Door: Marc E. Putto
Week 20 / 21 / 22 / 23
Door: Ingezonden
Dit is de voortzetting van de nieuwsdraad, welke ooit op www.joostniemöller.com begon, over het verzet van de groene beweging in Iran. Tevens worden hier links, video's en nieuwsberichten gepost over ontwikkelingen rond de nucleaire ambities van dit land. De draad wordt per 2 weken vernieuwd. Een chronologisch overzicht kunt u vinden in de categorie "Ondertussen in Iran".
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Geplaatst door: Ingezonden
op 22 mei 2011. Gearchiveerd onder Ondertussen in Iran.
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IRAN: Alleged CIA spies included government officials
Government officials were among those netted in an Iranian counterespionage operation that Tehran’s intelligence ministry touted this weekend, a news website reported Sunday.
The semi-official Fars news agency (link in Persian) reported “a number of Iranian government managers” were among the 30 arrested on suspicion of having ties with the CIA.
Fars quoted “an informed source” as saying a manager of one of Iran’s ministries and a number of other officials employed by government bodies were arrested.
One official had worked at one of Iran’s ministries for 25 years and was allegedly gathering information for U.S. intelligence with the aim of immigrating to the West and keeping his son out of military service, the source told Fars.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2011/05/iran-alleged-cia-spies-included-government-officials-.html
The Story of the Arrest of Baha’i Citizen Amanollah Mostaghim
Shiraz Intelligence agents raided the homes of several Baha’i families located in a building, arrested the residents of all the 3 units and searched the location.
According to the Human Rights House of Iran, until 2 hours after the raid, none of the individuals were allowed to talk. They then took Amanollah Mostaghim from his house to his workplace and confiscated 12 bags of his personal belongings and books.
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=10973
Iranian, French companies team up for film version of Dieudonné play
Les productions de la Plume, a French company belonging to Holocaust denying director Dieudonné M’bala M’bala, and Iran’s Haft Aseman Cinematic Company (HACC) have recently inked a contract to make a film adaptation of a play entitled “The Anti-Semite”.
“Due to my anti-Zionist beliefs, I agreed to produce the film,” HACC Managing Director Mohsen Ali-Akbari told the Persian service of the Fars News Agency on Saturday.
The story of “The Anti-Semite” is set in France and shooting will begin in 45 days, he added.
Ali-Akbari said that working on the film with such a sensitive subject in France, which has a pro-Zionist for a president, poses serious dangers for the cast and crew.
“However, I will face all the dangers due to my beliefs and national devotion,” he noted.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdetail.aspx?NewsID=1318309
Iran’s supreme leader and president wrestle for power
The dispute between Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ignites concern inside the nation that the infighting weakens Iran’s ability to project power internationally amid historic instability across the Mideast.
Reporting from Beirut and Tehran— Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wanted to send his onetime protege Mahmoud Ahmadinejad an unmistakable message: You’re replaceable.
The Iranian president had been skipping Cabinet meetings, apparently over Khamenei’s decision to overrule his firing of the country’s intelligence chief. So Khamenei asked a conservative lawmaker to begin assembling a caretaker Cabinet, just in case the president resigned or had to be removed, said an Iranian official close to the politician.
Ahmadinejad eventually returned to work. But he also had a message for Khamenei: I can still make a big mess.
He recently defied the nation’s constitutional watchdog, and Khamenei, by launching a drastic restructuring of the country’s government and naming himself caretaker minister of the country’s vast oil and gas resources, saying, “The president has the authority to replace ministers and be the caretaker himself.” But on Friday he was overruled again, by the country’s powerful Guardian Council.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iran-power-struggle-20110522,0,5736177.story?track=rss
Is Ahmadinejad’s Closest Aide About To Be Arrested?
The pressure on Mahmud Ahmadinejad is mounting in the power struggle that has pitted the Iranian president against the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
At the center of the dispute, which heated up after Khamenei reinstated the information minister Heydar Moslehi (who had reportedly been forced to resign by Ahmadinejad), is the president’s closest and most trusted aide Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei — a man despised by the clergy. In the past few days, there have been a number of calls for Mashaei to be arrested.
Mashaei, a controversial figure, is facing a long list of accusations, including bewitching Ahmadinejad, promoting an Iranian doctrine instead of an Islamic one, pushing for ties with the U.S., having contacts with foreign secret services, and aiming to limit the role of Khamenei.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1215.html
Marriage on the Street Corners of Tehran
This insightful novel is the compelling and moving account of the struggles of an ambitious but innocent young woman caught in the practice of temporary marriage -- a form of religiously and culturally sanctioned prostitution justified by a misinterpretation of the Quran. While traveling throughout Iran, Author Nadia shahram, heard hundreds of accounts from women who, in order to survive, fell prey to these temporary marriages. she narrates their stories through a composite fictional character, Ateesh, a beautiful, modern woman with high hopes and ambitions living in Iran. This story chronicles her life from the abusive arranged marriage she escapes at the age of twelve to the ten contractual temporary marriages she engages in, as she struggles for love, education, and most importantly, independence.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1219.html
Morgen nogmaals de docu over de verborgen prostitutie in Iran.
150 Iranian professors to be dismissed or forced into retirement
Kaleme opposition website reports that as the end of the academic year approaches, the head of Allameh Tabatabai University is preparing the files of 150 outstanding senior professors of business administration, sociology, economics, communications, law and political science for dismissal or early retirement.
The report adds that over the summer holidays the university will make prepare to merge with the Imam Khomeini Institute, which belongs to senior hardline cleric Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi.
According to Kaleme, the president of Allameh Tabatabai, with the support of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, had fired scores of professors over the past six years and closed down several graduate programs.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1217.html
Docu over de legale prostitutie in Iran.
Reeds eerder geplaatst, maar Ik wilde de docu nogmaals plaatsen om duidelijk te maken waarom Iraanse vrouwen zo pertinent aanwezig zijn in de Iraanse protesten
Deel 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Wv8CFQ3iN4&playnext=1&list=PL6F32D2B513F45AFA
Deel 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTBuo2zLTGM
Deel 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mQnTd4M5OE
Deel 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UM61wQmYuQ
Deel 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu3vHczUPt8
Deel 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zllz5gK5z4s
De roeptoeter van het Iraanse regime word ook monddood gemaakt.
Ofcom says interview with Maziar Bahari that aired in the UK breached broadcasting rules
Ofcom has ruled that Iran’s state-run Press TV is responsible for a serious breach of UK broadcasting rules and could face a fine for airing an interview with Maziar Bahari, the Newsweek journalist arrested covering the Iranian presidential election in 2009, that was obtained by force while he was held in a Tehran jail.
In July 2009 Press TV, which has a bureau in west London, aired what it said was an interview with Bahari following his arrest in the previous month, days after he had filed a report to Channel 4 News and Newsweek about an attack in Tehran during a post-election demonstration.
The UK media regulator has been investigating the complaint by Bahari, who spent 118 days in jail, since last summer.
In its ruling on the complaint published on Monday, Ofcom said it regards the breaches to be of a “serious nature” and is now considering if the case “warrants the imposition of a sanction”.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/may/23/iran-press-tv-maziar-bahari
MOROCCO: Protest violence could escalate, intelligence analyst says
Ook mensen in marocco roepen Hassan jas an.
Moroccan police beat dozens of protesters who defied a ban on demonstrations and took to the streets of the capital Rabat and Casablanca on Sunday, according to news reports.
Months of protests in the north African nation have led its monarch, Mohammed VI, to make some concessions, but not enough to please protesters. They appeared more defiant Sunday, although their numbers have failed to match the scale of demonstrations in Egypt, Tunisia other countries that saw “Arab Spring” uprisings.
Babylon & Beyond spoke Monday with Metsa Rahimi, an intelligence analyst with London-based Janusian Risk Consultancy who specializes in North Africa, about the Moroccan protests.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2011/05/morocco-intelligence-analyst-says-violence-could-escalate.html
Today’s Iran as seen clearly by its teenage girls
Nothing is more telling about a society than its views of itself especially those of its youth who carry the burden of the nation’s immediate future.
During informal interviews with Iranian teenage girls in and around schoolyards, one can learn many things about the character, bravery, thoughts, and worldliness of these young ladies, including their current place in society as opposed to what they would like it to be.
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2011/me_iran0613_05_23.asp
UK paper calls Press TV ‘enemy within’
Some British right-wing media, including a pro-Zionist newspaper, plan to aid Ofcom to mount pressure on Press TV, in line with the UK government’s measures against the Iranian English-language news channel.
Media giant Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper, The Sunday Times, is among the media supporting Ofcom plan to put more pressure on Press TV.
In an article published on the paper, they tried to demonstrate a complete one sided image of Press TV to distort the facts for prompting more pressure on the Iranian news channel.
The writer of the article, considering himself as a judge and before giving any facts, described Press TV as the “domestic enemy,” accusing the Iranian news channel of broadcasting unfair images of Britain.
Dipesh Gadher, 36, who became the deputy news editor at the paper in 2008, has accused Press TV of adapting non-professional news-writing regulations.
This is while Gadher has ignored the definite rules of free and fair journalism. He could not give any documented facts for his claims against Press TV, and could not even name those he claimed to be the Foreign Ministry’s officials.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/181366.html
Baha’i educational programme targeted in raids
A coordinated series of raids have been carried out on the homes of several Iranian Baha’is, active in a community initiative to provide a higher education programme for young members who are barred from university.
Reports indicate that raids took place on Saturday 21 May on as many as 30 homes in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, and Shiraz. It is now understood that some 14 Baha’is have been arrested.
“All of the targets were homes of individuals closely involved with the operations of the Baha’i Institute for Higher Education,” said Diane Ala’i, representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1227.html
EU ‘Widens Sanctions’ On Syria, Iran
BRUSSELS — Diplomats say the European Union has imposed sanctions on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and nine individuals close to him in response to Damascus’s violent crackdown on antigovernment protesters.
The move came at a meeting in Brussels on May 23 of EU foreign ministers, who also widened sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear program.
Brussels adopted asset freezes and travel restrictions on 13 people close to Assad two weeks ago but stopped short of including the president himself, with some EU states arguing at the time that this could make it harder to encourage change in the country.
Cyprus, Greece, and Germany then opposed blacklisting the president but have now agreed to include him and other officials active in the regime.
It is believed that the latest crackdown on protesters in the country as well as the decision by the United States to include Assad on their blacklist made the EU unite behind stronger measures.
At least five people were shot dead by security forces on May 21 at funerals for slain protesters in the city of Homs.
Human rights groups estimate that more than 850 people have died in the clashes and clampdowns since an uprising against the regime started two months ago.
