Thousands of Iranians fled to Turkey after last year's election

Germany takes in 50 Iranian dissidents

Germany is opening its borders to 50 Iranian dissidents - mostly journalists critical of Tehran. The refugees first fled to Turkey in the fallout of last year's presidential election. Germany has granted asylum to 50 Iranian dissidents who fled their country in the wake of post-election protests last year. A spokesman from the German Interior Ministry confirmed that Germany had already begun admitting the Iranians, as reported earlier in the week by news magazine Der Spiegel.

"Twelve have already arrived over the past weeks. Another one will arrive next week," said the spokesman, who insisted on remaining anonymous.

A further 26 Iranians have been approved to enter Germany, while the remaining cases have yet to be approved by German authorities in conjunction with the United Nations and Turkey, where most of the asylum-seekers initially fled.

Dissidents were critical of Iran's government

Germany had originally planned to admit to up to 20 Iranians but raised the number after criticism from Germany's Iranian expatriate community and the rights advocates Reporters Without Borders.

The home of Iranian refugees in TurkeyBildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Thousands of Iranians fled to Turkey after last year's election

Most of the refugees are journalists who were critical of Iran's government, according to an Iranian human rights activist quoted by Der Spiegel.

German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere decided to grant asylum to Iranian dissidents in March. The figure of 50 was reached with regional ministers in May. The majority of the refugees are being taken in by the city-state of Berlin, with further asylum-seekers in Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia.

The re-election of ultraconservative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June 2009 sparked a massive wave of protests by supporters of opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi.

Author: David Levitz (AP/dpa/Reuters)

Mr Medvedev has publicly questioned Iran's intentions over its nuclear programme

The "unravelling relationship" between Russia and Iran

Russia and Iran seemed to be good friends, but in recent weeks the relationship has unravelled. Since 1991, Russia has been a major supplier of modern arms to Iran. The Russian-built nuclear power plant in the southern Iranian city of Bushehr is due to finally come on line this year. In advance, Russia has shipped more than 100 tonnes of low-enriched uranium reactor fuel rods to Bushehr.
Iran nuclear crisis Moscow has earned billions, helping Iran bypass US and European Union (EU) sanctions.
Air defence

And yet, last month, Moscow supported UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme.

Last week, President Dmitry Medvedev even publicly questioned the Iranian programme which is moving into a position that may allow Tehran to acquire nuclear weapons.

Previously, Russian officials maintained that there was no proof that Iran was developing nuclear weapons.

In December 2005, Russia agreed to sell Iran long-range S-300 anti-aircraft missiles - 40 to 60 launchers with four missile tubes each, radars, and control stations, worth some $1bn (£650m).

Together with the shorter-range Tor M1 and the older super-long-range S-200 already provided by Russia, Iran could build a solid anti-aircraft shield able to defend its nuclear facilities against a possible US or Israeli assault, and inflict serious damage to the attacking force.

Without the S-300, the Iranians do not have a balanced air defence.

Moscow has been withholding the delivery of the S-300 to Iran since 2008, while officials maintained the delays were "technical".

Last month, after some hesitation, Moscow announced that the S-300 deal is forbidden by the new UN sanctions.

Iranian officials reacted angrily. Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi demanded that Russia must pay for the damage it has caused by failing to deliver the S-300.
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The Russian military do not consider a handful of ... Read More

Sakineh Ashtiani was convicted of adultery in 2006 after being subjected to 99 lashes.

Protests held worldwide against execution of Iranian woman

Hundreds of protesters rallied worldwide Saturday against the imprisonment and possible execution of an Iranian woman convicted of adultery. Sakineh Mohammedie Ashtiani was originally sentenced to death by stoning, but it was put on hold earlier this month after an international outcry. In London, protesters held posters with Ashtiani's likeness while a speaker criticized Iran's treatment of her. Many demonstrating in Trafalgar Square held signs reading, "No to Stoning. No to Executions." John Lennon's "Imagine" played in the background. In Stockholm, Sweden, protesters chanted for Ashtiani's release while calling stoning a medieval practice that must end. They also signed a large petition calling for her release. The case has drawn international attention. Ashtiani was convicted of adultery in 2006 and faces the possibility of execution.
Video: Protesters rally for Iranian woman
Video: Iran's reaction to stoning case
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The London protesters said Iran has unfairly sentenced others to death, including 18 gay citizens.

