Who is Qalibaf? Iranian Regime’s New Parliament Speaker

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Staff Writer
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Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned parliamentarians about the social crisis on the horizon that threatens the stability of the regime and said that regime infighting would make an uprising more likely.

“I am one of the “club wielders” and I am proud of it. My picture is now on the 1000cc motorcycle with a wooden club…”

These are the words of the revolutionary guard named “Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf”, the candidate for the presidency of the clerical regime, who is known in street and market culture slang these days as “Khalibaf”, “Khiyalbaf” and “Qaligate”. But he was not exaggerating in one sense, and that was in the suppression of the uprising of the people, where he could no longer dream!

Qalibaf, who was nominated by Khamenei’s gang as the “principalist” for the third time to run for president, was among six people whose credentials have been confirmed by the Guardian Council.

He was born in 1961 and joined the regime’s military apparatus at the age of eighteen, beginning his activities in Basij. At the beginning of the unrest in Kurdistan, he went there and suppressed the people of Kurdistan. Then, with the formation of the Revolutionary Guards, he became a member of the Revolutionary Guards, and at the beginning of the war in the war zones, he was often responsible for the intelligence about the war operations. 

Who is Qalibaf? Positions in Velayat-e-Faqih regime

Some of his positions were as follows:

1982 Commander of Imam Reza Brigade

1983 Commander of the 5th Khorasan Nasr Division: In this position, he took part in most of the regime’s attacks on the battlefield and personally sent many young people, children, and students to the minefields.

1987 Deputy Commander of the IRGC’s Moqaddam base in the West

1987 Commander of the Najaf base in Kermanshah

1988 Commander of the 3rd Country Region: During this period, he played a serious role in suppressing the people of the northern provinces of the country, including Gilan and Mazandaran.

1989 Commander of the 25th Karbala Division in Mazandaran Province

1990 Chief of Staff of the IRGC Land Forces

1991 Deputy Coordinator of the Joint Staff of the IRGC

1994 Deputy Commander of the IRGC in Khatam al-Anbia Reconstruction Garrison

1994 Deputy Basij Commander: During this period, he played an active role in suppressing and forming the bases of the “Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice” under the name of Seyyed al-Shohada in different provinces of the country. He was also the founder of the Basij intelligence activities in the discovery of the nuclei of popular resistance and their arrest and suppression during that period.

1997 Deputy Commander of the IRGC Air Force

1997 IRGC Air Force Commander (instead of Jalali): During this period, which lasted until 2000, he played a major role in the formation of the IRGC missile units and their expansion – from 3 brigades of surface-to-surface missile units to 5 brigades. During his time in the IRGC’s air force, he based his activities on the expansion of Shahab surface-to-surface missiles.

2000 Commander of the Police Force (by order of Khamenei): He played a major role in all popular repressions in different cities of the country over 3 years. During this period he expanded the special unit of the police force and established the repressive police unit called the 110 police. He made major changes to the organization of the police force and spent large amounts of money to meet the needs of this body to provide more equipment to suppress the people.

2004 Representative of the President at the Headquarters for Combating Commodity and Currency Smuggling by mullah Khatami (retaining the position of Commander of the Police Force)

2005 Mayor of Tehran for 12 years:

Now, if we want to summarize the records of this presidential candidate, he is the one who for 38 years has been the Chief of Staff of the IRGC’s Land Forces, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, Deputy Commander of the Basij, Commander of the IRGC Air Force, Commander of the police force and mayor of the clerical regime.

Now, this revolutionary guard wants to become president. A person who during the disgraceful life of the medieval regime of Velayat-e-Faqih played a major role in the suppression and criminal actions against the people of the country and the theft and looting of the people’s property. Finally, he said: “From the beginning, I used the term ‘sedition’. After all, I did security and intelligence work, and I recognize it, and I’m an expert on it.” It is better to hear his own words: 

Who is Qalibaf? The uprising of 1999 and the events of the university dormitory:

“Following the recent events, isn’t insulting the principles of this regime a pity and subject to persecution?” Is the sanctity of Velayat-e-Faqih less than the university dormitory? Is the sanctity of the Imam less than the insulting of a student? … In the end, we announce that our patience has run out and we will not allow ourselves to endure more than that. Signatories: Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Qassem Soleimani, Hossein Hamedani, and …”. (Full text of Khamenei IRGC Commanders’ Letter to Mullah Khatami, then President – Aftab News Government Site, June 11, 2005)

This is while Mullah Khatami, the police and IRGC repressive forces, and the anti-people Basij carried out the most acts of repression and crime in that uprising. But, Qalibaf, with all his rudeness and inhumanity, is much thirstier for the blood of Iran’s youth and demands more killings and executions from the agents.

