hj

Tehran Friday's prayer was a throng of warnings to elections protesters who have used every opportunity to demonstrate and express their protest to Ahmadinejad's government which they believe stands on the shoulders of a fraudulently elected president.

Ayatollah Janati, a staunch hardliner led Tehran's Friday prayers reminding the crowd of what became of the members of People's Mojahedin of Iran, the opposition group which was heavily suppressed in the first years of the Islamic Republic in Iran and went on to continue their struggles against the Islamic Republic from within Iraq during the Iran-Iraq war.

Ayatollah Janati warned protesters that "fighting the system" will "cost them heavily" and result in their "homelessness."

A considerable group of People's Mojahedin ended up staying on in Iraq and living in a camp which used to be under US jurisdiction. The camp is now under threats from the current Iraqi government that wants to deport the inhabitants to Iran.

Ayatollah Janati emphasized that "those who betray the Revolution and the system will face retribution."

Numerous People's Mojahedin members were executed and sentenced to heavy prison terms in the first decade of the Islamic Republic.

Ayatollah Janati accused protesters of ties to the US and maintained that certain people who used to be followers of Ayatollah Khomeini, the leader of the Revolution, have now joined "the enemy's front."

Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, the two disputing candidates of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election both had close ties to Ayatollah Khomeini. They maintain that the current policies of the government are in complete contradiction of the leader of the Revolution's teaching and demand a return to the provisions of the constitution.

Ayatollah Janati also criticized opposition's objections to Basij's role in recent crackdown on protesters. Opposition forces cite Ayatollah Khomeini's direction and the constitution's provision that the armed forces are not allowed to interfere in political affairs.

Basij militia is a volunteer force under the supervision of the Revolutionary Guards. Ayatollah Janati claimed: "How can Muslims be indifferent to issues such as the elections and protecting the country?"

In conclusion Ayatollah Janati also warned students to act in a way that the "martyrs" would be pleased with them and not the US.

Numerous university groups and activists have announced that on December 7, National Students Day, they will re-affirm their protests to the "fraud" in the elections. Iranian universities nationwide have seen numerous protests against Ahmadinejad government in the past months.

d

• برای مشاهده آنچه در خیابانهای ایران در شانزده آذر رخ میدهد همینجا و همین صفحه را در روز دانشجو، هر لحضه به روز کنید
• شما در روز شانزده آذر میتوانید به صورت زنده و لحظه به لحضه این صفحه را رفرش کنید و آخرین وضعیت خیابانهای سراسر ایران را دریافت کنید
• این صفحه را به دوستان و آشنایان خود معرفی کنید
• گزارشهای این صفحه اختصاصی و هرگونه استفاده از مطالب آن با ذکر منبع آزاد میباشد
• برای همکاری با خبرنگاران ما با ما تماس بگیرید
• هرگونه منبع خبری موثق را برای گزارش در بخش کامنتهای این صفحه پست کنید
• فعالیت این وبسایت و خبرنگاران آن وابسته به هیچ حزب،سازمان و خبرگزاری دولتی و غیر دولتی نیست
• مطالب این صفحه به دو زبان انگلیسی و فارسی در روز شانزده آذر{دانشجو} به روز خواهد شد
• این صدای زنده زنده مردم ایران است،آن را به گوش جهانیان برسانیم

d

d

Putin says Russia has no proof of Iran nuclear bomb

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama urged corporate America on Thursday to help tackle the nation's highest unemployment in 26 years but also hinted at federal tax credits and aid to states to ease jobless woes.

Barack Obama | Small Business | Economy

"There's no question that it is difficult out there right now, but we also heard some exciting ideas and proposals for how we can spur hiring," he told business and labor leaders summoned to a White House job creation brainstorming forum.

Obama hosted the event, which critics dismissed as a publicity stunt, after U.S. unemployment hit a 26-year high of 10.2 percent in October, chipping away at his popularity and potentially shaping his political future.

"Despite the progress we've made, many businesses are still skittish about hiring," he said, acknowledging that although growth had resumed, the labor market was lagging behind.

November's unemployment report is due on Friday and a Reuters poll of analysts expect the rate to show no change.

The numbers will provide a sobering backdrop for Obama as he takes his message to Allentown, Pennsylvania, capping a crucial week for the president who also announced a major escalation in the Afghan war.

Allentown, which Obama said was the kind of place "where the rubber hits the road" in the struggles of a weak economy, is the first stop on a "White House to Main Street" tour the president will make to try to reassure Americans.

