Many
recent headlines in Iran have focused on the indictment of
notoriously heavy-handed former state prosecutor, Saeed Mortazavi,
known to critics as the “butcher of the press” or “torturer of
Tehran”. Following his arrest and an extremely brief stint in
prison, Mortazavi was inexplicable released.
The
situation erupted when Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
stopped midway through his speech to parliament and played a
videotape alleging corruption against one of the most powerful
families in Iran, the Larijanis. The Larijanis are known friends of
Mortazavi. Five of the Larijani brothers hold high posts in the
Iranian government, including Sadeq Larijani and Ali Larijani, the
current head of Iran's judiciary and speaker of Iranian parliament
respectively. In the video, Fazel Larijani suggests that Mortazavi's
criminal investigation could be dropped in return for financial
favors. In response, Ali Larijani told Amadinejad he was “waging
war on God [by accusing a good Muslim of corruption]” before
throwing the president out of parliament. All this comes after
supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei, made a declaration explicitly banning political infighting
before the election.
This
article further elaborates on some of the Iranian political tensions
discussed in class recently. As demonstrated in the article,
President Ahmadinejad, was not hesitant to go against the
declarations of Ayatollah Khamenei. Following the accusations, the
Larijani family wasted no time in bringing religion into the matter.
This event will likely further the divide between Khamenei and
Ahmadinejad. Here, Amadinejad continues his quest to represent what
he believes is the will of the people and in doing so, finds himself
at odds with the traditional, religious infrastructure of the
government.
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