In Toronto, Canada, one woman showed a graphic display with red-colored stones to symbolize the instruments and results of stoning.

Despite the sentencing delay, human rights activists wanted to remind the world of Ashtiani's plight, said Mina Ahadi, chairman of the International Committee Against Execution and Stoning, one of the group's leading Saturday's protests.

"The fact is, the execution can still happen," Ahadi said. "And, often times in Iran, these types of executions will happen without any notice."

More than 30 cities participated in "International Sakineh Mohammedie Ashtiani Day" at 2 p.m. local time. Cities holding rallies included Washington, New York, London, Venice, Paris, Berlin and Ottawa, organizers said.

Organizers hoped the rallies would help free Ashtiani and intensify the international ... Read More

Teenage girls were raped before their deaths because the regime felt this would prevent them from going to heaven. Boys were rounded up and hanged from cranes.

The Coming End Of Islamic Fascism In Iran

Crucial signs that freedom is not only possible but imminent. Reza Kahlili - The Iranian Revolution of 1979 began with Ayatollah Khomeini promising Iranians full freedom and a government by the people and for the people. In his speeches leading up to the Revolution, the Ayatollah proclaimed that, "A nation that doesn't have freedom does not have civilization. A civilized nation is one that is free." He also said that, "There should be freedom of the press and people should have the right to their opinion" and "In our government, clergy will not govern but help you with your spirituality. In our government, women will be free, and officials can be publicly criticized."

People, joyful of his positive messages, turned their backs on the Shah--who had brought them peace, respect, and luxury--in the hope of the political freedom that was nonexistent during the Shah. Sadly, this joy quickly turned to horror. Instead of the freedom he'd promised, Khomeini snatched back the liberties women had begun to gain under the Shah, reducing them to second-class citizens without the right to inheritance, child custody and divorce. Khomeini and his cohorts forced women to wear the Islamic hijab--whipping them if they didn't--and reverted to stoning woman for adultery. The Islamic regime claimed that anyone speaking against them was mohareb, an enemy of God. Because the regime purported to be representatives of God on Earth, they ordered the execution of all opposition. Teenage girls were raped before their deaths because the regime felt this would prevent them from going to heaven. Boys were rounded up and hanged from cranes.

Still, this was not enough. The regime insisted on exporting their religion to the world, expanding their terror network by helping establish Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad, killing Americans and Israelis, destabilizing the Middle East and effectively destroying any chance for a negotiated settlement between Palestine and Israel. They fought a war ... Read More

The order to obey Mr. Khamenei is issued by himself while in recent days political activists have sent multiple letters to ayatollah Khamenei questioning his credentials

Khamenei's Fatwa About Himself: You Must Obey Me

By Nazanin Kamdar, The Islamic Republic supreme leader's office issued one of the most important orders issued by the country's second leader. In sum, the order states that everyone must obey Mr. Khamenei. The order to obey Mr. Khamenei is issued by himself while in recent days political activists have sent multiple letters to ayatollah Khamenei questioning his credentials and qualifications for leadership. Most prominently, imprisoned journalist Isa Saharkhiz listed charges against the leader in court. According to the text published on ayatollah Khamenei's website, responding to a question about how one must obey the leader, he referred to himself as a "branch of the guardianship of the Prophet Mohammad and the Infallible Imams," "representative of the Hidden Imam," and ranked himself to be at the same level as Islam's Prophet Mohammed. He wrote, "Guardianship of faqih (religious jurisprudent) is the ruling of the qualified faqih in the absence of the Infallible Imam. It is a branch of the guardianship and ruling of the Prophet Mohammad and the Infallible Imams. You may ensure commitment to the Guardian Faqih by obeying his administrative rulings. According to normal procedure, when ayatollah Khamenei's website issues a text, all domestic media outlets are obliged to publish the full text. But according to many, "ayatollah Khamenei is not a source of emulation, has not written a treatise and cannot respond to questions of this sort according to the Shiite jurisprudence."

