Sunday
May092010
The Latest from Iran (9 May): 5 Iranian Kurds Executed
Sunday, May 9, 2010 at 18:58
1830 GMT: The Execution Protests. There have been demonstrations this afternoon in front of the Iranian Embassies in France and Britain, with reports of 25 protesters arrested in Paris. This footage is from the rally in London.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPC8wFvkEX8[/youtube]
1610 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. A court of appeal has upheld a sentence of 4 years and 11 months for student activist Abdollah Momeni.
1600 GMT: Khatami's Concern. Speaking to student and cultural activists, former President Mohammad Khatami maintained that the ruling class cannot resolve difficult issues through mere “slogans”. He called for the release of all political prisoners and compensation for those who have been harmed in post-election events. He also demanded the end of "the security-laden atmosphere", no more restrictions on political organization,s and steps for "appropriate elections in the future”.
Khatami warned the authorities that “ignoring the protests and making false accusations against protesters will not make them disappear”.
1540 GMT: The Executions. Back from an afternoon's break to find that the dominant, almost the exclusive story, is the execution of five Iranian Kurds.
*EA readers remind us about the story of teacher Farzad Kamangar's trial, with his lawyer, Khalil Bahramian, claiming, “[It lasted] no more than five minutes, with the judge issuing his sentence without any explanation and then promptly leaving the room....I have seen absolutely zero evidence presented against Kamangar. In my forty years of legal profession, I have never witnessed such a prosecution.”
*Press TV carries a story about the hangings but does not even gives the names of those executed. The article has disappeared off the website's front page; the lead story is "Iran Tests New Anti-Submarine Torpedo".
*Masih Alinejad has written a passionate opinion piece about the case.
*Speaking to Rah-e-Sabz, the brother of Kamangar said he "hoped that [his] brother’s execution is...a lie.....The family...has had no contact with Farzad since yesterday. Only today through Fars News and other news sites have we found out that they had executed Farzad."
1145 GMT: United4Iran has posted biographies of the five Iranian Kurds executed this morning.
0825 GMT: We have posted, in a separate entry, the last letter of teacher Farzad Kamangar, who was executed this morning. The last letter of Shirin Alamhouli, also put to death, is posted on Persian2English.
0745 GMT: Executions. RAHANA claims that Iranian Kurdish teacher Farzad Kamangar, human rights activist Ali Heydarian, Farhad Vakili, Shirin Alamhouli, and Mehdi Eslamian, accused in 2008 of "mohareb" (war against God), were executed this morning.
Islamic Republic News Agency is featuring the news. Iranian authorities claims that the five detainees were responsible for bombings and were members of the Kurdish separatist group PEJAK.
0710 GMT: Nuclear Signal? Mehr News Agency is claiming that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will be in Tehran in mid-May, implying that there will be a major initiative for a deal on uranium enrichment.
Lula will be in Iran for a summit of the Group of 15 (G-15) non-aligned nations, while Erdogan is coming for direct talks with Iranian officials. Mehr claims from sources that the Turkish and Brazilian leaders will present a "joint proposal" for a swap of uranium stocks.
0700 GMT: Remembering the Journalists. In a sign, however, that the coverage of Iran just won't go away, the Henri-Nannen Prize, awarded in Germany for outstanding achievements in journalism, has been given to detained Iranian reporters, editors, and bloggers. Maziar Bahari, the Iranian-Canadian journalist detained for four months after the June election, accepted the award on their behalf.
0645 GMT: We start this morning with signs of regime frustration that the opposition just won't go away. In a separate entry, we feature Hamid Farokhnia's article on Iran's censorship of the Internet, which has become so pervasive and so tangled that even "hardliner" sites are being filtered.
Then there's the reported cry of Resalat, which declares that launching "some new attractive newspapers committed to revolution" is absolutely necessary. The writers complain that the defenders of the regime have failed to compete with foreign media and more cyber-sites are needed.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPC8wFvkEX8[/youtube]
1610 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. A court of appeal has upheld a sentence of 4 years and 11 months for student activist Abdollah Momeni.
1600 GMT: Khatami's Concern. Speaking to student and cultural activists, former President Mohammad Khatami maintained that the ruling class cannot resolve difficult issues through mere “slogans”. He called for the release of all political prisoners and compensation for those who have been harmed in post-election events. He also demanded the end of "the security-laden atmosphere", no more restrictions on political organization,s and steps for "appropriate elections in the future”.