Brussels will in a resolution adopted later today also call for an immediate halt to violence against protesters and demand that Assad address the causes of the upheavals in the country. They will also insist on a “national dialogue” in the country, including a concrete timetable for political reform.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1230.html
IAEA: Suspect Site In Syria ‘Very Likely’ A Nuclear Reactor; Iran’s Uranium Stockpiles Growing
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says a remote desert site in Syria that was bombed by Israeli planes in September 2007 was “very likely” a nuclear reactor.
The IAEA said in a new restricted report that “the agency assesses that it is very likely that the building destroyed at the Dair Alzour site was a nuclear reactor which should have been declared to the agency.”
http://www.rferl.org/content/iaea_suspect_site_very_likely_a_nuclear_reactor_irans_uranium_stockpiles_growing/24194955.html
Baha’is Deplore Arrests Of Academics In Iran
The Baha’i International Community has described as “unjustifiable” the arrests of more than a dozen Bahai’s in cities across Iran, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reports.
The community said in a statement from Geneva on May 23 that some 14 Baha’is were arrested during weekend raids on as many as 30 homes in Tehran, Karaj, Shiraz, and Esfahan.
It said those arrested were active in an institute established for Baha’i students who had been barred from higher education.
http://www.rferl.org/content/bahais_deplore_arrests_of_academics_in_iran/24185664.html
US Congress Gives Netanyahu Speech An Enthusiastic Response
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has received an exuberant welcome from a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress. The Israeli leader told lawmakers his vision of how to achieve a lasting peace with the Palestinians.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was happy to return to the U.S. Capitol, where he gave his first speech to a joint meeting in 1996.
He emphasized the strong bonds between Israel and the United States. “In an unstable Middle East, Israel is the one anchor of stability. In a region of shifting alliances, Israel is America’s unwavering ally. Israel has always been pro-American, Israel will always be pro-American,” said the Israeli prime minister.
http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/US-Congress-Gives-Netanyahu-Speech-An-Enthusiastic-Response-122522854.html
Increased pressure on Iranian political prisoners
Twenty-six Iranian political prisoners are reportedly under pressure from the Revolutionary Guards and the Tehran Prosecutor’s office to withdraw an official complaint they have filed against their interrogators.
The Kaleme opposition website reports that the 26 prisoners have been called on to deny the allegations recorded in their letter of complaint or else they will face “harsh consequences.” The complaint alleges torture and abuse by their interrogators.
Several senior opposition figures and reformists detained after the controversial 2009 presidential elections and the disputed victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are among those who signed the complaint.
To quash the widespread protests that followed the 2009 presidential election, the authorities arrested dozens of political activists and thousands of protesting citizens.
Chief opposition figures mainly have been accused of “propaganda against the regime and activities against national security.”
Kaleme reports that several of the high-profile prisoners have been threatened with further charges and the loss of all their privileges inside prison.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1240.html
‘No Let-Up’ In Secret Executions In Iran
A U.S.-based rights group says Iran has carried out more secret executions at a prison where the practice was criticized in a recent UN report.
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said the executions were carried out at Vakilabad prison in Mashhad in recent months.
Group spokesman Hadi Ghaemi told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on May 25 that “We have been able to confirm through local sources that executions have been performed secretly in Vakilabad prison since March 2011.”
He said some 70 people were executed over that period without having been informed in advance of their imminent death.
http://www.rferl.org/content/secret_iran_executions_alleged/24206083.html
Ahmadinejad power in decline?
The power of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is declining following a very public row with the country’s ruling cleric, political analysts say.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei backed Ahmadinejad after bloody clashes erupted in opposition to his contested re-election in 2009. Meanwhile, Iranian officials are moving against Ahmadinejad as he tried to reshuffle parts of his administration, including at the key Oil Ministry.
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2011/05/26/Ahmadinejad-power-in-decline/UPI-10441306436530/
Arrests are part of official campaign to block development of Iranian Baha’is
The raids carried out on some 30 homes of Baha’is, who were offering education to young community members barred by the government from university, is the latest action in Iran’s ongoing policy to keep its largest non-Muslim religious minority on the margins of society.
Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, Baha’is have been systematically deprived of higher education. With nowhere else to turn, the community initiated its own educational programmes.
“The Iranian authorities are clearly determined to make it impossible for the Baha’i community to educate its youth whose opportunities are blocked by the state,” said Bani Dugal, Principal Representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1264.html
‘No Let-Up’ In Secret Executions In Iran
A U.S.-based rights group says Iran has carried out more secret executions at a prison where the practice was criticized in a recent UN report.
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said the executions were carried out at Vakilabad prison in Mashhad in recent months.
Group spokesman Hadi Ghaemi told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on May 25 that “We have been able to confirm through local sources that executions have been performed secretly in Vakilabad prison since March 2011.”
http://www.rferl.org/content/secret_iran_executions_alleged/24206083.html
‘Ahmadinejad wants friendship with Israel’
Unprecedented accusation against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: a Muslim cleric accused the Iranian president of wanting “friendship with Israel,” an Iranian website associated with the opposition reported on Thursday.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4074618,00.html
Iran intelligence minister insists bin Laden not killed by US forces
Hij stierf aan een nogal merkwaardige loodvergiftiging lijkt me
Iran’s Minister of Intelligence Heydar Moslehi is once again contending that Osama bin Laden was not killed by U.S. forces but in fact had died from disease some time ago.
“The U.S. claims of killing Osama bin Laden are unfounded,” said Moslehi, according to IRNA.
He added: “According to intelligence documents, bin Laden passed away some years ago due to an ailment, but White House leaders have whipped up a media storm in order to mislead the American people and gain ground in the elections.” Moslehi said the White House has provided no proof of its claims.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/iran-intelligence-minister-insists-bin-laden-not-killed-us-forces
Iran helping Syria crush anti-government demonstrations: US officials
Washington, May 28: Iran is dispatching increasing numbers of trainers and advisers, including members of its elite Quds Force, into Syria to help crush anti-government demonstrations, US officials have said.
In the account provided by the officials, the Iranian military trainers were being brought to Damascus to instruct Syrians in techniques Iran used against the nation’s “Green Movement’’ in 2009.
http://www.newkerala.com/news/world/fullnews-218601.html
Hizbullah’s strategic depth
The Lebanese Shia group Hizbullah has been ambivalent about the protests in neighbouring Syria, explained by its ties with the Syrian regime, writes Lucy Fielder in Beirut
The Lebanese Shia political and military group Hizbullah would be profoundly affected if its strategic ally Syria descended into chaos, observers say. But the group has a strong local support base and other allies and resources, and it would therefore survive, many believe.
Lebanon watched fearfully as the wave of anti-regime protests in Syria resurged over the weekend, according to rights groups and activists. The two neighbours’ histories are intertwined, and Syria dominated Lebanon politically and militarily from the end of the latter country’s civil war in the early 1990s until 2005.
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2011/1049/re8.htm
Iran’s Khamenei aide calls Ahmadinejad to order
Ahmadinejad komt steeds verder in de verdrukking en uit het volgende bericht blijkt ook duidelijk dat de spanningen binnen de Iraanse machten steeds verder op loopt.
An aide to Iran’s supreme leader called on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday to “turn back to the main path,” suggesting the Islamic state’s highest power may be losing patience with the head of government.
The comments, in an interview with the semi-official Mehr news agency, come as pressure mounts on Ahmadinejad after he sacked several ministers and put himself in direct charge of the Oil Ministry — a move his critics say was a power grab.
Ali Saeedi, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s representative to the Revolutionary Guards, concentrated most of his criticism on unnamed “elements” within Ahmadinejad’s government, a reference to the president’s closest aides who are the usual targets for hardline critics of the government.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/28/us-iran-ahmadinejad-criticism-idUSTRE74R1HM20110528?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FworldNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+International%29
Now Open Kitchens Are Un-Islamic, Too
Hoe ver kun je gaan met de indoctrinatie van mensen is de volgende vraag.
Open kitchens are the latest addition to the list of supposedly un-Islamic items and behaviors in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
According to conservative cleric Ayatollah Javadi Amoli, open kitchens don’t allow homeowners to be protected from the eyes of their guests.
“Women should be allowed to do their work while they have guests without being watched by others,” Amoli was quoted as saying in a meeting in the holy city of Qom, where he is based.
Every now and then, Iran’s clerics and officials come up with new things they designate as “un-Islamic.”
There are obvious un-Islamic items and behaviors, such as the consumption of alcohol, which is banned in Islam. But other things, such as open kitchens, may strike some as more odd, or at least out of touch.
http://www.rferl.org/content/in_iran_open_kitchens_now_unislamic_too/24208055.html
Iran Vows to Unplug Internet
Men word daar wel heel erg bang van het nieuws dat uit het westen het land in komt.
Iran is taking steps toward an aggressive new form of censorship: a so-called national Internet that could, in effect, disconnect Iranian cyberspace from the rest of the world.
The leadership in Iran sees the project as a way to end the fight for control of the Internet, according to observers of Iranian policy inside and outside the country. Iran, already among the most sophisticated nations in online censoring, also promotes its national Internet as a cost-saving measure for consumers and as a way to uphold Islamic moral codes.
In February, as pro-democracy protests spread rapidly across the Middle East and North Africa, Reza Bagheri Asl, director of the telecommunication ministry’s research institute, told an Iranian news agency that soon 60% of the nation’s homes and businesses would be on the new, internal network. Within two years it would extend to the entire country, he said.
Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704889404576277391449002016.html#ixzz1Ng7qrBOp
Laina Farhat-Holzman: Iran, like some here, also believes in apocalyptic myths
Wat wil je anders met een 1400 jaar oud bijgeloof.
We live in a time of strange beliefs. The latest comes from Iran. Although a country with skyscrapers, metro subways and nuclear aspirations, their leaders believe in sorcery. The conflict between obnoxious President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the “Supreme Leader” Ayatollah Khamenei has now produced a spate of arrests; 25 people, associated with Ahmadinejad’s chief of staff, Mashaei, have been accused of being “magicians who evoke djinns” evil spirits — yes, like the ones who come out of bottles found on beaches.
They are accused of using “supernatural powers” to further Ahmadinejad’s policies. One of the arrested men, Abbas Ghaffari, was described as a man with special skills in metaphysics and connections with “unknown worlds.” One hardline cleric, Ayatollah Yazdi, warned that disobeying the supreme leader — who has the ultimate power in Iran — is equivalent to “apostasy from God.”
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/rss/ci_18160839?source=rss
Ahmadinejad loses ground with Revolutionary Guards
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came under more fire today from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Supreme Leader’s representative at the Corps.
IRGC head Mohammad Ali Jafari today told a meeting of Basij university organizers: “The presence of certain political views and opinions among the people surrounding the presidency is becoming worrisome for those who care for the Revolution.”
