Summary of Iran Stories in Today's BroadcastsBehnam NateghiSunday, December 21, 2003
<b>Istanbul Bombing Suspect Fingers Iran as Funding Source</b>
• Suspected mastermind of bombing attacks on Jewish and British targets in Istanbul Adnan Orsoz told Turkish authorities that a part of the funding for the attacks came from a source in Iran. He said he received $50,000 from the source. Orsoz confirmed that an international terrorist organization had given training and cash to members of a Turkish Islamist group, police said in a statement on Friday. Police did not name the international organization. But a report in Hurriyet newspaper said he told interrogators he had breakfast with al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and one of the Istanbul suicide bombers in Afghanistan before September 11, 2001. (Jamshid Zand)
• US officials said they are investigating Iran's relation to the two drug boats they seized in the Persian Gulf waters south of Iran. (Farin Asemi)
<b>Iran Warns European Countries on Admitting MKO Members</b>
• Iran has warned European countries not to admit any of the members of the Iraq-based anti-regime opposition group the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), foreign ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said yesterday. He accused the US of following a dual policy on terrorism: on one hand the US holds Taliban and al-Qaeda detainees at the Guantanamo Bay camp, and on the other hand, it lets members of another terrorist organization disperse around the world, he added. The Iraqi governing council gave the MKO until December's end to leave Iraq. (Ardavan Niknam)
<b>Iran, a Black Hole in US Mid-East Policy</b>
• “A black hole in the US commitment to transform the greater Middle East hovers over Iran. An attentive newspaper reader can describe the goals that President Bush and Condoleezza Rice, his national security adviser, have in mind with respect to Iraq, Palestine and the Arab political order. On Iran, the jury of two is still out,” writes the <i>Washington Post</i>columnist Jim Hoagland. (Shahran Tabari)
<b>Judiciary Rejects Reformist MP's Complaint against Tehran Prosecutor</b>
• A Tehran court rejected Tehran MP Mohsen Armin's complaint that by blocking the publication of his speech on the judiciary's handling of the death in custody of Canadian Iranian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, the Tehran prosecutor violated the constitution. Armin said in an interview with state-run “students” news agency ISNA that he had lined up newspaper editors to testify that they received orders from Tehran prosecutor Said Mortazavi not to publish the speech. (Ali Sajjdi)
<b>Majles Hears Complaints Committee's Report on Aghajari</b>
• The Majles today heard the complaints committee's report on the judiciary's handling the case of activist Hashem Aghajari, Tehran teachers' college history professor and board member of the pro-reform leftist party the Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO). Aghajari received a death sentence for criticizing the clerical rule and the Shiite principle of religious emulation in his June 2002 speech on Islamic Protestantism at a Hamedan mosque. Defending Aghajari on the charge of stirring public disorder, the complaints committee blamed the conservative press and the judiciary for the widespread pro-Aghajari demonstrations that followed his speech. The complaints committee also criticized the Hamedan's judge's citing a religious ruling by a conservative source of religious emulation, or Marja, as the basis for his death sentence against Aghjari. Last week, the conservative faction campaigned to block the reading of the report in a Majles open session. (Feredydoun Zarnegar)
<b>Tehran Prosecutor Releases Jailed Student Batebi on Furlough</b>
• Tehran prosecutor released jailed student activist Ahmad Batebi on furlough, Batebi's father said in an interview with state-run “students” news agency ISNA. Considering pressures Batebi was facing in jail, his asthma and the ills he developed after being tortured, he was probably released to receive medical treatment, member of the Batebi committee <b>Omid Habibinia</b> tells <b>Radio Farda</b>. Last month a group of human rights activists, writers and journalists formed the committee in order to publicize the case of Ahmad Batebi, who was thrown in jail after the July 1999 student uprising, when his picture holding up a bloody tee-shirt of a fellow demonstrator appeared in western press. The committee plans to complain to international human rights bodies, he says. Batebi, who is not associated with any of the regime's political factions, receives little attention from the press, the committee said in a statement it issued last month. Batebi disappeared three days before the end of his last furlough, following a meeting in Tehran with an envoy of the UN Human Rights Commission. (Mahmonir Rahimi)
<b>No Trust between Youth and Traditional Groups</b>
• The time has past for the leading organizations and their traditional alliances, which thought they could have large national public following, presidential advisor Mohammad-Reza Tajik said in a speech to the national youth organization. Young people today have learned how to turn soccer celebrations and religious mourning ceremonies into meeting places, and how to use movie-houses and coffee shops as mini-parliaments. They have learned how to exploit every place and occasion as a platform to express dissent and protest, he added. There is no trust left between the young people and traditional institutions. (Mahmonir Rahimi)
<b>Judiciary Charges Taxi Driver with National Security Crimes</b>
• The Tehran judiciary charged taxi driver Ali-Akbar Najafi, 27, with crimes against national security for placing a bumper sticker on his cab that read “The Time of Tyranny Is Over,” Najafi's lawyer told state-run “students” news agency ISNA. The driver, who has been in jail since his arrest last June, was released last week on 200 million rials bail. Crimes against national security are punishable with death sentence, according to the Islamic government's laws. (Siavash Ardalan)
<b>Teacher Shortage in Khuzestan</b>
• There is a shortage of at least 11,000 teachers in the Khuzestan province, which has 1.2 million students, head of provincial education department Iraj Heydarinia said. (Arash Qavidel, Tehran)
<b>Zaheden, Center of Regional Drug Trade</b>
• The borders between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan only exist on paper. Smugglers and terrorists go back and force, carrying goods and drugs, and all drug mafia organizations of the region have offices in Zahedan, writes Italian weekly <i>Panorama</i> in a report on the kidnapping last week of the three Germans and Irish bicycling tourists on the Bam-Zahedan road. (Ahmad Ra'fat, Rome)
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شيرين فاميلي (راديو فردا): امروز سخنگوي وزارت خارجه ايران گفت: جامعه جهاني بايد تسهيلات لازم را براي استفاده مشروع از فن آوري هسته اي در اختيار ايران بگذارد، وگرنه ايران بر اساس منافع ملي خودش عمل خواهد كرد. حميدرضا آصفي با اشاره به امضاي پروتكل الحاقي پيمان منع گسترش سلاحهاي هسته اي از سوي ايران گفت: كشورهاي اروپايي بايد سختگيريهايي را در مورد صدور وسايلي با كاربرد دوگانه به ايران وجود دارد، از ميان بردارند. آقاي آصفي افزود همكاري ايران با آژانس بين المللي انرژي اتمي در گروي انجام وظايف جامعه جهاني و كشورهاي اروپايي به تعهداتشان است. وي افزود ايران به كسي چك سفيد امضا شده نداده است. اگر طرف اروپايي به تعهداتش عمل نكند، ايران نيز بر اساس منافع ملي خود عمل خواهد كرد. در همين حال يك سايت اينترنتي، ناگفته هايي را درباره تاسيسات توليد سوخت هسته اي در ايران منتشر كرده است.