Khatami warned the authorities that “ignoring the protests and making false accusations against protesters will not make them disappear”.
NEW Iran: Farzad Kamangar’s Last Letter “Is It Possible to Teach and Be Silent?
NEW Iran First-Hand: Assessing Life and Opinions in Tehran (Majd)
NEW Iran, Meet Kafka: The Web of Internet Censorship Catches All (Farokhnia)
Iran: The Green Movement and “Moral Capital” (Jahanbegloo)
The Latest from Iran (8 May): Back to the Politics
1540 GMT: The Executions. Back from an afternoon's break to find that the dominant, almost the exclusive story, is the execution of five Iranian Kurds.
*EA readers remind us about the story of teacher Farzad Kamangar's trial, with his lawyer, Khalil Bahramian, claiming, “[It lasted] no more than five minutes, with the judge issuing his sentence without any explanation and then promptly leaving the room....I have seen absolutely zero evidence presented against Kamangar. In my forty years of legal profession, I have never witnessed such a prosecution.”
*Press TV carries a story about the hangings but does not even gives the names of those executed. The article has disappeared off the website's front page; the lead story is "Iran Tests New Anti-Submarine Torpedo".
*Masih Alinejad has written a passionate opinion piece about the case.
*Speaking to Rah-e-Sabz, the brother of Kamangar said he "hoped that [his] brother’s execution is...a lie.....The family...has had no contact with Farzad since yesterday. Only today through Fars News and other news sites have we found out that they had executed Farzad."
1145 GMT: United4Iran has posted biographies of the five Iranian Kurds executed this morning.
0825 GMT: We have posted, in a separate entry, the last letter of teacher Farzad Kamangar, who was executed this morning. The last letter of Shirin Alamhouli, also put to death, is posted on Persian2English.
0745 GMT: Executions. RAHANA claims that Iranian Kurdish teacher Farzad Kamangar, human rights activist Ali Heydarian, Farhad Vakili, Shirin Alamhouli, and Mehdi Eslamian, accused in 2008 of "mohareb" (war against God), were executed this morning.
Islamic Republic News Agency is featuring the news. Iranian authorities claims that the five detainees were responsible for bombings and were members of the Kurdish separatist group PEJAK.
0710 GMT: Nuclear Signal? Mehr News Agency is claiming that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will be in Tehran in mid-May, implying that there will be a major initiative for a deal on uranium enrichment.
Lula will be in Iran for a summit of the Group of 15 (G-15) non-aligned nations, while Erdogan is coming for direct talks with Iranian officials. Mehr claims from sources that the Turkish and Brazilian leaders will present a "joint proposal" for a swap of uranium stocks.
0700 GMT: Remembering the Journalists. In a sign, however, that the coverage of Iran just won't go away, the Henri-Nannen Prize, awarded in Germany for outstanding achievements in journalism, has been given to detained Iranian reporters, editors, and bloggers. Maziar Bahari, the Iranian-Canadian journalist detained for four months after the June election, accepted the award on their behalf.
0645 GMT: We start this morning with signs of regime frustration that the opposition just won't go away. In a separate entry, we feature Hamid Farokhnia's article on Iran's censorship of the Internet, which has become so pervasive and so tangled that even "hardliner" sites are being filtered.
Then there's the reported cry of Resalat, which declares that launching "some new attractive newspapers committed to revolution" is absolutely necessary. The writers complain that the defenders of the regime have failed to compete with foreign media and more cyber-sites are needed.
tagged Abdollah Momeni, Ali Heydarian, Brazil, Farhad Vakili, Farzad Kamangar, Germany, Henri-Nannen Prize, Khalil Bahramian, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Masih Alinejad, Maziar Bahari, Mehdi Eslamian, Mehr News Agency, Persian2English, Press TV, RAHANA, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Resalat, Shirin Alamhouli, Turkey in Middle East & Iran
Abdollah Momeni, Ali Heydarian, Brazil, Farhad Vakili, Farzad Kamangar, Germany, Henri-Nannen Prize, Khalil Bahramian, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Masih Alinejad, Maziar Bahari, Mehdi Eslamian, Mehr News Agency, Persian2English, Press TV, RAHANA, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Resalat, Shirin Alamhouli, Turkey in Middle East & Iran