Jafari added that one of the chief “blights of the Revolution” are those people who were once on the path of the Revolution and have now turned against it.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1276.html
‘Mubarak, Ben Ali, Seyed Ali’s turn,’ chant mourners
Mourners at the funeral procession for Iranian football legend Naser Hejazi chanted slogans in praise of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi and denounced current Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Hejazi, one of the most formidable goalkeepers in Iran’s national team, had been an outspoken critic of the government including a decision by the Ahmadinejad administration to slash subsidies on food, fuel and energy which many consider another financial setback for the country’s most vulnerable. Hejazi died of lung cancer on Monday at the age of 62.
A crowd chanted “Ya Hossein Mir Hossein” during today’s ceremony, which began at 9am local time. Other chants included “Mubarak, Ben Ali, Nobate Seyed Ali”; * “Mousavi and Karroubi must be freed”; “Our Naser is not dead, it is the government that is dead” and “Allaho-O-Akbar.”
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/may/25/3138
Remember On May 22 one young man will turn 25. But he will not be able to celebrate his birthday with friends and family as many young men would. Instead, Majid Tavakkoli will be spending his 25th birthday in a dank and fetid cell in one of Iran’s most squalid prisons.
What could he possibly have done to deserve this? Majid Tavakkoli was a student leader studying ship building at Amir Kabir University of Technology and had the audacity to exercise his internationally guaranteed right to freedom of expression by making a speech to mark Students Day in December 2009, in which he criticized the government. He was arrested shortly thereafter and has been in prison ever since then. He was beaten in detention and held in solitary confinement.
Majid Tavakkoli on his 2nd birthday behind bars
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/may/18/3128
Nuclear talks call Iran’s bluff
Last week brought new indications that the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran want to make a nuclear bomb.
The disclosure was part of the newly released nine-page report by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). It stated that “Tehran has conducted work on a highly sophisticated nuclear triggering technology that experts said could be used for only one purpose: setting off a nuclear weapon”.
This is not the first time that the IAEA has come across evidence that indicates Iran has military ambitions for its nuclear programme. In November 2009, as revealed by the Guardian, the IAEA asked the Iranian government to explain “evidence suggesting that Iranian scientists have experimented with an advanced nuclear warhead design”.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/may/29/nuclear-talks-iran-sanctions
‘Zionism has hijacked the identity of Judaism’
Een vreemde newspeak van een Rabby lijkt me.
Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss says that Zionism has hijacked the identity of Judaism and the Zionist regime is totally illegitimate according to the Torah.
Rabbi Weiss made the remarks in an interview with the Tehran Times on May 18.
He came to Iran to attend the International Conference on Global Alliance against Terrorism for a Just Peace, which was held in Tehran from May 14 to 15.
Rabbi Weiss is a member of Neturei Karta International, which is an organization of Jews opposed to Zionism.
During the interview, Rabbi Weiss discussed the views of religious orhtodox Jews on the establishment of the Zionist regime, which the Palestinians call the Nakba (the Catastrophe), and several other issues.
Following are excerpts of the remarks of Rabbi Weiss during the interview:
For Jews, the Nakba is a tragedy, it is a double tragedy.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdetail.aspx?NewsID=1323051
Iranian women political prisoners speak out against sexual threats
Female political prisoners in the quarantine section of Iran’s Evin Prison have issued a letter for Iranian Women’s Day, saying they have suffered repeated sexual threats by their interrogators.
The letter, which was published on the opposition website Kaleme, indicates that male interrogators have often forced these female activists “to make false self-incriminating confessions” by threatening them with sexual assault.
The letter indicates that sexual threats are commonly used to “break the resistance” of female detainees.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1280.html
Ahmadinejad Administration in Tensions With Revolutionary Guards — 600 Million Dollars in Embezzlement
Ertebatat Zirsakht telecommunications company -- a government entity operating under the Ministry of Telecommunications -- issued a warning to Iran’s main telecommunications agency, TCI that unless it paid up its debt, the country’s telecommunications with the outside world and even between the country’s provinces, would be cut off “in the near future.”
Ertebatat is the company that handles international Internet communications, inter-provincial and international telephone communications for Iran’s Telecommunication Company (also known as TCI or the Sherkate Mokhaberate Iran), the government agency that regulates all telecommunications.
Ertebatat split from TCI in 2008 and has been operating as an independent government agency since then. It has about 25 million land telephone subscribers, 41 million cell phone (mobile) subscribers and about a million data subscribers who receive services from TCI. According to the manager of TCI, Ertebatat made a net profit of 2.5 million Dollars.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1282.html
Ahmadinejad loses ground with Revolutionary Guards
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came under more fire today from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Supreme Leader’s representative at the Corps.
IRGC head Mohammad Ali Jafari today told a meeting of Basij university organizers: “The presence of certain political views and opinions among the people surrounding the presidency is becoming worrisome for those who care for the Revolution.”
Jafari added that one of the chief “blights of the Revolution” are those people who were once on the path of the Revolution and have now turned against it.
Meanwhile, Ayatollah Khamenei’s representative at IRGC, Ali Saidi, said today that the government has been afflicted with a “major disaster being infiltrated by corrupt elements.”
In an interview with Mehr News Agency, Saidi warned Ahmadinejad and his supporters in president’s office that they can count on the support of “the nation of Hezbollah and the clergy” on the condition that they remain committed to the supreme leadership.”
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/ahmadinejad-loses-ground-revolutionary-guards
Problemen met http://en.irangreenvoice.com/ moeilijk te bereiken.
Ik ben er nog niet achter of het een cyberaanval is.
Ik keek op de website van irangreenvoice en zag een artikel over de vrijspraak van 12 protestantse christenen. De uitspraak van de rechter kun je zeker revolutionair noemen. Hij zei dat protestanten in Iran gewoon hun geloof mogen uitoefenen.
Hebben jullie dit gemist of is de uitspraak nog niet definitief en zijn ze misschien nog niet vrij??
Ik ga dat uitzoeken Willem en plaats de uitkomst hier op deze draad.
Bedankt voor de info.
Willem mei 29th, 2011 22:27
Kun je me even een link geven, dat vergemakkelijkt het zoeken
Debate surrounding Iran’s first blinding-by-acid sentence
In the past month, the Iranian media has been awash with news of the first blinding-by-acid sentence issued by the Iranian judiciary. Majid Movahedi, an Iranian man, was convicted of throwing acid on the face of Amaneh Bahrami, an Iranian woman who rejected his marriage proposal. Bahrami was left blind in both eyes and severely disfigured by the attack and her assailant has been in prison for the past seven years.
Based on the Islamic principle of ghesas, which calls for punishment equivalent to what the crime inflicted, the judiciary has voted to have Movahedi blinded by acid.
The procedure, which is to be carried out in a hospital by either the victim or medical professionals, was postponed last week.
Bahrami had previously announced she was willing to carry out the sentence herself.
The undeniable suffering of the victim and her determination to claim retribution, along with the willingness of the state and the judiciary to issue the unprecedented sentence of blinding by acid, have triggered a widespread debate among Iranians. Radio Zamaneh, as an objective forum for expressing a wide spectrum of perspectives and promoting constructive communication, has been able to reflect and explore that controversy.
On May 14, the day Movahedi was to originally undergo his sentence, Amin Bozorgian published an article entitled “Amaneh and those two drops of acid” in which he delves into the public anxiety over the sentence.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/debate-surrounding-irans-first-blinding-acid-sentence
Iran gaat er nog even 300 bij hangen aan de hijskranen:
https://www.facebook.com/notes/save-sakineh-mohammadi-ashtiani-from-being-stoned-to-death-in-iran-by-donya-jam/iran-says-to-hang-300-drug-traffickers/190387007680744
Als je in Iran verklaart geen Mohammedaan te zijn of kritiek te hebben op de regering dan moet je wel aan de drugs zitten en is je executie aanstaande.
Ondertussen zijn de bommen van de Navo al bijna op. In het Westers socialistische sprookjesparadijs is het natuurlijk volkomen logisch, als je satan wil verslaan, dat je dan als een labiele idioot net zo lang naar de zon kijkt tot je blind bent.
Er zijn vele sites die het nieuws vermelden. Vooral die van de protestantse kerken. Dit zijn er twee.
http://www.persecution.org/2011/05/20/iran-eleven-christians-walk-free-from-court/
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/may/19/3130
Merkel Delay Due To ‘Technical Fault’
Iran has said a “technical problem” was to blame for briefly closing its airspace to German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s plane as she flew to India, thereby delaying her arrival and sparking a diplomatic row.
Iran’s official IRAN news agency quoted foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast as saying that the problem , which occurred on May 31, “was caused only by a technical question that was immediately resolved.”
http://www.rferl.org/content/merkel_arrives_late_in_india_after_iran_blocks_plane/24210530.html
RAND: Iran’s Balancing Act in Afghanistan
The Islamic Republic of Iran continues to provide measured support to Taliban insurgents battling U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan. However, Iran also maintains close and constructive relations with the same Afghan central government that is battling Taliban forces. Iran’s complex and, at times, contradictory set of cultural, religious, political, and security interests shapes its behavior in Afghanistan, to the benefit and detriment of U.S. objectives. This paper examines Iran’s objectives and interests in Afghanistan and the consequent Iranian policies affecting U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
http://iranprimer.usip.org/blog/2011/may/31/rand-irans-balancing-act-afghanistan
Iran sees threat to its clout amid Arab Spring
Iran’s relationship with Syria gives it clout with a broad range of players. If Syria’s regime collapses, so too could Iran’s regional influence.
As Arab uprisings sweep the Middle East, few images will likely unsettle Iran’s leadership more than that of their flag being burned by Syrian protesters angry with the Islamic Republic’s deep ties with Syria’s dynastic regime.
Activists shouted “freedom” as they torched the flag in a protest broadcast online. It was just one of the many demonstrations against Bashar al-Assad’s government that have shaken Syria for months and led to at least 1,000 deaths.
Of all the regional revolts, Syria’s presents the biggest dilemma for Iran. Syria is the linchpin that connects Iran to the powerful Shiite Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Syria, Iran, and Hezbollah, along with Palestinian militant group Hamas, form the so-called “Axis of Resistance” against Israel and Western aims throughout the Middle East. But if Mr. Assad is forced from power, that axis – and Iran’s “soft power” reach in the region – could be in jeopardy.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0531/Iran-sees-threat-to-its-clout-amid-Arab-Spring?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+feeds%2Fcsm+%28Christian+Science+Monitor+%7C+All+Stories%29
Iran and the Bomb
ABSTRACT: ANNALS OF NATIONAL SECURITY about whether Iran’s nuclear program is being exaggerated. Is Iran actively trying to develop nuclear weapons? Members of the Obama Administration often talk as if this were a foregone conclusion, as did their predecessors under George W. Bush. There’s a large body of evidence, however, including some of America’s most highly classified intelligence assessments, suggesting that the U.S. could be in danger of repeating a mistake similar to the one made with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq eight years ago—allowing anxieties about the policies of a tyrannical regime to distort our estimates of the state’s military capacities and intentions.
