BRIEF ON IRAN
No. 1620
Tuesday, April 17, 2001
Representative Office of
The National  Council of Resistance of Iran
Washington, DC


Regine's 84th Division's Command Garrison, Artillery HQ Pounded with Rockets, IRAN ZAMIN NEWS AGENCY, APRIL 16

This morning, 12 Mojahedin operational units in Khuzistan and Ilam provinces fired volleys of rockets at two important military centers of the mullahs' regime in these provinces and inflicted heavy casualties and damages on the enemy, the Mojahedin Command inside Iran reported.

For the first time, Mojahedin's operational units pounded with 122mm multiple rocket launchers the divisional command garrison of the 84th Division of the mullahs' army in Shoush, Khuzistan Province.

In another assault, Mojahedin's operational units hit the artillery units of the 84th Division based in Dehloran region with a barrage of 107mm multiple rocket launchers.

These operations were carried out in honor of the memory of two Mojahedin women fighters, Ladan Badiani and Fahimeh Sadeqi, who were killed Friday, April 13, in a series of battles and clashes between the Mojahedin and the Revolutionary Guards north of Islamabad, Kermanshah Province.
 

Iran Hardline Party Praises Recent Arrests,REUTERS, APRIL 16

TEHRAN - A hardline Iranian political party on Monday thanked the judiciary for their "wise and swift" action in arresting dozens of dissidents over the past few weeks, the official IRNA news agency said.
The "Tehran Free-thinkers Front," a political group of far-right activists, said in a statement quoted by IRNA, that the Revolutionary Court had foiled attempts to overthrow the Islamic Republic.

Judiciary agents arrested 21 religious nationalists in a raid on a Tehran apartment last month. Another 42 dissidents were detained in a nationwide swoop a week ago.

It is still not even clear where the arrested dissidents were being held. Iran's secret police chief has said his agents were not involved in the arrests and had no evidence the dissidents were engaged in subversive activities.

Their families have protested against the use of psychological pressure on the prisoners to extract "confessions."
 

Russia, Iran Discussing Additional Reactor, ITAR-TASS (RUSSIAN NEWS AGENCY), APRIL 16

MOSCOW - Russian and Iranian specialists are discussing the possibility of adding more reactors to the nuclear atomic station under construction in Bushehr. "These intentions are true but no documents has been signed yet," Russian Atomic Energy Minister Aleksandr Rumyantsev told a news conference on Monday.

Rumyantsev also stated firmly that "if there was some lagging in the construction schedule we will catch up with it soon. All contract commitments will be fulfilled," he said.
 

Majlis Ssummons Intelligence Mimister Over Serial Murders of Prostitutes, IRNA (STATE NEWS AGENCY), APRIL 16

TEHRAN - The Iranian parliament (Majlis) has summoned Intelligence Minister Ali Younessi for questioning over the mysterious murder of 12 prostitutes in the northeastern city of Mashhad, press reported on Monday.

The daily Hambastegi quoted Mashhad MP Ali Tajernia as saying that Interior Minister Abdulvahd Moussavi Lari and Police Chief Mohsen Qalibaf should also appear in the chamber over the issue.

"Those behind the murders have been aiming to clear the way for insecurity in the country," Tajernia told Hambastegi.
 

Visibility Down, Pollution Up in Smoggy Tehran, AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, APRIL 16

TEHRAN - Pollution in Tehran, one of the world's most polluted cities, has been on the rise in recent days with a sharp decrease in visibility in parts of the city, the state IRNA news agency said Monday.

It said particle counts in the Iranian capital's air were very high, especially on the outskirts of the city of about 12 million residents.

Some 4,600 people in Tehran die every year from pollution-related illnesses, according to official statistics.


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