Showdown between Interior Minister and mullahs' Head of Judiciary
Power struggle expedites regime's overthrow

Yesterday's remarks by mullah Abdollah Noori, the regime's Interior Minister, against mullah Mohammad Yazdi, Head of the Judiciary, and its broadcast from the regime's television, affirm that the escalation of feuding among the mullahs has reached the point of no return.

Noori described Yazdi as "very abusive," "hysterical," "contradictory," and "a source of tension within the regime" and said "there are ambiguities [in the work of the Judiciary] which must be addressed."

Yazdi is one of the closest associates of the mullahs' leader, Ali Khamenei, and one of the few who defends his religious authority. This week at Tehran's Friday prayer, Yazdi focused his speech on Tehran's mayor and the mayors of other districts in the capital, who are associated with Khatami and had been arrested earlier.

Two days after the extensive clashes in front of the Tehran University between the regime's rival factions and the arrest of a group of Khatami's supporters, the Interior Minister implicitly questioned Khamenei for not having granted him the command of the State Security Forces. Noori urged the Judiciary to arrest those who attacked Khatami's supporters.

There are also reports of deepening crisis among various factions of the regime in Isfahan. The city is tense and clashes take place sporadically. A group of bazaar merchants in Isfahan have announced that they will stage a sit-in on Saturday.

The regime's escalating infighting particularly aggravated after the sham presidential elections which brought about a three-man leadership. Such feuding has expedited the trend of developments in favor of the Resistance and the overthrow of the regime in its entirety, longed by the Iranian people.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of IranMarch 5, 1998

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