Mohammad Khatami - Tag Search

I've seen some scattered stories in the past couple of days that the family of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini is considering moving to Iraq in the face of renewed regime-sponsored violence against the opposition movement.

Meir Javedanfar, an Iranian-Israeli Middle East analyst writing for Tehran Bureau, says that the Khomeini family was particularly troubled by the basij attack on former President Mohammad Khatami's Ashura Day speech, which occurred in the northern Tehran neighborhood of Jamaraan, formerly home to Khomeini himself.

Javedanfar cites a story posted on the Tehran-based Parsine news Web site (فارسي), which in translation (I don't speak Persian) says that Hojatoleslam Hassan Khomeini, the late Supreme Leader's grandson, has decided to leave with other family members for Najaf, though it's unclear if the move will be permanent.

The Iranian regime continues to clamp down on protests in the wake of Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri's death, with security officials reportedly banning most memorial services across the country.

Two opposition Web sites, Parlemannews and Rah-e Sabz, report that authorities have banned all cities outside of Najafabad, Montazeri's birthplace, and the holy city of Qom. Rah-e Sabz says ceremonies in many cities, including Isfahan and Zahedan, have been canceled.

Isfahan was the site of a violent clash between mourners and uniformed security forces earlier this week.

The Iranian opposition has been quiet for a few weeks -- ever since Qods Day, really -- but it has shown signs of life over the last few days.

First, former president Mohammad Khatami gave a talk in his hometown in Iran's central Yazd province. If you read Farsi, there's a full summary available here; otherwise, AFP has a short item about the speech. Khatami told the audience that the post-election protests "will not die."

And then there's this news from Al-Arabiya:

Iranian opposition leaders have demanded they be given time to speak on state television to show proof of their allegations that the June election was rigged, a reformist daily reported on Monday.

That announcement comes after a meeting between Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Mousavi. No word on exactly what kind of evidence they're trying to present.

3:18 p.m.: The flow of news from Iran has slowed considerably -- makes sense, because it's almost midnight in Tehran. #iranelection is still trending on Twitter, but there's very little new information being shared.

We'll keep an eye on the situation throughout the evening (U.S. time) and keep you posted.

Here's the White House's reaction to Ahmadinejad's Holocaust-denying speech:

The president's press secretary, Robert Gibbs, said that by denying that the Holocaust took place was "ignorant, hateful and would isolate Iran further from the world."

"Obviously, we condemn what he said," Mr. Gibbs told reporters.

I'll post some wrap-up thoughts on the protests later tonight.

1:08 p.m.: Not Qods Day-related, but Ahmadinejad plans to bring all five of Iran's religious minority MPs to the U.N. General Assembly meeting next week. Iran has Jews! And Christians! (No gays, though.)

12:54 p.m.: Tehran Bureau explains how the regime kept protesters away from Tehran University, where Friday prayers were being held:

To prevent the Green Movement's supporters from penetrating Tehran University, public buses had been used to block all the streets around the campus. Security forces, the Basij militia, and plainclothes agents used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse the demonstrators.

The Iranian regime closed Mehdi Karroubi's office and arrested two of his top aides, according to Al-Arabiya, which describes the moves as "turning the screws" on Iran's reformists. That seems an apt description.

Karroubi has been a particular target over the last few weeks: His newspaper, Etemad-e Melli, was closed last month, and regime officials have recently called for his arrest and lashing.

The New York Times says (via the BBC Persian service) that Mohammad Davari, the editor of Karroubi's Web site, was arrested at the office. Another aide, Morteza Alviri, was arrested at home.

Happy Labor Day to all our U.S. readers, and to those of you abroad who'd like to have a Labor Day of your own. The Majlis will be taking it pretty easy today and resting our weary fingers. For now, here's your dose of timely news.

Iraq experienced its worst month of violence in more than a year in August, BBC News reports. The Iraqi government estimates that 393 people were killed, including 60 police officers and soldiers. You can view our map tracking the recent violence here. The death toll in August was far below the violence seen in 2006 and 2007, when more than 2,000 civilians were killed every month, but the rising disorder makes posts like these seem somewhat incoherent.

