FDI's Weekly Newswire

The life and [troubled] times of the IslamicRepublic of Iran

Available on the Internet or by e-mail for a $25 per yeartax-deductible contribution at http://www.iran.org/ Tel: 1+ (301)946-2910. Fax: 1+(310) 942-5341

FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 21

Sept. 23, 1996

Lankarani accused the Saudi regime of having recently arrested"dozens" of leading Shiite clergymen, and warned that such actions"are closely being watched" by the Shiite clergy in Iran. "We willnot let them to continue these anti-Islamic provocations," Lankaraniwarned. "I demand that the Saudi regime stop harassing the Shiites. Iwarn them to stop acting as the puppets of foreigners." If not,Lankarani went on, "every true Muslim will react."

Lankarani's "fatwa" was accompanied by a strongly anti-Saudi andanti-Israeli editorial by Jomhouri-e Islami, which criticized thegovernments of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt for attempting to makepeace with Israel.

This is not the first time that a Tehran cleric has issued such awarning against the Saudi regime. In May, Ayatollah Ahmed Jannatiwarned the Saudis that a "wave of revolution is slowly taking overthe land of Arabia" that would threaten "the hegemony of America andIsraeli... over Islamic states." Just one month after this statement,a terrorist bombing killed 19 Americans in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.Kayhan daily called the attack "revenge" for the execution of fourSaudi nationals in April.

Informed sources in Tehran believe that Lankarani's "fatwa" wassimilar to Jannati's statements in May. "This is how the regimeissues orders to its clandestine cells operating overseas," said oneformer intelligence officer in Tehran. "This is the first shot in acoordinated attack against U.S. and Israeli interests in the MiddleEast."

The Jomhouri-e Islami editorial also made reference to a March1996 fatwa by the pro-Iranian "Council of Foghana" in Saudi Arabiawhich called for terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians, "sinceall Israeli citizens are actually a part of the Israeli Army."

As these statements appeared in Tehran, the head of PalestinianIslamic Jihad, Ramadan Abdallah Shallah, was quoted by an Arabicnewspaper in London that his group would relaunch suicide attacksagainst Israel starting Oct. 26. On this date last year, hispredecessor, Fathi Shiqaqi, was presumably assassinated in Malta byIsraeli intelligence agents. [Iranfax 9/22; Jomhouri-e Islami9/21]

OPPOSITION GROUP SEEKS TO BAR VELAYATI SPEECH

Washington, DC, Sept. 23, 1996 - An Iranian opposition group isseeking to block Iran's Foreign Minister from addressing ananti-sanctions forum in New York this Thursday, because of theIslamic Republic's support for international terrorism.

The group, the Constitutionalists Movement of Iran, CMI, haswritten to the President of Columbia University and to U.S. officialsin Washington, seeking to bar Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayatifrom addressing the Caspian Sea Symposium at Columbia on Sept. 26.

In a letter to Dr. George Rupp of Columbia, the Secretary Generalof CMI, Dr. Khosrow Akmal, notes that Mr. Velayati "has approved theIslamic Republic's terrorist activities and the attacks againstIranian dissidents. He also supports Khomeini's death sentenceagainst Salman Rushdie... Clearly the participation of terroristVelayati at the Symposium will reflect adversely on ColumbiaUniversity."

The symposium is being organized by the Middle East Institute ofColumbia University. At the urging of pro-Tehran lobbyists, theInstitute is seeking to take advantage of Mr. Velayati's presence inNew York for the United Nations General Assembly, to allow him toaddress a forum attacking the U.S. sanctions policy.

In April 1995, Rutgers University Professor Hooshang Amirahmadi,who has worked to organize the Velayati speech, attempted to invitetwo Iranian officials to a similar sanctions-bashing forum inWashington. At the last minute, the State Department disbarred theofficials - Iran's Permanent Representative to the United Nations,Kamal Kharazi, and the Governor of the Central Bank, MohsenNourbakhsh - from attending.

At a forum in Washington, DC that was financed by CONOCO, the U.S.oil firm whose $600 million contract in Iran has been taken over byCFP-Total following the imposition of sanctions, Suddarth pledged toput the resources of his Institute at the disposal of theanti-sanctions group. (CONOCO, however, made clear it would notfinance such an effort unless "the full spectrum of opinion on theissue" was present.

