FDI's Weekly Newswire

The life and [troubled] times of the Islamic Republic of Iran

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FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 17

Aug. 12, 1996

Commenting an official complaint lodged by the Islamic Republic to the United Nations last Wednesday concerning alleged violations of Iranian airspace by U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 3, Forouhar scoffed that if the allegations are true, then the leadership "has not done anything to prepare the Iranian armed forces to defend the fatherland." [INP statement 8/11]

The complaint, lodged by Iran's UN Ambassador Kamal Kharazi, claimed that U.S. F-14s and F-15s flew over Busheir and Abu Musa island on Aug.. 3. [Radio Tehran 8/7]. The Pentagon denied there were any U.S. violations of Iranian airspace, but did acknowledge that U.S. aircraft have been flying sorties in the Gulf in support of the month-long military exercise, Rugged Nautilus. [Reuters 8/8]

In his statement, released on Sunday by the INP's international department, Forouhar said that "in these crucial moments in Iranian history the leaders of the regime should resign, or they will be forced aside by the Iranian nation." He called on the Iranian armed forces "to understand their role in the political future of the country," and to "move and seize power so that our nation can rid itself of this dictatorial regime which is trying to involve our country in foreign adventures."

"The leaders of the Islamic Republic say that they want to create another Vietnam in the region. Who would suffer in this Vietnam? Naturally, the ordinary Iranian citizen and the Iranian armed forces. I believe that the Iranian armed forces under the leadership of the officer corps of the regular army must and seize power."

Velayati says U.S. is "insane."

In one of the many reactions from Tehran on the U.S. sanctions bill, Foreign Minister Velayati said the Clinton administration has gone "insane."

The Tehran leadership has apparently equated the sanctions legislation, which is now law, to a declaration of war. "Iran will teach the United States a lesson it will never forget if it attacks Iran," Velayati said an Arabic newspaper. "Iran is not weaker than Vietnam," Velayati said. "the Islamic Republic will teach a historic lesson to the United States." [Al Hayat, 8/8]

Joining the "insane" chorus was Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati. "Looking around us, it seems that America has gone absolutely insane, and this state of mind has been brought about by the Zionists,'' he told Tehran Radio [8/9]

"I do not think that throughout the history of America there has been a president who has surrendered himself to the Zionists so blindly and unconditionally'' as Bill Clinton who is seeking to secure Jewish votes in the November presidential election, he added.

Iran to go to World court

Iran will submit a case against the United States at the International Court of Justice for Washington's alleged funding of covert action against Tehran, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati said on Aug. 8

"We have prepared the preliminary grounds for our intended complaint to The Hague court, in particular our complaint against America's decision to allocate $20 million to undermine and sabotage the Iranian state,'' Velayati said on Iranian Television [IRIB 8/8]

U.S. officials have acknowledged that Congress earmarked $18 million out of the $30 billion intelligence community budget for fiscal year 1996 for covert action aimed at supporting democracy in Iran, although none of the money is believed to have been spent so far..

"In the next few days, we will submit our case to that court, and then we will assess carefully the Islamic Republic of Iran's legal fight against the unwise decisions adopted by America,'' Velayati said

The International Court of Justice, based in the Hague, has been arbitrating U.S.-Iran disputes since 1981 as part of the resolution of the Tehran hostage crisis negotiated by Warren Christopher during the final days of the Carter administration.

Amir-Rahimi says Iranians "love America"

Asked about his reaction to the U.S. sanctions bill and the furious reaction of the Islamic Republic, General Amir-Rahimi told 24-hour radio in Los Angeles on Aug. 8 that the Iranian people "loved America" and were dismayed by the current hostility between the two countries. The Iranian officers he is in contact with are "well aware they cannot challenge the United States" militarily. And in the long run, he said, they are well aware that "the United States has always been a strategic ally of Iran."

The former head of military police, who was jailed in 1994 for his outspoken criticism of the regime, praised President Truman for his help in combating the Soviet incursion in 1946-47, and said Iran's present leaders were "stupid" for isolating the country. "The patriots in Iran are hoping that a military clash between the two countries does not occur... It would be a terrible blow to U.S.-Iranian relations." [Radio Sedaye Iran 8/8]

IRI accuses US of rejecting athletes' visas

The Islamic Republic has accused the United States of violating its international obligations, for having rejected the visa applications of two athletes and four trainers who were scheduled to arrive in the United States on Saturday, Aug. 10, to take part in the Olympics for the Disabled. [IRNA 8/9]

The U.S. move appears to have come in response to information disclosed by an Iranian trainer, Taghi Jahani, 43, on 24 hour radio in Los Angeles several days earlier. Jahani phoned in to the popular political talk show hosted by Ali Reza Mehbodi to boast that despite his background as a member of the group of Students of the Imam's Line who seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1979, he had managed to enter the United States to attend the Olympics in Atlanta.

