tagged w/ Supreme Leader
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The passing of an Iranian cleric has led to a new surge of opposition protesting in the Iranian city of Qom. Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri was one of the top clerics of Shia Islam and has been a key voice criticizing the regime in Tehran. He died in his sleep Saturday. Tehran Bureau has a fantastic obituary tracing his involvement in the movement that brought down the Shah through his opposition to Khamenei's role as Supreme Leader.
Montazeri's burial in Qom has attracted mourners from around the country and as more and more people have gathered, the event has turned more and more into an opposition protest against the regime.
The New York Times Lede Blog has been collecting mourning videos coming out of Qom and elsewhere in the country.
Thanks to the reader who wrote to explain that the chant heard in this clip — “aza, azast emrooz, rooze azast emrooz, rahbar sabz iran pish khodast emrooz” — means, “mourning, there’s mourning, there’s mourning today; today is the day of mourning, the leader of Green Iran is with God today.” The reader explains, “While Montazeri was not considered the leader of the Green Movement, this points to him as the spiritual head of the Greens.”
Despite the best efforts of the Iranian regime to defuse opposition protests, they seem to be unstoppable. Perhaps not in the same sizes as the demonstrations in June and July, but the fact that the opposition continues to use big events like this as a platform for protest shows its stubborn tenacity in the face of violence and media clampdowns.
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Newsweek reports that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei will be the last Supreme Leader of the country, ever. Khamenei is only the second Supreme Leader the country has ever had, the first being Khomeini. His successor has proven to be less successful at being the most powerful voice in the country according to the clerical leadership.
From Newsweek:
Khamenei's response to the massive election demonstrations this past summer reaffirmed a longstanding but secretive belief among a majority of Iran's religious teachers and scholars: supreme clerical rule, no matter who is at the helm, can lead only to despotism and should be abolished. There can be no absolute power because, as Khamenei showed, men are fallible. It's well enough understood outside Iran that those clerics have found common cause with the street demonstrators; what the rest of the world hasn't realized yet is that they also want Khamenei gone.
The Supreme Leader will hold the position until he dies at which point the decision to eliminate the title could be made. Whether or not the standing theocratic order will be around that long is an entirely different question. The street protests continue sporadically and Neda Agha Soltan continues to be a powerful global symbol of the Iranian regime's brutality (as we saw on the blog recently: Neda's boyfriend speaks after escaping Iran).
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From mild-mannered mathlete to national opposition hero - it's been a crazy couple of weeks for Iranian math student Mahmoud Vahidnia.
At a meeting between students and the Ayatollah Khamenei, Vahidnia raised his had to ask a question and then spent twenty minutes criticizing the country's Supreme Leader to his face.
"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," said the student, wearing a long-sleeved blue polo shirt and appearing calm.
"In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the Assembly of Experts, whose duty is to criticize and supervise the performance of the leader," he said, referring to the clerical body that chooses the country's supreme leader.
Khamenei countered, "We welcome criticism. We never said not to criticize us. ... There's plenty of criticism that I receive," according to accounts in state media and on opposition Web sites.
Contrary to the stories of the thousands of protesters and critics of the country's election results - Mahmoud Vahidnia has faced no repercussions. In fact the incident was originally reported by the Supreme Leader's office - touting the country's tolerance for healthy debate. Initially many questioned whether the incident was staged for such a purpose - though opposition leaders are now saying the incident was the real deal.
Here's some video (albeit in Persian) of the meeting with a little bit of Vahidnia at the podium.
(h/t themajlis.org)
Posted to Current News by elsonwvu.
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Iran anniversary ‘punch’ will stun West: Khamenei
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Monday that Iran is set to deliver a “punch” that will stun world powers during this week’s 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution.
Forthe Full Story On Irans Feb. 11 Treat... a “punch” that will stun world powers ..You MUST Read This!!! http://ctpatriot1970.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/warning-iran-anniversary-punch-will-stun-west-khamenei-22nd-of-bahman-february-11/
“The Iranian nation, with its unity and God’s grace, will punch the arrogance (Western powers) on the 22nd of Bahman (February 11) in a way that will leave them stunned,” Khamenei, who is also Iran’s commander-in-chief, told a gathering of air force personnel.Iran anniversary ‘punch’ will stun West: Khamenei
Supreme leader... more
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The passing of an Iranian cleric has led to a new surge of opposition protesting in the Iranian city of Qom. Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri was one of the top clerics of Shia Islam and has been a key voice criticizing the regime in Tehran. He died in his sleep Saturday. Tehran Bureau has a fantastic obituary tracing his involvement in the movement that brought down the Shah through his opposition to Khamenei's role as Supreme Leader.
Montazeri's burial in Qom has attracted mourners from around the country and as more and more people have gathered, the event has turned more and more into an opposition protest against the regime.
The New York Times Lede Blog has been collecting mourning videos coming out of Qom and elsewhere in the country:
'Thanks to the reader who wrote to explain that the chant heard in this clip — “aza, azast emrooz, rooze azast emrooz, rahbar sabz iran pish khodast emrooz” — means, “mourning, there’s mourning, there’s mourning today; today is the day of mourning, the leader of Green Iran is with God today.” The reader explains, “While Montazeri was not considered the leader of the Green Movement, this points to him as the spiritual head of the Greens.”'
