Washington, D.C. – May 5, 2008 . . . Major stories this week included the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff warning that Iran continues to foment instability in Iraq; the Pentagon saying Iran is arming Taliban forces in Afghanistan; live coverage of President Bush’s news conference in which he criticized Iran’s nuclear program and its support for terrorist groups; the US, Russia, China, England, France and Germany meeting to talk about using carrots and sticks to prompt Iran’s compliance with UN resolutions on its nuclear program; Iran proclaiming Barbie dolls as dangerous; and interviews with Ambassador David Satterfield, the State Department’s Coordinator for Iraq, on Iranian activity in Iraq; with essayist and political commentator, Mehdi Ghassemi, on the political theory behind the Islamic government; with Georgetown University professor Mehrdad Mashayekhi about the power of civil forces in society; with human rights champion Mohammad Sharif on increased human rights violations in Iran; with attorney Saleh Nikbakht on a new definition in Iran for political crimes; with songwriter Shahyar Ghanbari on the role of today’s artist in society; with Woodrow Wilson Center Fellow Chingiz Mammadov on Azerbaijan halting a shipment of Russian nuclear material destined for Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant; with Iranian opera singer Bahram Tajabadi; with Shirzanan women’s sports magazine founder Solmaz Sharif on Iranian women and the Olympics.
News and Views April 28 reported on the news briefing held by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, on Iran’s negative influence in Iraq. He spoke about how much and just how far Iran is reaching into Iraq to foment instability and enumerated ways Iran is creating chaos there. Admiral Mullin said Iran provides support to criminal groups in the form of munitions and training and continues to kill coalition and Iraqi personnel. “First, on Iran,” he said, “I’ve been clear lately that I’m extremely concerned about what I believe to be an increasingly lethal and malign influence by that government and the Quds Force in particular in Iraq and throughout the Middle East. He said the Iranian government has failed to honor its pledge to halt such activities some months ago. “It’s plainly obvious they have not,” Admiral Mullin said. He said he believes that a third conflict in that part of the world – on top of Iraq and Afghanistan – would be extremely stressing for the US, but says no option is off the table. “I have reserve capability, particularly in our Navy and our Air Force, not just there but available globally. So it would be a mistake to think that we are out of combat capability.” The Times of London described Admiral Mullen’s statements as “an unusual public warning.”
Today’s Woman April 29 carried live President Bush’s news conference in the Rose Garden. The President blamed Congress for most of the economy’s ills, from higher energy and food costs to problems with mortgage payments and the availability of student loans. Mr. Bush also talked about Iraq, Afghanistan, Hamas, Colombia and Iran. On Iran, the President said, “And then we have an interest in sending a message to Iran, and the world for that matter, about just how destabilizing a – nuclear proliferation would be in the Middle East, and that it’s essential that we work together to enforce UN Security Council resolutions aimed at getting Iran to stop their enrichment programs. In other words, one of the things that this example shows is that these programs can exist and people don’t know about them – because the Syrians simply didn’t declare the program; they had a hidden program.” President Bush also criticized Iran for supporting groups like Hezbollah and Hamas. “Unfortunately, they’re getting help; in Syria, they get help. There [are] rumors about Iranian help. And these countries that I just named are – take, for example, Lebanon. I talked to Prime Minister [Fouad] Siniora today. Here’s a struggling democracy in the heart of the Middle East that is – whose internal politics are being influenced by Syria, Hezbollah – as a result of Iranian influence with Hezbollah – all aiming to destabilize the country, which should be a clear signal about the intents of – the intentions of groups like Hezbollah and Hamas.”
News and Views May 3 reported that Russia says six world powers concerned about Iran’s nuclear program want Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment while negotiations are under way. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Saturday that it is necessary to explain to Iran what benefits Tehran would receive if it agreed to talks. Mr. Lavrov was speaking in Moscow after meeting in London Friday with his counterparts from the United States, Britain, France, Germany and China. He said the six nations did not discuss imposing new sanctions on Iran, but they did agree to improve a package of incentives first offered to Iran in 2006. Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters in Tehran that he has warned world powers not to cross Iran's “red lines.” In the past, Tehran has described the suspension of uranium enrichment as a “red line.” The six nations have been using a mix of incentives and sanctions to try to persuade Iran to halt its enrichment program.