A political expert told Rooz, "With this action, ayatollah Khamenei, who previously responded to non-political questions at the level of administering the city of Qom's sanitation infrastructure, has entered the area of political discourse. This so-called fatwa can be regarded as his new step toward a form of personal dictatorship."

The source continues, "Because he has not written a treatise and is not regarded as a source of emulation, ayatollah Khamenei had so far shied away ... Read More

I think the Iranians will be surprised by the extent of the measures," another diplomat said. "These measures go significantly beyond the scope of the resolution

EU plans 'toughest ever' sanctions against Iran

Legally binding measures to be agreed on Monday will go far beyond existing United Nations measures against Iran's nuclear programme. Officials said the impact of the measure would be to starve key companies and banks of access to the European market. Significant levels of trade with Germany and Italian would be cut off. The measures reinforces a United Nations sanctions resolution passed in June
"I think the Iranians will be surprised by the extent of the measures," another diplomat said. "These measures go significantly beyond the scope of the resolution." Iran's important energy industry will be "hit hard" by a total European prohibition on all investment, sale of equipment and investment in refining and liquid natural gas production.

New banking measures will require all Iranian banks, or financial institutions connected with Iran, to get prior notification of all transactions over £8,400 and authorisation for any transfers over £33,600.

Additionally, a "very significant" extended travel ban and asset freeze list, covering over 40 Iranian firms and officials, will be published on Tuesday. All Iranian air cargo flights, in and out of the EU, will also be banned.

A ban on EU exports of "dual use" technologies will be extended from nuclear applications to cover all conventional military applications and chemical weapons.

"This is the most far reaching, autonomous package of sanctions that the EU has ever agreed," said a European diplomat.

The move reflects new political will in Germany, France, and Holland who all have a significant economic interests in Iran.

America has also imposed penalties for trading with Iran but officials hope that the EU package will be emulated by third countries. "We hope this leads to other countries around the world who want themselves to go beyond the UN sanctions imposing similar measures," the diplomat said. "Very few countries want to go as far as the US. It will be the EU package ... Read More

In response to the enemy's resolutions, it was decided that the project be pushed forward by five years," Ahmadinejad said, referring to Iran's shuttle program

Iran to put man in space by 2019: Ahmadinejad

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that Iran would send its first manned shuttle into space by 2019, Iran's English-language Press TV reported. "In response to the enemy's resolutions, it was decided that the project be pushed forward by five years," Ahmadinejad said, referring to Iran's shuttle program. Western powers fear Iran is trying to build nuclear bombs under cover of a uranium enrichment program, but Tehran denies this, saying its program is intended only for power generation.

Another startling setback in obtaining zero is the ease at which highly enriched uranium can be smuggled virtually undetected into U.S. inside lead pipes

Countdown to Zero: Is it Possible?

Watch the film. Watch it again. - Academy Award winning producer Lawrence Bender and director Lucy Walker's documentary Countdown to Zero is an extraordinarily powerful and disturbing film that lays out the case for global nuclear disarmament. I had the privilege of interviewing Lawrence Bender on this issue. This movie is like a wake up call and it's an edge of your seat, urgent kind of scary movie about this issue. So people watch it and go 'holy shit'.
But the question of how we get to zero is not one easily answered. It's not easy and it's going to take some time to do. And it's an idea that was started by the great liberal president Ronald Reagan. Obviously in the movie we have some of his speeches He had many speeches where he believed that the best thing for the world was abolition of nuclear weapons.. And this is an idea that's been around for a while. It's not a liberal idea or a conservative idea. But I do believe it's an idea whose time has come. So from Reagan and even with Nixon, when he talked about reduction, this is an idea that's been around for some time and again, it's weird, because in the 1980's the nuclear freeze movement was primarily a liberal movement but it was effective. There were 70,000 nuclear weapons and now we're down to 23,000 - so it did have an effect. But today most people just don't think about this and as President Kennedy says in the movie, you have this Sword of Damocles hanging over our heads. The problem is no one is looking up. President Reagan was. A staunch nuclear abolitionist, he made global disarmament a focal point of his post Cold War Strategy.