A few other Iran-related developments to pass along this morning. The Fars news agency reported that the regime has replaced 40 ambassadors; the report said they "officially took positions" against the regime after the election.

Mohammad Ali Jafari, the leader of the Revolutionary Guards, accused former president Mohammad Khatami of trying to undermine the supreme leader.

Jafari was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency that in February "Khatami had said if Ahmadinejad falls in this election the leader will practically be eliminated."

Jafari claimed Khatami had further said: "If reforms return to administration, the leader will no longer have authority in the society ... the leader's power should be reined in by defeating conservatives."

Also, Alireza Hosseini Beheshti, an aide to Mousavi, says 72 people have been killed in protests since the election. That's up slightly from Mousavi's last estimate of 69, released on Aug. 11.

Many of Mohammad Khatami's ministers were on trial yesterday in Tehran, so it's not surprising that the former president weighed in on the trials today. Khatami said detainees have confessed under "extraordinary conditions" and their confessions should not be allowed in court.

One of those detainees is Saeed Hajjarian, the reformist (and former Khatami aide) who is disabled because of a 2000 assassination attempt (carried out by hard-liners). The regime has accused him of being the "brains" behind the post-election unrest; prosecutors have called for his execution.

Despite his paralysis -- and promises to release him -- the regime moved ahead with Hajjarian's trial yesterday. The goal seems to be publicly humiliating and breaking him.

The Financial Times makes a smart observation about yesterday's endorsement ceremony in Iran.

Traditionally a former president would hand "credentials" - essentially a statement from the supreme leader - to the new president. But Mr Khatami, president for eight years between 1997 and 2005, refused to be involved.

Juan Cole has background on the Khatami-Ahmadinejad spat, which has worsened since the imprisonment and apparent torture of Mohammad Abtahi, a reformist and Khatami's former vice president.

... and nobody showed up?

Khamenei formally blessed Ahmadinejad's second term this morning, and many prominent Iranian politicians snubbed the ceremony. Rafsanjani wasn't there, nor was Khatami. (Mousavi and Karrubi, needless to say, also had other plans.)

There was also a slightly awkward moment when Khamenei offered Ahmadinejad his hand to kiss. Ahmadinejad obviously wanted to kiss the supreme leader's cheek; he wound up planting an awkward peck on Khamenei's shoulder.

Whatever Ahmadinejad says about their "father-son" bond, it's obvious that the two men have a strained relationship.

More than 100 "reformist figures" who participated in post-election protests went on trial Saturday, the New York Times reports.

The accused were shackled and dressed in prison gray as the prosecutors outlined the charges against them.

One of the most notable prisoners was Muhammad Ali Abtahi, who served as vice president under Mohammad Khatami in the 1990s. The Times said that Abtahi read a long, convoluted, semi-incomprehensible confession, and the paper surmised that much of the government's case rests upon information Abtahi provided, probably under "duress" if not outright torture.

The televised trial seems aimed at further cementing the government's authority in the wake of potentially rigged elections that caused an outburst of anti-regime fervor in Iran. One of its main objectives will be to pin the blame for the unrest on outside, mostly Western agitators.

Andrew Sullivan's stunt doubles point us to this supposedly "judicious" analysis of Ahmadinejad's decision to appoint Ali Akbar Salehi as his nuclear energy chief.

Salehi was formerly the Iranian envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency, and it was during his tenure that Iran actually signed the Additional Protocol and showed the most willingness to cooperate with IAEA inspections.

This suggests two things, not necessarily mutually exclusive. The first is that Ahmadinejad has taken the Iranian opposition's criticism of his belligerent style to heart, and this on the most thorny issue at hand between Iran and the international community...

This would be encouraging for the U.S., if only it were true.

Khamenei already has a response to Khatami's call for a referendum on the legitimacy of the Iranian government.

