2120 GMT: Mystery of Day. Iranian Labor News Agency reports that Ayatollahs Safi Golpaygani and Javadi-Amoli have met recently.
Given that these meetings between senior clerics are rare, what were the issues that brought the two ayatollahs together? And was there any connection to the clerical disquiet over the Mohammad Amin Valian death sentence?
2045 GMT: Mohareb Trial for Dr Maleki? Iranian Labor News Agency reports that Dr Mohammad Maleki, the first post-1979 Chancellor of Tehran University is being charged with “mohareb” (war against God). Maleki’s lawyer, Mohammad Sharifi said that his client, who is 76 and suffers from prostate cancer, is also charged with links to an outlawed organisation.
2040 GMT: Pars Daily News claims that Seyed Hassan Ahmadian, head of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s People Committee, has disappeared.
1840 GMT: “Foreign Enemies” Cause Regime Change…and Earthquakes. Investigative Journalism of the Day from Kayhan — the earthquake in Haiti was caused by the redoubtable US “Harp” weapon, which is more powerful than an atomic bomb.
1830 GMT: More on Larijani’s Challenge. In his recent speech, Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani used the economy to challenge President Ahmadinejad, criticising the rising government budget and the failure of the 4th Development Plan. Only one-quarter of the Development Plan has reportedly been implemented.
1805 GMT: Film Boycott. The famous director Abbas Kiarostami has refused to join the jury of Tehran’s Fajr International Film Festival, which is scheduled to start on 25 January. Kiarostami joins other prominent figures, such as actor Ezzattollah Entezami and director Asghar Farhadi, who have turned down offers to be on the panel.
2240 GMT: Just Remember, It’s the Zionists. And the Americans. At the end of a tiring, sometimes confusing day trying to interpret the political signals not only from Mir Hossein Mousavi but from others “within the Establishment”, the simplicity of Kayhan offers a refuge from thought. Here is its front page:
Mousavi’s latest statement was written by Mossad. And the CIA.
That’s that, then. Thanks, guys, for saving me any further need for research. Or reflection. Or sense.
2155 GMT: Another Attack on Mousavi’s Organisation. Kalemeh reports that Mohammad Reza Tajik, a senior aide to Mir Hossein Mousavi, has been arrested.
2110 GMT: Larijani’s Latest. Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Parliament, continues his tour of the country and his denunciation of the opposition, telling an audience in northeastern Iran: “”In the parliament we have considered such moves [of unrest] like walking on a minefield which would only cause deep rifts and damage the country’s prestige.”
Is Larijani playing bad cop to the conservative/principlist not-so-bad-cop (Rezaei, Motahari) in pressing for a resolution? Is he beyond compromise, setting out “they shall not pass” either as his personal position or as the (unacknowledged) representative of the Supreme Leader?
I leave it to others to work through the possibilities. Just wanted to ponder this: how many times have we mentioned Larijani in the updates in last few days? And how many times have we mentioned Ahmadinejad?
1750 GMT: What Say You, Rafsanjani? As both Mir Hossein Mousavi and conservative/principlist factions make their political moves for a resolution, attention has now turned to a statement by former President Hashemi Rafsanjani at today’s meeting of the Expediency Council, which he chairs. Read the rest of this entry »
2050 GMT: A First Go at Reading Mousavi. Edward Yeranian of the Voice of America writes, “Iran Opposition Leader Mousavi Not Afraid to Die for Reform” (there is also an audio report), and kindly gives us space in the article for a few thoughts:
Scott Lucas…thinks that both the opposition and the government are digging in their heels for a confrontation:
“The five-point plan is not new. [Mousavi] said something similar in around October. [This], therefore, is still a compromise within the system. [However], the other thing that’s important is that the language he uses — before he gets to that [compromise] — about his possible martyrdom is striking: ‘My blood is no redder than those of others in the [opposition] movement, but I’m ready to die.’ [This is] a language of expected confrontation, as opposed to political compromise,” he said.
Lucas also argues that Mousavi may be trying to re-establish himself as the clear leader of the opposition after complaints in recent months that he hadn’t been showing up to lead public demonstrations. Many in the opposition, he notes, have been saying that the “opposition is leading Mr. Mousavi and not the contrary”.
2010 GMT: Explaining the Mousavi Statement (0745 GMT). We’ll ponder overnight before offering an analysis tomorrow of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s political move today. However, we may have gotten clues from Dr. Abolfazl Fateh, the head of Mousavi’s media committee in the Presidential campaign: “Mousavi’s statement is a significant goodwill gesture from his side and an important test for the authorities.” Read the rest of this entry »
1945 GMT: Reports that today’s gathering of mothers of political prisoners, held every Saturday in Laleh Park in Tehran, was attacked by security forces with tear gas. Despite the assault, 150 people participated.
1915 GMT: The Revolutionary Guard Posturing. It comes from commander Mohammad Ali Jafari: “The era of threatening Iran with force is over, especially at a time when the majority of Iranians are willing to defend the Revolution and their country.”
Speaking in Shiraz, Jafari added that the intimidation “even failed at the height of the nuclear issue, and now Iran is standing firm despite economic, political and cultural pressures”.
