Iran: Pro-Regime Media Asks, "Which is Worse: Stoning or Prostitution?"

We are still working on the tribute to our new favourite Iran website, www.barackobama.ir. Who is behind its latest news, incisive analysis, and essential question, "Is Obama the First Jewish President?"



In the meantime, we bring you today's top story from the site, "Why did Iranian Media call Carla Bruni a 'prostitute'?"

In view of the fact that committing adultery as well as being an accomplice in spouse’s murder is described as ‘pure love’ by Carla Bruni without paying any attention to religious beliefs of Iranians relying on her immoral mentality, she has to be ready for Iranian people’s judgment.

"According to the recent reports Carla Bruni- Nicolas Sarkozy’s wife who became accidentally the French ‘First Lady’ in a night party- supported Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani who was sentenced to death because of committing adultery and being an accomplice in her husband’s murder." Iranian Media reported.

"The French First Lady’s support of Sakineh Ashtiani along with the other vulgar film’s stars is due to their resemblance to Sakineh Ashtiani." Iranian Media, referring to the sexual scandals of Carla Bruni such as her illicit relationships before and after her marriage.

It is evident that Carala Bruni was just shocked of being called prostitute by Iranian Media. She’s not a prostitute in western culture even if she has the illicit relationships and she got bored with monogamy. That’s because a prostitute is who has sex just for money in western culture.

Carla Bruni has no rights to protest!

Carla Bruni described the "adultery" as "pure love" in support of Sakineh Ashtiani paying no attention to religious beliefs of Iranian people as well as their social rules. So she should be ready for every judgment having no rights to protest, when she interferes in Iran’s affairs.

In Iran, the prostitution means having any covert sexual relationship, even though the promiscuity is "freedom" in Bruni’s opinion.

As Iranian Media reported, they believe that bruni’s immoral mentality makes family basis unstable. These relations are also unacceptable in French public opinion and they think Carla Bruni had really bad effects on Sarkozy’s popularity as his wife.

Considering our ancient literature as well as the Iranian religious society, it was really difficult but inevitable to use the word of "prostitute" for informing the people publishing a part of this promiscuous woman’s immoral acts. Bruni’s support of an adulteress and an accomplice in a murder was so significant and ridiculous; that’s why Iranian Media had to publish such a report.

Which is worse? Stoning or promiscuity

Thanks to laws enacted by Islam for better life, the family structure is more solid in Iran and there aren’t such anomalies in our country. Stoning is one of these laws with human object even though it seems cruel. Stoning shows how important is family structure in Islam and Islam imposes heavy penalty for treachery which causes instability of family structure.

There are so difficult situations to condemn somebody to stoning in Islam, that’s why it is one of the rare punishments just for public immoral crimes which affect Muslim society. Islam even invites the criminal to Towbeh suggesting them not repeating the crime.

Contrary to the number of the spouses and children whose life is corrupted as a result of unstable family basis in western countries, a few numbers of people were condemned to stoning during the last years in Iran. Who knows how many people committed murder or even suicide because of mental complex in western families?

It is better that the western experts study the crime rate in western countries comparing it to the reasons of the decreasing crimes in Iran as well as fidelity of Iranian men and women to their families. That’s exactly what the Iranian Media suggest to the western countries.

Pakistan: Bomb in Lahore Kills 35, Wounds 250 (Cole)

Juan Cole summarises and analyses:

Three explosions hit Shiite processions in the old city of Lahore around 7 pm Wednesday,killing at least 35 persons and wounding about 250. The first explosion appears to have been a pre-set bomb, which went off near to the Karbala Gamay Shiite shrine. Two suicide bombers subsequently struck near Bhati Chowk. The attacks occurred near to the Datta Ganj Bakhsh Sufi shrine, which was bombed last summer.

Although the local police had set up checkpoints and taken basic security measures, the crowd blamed them for having allowed the bombings, and attacked them. They burned police cars and mobbed the nearest police station. Police had to fire in the air to disperse the angry crowds, which they only succeeded in doing around 8:30 pm. The 35,000 Shiites were commemorating the assassination of Imam Ali, who they consider to be the successor of the Prophet Muhammad, in 661. Ali’s shrine is in Najaf, Iraq.

Dawn reports that some in the crowd blamed Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif and his party, the Pakistan Muslim League (N), for simply not caring what happened to Shiites. (The Muslim League is not a particularly fundamentalist party, though some of its members have those tendencies, but it has a bias toward conservative Sunnism, and party leader Nawaz Sharif had been in exile for many years in Saudi Arabia, the government and Wahhabi state religion of which is viewed by common Shiites as hostile to them). Lahore Shiites are divided politically, but a lot of ordinary Shiites would be supporters of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party; its de facto leader, President Asaf Ali Zardari, is himself a secular Shiite.

