… There were anticipations of a "Tehran Spring" and hopes in Iran, as well as in Washington, that the fury of the revolution was spent. But in truth, the reformers have not prevailed. The cynical and cruel trial of 13 Iranian Jews in Shiraz on charges of spying for Israel is one expression of the impasse between the reformers and the real masters of the land–the hard-line clerics.

The trial also seems to provide an answer to the Clinton administration, which sought to test the mood of the revolution. In mid-March, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright launched "pistachio diplomacy," offering an olive branch to the would-be reformers mobilized around President Mohammad Khatami…

The truth of Iran's political life is straightforward: President Khatami reigns but does not rule… What stands in Iran today is a deadly impasse: On one side are Khatami and the vast parliamentary majority he carried in elections; on the other side is the supreme religious leader Ali Khamenei, as well as the vast clerical apparatus that controls the official media, the judiciary, the wealthy bonyads (the foundations that account for something like 20 percent of the country's economy), and the vigilante squads eager to uphold the reign of virtue and terror.

… U.S. officials may express some remorse for the overthrow of Mossadegh nearly five decades ago as contrition for the past and a gift to Iran's moderates. But the political cartography of Iran is vastly complicated. A hero to the modernists in that country, Mossadegh… was a man of secular nationalism, educated in the West. For many of the hard-liners, Mossadegh is more of an anathema than the shah… Khomeini himself, was disdainful of Mossadegh….
 

Rafsanjani No Longer Seeking MP Seat: Paper, Agence France Presse, May 10

TEHRAN - Iran's former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is no longer interested in a seat in parliament after his poor showing in February's elections, a newspaper said here Wednesday.

Iran News, an English-language daily, cited unnamed analysts saying that Rafsanjani was to give up his chase for a seat in Tehran amid an ongoing controversy about the election results.

The Council of Guardians, which must ratify all elections here, has yet to validate the results in Tehran nearly three months after voters went to the polls and handed reformists a huge majority in the legislature.

The unprecedented delay has sparked widespread speculation that the council could cancel the results from Tehran, where supporters of Khatami were credited with 29 out of 30 seats, in a bid to undermine their victory.

Rafsanjani captured the 30th seat, but only after a recount following initial results that showed he did not win a minimum 25 percent of the vote to capture one of the places, which are determined in order of ballots won.

The council, which also overturned nine seats in the provinces but has approved the rest of the vote nationwide, is in the midst of a third recount in Tehran.

Council member Gholamreza Rezvani said Monday it was unlikely the vote in the capital would be cancelled, adding that a final decision was likely to be made Wednesday.

Iran News said the Guardians would likely annul the results of between 60 and 80 ballot boxes.

Under the constitution the new parliament should hold its first session on May 28.
 

The Dangerous Cancellation Game, Bayan (State-controlled daily), May 8

… And a few words with the faction that is doing its utmost to cancel Tehran's elections and weaken or sabotage the 6th Majlis: We explicitly tell these gentlemen that they will eventually gain nothing, and even in the event of the complete success of their plans, they will entirely be eliminated from the field of the political legitimacy of the Islamic republic, even if they obtain some power temporarily.

But what is cause for concern is the danger of an increase in the vulnerability of the system...
 

Three Newspaper Bosses to Be Hauled Into Court, Agence France Presse, May 9

TEHRAN - The heads of three pro-Khatami newspapers closed in a recent crackdown on the press have been summoned to appear in court, reports said.

Former deputy culture minister Issa Saharkhiz, head of the business newspaper Akbar-Eqtesad and former director of the state news agency IRNA, told AFP he was due to testify on Wednesday.

Meanwhile Mohammad Mahdavi-Khorami, head of the Gozaresh-e-Ruz, and Fereidoun Amouzadeh-Khalili, director of Aftab-e-Emruz have also been summoned, sources said.

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