Bender adds, "The use of nuclear weapons used to be, you know, mad, they were used to destroy. One can say that it worked. Not everyone was always for nuclear weapons but certainly we didn't blow each other up, In the case of Russia and the United States, sane minds prevailed. We had some very tough close calls and it was a very scary time in history, but it didn't ... Read More

The law, passed on July 21, requires government departments to transfer some of their employees to locations outside Tehran by the end of August.

Regime Relocating Government Employees Away From Tehran

The Iranian cabinet has passed legislation forbidding the creation of new government posts in Tehran and instructing other employees to relocate, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. The law, passed on July 21, requires government departments to transfer some of their employees to locations outside Tehran by the end of August. Officials say the law is aimed at "reducing Tehran's population," which currently stands at some 14 million people. The legislation has been a priority for the government of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad.

Opposition activists fear the law is an attempt to weaken Tehran's strong role in national political life. The capital has been the center of opposition activity in Iran, particularly for the Green Movement formed after last year's controversial presidential election.

The new law has led to objections by employees at the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department, which was among the first departments to announce the transfer of some of its employees to places outside of Tehran.

Employees of the department gathered on July 20 in front of Iran's parliament to protest their "forced transfer." Demonstrators said the department may transfer over 1,000 of its workers to cities like Isfahan and Shiraz.

Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department head Hamid Baghaei had promised employees a pay raise if they transfer from Tehran, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported on July 20.

Baghaei also offered half-price airfares, housing loans, and other concessions to workers who agree to relocate.

Baghaei said, "There is no compulsion for employees to transfer [to another city] -- anyone may volunteer, or refuse," Fars reported.

He did not say whether there would be professional consequences for those who refuse to relocate.

Lynch concludes that Obama's diplomacy has been successful in changing the strategic balance of power in the Middle East -- that had resulted from Bush's disastrous policy -- by weakening Iran and its partners

Is Obama Set on an Iran Strike?

One of Israel's leading political "insiders" is insisting that there has been a dramatic transformation of President Barack Obama's strategy in the Middle East. Israel is now back "In" as the White House occupant who had called for engagement with Iran not so long ago, is now placing the threat of a nuclear Iran on the top of his diplomatic agenda at the same time that his administration is also expressing concerns over the expected leadership changes in Cairo and Riyadh. "When Obama came into office he assessed that the United States had been weakened in the Middle East and hoped to reach an agreement on sharing influence with the regional power, Iran," according to Aluf Benn, the respected senior diplomatic analyst for Ha'aretz, Israel's liberal - not left-wing - daily newspaper. "So he cooled toward Israel and pulled out of the closet the well-worn club called settlements," writes Benn. But that apparently didn't work. "The Iranians waved off Obama's goodwill gesture, and the Arab states ignored the Palestinian issue and made it clear that blocking Iran was more important," explains the journalist who tends to reflect the political state of mind of Israel's leaders. So "instead of "beat on Israel and gain the applause of the Muslims," the stance on Iran is toughening. Sanctions on Tehran have become tougher, and the rhetoric has become more blunt," Benn writes in an analysis published in the aftermath of the recent meetings between Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin ("Bibi") Netanyahu in Washington. "Israel has moved from being a burden to a welcome partner, perhaps because there is no choice in view of the expected instability in Cairo and Riyadh with the changes at the top," he concludes.