An Urdu newspaper reported that an organization called Lashkar-i Jhangvi al-Alami took responsibility for the bombings, though Lahore police said they had heard nothing about such a claim. The background and recent activities of Lashkar-i Jhangvi is given by the South Asia Terrorism Project....

Read full article....

Palestine-Israel Analysis: The Two Questions to Answer Today (Yenidunya)

Starting question for today's direct Israel-Palestine talks in Washington: as a group lacking the legitimacy of being a state, both in the eyes of Palestinians and of the international community, can the Palestinian Authority get any traction for its negotiating position?

Palestinian negotiators will first urge Israelis, as move towards resolution of the status of borders, to reach a solution on settlement construction both in the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. Before agreeing on drawing the borders, Israel will urge its "partner" to come as close as possible to a proposal based on its "security needs". That in turn will take talks to a broader agenda beyond Ramallah's demands, which means an early victory for Israel.

Palestine to Israel: “What Kind of State Does Netanyahu Have in Mind?” (Yenidunya)
Israel-Palestine Talks: Will Confidence-Building Measures for Ramallah Work? (Yenidunya)
Gaza Latest: UN’s Flotilla Interviews Start, More Aid Ships?, Worry Over Hamas
Israel-Palestine: Were 4 Settlers Killed to Sabotage Talks? (Yenidunya)

The only exit for Palestinians from this outcome is standing firm against the broader agenda while re-stating its conditions, including the extension of the settlement freeze to East Jerusalem.

And thus a more specific question: will the settlement freeze issue replace the status of Temple Mount at the 2000 Camp David talks as the breaking point of discussions?

Palestine to Israel: "What Kind of State Does Netanyahu Have in Mind?" (Yenidunya)

Before flying to Washington for this week's talks with the Palestinian Authority, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a series of statements ruling out any immediate movement on on key issues. After Sunday's Cabinet meeting, he said: “We have held talks with the Americans and there is no change in our stance. I assume that there will be problems, but the framework of negotiations is the way it was established, without preconditions. I do not know that there is any intention to go beyond discussion on procedure in Washington."

On Monday, the Israeli Prime Minister told his Likud ministers that Israel had made "no proposals" to the Americans on the settlement freeze. Netanyahu said that the future of settlements is not different than other core issues such as borders, Jerusalem and refugees; all of which are to be decided at the final stage.

Israel-Palestine Talks: Will Confidence-Building Measures for Ramallah Work? (Yenidunya)
Gaza Latest: UN’s Flotilla Interviews Start, More Aid Ships?, Worry Over Hamas
Israel-Palestine: Were 4 Settlers Killed to Sabotage Talks? (Yenidunya)

On the same day, Netanyahu told Likud activists at a pre-Rosh Hashana toast in Tel Aviv that he would be cautious during the talks and insist on security guarantees, so an Israeli withdrawal would not be met by the firing of hundreds of rockets. Indeed, Netanyahu said that he was not “naive”.

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon dismissed Palestinian pre-conditions:

Whoever places the settlements as a precondition is not serious. Preconditions are not conducive to successful negotiations and placing the blame on Israel before the negotiations have even started is extremely unhelpful and damaging for peace. All sides should arrive at the negotiations with good will.

The Palestinian Authority leader Salam Fayyad reiterated Ramallah’s position that the talks will collapse if Israel fails to deliver the extension of settlement freeze. In response to Israeli decision-makers’ emphasis on the “urgent need of guaranteeing Israel’s security”, Fayyad asked a key question: "What kind of state does Mr Netanyahu have in mind when he says 'Palestinian state'"?

Iran Document: Karroubi-Mousavi Meeting on Eve of Qods Day (31 August)

The English translation, provided by the Facebook page supporting Mir Hossein Mousavi, of  the Saham News report on Wednesday's meeting between Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi to discuss Qods (Palestine) Day, which takes place tomorrow:

.In this meeting, which lasted two hours various issues of ociety and the country were discussed....

In this meeting, Mehdi Karroubi, while commiserating about the economic hardship and living condition of the people, stated that elimination of the experienced and expert personnel on one hand and the government’s lack of attention to the plans and long term goals on the other have resulted in the inability to use the country’s rich resources in general and the proper use of energy in particular. Mehdi Karroubi added that currently Qatar is very active in the shared gas field and is enjoying its benefits, while the Iranian government has not paid the least attention to this important topic to explore and use this field. He also added if the fourth Development Plan was correctly implemented, today we would be extracting more than 6 million barrels of oil daily while our extraction is now less than 3.5 million barrels a day.....Mehdi Karroubi reiterated what is not important for the government in all these developments are the Iranian people and their national interests.