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/06/06/110606fa_fact_hersh#ixzz1NxcvqQy2
Debate surrounding Iran’s first blinding-by-acid sentence
In the past month, the Iranian media has been awash with news of the first blinding-by-acid sentence issued by the Iranian judiciary. Majid Movahedi, an Iranian man, was convicted of throwing acid on the face of Amaneh Bahrami, an Iranian woman who rejected his marriage proposal. Bahrami was left blind in both eyes and severely disfigured by the attack and her assailant has been in prison for the past seven years.
Based on the Islamic principle of ghesas, which calls for punishment equivalent to what the crime inflicted, the judiciary has voted to have Movahedi blinded by acid.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1299.html
Photos: Detained Iranian Lawyer Makes A Defiant Appearance
Deze vrouw gaat nog een groot probleem geven voor de Iraanse Justitie
The first hearing to review whether Nasrin Sotoudeh -- human rights lawyer who was the lawyer for many political prisoners -- would be disbarred was held today at Iran Bar Association with Nasrin Sotoudeh in attendance. The final result was postponed for a later time and appeal hearing.
This morning (May 29, 2011) Nasrin Sotoudeh was brought in hand-cuffs from Evin prison to Iran Bar Association by two guards and a policewoman to attend the hearing.
In this hearing, which was held in one of the rooms at Iran Bar Association, Ms. Keyhani, member of the board of Iran Bar Association, and a group of lawyers reviewed the case for disbarring Nasrin Sotoudeh and decided to postpone the decision until a later time and appeal hearing.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/may/1292.html
Iran Vows to Unplug Internet
Iran is taking steps toward an aggressive new form of censorship: a so-called national Internet that could, in effect, disconnect Iranian cyberspace from the rest of the world.
The leadership in Iran sees the project as a way to end the fight for control of the Internet, according to observers of Iranian policy inside and outside the country. Iran, already among the most sophisticated nations in online censoring, also promotes its national Internet as a cost-saving measure for consumers and as a way to uphold Islamic moral codes.
In February, as pro-democracy protests spread rapidly across the Middle East and North Africa, Reza Bagheri Asl, director of the telecommunication ministry’s research institute, told an Iranian news agency that soon 60% of the nation’s homes and businesses would be on the new, internal network. Within two years it would extend to the entire country, he said.
Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748704889404576277391449002016-lMyQjAxMTAxMDMwMDEzNDAyWj.html#ixzz1NxfpufGA
@ Willem.
Helaas heb Ik enige items gemist, maar Ik moet tot mijn spijt mededelen dat Ik ook een priveleven heb dat zo af en toe enige aandacht verdient.
Daarom ben Ik blij dat U mij terecht gewezen hebt betreft een paar nieuwsitems die Ik gemist heb. Bij deze hiervoor mijn dank
Bolivia Says Iranian Defense Minister Leaving
Bolivia says it has taken action to ensure that Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi has left Bolivia.
Vahidi is accused by Bolivia’s neighbor Argentina of helping plan the 1994 bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people.
Vahidi was reported to have come to Bolivia at the invitation of Bolivia’s Defense Ministry to help inaugurate a military academy.
In a letter to Argentina, Bolivia’s Foreign Ministry apologized for the invitation to Vahidi, saying Bolivian defense officials were not aware of the background of the Argentinian bomb case.
http://www.rferl.org/content/article/24211542.html
Iran’s parliament votes to take president to court over oil post, escalating power struggle
Iran’s parliament voted on Wednesday to take Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to court over his takeover of the country’s vital oil ministry, escalating the power struggle between the president and the hard-line establishment that has turned against him.
The 165-1 vote was the latest salvo in the political maneuvering that began when Ahmadinejad publicly challenged Iran’s supreme leader in April, only to back down. The confrontations appear to be part of a power struggle ahead of parliamentary elections next year and the vote for Ahmadinejad’s successor in mid-2013.
Lawmakers were infuriated when Ahmadinejad consolidated a series of ministries without parliamentary approval, fired the oil minister and named himself as the replacement. The takeover also technically puts Ahmadinejad at the helm of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, since Iran this year holds the rotating presidency.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/irans-parliament-votes-to-send-president-ahmadinejad-to-court-for-violating-constitution/2011/06/01/AGLjH9FH_story.html?wprss=rss_world
Iran activist dies after funeral scuffle: report
The daughter of a prominent veteran Iranian dissident died yesterday after security forces scuffled with mourners at her father’s funeral, opposition websites said.
Haleh Sahabi, 54, herself an opposition activist and women’s rights campaigner, had been allowed out of prison to attend the funeral of her father Ezatollah Sahabi. She fell in the scuffle and died of a cardiac arrest, the Kaleme website said.
The semi-official Mehr news agency reported sporadic clashes at the funeral but said Sahabi had died of a pre-existing heart condition and not because of rough handling.
“Security forces tried to interfere in the carrying of the body, she objected and security forces confronted her and other people present,” Kaleme said, adding that Sahabi was pushed to the ground. Another opposition site, Sahamnews, said a member of the security forces punched her in the stomach.
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=438417&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17
U.S. demands answers in death of Iranian dissident
The State Department called on the government of Iran Wednesday to investigate the death of a human rights activist this week, reportedly after security forces got into a confrontation with mourners at her father’s funeral.
Haleh Sahabi, an opposition activist and women’s rights advocate, was arrested during Iran’s 2009 post-election crackdown and was given a two-year jail sentence. She was allowed out of prison to attend the funeral of her father, noted Iranian dissident Ezatollah Sahabi.
According to opposition websites, Sahabi was pushed to the ground during a scuffle between mourners and security forces and died of cardiac arrest. She was in her mid-50s.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/US/06/01/iran.dissident.death/index.html?section=cnn_latest
Khamenei: Government Should Implement the Law Without Excuses
This week’s remarks by Iran’s supreme leader ayatollah Ali Khamenei mark as the final straw in the recent attacks against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his allies.
These remarks made to a group of Majlis representatives come as protests against the recent appointment of a new governor general in the province of Shiraz still continue and principlists in the Majlis have expressed their opposition to the planned visit by the government’s foreign minister to Saudi Arabia.
In addition to these pressures on Ahmadinejad and his administration, a group of Majlis representatives for the fourth time last week sent a letter to Majlis leader Ali Larijani calling for an investigation of Ahmadinejad’s constitutional violations.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1002.html
Iran says does not arrest anyone just for being Bahai: Official
Secretary General of the High Council for Human Rights Mohammad-Javad Larijani said on Wednesday the country does not arrest anyone under the excuse of being Bahai.
“We do not capture anyone in our country for being a member of Bahai community, but we do not let expansion of the community, since we do not recognize it as a religion. We will deal with Bahai community members as we do regarding other people if they want to act beyond the system’s rules,” he said.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1007.html
Green Coordination Council calls for demonstrations on 12 June anniversary
Just days ahead of the second anniversary of the 2009 presidential election, the Green Movement has called for fresh demonstrations to demand the release of movement leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mahdi Karroubi.
In a statement published on Tuesday, the Coordination Council of the Green Path of Hope, the Green Movement’s most important decision making body, invited Iranians to take part in silent protests on 12 June [1] to mark the second anniversary of the 2009 presidential election which was overshadowed by widespread vote rigging and unprecedented crackdown on protesters questioning the outcome of the election.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/01/3148
The Ayatollah Will Overwhelm Ahmadinejad
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has now made the mistake that all Iranian presidents make: he has challenged the authority of the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He is doomed to fail.
The challenge posed by Ahmadinejad is such a predictable part of Iranian politics that it has come to be known as “the president’s symptom.” It emerges from a president’s confidence that, as a popularly elected leader, he should not be constrained by the Supreme Leader’s oversight. But the Islamic Republic’s history is littered with its presidents’ failed attempts to consolidate an independent power center. Ultimately, divine authority trumps political authority.
This dual authority is embedded in the Islamic Republic’s constitution, and inevitably tilts toward the divine, particularly in a president’s second term. Ahmadinejad is not an exception to this rule. In fact, because he has pushed harder than his predecessors, his star is falling faster. Moreover, the controversial presidential election of June 2009, and the political crisis that ensued, irreparably damaged Ahmadinejad’s democratic legitimacy. Khamenei was forced to use his authority to support the president, and has since repeatedly condemned the “Green Movement” that opposed Ahmadinejad’s re-election. As a result, Ahmadinejad has been the most costly president for Khamenei to date, because he forced the Supreme Leader to deplete his power in the face of a common enemy — a move that called into question his own judgment and tarnished his reputation.
http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC06.php?CID=1642
Congress to End Program Supporting Hundreds of Persecuted Christians in Iran
Congress is planning to end an expense-free humanitarian program that grants heavily persecuted Christians and other religious minorities in Iran a safe avenue to apply for refugee status.
According to International Christian Concern, Congress may end the “Lautenberg Amendment,” which has received bipartisan support for more than 20 years. It fears that without the program many persecuted Iranian Christians unable to flee their country will face imprisonment or execution.
Earlier this year, Andrew Johnston, advocacy director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide, and Mansour Borji, pastor of the Iranian Church in London, told the European Parliament’s Iran Delegation the situation was “dire” for the Evangelical Church in Iran.
http://www.christianpost.com/news/congress-to-end-program-supporting-hundreds-of-persecuted-christians-in-iran-50758/
Iranian media can’t decide who controls whom: US or Israel?
Hilarische reacties.
A couple of days ago, Iran’s FARS “news” agency reported “Zionist Lobbies Thwart Improvement of US Ties with Iran.”
On Wednesday, however, Ahmadinejad said that
These elements (Zionists), which have … formed a government in occupied Palestine today, are marionettes that are playing their parts on stage while the actual politics and actual stage is in the control of the United States.
So who controls whom?
http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2011/06/iranian-media-cant-decide-who-controls.html
The Real Power Struggle in Tehran
Some Iran observers are of the opinion that a genuine power struggle has been triggered in Iran between Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over the reinstatement of an ousted minister.
This, however, is not an accurate assessment of the situation, if only because it reduces the role of the supreme leader in Iranian politics to that of the president, thus taking for granted the Constitutional supremacy of Khamenei over all matters of state.
Also, one must take note of the fact that, according to conservative Tehran lawmaker Ahmad Tavakkoli, Ahmadinejad lacks the ability to utilize his popularity or electoral base for challenging, let alone undermining, the rule or authority of the supreme leader, which is another way of saying he lacks popularity [1].
The real power struggle, then, one that is increasingly becoming less obvious to the world but that has forced Khamenei and his allies to gradually withdraw their support for Ahmadinejad is between Ali Khamenei and reformist opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi who, along with Mehdi Karroubi, has been under house arrest for more than one hundred days now [2].
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1018.html
Haleh Sahabi dies in scuffle at father’s funeral
Haleh Sahabi, the daughter of Iranian dissident Ezzatollah Sahabi died from a heart attack after security forces descended upon her father’s funeral.