Mr. Velayati's trip to the United States occurs only days after asenior Iranian cleric, Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Fazel Lankarani,issued a religious decree threatening the government of Saudi Arabiawith terrorist attacks on the pretext it had become "the puppet offoreigners," as we reported from Tehran yesterday (Serial 2630).Lankarani's "fatwa" recalls a similar decree issued by AyatollahAhmed Jannati in May, that appears to have led directly to the June27 bombing of the Khobar Towers in Dhahran.

In the event Mr. Velayati is allowed to address the forum, the CMIplans to protest the meeting and is seeking a permit from New YorkCity authorities to picket the meeting hall. [Iranfax 9/23; TheIran Brief 6/3/96]]

Regime poisons opposition Kurds

An agent of the Islamic Republic has poisoned three leaders of theopposition KDPI, a statement released in Paris by the Partyalleges.

The incident occurred on Aug. 22, when an Iranian Kurd known toKurdish leaders in Saqez presented a box of poisoned biscuits to theKDPI Committee in charge of the affairs of the Saqez, Afshar, andDiwandareh regions, in the southern part of Iranian Kurdistan. Inorder to fool the KDPI officials, the infiltrator ate one of thebiscuits himself, then left. A few hours later, all three KDPIofficials were rushed to the hospital with symptoms of poisoning. AtaReazapur died on Sept. 3, while Saleh Charifi died on Sept. 13 as aresult of the poisoning. The third victim is still in hospital incritical condition. [KDPI statement 9/23]

KDPI activists jailed, hanged

Following the armed incursion into northern Iraq by some 3,000Pasdaran troops in late July, the Tehran regime has launched acrackdown against Kurdish opposition leaders inside Iran as well. TheKDPI says that "hundreds" of KDPI supporters have been arrested inthe Iranian Kurdish towns of Naghadeh, Piranshahr, Ushnavieh,Mahabad, and Sardasht since August, "on charges of belonging to orsympathizing with the KDPI." Two KDPI supporters have been killed indetention. They were identified as Suleiman Ghaitaran, son of Kemal,who was arrested in 1996 and died under torture in the MOIS prison inNaghadeh. The second was identified only as Osman, son of Abdullah,born in Sardasht and arrested in 1995 on charges of supporting theKDPI. He was hanged in public in a prison called "the teacher'shouse," the KDPI said.

The KDPI has released the names of 21 Kurdish civilians arrestedin the Piranshahr region since August since 1996, who remain in MOISjails in the region and are in imminent threat of execution. FDIjoins the KDPI in calling for their immediate and unconditionalrelease. [KDPI statement 9/11]

Furor over Rafsanjani third term

The trial balloon floated recently by Rafsanjani confidant HassanRouhani (see last week's newswire) has generated a veritable furoramong conservative and radical clerics and students associations.

On Sept. 21, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamene'i joined thefray, giving what most observers took as his "final opinion" on thesubject. "Mr. Rafsanjani has delivered astonishing services in allthe heavy responsibilities he has carried on his shoulders. There isno doubt that when his term of office comes to an end, it will benecessary and precious for the Islamic establishment to takeadvantage of his abilities in other positions andresponsibilities.

Khamene'i's comment, which was delivered during a speech inUrumieh, near the fighting in Iraqi Kurdistan, was carried by allmajor dailies in their Sept. 21 editions. One Majlis deputy - SeyedAhmad Rasouli-Nejad, of Damavand city, declared that Khamene'i'sjudgement had put an end to the discussion. "From now on everybodyshould obey Ayatollah Khamene'i's order and put an end to the recentchallenges." [Resalat 9/21].

Khamene'i is only the latest figure to come out against a thirdRafsanjani term.

Said Interior Minister Ali Mohammad Besharati: "It is not in theinterest of the country and the revolution to amend the Constitutionand extend the President's term of office." It was up to Khamene'i"to have the final say in this matter," Besharati said. Then hewarned reporters not to raise the issue of revising the Constitution."If the people want another term of office for Mr. Rafsanjani, theyshall find other legal ways to extend his presidency... I personallythink another person should be President." [Kayhan 9/8]

In a lead editorial on Sept. 17, Kayhan warned that "those whowant to change the constitution to extend the presidency of Mr.Rafsanjani are acting against the rule of law... and are trying toundermine security of our society."