But the story of the uprising of 1999 and the writing of the letter continues. He told his supporters during the candidacy for the Presidency in 2013 about the suppression of student protests on July 9th, 1999:

“The incident of 1999, which took place in the university dormitory, I wrote the letter that was written, me and Mr. [Qassem] Soleimani. When they walked on the streets towards the Supreme Leader’s residence, I was the commander of the IRGC air force. My picture is now on the 1000cc motorcycle with a wooden club. With Hossein Khaleghi. I stood on the street floor to manage the street floor. Where we need to go to the street and beat with the wood club, we are among the club wielders. We are proud of it too… “

Who is Qalibaf? Remuneration for the crimes:

One year after the events of the University of Tehran dormitory and the suppression of that uprising by the clerical regime, in 2000, Qalibaf became the commander-in-chief of the police force by the order of Ali Khamenei, and continued the widespread repression of people and youth, especially women.

Among his actions during this period was to equip the police force with new and equipped vehicles such as Mercedes-Benz and Toyotas to increase the repressive power of this force. Qalibaf’s other steps included setting up the police 110 stations. Within five years of Qalibaf’s command of the police force, socially repressive measures with pretenses, such as acting against national security or promoting cultural vulgarity, reached a new peak.

Who is Qalibaf? University dormitory and Tarasht incident in 2003

“In 2003, after the university dormitory was set on fire and the Tarasht incident, I strongly argued at the meeting of the National Security Council, and I said sharp words and said that tonight anyone who wants to come to the dormitory and wants to do these things, as Commander of the police, I will crush them. Aziz Jafari [Mohammad Ali Jafari, commander of the IRGC] is a witness… others were saying that if the police force wanted to enter the university dormitory, it must have the permission of the National Security Council… In this meeting with my approach, I did get permission for the military presence of the police and shooting in the dormitory from the National Security Council… I believed that behind the events of 2003, the incidents that took place in the Tarasht dormitory of Allameh, the law enforcement forces stood in front of the plainclothes police and did not allow 1999 incidents to occur.” (Goftogoo News Government Site – June 9, 2013)

During the 2013 election debate with Hassan Rouhani, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf spoke about the university dormitory and the incidents in Tarasht, which contradicted his earlier statements. The same above-mentioned site reports that: “these numerous Qalibaf gaffes … in the world of politics are referred to by the suffix ‘gate’, and these statements were recorded in the eleventh election for Qalibaf as the ‘Qaligate’.” (Same source above)

Another government media outlet cites Rouhani’s remarks against Qalibaf. Rouhani, who saw Qalibaf was dragging his feet in repressing people and students, told him with concern and threats:

“I am very surprised by Mr. Qalibaf. We indeed have to compete, but not like this. Mr. Qalibaf, I did not want to say this. There was an argument there, you said if students come, we have a pincer plan; I don’t want to talk… Don’t go back to the discussions at that time, we have a lot to say…”

Qalibaf: “I was talking about students. The best connection between the police and the students was during my administration. Give me an example where police acted like a pincer.” (Goftgoo News Government Site – June 9, 2013) 

Hassan Rouhani: “You said let’s get the students out of the university so that we – the police and the IRGC – can cut them like a pincer…Be careful about how we talk. I have everything in my mind to say… we have a lot to say.” (Asr Iran government website – June 8, 2013)

In short, the two criminals said to each other, “If you expose me, I will expose everything.”

In March 2009, Revolutionary Guard Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf appointed Azizollah Rajabzadeh, commander of the Tehran police force and one of the defendants in the Kahrizak detention center incidents and attacked the dormitory of the University of Tehran (June 15, 2009) as head of the Tehran Crisis Prevention and Management Organization. 