Mizan website, the news outlet associated with the Nationalist-religious Coalition wrote: “A security official tried to grab a photo of Mr. Sahabi that Haleh Sahabi was pressing against her chest. The force of his action and her resistance caused her to fall, and then she did not rise.”
Haleh Sahabi’s son, Yahya Shamekhi said: “When they brought the body of my grandfather, the officials refused to let the ceremony go on, and arguments ensued. They finally seized his corpse and took it away by force.”
An unidentified journalist told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran: “Haleh Sahabi suffered a heart attack after the plainclothes forces swarmed the scene and took the body of her father. She died on her way to Lavasan hospital.”
The report added that both plainclothes and uniformed security forces were present at the funeral and some engaged in beatings.
The head of Tehran Province Security Forces told ISNA, however, that Haleh Sahabi’s death was not related to the security forces, adding: “She suffered from heart problems, and this caused her death.”
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/haleh-sahabi-dies-scuffle-father%E2%80%99s-funeral
Haleh Sahabi given speedy burial
Activist Haleh Sahabi, who died yesterday at the funeral of her dissident father, was buried Wednesday night by Iranian security forces.
Opposition websites report that the Sahabi family had intended to hold their own ceremony, but security forces took possession of her remains by force and transferred her to Lavasan, northeast of Tehran, for a swift burial.
Jaras website reports that Sahabi was laid to rest at 10PM with 2,000 mourners in attendance, along with a substantial number of police and security force personnel. Jaras reports that several participants were arrested once the ceremony ended.
Haleh Sahabi died during an altercation with security forces at the funeral of her father, the prominent dissident Ezzatollah Sahabi.
The government has announced that Haleh Sahabi died from a cardiac arrest brought on by the stress of losing her father, the heat and her history of heart disease. However, a number of her relatives report that her death was the result of being beaten by security forces.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/haleh-sahabi-given-speedy-burial
Cartoon:
Father, Daughter…For Ezatollah and Haleh Sahabi
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/father-daughterfor-ezatollah-and-haleh-sahabi
Jailed Iranian Journalist Beaten In Front Of Relatives
A jailed Iranian journalist was briefly hospitalized after being severely beaten by a prison guard on June 2, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reports.
The mother of journalist Masoud Bastani, 31, his wife, and mother-in-law witnessed the beating in the Rajaishahr prison in the city of Karaj. They say Bastani asked the guards if he could talk with his visiting relatives for a few minutes longer.
“As the visiting hours were drawing to an end, Masoud asked for a couple of more minutes so he could say his goodbyes to us all, then a guard grabbed him by the collar and banged his head against the wall,” Bastani’s mother, Masoumeh Malouol, told Radio Farda on June 2.
http://www.rferl.org/content/jailed_iranian_journalist_beaten_in_front_of_relatives/24214800.html
Anonymous leaks 10,000 ‘top secret’ Iranian gov’t emails
Hier gaan er een paar niet blij zijn en er zullen zoals gewoonlijk weer koppen moeten rollen.
Hacker group Anonymous has leaked 10,365 “top secret” emails from Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Anonymous says the files were accessed after the group infiltrated the Iranian Passport and Visa Office email center. All the files are currently available for download from MediaFire , as well as various BitTorrent sources.
Most of the emails concern visa applications for “an oil meeting,” according to an unnamed source who spoke with the International Business Times. And “many” of those are reportedly for people “from China.” A quick perusing of the files shows that, in most case, the emails are from Iranian government officials alerting visa applicants of their status.
The initial attack apparently took place a number of days ago, and the Iranian government has been actively trying to keep news of the breach covered up. An Anonymous member said that the attacks were carried out in an attempt to damage Iran’s image in “both cyber space and the real world.â€
As of this writing, the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still down. According to a user of the #OpIran IRC channel, the attack on the mail servers “is a multi-site incursion using a variety of exploits and hand-crafted methods.” The user added that “the action [against the servers] is considered ongoing,” but said that there is new “information under review.”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/digitaltrends/20110603/tc_digitaltrends/anonymousleaks10000topsecretiraniangovtemails_1
Schism between Ahmadinejad, Khamenei could lead to Iran President’s removal
Ayatollah Abdolnabi Namazi, Assembly of Experts member and representative of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the city of Kashan recently reported on his website that the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Mohammad Ali Jafari, had asked Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.Khamenei for permission to arrest all those involved in an attempt to remove Khamenei and to harm the rule of the jurisprudent in Iran.
Namazi said that Khamenei had approved Jafari’s request, but demanded that “the president of the country be spared.”
In recent days, senior regime officials have called for the arrest of Rahim-Mashai, the director of Ahmadinejad’s office.
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/world/news/71633/
Torture at Evin prison: Journalist’s own experiences and his interviews with 19 political prisoners
In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, journalist Saeed Pourheydar, who was arrested twice after the 2009 election and eventually sentenced to five years in prison, described his prison abuse, charges, his detention conditions inside Evin Prison, and the torture of other political prisoners.
Saeed Pourheydar is a journalist who formerly worked for several reformist newspapers. He told the Campaign that after the 2009 presidential election, he was arrested twice: once on 6 February 2010 at his home when he was arrested by Intelligence Ministry and served one month inside Ward 240 of Evin Prison, and another time on 10 October 2010, when he was detained after being summoned to Evin Prison Court and spent 52 days in prison until his appeals court issued a ruling. When the appeals court upheld his conviction, Pourheydar left Iran and currently resides abroad.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/03/3155
http://tinyurl.com/6y5dnak
Woman only released from jail to attend her father’s funeral… and dies after being beaten as police try to seize body.
“Dozens arrested” at service for Iran activist: report
In navolging op je reactie Wachteres.
Elke demonstratie word in Iran met harde hand neergeslagen.
Dozens of people were arrested at a commemoration service Saturday for an Iranian activist who died at her father’s funeral earlier in the week after a scuffle with security forces, an opposition website reported.
The Kaleme website said security forces in Tehran beat up several mourners at the service held, as is traditional in Iran, three days after the death of Haleh Sahabi.
Sahabi, 54, died of a cardiac arrest at the funeral of her father Ezatollah, a prominent veteran dissident, Wednesday. Opposition websites said she was either pushed or punched by security forces, something government-sanctioned news agencies denied.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/04/us-iran-activist-arrests-idUSTRE75328520110604?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FworldNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+International%29
Iran protest dispersed by force: witnesses
Iranian security forces on Saturday fired in the air to disperse several hundred people protesting against the death at her father’s funeral of political and social activist Haleh Sahabi, witnesses said.
The protesters had tried to gather to gather in silent groups outside the Hosseini Ershad mosque in northern Tehran, a traditional site for reformists in the Iranian regime, the witnesses told AFP.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/04/3157?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+irangreenvoice%2FEn+%28Iran+Green+Voice+-+English%29
Iran backs Arab uprisings unless pro-U.S.: Khamenei.
Het zou namelijk kunnen zijn dat de Fundamentalisten minder kans hebben om de macht over te nemen.
Iran backs all Muslim uprisings except those stirred up by Washington, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday, a stance that explains Tehran’s lack of support for anti-government protesters in ally Syria.
Addressing a crowd commemorating the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Khamenei said the leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution had predicted events in the Middle East over the last few months where Arabs have risen up against oppressive regimes.
Non-Arab, predominantly Shi’ite Muslim Iran relished the fall in February of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a U.S.-backed secularist who made peace with Israel.
Tehran has also voiced support for pro-democracy movements elsewhere in the region, especially Bahrain where the Sunni monarchy was aided by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to put down democracy protests led by majority Shi’ite Muslims.
But the Islamic Republic, which crushed its own mass protests after the disputed re-election of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June 2009, has not expressed backing for demonstrators in Syria where President Bashar al-Assad is a key regional ally.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110604/wl_nm/us_iran_khamenei_1
Tragedy in Tehran
Beschreven word hoe Haleh Sahabi feitelijk gewoon vermoord word door de Basjií
On the Death of Haleh Sahabi, Women’s Rights Activist and Member of Mothers for Peace
A father dies after a month in coma following a brain hemorrhage. His daughter is allowed to leave Evin prison to say her goodbyes. The authorities allow for the funeral procession. She stands in front of the crowd holding flowers. The plainclothes men of the Islamic Republic of Iran, trained to be vicious and merciless, attack her and beat her; she falls on the ground and dies. It is unfathomable but it happened just two days ago in plain daylight in Iran’s capital.
Haleh Sahabi who died at the funeral of her father was a member of Mothers for Peace; she had been sentenced to two years of imprisonment for her peaceful activism. She was the daughter of a leading member of Iran’s Freedom Movement, an organization that dated back to the Shah’s time. Her father had been in prison both under the Shah and under the Islamic Republic and tortured. He was eighty three when he died. She was in her mid fifties. They were buried side by side in a cemetery outside Tehran. Three generations of a well- known family-grandfather, father and daughter had fought for freedom and gone to prison for it.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1036.html
Iran: Security Forces Intimidate Banned Students
Iran’s Council for the Defence of Education Rights says Iranian security forces have threatened expelled university students to keep them from protesting against their own expulsion.
In an announcement issued today, the council writes that the so-called “starred students” [students branded as those to be denied higher education], have been summoned to police and security forces offices in advance of the release of results of the graduate student placement entrance exam. They have reportedly been threatened and intimidated to prevent them from protesting.
In the past six years, during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency, scores of political and social activists have been banned from continuing their university studies.
The Council for the Defence of Education Rights maintains that this trend is in violation of both domestic and international laws and has called for the perpetrators of this “criminal act” to be prosecuted.
The council says “starred students” have had their report cards altered, or have been given failing grades in subjects where their performance put them at the top of the class.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1033.html
Religious rites disrupted, mourners arrested
Security forces prevented the observance of the traditional Islamic mourning and commemoration for Ezatollah Sahabi on the third day after his death. They closed the mosque in which the ceremony was to be held. People in the large crowd shouted “Allah-o Akbar” (God is great) as the security forces beat them with batons. Reports indicate that Sahabi’s daughter-in-law, journalist Saeed Madani; Amin Ahmadian, husband of human rights activist Bahareh Hedayat; and several university students were arrested. Ali Akbar Moein-far, a nationalist-religious political figure, said that Ezatollah Sahabi’s sister was also detained.
Reports indicate that the families of those who were arrested during the funeral procession of Ezatollah Sahabi have gathered at the gate of Tehran’s Evin Prison. Several people who took part in the funeral have simply disappeared. Several people were also reportedly arrested during the burial of Haleh Sahabi, which took place late Wednesday night.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/02/3152
Dozens arrested at service for Iranian activist -- report
Dozens of people were arrested at a commemoration service Saturday for an Iranian activist who died at her father’s funeral earlier in the week after a scuffle with security forces, an opposition website reported.