It is quite possible that Benn may be echoing the spin promoted by Bibi and his aides which in turn, reflects the Israeli PM's wishful thinking or for that matter, a misleading narrative which portrays what is nothing more than a Barack-Bibi political cease-fire ... Read More

His release comes days after the Tehran bus drivers' union issued a statement calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Torabian and three other bus drivers' union leaders: Reza Shahabi, Ebrahim Madadi, and Mansur Osanlu.

Labor Activist Released From Prison

A spokesman for Tehran's municipal bus-service union has been released from prison on bail, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. Said Torabian, who had been held at Rajaee Shahr prison in Karaj, west of Tehran, was released on July 20. He was detained by authorities on June 9. His release comes days after the Tehran bus drivers' union issued a statement calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Torabian and three other bus drivers' union leaders: Reza Shahabi, Ebrahim Madadi, and Mansur Osanlu. A statement issued by the Union of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company on July 17 expressed particular concern about the health of Torabian. It said the union spokesman, who suffers from a heart condition, had not been able to contact his family since his arrest.

The statement states that labor activists have come under increasing pressure in recent months.

"Since the opening of the union five years ago, its members and their families have faced severe pressure, including arrests, threats, dismissal from work, and deprivation of their social and medical rights," it reads.

Bus drivers' union leader Mansur Osanlu is serving a five-year prison term after being arrested in July 2007.

According to the union, the Iranian government had pledged at a recent International Labor Organization conference to release Osanlu. But he is now being charged with more crimes.

On July 18, an Iranian revolutionary court in Karaj charged Osanlu with "spreading propaganda against the regime." It is the same charge brought against him in 2007.

The statement said that the municipal bus drivers' union will continue to fight for workers' rights despite ongoing government pressure. The union appealed for further support from human rights groups and labor unions, especially the International Transport Workers' Federation.

Alleged terrorist Abdul Kadir says he was only involved in plot to blow up Kennedy Airport to raise money to build a mosque in Guyana. Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/07/21/2010-07-21_terror_suspect_sez_he_just_wanted_cash.h

Trial Focuses on Iran Ties of Kennedy Plot Suspect

He insists he was just in it for the mosque money. An accused wanna-be terrorist testified Tuesday he wasn't really interested in blowing up Kennedy Airport after all. He said he was just going along with the other thugs because he hoped they would help him raise money to build a mosque in Guyana. Abdul Kadir, a former member of Guyana's parliament, took the stand to convince the jury that he is not a terrorist. The plot to blow up fuel tanks and lines at Kennedy was presented to Kadir by co-defendant and accused mastermind Russell Defreitas in February 2007. Kadir, 58, said the amateurish video of the airport targets, shot by Defreitas, "made no sense to me" and suggested they use Google Earth to get better images.

Still, he said, he continued discussions with Defreitas and the government's informant, Steven Francis, because the men had discussed hitting up wealthy Muslims in New York for funds to build the mosque.

Federal prosecutors contend Kadir intended to present the plan to violent extremists in Iran and Trinidad.

Kadir tried to defuse the shock value of a photograph of him prosecutors showed to the jury in which the shirtless defendant is armed with five handguns. He explained that two of the firearms were toys and he was just fooling around because it was Christmastime.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/07/21/2010-07-21_terror_suspect_sez_he_just_wanted_cash.html#ixzz0uQaTurl7

Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko said that Russian companies were willing to supply oil and gas products to Iran despite the EU sanctions. (Ayez Nureldine/Getty Images)

EU Mulling New Sanctions on Iran

The European Union is set to adopt tighter sanctions on Iran targeting investment in the country’s oil and gas industries. Excerpts from a draft declaration was reportedly circulating before EU foreign ministers said that the trade block would impose “comprehensive and robust” sanctions on the Islamic Republic. The measures will follow tough U.S. sanctions restricting the import of oil and gas products into Iran. Both sets of measures go beyond the limited sanctions approved on June 9 by the United Nations Security Council, which mostly targets investments connected to the Iranian military.

The sanctions still have to be approved on Thursday by EU ambassadors in Brussels, but significant changes are unlikely.

