2140 GMT: The Evin Protests. Once again, families of detainees have protested outside Evin Prison. The demonstrations have been occurring almost every evening in recent weeks.
2030 GMT: US To Israel “No Attack”? A bit of a tangled message from Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, during his visit to Tel Aviv today. On the one hand, Mullen declared, “The outbreak of a conflict will be a big, big, big problem for all of us, and I worry a great deal about the unintended consequences of a strike.” On the other, he still put out the escape clause for military action, “We haven’t taken off any option from the table.”
1735 GMT: Blogger and rights activist Ali Kalayi has been released from detention after posting $50,000 bail. Kalayi was arrested last Sunday for publishing a statement alleged to be from the Army in support of the Iranian people.
1710 GMT: Pardon This Interruption. To Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the US House of Representatives: you’re a blowhard who should be remembered fo r what you did to your first wife rather than any “contribution” to US foreign policy. Especially when your approach to Iran is based on tired 1930s hyperbole rather than any approximation of knowledge.
URGENT UPDATE 1240 GMT: The Next Move in the Plot? Abdolhossein Ruholamini has given another interview about the crimes in Kahrizak Prison, including the abuse and death of his son Mohsen.
Ruholamini repeated the information, mentioned in our main article about his speech to a student organisation, that he has more than 3500 pages of evidence against the people in charge of Kahrizak. And he reiterated that there is independent evidence of the attempted murder of Kahrizak doctor Ramin Pourandarjan, who died last autumn. Ruholamini again singled out Ahmadinejad aide Saeed Mortazavi as the main suspect, saying the former Tehran prosecutor should accept the charges and resign instead of issuing political statements.
Ruholamini added the new claim that forces “behind the scenes” have been trying to get the families of victims to agree to silence, but he declared that he and some other families would “stand till the end”.
These claims, however, are only the set-up for Ruholamini’s political hammer blow: in a meeting with the Supreme Leader, “Ayatollah Khamenei supported my cause”.
And guess where the interview has been reprinted? Well, it is in two publications linked to the central plotters against President Ahmadinejad: Tabnak, linked to Mohsen Rezaei, and in Farda, which supports Mohammad Baqer-Qalibaf. Read the rest of this entry »
1915 GMT: Quiet Engagement. News is just emerging of five British nationals who have been held by Iran since their yacht Sail Bahrain strayed into Iranian waters on Wednesday.
The significance behind the headline is that the story was kept quiet for five days. That indicates that Britain does not want the matter to escalate into confrontation and that Iran, for now, does not want to use the detention for political advantage.
We could not find any logical reason for the Board of Governors’ decision. We cannot accept discrimination in international relations. Either there are rights or such rights do not exist. The age of discriminatory policies is over. This is the law of the jungle.
2015 GMT: A Nice Message to Close the Day. The commander of the Basiji militia, Hossein Taeb, has declared that if Mehdi Karroubi’s allegations of sexual abuse of detainees are proven to be a lie, Karroubi is “debauched” and “sinful” and should receive 80 lashes.
1810 GMT: Maryam, from the excellent blog Keeping the Change notifies us that she has translated into English a graphic, moving account by the Iranian journalist Babak Dad, “The Rapes Inside Iran’s Prisons: The Story of One Anonymous Victim and a Call to the People of Iran”. She introduces it, “It is, in short, a beautifully written and lyrical piece, providing the personal, yet socially critical, perspective on the rape allegations that we did not know we were missing until Mr. Dad brought it to our attention.”
1720 GMT: In the morning, we’re going to offer a detailed analysis — after today’s appointment of Mohammad Sadeq Larijani as the head of Iran’s judiciary — on the battle over the judiciary, and its wider implication for the political manoeuvres between the Supreme Leader, the President, Hashemi Rafsanjani, the Green opposition, and even (perhaps especially) the Revolutionary Guards.
For now, here’s a teaser from the announcement on Ayatollah Khamenei’s website that points to the tightrope walked by the Supreme Leader:
His Eminence Ayatollah Khamenei, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, has appointed Ayatollah Agha Hajj Shaykh Sadegh Larijani to the head of the judicial system. The text of the decree of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution follows:
In the name of God,
The Gracious Hojatoleslam Agha Shaykh Sadegh Amoli Larijani, esteemed scholar … given that the extended period of leadership of Ayatollah Hashemi Shahroudi within the judiciary has come to an end….
Note the titles we’ve put in boldface. “Ayatollah” is a higher clerical rank than “Hojatoleslam”. Larijani can be referred to as “Ayatollah” initially by the Supreme Leader, not by virtue of his religious standing but because of his membership on the Assembly of Experts and the Guardian Council. After that, Khamenei retreats to the title “Hojatoleslam”.
An EA correspondent interprets, “Khamenei was trying to keep the Najaf and Qom seminaries from openly criticising him on the choice with the careful use of the titles. Meanwhile, he has nominated a non-specialist to lead the judiciary and kept other conservatives at bay, such as Ali Larijani and [Mayor of Tehran] Qalibaf by giving them a consolation prize.”
1500 GMT: Barazou Daragahi of the Los Angeles Times reports, from the Iranian Labor News Agency that Mir Hossein Mousavi has announced a “Green Path of Hope” to organise the political movement that arose before and after the Presidential election. Speaking to a group of doctors, Mousavi said, “Numerous volunteer and independent social networks throughout the society form the body of this movement. The Green Path of Hope is in fact aimed at regaining people’s denied rights.”
Building on the theme of recent weeks, Mousavi used the issues of detentions, confessions, and trials as a touchstone for political concerns, “We would not have witnessed so many crises today had [the authorities] adopted fair positions and respected people’s rights, instead of humiliating people on state television. Instead of accusing million-strong demonstrators of connection to foreigners, you have to find those who are waging a poisonous propaganda war on our people.”
What is uncertain is how much Mousavi’s announcement amounts to a “political front”, even though that is label used by Daragahi, with no indication yet by other opposition leaders of their approach to the Green Path of Hope.
2140 GMT: The Evin Protests. Once again, families of detainees have protested outside Evin Prison. The demonstrations have been occurring almost every evening in recent weeks.
1915 GMT: Quiet Engagement. News is just emerging of five British nationals who
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