Very beautiful and accurate description of what hapenned in the Iranian election, through the investigation of Neda Agha-Soltan's murder in the streets of Tehran by Basij militia.
Iranian state television reported Tuesday that five people had been sentenced to death over the unrest that followed the country’s disputed presidential election in June. The report quoted a statement by the Justice Department saying that the five were members of terrorist and armed opposition groups. Iran began a trial in August for more than 100 prominent opposition figures and activists over the election protests. The opposition maintains that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected through fraud in the June 12 vote. At least three others caught up in the turmoil have also received death sentences.Iranian state television reported Tuesday that five people had been sentenced to death... more
BEIRUT — An unassuming college math student has become an unlikely hero to many in Iran for daring to criticize the country's most powerful man to his face.BEIRUT — An unassuming college math student has become an unlikely hero to many in... more
Henghameh Shahidi has been arrested during the protests after Ahmadinejad re-election. Today the journalist, more and more ill, has been released after the payment of a bail. http://www.inaltreparole.net/en/journalism/giornalistashahidiliberata021109.htmlHenghameh Shahidi has been arrested during the protests after Ahmadinejad re-election.... more
Boomgen TV is a new news service that reports the news from inside Iran in English on daily basis. Here is the report no. 25.Boomgen TV is a new news service that reports the news from inside Iran in English on... more
When we speak of a country largely closed to the rest of the world as Iran is difficult to understand if the regime is solid, if really has support among the population, how long it can last. After the rigged election of Ahmadinejad and the protests in the streets with dozens of deaths and hundreds of arrests, some hoped that the islamic regime was close to falling.When we speak of a country largely closed to the rest of the world as Iran is... more
The 2nd Annual Iranian Film Festival - San Francisco September 19-20, 2009.
The festival theme this year is about the Iranian Women and the Iranian Women Filmmakers. We dedicate this year's festival to all the great women of Iran, anywhere on the planet, for their extraordinary role they play in the Iranian society.The 2nd Annual Iranian Film Festival - San Francisco September 19-20, 2009.
The... more
Image: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sitting under a portrait of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, during a meeting in Tehran, Monday, July 20, 2009.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has defied a direct order from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to dismiss his vice president, opening a rift between Iran's president and supreme leader, reports the Los Angeles Times. Ahmadinejad's newly chosen VP, who is his son's father-in-law, has infuriated hardliners by making favorable remarks about Israel. But Ahmadinejad surprised the Iranian elite by keeping him in office, saying, "He is very loyal to the Islamic Revolution and a servant of people."
The VP attempted to close ranks by turning back on his seemingly pro-Israel comments, which he called "a kind of psychological war against the usurper regime." Anti-government protests continue in Tehran, where yesterday plainclothes members of the feared Basiji militia beat demonstrators with truncheons, leaving one woman unconscious. Mir Hossein Mousavi, the leader of the protests, said on a website this morning that he would establish a new political grouping by the end of the week.
* * * * This is good new for those who want to see Ahmadinejad removed from his Presidency and except for some hardliners who doesn't? Perhaps this conflict within the controlling regime will be it's downfall. Maybe the Iranian people's gallant protests will have results.Image: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sitting... more
[TEHRAN BUREAU] comment Iran’s rigged presidential election of June 12, 2009, has given rise to a very odd phenomenon. Some supposedly leftists and progressives in America have adopted the view that the Iranian election was not rigged. They believe that the Iranian reformists have not been honest about the election (they say the reformists knew they would lose). They allege that the demonstrations in Iran against the rigged election are mostly the work of Western intelligence agencies stirring up trouble. In taking such a position, these so-called leftists and progressives have firmly sided with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
As someone on the left side of the political spectrum, who believes in a progressive and enlightened interpretation of Islamic and Shia teachings, the author feels deeply embarrassed by such proclamations from so-called leftists, some of whom do not know the first thing about Iran and Iranians, yet speak about developments there with such absolute certainty. There are those who believe that with Ahmadinejad, Iranians have gotten exactly what they deserve. And there are others still who subscribe to odd and far-fetched conspiracy theories. They see a plot hatched by Western intelligence agencies (and now even the reformists), behind everything that happens. While such intrigues do exist in some cases, the present situation in Iran does not appear to be one of them. At the very least, there is no concrete evidence for it.
