Iranian Alert: Sporadic clashes rock the Iranian capital for the 7th consecutive night

The Student Movement Coordination Commitee for Democracy in Iran (SMCCDI) ^ | 6.16.2003 | SMCCDI (Information Service)

[SauronOfMordor]

Keep writing. I just hope it doesn't turn out that this info has been coming from deep in the Hurtgen Forest

[Teacher317]

I will continue to keep you posted as the news develops.

And thank you for doing so. The major media in this country sure doesn't seem to care, and I'm salivating for more coverage!

[DoctorZIn]

Iranian Alert: Email FoxNews
Personal Post | 6.16.2003 | DoctorZin


Posted on 06/16/2003 2:08 PM PDT by DoctorZIn


This just in...

Foxnews has been increasing the depth of its coverage of the events in Iran BUT today in their first major interview to discuss the issue they chose an American representative who was asking that Americans support the so-called "reform movement" of Iran.

The reform movement which once had overwhelming support among Iranians is now considered part of the problem by the students and the protesters of Iran.

We need to ask FoxNews to interview representatives of the protest movement such as:

Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi

She is a filmmaker from Iran whose father is in the notorious Evin prison for his pro-democracy stand.

She is articulate, very capable and a member of the National Union for Democracy in Iran.

Write FoxNews and recommend that they interview individuals on the side of the protest movement such as her. Ask them to contact her at:

la_fleur_violette@yahoo.com

You can email FoxNews at:

Comments@foxnews.com

Please do this immediately. We must get the truth out to the public. By the way, Iranians watch FoxNews in Tehran and would greatly appreciate the support.

I will follow up soon.

[DoctorZIn]

Iranian Alert: Email FoxNews
Personal Post | 6.16.2003 | DoctorZin


Posted on 06/16/2003 2:08 PM PDT by DoctorZIn


This just in...

Foxnews has been increasing the depth of its coverage of the events in Iran BUT today in their first major interview to discuss the issue they chose an American representative who was asking that Americans support the so-called "reform movement" of Iran.

The reform movement which once had overwhelming support among Iranians is now considered part of the problem by the students and the protesters of Iran.

We need to ask FoxNews to interview representatives of the protest movement such as:

Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi

She is a filmmaker from Iran whose father is in the notorious Evin prison for his pro-democracy stand.

She is articulate, very capable and a member of the National Union for Democracy in Iran.

Write FoxNews and recommend that they interview individuals on the side of the protest movement such as her. Ask them to contact her at:

la_fleur_violette@yahoo.com

You can email FoxNews at:

Comments@foxnews.com

Please do this immediately. We must get the truth out to the public. By the way, Iranians watch FoxNews in Tehran and would greatly appreciate the support.

I will follow up soon.

[DoctorZIn]

IRANIANS TOLD KHAMENEH’I TO RESIGN AS GOD’S REPRESENTATIVE

TEHRAN, 16 June. (IPS) As students-popular revolt against the Islamic Republic continue unabated, with the protests and demonstrations spreading to all major cities throughout the nation, Hojjatoleslam Ali Yoonesi, the Information (Intelligence) Minister said that enemies of Iran have started an "extensive psychological war".

His remarks coincided with the publication of a letter, signed by more than 250 intellectuals, political activists, journalists, scholars, lawyers and teachers told Ayatollah Ali Khameneh’i that he must be answerable to the people and not consider himself as the representative of God on earth.

Observers said this is the first time that Iranian dissidents dared to go that far, questioning the very fundament of the present Islamic system, based on the concept of velayat faqih, or the rule of God’s representation on earth.

What surprised more the observers of Iranian affairs was that an independent newspaper, "Yas No", published the letter, defying the ban on anything critical to the leader.

"The statement is a big encouragement for the students and all those who protest against the present religious dictatorship", one analyst sated.

"While the situation is tense at Tehran universities, in other major cities as well as in all the capital’s suburbs, demonstrations against the regime, chants of death to Khameneh’i and calls for referendum continue, as does clashes between protesters and the Islamic vigilantes", one source told Iran Press Service.

Students have also boycotted end year’s exams.

"The enemies of our country have declared a psychological war against Iran us", Mr. Yoonesi said, adding, "We have entered the scene under quite unequal conditions".