Mir Hossein Mousavi pointed out the dynamics of the Green Movement among various sectors of the society and reiterated that the Green Movement of Iranian people was formed based on demands seeking justice. In this movement different views and trends can be seen; in this movement promoting public awareness and removing ignorance plays an important role. Restoring basic and fundamental rights through peaceful movements is the common goal of all people who are present in this movement.

While condemning the uncompromising policy of violence, illegal arrests, political sentences and ignoring the basic rights of the prisoners, Mir Hossein Mousavi emphasized that experience of the last year shows the failure of the policy of resorting to violence and blind arrests and creating a security and police atmosphere. Mir Hossein Mousavi added that the elongation of the path of reform has imposed a heavy price on our society; however, through discusson different issues and topics by individuals and legal entities has resulted in the maturity and livelihood of this movement, and despite a very heavy security atmosphere, it has been able to include various layers of the society and become more influential every day.

Regarding the Qods Day and fighting against the culture of lies and the deplorable economic situation and livelihoods of the people, Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi jointly emphasised the following:

The great Iranian nation and Imam Khomeini have always supported Muslims and oppressed nations particularly the Palestinian nation. Qods Day is the symbol of support of the free people for an oppressed nation who have been driven out from their homeland. During this period have suffered many hardships and pains. The oppressed nation of Palestine, despite numerous United Nations resolutions, has not been able to regain its legitimate rights because the occupying regime [of Israel] has not conceded to act....

It is obvious that a situation emerging from violence is not recognized and will not be recognized in today’s world, as the General Assembly of the United Nations, based on the fundamental principles of international law, repeatedly has announced that gaining territories by using force is not legitimate. Therefore, by emphasizing on the right to “choose destiny”, we support the justice-seeking struggles of the Palestinians and all sincere efforts to reinstate and regain this nation’s rights. We believe that, by preparing the suitable grounds and with the participation of all the people of Palestine including Muslims, Jews and Christians (with the right of equal vote) and in a healthy and fair process, the fate of this ancient and historic land can be determined and the followers of divine religions can live peacefully together.

In Islamic culture and teachings, telling lies is “one of the greatest sins and is recognized as the key of all evil deeds”. Imam Ali (Shi’a's first Imam) paid specific attention to the pest of the lie and its destructive consequences and stated, “No appalling deed is as ugly as telling lies.”

One of the problems of the country is the institutionalisation of telling lies and the reliance of officials on lies in various affairs, including the economy, management, statistics, and political and religious issues. They have been so much caught up in telling lies that finding a true word from this administration is like finding a precious pearl.

The remarks made by the Minister of Intelligence [Heydar Moslehi] about [Green Leaders] receiving billions of dollars from foreigners [to create chaos following the 2009 presidential elections], without presenting any proof and evidence, which of course he himself knows very well that is not true, is another insult to the spontaneous and reformist movement of the great and noble people of Iran. While condemning these illegal, immoral and against religion behaviors of these fellows, who for the hollow comfort of this short life in material world and staying in power legitimise any evil deed, we demand that they publish their documents even the fake ones so that those who lie would be embarrassed,

The economic situation and livelihood of the people, despite Iran being a rich land both in terms of materials and in terms of spirituality, are very disturbing. Unparalleled God-given resources in the depth of the layers of the earth and educated human resources are very valuable assets, which have not yet been utilized in the direction of national interests and prosperity for the country for various reasons including [the government’s] hatred toward science, mismanagement, lack of recognition for rights and freedoms of people, and lack of understanding and knowledge of international affairs.

Despite astronomical oil revenue, which is unprecedented in Iranian history, various classes of the people are today in very difficult conditions. Plans and national development projects are abandoned one after the other and in this chaos it is not clear how and where hundreds of billions of dollars of oil revenue have been spent. The economic situation and livelihood of the people, the real owners of this country is worsening every day, and unemployment along with the government’s corruptions and financial exploitations have sharply increased.

While the noble people of Iran are struggling to meet basic and essential needs, tens of billions are spent from the public money for a show conference [Iranians who live abroad recently gathered in Tehran]. The files of financial corruptions of the managers and officials are suddenly aborted before going through the judicial process so that those who make claims about confronting corruption continue to plunder the national resources without any concern. By militarising the economy and obtaining exclusive rights instead of privatising [the government-run businesses and industries], the presence and role of the people in the field of economy has been minimised and the country’s private sector, that has a small portion of Iran's economy, is about to collapse. Economic growth and development of the country based on social justice requires prerequisites such as change in the government’s role from ownership and management to policy making and monitoring, as well as transferring affairs to the private sector in the light of healthy and transparent competition and increasing the competitiveness of the national economy.