The Kaleme website said security forces in Tehran beat up several mourners at the service held, as is traditional in Iran, three days after the death of Haleh Sahabi.
Sahabi, 54, died of a cardiac arrest at the funeral of her father Ezatollah, a prominent veteran dissident, Wednesday. Opposition websites said she was either pushed or punched by security forces, something government-sanctioned news agencies denied.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/4917/dozens-arrested-at-service-for-iranian-activist—report
Iran Says Baha’i University Illegal
The Baha’i Institute of Higher Education (BIHE) in Iran has been declared an “illegal” organization by the Ministry of Science and Technology.
ISNA cites the ministry’s announcement that “the online university BIHE has not received any ministry permits for operation, and all its activities are illegal.”
The ministry also maintained that all diplomas and degrees issued by this institution “lack legal validity.”
Iranian security forces had previously shut down science and research facilities at the Baha’i Open University in Tehran and arrested a number of its staff in several cities.
The international Baha’i community reports that at least 30 Baha’is were arrested on May 22 in Tehran, Karaj, Esfahan and Shiraz in.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1044.html
Iran Women’s Olympic Dream Crushed By Dress Code Ruling
Iran’s hopes of competing in the London 2012 Olympic women’s soccer tournament have been crushed by a ruling that their Islamic dress broke FIFA rules.
Iran is complaining to the world soccer body after its women were banned from playing, moments before an Olympic qualifier against Jordan last week, due to their full-body uniform that includes a head scarf.
http://www.rferl.org/content/iran_womens_olympic_dream_crushed_by_dress_code_ruling/24225430.html
‘Iran could produce a nuclear weapon within two months’ it is claimed as U.N. atomic watchdog reveals concerns
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1394901/Iran-produce-nuclear-weapon-months-claimed-U-N-atomic-watchdog-reveals-concerns.html#ixzz1OWzT2900
Iran’s ‘Blogfather’ Loses Appeal Against Prison Sentence
An Iranian appeals court has upheld a 19 1/2-year jail term for Iranian Canadian blogger Hossein Derakhshan, his family has told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda.
Derakhshan has also been banned from being a member of a journalistic or political organization for five years.
Derakhshan, known as Iran’s „Blogfather“ for helping popularize blogging in Iran, was convicted over his 2006 visit to Israel and his writings.
http://www.rferl.org/content/iran_blogfather_loses_appeal_against_prison_sentence/24228980.html
Iran Vows To Triple Uranium-Enrichment Capacity
International tensions over Iran’s disputed nuclear program looked set to rise further today after the country’s atomic energy chief announced plans to drastically step up production of enriched uranium.
Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani also said output would be transferred from Natanz to a new secretly-built facility at Fordow, near Qom, whose existence paved the way for a fresh round of United Nations sanctions against Iran when it was revealed in 2009.
http://www.rferl.org/content/iran_to_enrich_uranium_to_20_percent_at_fordow_site/24228485.html
In Iran, Beware Of New Facebook ‘Friends’
When Houshang Fanaian joined Facebook last year, little did he expect it would land him in an Iranian prison.
That’s exactly where he finds himself today, however. In late May, the 47-year-old Baha’i had one year tacked on to a larger prison sentence due to his activities on the social-networking site.
Iran has blocked access to Facebook, but that has not prevented tens of thousands of Iranians from joining the site to connect with each other and share ideas, pictures, and even sensitive political content.
For the most part, the Iranian regime stood idly by if its efforts to block Facebook were circumvented.
Fanaian’s sentencing is a rarity, but his case and others indicate that Iranian authorities are keeping a closer eye on Iranians’ Facebook activities.
Among the more recent posts on his Facebook page are pictures of cute babies, an article about the „negative side effects“ of artificial sugar, and a few news stories about the arrests of Baha’is.
The Baha’i faith is not recognized by the Islamic republic, and Fanaian’s wife believes that his activism on Baha’i issues led to his February arrest and subsequent charges of acting against national security and insulting the country’s supreme leader.
http://www.rferl.org/content/if_youre_iranian_beware_of_new_facebook_friends/24228798.html
Sexual assault on campus triggers student protests
The campus of Ferdowsi University in Mashhad has been the scene of protests for more than two days following news that a female student was assaulted and raped.
The university’s failure to respond or react has triggered widespread outrage among the student body yesterday, when the news of their peer’s ordeal was published. The protests reportedly started at the women’s dorm and later spread across the campus.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/sexual-assault-campus-triggers-student-protests
Iranian police to tighten security over public dress code
Islamic Republic police has announced they will heighten the enforcement of dress-code laws all across Iran.
Mehr News Agency quotes Ahmadreza Radan, the deputy commander of the security forces, saying: “Those with a history of violating the hijab [Islamic dress code] and the manufacturers of inappropriate clothing will be dealt with.”
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/iranian-police-tighten-security-over-public-dress-code
U.S. Announces New Sanctions Against Iran
The United States has announced sanctions against three Iranian groups and one person over human rights abuses in Iran since the country’s disputed 2009 presidential election.
The Treasury Department said on June 9 that the sanctions apply to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the Basij militia, Iran’s police forces and its commander, Esmail Ahmadi Moghadam.
http://www.rferl.org/content/un_announces_new_sanctions_against_iran/24229979.html
OPEC’s facade of unity crumbles as Iran challenges Saudi dominance; cartel’s power erodes
OPEC’s stunning admission of major dissent within its ranks has left it reeling and its status as the world’s oil power-broker tarnished, perhaps beyond repair. But is a weakened cartel good or bad for consumers?
The major question is what will happen to oil prices in the long term as a newly strengthened Iran takes on traditional OPEC heavyweight Saudi Arabia in what some see as a proxy attack on the United States, the Saudis’ ally and Iran’s longtime foe.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which sells more than a third of the world’s crude, has commonly been seen as a price regulator, pumping more or less as it deemed fit and leading to complaints of price fixing from major consumers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/opecs-facade-of-unity-crumbles-as-iran-challenges-saudi-dominance-cartels-power-erodes/2011/06/09/AGuSuGNH_story.html?wprss=rss_world
Syrians vow new protests, Paris charges ‘massacre’
Pro-democracy activists vowed more protests against President Bashar al-Assad for Friday, as his regime came under increased international pressure and faced “massacre” accusations.
Ahead of a convoy of troops and tanks reportedly converging on Jisr al-Shughur in northwest Syria, hundreds of the flashpoint town’s residents were fleeing to Turkey, the nearest foreign haven.
The number of Syrians who have fled to Turkey has increased to 2,500, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday.
Pouring in through barbed wire or unguarded stretches of the border, the refugees included several dozen people who were hospitalised for treatment of injuries reportedly sustained in security crackdowns.
Speaking from hospital beds, some of the wounded refugees charged that Iranian forces in black uniforms had been taking an active part in crushing the pro-democracy protests.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/west-seeks-un-vote-condemning-syria-040246549.html
Behind the Big Fight At OPEC
Big fight at the OPEC corral means possibly lower gas prices for you and me — if the pro-production wing wins.
The meeting ended in acrimony, amid name calling, likely one of the worst meetings ever, said Saudi Arabia’s top oil minister.
What’s behind the fight? Food inflation. Iran, Venezuela, Algeria and Angola subsidize food in their countries, using oil reserves. Food prices are going up. Tensions in the region are going up. And Libya blew up in chaos in its own version of the Arab spring, due to corruption and tension over higher prices.
Read more: http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2011/06/09/behind-big-fight-at-opec/#ixzz1OoEnpExO
Mashad’s Prison Is Hell, Says Political Prisoner’s Wife
Hashem Khastar, leader of the Mashad Teachers Union and prisoner at Mashad’s Vakilabad Prison, was transferred to the ward for murder and drug trafficking convicts after publishing a letter exposing the inhumane conditions and secret executions at Vakilabad.
In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Sedigheh Maleki, Khastar’s wife, expressed concern about his conditions. “Two days after Mr. Khastar was transferred from the ward of prisoners of conscience to Ward 5 which is where murderers and other hardened criminals are kept, I went to the Revolutionary Court to find out the reason for his transfer. One of the officials told me that because he wrote letters about the conditions at Vakilabad Prison, he was transferred to another ward so that he can directly experience the other things that happen in this prison. He told me to leave and that they would transfer Mr. Khastar back to the ward of prisoners of conscience, which has not happened so far.”
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1085.html
Sexual assault on campus triggers student protests
The campus of Ferdowsi University in Mashhad, northeastern Iran has been the scene of protests for more than two days following news that a female student was assaulted and raped
The university’s failure to respond or react has triggered widespread outrage among the student body yesterday, when the news of their peer’s ordeal was published. The protests reportedly started at the women’s dorm and later spread across the campus.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1082.html
Secret mass executions in Iranian prison.
Sixteen prisoners were secretly hanged at Mashhad’s Vakilabad Prison on May 23 and 24, says the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, citing “reliable sources.”
It reports that on May 23, twelve prisoners were hanged for drug charges. The next day, three sisters were hanged for drug charges and a convicted rapist was executed.
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran had earlier reported that over the past two and a half months, 70 prisoners have been hanged in Vakilabad Prison. The campaign contends that the executions were drug related and carried out secretly and en masse.
The campaign maintains that the prisoners were executed without prior notification to the families and lawyers of the prisoners
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/secret-mass-executions-iranian-prison
Iran claims agent infiltrated opposition and foreign intelligence units
En niemand weet hoe ver andere spionnen in Iran geinfitreerd zijn, allemaal propaganda.
Mohammad Reza Madhi reported to have met top US officials including Hillary Clinton
Iran has claimed that one of its spies acted as a double agent and infiltrated the Iranian opposition movement as well as foreign intelligence units.
Iran’s state television has broadcast a documentary showing a man, identified as Mohammad Reza Madhi, who it said worked his way into the heart of the opposition outside the country and even succeeded in meeting western officials including the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, and the vice president, Joe Biden.
Some opposition groups have questioned the veracity of the claims, raising the possibility that Madhi had been arrested or forced to return to Iran as a result of pressure put on his family at home.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/10/iran-claims-agent-infiltrated-opposition
Sarah Shourd: ‘All I did was cry and beat at the walls’
Incl. video.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/hardtalk/9508967.stm
Two years after polls, Ahmadinejad in new battle
Two years ago, Iran’s reformists were stunned to see him re-elected president and said the election must have been fixed.
Now, halfway through his second and final term, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has silenced the opposition—their rallies crushed and leaders under house arrest—but his presidency is still threatened, this time from rival fellow hardliners.
Critics in parliament, the judiciary and the clergy accuse the 54-year-old president of misdeeds ranging from a swaggering disrespect for other branches of government, through financial mismanagement, to being influenced by a “deviant” clique of aides some say are involved in sorcery.