1815 GMT: Tough talk. The Associated Press is featuring a statement by Mohammad Karimirad, a member of Parliament’s National Security Commission, declaring that Iran should block IAEA inspections and consider withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The media are also noting hostile statements from the Revolutionary Guard. Read the rest of this entry »
2020 GMT: We’ve posted news of a campaign, “I Am Atefeh”, to express support for Atefeh Nabavi, the first woman jailed for post-election protest.
2015 GMT: Ayatollah JavAdi-Amoli announced, during today’s Friday Prayers in Qom, that this was his last sermon. Since June, Javadi-Amoli had expressed his displeasure over post-election events.
Atomic Energy Organization of Iran spokesman Ali Shirzadian said on Saturday that International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Mohamed ElBaradei’s two-day trip to Iran had previously been planned and is not linked to last Thursday’s talks between Iran and the 5+1 group.
No, the more important loud whisper is that Major-General Hassan Firouzabadi, the head of Iran’s armed forces, is being removed from his post. We held off reporting this, as there was no supporting evidence, but now his office has felt the story was serious enough to issue a denial.
1945 GMT: Mehdi Mirdamadi, the son of Mohsen Mirdamadi, the Secretary-General of the Islamic Iran Participation Front, has been released after 17 days in detention.
1635 GMT: Amidst all the confusion over the claimed drafts of National Unity Plans (see 1040 GMT), Pedestrian offers a thoughtful and pointed analysis. There are two drafts, one which would have be inclusive of opposition figures such as Mousavi and Karroubi and one put about by hard-liners who want to steal the limelight and quash an inclusive arrangement:
Now, the other side doesn’t want to be left behind and is trying to release a plan of their own. They don’t want the Mousavi camp to be the group to come up with “the” national unity plan. Which is just funny, since Mousavi and Rafsanjani after him were the ones who have been talking about a plan for months. RajaNews and FarsNews sound like a kid who suddenly decides to steal his classmate’s homework.
Sure, they could have waited for Mousavi’s and ignored it, but they know that it will be read by a whole lot of people, “national unity” is of utmost importance right now, and as much as they can yell and holler that nothing has happened, they know the cords it will strike and they want theirs to be front page news.
1616 GMT: Spinning Out the Game. First, it was the denial by Saeed Jalili’s spokesman that Iran had agreed to “third-party enrichment”. Now a member of the Iranian delegation from the Geneva talks says not only that no agreement was made on delivery of uranium to a country such as Russia but also that there was no deal on inspection of the second enrichment plant near Qom in the next two weeks: “In the Thursday talks, Iran elaborated on its package of proposals and how to implement them… and it was agreed that negotiations should continue on Iran’s package of proposals and the common points in this package and the package drawn up by the other side, and there was no other agreement.”
1610 GMT: International Atomic Energy Agency Mohammad El Baradei has arrived in Tehran to discuss arrangements for the inspection of Iran’s second uranium enrichment facility.
1435 GMT: MediaCheck (EA v. CNN, Round 78) . Enduring America ($0/story), 2 October, 0700 GMT: “Big Win for Tehran at Geneva Talks”.
2020 GMT: One to Watch. The last posting on the Etemade Melli (Saham News) website, a full report on Mehdi Karroubi’s Eftar dinner party for the employees of the Etemade Melli newspaper), went up at 1:10 p.m. Tehran time (0840 GMT).
2015 GMT: In the midst of developments, this from Ayatollah Bayat-Zanjani’s address to members of a reformist faction earlier today (1510 GMT): “Power is not the foundation of legitimacy; rather legitimacy is the foundation of power. Some think that by playing with words they can change this.”
1945 GMT: I don’t think we realised this morning, when we chose the title for the updates, how appropriate the question would be.
1845 GMT: Press TV’s website has acknowledged the raid on Karroubi’s office with an account lifted word-for-word from the report in Parleman News (see 1340 GMT).
1710 GMT: A Revolutionary Guard official has said that the recent comments of IRGC Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari, claiming that former President Khatami and other reformists seek to “unseat” the regime, are “backed by evidence” given to Iran’s judiciary which the IRGC is willing to publish.
1555 GMT: The family of the late Ayatollah Taleghani, whose memorial ceremony was blocked by the Government for the first time since his death in 1979, have announced an alternative site for the gathering.
1510 GMT: Ayatollah Bayat-Zanjani, speaking to reformists, has claimed that the headquarters of the Supreme Leader no longer have any shame before God or people.
1340 GMT: URGENT Mehdi Karroubi’s office has been raided by security forces on the orders of Tehran’s chief prosecutor. CDs, documents, videos, and computers have been seized.
2130 GMT: Jailing the Workers. Radio Farda reports the arrests of a number of labour activists in northwestern Iran in recent days.
1945 GMT: Reports that today’s gathering of mothers of political prisoners, held every Saturday in Laleh Park in Tehran, was attacked by security forces with tear gas. Despite the assault, 150 people participated.
2020 GMT: We’ve 
2020 GMT: One to Watch. The 
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