He was referring to the United States officials’ public support for the protest movement for democracy in the one hand, and the independent Iranian medias, based mostly in California, beaming programs towards Iran, giving the Iranians the latest news about the movement and encouraging demonstrators to continue with the movement.

President George W. Bush, on Sunday said he backs the protest movement, saying they "are asking to join the modern world".

Iran described the Bush statement as a "gross interference" in Iranian internal affairs.

"Various remarks made recently by a number of US officials are a clear interference in the Islamic Republic's domestic affairs", said Mr. Hamid Reza Asefi, the official spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry, which sent an official protest note was to Washington via the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, representing American interests since the two former allies cut off all relations in 1979.

"The enemy uses unfair tactics, policies, methods and tools to discredit Iran", the Minister went on, observing that a psychological war is "more disastrous" than a military one, because the tactics used in the latter are "tangible" but in the case of a psychological war the people succumb without noticing.

The signatories of the letter, that includes aides to the badly lamed President Mohammad Khatami, said: "People, through their elected representatives, have the right to fully supervise their rulers, criticise them, and even remove them from power if they are not satisfied". ENDS STUDENTS UNREST 16603

http://www.iran-press-service.com/

[Travis McGee]

bttt!

[ewing]

Iranians have FOX NEWS on satellite in Tehran? Small world indeed..in Isreal they took CNN off the cable and replaced it with FOX

[PigRigger]

"The enemy uses unfair tactics, policies, methods and tools to discredit Iran"

Sadly, in many parts of the world the desire for "Truth" and "Freedom" are considered "unfair tools" to discredit.

DoctorZIn, although we are probably different in so many ways, I truly respect and admire your countrymen's fight to rid themselves of their chains of oppression.

You face a very one-sided battle, but greater odds have been overcome in the past.

Tonight many prayers are being offered for your ultimate victory.

[DoctorZIn]

... Iranians have FOX NEWS on satellite in Tehran?...

For those who have satellite dishes...

and they seem to love it... but are frustrated with its coverage if Iran.

[DoctorZIn]

...DoctorZIn, although we are probably different in so many ways, I truly respect and admire your countrymen's fight to rid themselves of their chains of oppression...


Actually, I am an American born and raised. I guess many would call me a wasp. But I feel strongly about our need to support the Iranians. I feel the same way about all who long for freedom and democracy, although, Iranians have crept deep into my heart.

Some call me an honorary Iranian...

[DoctorZIn]

Please Email FOX NEWS!!!!!!!

[Poohbah]

Godspeed to the brave lads and lasses. May they ROCK THE CASBAH!

[hchutch]

Prayers for the best going up...

I just hope they've planned for the worst.

[Poohbah]

As the Afghan and Palestinian militia types show up, a student leader turns the key on a ZSU 23/4 and says, "You wanna play games? You f***ing wanna play games? Well say hello to my little friend here!"

[DoctorZIn]

Micheal Ledeen is on Fox New right now...

Tell foxnes this is the right move.

[DoctorZIn]

Mullah Crossroads

The National Review
By Joel Mowbray
State faces a decision about direction of policy toward Iranian mullahs.

June 16, 2003

With the departure Friday of the State Department's leading cheerleader for engagement of the Iranian mullahs — and the continued demonstrations of thousands of students protesting those same leaders — Foggy Bottom is at a crossroads. Choosing a different path — one of supporting the cause of freedom in "axis of evil" nation Iran — is unlikely, however, as most of State's professional diplomats back the failed policy of "engaging" the oppressive regime.

Protesters in Iran have made international headlines for about a week now, as thousands of students in Tehran have clashed with thugs on the mullahs' payroll who were trying to prevent peaceful demonstrations. The Washington Post estimates that some 3,000 students are demonstrating, and the New York Times reports that protests have spread to areas outside of the capital of Tehran.

Although State's number-two official Richard Armitage called Iran a "democracy" earlier this year, the country is dominated by an unelected cabal of twelve, known as the Council of Guardians. The panel vets all candidates for president and parliament — including so-called "reformers" — and has the authority to veto any legislation enacted by the legislature. What power they don't have rests in the hands of the "Supreme Leader," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who controls the military, the police, the press, the judiciary, the oil industry, and most corporations that trade with the West. To the extent there are true reformers in the government, they have little practical power. Yet the U.S. State Department persists in its belief that talks with Iran will yield tangible results and somehow empower the "reformers," most of whom are lackeys for the mullahs — and all of whom were deemed acceptable by the mullahs to hold office in the first place.