Analysts say the fact that he can no longer rely on the complete support of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—who forced him to reverse his decision to sack his intelligence minister in April—means Ahmadinejad risks becoming a lame duck or even being forced out
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=440193&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17
Iranian Women Lead the Persian Spring
On Thursday June 2, 2001, women’s rights activist, Haleh Sahabi (aged 54) was killed as a result of brutal beatings by the Iranian regime’s security forces. Her body was later snatched from her house and buried secretly to curb the outcry of the family, friends and ordinary Iranians. Haleh, a political prisoner, had been let out of prison temporarily to attend her father’s funeral.
The regime’s heinous actions drew outrage at home and abroad. The State Department condemned “the killing of Iranian activist Haleh Sahabi in the strongest possible terms.” Britain also called for an immediate investigation into her death.
Haleh’s killing is the latest case of state-sponsored murder by the regime ruling Iran. The past three decades abound with examples of state-sponsored killing of dissidents. On April 8, 2011, Tehran used its Iraqi proxies to crack down on exiled opponents. The Iraqi Army, using armored personnel carriers and Humvees, attacked unarmed Iranian dissidents in Camp Ashraf, north of Baghdad, killing 35, including eight women, and injuring hundreds.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/soona-samsami/iranian-women-lead-the-pe_b_875105.html
NY Congressional Representatives and Community Leaders Mark Second Anniversary of “Stolen Election” in Iran
New York political and community leaders gathered at City Hall on Friday to present the Iran180 Hero Awards to dissidents and activists who are demanding real and immediate change from the Iranian regime. The event marked the second anniversary of the stolen 2009 Iranian presidential election when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was named to a second term. Iran180, a coalition of people and organizations who have come together to demand that the Iranian government change course by halting its brutal treatment of its citizens and stopping the development of nuclear weapons, initiated the event.
The Iran180 Hero awards honor and show support for those working courageously to demand basic human rights in Iran and to stand up against the repressive policies and practices of this regime. Iran180 reviewed many candidates for the awards; the final honorees were selected not only for their courageous work in standing up for the people of Iran and in loudly condemning the atrocities perpetrated by the Iranian government, but also utilizing their resources and talents to help shift world public opinion on the need for the Iranian government to “do a 180 degree” turn and start respecting basic human rights.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/NY-Congressional-prnews-3369018850.html?x=0&.v=1
Dire human rights situation persists t wo years after disputed election
Two years after the disputed election of 12 June 2009 which saw President Mahmoud Ahmadinejhad returned to power, the human rights situation in Iran remains dire.
The security forces continue to use violence against peaceful protestors and have carried out thousands of arrests. Many detainees have been tortured or otherwise ill-treated and hundreds have been sentenced to prison terms and in some case death after grossly unfair trials. Prison conditions are harsh.
Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who stood against President Ahmadinejhad in the June 2009 election, have been held under house arrest, together with their wives, Zahra Rahnavard and Fatemeh Karroubi, for more than 100 days without any legal order.
Some of those who have sought to expose human rights violations and the all pervasive climate of impunity that prevails, such as Mehdi Mahmoudian who compiled information about torture of detainees, have been imprisoned while lawyers who have defended those targeted by the state have themselves been targeted for legitimately pursuing their profession.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1095.html
Saudi Arabia lost its dominance in OPEC, Iran is new powerhouse: Analysts
Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council countries’ historic failure at the 159th meeting of OPEC to increase the oil production, means that the new powerhouse in OPEC is Iran, oil analysts and energy experts stated.
Saudi Arabia is angry because of failure to satisfy OPEC’s member for increasing production, said analysts aftermath of the OPEC meeting which was hold in Vienna on Wednesday.
While Saudi oil minister called 159th meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries as “the worst meeting OPEC have ever had”, the group’s Secretary General Abdalla Salem el-Badri said: the failure of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to reach a consensus at its meeting Wednesday was a normal dispute that doesn’t mean its quota system is dead.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1094.html
Syrian refugees say Iranian forces involved in crackdown
AFP reports that Iranian troops are in Syria supporting the regime of Beshar Assad, according to injured Syrian refugees in Turkey.
The refugees say they were victims of “Iranian military forces,” but Iran has dismissed the allegations as “baseless.”
Mostafa, an injured Syrian refugee, said: “There were both plainclothes and uniformed Iranian soldiers. I saw them with my own eyes. We asked them not to attack us, but they didn’t speak Arabic.”
The 23-year-old man added that his attackers wore black shirts, which is uncommon in Syria, and wore beards. He added that the Syrian military is forbidden to wear beards.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/syrian-refugees-say-iranian-forces-involved-crackdown
12 Juni.
2 Jaar geleden begonnen de mensen in Iran in te zien dat ze zouden worden bedrogen door Ahmadinejad Khamenei en consorten en hielden daarom de verkiezingen in het oog.
Het was duidelijk dat er fraude zou komen maar niemand had verwacht dat het op zulke grote schaal zou zijn.
Morgen 12 Juni Mousavi en Karroubi hebben opgeroepen om een stille demonstratie te houden en sommigen Iraniers zullen dat naar alle waarscijnlijkheid ook wel gaan doen, maar Ik hoop dat ze het niet zullen doen omdat de veiligheidstroepen naar alle waarschijnlijkheid massaal aanwezig zullen zijn en er weer veel doden en gewonden te betreuren zullen zijn als het protest te groot zal worden.
Kijken wat de Iraniers morgen gaan doen en er maar het beste van hopen.
‘God, Please Rescue Him’
The sister of blogger Hossein Derakhshan, whose 19.5-year prison sentence was confirmed last week by an appeals court in Iran, has reacted on “Justice For Hossein Derakhshan,” the blog which the family launched last year.
The sentence against the 36-year-old Derakhshan, who blogged under the name Hoder, is one of the longest prison terms given to a blogger in the Islamic republic.
Derakhshan played a key part in helping to popularize blogging in Iran. He was convicted over a 2006 visit to Israel and his writings. Charges against him included working with hostile governments, propaganda against the state, and insulting religious sanctities.
http://www.rferl.org/content/hossein_derakhshan_iran_blogger/24231876.html
In Age Of Arab Revolution, Iran’s Election Anniversary Set To Go Off With A Whimper
Two years ago, it threatened to trigger a wave of dissent that would reverberate around the Middle East and beyond.
Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, took to the streets of Tehran and other Iranian cities to protest the reelection of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, a poll that opponents claimed was rigged.
Yet on June 12, with much of the region in a state of revolutionary ferment, the second anniversary of Iran’s bitterly disputed presidential election is likely to pass off as little more than a footnote.
Representatives of the Green Movement — the umbrella opposition group nominally led by defeated presidential candidates Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi — have called for the day to be marked by a “silent demonstration” in Tehran’s Valiasr Street.
While some protesters may indeed turn out, the appeal is unlikely to have popular resonance. Musavi and Karrubi have been under house arrest since February after calling for protests at that time. Worse still, some observers say, is the fact that the latest call for protests is being voiced by opposition voices abroad, such as Musavi’s Paris-based spokesman Amir Ardeshir Arjmand.
http://www.rferl.org/content/iran_green_movement_election_second_anniversary/24231771.html
Iraq bars U.S. visit to Iranian camp
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told a visiting U.S. congressional delegation Friday that it could not visit a camp of Iranian dissidents where 34 people died in clashes with Iraqi security forces in April, the delegation’s head said.
After arriving in Baghdad on Friday morning, the six-member group led by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) met with Maliki to discuss reconstruction efforts and conditions at Camp Ashraf. The facility is home to 3,000 Iranians who are part of Mujaheddin-e-Khalq, or MEK, a banned Iranian opposition group.
Rohrabacher said that the delegation had hoped to visit the camp Friday on their way to Kurdistan but that Maliki denied their request, citing Iraq’s sovereignty.
Rohrabacher, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he will now press for a “criminal” probe of whether Iraq has mistreated the dissidents.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/war-zones/iraq-bars-us-visit-to-iranian-camp/2011/06/10/AGqpHFPH_story.html?wprss=rss_world
Syrian refugees say Iranian forces involved in crackdown
AFP reports that Iranian troops are in Syria supporting the regime of Beshar Assad, according to injured Syrian refugees in Turkey. The refugees say they were victims of “Iranian military forces,” but Iran has dismissed the allegations as “baseless.”
Mostafa, an injured Syrian refugee, said: “There were both plainclothes and uniformed Iranian soldiers. I saw them with my own eyes. We asked them not to attack us, but they didn’t speak Arabic.”
The 23-year-old man added that his attackers wore black shirts, which is uncommon in Syria, and wore beards. He added that the Syrian military is forbidden to wear beards.
A 17-year-old Syrian student named Akram reported: “Most of these people are snipers. They do not speak Arabic and, most significantly, they carry weapons that are unfamiliar to us.”
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1103.html
Rape and Torture: Legacy of the Post-Election Crackdown
Video Testimony from a Young Woman Raped in Detention, Most Detailed Account to Date
UN Special Rapporteur Should Investigate Rape Allegations in Light of Rampant Impunity
On the second anniversary of the disputed June 2009 election and the ensuing repression, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran today released video testimony from a young female detainee describing in detail her severe torture and repeated rape after her arbitrary arrest.
Her forceful testimony challenges the Iranian authorities’ official narrative, which denies widespread use of torture and rape by security forces against ordinary protestors.
“Rape is one of the worst forms of torture and allegation after allegation of sadistic torture and sexual abuse continue to emerge,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the Campaign’s spokesperson.
“How can the Iranian Judiciary claim a shred of legitimacy if it continues to shield the perpetrators of such atrocities? Its credibility is gone with the wind as it promotes a climate of rampant impunity,” he added.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1102.html
Senior Mousavi aide: Protests after 12 June will not be ‘silent’
A top advisor to Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, has said that after the 12th of June protests, anti-government demonstrations will not be held in silence.
In a statement published on Tuesday, the Coordination Council of the Green Path of Hope, the Green Movement’s highest decision-making body, called for “silent” protests on 12 June to mark the second anniversary of the 2009 presidential election. The race was overshadowed by widespread vote rigging and unprecedented crackdown on protesters questioning the election outcome.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/06/3158
Jailed Iran Activist Dies After Hunger Strike
The sister of prominent Iranian journalist and rights activist Reza Hoda Saber has confirmed her jailed brother’s death following a 10-day hunger strike, according to RFE/RL’s Radio Farda.
Saber had been transferred to a hospital from Tehran’s Evin prison, where he had been held since being imprisoned along with hundreds of other activists and intellectuals in the wake of Iran’s disputed June 2009 election.
http://www.rferl.org/content/prominent_iran_activist_dies_after_hunger_strike_in_jail/24232648.html
Two years after Iran’s marred election, hard-liners anything but triumphant
Two years ago today, Iranians cast ballots in a presidential election that would yield violence and change in the Islamic Republic like no vote before it.