اردوان نيكنام(راديو فردا): سايت خبري بازتاب كه گفته مي شود به محافظه كاران حاكم بر جمهوري اسلامي نزديك است، در شماره امروز خود ناگفته هايي را از بخشي از برنامه هاي هسته اي ايران منتشر كرده است. اين سايت به نقل از يكي از كارشناسان سازمان انرژي اتمي ايران كه نامش فاش نشده است، مي نويسد: با مطرح شدن ساخت پروژه هسته اي يو سي اف اصفهان در چهار سال پيش، طراحي آن ابتدا به كارشناسان چيني واگذار شد و قراردادي با آنها بسته شد. بر اساس اين قرارداد، 45 ميليون دلار به طرف چيني پرداخت شد، اما به گفته اين كارشناس، چينيها در موعد مقرر نقشه هاي ناقص و مخدوش به ايران تحويل دادند.
اين كارشناس مي افزايد متخصصان هسته اي ايران تصميم گرفتند با فسخ قرارداد، خود پروژه را دنبال كنند. در آن مقطع هياتي از ايران براي مطالبه حقوق از دست رفته عازم چين شد و با توجه به همزماني سفر جيان زنينگ، رئيس جمهوري وقت چين به ايران در ارديبهشت ماه سال 1381، اين هيات طرف چيني را تهديد به پيگيري حقوقي كرد و در نهايت قرار شد چين 65 ميليون دلار به ايران به عنوان ضرر و زيان در تاخير طراحي پروژه اصفهان بپردازد.
سايت بازتاب مي نويسد تاسيسات يو سي اف اصفهان، حلقه دوم از روند غني سازي اورانيوم در ايران است كه سنگ اورانيوم استخراج شده در ساقند يزد را فن آوري كرده، محصول خود را به تاسيسات نطنز مي فرستد. مسئولان آژانس بين المللي انرژي اتمي و نيز مقامهاي كشورهاي غربي از تكميل چرخه فراوري اورانيوم در ايران ابراز نگراني كرده اند. به گزارش كارشناسان آژانس، بر روي برخي از دستگاههايي كه در تاسيسات هسته اي ايران نصب شده است، رگه هاي از اورانيوم بسيار غني شده پيدا شده كه مي تواند در ساختن سلاحهاي هسته اي كاربرد داشته باشد.
امروز حميدرضاآصفي، سخنگوي وزارت خارجه ايران گفت: جامعه جهاني بايد براي ارائه تسهيلات لازم به ايران براي استفاده مشروع از فن آوري هسته اي اقدام كند و سختگيري هايي را كه در خصوص كالاهاي دو منظوره وجود داشته، از ميان بردارد. آصفي گفت: اتحاديه اروپا و جامعه جهاني بايد به وظايف خود عمل كنند. استمرار همكاري ايران، تنها در گروي انجام وظايف جامعه جهاني و كشورهاي اروپايي به تعهداتشان است. سخنگوي وزارت خارجه ايران افزود: ايران به كسي چك سفيد امضا نداده است. اگر طرف اروپايي به تعهداتش عمل نكند، ايران بر اساس منافع ملي خودش عمل مي كند. امروز حميد رضا آصفي، سخنگوي وزارت خارجه جمهوري اسلامي، گفت که جامعه جهاني بايد تسهيلات لازم را براي استفاده مشروع از فن آوري هسته اي در اختيار جمهوري اسلامي بگذارد، وگرنه ايران بر اساس منافع ملي خودش عمل خواهد كرد. آقاي آصفي گفت که جامعه جهاني بايد سختگيري هايي را كه در خصوص كالاهاي دو منظوره وجود داشته، از ميان بردارد. وي افزود که استمرار همكاري جمهوري اسلامي تنها در گروي انجام وظايف جامعه جهاني و كشورهاي اروپايي به تعهداتشان است. در همين حال سايت خبري بازتاب كه گفته مي شود به محافظه كاران حاكم بر جمهوري اسلامي نزديك است، نوشت که با مطرح شدن ساخت پروژه هسته اي يو سي اف اصفهان در چهار سال پيش، طراحي آن به كارشناسان چيني واگذار شد اما چيني ها در موعد مقرر نقشه هاي ناقص و مخدوش به ايران تحويل دادند که پس از پيگيري حقوقي، چين 65 ميليون دلار به ايران به عنوان ضرر و زيان پرداخت کرد.
