Summary of Iran Stories in Today&apos;s BroadcastsBehnam NateghiWednesday, July 23, 2003 <b>US Calls for Extradition of Top Al Qaeda Members from Iran</b> • The US pressed Iran for extraditing the al-Qaeda members whom intelligence minister Ali Yunesi said Iran had in custody. “We believe that these are people who have taken refuge in Iran,” US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. “We have been saying that some of the people in Iran were in contact or involved in some way with the attacks in Saudi Arabia in May,” he added. He said Iran “needs to deport al Qaeda members either to countries where they are wanted for crimes, or their home countries” He urged Iran to cooperate with Saudi Arabia&apos;s investigation on the May attacks. In the first official admission of the al Qaeda presence in Iran, intelligence minister Ali Yunesi said on Wednesday that Iran was holding some senior al Qaeda elements. “Many of them have been expelled and a large number of them are in our custody -- a mixture of big and small members,” he said. (Mina Baharmast) • Iran arrested Fedal Saadi, 24, a Tunisian accused by Italy of membership in an al Qaeda-related organization, and will extradite him to Italy. (Ahmad Ra&apos;fat, Rome) <b>Journalists Protest Gathering Set for August 8</b> • The society for defense of press freedom invited all its members to gather at the offices of the journalists&apos; trade association on Friday, August 8, to protest against press restrictions. The society called for an independent investigation by a panel of journalists and Majles MPs about the death in police custody of Canadian-Iranian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, spokesman Mashallah Shamsolvaezin said on Thursday. (Maryam Ahmadi) <b>Top Officials Consider Signing the Additional Nuclear Protocol</b> • Top Islamic officials were considering allowing impromptu inspections of Iran&apos;s nuclear signs by signing the additional protocol of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, after listening to experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) invited to visit Tehran, foreign minister Kharazi said on Tuesday in a press conference in Pretoria. In the statement issued after their meeting in Brussels on Monday, EU foreign ministers threatened to revise EU-Iran relations failing Iran&apos;s “urgent and unconditional acceptance” of the protocol. Government spokesman Abdollah Ramezanzadeh said Iran has said that it will sign the protocol, “pending assurances.” President Khatami said Iran had never rejected the additional protocol, but signing it would depend on the Majles vote. (Ali Sajjadi) <b>Telecom Blocks Weblogs after Unblocking</b> • After Iran Telecom apologized to users for blocking the two major weblog publishing sites, Persianblog and Blogspot, for what it called a misunderstanding by Iran&apos;s largest Internet service wholesaler, webloggers and Internet surfers in Tehran complained yesterday that access to both sites, which carry some 30,000 Persian-language weblogs, have been blocked again. Internet service providers said today that Iran Telecom sent them a new list of banned weblogs and websites. Filtering weblogs which comprise 80 percent of Persian-language Internet content was “suicidal,” Persianblog managers wrote in a note on their site. They said filtering have had a reverse effect, because page views of weblogs have increased by 50 percent ever since. A Persianblog manager blamed the re-blocking of the two services on “rogue” Telecom officials. <b>Hossein Derakhshan</b>, Toronto-based writer of “Editor: Myself,” Iran&apos;s most popular weblog, whose website www.hoder.com is among the many news and information sites blocked since July 9, tells <b>Radio Farda</b> that by publicly denying the restrictions they have imposed on the Internet, the Islamic officials may be trying to deflate the issue, confuse the public and defuse protests. (Behnam Nateghi, New York) • Government&apos;s blocking and filtering Internet content, has made Iranian Internet users more savvy about finding ways to circumvent the barriers, London-based information technology expert <b>Darioush Mohammadpour</b> tells <b>Radio Farda</b>. (Mahmonir Rahimi) <b>EU and US United Against Clerical Regime</b> • The history of disagreement between the US and Europe on the Middle East “makes it all the more encouraging that, at least on the