However Russia, which approved the U.N. sanctions, poses a threat to the unilateral EU and U.S. sanctions.

On July 14, the Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko said that Russian companies were willing to supply oil and gas products to Iran.

“Sanctions cannot hinder us,” Shmatko was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying.

“Russian companies are prepared to deliver oil products to Iran. The possibility of delivering oil products to Iran exists, if there is a commercial interest,” he added.

Shmatko was quoted after a meeting in Moscow with Iranian oil minister Massoud Mir-Kazemi, where the two officials discussed a “roadmap” of future oil and gas cooperation between the two countries.

The announcement comes after a difficult period in relations between Tehran and Moscow, following Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s warning that Iran was nearing its potential in building an atomic bomb.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki angrily rejected the remarks as “totally false.”

Russian firms have rich pickings of Iranian gas field projects to invest in following the withdrawal of several western companies. Shell, BP, and Total have already terminated sales of oil ... Read More

Demonstrators in Germany protest against torture and the execution of opposition protesters in Iran.

Rights Groups Say Iranian "Political Prisoners" Denied Treatment

A spokesman for the Paris-based watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says "political prisoners" in Iran have been routinely denied medical treatment, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. Reza Moeni, the head of RSF's Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan desk, told Radio Farda on July 18 that "detention centers [in Iran] are not being supervised, hence neither local nor international norms are observed." RSF and Amnesty International issued a joint statement on July 16 expressing concern about the health of such prisoners in Iran. The organizations believe the aim of the denial of medical treatment is to "put pressure on [the prisoners] and their families." "We have demanded the immediate release of prisoners of conscience and immediate medical treatment for the sick ones," Moeni said. He added that such a denial of medical treatment was tantamount to torture. Moeni said there were no exact statistics for the number of "political prisoners" in Iran, but that the number ranged between 400 and 600.

Many of them were arrested during demonstrations following the disputed June 2009 presidential election.

"Unfortunately, neither Amnesty International nor Reporters Without Borders have been able to be present in Iran and carry out [the prisoners' advocacy] in that country," Moeni said.

Brothers Kamiar and Arash Alaei, founders of an HIV-prevention program in Iran, were jailed on what many say were politically motivated charges.

While brothers Kamiar and Arash Alaei are jailed, Iran Faces Rise In HIV/AIDS Cases

Iranian Health Minister Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi says the spread of HIV/AIDS is increasingly being spread in Iran through sexual contact, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports. Dastjerdi said on July 18 that HIV/AIDS in Iran used to be transmitted primarily through contaminated blood transfusions and the use of dirty needles by drug addicts.

Shahla Ezazi, a Tehran-based member of the Iranian Sociological Association, told Radio Farda the same day that she agreed with Dastjerdi's statement.

But she added that although there were contradictory statistics about the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Iran, "what is certain is that the number of identified HIV-infected Iranians has increased."

The Health and Medical Education Ministry announced in September 2009 that there were 20,130 HIV/AIDS cases in Iran.

Both HIV/AIDS and prostitution are controversial subjects in the Islamic republic.

Ezazi said prostitution in Iran, at least in Tehran, had increased and was not being controlled. She said that since prostitution was prohibited in Iran, either providing HIV/AIDS education to prostitutes or placing them under medical control was unlikely to occur.

"If these women go to the authorities, they will be put in jail before getting educated or being examined," she said.

But Ezazi said everyone, not just prostitutes, should be educated about HIV/AIDS prevention.

"But in spite of the fact that risky sexual behavior exists in Iranian society, there is no education [about the risks of contracting HIV/AIDS] in this regard," she said.

Leading Activists Jailed

Meanwhile, Iran's two leading specialists in HIV/AIDS, brothers Arash and Kamiar Alaei, remain in prison, where they have been since June 2008.

They were found guilty of involvement in a U.S. plot to overthrow the Iranian government.

Arash was sentenced to six years in prison, while Kamiar was sentenced to three years.