Who is Qalibaf? Pincer candidate!

The actions of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf in the Tehran municipality were so cruel that the state-run media themselves exposed a small part of the clerical regime’s mafia gang’s infighting. A government website quotes the Jahan-e-Eqtesad newspaper as saying:

“The mayor of Tehran has always acted against the deprived. Attacks on street vendors are an example of his actions.”

The mayor of Tehran has had the worst performance in the face of the deprived and oppressed strata of Tehran and its suburbs … in fact, Qalibaf’s pincer attacks were more to escape criticism than to address the issues of workers and peddlers… when the heavy traffic on the central streets of the city was criticized, there were the beet vendors who were kicked… this is not the only place where the mayor of Tehran has victimized the deprived and the oppressed… the mayor of Tehran has increased the city’s income, but this increase in income has been provided by the most oppressed people of Tehran. The sad thing is that this revenue has generally been spent on billboards and media advertisements for Mr. Commander… What the mayor of Tehran has done in the last twelve years has crushed the poor people of the community under Mr. Mayor’s wheels.” (Aftab News Government Site – April 26, 2017) 

Who is Qalibaf? Supporters of “Shaban Bimokh”

The mafia gangs of the clerical regime always have some cards to play at the right time. One of these cards was the card of the well-known cleric, Hassan Kordmihan, which Jahangiri played against Qalibaf during election debates. Mullah Hassan Kordmihan, a staunch judoka supporter of Qalibaf, whose historical ancestry goes back to Sheikh Fazlollah Nouri and Sha’ban Bimokh, was the perpetrator of the attack on the Saudi embassy. A government website writes: 

“…About 20 days after the January 2nd attack on the Saudi embassy, ​​a member of the National Security Committee of the Ninth Majlis, in an interview with ILNA, referred to the role of Hassan Kordmihan in the attack on the embassy. The same person who took over one of the municipal crisis management shelters to hold a judo class and is a staunch supporter of Qalibaf… Hojjat ol-Islam Kordmihan in support of Qalibaf, said: “Alborzians are impatiently waiting for the arrival of commander of sincerity and cleanliness, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. (Eqtesad News Government Site – April 30, 2017) 

Who is Qalibaf? Embezzlement and looting

The other side of the coin of the repression and crime of the Revolutionary Guard, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, is his involvement in embezzlement, bribery, and fraud. A government website’s headlines reported the following: “Publishing other dimensions of financial corruption in Tehran Municipality – Complete list of names of individuals, cooperatives and organizations to which the mayor of Tehran has given astronomical property and bribes + pictures and table”. (Aftab News Government Site – August 31, 2016)

In August 2016, the Shargh government newspaper announced the transfer of municipal property at a very high discount to some city managers, and then the site “Memari News” published the text of the letter of the National Auditor General in this regard.

The Aftab News website writes: “This letter, which was sent with the official letterhead of the National Auditor General Agency, states that these transfers are considered a violation of Article 5 of the Law on Intensification of Punishment for Bribery, Embezzlement, and Fraud… It can also be prosecuted in accordance with Article 13 of the Administrative Health Promotion System Law. The website of Memari News also wrote: “The report published by the National Auditor General Agency has no confidentiality and is not classified as a classified document and is not prohibited by law from the publication of unclassified documents.” (The same source)

Surprisingly, instead of arresting Qalibaf and bringing him to trial, Khamenei’s judiciary arrested the editor of the Memari News website for publishing the letter from the Auditor General with the complaint about Qalibaf!

“Yashar Soltani, the editor-in-chief of the Memari News website, was summoned to court by the complaint of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf and Mehdi Chamran and sent to prison. The Memari News site also became unavailable. (Zaytoun Government Site – September 19, 2016) 

What has been said above is just a part of the corrupt and treacherous record of this revolutionary guard of the repressive clerical regime, but no doubt the day after the overthrow of this medieval regime, when the cases are opened, more horrific crimes will be exposed. In any case, one can describe this commander of embezzlement and repression as follows:

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, a man devoid of any honor and humanity, has a strong smell of corruption and crime.

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