He will also deliver a speech about the economy on Tuesday at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington, as his administration weighs its options to lift employment.

Economic anxiety as the country struggles out of the worst recession in 70 years could hurt his Democratic Party in next November congressional elections, and dim Obama's own prospects for a second term in office.

Recent opinion polls show his approval ratings have slipped to about 50 percent, partly because of the economy.

"This White House 'jobs summit' is just another example of President Obama's PR presidency, where he stages photo-ops and events to distract citizens and the media from his administration's failures," said Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee.

TAX CREDIT

Obama does not want to add to the country's record budget deficit, effectively ruling out significantly more public spending on top of a $787 billion stimulus package he signed in February.

But he sounded open to some proposals that might come with a public price tag attached, saying tax credits to encourage hiring was "an idea I think is worthy of further consideration."

Obama also nodded to the prospect of providing additional federal aid to cash-strapped states, to help them avoid laying off public workers like teachers and firefighters in order to balance their budgets, as most are required to do by law.

"As tough as this financial crisis and recession has been on the federal budget, it has in some cases been worse on state and local budgets," Obama said.

"The last thing we would want to do in the midst of what is a weak recovery is us to essentially take more money out of the system either by raising taxes or by drastically slashing spending," he added.

Some of the proposals will yield "immediate" White House action and, potentially, legislation, he said.

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, said separately that unspent money from a $700 billion bank bailout might be used for job creation.

But some people argue the money should be used on deficit reduction and it is not clear what the White House will decide.

Obama said he would only consider responsible ideas that took account of the country's limited resources and stressed government could only do so much for the economy.

"We don't have enough public dollars to fill the hole of private dollars that was created as a consequence of the crisis," he said, referring to the financial market meltdown last year that significantly intensified the recession.

The White House is looking at ways to encourage private money now sitting on the sidelines to commit to infrastructure projects, even if those tend to yield long-term results rather than a speedy jolt to jobs, Obama said.

He has made clear any action must not alarm investors by adding significantly to the country's $1.4 trillion deficit, from fear they start shunning dollars and force up long-term borrowing costs, which could undermine an economic recovery.

"We've got about as difficult a economic play as is possible, which is to press the accelerator in terms of job growth, but then know when to apply the brakes in the out-years and do that credibly," he said, referring to long-term U.S. budget projections.

(Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick, Caren Bohan, Patricia Zengerle, Jeff Mason, Doug Palmer, Andrew Sullivan, John Poirier and Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Bill Trott)

h

TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (Mehr News Agency) -- Bahram Beizaii's "Bashu, the Little Stranger" was announced as the best film at the International Parvin Etesami Film Festival.

The acclaimed film, which narrates the story of a boy who escapes from his hometown in the Iran-Iraq war-stricken region of the south where a Gilani woman gives him shelter, won a Golden Parvin Award for its accurate reflection of women's social roles.

Film make-up artist Mehri Shirazi and film editor Hayedeh Safiyari were also awarded with Golden Parvin Awards for their lifetime achievements in Iranian cinema.

According to the Mehr News Agency, the winners were announced Saturday during a ceremony at Tehran's Andisheh Hall, which was attended by several artists including Khosro Sinaii, Bahram Beizaii, Farah Osuli, Hooman Seyyedi and Kamal Tabrizi.

Following is the list of winners of the International Section:

Best Feature Film "A Dress for Sadaf" by Maryam Sadeqi (Iran)

Best Documentary Film: "Where Is My House?" by Catherine Gholami (Iran)

Best Experimental Film: Laila Pakalnina "Silence" (Latvia)

Best Animation: "Hokus-Pokus" by Anna Samoylovich (Germany)

* Golden Lotus Awards category:

Best Film: "All My Paraphernalia Is Dislocated" by Hooman Seyyedi

Best Feature Film: "Snowy Dreams" by Salem Salavati

Best Documentary Film: Khatereh Hanachi "Count Down"

Best Experimental Film" Zahra Salimi "It Was Winter"

Especial Jury Award: Anahita Qazvinizadeh "The Wind Blows Wherever It Wants"

* Silver Lotus Awards category:

Best Director: Pupak Mozaffari "The Third Class"

Best Screenplay: Nahid and Sepideh Shams "I Live with My Fingers"

Best Editor: Fereshteh Mollajan "The Night Symphony"

Best Actress: Hasti Mohammaii "The Night Symphony"

Best Cameraman: Rita Ebrahimi "The Sky Is Mine" and "Count Down"

The festival, named in memory of the Iranian female poet Parvin Etesami, was held at the Mellat Cinematic Complex and Iranian Artists Forum from November 22 to 27.