Until May 12 — the date of the al Qaeda bombing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia that may have been connected to cells operating openly inside Iran — State had been carrying on talks with the Iranian mullahs. The substance of the talks may have been rather limited, insists an administration official who says, "State was kept on a pretty tight leash." Talking points and discussion items for the meeting were cleared through an interagency process, and the conciliatory tone State officials wanted was scuttled in favor of a harsher one. But neither the substance nor the tone was the sore point for those inside and outside the administration who support Iran's burgeoning freedom movement; the fact that they took place at all was the problem.

"Engaging" leaders in any way is a tacit acknowledgement of legitimacy, particularly when their very basis for rule is being challenged from within. The Iranian regime is one that has done almost nothing to redeem itself since President Bush named it a member of the "axis evil," as the mullahs continue to oppress the Iranian people while at the same time actively pursuing the development of nuclear weapons. Some estimates cited in a Washington Post story Sunday are that Iran could have nuclear weapons as soon as 2006. The mullahs, though, could actually obtain nukes sooner than that. "It would be 2006 if Iran received no outside help whatsoever," notes an informed source.

Iran's dogged pursuit of an assortment of weapons of mass destruction, however, has done little to dampen the enthusiasm of now-departed director of policy planning at State, Richard Haass, whose last day was Friday. Haass, who left to become the head of the Council on Foreign Relations, was by all accounts the primary force driving the policy of "engagement" with Iran. Even when "engagement" was absolutely not the policy of the administration, in fact, Haass was pushing for it. One month after the "axis of evil" speech, Haass told Israeli officials that they would need to "engage" Iran. It's not that Haass likes the mullahs or approves of their reprehensible conduct; he sincerely believes that the U.S. would lose its ability to "influence" the mullahs if it did not engage them. He is not the only one who clings to this dangerously misguided belief.

Even with Haass out of the picture, the State Department has a number of officials remaining who support Iranian engagement, despite any evidence suggesting that the mullahs have tempered their actions as a result. Meghan O'Sullivan, Haass's protégé at the Brookings Institution until following him to State in 2001, strongly backs engagement, as does Deputy Secretary of State Armitage. Both will undoubtedly push for further talks and negotiations with the ruthless regime, though it is unclear to what extent they will succeed. "We're probably going to be stuck somewhere between what we should be doing and a really bad initiative that some people want (to work with the mullahs)," predicts an administration official who believes the U.S. should openly and strongly support dissidents and protesting students as part of a strategy to undermine the existing regime.

In the midst of the ongoing protests, State has offered words of support to the students, with a message delivered directly by the world's most famous foreign policy leader. Secretary of State Colin Powell says that the U.S. wants to speak directly with the people of Iran, "over the heads of their leaders to let them know that we agree with them." But no matter how heartfelt Powell's message may have been, the words might have rung hollow in light of State's desire to "engage" the mullahs — not to mention precedent from last year.

On July 9 last year, thousands of protestors marked the three-year anniversary of a brutal police crackdown on peaceful demonstrators at Tehran University. When asked if the U.S. had any message for the students protesting the mullahs, State press flack Richard Boucher responded simply, "No." This was the determined policy of the State Department, because officials there did not want to "anger" the ruling mullahs, according to an administration official.

Thankfully, the President did not care about angering the mullahs, and on July 12, Bush released the following statement supporting the protesters: "We have seen throughout history the power of one simple idea: when given a choice, people will choose freedom. As we have witnessed over the past few days, the people of Iran want the same freedoms, human rights, and opportunities as people around the world. Their government should listen to their hopes." He finished his message, which the State Department opposed, by telling the demonstrators, "As Iran's people move towards a future defined by greater freedom, greater tolerance, they will have no better friend than the United States of America." If only State wanted President Bush's vision to become a reality.


Joel Mowbray is an NRO contributor and a Townhall.com columnist. Mowbray is the author of the upcoming Dangerous Diplomacy: How the State Department Endangers America's Security.


