After the illegal intervention of the clerical regime’s Supreme Leader in the mullahs’ sham elections and his instructions to the Guardian Council, the council made an astonishing move today, elevating Rafsanjani from the 30th to the 20th slot in the list of Tehran’s deputies. In this obviously manipulated list, Gholam-Ali Haddad Adel, a relative of the Supreme Leader, has been announced as the 28th man, assuring him of a seat in the mullahs’ Majlis.

National Council of Resistance President Massoud Rajavi said today: "The out-of-the-blue elevation of Rafsanjani from the last man in the 30-person list of Tehran’s prospective MPs to the 20th place, three slots ahead of Mullah Mehdi Karrubi, the Khatami faction’s candidate for the next Speaker, is a threadbare game," the NCR President added.

"The mullahs’ infighting over the elections is a sign of their regime being on its last legs," Rajavi said.

Mr. Rajavi had stated on Thursday that the mullahs’ Supreme Leader, fearful of the Resistance’s rising operations and the escalating popular uprisings in cities across the country, had created a bigger crisis, the consequences of which would emerge in the near future. Now, only two days later, the mullahs’ internal crisis is going to exacerbate with today’s announcement by the Guardian Council.
 

New Parliament Weak in Practice: Analysts, Agence France Presse, May 20

TEHRAN - Iran's new parliament will be strong on paper but weak in practice, analysts said Saturday after the state elections watchdog finally confirmed poll results in the key Tehran constituency.

The Council of Guardians disqualified the returns from 534 ballot boxes, or 726,266 votes out of more than two million cast, on the grounds of manifold irregularities.

It enabled Rafsanjani to be hoisted to 20th on the list of successful candidates, when he had previously been said to have barely scraped in at 29th or 30th. Another conservative, Gholamali Haded-Adal, was awarded the 28th place.

Analysts said the clear compromise after weeks of infighting might satisfy both sides initially.

Analyst Daryush Abdali added, "The Guardians should have cancelled the election if things were as they said. They didn't, on the orders of Khamenei.

But the parliamentary system is weakened and people may lose confidence in it.

"The new parliament will open, but under difficult conditions. There is a risk it will become just a theatre for slinging matches and political squabbles."
 

Khatami’s Culture Minister Prepares to Leave the Stage, Reuters, May 21

TEHRAN - The cultural minister of Mohammad Khatami has written his own political epitaph, saying 20 years in Iranian public life was more than enough.

Ataollah Mohajerani said in essays published at the weekend that he was withdrawing from politics to devote himself to teaching and writing.

However, he stopped short of announcing an actual departure date, suggesting only that he would step down soon.

Political analysts say Khatami was prepared to jettison Mohajerani but was looking for a graceful way to remove one of his most loyal lieutenants.
 

News Bites

Agence France Presse, May 20 - Editors of 17 daily, weekly and monthly papers across the political spectrum have been summoned by Iran's conservative press courts, following "complaints lodged by legal and personal entities", the official news agency IRNA reported Saturday.

Agence France Presse, May 21 - The Council of Guardians said Sunday it would press charges against members of the interior ministry in connection with voting irregularities during February parliamentary voting.

The judiciary said Saturday that in accordance with the wishes of Iran's supreme spiritual guide Ali Khameini, it would pursue charges against people suspected of electoral regularities in Tehran during the February 18 vote.

Agence France Presse, May 21 - Iranian journalist Akbar Ganji had "illegal links" with a US military officer in Turkey, the judiciary said in a statement Sunday explaining why he was arrested a month ago.

"The reason of Ganji's arrest is not the things he said ... but his illegal links with a US officer with NATO and certain important members of the counter-revolutionary opposition in Turkey," said the statement.

BBC World Service, May 20 - Reports from Iran say the army has started two major military exercises in the south-western province of Fars, and in Khuzestan, near the border with Iraq.

The maneuvers include day and night attacks, defense, counter-attacks and the consolidation of captured areas. Reports say large-scale military exercises also began in central Esfahan Province. 

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