question of how to deal with tyrants in Tehran, American and the EU are moving closer together,” writes the Wall Street Journal. (Behnam Nateghi, New York) <b>Former Italian Prime Minister Postpones Trip in Iran</b> • Deputy chair of the International Socialists conference, <b>former Italian prime minister Massimo D&apos;Alema </b> tells <b>Radio Farda</b> that due to violations of human rights in Iran and the death of Zahara Kazemi, he postponed a trip he was about to make to Iran on the invitation of President Khatami. (Ahmad Ra&apos;fat, Rome) <b>Iran Buries Canadian-Iranian Photojournalist Zahra Kazemi</b> • Over her Montreal-based son&apos;s objections, and despite international demands for the extradition of her body to Canada for autopsy, Canadian-Iranian photo journalist Zahra Kazemi was buried today in Shiraz, in a ceremony attended by several provincial Islamic officials. Kazemi&apos;s son Stephan Hashemi said in Montreal that officials forced his grandmother Ezat Kazemi to withdraw her demand for the extradition of the body to Canada. A special presidential panel said in its probe that Kazemi died of head injuries she suffered during interrogation by Tehran judiciary security forces. Meanwhile, editor of the conservative Tehran daily <b>Kayhan</b> Hossein Shariatmadari said Kazemi&apos;s head injury that put her in a coma for two weeks before her death may have been self inflected. (Golnaz Esfandiari) • Tehran judiciary has found the investigation of Zahra Kazemi&apos;s death in police custody outside its jurisdiction, and has sent the case to the armed forces judiciary. (Jean Khakzad) • In a press conference this morning, judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Elham defended Tehran prosecutor Said Mortazavi. He said it was Mortazavi&apos;s duty to have Zahra Kazemi arrested, and nobody has the right to accuse Mortazavi of wrongdoing. (Jean Khakzad) • Canadian foreign affairs minister Bill Graham said in a live TV interview this morning that Iran buried Kazemi, despite Canada&apos;s request, on behalf of her son, for the extradition of the body. ( Maryam Aghvami) • Spokesman of Paris-based advocacy group Reporters San Frontiers <b>Reza Moini</b> tells <b>Radio Farda</b> that Kazemi&apos;s burial will make future investigation of her death more difficult. He adds that the special, presidential panel&apos;s probe into the circumstances of Kazemi&apos;s death has no value, since it is full of contradictions. (Mina Baharmast) <b>Rift in the Islamic Student Movement</b> • The Islamic student association of Tehran&apos;s Khajeh-Nasir University sent a blank letter to the heads of the three branches of government to signal the end of the dialogue between the student movement and the Islamic regime. A student activist tells <b>Radio Farda</b> that many student Islamic councils do not support the association of Islamic student councils, known as Dafter-e Tahkim Vahdat. He says the Daftar leadership turned its back to student demonstrators during the July 1999 protests, and has always tried to pacify student councils, while issuing radical statements. He says the Islamic student council of the Khajeh Nasir University has been independent of the Daftar since 1999. (Keyvan Hosseini) <b>Three Top Shiite Clerics Reject Sunnis Discrimination Charge</b> • Three top Shiite clerics rejected and explained away the charge of official discrimination against followers of the Sunni sect of Islam. The Sunni Majles MPs wrote in their letter to the three Shiite clerics that qualified Sunni candidates were usually passed over in favor of less qualified Shiites. They also complained that the government denies the Sunnis permit to build mosques in Tehran. Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi accused the Sunnis in the Sistan and Baluchestan province of attempting to tip the Sunni-Shiite population balance in the area by having too many children. He also accused the Sunnis of trying to push the Shiites out of the area by buying their lands. Ayatollah Nouri-Hamedani invited the Sunni MPs for a meeting, and Ayatollah Hosseinali Montazeri said a Sunni mosques in Tehran could become a target of anti-Sunni graffiti. (Nima Tamadon) <b>Majles MPs Call for Impeachment of Education Minister</b> • A group of Majles MPs signed a letter to the Majles speaker demanding the impeachment of the education minister for lack of response to the “legitimate” demands of Iran&apos;s half a million teachers. MP Hamid-Reza Haj-Babai, spokesman of the Majles committee for following up the demands of teachers, said he hoped with the impeachment of the minister, teachers&apos; financial problems could be resolved. (Arash Qavidel, Tehran) <b>Khatami “Unaware” of Parallel Intelligence Organs</b> • President Khatami said today that he is unaware of the existence of parallel intelligence organs, but said parallel organs harm the country&apos;s security. MP Mohsen Mirdamadi, head of the Majles national security and foreign relations committee had said some parallel intelligence organs have three times more staff than the intelligence ministry. (Golnaz Esfandiari) <b>Tehran Air 30 Percent More Polluted than Last Year</b> • On average, Tehran&apos;s air has 30 percent more carbon monoxides than last year, announced an official of Iran&apos;s environmental protection organization. (Arash Qavidel, Tehran) • Tehran-based ecology journalist <b>Naser Karami</b> tells <b>Radio Farda</b> that the pollution averages figure given by the environmental protection organization is unrealistic, since it does not take into account the climate changes. (Jamshid Zand) <b>Iran&apos;s Population to Grow to 69 Million</b> • Growing at an annual rate of 1.2 percent, Iran&apos;s population will reach one million shy of 70 million by the end of 2003, the UN Population Fund said in a report. (Golnaz Esfandiari) <b>Iran pistachio Competes with US Crop</b> • Iran produced 250,000 tons, or 60 percent of the world&apos;s pistachio crop in the fiscal year that ended on March 22, 2003, and earned $470 million from exporting 145,000 of pistachio. However, head of the association of dried fruits exporters Mohammad Hossein Shamsfard said the EU custom officials discriminate against Iran pistachio. The US is Iran&apos;s biggest rival in the pistachio market. (Fereydoun Khavand, Paris) . مينا بهارمست (راديو فردا): علي يونسي، وزير اطلاعات جمهوري اسلامي، روز چهارشنبه در پاسخ به سئوالي در مورد دستگيري اعضاي القاعده در ايران گفت: هرگونه اطلاعاتي مربوط به مرتبطين القاعده يا اعضاي آن در ايران به دست ما برسد، بلافاصله فعاليتهاي اطلاعاتي را شروع و سپس آنها را دستگير مي‌كنيم. علي يونسي افزود: تاكنون هم تعداد زيادي از اين افراد دستگير شده اند، تعداد زيادي اخراج شده اند و تعدادي هم در اختيار ما هستند. بعد از سخنان آقاي يونسي، خبرنگاران از آقاي ريچارد باوچر، سخنگوي وزارت خارجه آمريكا در واشنگتن در مورد سخنان آقاي يونسي سئوال كردند. آقاي باوچر گفت: من هنوز اين سخنان آقاي يونسي را نديده ام، اما ما هميشه گفته ايم كه اطلاعاتي داريم كه اعضاي ارشد القاعده از داخل ايران فعاليت ميكنند. اينها افرادي هستند كه در ايران پناه گرفته اند. سخنگوي وزارت امورخارجه آمريكا افزود: ما حتي گفته‌ايم كه برخي از اين افراد به نحوي با انفجار تروريستي ماه مي در عربستان سعودي ارتباط داشته و يا در آن دست داشته اند. بنابراين مايه تعجب ما نيست كه مقام‌هاي ايران اكنون مي‌گويند افراد القاعده در ايرانند. ما همواره اين نكته را روشن كرده ايم كه دولت ايران بايد اين افراد را يا به كشورهايي كه مرتكب جرم شده اند، يا به كشورهايي كه اين افراد، شهروندان آنند، تحويل دهد. لازم است كه دولت ايران همچنين با تحقيقات عربستان سعودي درباره انفجارهاي تروريستي ماه مي همكاري كند. از ريچارد بالچر سئوال شد كه آيا شما تماسي مستقيم يا غير مستقيم در اين مورد با مقامهاي ايران داشته ايد؟ سخنگوي وزارت خارجه آمريكا گفت: من اطلاعي در اين مورد ندارم، بايد بپرسم و ببينم كه در مورد سخنان آقاي يونسي، پيامهايي به ايران فرستاده شده يا نه. فكر نميكنم، براي اين كه اين سخنان تازه گفته شده، ولي به طور كلي در مورد القاعده ما تماسهاي بيشماري در گذشته با ايران داشته ايم. اسكات مكفلن، سخنگوي كاخ سفيد هم پاسخهاي ريچارد بالچر را تكرار كرد. حجت الاسلام علي يونسي، وزير اطلاعات جمهوري اسلامي، روز چهارشنبه در پاسخ به سئوالي در مورد دستگيري اعضاي القاعده در ايران گفت: هرگونه اطلاعاتي مربوط به مرتبطين القاعده يا اعضاي آن در ايران به دست ما برسد، بلافاصله فعاليتهاي اطلاعاتي را شروع و سپس آنها را دستگير مي‌كنيم. بعد از سخنان آقاي يونسي، ريچارد باوچر، سخنگوي وزارت خارجه آمريكا گفت: ما هميشه گفته ايم كه اطلاعاتي داريم كه اعضاي ارشد القاعده از داخل ايران فعاليت مي كنند و در ايران پناه گرفته اند. ما حتي گفته‌ايم كه برخي از اين افراد به نحوي با انفجار تروريستي ماه مي در عربستان سعودي ارتباط داشته و يا در آن دست داشته اند. وي گفت: دولت ايران بايد اين افراد را يا به كشورهايي كه در آنها مرتكب جرم شده اند، يا به كشورهاي متبوع خود تحويل دهد. وي از جمهوري اسلامي خواست با تحقيقات عربستان سعودي در باره حمله تروريستي ماه مه در رياض همكاري كند.