Roundtable with You April 29 talked with Mehrdad Mashayekhi, an Assistant Visiting Professor of Sociology at Georgetown University, about the power of civil forces in society. He believes that those who sought change in Iran through violence and forceful revolutionary methods, and the Reformists who seek change within Iran’s present government structure, both are stalled and can no longer go forward. Mr. Mashayekhi suggested a third alternative which he calls civil movements led by all sorts of groups whose rights have been violated by the government, including minorities, worker unions, students, teachers and women. Mr. Mashayekhi suggested these groups should identify their goals and objectives, as well as their rights which have been violated, and then create a civil force to pressure the government to accept changes.
VOA/PNN interviewed Chingiz Mammadov, a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, DC, about Azerbaijan halting a shipment of Russian heat insulators destined for Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant. Mr. Mammadov, who is on the faculty at Azerbaijan’s Khazar University, said stopping the shipment of nuclear material is a technical matter not really related to Iran’s nuclear issue. “These technical issues will be resolved and the shipment will be sent to Iran. The big picture is the relations between these countries and what Azerbaijan is asking.” Mr. Mammadov said Azerbaijan wants to be counted as a player in the region, and to be treated fairly, in a similar manner to Georgia. “Azerbaijan sent a resolution to the United Nations about its territorial integrity, and this whole incident goes back to the fact that it wants to be taken seriously.”
VOA/PNN May 4 interviewed human rights champion Mohammad Sharif about increased violations by officials in the Islamic Republic. Speaking by telephone from Iran, Mr. Sharif emphasized that all totalitarian systems which have not been selected by the people have failed to survive for long. VOA/PNN also spoke with attorney Saleh Nikbakht, who serves as the spokesman for the Society of Political Prisoners in Iran. Commenting on the recent development that Iran’s judiciary defines political crimes, Mr. Nikbakht said, “This announcement is stunning, particularly as you don’t frequently hear such definitions made public in closed societies by their governments.” Mr. Nikbakht said that all gatherings and the most basic of movements within political parties can now be categorized as political crimes.
VOA/PNN reported that 300 books published in accordance with guidelines from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance have been recalled from Tehran’s International Book Fair. This, of course, doesn’t even touch on the number of titles banned for having “inappropriate” pictures. Farkhondeh Haji-zadeh is a participating publisher whose books have been banned from the fair. She told PNN she strongly opposes the recall, calling the action illegal. Ms. Haji-zadeh also said, “Gossip on the street is that the banned foreign titles were put on the black list due to their governments’ poor relations with Iran.”
Late Edition’s “Youth Factor” April 28 focused on last week’s protests at Sahand University in Tabriz to protest the disrespectful treatment of female students by university authorities. The protests quickly turned political, and one protester, Reza Pakzad, told VOA/PNN that a number of the students who started a hunger strike on April 24 were sent to the hospital for care. Mr. Pakzad that there are different kinds of represent at Sahand University, including gender discrimination and separation, and sending students to disciplinary committees and courts without cause. Sahand University is one of the institutions of higher learning targeted by the government to become more “more Islamic.” Meanwhile, in Tehran, three student activists – Mohammad Hashemi, Ali Neko-Nesbati and Ali Azizi – were sent to revolutionary court again. In Ardabil, three students arrested last month are still in custody with no news about them. And in Shiraz, 1,200 students signed a petition demanding Shiraz University’s disciplinary committee stop proceedings against activists.