Jahani's testimony was authenticated by a sports specialist at the radio, who claimed to have known him for several years and was familiar with his revolutionary background.

Jahani explained that the IRI had instructed Olympic team members to go to U.S. consulate in Frankfurt, Germany to obtain their visas. After attending the Olympics, he traveled on to visit friends in the Los Angeles area, he said.

Recalling the seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, he said that "Only Imam Khomeini was informed of that action, as was Hojjat-ol Eslam Mussavi Khoiniha, who was the leader of the Students of the Imam's Line."

He identified Heshmatollah Tabarzadi, publisher of the recently-banned Payam-e Daneshjou weekly, as another member of the hostage-taking team.

Prior to the revolution, Jahani said he had been jailed in 1976, where he met Ayatollah Taleghani and Ayatollah Montazeri and "many other fellow students." Interestingly, he denied that Mohsen Rafiqdoust took part in the U.S. embassy hostage-taking.

Following the release of the U.S. hostages in Tehran, many of the hostage-takers were appointed to important jobs. However, Jahani complained, today many of them were down and out. "One of them is now in jail charged with 15 cases of theft." Jahani said that personally he also was in a serious financial situation. [Radio Sedaye Iran 8/5]

Kurds executed

The KDPI has reported several more executions of KDPI prisoners in Iranian jails.

In June, three KDPI supporters were executed in Urmieh prison. They were identified as Kazim Mirzaie, who had been jailed two years earlier; Azgin Jahanghiri, a native of Balolan, a village in the Urmieh region; and Mohammad Saleh, a native of Germen, also in the Urmieh region. There were no known reports of public trials. [KDPI statements 7/1 and 7/17]

KDPI reports clashes

In a statement issued in Paris on Aug. 2, the KDPI says that 30 Pasdars have been wounded in clashes near Urumieh city on July 30, and that Sunni Kurds have been expelled from Sanandaj, the capital city of Iranian Kurdistan. They also claimed to have shot down one of three Pasdaran helicopters that had been sent in to attack their forces during the Urumieh clashes.

The KDPI has reported "numerous clashes" over the past two weeks between KDPI fighters and Iranian Revolutionary guards in the areas of Sanandaj, Boukan, Urmiah, Rabat, and Baneh in northern Iran. [KDPI statement 8/2]

Contrary to the claims of the Iranian government (See Action Memorandum 017), the KDPI denies that it uses its bases in northern Iraq to launch cross border raids into Iran. Instead, a KDPI spokesman said, the organization sets up temporary bases inside Iranian Kurdistan for these attacks.

Germans want Bani Sadr to testify

German prosecutors said on Aug. 5 that they wanted former Iranian President Abolhassan Banisadr to testify about allegations that Tehran was linked to the 1992 murder of three Kurdish opposition leaders in Berlin.

A motion submitted to the Berlin court by prosecutors and lawyers for the victims' families said Banisadr told federal prosecutors in June that "the plan for killing the Kurds in the Mykonos Restaurant was approved by the president and the religious leader of Iran around three months before the assassination.''

"Without their agreement, carrying out the attack was just as unlikely as it would have been without massive support from the state, for example through passports, plane tickets, money, special telephone numbers,'' it added.

Contacted at his home near Paris, Banisadr confirmed he had told prosecutors in June that the assassination plan had been approved personally by President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Ali Khamene'i, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. [Reuters 8/5]

Demonstration in Tehran

Hundreds of angry Tehran citizens staged a demonstration on Monday morning, Aug. 5, to protest increased registration fees at public schools, the opposition Iran Nation's Party reported [8/6]

According to eyewitnesses at the scene, handicapped veterans from the Iran-Iraq war took part in the demonstration, and one veteran threatened to set fire to himself if the Ministry of Education did not reconsider its policy of requiring registration fees of students at public schools.

The demonstration was broken up by the Law Enforcement Forces, who reportedly beat dozens of demonstrators but made no arrests.

The INP also reported that the regime has organized a new law enforcement unit called "Ansarol Mohammad" (Friends of the Prophet Mohammad), specifically trained to put down street demonstrations and riots. Units of the motorized brigade were first seen on Tehran streets on July 31. The INP claims that elements from this new unit have "arrested hundreds of young boys and girls" in Tehran in recent days.

Iranian students "ungrateful"

A left-wing Iranian daily, Salam, has complained that Iranian students who have benefited from state subsidies for overseas study are "ungrateful."

