(Thanks to Ali Alfoneh for his compilation)

Politics: March 2008 Parliamentary Electtions

  • Sa’id Hajjarian, main theoretician of the reformist camp, is against delivering blank votes to protest disqualification of reformist candidates.
  • Mousavi Lari says the reformist camp is involved in an internal debate on participation in the face of disqualifications.
  • Kadkhodayee, spokesman of the Council of Guardians, says 300 more candidates have passed Council’s screening process.
  • Zarqami, director general of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, says his institution will be impartial in the parliamentary elections.
  • Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warns Iranian voters against “those whose mind is different than their appearance.”
  • Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi urges the Iranian population to vote for those who work for “Islam and Muslims.”

Politics: General

  • Supreme Leader calls for unity among revolutionary loyalists.
  • Ahmadinejad goes to the Hormuzgan province as he continues his provincial visits.
  • Parliamentarian Qodrat-Allah ‘Ali-Khani says Ayatollah Tavassoli, who passed away after a heart attack during the latest meeting of the Expediency Council, “passed away because of anger of attacks upon Seyyed Hassan Khomeini.”
  • Nowbakhti, editor of the censored Nowsazi news agency which published insults against Hassan Khomeini, defends his agency saying that the critical article only served the purpose of stressing the importance of a simple life style.
  • Shahr-Vand-e Emrouz editor, Mohammad Qouchani claims Seyyed Hassan Khomeini has been strengthened politically because of the recent attacks against him.
  • Mehdi Karrubi of the National Trust Party asks the people of Iran to “excuse those [reformist candidates of the sixth parliament] who staged sit-ins at the parliament.”
  • Firouz-Abadi, head of the Central Command Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, defends Ahmadinejad, and claims “Islam is what we have in the Islamic Republic.”
  • Fatemeh Rajabi, wife of government spokesman Gholam-Hossein Elham, defends her attacks upon political elite, and claims people “try to silence my voice.” Rajabi also begged God to “punish my family,” since they, according to Rajabi, pressure her to stop her from intervening in the public debate.
  • Hossein Mousavian, former nuclear negotiator accused of espionage for Great Britain, starts a legal process against Mohammad-Ja’far Behdad, deputy head of Ahmadinejad’s office.
  • Ansar commentator, Mahmoud Valibeglou says “In this country [Iran], the Mafia has more power than the government.” [In reference to Mousavian case].
  • Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting screens a program praising Mehdi Bazargan and Yadollah Sahabi, more moderate participants in the 1979 revolution in Iran who have, since 1980, been attacked as U.S. lackeys.

Diplomacy

  • In reference to French concerns about military dimensions to the Iran’s rocket launch, Va’ez-Zadeh, scientific advisor to the Iranian president, says French analysts have not “comprehended what we sent into the air.”
  • Asr-e Iran publishes a Persian translation of a major interview by Dutch parliamentarian, Gert Wilders, who has been critical of Islam.
  • The Yemeni government seizes an Iranian boat.
  • UAE prime minister to visit Tehran to discuss the nuclear issue.
  • Asr-e Iran condemns the “latest insult of the Danish minister of foreign affairs” in what has become the second round of the Danish cartoon crisis.
  • Asr-e Iran describes unrest in Denmark as “protest against blasphemy.”
  • The Foreign Policy Committee of the Danish parliament cancels a visit to Tehran.
  • Sixteen members of the Iranian parliament demand the Islamic Repblic sever its diplomatic relations with Denmark after re-publication of Muhammad cartoons.
  • Iran-e Emrooz translates a Spiegel Online interview with Flemming Rose, cultural editor of the Jyllands-Posten, in which the Danish editor who authorized publication of the cartoons says he fears for his life.
  • Iran begins “boycotting” Wikipedia because the encyclopedia has published depictions Muhammad.
  • Spokesman of the Islamic Republic of Iran says suspension of negotiations with the U.S. was due to “technical problems.”
  • Asr-e Iran reports of “a new round of Saudi provocations against Iran” after discussion of a Saudi arms purchase from Russia should Moscow agree to abandon Iran. More here.
  • Entekhab: “The reason behind assassinating Imad Mughniyeh in the Syrian capital was to disturb the Syria/Hezbollah relationship.”
  • Shaikh Tantawi of al-Azhar University in Cairo says he defends the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic.

Economics and Trade

Security

  • Iran claims to have foiled a terror attempt against authorities of Sistan va Baluchestan province by the Abd Al-Malek Rigi terrorist group.

Religion, Culture, and Society

  • Golestan becomes home of the first crocodile farm in Iran, and the Shi’ite clergy issue fatwa declaring crocodile meat religiously halal.
  • Iranian cleric Ghera’ati criticizes the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting’s prioritizing “cooking over prayers.”

Human Rights and Labor

Photos of the Day