Back to Brief on Iran
In response to a question raised by the correspondent of Farda daily on why the Minister had failed to defend the Islamic punishment of stoning in his Paris interviews, Ata'ollah Mohajerani [government spokesman and Minister of Guidance] said: "There is no doubt that we must all defend the Islamic decrees... As for stoning, there is a Quranic verse that says a group of faithful must be witness to it. In this regard there is a debate whether stoning should take place in full public view or whether it could be carried out in the presence of a limited number of faithfuls in a restricted area."
The Minister of Islamic Guidance pointed out: "We should keep the interests of our country in mind in an open atmosphere of international public relations. Would it be in our interest if an act of stoning is filmed and broadcast abroad? If not, we should consider carrying out the verdict in front of a small crowd of the believers in order to forestall public backlash."
Mullahs' Reaction to UN Criticism on Executions and
Stoning, Iran Zamin News Agency, April 14
Following a UN report, on April 8, denouncing the severe violations of human right by the mullahs' regime, various officials reacted to the news in their usual manner of disregard:
Jam-e Jam TV (State run satellite television network), on April 10, quoted the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as describing the report by the UNHRC as being contrary to the realities of the Islamic Republic. Mohammadi stipulated that the report by the Representative of the U.N. Human Rights Commission had ignored the Islamic rights system, and the socio-cultural structure of Islamic societies.
Tehran radio, on April 13, broadcaster the comments of the spokesman for the Judiciary Branch on the latest report by the UN Special Representative. He said that the mullahs' government expected that the report instead of being influenced by the policies of the Arrogance and Zionism, the Special Representative would have better pay attention to the realities of the Iranian society.
Pro-Montazeri Deputy Re-arrested, Jame'eh
Daily, April 9
Hojjat-ol Islam Gholam Hossein Nadi, who had been arrested last November 22, and subsequently released temporarily on bail, was re-arrested on April 5, and condemned to 30 months in prison. He is presently in jail. Nadi was the deputy from Najafabad for two terms in the Majlis. He is known for his activities in favor of Montazeri.
[Mr. Montazeri was picked by Khomeini as his successor. However, Khomeini unseated Mr. Montazeri, after he send an open letter to Khomeini, objecting to savage torture and the number of executions of Mojahedin members by the government.]
Iran Releases Jailed Tehran Mayor After Row,
Reuter, April 15
TEHRAN - Iran on Wednesday released Tehran's mayor, whose arrest on graft charges had sparked protests and a high-level row.
Iran's state television said Gholamhossein Karbaschi had been freed at the order of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
On Tuesday, the dispute spilled into the streets of Tehran when police in riot gear clashed with students demanding the release of the mayor and arrested several of them. More scuffles broke out after hardline militants disrupted a meeting held in support of the mayor at the Interior Ministry.
In an apparent example of the tension, Iran's Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Ataollah Mohajerani protested against police raids on two pro-Karbaschi newspapers.
Iran Petrochemical Spill Kills Thousands of Fish,
Reuter, April 14
TEHRAN - A truck carrying a toxic petrochemical substance plunged into a river in western Iran, killing thousands of fish, the Iranian news agency IRNA said on Tuesday.
Officials warned inhabitants of Khorammabad and surrounding areas in Lorestan province against eating fish from the Kashkan river, which was polluted by the spill, it said.