Source: The National Review

[DoctorZIn]

Monday, June 16, 2003

When A Nation's Patience Runs Out…

June 15, 2003
Iran va Jahan
Shaheen Fatemi


NOTE: Another interesting piece.

The younger generation has openly and repeatedly disavowed the revolution with all its symbols and paraphernalia! This generation is as counter-revolutionary as the youth in East European countries or the last Russian generation at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Empire.


When a nation's patience runs out no force in the world can prevent the inevitable. The events of the past five nights in Tehran (which has now spread to other major Iranian cities) give every indication that there is widespread and grassroots support for the student movement. In this latest event, for the first time in history of such movements in Iran, the students seem to be receiving massive support from their parents and other members of the public. As a former student leader during the fifty's- the Mossadegh era and its aftermath- I can't recall any time when the students, their political aspirations and their movements, could count on the public support in such a manner. Today's youth seem to be in perfect synch with their elders.


Several factors may be responsible for this new phenomenon. To begin with, the regime's corruption, mismanagement and harmful economic and social policies, while hurting the unemployed youth and the women as the primary victims, are equally harmful to the rest of the population. Therefore the evaporating middle-class, the poorly-paid factory workers, the oppressed teachers and other segments of the population all feel victimized. Another contributing factor may have to do with the overwhelming numerical superiority of the youth in the total population, representing more than sixty-percent of the total for the first time in the country's history.


Today's Iran is a young country; so young that more than two-thirds of its population either were not born at the time of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 or were too young to remember that dreadful event. The same "revolution. that its dismal consequences have led to the unusual willingness of the remorseful elder generation, perhaps being driven by their guilt-factor, to support the student movement during the current anti-government uprising. The Islamic Revolution, cooked-up by the older generation, has been responsible for bringing to power the present Religious-Fascist regime. The same revolution has led to total destruction of the infrastructure of the economy, has caused the massive exodus of the managerial class from Iran, resulted in the 8-years of devastating war with Iraq and among many other ills, has made Iran an outcast among the family of nations, gaining for it the dubious honor of being named a member of the "Axis of Evil..


The younger generation has openly and repeatedly disavowed the revolution with all its symbols and paraphernalia! This generation is as counter-revolutionary as the youth in East European countries or the last Russian generation at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Empire. The revolution has deprived them of everything which rightfully had been theirs without giving them anything in return. They often question their remorseful parents in search of justification and verifiable reasons of their self-destructive actions and erroneous decisions of the past. It seems as if the older generation at last has decided to undo the admittedly great mistake by assisting the younger generation in their valiant effort of ridding the nation of this anachronistic and monstrous regime on their way to building a free and democratic country worthy of decent human beings.

[CanadaRob]

ewing:
Iranians have FOX NEWS on satellite in Tehran? Small world indeed..in Isreal they took CNN off the cable and replaced it with FOX

We can't even get FOX NEWS in Canada :(

[DoctorZIn]

Iraqi Islamic Badr Brigades members clash with Iranians in their own capital
SMCCDI (Information Service)
June 16, 2003

Repressive security forces who are members of the Iraqi Badr brigades clashes this evening with Iranians in their own capital.

The clashes were more violent in the Amir Abad and Fatemi areas where the regime had focused more of its presence in order to avoid the increasing gatherings to turn into other wide scale riots.

Several protesters including females were badly injured in this evening's sporadic clashes and the brutality of these foreign mercenaries forces many to stay in the cars.

Many of these well trained forces have been transferred
to Tehran in the last 2 days in order to secure the sgacky position of the regime which is affraid to lay its illegitimate power on its Iranian troops.

An official statement distributed to many commanders of the regular Law Enforcement Forces and even the Pasdaran Corp. has stated that these individuals are "Iranian" and part of the regime's Pasdaran Corp. stationned in the southern cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas. But everyone knows that this is just a false pretext and that in reality the Iranian-Arab members of the POasdaran Corp can understand the Persian language.

These troops have been lodged in the northern and southern casernes of the militia and the situation has been reported as tense between them and the Iranian forces of the regime.

Source: SMCCDI


NOTE: The Stakes Are Getting Greater...

[McGavin999]

Time for the Iranian army and police to choose a side. Either they are with the Iranian people or they are with the foreigners.