A total of 41 foreign films from 20 countries competed in the International Section of the event. National section jury members Shadmehr Rastin, Mohammadreza Aslani and Parivash Nazarieh chose 103 films from the 400 submitted to the gala's secretariat.

The jury members Nasser Bakideh, Kurosh Jahed and Hadi Manbti selected 41 films out of 135 movies submitted to the international section.

ا

Iran says IAEA will face consequences of decision

Press TV | Nov. 28, 2009

The UN nuclear watchdog will be the first to face the consequences of a newly-adopted resolution condemning Iran for its enrichment program, says a senior Iranian cleric.

On Friday, the governing board of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) passed a German-sponsored resolution that calls on Iran to stop uranium enrichment and immediately freeze the construction of its newly revealed Fordo nuclear facility outside Tehran.

Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami responded to the move on Saturday, asserting that Iran will never be "forced", or for that matter, "bribed" to relinquish its legal nuclear rights.

"Rather than hurting Iran, the new resolution will impair the UN nuclear watchdog and Security Council," he said in a ceremony marking the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha (the Feast of the Sacrifice).

Khatami said Western countries are obligated "under law" to provide Tehran with the fuel it needs for the Tehran research reactor.

"If they fail to do so, Iran is well able to produce its own enriched uranium in order to keep the Tehran research reactor up and running," he said.

MP says Iran should end IAEA membership

Tabnak | Nov. 28, 2009

If the UN nuclear watchdog member-states persist in bullying, Iran may withdraw from IAEA membership, said the deputy head of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission.

"If the powerful members of the IAEA continue with their bullying and with their illogical behavior, Majlis will exercise its right to review and decide on discontinuing Iran's IAEA membership," Mohammad-Esmail Kosary told the Islamic Student News Agency.

Kosary went on to criticize the U.S. and some of the Europeans for their decisions, saying that it "indicated they were under pressure from the Zionist lobby."

"In the Geneva talks they agreed to make the Iranian proposed deal the focus of negotiations and they did and it was agreed that further talks would be held but not only did they walk away from talks, they also showed their instability in decision-making by passing the recent resolution against Iran," he said. "As we have said before, we will continue with our activities legally and within the framework of the NPT and no changes will be made to our policies."

Kosary went on to say that by voting on the resolution. the UN nuclear agency had violated NPT regulations. "Given that 10 countries did not vote for the resolution, it is clear that the agency has not reached a consensus on the matter and therefore the resolution is unacceptable," he added.

Referring to the Russian and Chinese votes against Iran, Kosary said, "Our main motto is 'No to the East, and No t o the West,' and with this principal view, we will not make any concessions [in the face of deceitful behavior]; therefore, if Russia and China do not make the right decisions on Iran, we will treat them accordingly."

Parliament to discuss future of Iran-IAEA cooperation

Press TV | Nov. 28, 2009

As Iran's Parliament (Majlis) prepares to discuss a recently-passed IAEA resolution against Tehran, uncertainty surrounds the future of the country's cooperation with the nuclear watchdog.

"Currently we don't see any reason to limit our cooperation with the agency," a leading member of the Iranian Parliament, Hossein Ebrahimi said on Saturday.

"We may, however, consider reducing our cooperation with the IAEA," the member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee added.

Another member of the commission expressed similar sentiments, saying that the Parliament may go as far as to "consider withdrawing from the NPT, in its first reaction to the illegal and politically-motivated resolution."

Furthermore, the Parliament "can prevent IAEA inspectors from entering the country,'' Mohammad Karamirad who represents the western Iranian city of Kermanshah added.

The resolution, which was drafted by the P5+1 and passed in a 25-3 vote with six abstentions, urges Iran to clarify what it calls the purpose and the chronology of the plant's construction. It also wants Iran to confirm it has no more hidden nuclear plants and no intentions whatsoever to build one.

Iran's envoy to the UN nuclear watchdog, Ali Asghar Soltaniyeh, has warned that the resolution passed against the country's nuclear work will only introduce tension to the "spirit of cooperation."

"We expect the agency to play its essential role and facilitate technical cooperation ... this environment of the agency should be depoliticized for we have to make sure that the agency will only focus on technical matters," he said on Friday.