Human Rights Watch, the ... Read More

Iranian media outlets reported recently that Iranian Interior Minister Mohammed Najar has confirmed the project's existence

Iran intends to build walls along parts of its borders with Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan

Iraqi officials say Tehran has not informed Baghdad about Iran's reported intention to build a security wall along its borders with Iraqi Kurdistan, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq (RFI) reports.

Saad Muttalibi, a political adviser to Iraqi officials and leading member of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law Coalition, told RFI on July 20 that Iraq has not been officially informed of the construction project, nor has the Iraqi Embassy in Tehran received any official notification.

Muttalibi said the reasons for the construction of the walls are not clear.

Iranian media outlets reported recently that Iranian Interior Minister Mohammed Najar has confirmed the project's existence and given details about it, saying Iran intends to build walls along parts of its borders with Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan at a cost of some $150 million.

Khalid al-Assadi, another leading member of the State of Law Coalition, suggested that the wall is intended to stop the activities of organizations working against the Iranian government.

But the London-based newspaper "Asharq al-Awsat" quoted Shirzad Kamanger, a leading member of the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK), as saying the wall would not affect his organization's activities.

He added that the PJAK has already established a presence inside Iran.

The PJAK is a militant Kurdish nationalist group based in the Qandil Mountains of northern Iraq. Iranian security forces have clashed with Kurdish rebels in northwestern Iran and sometimes across the border in Iraq. Iranian forces have repeatedly shelled the border area in pursuit of guerrillas.

Dozens of employees of Iran's state-run Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts Industries and Tourism Organization gathered outside parliament this week to protest their forced transfer from Tehran to cities such as Esfahan and Shiraz

As government uses earthquake fears to move residents out of Tehran, temblor injures 19

Dozens of employees of Iran's state-run Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts Industries and Tourism Organization gathered outside parliament this week to protest their forced transfer from Tehran to cities such as Esfahan and Shiraz as part of an effort to disperse government offices in the seismically active nation. The controversy came as a fairly significant earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale shook the southern Iran early Wednesday morning, Iranian media and seismology monitors reported, injuring at least 19 people. About 150 employees are scheduled for imminent transfer, while another 1,100 have been notified they could also be moved. But although many countries try to scatter state-owned industries outside the major cities for economic reasons, many Iranians are wary of any attempt to exploit the very real fear of earthquakes for political gain. Earlier this year, an Iranian cleric made international headlines when he suggested that women who dress too revealingly cause earthquakes by invoking God's wrath.

According to the report of seismography center at Tehran University's Geophysics Institute, a tremor struck close to the Persian Gulf coast at 12:08 a.m. and damaged some homes. The injured included residents of the town of Lamerd, Iranian media reported, where a local relief official told state media that between 50% and 70% of buildings were damaged.

A second earthquake or aftershock measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale struck 12 minutes later, according to seismologists. The semi-official Iranian Students News Agency reported that a total of 12 aftershocks shook the area.

Earthquakes are considered a real danger in Iran, especially in poorly constructed, overcrowded areas of some cities. In 2003, at least 30,000 people died when a deadly earthquake struck the historic city of Bam in southeastern Iran.

More recently, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has sought to decongest Tehran, arguing that it would reduce the risks ... Read More

Tehran nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri flashes the victory sign

Regime studio plans movie on 'abducted' scientist AFP

A government-linked Iranian studio said on Wednesday it plans to make a television movie about Shahram Amiri, the Tehran scientist who claims he was abducted by US spies last year. Amirhossein Ashtiyanipour, a director at Sima Film, said a "young group of movie school graduates" had been hired to write the script for the movie but gave no further details. The project was confirmed by Fars news agency, which reported Wednesday that Sima Film is to make a telefilm of the story of Amiri, "his hostage-taking and his return to Iran."

Amiri, a scientist who surfaced in Washington last week after going missing for more than a year, claims he was abducted by US agents while on a pilgrimage in the Saudi city of Medina in June 2009.