Hojjatol-eslam Movahedi Savoji, a leading of the Militant ClergyAssociation and parliamentary associate of Nateq-Nouri (Rafsanjani'smain rival), piled on the next day: "The extension of Mr.Rafsanjani's presidency is against the regulations established by thelate Ayatollah Khomeini." [Salam 9/18]

Perhaps the most dramatic anti-Rafsanjani move was taken inParliament, when 120 MPs calling themselves the "Hezbollah Fraction"signed a petition calling for no third term. "There is no need toextend the presidency of Mr. Rafsanjani," they wrote. "The nextpresident shall be a person who clearly is informed of the plotsagainst the Islamic Republic." [Resalat 9/17].

In an implicit criticism of Rafsanjani, Majlis speaker Nateq-Nouripoured fuel on the flames. "There is a serious U.S. plot insideIranian government institutions," he told Tehran Radio on Sept. 17."The government must find ways to stop this plot by imperialistpowers. Western cultural invasion controls our governmentinstitutions, and they are trying to destroy the Islamic Republicfrom the inside." [Radio Tehran 9/17]

And in what may be the ultimate of snubs, a group of twenty topPasdaran commanders, meeting in Tehran during the commemoration ofthe start of the Iran-Iraq war, met first with Khamene'i, then withNateq-Nouri, and then waited a day before paying the traditionalcourtesy call to Rafsanjani. [Radio Tehran 9/19]

Anxious perhaps to play down the snub, Rafsanjani made a televisedspeech in praise of the Pasdaran after their meeting on Thursday, inwhich he claimed that the Guards Corps "has played a main role inisolating the Americans in the region." [IRIB 9/20]

Was that a quiet acknowledgment of the role played by Pasdaranintelligence in the June 27 Dhahran bombing?

Talabani featured by Iranian press

Defeated Iraqi Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani is becoming a "causecelebre" among the government-run press in Tehran. Iran dailyfeatured a long interview with Talabani in its Sept. 18 edition,which it said was conducted "somewhere inside Iraq."

While admitting he has lost on the battlefield, Talabani vowed tocontinue his war against the rival KDP, and said that his forces hadalready begun to launch "sporadic attacks" against the KDP and theIraqi military.

These attacks will "very soon turn into large militaryoperations," Talabani boasted. "I am sure that soon the PUK will beable to liberate Kurdistan again."

Before the Iraqi attack against Irbil on Aug. 31, Talabani saidhis party's sources inside the Iraqi army "had informed us there werenegotiations between Saddam and the KDP, and we informed ourfriends... However, the Americans didn't want to interfere, and thesilence of the Americans allowed Saddam to reassert control overnorthern Iraq." He speculated that "the Americans may have been angryfor the PUK's relations with Iran."

The journalist from Iran daily then asked him if he had anymilitary support from Tehran. "Unfortunately, no. We got no militarysupport from the Iranian government after the Iraqi invasion. We werein great need of anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons. We asked forhelp, but we did not receive it." He acknowledged that the PUK"officially requested" help from Tehran after the Iraqi attack, "butwe didn't receive any positive response."

For the future, he said, "Iraqi Kurdistan is moving toward civilwar." [Iran 9/18]

Government newspaper threatens U.S.

Commenting the U.S. "aggression" that has led to the tragedy inIraqi Kurdistan, the state-run English-language daily, KayhanInternational, warned that if "America's traditional disrespect forMuslim civilian life [does not stop] without further delay...Muslims will be forced to find other ways to make this point clear toU.S. leaders."

The paper blamed the U.S. for the exodus of Iraqi Kurdishcivilians and the factional fighting that has wracked the region. "AsAmerica's war against defenseless Iraqi civilians continues, thecivilized world either remains a mute witness or prefers to rescueall its sympathies for Israel."

The editorial curiously branched out against Israel, and went onto mention that Muslims "and Arabs in particular," would strike backagainst the U.S.

Perhaps another harbinger of things to come, similar to thestatement by Ayatollah Lankarani we cite above? [KayhanInternational 9/12]

Seven more "spies" arrested

Those pesky spies are at it again... The head of the Busheiroffice of MOIS has announced the arrest of seven more "spies," whohad been engaged in illegally gathering information in military andeconomic fields and passing it to unnamed foreign countries.