Iran not to be bullied by language of threat: IRGC

Press TV | Nov. 28, 2009

Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Mohammad-Ali Jafari says threats and military action against Iran are the language of a bygone era.

"The era of threatening Iran with force is over, especially at a time when the majority of Iranians are willing to defend the Revolution and their country," the Major General told a gathering in the southwestern city of Shiraz.

These intimidation techniques, Jafari continued, "even failed at the height of the nuclear issue, and now Iran is standing firm despite economic, political and cultural pressures."

US President Barack Obama recently warned the Islamic Republic of "consequences," should Tehran refuse to accept the IAEA-backed proposal on a nuclear fuel deal.

Gen. Safavi: Enemy seeks to cause disunity

Asr Iran | Nov. 28, 2009

An aide to the Iranian commander-in-chief and Supreme Leader warned Basijis to remain vigilant in the face of the enemy's soft war tactics which aim to undermine national unity and provoke sedition.

Speaking on the occasion of "Basij week" in Tehran, Brigadier General Seyyed Yahya Rahim-Safavi said that the Basij's vigilance was the source of "the Islamic Republic's strength in the face of yesterday, today and tomorrow's enemies."

"Using media outlets and soft war [tactics] the enemy seeks to bring others to their knees and force them to submit to its will. They seek to change our desires according to their taste."

"The enemy seeks to create sedition and thereby undermine our national unity and use the rift created to spread disunity and suspicion in our society," he said.

Tehran's response to IAEA resolution

Tabnak | Nov. 28, 2009

Iran will not yield to pressure, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said in reaction to the new IAEA resolution against Iran, according to Iran's semi-official news agency.

"Under the present circumstances, when the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic, one of the credible members of the UN [nuclear] agency, has been repeatedly inspected [by the IAEA], and the non-diversion of the program toward military objectives has been testified to by IAEA inspectors, this resolution is but a test for independent and non-aligned countries to show how to go about ensuring their interests," Mehr News Agency quoted Ramin Mehmanparast as saying.

"If our basic rights, granted under the statute of the agency as a signatory to the NPT [Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty], are not preserved, there will be no need for us to commit to our obligations to the agency even though we will continue to remain an IAEA member," he went on to say.

He added that the IAEA resolution, which called for a halt to the activities of the Fordo nuclear plant, which is under construction, was a sham intended to put pressure on Tehran. He stressed that such measures would be ineffective.

Venezuelan students staged demonstration against Ahmadinejad

Asr Iran | Nov. 26, 2009

A number of Venezuelan students demonstrated against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the Latin American country.

According to Venezuelan media, the demonstration was held outside Ahmadinejad's hotel in Caracas.

Tabnak | Nov. 27, 2009

Of the 35 members of International Atomic Energy Agency board of governors, 25 voted in favor of the suspension of the Fordo nuclear plant's activities, three voted nay and six abstained from vote.

The nay votes belonged to Malaysia, Venezuela and Cuba.

The six countries that abstained were Afghanistan, Brazil, Egypt, Pakistan, South Africa and Turkey.

Azerbaijan left the hall as voting commenced.

The countries that voted in favor of the suspension of the Fordo plant include: 1. Argentina; 2. Australia; 3. Burkina Faso; 4. Cameron; 5. Canada; 6. China; 7. Denmark; 8. France; 9. Germany; 10. India; 11. Japan; 12. Kenya; 13. South Korea; 14. Mongolia; 15. The Netherlands; 16. New Zealand; 17. Peru; 18. Romania; 19. Russia; 20. Spain; 21. Switzerland; 22. Ukraine; 23. UK; 24. US; 25. Uruguay.

Related: Background Briefing with Senior U.S. Administration Officials on IAEA Board of Governors' Resolution on Iran."

Official calls for trial of opposition leaders

Fars | Nov. 27, 2009

One of the legal experts serving on the Guardian Council called for the immediate trial of the post-election opposition leaders, saying it has been postponed long enough.

"It is already too late for the trial of the post-election heads of sedition, as if they had been tried sooner we would not be in this situation today... this has no legal justification, " Fars News Agency quoted Gholam-Hossein Elham as saying.

"We gave everyone the chance to present themselves [to the public] in the recent election and they [opposition figures] can make no claims because they were given a chance and they used every campaigning opportunity and they were not under financial supervision," he said.