Late Edition reported April 28 that scores of protestors from the Pakistan-based Baloch Students Organization demonstrated in Quetta on the eve of a visit to Pakistan by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The students, who gathered in front of the Quetta Press Club, condemned the public execution of Baloch tribesmen in Iran and chanted slogans against the Iranian regime. Protesters told the local media that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards were involved in the public execution of dissident Balochis in Iran’s Sistan-Balochistan province. They alleged the Iranian government has denied them religious, linguistic and economic freedom. A militant Sunni group, Jundullah, which has its roots in Iran’s Sistan-Balochistan province, has claimed responsibility for several recent attacks on Iranian troops in the border area between Pakistan and Iran. Pakistan has arrested several Jundullah activists on charges of terrorism. Mr. Ahmadinejad arrived Monday in Islamabad for his first visit to Pakistan. He was to meet with President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, and to discuss an oil pipeline Pakistan and India are considering in order to import natural gas from Iran, as well as security issues, including worsening conditions in neighboring Afghanistan.
News and Views April 28 reported that one of Iran’s top national security officials held talks with the acting secretary of Russia’s National Security Council aimed to defuse international concerns about Tehran’s nuclear program. Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, said his talks with Russia’s Valentin Sobolev focused on what he called a package of “serious” Iranian proposals designed to minimize the nuclear threat around the world. Mr. Jalili said Iran is ready for talks with world powers, but that such discussions must respect the Islamic Republic’s growing role as a regional power. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s top investigator, Olli Heinonen, arrived in Tehran April 28 for three days of talks the IAEA says will focus on allegations Iran has researched how to make nuclear weapons. Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, insists that Mr. Heinonen’s visit is part of Tehran’s routine cooperation with the UN nuclear agency.
News and Views May 1 reported on the State Department’s annual report on terrorism in the world, which says Iran remains the most active state sponsor of terrorism and has been directly involved in planning terrorist acts in the Middle East. The State Department said elements of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps also support groups that use terrorism to advance their regional goals. In an exclusive interview with VOA/PNN, Ambassador David Satterfield, the State Department’s Coordinator for Iraq, said “Iran must establish relations with the Iraqi government -- not with the insurgents and radicals.” Mr. Satterfield also said, “Now is the time for Iran to choose the right course and path.” A delegation of Iraqi Shi’ite politicians is in Iran to discuss Tehran’s alleged support of Shi’ite militias in Iraq. AFP said they want to meet and talk with Muqtada Sadr, but AP reported that they have already met with Kazem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force that also operates in Iraq, with plans to meet with him again as well as meeting with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
News and Views May 1 reported that senior US military officials say there is new evidence that Iran is continuing to supply weapons and other material to Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. The Chief of Operations for US Senior Military staff, Lieutenant General Carter Ham made the comments to reporters late Wednesday. He said the evidence does not suggest Iran is supporting the Taliban at the same level it has supported insurgents in Iraq. General Ham spoke as two US aircraft carrier strike groups are in the Persian Gulf in what has been called an unusual display of American military power in the region. General Ham said it’s not so extraordinary to have two carriers in one CENTCOM area of responsibility. “The message of commitment to the region is one that we think is important but it’s not intended to be anything more than that. It is a message to all nations that the United States possesses the capability and the will to operate globally.” Meanwhile, Dell L. Dailey, Coordinator of the State Department’s Office for Counterterrorism, said Iran’s backing of Iraqi insurgents and Taliban forces is a shrewd tactic to keep US-led forces under pressure. “The last thing I would suspect that the Iranians want,” he said, “is a totally pacified Afghanistan with a US base on their immediate eastern side.”