Despite the best efforts of the Iranian regime to defuse opposition protests, they seem to be unstoppable. Perhaps not in the same sizes as the demonstrations in June and July, but the fact that the opposition continues to use big events like this as a platform for protest shows its stubborn tenacity in the face of violence and media clampdowns.
FROM THE CURRENT NEWS BLOG: http://blogs.current.com/news/2009/12/21/iranian-spirital-leader-montazeri-dies-opposition-protests-at-his-funeral/
TEHRAN BUREAU OBIT: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tehranbureau/2009/12/grand-ayatollah-hossein-ali-montazeri-1922-2009.html
LEDE BLOG POST: http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/updates-on-dissident-clerics-funeral-in-iran/The passing of an Iranian cleric has led to a new surge of opposition protesting in... more
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Newsweek reports that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei will be the last Supreme Leader of the country, ever. Khamenei is only the second Supreme Leader the country has ever had, the first being Khomeini. His successor has proven to be less successful at being the most powerful voice in the country according to the clerical leadership.
From Newsweek:
"Khamenei's response to the massive election demonstrations this past summer reaffirmed a longstanding but secretive belief among a majority of Iran's religious teachers and scholars: supreme clerical rule, no matter who is at the helm, can lead only to despotism and should be abolished. There can be no absolute power because, as Khamenei showed, men are fallible. It's well enough understood outside Iran that those clerics have found common cause with the street demonstrators; what the rest of the world hasn't realized yet is that they also want Khamenei gone."
The Supreme Leader will hold the position until he dies at which point the decision to eliminate the title could be made. Whether or not the standing theocratic order will be around that long is an entirely different question. The street protests continue sporadically and Neda Agha Soltan continues to be a powerful global symbol of the Iranian regime's brutality (as we saw on the blog recently: Neda's boyfriend speaks after escaping Iran).
FROM THE NEWS BLOG:
http://blogs.current.com/news/2009/11/18/the-last-supreme-leader-of-iran/
SOURCES: http://www.newsweek.com/id/223345Newsweek reports that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei will be the last... more
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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... more
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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.
Mahmoud Vahidnia has received an outpouring of support from government opponents for the challenge — unprecedented in a country where insulting supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a crime punishable by prison.
Perhaps most surprising, the young math whiz has so far suffered no repercussions from the confrontation at a question-and-answer session between Khamenei and students at Tehran's Sharif Technical University.
In fact, Iran's clerical leadership appears to be touting the incident as a sign of its tolerance — so much so that some Iranians at first believed the 20-minute exchange was staged by the government, though opposition commentators are now convinced Vahidnia was the real thing.
Details of the encounter were reported on the state news agency IRNA and in a pro-government newspaper, Keyhan, which gave its account with a headline reading, "The revolutionary leader's fatherly response to critical youth." Even Khamenei's official Web site mentioned the incident.
Still some of those in attendance at the Oct. 28 forum say Khamenei appeared taken aback by the questioning and left the meeting early, according to commentary posted on pro-reform Web sites.
The session began with a speech in which Khamenei told the students the "biggest crime" was to question the results of the June 12 presidential election that returned hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power. Khamenei himself declared Ahmadinejad the victor despite opposition claims of widespread fraud.
After the speech, Vahidnia raised his hand, then for 20 minutes he criticized the Iranian leader over the fierce crackdown on postelection protests, in which the opposition says 69 people were killed and thousands were arrested.
In brief excerpts broadcast on state TV, the thin, bespectacled Vahidnia was shown standing behind a podium, gesturing at times for emphasis.
"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," said the student, wearing a long-sleeved blue polo shirt and appearing calm.
"In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the Assembly of Experts, whose duty is to criticize and supervise the performance of the leader," he said, referring to the clerical body that chooses the country's supreme leader.
Khamenei countered, "We welcome criticism. We never said not to criticize us. ... There's plenty of criticism that I receive," according to accounts in state media and on opposition Web sites.
The boldness of Vahidnia's comments underlines how Iran's postelection turmoil has undermined the once rock-solid taboo against challenging the supreme leader. During demonstrations, young protesters have frequently chanted "Death to the dictator" — referring to Khamenei — and even "Khamenei is a murderer." Several high-ranking pro-opposition clerics have also been openly critical.
The supreme leader stands at the top of the hierarchy of Iran's clerical rulers, and his word is supposed to be final on political issues. Scores of Iranian writers, bloggers and academics have been jailed for writing what authorities have deemed as insults to Khamenei.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091105/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_challenging_khamenei;_ylt=AovspgGk3.b5L5N9Et6rxrtvaA8F;_ylu=X3oDMTJ0dm4wbmVhBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkxMTA1L21sX2lyYW5fY2hhbGxlbmdpbmdfa2hhbWVuZWkEY3BvcwMyBHBvcwM3BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcnkEc2xrA3N0dWRlbnRzdHVucw--BEIRUT – An unassuming college math student has become an unlikely hero to many... more
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Large number of protestors in streets as Rafsanjani calls for unity and challenges Supreme LeaderLarge number of protestors in streets as Rafsanjani calls for unity and challenges... more
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