slow start to Wednesday. There is still chatter about the Parliament v. President dispute over control of Iran's largest university, as well as the fight over economic policy. Given Ali Larijani's defiant position on Tuesday, including a speech to the Majlis rejecting any interference --- except for the supervision of the Guardian Council --- with legislation, it looks like the ball is back in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's court.
On the opposition side, we are looking for any follow-up to Mohammad Khatami's Tuesday statement. On the surface, the speech maintained pressure on the Government through the criticism of attacks on senior clerics and tried to sustain the spirit of resistance with the invocation of freedom and civil rights.
Meanwhile...
Political Prisoner Watch
Rah-e-Sabz claims that all leave for political prisoners has been suspended.
The website also says that student leader Majid Tavakoli and six other prisoners have been transferred to the "high-security" Section 350 of Evin Prison.
International Front
Contradicting earlier reports, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said that Islamabad would not suspend a deal with Tehran to construct a gas pipeline by 2014, despite pressure from US officials.
Walking a careful line, Gilani said Pakistan would reconsider the deal if it violated U.N. sanctions, but the country was "not bound to follow" unilateral U.S. measures. He said media reports claiming, from Gilani's statements, that Pakistan would heed the warning of President Obama's envoy Richard Holbrooke were incorrect.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media is playing up the meeting of the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Saeed Jalili, with Syrian Vice-President Farouq ash-Shara. Not many details on specific topics, however, beyond "the latest international and regional developments".
Reader Comments (14)
Hardliners Blame Green Movement for Sanctions
Kayhan, a pro-government newspaper with close ties to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accused the leaders of the opposition Green Movement and their supporters abroad of having played a role in levying new sanctions against Iran. Kayhan’s June 22 “special news” section is dedicated to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’ recent interview with Fox News during which he defended the sanctions as an appropriate tool to exert pressure on Iran. According to Kayhan, which is considered to be Khamenei’s mouthpiece, the West in general, and the US in particular, are the main patrons of the opposition movement in Iran lead by Mir Hossein Moussavi and Mehdi Karroubi, and therefore the entire opposition movement is playing a “traitorous role.” More: http://www.insideiran.org/media-analysis/hardliners-blame-green-movement-for-sanctions/" rel="nofollow">http://www.insideiran.org/media-analysis/hardli...
40 Executions in One Month
40 Iranian citizens, including Abdolhamid and Abdolmalek Rigi, were executed on different charges across the country between May 22 and June 21. http://www.rhairan.in/en/?p=4586" rel="nofollow">http://www.rhairan.in/en/?p=4586
Chavala Madlena writes about the increasing importance of defectors and whistleblowers in covering Iran: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chavala-madlena/as-irans-crackdown-contin_b_621442.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chavala-madlena/a...
@ Political Prisoners Watch
According to Peyke Iran, journalist Emadeddin Baghi was released today, facing trial in a few days. http://www.peykeiran.com/Content.aspx?ID=18410" rel="nofollow">http://www.peykeiran.com/Content.aspx?ID=18410
Sad news for theater audiences in Tehran. Molavi Hall, one of the most beautiful theatres I have seen, was sealed Tuesday morning. The officials did not give any reason.
Tehran theater closed for unknown reason
http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=221925" rel="nofollow">http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=...
Rafsanjani and Khamenei’s Relations in Decline
Assembly of Experts and Expediency Council chairman Hashemi Rafsanjani announced for the first time that he has reduced relations with the Islamic Republic supreme leader seyed Ali Khamenei. He also criticized Khamenei for his “silence toward the elimination of the clergy” and said that Mahmoud “Ahmadinejad has put the regime’s achievements on sale.”
http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem/article/2010/june/23//rafsanjani-and-khameneis-relations-in-decline.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem...
Larijani: Administration Supporters Are Loudmouths and Vicious
Only one day after 134 Majlis representatives voted to donate Azad University’s endowment, media outlets affiliated with the administration framed the vote as disobedience to ayatollah Khamenei’s expressed will and unleashed massive attacks against the lawmakers voting in support of the bill. In response, Majlis speaker Ali Larijani, who supported Sunday’s bill, chastised the administration’s supporters in the Majlis and media outlets supporting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for being “vicious, illogical and loudmouths.”
http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem/article/2010/june/23//larijani-administration-supporters-are-loudmouths-and-vicious.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.roozonline.com/english/news/newsitem...
Nuclear Watch
Ali Akbar Salehi says Iran has enriched 17 kg uranium to 20 pct purity
http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE65M0B520100623?sp=true" rel="nofollow">http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idA...
RE let’s dwell on this information: journalist Emaduddin Baghi (pictured after his release) has been freed after more than six months in detention.
In English: Journalist Emadeddin Baghi released on bail
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/jun/23/2097" rel="nofollow">http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/jun/2...
Arshama
I listened to him yesterday on VOA and he didn't say that IR is democratic; he said that first draft of IR's constitution was democratic and after the "wise" people added the part concerning "velayate faghih" , which is not; he criticized KH that after the elections, instead of being the father of people and playing an adviser's role, he defended and supported AN, to the detriment of his own legitimacy; and he said that we can change the constitution on this issue and we will have a referendum, explaining that at Khomeyni's time, we had had twice and it's time to have an other one; he added at the end that we will have a democracy in iranian style which I didn't understand because the notion of democracy is the same all over the world ; he's against a " forced" hijab saying :" as if all people who don't pray were obliged to pay a fine for their unreligious behavor"; generally, I found he was credible; he was also one of the actors of the film(documentation) yesterday night on Arte : green rebellion or l'insurrection verte :-)
These are all stupid diversions from the real issues. The movement needs to focus on rebuilding momentum and forging concrete plans of action.
Ange,
Kadivar is lying as all these "Muslims" are lying (remember the famous "taghiyeh"). As you already noticed, there is no "Iranian" democracy, and we surely don't need him to tell us that he is against forced hijab. Hijab is not prescripted by the Quran and only an invention of mysogynic patriarchal mullahs, who hate beauty and culture, because they have none (just look at Khomeini's mausoleum, reminding of a storehouse).
Mr Kadivar just wants to save his position as a superior cleric, fully unaware that he and his bunch of narrow-minded medieval fellow-believers are largely outdated, even in Iran.
As long as the Islamic clergy refuses genuine reforms (as in Christianity), it should continue to sit in its mosques, being fed by their poor followers, promising them the moon.
Monarchy and theocracy have failed as political concepts in Iran - the alternatives are military dictatorship (already in the make) or democracy.
Arshama
From Megan (for technical reasons, this did not go through):
Arshama, Ange,
I listened to this charlatan Kdivar as well. I was most insulated when he repeatedly positioned himself as spokesperson for the Green Movement by repeatedly saying Green Movement wants this and that. The giveaway for me was when he became all of sudden animated talking about U.S. Policy in the ME and Israel as terrorist government. The host did do a good job challenging him about Islamic Republic sponsored terrorism in other countries.
Kdivar is a smooth operator and an opportunist who is positioning himself for power in Iran once the system has changed. He is another charlatan mullah positioning himself as an intellectual and supporter of democracy. We know how that goes.
Ange, I will not be fooled by Kadivar position on Hijab. Khomeini said a lot of nice things about democracy and equality when he was in Paris but he seemed to forget packing all his sensible remarks, ideas and thoughts about democracy and equality in his suitcase when he left Paris for Tehran.
I was screaming at my PC all the time I was listening to Kadivar. I am glad to hear people protested his appearance on VOA by their emails.
Arshama, thanks for the links. I will send an e-mail to Duke University.
Thank you for sharing the links on the comments they are pretty useful.