Roundtable with You May 4 examined the political theory behind the Islamic government with essayist and political commentator, Mehdi Ghassemi. Mr. Ghassemi said although Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lacks the charisma of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, he has been able to align himself with powerbrokers within the Islamic regime and maintain his position. “Right now, those who wield power are the Revolutionary Guard leaders and they have made a calculation that it’s to their advantage to support Khamenei as the leader. Khamenei has in turn given them his backing,” he said. “These military leaders were idealistic in the early days of the revolution, but are now accustomed to being in power and are unwilling to give up the perks that come with this power.” In discussing the concept of the supreme rule of the religious jurisprudent, Mr. Ghassemi said it was a national affront to the moral conscience of all Iranians to be governed by a system that claims it has a divine right to rule and with no accountability to the people of Iran. “In effect,” he said, “the Supreme Leader’s claim to power is that 70 million Iranians are minors and he as their guardian have to rule over them,” he said. Mr. Ghassemi said Iran’s salvation will only be through a total separation of religion and state. “This would protect religion from the wiliness and intrigue of politics. The Islamic system of government has brought to Iran the twin-brothers of despotism and corruption.”
VOA/PNN interviewed prominent Iranian political analyst Dariush Homayoun following the second-round of parliamentary elections. Up to five people were killed in the western province of Ilam on April 25 when supporters of a candidate for parliament protested in front of a town hall against rumors of election fraud. Mr. Homayoun said confusion and chaos characterize the Islamic regime, adding that “the peaceful process of social movements inside Iran should continue.”
News and Views April 28 reported on the ongoing violence in Iraq, with the US military saying American and Iraqi troops have killed 38 militants in Baghdad, including 22 during an attack by fighters on an Iraqi checkpoint in the city’s northeast. A military statement said troops repelled an attack on the evening of April 27 on an Iraqi Security Force checkpoint by 22 “criminals” using small arms fire. The statement said there were no US or ISF casualties in the attack. In another development, representatives of Iraq’s main ethnic groups have concluded three days of talks in Finland, where they studied the reconciliation process in other countries. Organizers of the event, which ended Sunday, said it brought together Shi’ite and Sunni Arabs as well as Kurds with the goal of ending the violence in Iraq. Meanwhile, in Tehran, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said that a claim by Britain’s Sunday Times newspaper that five British hostages kidnapped in Iraq almost a year ago are being held in Iran by Revolutionary Guards was “untrue.”
News and Views May 4 reported US and Iraq forces killed 14 insurgents during clashes in Baghdad’s Sadr City district since Friday. The US military says the insurgents were killed in a series of ground battles and air strikes. On Saturday, the US fired missiles into Sadr City in an attack on what the military called an insurgent command and control center. News reports say at least 25 people were wounded in the attack. The area’s main hospital was also damaged in the strike, which shattered windows and destroyed ambulances. A small building near the hospital was demolished. Also Saturday, a delegation of Iraqi officials returned from a visit to Iran, where they discussed Tehran’s alleged support of Shi’ite militias in Iraq. A spokesman for the delegation (deputy parliament speaker Khalid al-Atiyah) said Iranian officials had agreed to work with the Iraqi government to re-establish security in the country.
News and Views April 29 reported that 28 militants were killed in fighting between Shi’ite militiamen and US and Iraqi forces in the Sadr City area of east Baghdad. A US military spokesman said at least four US soldiers were wounded in the clashes. In another development, Iraq’s former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz went on trial on charges related to the execution of 42 businessmen in 1992. Mr. Aziz became internationally known as Saddam Hussein’s defender and fierce America critic after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait and the 1991 Gulf War. He later was promoted to deputy prime minister and often represented Iraq at the United Nations and other international forums. Mr. Aziz has been held for five years without charge and is said to be in poor health.
News and Views May 1 reported a car bomb exploded in a Baghdad commercial district, killing nine people and wounding about 20 others. Police said the bomb went off Thursday morning in eastern Baghdad as a US military patrol passed through the area. In other violence, Iraqi officials say fighting in Baghdad's Sadr City district has killed eight people since late Wednesday. Baghdad has seen a rise in violence since late March, when Iraqi and US forces increased operations against Shi’ite militants in Sadr City. The district is a stronghold of radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. The US military in Iraq said April was its deadliest month since last September, with 51 troops killed, more than half of them in Baghdad. A Baghdad security official says the fighting in Sadr City has killed 925 people and wounded 2,600 others. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has vowed to disarm militias by force and disband al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army, Sunni insurgent groups and al-Qaeda in Iraq.