"Any one of the candidates who had won enough votes could have become the president but before the vote was over they [Mir-Hossein Mousavi] proclaimed themselves as the winner of the race... the people participated in the election and there were monitors but even before the votes were counted they announced that if we are not the winner, there has been fraud and this marked the beginning of sedition... They hurled the greatest insult at the nation by questioning [Ahmadinejad's] provincial tours and asking why the debates were held in that manner."

"The efficiency of an establishment is judged by the services it renders to the people and this is why the people, who witnessed the proficiency of the 9th government, voted for it again."

White House Praises IAEA Rebuke Of Iran

ABC News | Nov. 27, 2009

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said today's "overwhelming vote" by the International Atomic Energy Agency condemning Iran for its secret uranium enrichment plant reflects international resolve that Iran be more transparent in its nuclear pursuits.

The U.N. nuclear watchdog voted 25 to 3, with backing from Russia and China, to pass the resolution, which also urged Iran to immediately freeze nuclear enrichment activity at the Fordow enrichment facility.

"The fact that 25 countries from all parts of the world cast their votes in favor shows the urgent need for Iran to address the growing international deficit of confidence in its intentions," Gibbs said in a statement.

The vote also seemed to indicate international frustration with Iran's apparent about-face on a draft agreement with the IAEA in which Iran would have parted with its enriched uranium in exchange for fuel for a medical nuclear reactor.

Diplomats: Iran censured at UN nuclear meeting

AP | Nov. 27, 2009

The U.N. nuclear watchdog's board censured Iran on Friday, with 25 nations backing a resolution demanding that Tehran immediately freeze construction of its newly revealed nuclear facility and heed Security Council resolutions to stop uranium enrichment.

Iran remained defiant, with its chief representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency declaring that his country would resist "pressure, resolutions, sanction(s) and threat of military attack."

Delegate Ali Asghar Soltanieh of Iran shrugged off the vote.

"Neither resolutions of the board of governors nor those of the United Nations Security Council ... neither sanctions nor the threat of military attacks can interrupt peaceful nuclear activities in Iran, even a second," he told the closed-door meeting, in remarks made available to reporters.

Iran defends its freezing of Nobel Laureate's assets

NYT | Nov. 27, 2009

Iran denounced Friday charges by Norwegian government that it had illegally confiscated the a Nobel Peace Prize winner's medal and frozen her bank account, the IRNA news agency reported. Iran called the action an interference into its internal affairs and said the winner, Shirin Ebadi, owed money to the government in taxes.

"We are surprised that Norwegian officials can make such hasty and biased comments and disregard the laws and regulations of other countries," a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, was quoted as saying, adding that Ms. Ebadi, a human rights lawyer, had refused to pay taxes on her prize.

Ebadi: Iran 'lying' over Nobel prize medal

AFP | Nov. 27, 2009

Iranian rights activist Shirin Ebadi on Friday insisted Tehran had confiscated her Nobel Peace Prize medal and rejected accusations about her tax affairs after her assets were frozen.

"They are not telling the truth," Ebadi told BBC World Service radio in an interview in London. "They seized my bank account and stopped my retirement pension and also my husband's bank account and pension.

"My husband also had a deposit box in the bank and in that was my Nobel Prize and the medal of the Legion d'Honneur," she said, referring to France's top honour.

Speaking through a translator, she added: "The Nobel Prize was in the deposit box in Tejarat bank and they seized that deposit box."

"Assuming they are telling the truth and I have to pay tax on this prize, why have they confiscated and seized the box belonging to my husband?

"Besides, the order to seize our bank accounts should have come from the tax authorities and the order to seize the box came from the Revolutionary Court."

It is the first time in Nobel history that a medal has been confiscated.

"If the Islamic republic is angry about the publication of human rights reports, they would do better by improving the human rights situation," she told the US-funded radio station.

Clip of the Day

Even though this is Ahmadinejad's fourth visit to Venezuela, authorities welcome him with Shah's Imperial National Anthem

Shah-era anthem broadcast on state TV

Norooz | Nov. 26, 2009

Three decades after the Islamic Revolution in Iran, the Pahlavi-era national anthem played in Venezuela to greet the Iranian president.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad displayed no reaction to the diplomatic blunder and instead marched in tune with the anthem.

The ceremony was broadcast live on IRIB. In the video footage of the incident, the presenter's voice is heard saying, "This is the fourth visit by our president to Venezuela; the Venezuelan president visited Iran on August..."

