BRIEF ON IRAN
No. 1415
Thursday, June 15, 2000
Representative Office of
The National  Council of Resistance of Iran
Washington, DC


Iranian Resistance Condemns Mullahs' Foreign Minister's Visit to Switzerland, Iran Zamin News Agency, June 14

The National Council of Resistance of Iran strongly condemns the visit to Switzerland by mullah's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi. To play host to an official who has occupied senior ranks in the mullahs' apparatus of suppression and terrorism in the past two decades can only encourage the ruling mullahs to perpetuate the same policies.

The Swiss government welcomes the Foreign Minister of mullahs' terrorist, religious dictatorship despite Tehran's intransigent refusal to hand over to the Swiss judiciary the murderers of Dr. Kazem Rajavi, assassinated in Geneva in April 1990, thereby flouting all international norms.

What makes Kharrazi's trip to Switzerland even more illegitimate is the fact that four of the top diplomat terrorists who directly commanded the fatal attack on Dr. Rajavi in 1990 continue to work under Kharrazi as senior Foreign Ministry officials.

Like other leading figures in the mullahs' regime, Kharrazi is a war criminal and, on the basis of international criteria and historical precedents, must be tried by an international tribunal.
 

Regime's Authorities Search Homes of Imprisoned Pro-Khatami Journalists, Agence France Presse,June 14

TEHRAN - The homes of three journalists, including the imprisoned Akbar Ganji, were searched under orders of a revolutionary tribunal, daily Bayan said Wednesday.

Ganji and Ali Reza Alavitahar, both journalists at the suspended newspaper Sobh-e-Emruz, and Ezatollah Sahabi, who runs Iran-e-Farda magazine, are accused of traveling in early April to Berlin for a conference on Iran that Tehran authorities have judged "anti-Islamic," Bayan said.

"Five people came and took many things, including video cassettes, tickets for Berlin, game disks and several copies of Time magazine," Ganji's wife told Bayan.

Ahmad Alijani, editor in chief of Iran-e-Farda, said: "Four agents from the revolutionary tribunal came Monday to our magazine's office and took all our telephone books, disks, hard disks and all the letters our readers had sent us."

Ganji was arrested April 22 for articles linking former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani to the murders of several dissidents in 1998.
 

Khatami Seen Reshuffling Cabinet within A Week, Agence France Presse, June 14

TEHRAN - Political circles are buzzing with rumors that Mohammad Khatami will reshuffle his cabinet within a week, a source close to the government said.

The source, who asked not to be identified, said at least five ministries -- including those of economy, post and telecommunications and education -- will see new people at the top.

The daily Entekhab reported Wednesday that the defense, interior, energy, labor and culture and Islamic guidance ministries would also be affected.

It said current Interior Minister Abdolvahed Mussavi-Lari would replace Ataollah Mohajerani, a hate-figure for the conservatives, at the culture ministry.

The conservative Tehran Times said Wednesday that Khatami is under pressure to shuffle his cabinet.
 

Rafsanjani Warns Against "Attempts to Divide" Islamic Republic, Agence France Presse, June 4

TEHRAN - Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani warned Iranian leaders of attempts to divide the country and betray the Islamic revolution, Iran's official news agency said Sunday.

"All attempts at division, which look to aggravate the differences among officials, would betray the blood of the martyrs of the revolution," Rafsanjani said in a speech commemorating the death of Khomeini.

"The enemies of the Islamic revolution now have more experience than in the past, and their agents are trying to reach their means by employing different pretexts," Rafsanjani said.
 

News Bites

Agence France Presse, June 12: Directors of several banned dailies, including the brother of Khatami, Mohammad-Reza Khatami, will appear before the press court "in two weeks," the Head of Judiciary Abbassali Alizadeh announced Monday.

State News Agency, IRNA, June 12: Four members of the Tehran City Islamic Council, the chief included, were summoned to appear before the Revolutionary Court here on Monday to shed light on certain issues surrounding the attempt on the life of fellow council member Saeed Hajjarian in March, a press report said here on Monday.


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