US officials have repeatedly denied his claims of abduction, insisting he was in the United States of his own free will. But they acknowledged that Washington "had been in contact with him" during his stay.

Amiri returned to Tehran on Thursday and in an interview with state television said the US attempted to pressure him into confessing that he was a "spy" and be exchanged with three US hikers in custody of Tehran.

US media reports said far from being abducted, Amiri defected to the United States and was paid millions of dollars to spill Iran's nuclear secrets.

Three death row prisoners in Iran. From left to right, Zeynab Jalalian, Mohammad Reza Haddadi, and Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani.

Eight Other Pending Executions in Iran

Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani has been imprisoned in Tabriz Prison in northwestern Iran since 2005, having suffered 99 lashes and been condemned to die by public stoning for her alleged adultery. Until last month, those facts were known only to a small handful of people working quietly through the Iranian legal system to secure her release. Now, with Ashtiani’s story filling the pages of newspapers and Web sites around the world, her name, and the appalling details of her case, are familiar. Judges relied on “wisdom” rather than evidence to determine her guilt, using a loophole in the Iranian legal system. But even by Iranian legal standards, the case was fraught. Ashtiani had no lawyer until late in the appeal proceedings, despite being illiterate and unable to speak Farsi, the language used in court, according to the International Committee Against Execution (ICAE). She retracted a confession she says was made under duress. Nonetheless, court after court signed off on her death warrant, until all legal avenues had been exhausted. Her lawyer, Mohammad Mostafai, a frequent defender of death-row inmates in Iran, and her children, Sajjad, 22, and Fasride, 17, finally decided to go public with her story via the lawyer’s blog, at great personal risk. While the media-savvy Mostafai is enough of a public figure to make his arrest unlikely, says the ICAE’s Ahmad Fatemi, Ashtiani’s children have no such protection. Sajjad was recently summoned to the intelligence office of the Tabriz prison—a move, says Fatemi, that is meant to send a clear message. “That’s the part of the prison where torture takes place,” he told NEWSWEEK. “When they do this, it is to put pressure on a person.” Sajjad, he has been told by sources inside Iran, was wise enough to ignore the summons. Iran's judiciary chief, Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani, has the power to halt executions and make recommendations to the country’s Supreme Leader, who decides whether to pardon prisoners ... Read More

Ali Larijani (left) and Mahmud Ahmadinejad at a gathering of the parliament and cabinet in February

Conservatives Unite In Bid To Undermine Ahmadinejad

By Robert Tait - Conservative opponents of Iran's president, Mahmud Ahmadinejad, have launched a rearguard action aimed at weakening him and preventing one of his hard-line followers from succeeding him in the next presidential election. The offensive, analysts say, has been undertaken by a united front of leading "principlist" figures including the speaker of Iran's parliament, Ali Larijani; a leading parliamentarian, Ahmad Tavakoli; and Mohsen Rezai, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and a defeated candidate in last year's presidential election. A key aim is to weaken the support for Ahmadinejad from the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, by persuading him that the president's radical policies and divisive approach threatens to the Islamic republic's stability.

One report has even suggested that conservatives have met to plot a way of impeaching Ahmadinejad and remove him from office, although seasoned observers caution that such an outcome is unthinkable without Khamenei's approval -- which is thought unlikely. Khamenei has given Ahmadinejad unqualified support since his disputed victory in last year's presidential poll, which reformist opponents say was stolen by massive ballot fraud.

However, the new anti-Ahmadinejad onslaught differs from the wave of opposition expressed by the mass demonstrations organized by the Green Movement in support of the defeated reformist candidates, Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi, which stressed human rights and greater social freedoms.

Rather than ideological differences, the conservative critics are driven by anger over being excluded from power and a desire to position themselves for the next presidential election, still nearly three years away. Analysts define their positions on social, cultural, and foreign policy issues as belonging to a similar "paradigm" to Ahmadinejad.

Their minimum goal, according to Mehdi Khalaji, senior fellow at the Washington ... Read More