News and Views April 30 reported that US military officials say five suspected insurgents dressed in Iraqi uniforms attacked the home of a human rights worker, killing two people and injuring two others. The military said the insurgents attacked the home with small arms fire. The human rights worker was killed as well as an Iraqi soldier who lived in the neighborhood. Two Iraqi citizens were injured. The military also said two US soldiers were killed in separate incidents. One soldier died when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device. The other was killed when he was attacked by insurgents in northwestern Baghdad. Earlier, the military said 28 militants were killed in fighting between Shi’ite militiamen and US and Iraqi forces in the Sadr City area of east Baghdad. In another development, a court in Iraq began on April 29 to hear the case against Tariq Aziz, one of Saddam Hussein’s best-known lieutenants, over charges of allegedly ordering the execution of dozens of merchants for profiteering. Mr. Aziz is one of eight defendants accused of executing the 42 merchants in 1992. He denies the charges.
News and Views April 29 reported that top Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili said Tehran will soon unveil a proposal that will help assure the international community that Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful. “We will present our package of proposals in the near future,” Mr. Jalili said. “And we are ready to talk and negotiate with those powers that can be influential on this issue and can agree with this approach.” Mr. Jalili was talking with reporters at a joint news conference with Deputy Secretary of Russia’s Security Council, Valentin Sobolev. Mr. Sobolev also met with the head of Iran’s nuclear organization, Gholamreza Aghazadeh, who said the Iranian proposals will be handed to Russia first and then to other countries. Iranian officials also met with Olli Heinonen, the deputy chief of the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. “We have a very transparent program and we believe that the problems have been resolved,” Mr. Aghazadeh said.
News and Views April 29 reported that the beginning of two weeks of talks in Geneva on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty were marred by a clash between Iran and Syria with the West over accusations of non-peaceful nuclear activity in both countries. Speaking for the European Union, Slovenian Ambassador Andrej Logar said, “The EU is resolved not to allow Iran to acquire military nuclear capabilities and to remove any proliferation risks posed by the Iranian nuclear program.” Iran, which was not slated to speak, took the floor to blast the EU for “lengthy and exaggerated allegations that distort the truth” about Iran’s enrichment campaign. Britain is scheduled to host six-power talks on Iran’s nuclear stand-off with the West on May 2. Meanwhile, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad criticized Iran’s role in Iraq in a UN Security Council Meeting. “You heard us highlight the unhelpful role, particularly of some of the neighbors, especially Iran,” he said, “and that we regard those actions, arming, training, and supplying funds to militia elements, criminal elements to attack coalition forces, attack Iraqi security forces, cause civilian casualties, to be fundamentally inconsistent with UN resolutions that have passed under Chapter VII.”
Today’s Woman April 28 opened with a report on students at Tabriz University staging a sit-in to protest sentencing decisions made by the administration with regard to other student protesters. Another report focused on the demand from Iran’s Prosecutor General, Ghorban Ali Dori Najafabadi, that the country’s children be protected from the “destructive” cultural and social consequences of importing Barbie dolls and other Western toys, such as Batman, Spider Man and Harry Potter. Mr. Najafabadi said these personalities are dangerous to the health of children. Panelists discussed the Women’s Film Festival in Sweden with journalist Helen Hemmati, including the importance of women getting involved behind the camera and the deep impact they can have on society by creating films. Ms. Hemmati said, “Even though the movies featured in the Women’s Film Festival were produced by Iranians – both men and women – there were more non-Iranian attendees.” Panelists also talked about Toronto’s Tiburon International Film Festival, begun by Iranian-born Saeed Shafa, and the Noor Film Festival in Los Angeles, which features the work of Iranian-Americans. The Noor Film Festival, which is two years old, is important because it allows Americans to experience Iranian culture.
