Back to Brief on Iran
TEHRAN - Iran's judiciary on Wednesday bore down on four students and a professor charged with insults against one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest figures, assembling a special panel of Supreme Court judges and hinting it may hand down the death penalty.
Lined up along one wall of the crammed, top-floor courtroom were six senior clerics from the Supreme Court acting as advisers to Judge Saeed Mortezavi, who under Iranian law doubles as prosecutor.
Mortezavi accused the defendants of insulting the 12th Shi'ite Imam in a satirical play as part of a wider effort to undermine the nation's religious and revolutionary faith.
"The aim of this plot was to create an atmosphere that would wash away our religious values," Mortezavi said. "Our enemies want to create an inclination among the people to see religion as small and irrelevant."
He also suggested that he might apply the death penalty by referring to a case in which Khomeini had demanded death for an insult to the Prophet's daughter.
After a day-long hearing, Mortezavi
announced he would soon pronounce sentence on four of the defendants, with
an additional hearing set aside for Ahangari, editor of the campus journal.
Daily Mocks Khatami’s "Dialogue Of Civilizations", Iran Zamin News Agency, October 20
Controversy over Khatami’s Planned Trip to France, State-controlled Tehran Times, October 19
TEHRAN - … Referring to an AFP baseless report last week that President Khatami would visit France at the invitation of UNESCO, a source close to President Khatami told the TEHRAN TIMES that President Khatami’s visit is at the invitation of French President Jacques Chirac as officially announced by top French officials.
Referring to the reports of two Persian dailies, Kayhan and Resalat, he said President Khatami has not compromised the principles of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The two dailies expressed concern that President Khatami has compromised on certain issues in order not to cancel the visit.
… Analysts here are… optimistic that
France will not take any action to undermine the outcome of the visit.
"I am sure France will not allow the… Mojahedeen Khalq Organization to
hold demonstrations during Khatami’s visit…," an analyst says.
28 U.S. Senators Call For Tough Policy on Iran, Al Hayat daily , October 16
[Translated Excerpts from Arabic text]
"… The only practical concession that Indyk made to Iran was to announce new restrictions on the Iranian opposition in exile. It was apparently a gesture to demonstrate "goodwill." He said that the State Department had decided that the "National Council of Resistance" would be included for the second year in a row [sic] in the list of foreign terrorist organizations….
In contrast, 28 members of the American Senate urged the Clinton administration "not to improve ties with the Islamic government of Iran," to make more of an effort to support democracy in Iran, including support of the People’s Mojahedin Organization, and to reconsider the inclusion of the People’s Mojahedin in its list of terrorist organizations.
In their letter, the members of the Senate led by Robert Torricelli, a democratic legislator from New Jersey, and Christopher Bond, a republican lawmaker from Missouri, declared: "Now is not the time to associate ourselves with a regime that continues to subject its people to repressive and brutal practices."
They urged the administration to "look afresh toward the possibilities that exist within Iran’s democratic opposition, including the People’s Mojahedin."
The letter adds: "We believe the current US policy toward Iran should take significant steps toward supporting the goals of democracy and human rights in Iran. With the increased likelihood of instability in Iran, an effort must be made to encourage Iranian opposition forces that will help to promote long-term stability."…