Khamenei, whose previously unquestioned authority is now under daily challenge, hit back furiously. "The elite should be watchful, since they have been faced with a big test. Failing the test will cause their collapse," the supreme leader said, in a speech to mark a religious holiday, attended by government officials including Ahmadinejad, who sat on the stage behind him.

No surprise that Khamenei rejected the idea. But the tone of his rejection sounds defensive, and you'll notice that it doesn't address the question of whether the government is legitimate. Khatami may have found an effective line of attack.

Mohammad Khatami, the former Iranian president, wants a referendum on the legitimacy of the Iranian government.

Khamenei is the only man with the power to call a referendum -- and it will be interesting to see how he responds. On the one hand, Khatami is giving Khamenei an opportunity to save face: The referendum could invalidate the Ahmadinejad government, and Khamenei wouldn't have to admit any electoral fraud took place.

But there's been a lot of speculation in the blogosphere that Khamenei isn't really in charge anymore -- that he's a figurehead for a coalition of hardliners who seized power in a sort of palace coup. If that's the case, then Khamenei doesn't really have the power to call a referendum.

Mousavi, Karrubi and Khatami met yesterday and called for the Iranian government to release the more than 1,000 political prisoners it has arrested since the election. They also criticized the increased role of the Basij and the Revolutionary Guard in internal security.

"The continuation of arrests and the imposed security state will lead to a more radicalised political atmosphere," they said, adding that the "wave of arrests should end."

Iran claims it has already released about two-thirds of the people arrested since the election.

A top Khamenei aide called Mousavi a U.S. agent in an editorial today, and suggests Mousavi -- and former president Mohammad Khatami -- could be tried for treason.

[Hossein] Shariatmadari, who holds no official position but is a close adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, added that Mousavi was trying to "escape punishment for murdering innocent people, holding riots, cooperating with foreigners and acting as America's fifth column inside the country."

Mousavi has kept a fairly low profile all week -- except for his defiant statement on Wednesday -- but there has been a growing push to prosecute him. This is the first time the regime has explicitly linked him to the U.S., though.

Two other developments from Iran: A British embassy employee has been charged with "acting against national security," and state television says 35 people were arrested in Iran's northern Mazandaran province for their role in the "post-election unrest."

Mir Hossein Mousavi had been quiet for a few days, but he posted a statement on his Web site yesterday saying he would not accept the outcome of the election. An excerpt:

"From now on, we will have a government the legitimacy of which the majority of the people, including me, will not acknowledge... Our historic duty is to continue the protests to defend the rights of the people... and prevent the blood spilled by hundreds of thousands of martyrs from leading to a police state."

Mousavi's wasn't the only defiant statement yesterday: Former president Mohammad Khatami called the election a "velvet coup" by the regime, and defeated candidate Mehdi Karrubi said the government was illegitimate.

The Iranian regime keeps referring to the pro-democracy protests as a "velvet revolution" engineered by the West. They started using this rhetoric even before the election.

So it was a delicious bit of irony this afternoon when former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami referred to the election itself -- and the post-election crackdown -- as a "velvet coup against democracy" carried out by the regime. (Here's his statement in Farsi.) He also said the stolen election will ultimately undermine Iran's system of government:

"Many people voted because we called for a high turnout. With this result and the way of confrontation (with post-election protests) you can be sure that even us (reformers) cannot ask people to take part in the next election... this is not in the interest of the establishment," he added.

Khatami's statements came a few hours after Mehdi Karrubi declared the government illegitimate.

It's always interesting to compare the Western media coverage of what's happening in Iran to the Iranian state media coverage.

Western audiences are hearing that Iran is moving towards "martial law," according to former president Mohammad Khatami. The BBC is reporting that further protests are planned for this evening; we can't confirm where or when, but a few sources say the protests will probably happen in Azadi Square.

In Iran, meanwhile, the state media claim "calm has returned" to the streets of Tehran, complete with a picture of traffic moving normally around Azadi Square.

The New York Times and others report tonight (as it nears noon in Iran) that at least seven protesters have been killed in the past 24 hours. Sources outside the American mainstream media say there have been more deaths.