Let us also get another fact straight: the massive demonstrations that broke out in Tehran and other Iranian cities after the results of the rigged election were announced did not represent a pro-West reform movement, but a genuinely Iranian one. They did not, and still do not, represent a so-called colored revolution, akin to what happened in the Ukraine or Georgia, even though the movement has adopted the color green as its symbol.
In fact, what is happening in Iran is not even a revolution, but a democratic movement. Since long before the 1979 Revolution, green has been one of the three colors in Iran’s flag. Also, as Mir Hossein Mousavi, the main reformist candidate, has pointed out, green has a deep association with Islam and its teachings. So the color green and shouts of Allah-o Akbar (God is Great) are tactics are reminiscent of the 1979 Revolution — certainly not a pro-West revolution.
Let us then look at up some of the reasons invoked by some “leftist-progressives” to argue that Ahmadinejad actually won the election without any significant and game-changing fraud:
Ahmadinejad won because he represents the proud tradition of Iranians’ deeply-rooted nationalism, standing up for the country’s political independence from Western powers.
Ahmadinejad is an Islamic fundamentalist. The fundamentalists do not even believe in nationalism, but only in an Islamic nation, composed of all the present Islamic countries.
Moreover, a true nationalist does not sacrifice his country’s national interests for the sake of others. By his senseless barrage of belligerent rhetoric against Israel, and denying the Holocaust, Ahmadinejad offered the United States and other powers the perfect excuse to convince the world of the (non-existent) dangers posed by Iran’s nuclear program. This has enabled these powers to send Iran’s nuclear dossier to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), through a totally illegal process, and to force the UNSC to impose sanctions against Iran. Anyone with even the slightest familiarity with how the UNSC works knows that once the case of a certain country, which the West perceives as a danger, goes before the UNSC, it will never leave the UNSC unless it satisfies the conditions that the Western powers want to impose on that country. Ahmadinejad has put Iran in such a situation.
ContinuedBy MUHAMMAD SAHIMI in Los Angeles | 24 July 2009
[TEHRAN BUREAU] comment Iran’s... more
Iranians are still protesting in the streets. Yesterday, on the day of prayer, thousands of people went in the central square to protest with theri green flags. Former Presidente Rafsajani said the crisis will stop only with the election of a president who is wanted by people. 15 people were arrested and lawyer Shadi Sadr was arrested too.
But people are still able to think about a change. So, maybe, something can happen.Iranians are still protesting in the streets. Yesterday, on the day of prayer,... more
Iranian’s supreme leader/adviser declared incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as President of Iran, winning 63% of the votes. Protesters took it to the streets, claiming the election results were rigged and there’s no way the majority voted for Ahmadinejad.
During the protests, chaos erupted. Several protesters were beaten, others to death.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, Iranian Americans say they’re outraged. They say they’re now mobilizing, protesting, collecting signatures, and urging the US government to help. They vow to not stop until the Iranian people are free.Iranian’s supreme leader/adviser declared incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as President... more
Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is a former President of Iran, and is considered a "reformer" because he would like to be polite enough to the US to get sanctions lifted, liberalize economic rules, and then be an authoritarian. This makes him one of the most liberal leading politicians in Iran. Of course, he is first and foremost a politician, so he may swing to whatever faction has coattails, and the democracy movement has them.
Being an Ayatollah (which is kinda like being a federal judge: except that their legal system is Islamic law, so more like a religious/legal expert), he gave an influential speech today at Tehran University where he argued (according to al Jazeera) media censorship must end, and political prisoners must be released, and that everyone lost with this election.
Of course, giving such a speech at a University means students are going to go nuts, and this is carefully choreographed political theater. Braveheart-esque cries of "Freedom!" during the speech quickly turned into "Death to the dictator!" on the streets. And just as naturally, Basij hopped on their bikes with their chains and pipes to go give the college kids a beat down as police shot tear gas and whipped out their handy batons to give more beat downs. No word yet on how many died and were arrested.This story has legs.
Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is a former President... more
Washington, 15 July (WashingtonTV)—The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said on Wednesday that at least 34 people were killed during protests in Tehran on 20 June, more than three times the number announced by authorities.
The New York-based human rights group noted that the Iranian government reported that 11 protesters had been killed that day, in a demonstration against the official result of the disputed 12 June presidential election.
However, the group said that the death toll was at least 34, based on information collected by medical staff with access to the morgue records of three Tehran hospitals.
“Imam Khomeini Hospital had 19 bodies; Rasool Akram Hospital eight bodies and Loghman Hospital seven bodies,” the group said in a statement.
It said that there were other hospitals near the demonstrations that could have also received dead or injured protesters.
Iran’s police said that 20 people were killed in the post-election unrest. However, the human rights group said that many of those assumed to have been held in detention may also be dead.
“Despite official obfuscation and denials, reliable information is accumulating suggesting that hundreds of protesters were slaughtered during the demonstrations,” said Aaron Rhodes, a spokesperson for the group.
“If this is the case, history will judge these events not as ‘excessive use of force’, but as a massacre,” he added.
Another group, the Netherlands-based International Committee Against Executions, has compiled a list of the names of 61 people killed, including details of how and where they died and where they were buried.
According to the group’s director, Farshad Hoseini, a third of the names were confirmed by family members as dead, and the rest by friends or activists on the ground, reports the Associated Press.
The list could not be independently confirmed.
Meanwhile, outside of Tehran’s Evin Prison, relatives of detainees gather every day to learn whether their relatives, who have gone missing since the election, are inside the jail or dead.
There are also fears that detainees being held in secret locations are being tortured or abused.
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran noted a report today in the Norooz website, belonging to the Islamic Participation Front, that families seeking information about missing relatives have reported that they were taken to a cold storage facility in southwest Tehran, where they were shown pictures of “hundreds” of those that have been killed in the unrest.
“Given the absolute lack of transparency and accountability by the Iranian Judiciary and related organs, the campaign is once more urging the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, to immediately send a special envoy to Tehran to investigate the fate of detainees and disappeared persons,” said the group.
Sources: International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran website, Associated Press
Washington, 14 July (WashingtonTV)—Alireza Hosseini Beheshti, a top aide to defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi, said on Tuesday that the opposition leader will soon create a new “political front” of reformist partiesWashington, 14 July (WashingtonTV)—Alireza Hosseini Beheshti, a top aide to defeated... more
Washington, 13 July (WashingtonTV)—Nineteen-year old Iranian, Sohrab A’rabi, among the 20 people that authorities say were killed in the unrest following the disputed 12 June presidential election, was laid to rest at Tehran’s Beheshteh Zahra cemetery on Monday.Washington, 13 July (WashingtonTV)—Nineteen-year old Iranian, Sohrab A’rabi, among... more
Washington, 10 July (WashingtonTV)—Shouting slogans, giving the victory sign and carrying placards and banners, over 200 people demonstrated in Washington DC on Thursday evening, displaying solidarity with demonstrators in Iran on the occasion of the anniversary of the deadly student uprising there ten years ago.Washington, 10 July (WashingtonTV)—Shouting slogans, giving the victory sign and... more
Washington, 9 July (WashingtonTV)—A spokesperson for Iranian opposition leader, Mir Hossein Mousavi, on Wednesday called on the European Parliament to press European Union states not to recognize the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Washington, 7 July (WashingtonTV)—Norway’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Oslo, Mohsen Bavafa, to express its concern for the human rights situation in Iran.Washington, 7 July (WashingtonTV)—Norway’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned... more
Washington, 6 July (WashingtonTV)—Dubai Police on Sunday blocked Iranian protesters from signing a petition against Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Dubai-based National newspaper reported.Washington, 6 July (WashingtonTV)—Dubai Police on Sunday blocked Iranian protesters... more
Washington, 2 July (WashingtonTV)—Six men convicted of drug trafficking were hanged in a prison in the Iranian city of Qom, south of Tehran, on Thursday, the conservative Fars news agency reports.Washington, 2 July (WashingtonTV)—Six men convicted of drug trafficking were hanged... more
