(Thanks to Ali Alfoneh for his compilation)

Diplomacy

  • An anonymous source in U.S. Department of Treasury says U.S. officials have held meetings with their Iranian counterparts in Paris to discuss banking issues.
  • An anonymous Iranian “expert” says Iran has cancelled its meetings with U.S. officials [in Baghdad] because of “U.S. terrorism in the region.”
  • Commander of the General Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces: “Annihilation of Zionism imminent.”
  • “The defeated and humiliated army of Israel and the leaders of this forged and hollow regime should know…that combatants of the Lebanese and Palestinian Islamic resistance will continue the struggle until complete destruction of the Zionist regime and liberation of the entire Islamic land of Palestine.”
  • Iranian cultural attaché in Damascus answers a weblog complaining about “Persian cultural onslaught in the Arab world.”
  • With increasing criticism of Libya, Tabnak (close to former IRGC chief Mohsen Rezai) reopens the dossier of Shi’i leader Musa Sadr’s disappearance in Libya in early 1980′s, and accuses Qadhafi of murdering him.
  • Asr-e Iran reports a student demonstration in front of the Royal Danish Embassy in Tehran protesting against the republication of the Muhammad cartoons.
  • Iranian justice minister warns Denmark.
  • Hezbollah Secretary-General Hasan Nasrallah: “From now on, we will fight against Israel outside Lebanon.”

Politics: March 2008 Elections

  • Talking to the Islamic Republic Air Force, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei urges the armed forces to participate in the elections and not let “unsound” people get elected.

Politics: General

  • Abbas Sheibani, member of the Council of the Revolution in the early days of the revolution in Iran, explains the protocols of the council and the proceedings of the revolutionary top body.
  • The Revolutionary Guard mouthpiece, Sobh-e Sadeq, recalls the role of the Revolutionary Committees in stabilizing revolutionary rule in the transition phase of the Islamic Republic.
  • Fatemeh Rajabi, wife of the Ahmadinejad government spokesman, attacks Rafsanjani: “It was hardly a surprise that Hashemi Rafsanjani, as always utilized the tribune of the Friday [Prayers sermon] to advance personal abuse, forgery and analysis [based upon self interest.]… Hashemi’s excuse was that of Seyyed Hassan Khomeini. Hashemi – whose nepotism and tribalism, and whose children’s economic and political issues no longer provides questions in the minds of each and every Iranian, but has developed into a dossier – abused this issue to cleanse all the accusations directed against himself, his family and extended family… Hashemi has a long history of character assassination of the Hezbollahi youth…”
  • (Rajabi does not mention that Rafsanjani’s main argument was to protest against the intervention of the armed forces in politics).
  • An Iranian blogger publishes an unauthorized picture of the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the company of unveiled ladies in the U.N. building.
  • Ali Larijani, former secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, holds a secret meeting with Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi in Qom.
  • Mo’talefeh’s Asgar-Owladi says it is up to the Supreme Leader to decide about intervention or non-intervention of the Revolutionary Guards in politics.

Economy and Trade

Human Rights and Labor

Photo of the Day