In an election marred with allegations of blatant fraud, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was given a landslide reelection victory that was hailed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a “divine assessment.”
Yet today the testy president and his aides have challenged the power of Ayatollah Khamenei. Conservative rivals now dismiss them as a “deviant current” obsessed with the imminent return of the Shiite messiah.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0612/Two-years-after-Iran-s-marred-election-hard-liners-anything-but-triumphant?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+feeds%2Fcsm+%28Christian+Science+Monitor+%7C+All+Stories%29
Iranian security forces attack silent rally in Tehran
Iranian security officials have used baton charges and tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters at a silent rally in central Tehran marking the second anniversary of the country’s disputed presidential election.
Riot police and plainclothes basij militia were deployed in various locations in the capital, arresting at least tens of protesters.
Supporters of the opposition green movement marched in groups along Vali-e-Asr street – the city’s main commercial thoroughfare and a rallying point for protesters in recent years.
A protester told the Guardian that demonstrators mainly marched on the pavement, and – as requested by the organisers – did not shout any anti-regime slogans.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/12/iranian-security-forces-rally-tehran
Stay up to date with the latest from 12 June anniversary protests
On the second anniversary of the rigged 2009 presidential election that saw the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, supporters of the Green Movement will be staging protests across the country. The Coordination Council of the Green Path of Hope, has called on protesters to gather on the pavements of the important Vali-Asr Avenue in Tehran.
We will be keeping you posted on the latest developments as they unfold:
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/content/3172?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+irangreenvoice%2FEn+%28Iran+Green+Voice+-+English%29
Rape and torture: Legacy of the post-election crackdown
Video Testimony from a Young Woman Raped in Detention, Most Detailed Account to Date
UN Special Rapporteur Should Investigate Rape Allegations in Light of Rampant Impunity
On the second anniversary of the disputed June 2009 election and the ensuing repression, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran today released video testimony from a young female detainee describing in detail her severe torture and repeated rape after her arbitrary arrest.
Her forceful testimony challenges the Iranian authorities’ official narrative, which denies widespread use of torture and rape by security forces against ordinary protestors.
“Rape is one of the worst forms of torture and allegation after allegation of sadistic torture and sexual abuse continue to emerge,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the Campaign’s spokesperson.
“How can the Iranian Judiciary claim a shred of legitimacy if it continues to shield the perpetrators of such atrocities? Its credibility is gone with the wind as it promotes a climate of rampant impunity,” he added.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2011/jun/12/3170?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+irangreenvoice%2FEn+%28Iran+Green+Voice+-+English%29
Syria’s Wounded Refugees: Tales of Massacre and Honorable Soldiers
The regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad doesn’t make threats lightly. And as they confronted the uprising in the town of Jisr al-Shughour, government security forces were blunt, according to the medical staff in area’s small hospitals and the local Red Crescent outpost there. Saving a wounded protester’s life could cost them their own. As a result, private medical clinics closed and doctors in the northern Syrian town’s public hospital fled. Of 200 Red Crescent volunteers, only five defied the threats to continue working, including “Abu Taha,” a 29- year-old volunteer ambulance driver whose bravery earned him a bullet in the back.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2077207,00.html?xid=rss-topstories
Former president once again demands release of opposition leaders
Former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami has called once again for the release of opposition leaders MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who have been under house arrest since February.
Khatami’s personal website reports on his meeting with the people of Khorramshahr on the eve of the anniversary of the controversial 2009 presidential election. The former president said the release of the opposition leaders and their wives would “soften the political atmosphere” of the country.
He added that the release of the opposition leaders and freedom for all political prisoners would be a giant step toward transforming the “current security conditions into a healthy political atmosphere.”
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/former-president-once-again-demands-release-opposition-leaders
Lebanon gets Hezbollah-led cabinet after 5-month lag
Dan worden de problemen viir het IDF steeds groter omdat het nu ook vanuit het noorden meer aanvallen kunnen worden verwacht.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced Monday a long-delayed government dominated by Iranian-backed Hezbollah and its allies, which is likely to cause alarm among Western powers at a time of regional turmoil.
Formed after five months of political stalemate, the new Lebanese leadership was welcomed by President Bashar al-Assad of neighboring Syria, another Hezbollah sponsor now beset by international censure of its crackdowns of anti-regime protests.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/13/us-lebanon-government-idUSTRE75C48K20110613?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FworldNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+International%29
Syria crisis and Middle East unrest -- live updates
• Syrian troops round up hundreds near Jisr al-Shougour
• Crowd throws stones and bottles at King of Jordan
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• Gaddafi plays chess on TV and vows not to leave Libya
• Gay Girl hoaxer: watch Esther Addley’s interview
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/middle-east-live/2011/jun/13/syria-crisis-middle-east-unrest
The Syrian Gambit
A piece of the puzzle that Tehran built is beginning to weaken.
With a full-on rebellion beginning to take shape in Syria, it seems the relative nonviolence of spring is turning into a violent summer as it already has done in Libya. Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has made it clear to his people that despite his talk of reform he intends on hanging onto power by any means necessary.
In this case, his means of remaining in power involves shooting at civilians and making them appear to have been combatants as allegedly seen on a video posted on YouTube that was shot in the city of Jisr al-Shugur. While the Iranians were able to tolerate uprisings in countries that weren’t allied with them over the past few months once Syria got added into the mix Iranian leaders said this uprising was clearly a “Zionist conspiracy.”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20110613/us_ac/8630167_the_syrian_gambit_1
Silent Tehran Protesters Arrested On Anniversary Of Disputed Vote
Arrests and clashes have been reported in Tehran on the anniversary of the disputed 2009 reelection of Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad that led to mass street protests. Opposition websites and witnesses say dozens were arrested in the Iranian capital on June 12 while marching silently to mark the anniversary.
The opposition Kalame website reported that several hundred Iranians were detained on Vali Asr Street while marching peacefully.
“Demonstrators remained silent and calm even while they were being detained,” Kalame said, citing its reporters in Tehran.
A demonstrator told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda that many opposition supporters marched under the eyes of the security forces.
“We started walking on Vali Asr Street. As [expected] special forces were deployed on both sides of the street like a human wall,” the man said. “But people ignored them and continued walking on the sidewalks without chanting.”
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1119.html
Rule-Of-Law Index Ranks Iran Last In World On Fundamental Rights
An annual survey on the rule of law has ranked Iran last in the world for the protection of fundamental rights, saying Iranian law enforcement is used often to perpetrate abuses against citizens.
The World Justice Project Rule of Law Index, which ranks countries on such key areas as whether the government is held accountable, there is access to justice, rights are protected, and crime and corruption is prevented, is funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1125.html
Clinton Accuses Iran Of Role In Syrian Crackdown
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accused Iran of backing Syria’s “vicious assaults” against pro-democracy protesters.
In a statement, Clinton highlighted that Iran’s alleged complicity in abuses coincides with the two-year anniversary of Iran’s crackdown on protests after the contested election that gave another term to President Mahmud Ahmadinejad.
http://www.rferl.org/content/clinton_accuses_iran_role_in_syria_crackdown/24235046.html
Iranian Police, Cleric Blame Victims In Isfahan Gang Rapes
Iran’s chief prosecutor, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, says 14 men have been arrested and charged over an alleged gang rape at a party near the central city of Isfahan last month, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reports.
The men allegedly crashed a party in the city of Khomeini Shahr late last month, locked all the men in a room, and raped the women attending the party.
Colonel Hossein Hosseinzadeh, chief of the police department’s detectives bureau in Isfahan, was quoted in Iranian media as saying, “If the women at the party had worn their hijab properly, they might not have been persecuted.”
Smeriger kunnen we het niet maken.
http://www.rferl.org/content/iran_police_cleric_blame_victims_in_isfahan_rapes/24234921.html
PERSIAN LETTERS: ‘They Would Arrest Young And Beautiful Girls’
On his blog, Mehdi Khazali has written his observations of the June 12 “silent” opposition protest that took place in Tehran on the second anniversary of the 2009 disputed presidential vote, which led to the rise of the opposition Green Movement.
Opposition websites reported that dozens of protesters were detained.
Khazali, the son of a prominent hard-line cleric, is an opposition supporter and a critic of the Iranian establishment. He was arrested in the postelection crackdown in June 2009.
Maybe they were arresting mostly good-looking people. I’m not joking. I saw with my own eyes that they would arrest young and beautiful girls. Maybe they see them as war trophies.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1129.html
Worldwide outrage at Iran’s attack on Baha’i educators
Governments, organisations and educators have condemned Iran’s latest attack on an initiative offering higher education to young Baha’is barred from university
The government of Austria, more than 80 prominent Indians, and top academics from the United Kingdom, are among the latest to voice their support for Iranian Baha’is’ right to education. Human rights groups have also joined the call for the release of imprisoned Baha’i educators.
Some 39 homes associated with the Baha’i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) have recently been targeted. Fifteen BIHE staff and faculty members remain in prison, three weeks after initial raids. Three others were also arrested and subsequently released, while more Baha’is associated with the Institute were summoned for interrogation by the Ministry of Intelligence.
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/jun/1133.html
Cellmates say deceased journalist beaten prior to death
Sixty-four Iranian political prisoners from Ward 350 of Evin Prison have issued an announcement declaring that Reza Hoda Saber, the jailed Iranian journalist who died on Saturday following nearly 10 days on a hunger strike, was severely beaten by authorities on the eighth day of his strike.
The Kaleme website reports that the political prisoners say Hoda Saber was beaten in the prison infirmary by officials who, they guess, may have been security or intelligence officers.
“Hoda Saber was first transferred to the infirmary located next to Evin Prison on Friday at 4AM for complications of his hunger strike and, after about two hours, he was returned to the Ward 350 in severe pain,” the prisoners wrote. “His screams woke up his cellmates all around him.”
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/cellmates-say-deceased-journalist-beaten-prior-death
Authorities deny journalist was on hunger strike before death
Islamic Republic authorities gave their first response today to the death of Reza Hoda Saber, denying that the jailed journalist and political activist had been on a hunger strike during his final days.
Their statement appears in a report published by Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). It quotes an unnamed source, “the head of the Evin Prison infirmary and Hoda Saber’s doctor,” saying the jailed journalist died from a “massive heart attack.” The IRNA report adds that Hoda Saber received all necessary medical care, as would be expected, in the last hours of his life.
According to IRNA, the head of infirmary has reported that Hoda Saber was brought to the medical facility at about 5AM on Friday. He was given an electrocardiogram which showed nothing out of the ordinary. According to IRNA, the unidentified prison official says Hoda Saber was then given medication, which he said alleviated his pain, and he was returned to his cell. An hour later, says the source, he was in pain once more and was taken to hospital after a second ECG.
http://www.radiozamaneh.com/english/content/authorities-deny-journalist-was-hunger-strike-death