Stop Fundamentalism – Iranian state-run news agencies have announced that from now on, security forces are allowed to inspect cell phones in public streets.
This is according to a new law endorsed by “Department of Preventing and Combating Crimes!!!†in Eastern Azerbaijani province in Iran.
Reza Shafa
Associated Press, on Friday published a report of "hit squads" being trained in four Iranian cities – quoting a US intelligence officer- by both the Qods Force and Lebanese Hezbollah. It is good news that the mullahs’ plans to export well trained terrorists — the US army called them "special group criminals" – to Iraq for carrying out a variety of terrorist operations are exposed.
Ali Safavi
The news of a senior U.S. envoy at the Geneva talks with Iranian negotiators could hardly count as a "groundbreaking policy shift" capable of ending the nuclear row with Tehran. Only a week after the talks, the Iranian regime raised the stakes by trumpeting the expansion of its enrichment program, underscoring the futility of the diplomatic push before it even got off the ground. This was another sad outcome of a profoundly counterproductive and inconsistent three-decade-old policy, which, if continued unabated by the West, has all the makings of a potential catastrophe an Iran bomb or a bombing of Iran.
Stop Fundamentalism, June 24, 2008 – Two students took their own lives when severely pressured by the security forces in northern city of Lahijan and southeastern city of Zahedan.
A female student whose identity was not disclosed commit suicide when she was called to the security office in Lahijan University. The student apparently jumped off the 4th floor suite where the office is located. She pronounced dead immediately after the fall.
In a separate but related incident another student took his life by taking an overdose of prescription drugs in the southeastern city of Zahedan in the troubled Sistan and Baluchistan Province.
Reza Shafa
Ali Larijani, long time mullahs’ top negotiator in the nuclear stand-off with the West and former representative of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s in the regime’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), has now been elevated to the Majlis’ (parliament) new speaker. Larijani himself a veteran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander has a habit of working with his own team of security cronies since he headed the state television.
Iran – Honor killing claims life of 17-year-old girl
Stop Fundamentalism – A man identified as Ahmad (53) killed his 17 years old daughter, identified as Farzaneh, on May 7, in the central city Isfahan, reported several Iranian newspapers.
Farzaneh was kidnapped earlier and was held captive by her brother-in-law, for ten days, the father told reporters. In order to save the family’s honor, he then decided to take her life.
“After talking to Farzaneh, she said that she would rather die,†Said Ahmad.
The 53 years old man told a more detailed version of the story to the reporters later.
By Philip Giraldi
Global Research, May 11, 2008 – There is considerable speculation and buzz in Washington today suggesting that the National Security Council has agreed in principle to proceed with plans to attack an Iranian al-Qods-run camp that is believed to be training Iraqi militants. The camp that will be targeted is one of several located near Tehran. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates was the only senior official urging delay in taking any offensive action.
The decision to go ahead with plans to attack Iran is the direct result of concerns being expressed over the deteriorating situation in Lebanon, where Iranian ally Hezbollah appears to have gained the upper hand against government forces and might be able to dominate the fractious political situation. The White House contacted the Iranian government directly yesterday through a channel provided by the leadership of the Kurdish region in Iraq, which has traditionally had close ties to Tehran.
NCRI- Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) official weekly Sobh-e-Sadeq published a recent interview with Brig. Gen. Yadollah Javani, political chief of the IRGC on its philosophy of existence. The weekly quoted him as saying that “the IRGC is the arm of the supreme leader,” Ali Khamenei and the Iranian regime’s “future is tied to that of the IRGC’s.”
He stressed that the “IRGC’s policy is nothing but that of the leader’s” and the IRGC “must follow the line of Velayat-e Faqih [absolute clerical supremacy].”
Goesta Groenroos
In the past, media coverage of elections in Iran has mostly been geared towards the process and the results giving the impression that the Islamic Republic was a kind of democracy. At last, the reality has paved its way to the head lines. The reality is that all elections in this country in fact are, and have been, cheap shams and masquerades put together by a few unelected clerics running the country in order to accomplish two objectives. First, to disarm growing demands by the Iranian people as well as the international community for establishing democratic rule in Iran. Second, to purge some unwanted elements in the internal power struggle. Therefore, no democratic minded person should use the term "parliamentary elections" for the attempts of the clerics to legitimize their never ending greed for power. In fact the real power has always remained firmly in the hands of the clerics, led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Khomeini’s successor as the Supreme Leader.
Nima Sharif
Right around this time every year, Iranians start preparing for their new year celebrations (No Rooz) which is on 21 March. The festivity, observing the end of winter and beginning of spring and the Persian traditional New Year, celebrates life and brings joy and happiness to Iranian homes and it also brings a lot of shopping crowd to the streets.
That was not the case last Friday.
Considering the fact that Friday is weekend in Iran and at a time just a week away from No Rooz, the streets of Tehran and other cities were unusually quiet.
Where was everyone?
On Friday 14 March, the Iranian regime, once again devised a parliamentary (Majlis) election. Far from any real democratic election norms that you may have in mind, the candidates were actually hand picked by the ruling clergy in advance of the election.