"Of the 200 Iranian students who graduated from foreign universities last year, only 90 returned to Iran," Salam wrote, "while the others chose to remain abroad." Salam complained that their choice was a misuse of Ministry of Education funds. [Salam 8/10]

Two journalists convicted by press court

Ahmad Safayfard, owner of the daily Akhbar and a close advisor to President Rafsanjani, was convicted on Aug. 8 for having published "lies" about domestic Iranian affairs. In addition to a 5 million rial fine, Safayfard was banned for 6 months from journalism

The press court also condemned Rahim Saed Danesh, who publishes Azarmehr, a monthly news and cultural magazine, for publishing "lies" about the recent Majlis elections. Danesh must pay a 1 million rial fine. [Kayhan 8/8]

Iranian "spy" expelled

Not all is well between Turkey and Iran, despite the love fest surrounding Prime Minister Erbakan's visit. According to the Turkish daily Sabah, an Iranian diplomat in Turkey, Bijan Seyfani, was expelled in late July for activities incompatible with his diplomatic status. Seyfani was allegedly involved with a network of Islamic fundamentalists implicated in the murder of five secular Turkish writers and several Iranian dissidents over the past six years. [Sabah 7/31]

Intellectuals oppose Velayat-e faghi, official says

If anyone thought intellectuals had a bad name in the United States, think again. In Iran, they have become worse than lawyers.

"The adjective "intellectual" is given to someone who feels free to give his opinion on any subject without restriction," said Mohammad Rajabi, head of the state-run Farabi Cinema Foundation, the main promoter of Iranian films around the world, including in the U.S. "This is in complete contrast with the essence of our religious system of think which puts limits on human wisdom."

"Intellectuals, from right to left, are people who do not accept revelation as a source of thought, and who therefore are fundamentally opposed to the concept of Velayat-e faghi," the cultural affairs official said.

Perhaps having dissident philosopher Abdolkarim Soroush in mind, Rajabi went on: "Due to their fundamental opposition to the Velayat-e Faghi, we cannot divide intellectuals into Moslems and non-Moslems. All of them are opposed to our values. The entire class of Iranian intellectuals now takes advantage of our cultural weakness and is abusing society."

The real problem, Rajabi thought, was that "the real face of so-called right-wing Moslem intellectuals is still not understood by our society." [Iran daily, 7/29]

Banking system under fire

Ali Abdol-Alizadeh, Governor of East Azerbaijan province, has increasingly come under fire from the Tehran authorities for his outspoken criticism of many abuses of the regime. Our readers will recall his condemnation of the repression of the demonstrations in Tabriz, the capital of his province, in May [see Newswire 5]. Now, the outspoken Abdol-Alizadeh has taken on the nationalized banking system.

"Our nation's banking system is incompatible with the realities of today's life," he said in an interview with Resalat on July 18.

"The banking system is falling apart... Instead of establishing the nation's monetary and fiscal policies, our banking system is engaged in a process of reward and revenge."

"The banking system has been granted huge loans and unsecured credits," he said, "that have led to astronomical losses. That is why the banking system is incapable of any real investment in the country, and that is why we in our province cannot let ourselves be destroyed along with them. We should save our province from the financial dangers imposed by our continued linkage to the central banking system. Instead, we should find alternatives ourselves."

Abdol-Alizadeh announced that he intended to create a separate Azerbaijan Investment Trust in order to fund local projects, as a first step toward cutting the province's links to the state banking system. "The problem of our country is not the lack of money, but its management," he said. "Today, a bunch of gigolos are running our banks. They are more fit for sweeping the streets than banking." [Resalat 7/18]

Demonstration in Los Angeles draws 5,000

A demonstration organized by rival monarchist groups in Los Angeles on Aug. 4, drew some 5,000 participants in front of the Federal Building in the Westwood district of Los Angeles. August 4, the anniversary of the 1906 victory of the Constitutional forces over the Qajar dynasty tyranny, has become the rallying date of the Constitutional Monarchist movement.

At the demonstration, monarchists "pledged allegiance" to Reza Shah II as "the righteous constitutional monarch of Iran," and expressed their belief "in a pluralistic political system in Iran" based on the 1906 Constitution. "We believe that all Iranians regardless of their sex, religion, creed, and ethnicity are equal and the basic laws of the land should treat them equally," a joint statement by the groups said.

"We ask all opposition elements to unite and we believe that all groups who believe in non-violent struggle against the Islamic Republic and who do not get orders from foreign powers or governments can join this struggle to establish democracy in Iran," the statement read. [UMICR statement 8/4]

FDI's Weekly Newswire

FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 17

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