Roundtable with You April 30 talked with Hossein Faraji, a freelance journalist based in Los Angeles, about Iran’s parliamentary elections. According to the Associated Press, conservatives have consolidated their control of Iran’s legislature following last month’s second-round parliamentary elections. But moderates within the bloc opposed to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad emerged as an even stronger force. The conservative bloc is divided between supporters of President Ahmadinejad and opponents critical of his handling of the economy as well as his handling of the nuclear issue resulting in three UN sanctions against Iran. Mr. Faraji talked about his predictions for this eighth legislative body. He said contrary to the views of some Western journalists, the Iranian parliament was, is and will be a dysfunctional unit regardless of who is a member. Mr. Faraji said this is the case because of the government’s structure and the monopoly on power held by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Mr. Faraji said the eighth majlis will only deepen the disaster facing Iranians due to the mishandling of domestic and foreign policies by Iran’s rulers.
Roundtable with You May 3 focused on the role of today’s artist in society with lyricist and songwriter Shahyar Ghanbari. As Iran’s most famous lyricist, Mr. Ghanbari has written many memorable songs about pre-Revolution Iran. “The most difficult thing I’ve had to deal with are the restrictions the government has imposed on my freedom of speech. Iran would be liberated and able to enter the modern world if it would learn to talk freely about its history and social realities instead of sweeping them under the carpet.” Mr. Ghanbari said he didn’t mean to incite anti-regime feelings among young people with the provocative lyrics he wrote before the revolution. “I don’t think you can do that with a song, but a song can open a new window or be a moment of awakening for people. I write my songs with the intention of them being the first draft of history.” In comparing the degree of censorship in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran, Mr. Ghanbari said the main difference is that not every aspect of one’s private life was subject to control under the Shah. “With all its shortcomings, the regime never cared what you did in your home or your bedroom.”
Today’s Woman May 2 focused on how Iranian culture, society and laws affect the status of women in Iran’s economy as well as women’s income. Lawyer and women’s rights activist Mehrangiz Kar, who wrote a book Women and Business in Iran, said, “In order to empower Iranian women economically, there needs to be more progress made in the society, culture, and more support from the government.” She said the status of women in the Iranian economy has worsened since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, with women pressured into staying at home rather than getting a job. Ms. Kar said the situation has declined even further since she wrote her book in 1995. “With a harsher economic climate, more and more women are falling into prostitution and drug dealing as a means of making money. Hopefully, the restrictions Iranian women face will be eliminated.”
Late Edition May 2 interviewed Iranian opera singer Bahram Tajabadi, who now lives in France, about his early life. He earned a bachelor’s degree in biology on the road to becoming a doctor only to realize that being a physician was not his dream profession. After listening to legendary Spanish singer Placido Domingo one day, he decided he, too, could be an opera singer. “Unfortunately, there are no professional institutes to study opera in Iran. All of the country’s art centers were closed after the Islamic revolution.” Mr. Tajabadi continued his education in opera in Italy and France. He sings different repertoires of Mozart, Rossini, Puccini and Verdi, and is best known for his role in Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro. Mr. Tajabadi performed in a commemoration ceremony held last November in honor of the late Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti. “It was my honor to sing at Pavarotti’s memorial service in Italy. He was the greatest opera singer of all time.”
Late Edition May 3 talked with Los Angeles-based psychologist Azita Sayan about the benefits and disadvantages of divorce, which has always been a taboo in Iran. Dr. Sayan said the priority in a marriage should be to work out the problems and save the relationship. She said in many cases it is possible resolve difficulties in the marriage relationship and to gain a better understanding and respect for the partner. But Dr. Sayan said this doesn’t always work, adding, “It’s okay to get divorced. It’s not the end of the world. And, in fact, it can be a new beginning for those who can’t live together.” Dr. Sayan explained how culture and tradition have made divorce a taboo for Iranians, but she said there are a number of ways people can deal with post-divorce issues. She said inevitably, it is recommended that the husband and wife analyze their failed marriage and the reasons behind this failure so that they can move on and begin their new lives with
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