After the incident, the pro-government Khabar Online website ran a story which said, "Following the live broadcast of Ahmadinejad's welcoming ceremony in Venezuela from INN [Iranian News Network] rumors began to circulate that the Pahlavi-era anthem was played at the ceremony. While it is obvious that the national anthem of the Islamic Republic of Iran was not played at the ceremony, it has not been confirmed that the anthem played was the Pahlavi-era one."

Hugo Chavez did not receive Ahmadinejad and the official welcoming ceremony originally scheduled for Wednesday afternoon was postponed until Thursday.

While Ahmadinejad's wife had accompanied him on the trip, she was not warmly received and was only on camera only for a few minutes.

A few stories from the last week...

Mortazavi responds to Zakani's Kahrizak allegations

Tabnak | Nov. 24, 2009

Former Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi said Ali-Reza Zakani has been inflicted with the disease to altercate with others and create tension.

"Mr. Zakani has the sickness that makes him want to create tension and pick fights with others," Fars News Agency quoted Mortazavi as saying.

Mortazavi, who is currently the deputy prosecutor general, was accused by Zakani of ordering the transfer of post-election detainees to the notorious Kahrizak Detention Center.

"I don't intend to respond to Mr. Zakani's accusations," he said. "I think the best response to him is silence and my response to him is what I have said before and of course everything that he has said [about me] is false and meaningless."

Mortazavi added that while he was serving in the capacity of deputy prosecutor general, there was a possibility of him joining the cabinet.

Mohsen Hashemi responds to Zakani allegations

Tabnak | Nov. 24, 2009

The son of influential cleric Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani responded to accusations made against the Rafsanjani family by Tehran MP Ali Reza Zakani.

According to the Islamic Student News Agency, Mohsen Hashemi wrote in the letter, "I read your recent remarks made at the "Sedition and Outcome" summit for the student Basij of Imam Sadeq University and I was surprised that a person, such as yourself, who upholds religious piety, made such statements that are against ethical and religious principals and in violation of the Leadership's order to not make allegations about the
Hashemi family until they are proven in a court of law and before the charges have been heard in court."

Mohsen Hashemi rejected having ever been subjected to legal prosecution or having been tried for corruption. He rejected having been summoned by the judiciary and denied that lawsuits had been filed against his brother in more than ten years.

"Unfortunately, our complaints have not been dealt with so far and we have not been provided with airtime to respond to the allegations raised against us on state television. Even the letter sent to the judiciary chief to request a probe into the allegations made against rumors circulating about us remains unanswered," the letter stated.

Elham: Hamshahri ban pleased all Iranians

Parlemann | Nov. 24, 2009

Gholam-Hossein Elham, one of the legal experts on the Guardian Council, said that Iranians were pleased with the ban on the popular Hamshahri daily.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of Ali Kordan's funeral, Elham said, "This was not the first time that Hamshahri violated the law. It had committed such follies in the past."

"People are happy with the ban on this daily," he opined.

Meanwhile, the editor-in-chief of the popular daily told reporters, "in one of the ads published in Hamshahri there was a picture of a building that according to the Media Supervisory Committee belongs to the Baha'i sect."

"This picture had been used by other newspapers such as Khorshid (Sun) and Iran but they were never reprimanded for it," he said.

Rahimi says ruthless behavior let Kordan to death

Tabnak | Nov. 24, 2009

First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi said the treatment Ali Kordan received was the reason for his untimely demise.

When asked if Kordan was a chemically-wounded veteran of war [in the 1980s] and had achieved martyrdom through his death, Rahimi said, "This is up to the Foundation of the Martyrs [of the Islamic Revolution] to decide, and they must look into the matter and pass a verdict."

"Apparently when Mr. Kordan visited Piranshahr after the chemical bombardment of the city by Iraq, he came into contact with chemical compounds. I should note that even we, who were his friends, were not aware of this, and he only pointed to the issue in his impeachment hearing."

Rahimi went on to say that he had realized that a number of media outlets had claimed that Kordan had been suffering from an incurable disease that led to his death.

"This is while, according to what his physician said, no traces of his previous illness were left in him and in my opinion the treatment handed to Kordan was one of the main reasons that he was forced to meet his maker in such an untimely manner," he said.

He concluded by advising all to draw upon the exemplary 'life and death of Kordan,' adding that Kordan had fallen victim to countless baseless allegations.

jh

ukg