The official, identified only as "Eslami," did not reveal thenames of the "spies," or which country or countries were involved. Heonly said that they were arrested by the "Unknown Soldiers of ImamZaman," a code-word frequently used in the media to designate agentsof the Ministry of Information and Security, MOIS. (Zaman is thetwelve Imam, whose followers believe he is "hidden" and will reappearone day). [Salam 9/9]

Faezeh Hashemi criticizes "nudity" at Olympics

Faezeh Hashemi, the daughter of President Rafsanjani who waselected to the fifth Majlis and who accompanied him on his recentAfrican tour (see last week's Newswire), has complained that nudityand commercialization at the Atlanta Olympics "threatened toovershadow the social goals of sports events."

She reportedly told the head of Uganda's Olympic Committee thatthe head of the International Olympic committee, Juan AntonioSamaranch, had himself criticized the nudity and commercialization ofthe games. (Samaranch has criticized the over-commercialization ofthe games, but this is the first we've ever heard of his complaintsof "nudity"). [Kayhan International 9/9]

Avoid extravagance, Habibi says

Faced with increasing complaints, including from governmentworkers, about rising prices and the lack of many necessities -ranging from food to pharmaceuticals, decent housing to publictransport - the government is now asking people to "change theirpattern of consumption."

First Vice President Hassan Habibi has led the charge, calling foran international conference on sustainable development. "The patternof consumption in this country must change," he said recently.

"By the year 2021, the country must no longer be dependent on oilexports. To attain sustainable development, people should learn toavoid extravagance and avoid making exorbitant demands," he added.[Kayhan International 9/12]

Two men hanged on homicide charges

Two young men, both aged 18, were hanged on charges of homiciderecently in the village of Tal-e Siah, near Tangestan, in southernIran. They were accused of killing a cab driver last year. Only thefirst names of the two were released - Abdolkarim, and Gholamreza. Asin most cases of this type, no details were released about the trialor their right to defense. [Iran, 9/12]

South Africa denies endorsing Iranian human rights

The South African Foreign Ministry has protested vigorously whatit considers false reports issued by the Islamic Republic News Agencyafter last week's state visit to South Africa by PresidentRafsanjani.

The IRNA reports claimed that the two countries had signed a jointcommuniqué, in which South Africa praised Iran's record onhuman rights and demanded that foreign military forces withdraw fromthe Persian Gulf.

In a statement released last Tuesday, Sept. 17, the South AfricanForeign Ministry said, "Despite many hours of intense negotiation inrespect of a joint communiqué, agreement has not been reachedon wording acceptable to both sides."

The ministry quoted an IRNA report saying that South Africa had"expressed satisfaction with the state of human rights and democracy"in Iran. The ministry said that was simply untrue. Instead, SouthAfrican Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo had said only that South Africahad been heartened by Iran's announced willingness to "cooperate morefully" with the UN human rights investigator. Recalling IRNA's gleethat South Africa had condemned the U.S. presence in the PersianGulf, the South African Foreign Ministry said that "no such jointstatement was made - in fact, no joint communiqué wasissued."[Reuters 9/17; International Iran Times 9/20]

Britain outlaws Mujahidin-related charity

The British government's Department for Charity Organizations hasoutlawed "Iran Aide," a charity related to the People's MujahidinOrganization of Iran run by Massoud Radjavi. The head of the Britishdepartment said "Iran Aide" was extorting money from Britishcitizens.

Last year, he said, "Iran Aide" had taken in contributions of morethan $2 million, by sending its employees to the homes of Britishcitizens in the London area seeking their support of Iranianprisoners and victims of torture.

Solicitations for charity at people's homes is against Britishlaw, the government office said. [Reuters 9/20]

Former Mujahidin announces Presidential bid

Ali Farasati, an exiled journalist who writes for Kayhan in Londonand works as a researcher with the Geopolitical Research Center inParis, has announced that he is seeking to become a candidate in nextyear's presidential elections in Iran.

He told a press conference in Paris on Sept. 17 that he had sent aletter to the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Paris saying that henow accepts the legitimacy of the Islamic Republic and the IRIconstitution, and was seeking to return to Iran with his followers tobecome a presidential candidate.

For many years, Farasati was as a senior official in theopposition People's Mujahidin Organization of Iran. After a briefstint from 1979-1981 as an official of the Islamic Republic (as weremany PMOI members), Farasati fled Iran for France with MassoudRadjavi in June 1981, and later followed Radjavi to Iraq, where heacknowledged having fought against Iranian soldiers during theIran-Iraq war. [Radio Sedaye Iran 9/20]

FDI's Weekly Newswire

FDI WEEKLY NEWSWIRE NO 21

Sept. 23, 1996

CONTENTS: