Iranian Alert -- November 21, 2003 -- IRAN LIVE THREAD

The US media almost entirely ignores news regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran. As Tony Snow of the Fox News Network has put it, “this is probably the most under-reported news story of the year.” But most American’s are unaware that the Islamic Republic of Iran is NOT supported by the masses of Iranians today. Modern Iranians are among the most pro-American in the Middle East.

There is a popular revolt against the Iranian regime brewing in Iran today. Starting June 10th of this year, Iranians have begun taking to the streets to express their desire for a regime change. Most want to replace the regime with a secular democracy. Many even want the US to over throw their government.

The regime is working hard to keep the news about the protest movement in Iran from being reported. Unfortunately, the regime has successfully prohibited western news reporters from covering the demonstrations. The voices of discontent within Iran are sometime murdered, more often imprisoned. Still the people continue to take to the streets to demonstrate against the regime.

In support of this revolt, Iranians in America have been broadcasting news stories by satellite into Iran. This 21st century news link has greatly encouraged these protests. The regime has been attempting to jam the signals, and locate the satellite dishes. Still the people violate the law and listen to these broadcasts. Iranians also use the Internet and the regime attempts to block their access to news against the regime. In spite of this, many Iranians inside of Iran read these posts daily to keep informed of the events in their own country.

This daily thread contains nearly all of the English news reports on Iran. It is thorough. If you follow this thread you will witness, I believe, the transformation of a nation. This daily thread provides a central place where those interested in the events in Iran can find the best news and commentary. The news stories and commentary will from time to time include material from the regime itself. But if you read the post you will discover for yourself, the real story of what is occurring in Iran and its effects on the war on terror.

I am not of Iranian heritage. I am an American committed to supporting the efforts of those in Iran seeking to replace their government with a secular democracy. I am in contact with leaders of the Iranian community here in the United States and in Iran itself.

If you read the daily posts you will gain a better understanding of the US war on terrorism, the Middle East and why we need to support a change of regime in Iran. Feel free to ask your questions and post news stories you discover in the weeks to come.

If all goes well Iran will be free soon and I am convinced become a major ally in the war on terrorism. The regime will fall. Iran will be free. It is just a matter of time.

PS I have a daily ping list and a breaking news ping list. If you would like to receive alerts to these stories please let me know which list you would like to join.

U.S. Accuses Iran of Trying to Make Nuclear Weapons

NewsMax.com Wires
Friday, Nov. 21, 2003

VIENNA, Austria – The United States accused Iran of trying to make nuclear arms, in harsh comments Friday at a U.N. atomic agency meeting that reflected the split between Washington and key European nations over how far to go in censuring Tehran for past activities.
Unable to bridge that rift, delegates at a board of governors' meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency decided to adjourn until next week in hopes of finding a compromise.

IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said the meeting would reconvene Wednesday, after adjourning later Friday following delegates' speeches.

The break would be a chance for high-level negotiations to continue in the capitals of the 35 board members, she said.

The move followed a failure by IAEA delegates to reconcile U.S. wishes for strong censure of Iran's past covert nuclear activities and European hopes of encouraging Tehran's newfound openness by refraining from overtly harsh language or any formulation that would result in the Security Council's involvement.

Addressing delegates, U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Brill assailed Iran for 18 years of "violations and lies," including enriching uranium, processing small amounts of plutonium and other activities that Washington says point to a weapons agenda.

"Iran systematically and deliberately deceived the IAEA and the international community about these issues for year after year after year," he said. The purpose, he said, was "the pursuit of nuclear weapons."

Such conduct by Iran "constitutes noncompliance with its safeguards obligations," Brill said, in language that indirectly accused Tehran of violating the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, an act that normally results in the Security Council's involvement.

In comments that provoked an unusually sharp response from IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, Brill suggested a statement in ElBaradei's report on Iran was "questionable" in saying there was no "evidence" it had tried to build nuclear weapons.

Brill said that no "proof" would have been the proper phrase.

Evidence Is Proof?!

ElBaradei dismissed the argument as "disingenuous," according to diplomats at the meeting. "In our dictionary, 'evidence' is the same as 'proof,"' he said.

Fleming said Elbaradei "takes issue with the U.S. accusation that the agency has threatened its credibility. We believe that we are impartial and credible and that actually our credibility has been enhanced."

Earlier, Iran submitted a letter to the board agreeing to open its nuclear programs to pervasive spot inspections, giving up attempts to wait until it saw the text of the resolution and approved its language.

But diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Iran continued to insist it had the right to withdraw its promise to accept such inspections if the resolution made reference to the Security Council's involvement or contained other language it found unacceptable.

Such a move, however, would almost guarantee a strong resolution that might even meet U.S. wishes to have Iran declared in violation of safeguard agreements, triggering possible involvement by the Security Council.

Asked what links there were between a soft resolution and his country's acceptance of wider inspections as well as its decision to suspend uranium enrichment, both of which the board has demanded, chief Iranian delegate Ali Akbar Salehi said, "They all go together."

Salehi suggested the United States was isolated in the board.

"We think that the American delegation, or the U.S. as a whole, is sort of a hostage to its own accusations," he told reporters. "And I think the majority of the board are looking forward to see that this ... is resolved peacefully."

He suggested that Germany, France and Britain, the chief backers of a relatively soft resolution, had pledged to keep the issue from going to the Security Council if Iran continued to cooperate with the agency's efforts to probe its nuclear past and present.

"It's not only a promise on their side; this is a promise of every thoughtful, wise and prudent member of the board," he said.

Before the discussion moved to the board members' capitals, a draft discussed in Vienna and quoted to The Associated Press by a senior diplomat would have given the board the right to call an emergency session immediately should any evidence surface that Iran was guilty of "significant failures."

Again the U.N. Yaks but Doesn't Act

ElBaradei has said he wants a strongly worded report that nonetheless stops short of asking for the Security Council's involvement.

Determining whether Iran tried to build nuclear weapons "will take some time and much verification effort," ElBaradei told the board.

On Thursday, diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity said the IAEA identified Russia, China and Pakistan as probable sources for equipment used by Iran for possible nuclear weapons development. They gave no other details.

Identification of some of Iran's nuclear suppliers brings the agency closer to solving the puzzle over its past activities, which the Americans and others say point to a weapons agenda.

While acknowledging that some of its enrichment centrifuges had traces of weapons-grade highly enriched uranium, Iran insists its enrichment program was low-level and only for power generation. It asserts the high-level traces were inadvertently imported on material it purchased abroad.

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/11/21/103637.shtml

U.S. Slams UN Watchdog, Suspects Iran Still Lying

November 21, 2003
Reuters
Louis Charbonneau

VIENNA -- The United States accused the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Friday of weakening its credibility by not taking a tougher stand against Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Washington says Iran has a secret program to develop atomic bombs and was enraged when an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report concluded there was "no evidence" of this.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna said the use of this phrase was "highly unfortunate."

"This misleading phrasing moved both (U.S.) government officials and academic experts across the political spectrum to expressions of disbelief that the institution charged with... scrutinizing nuclear proliferation risks was dismissing important facts," Kenneth Brill told the IAEA board.

The Agency report said Iran concealed a uranium enrichment program for 18 years and secretly reprocessed plutonium useable in weapons. It said there was no evidence of an arms program but the jury was still out as to whether one existed.

The United States now wants a draft U.N. nuclear resolution condemning Iran for concealment -- which could eventually bring sanctions -- but Britain, France and Germany want a softer line.

Diplomats from both sides were at loggerheads over a text after talks late into Thursday in Vienna, the Agency's base.

"So much of what (Iran) has said in the past year about its nuclear program has turned out to be false that there is no rational basis simply to assume the contrary now," Brill said.

Other European states have joined Washington in refusing to back a revised French, German and British draft resolution for being too weak in its condemnation of Iran's cover-up.

Washington hard-liners want Iran found in "non-compliance" with its international nuclear non-proliferation obligations and to be told that future breaches will bring Tehran to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

Diplomats had hoped a final draft would be submitted to the IAEA's Board of Governors on Friday but an Agency spokeswoman said it would now be tabled next Wednesday at the earliest.

ANNOYANCE WITH THE "BIG THREE"

"The Americans are annoyed with the big three, the Europeans are annoyed with the big three and Tehran is annoyed with the big three," a Western diplomat told Reuters before the IAEA board began its second day of closed-door meetings on Friday.

Several diplomats said the French, British and Germans had annoyed other Europeans on the IAEA board by monopolizing the drafting process and refusing to strengthen it to express views of European capitals who feel closer to Washington's position.

"No one is happy with them," another Western diplomat said.

The Iranians, on the other hand, have been worried the trio might back out of a promise they made in October not to support a resolution declaring Iran in non-compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The draft, seen by Reuters, "strongly deplores Iran's past breaches" but does not use the term non-compliance. Washington has rejected this version, diplomats said.

The IAEA board formally approved Iran's intention to sign the NPT additional protocol, which will give the IAEA the right to conduct more intrusive, short-notice inspections to flush out any secret weapons-related activity.

The Agency said on Thursday it was already conducting inspections in Iran as if the protocol was in force.

Tehran has made it clear it will not sign the document if the board passes a resolution using the term "non-compliance."

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/reuters20031121_169.html

Iran Withholding Letter to the IAEA Board

November 21, 2003
The Associated Press
Dow Jones Newswires

VIENNA -- The U.N. nuclear agency's chief warned on Friday that an agreement on how harshly to censure Iran for 18 years of covert nuclear activities could be days away as U.S. and European diplomats wrestled with the text.

The board of governors' meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency was to begin its second day after adjourning Thursday at Iran's request. European countries and Washington were using the break to decide how far to go in recognizing Iran's recent willingness to throw open its nuclear facilities to agency inspections.

IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei told The Associated Press that the board meeting, originally set to end on Friday, could drag on until next Wednesday.

"It will take some time," he said "I think everybody is still interested in reaching consensus."

The Iranians, meanwhile, were withholding a letter they had promised to submit to the board agreeing to throw their nuclear programs open to pervasive spot inspections, diplomats said. Iran was waiting for guarantees that any resolution wouldn't be too harsh in condemning their past covert activities, the diplomats added.

If the Iranians renege on their promise of more thorough inspections, sentiment could grow for a strong resolution that might even meet U.S. wishes to refer Iran's past noncompliance with IAEA agreements to the U.N. Security Council.

Washington insists that Iran wants to build nuclear weapons. The U.S. administration wants the IAEA to declare Tehran in violation of its obligations under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and pass the matter to the Security Council, a move which could trigger sanctions against Iran.

Iran says its nuclear program is only geared toward generating electricity.

http://framehosting.dowjonesnews.com/sample/samplestory.asp?StoryID=2003112111160012&Take=1

Tehran Release Qods-day Statement

November 21, 2003
Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
IRIB News

Tehrani people participating in the Qods day rally held Friday stressed the right of the Palestinian nation to self-determination in the form of "one vote for every Palestinian."

A statement issued at the end of the rally read that "the world and the Middle East region in particular, need peace and this important objective could be attained only through restoring the rights of the Palestinian nation."

The 7-article statement also made reference to the remarks of the late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini who said "every Muslim and freedom-seeking person ought to pay his debt to Palestine" and stressed the mission of Muslim countries as well as the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) towards the Palestinian issue.

It also condemned such artificial plans as the "roadmap" and said according to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution making use of oil as an arms against Israel was an obligation for Muslims.

The statement further held the US responsible for the Zionists' inhumane crimes in the region and condemned the policies and activities of the global hegemony in their support for Israel.

It warned the "White House ring leaders" against "occupying Muslim countries including Afghanistan and Iraq and making threats to other Islamic states, such as Syria, Lebanaon and Iran" and advised them" to leave the Middle East".

http://www.iribnews.com/Full_en.asp?news_id=192928

Iran alone has 30,000 political prisoners

By AMIR TAHERI
Jerusalem Post
11.21.2003

Anyone looking for a Muslim Nelson Mandela is bound to be disappointed. Muslim tyrannies do not allow a serious opponent to live long enough, even in prison, to acquire the iconic status that the former ANC leader won in South Africa.

The apartheid regime, evil as it was, observed some rules. Muslim tyrannies observe none, except the dictates of their survival instincts. Had Mandela been held in a Muslim tyranny, he would have been dead and forgotten long before the world knew his name.

The Muslim world accounts for some 80 percent of political prisoners in the world. But none are allowed exposure that might enable them to acquire a Mandela-like star status.

Prisoners at the opposite end of the ideological spectrum to the regime become non-persons - seldom seen even by their families, and never spoken of. The only prisoners allowed some exposure are those who shared the regime's roots before breaking with it for personal and/or political reasons.

In Iran, for example, many opponents of Khomeinism, from monarchists to Marxists, when captured, were simply murdered between 1980-1997.

Today, there are an estimated 30,000 political prisoners in Iran. Most are lower or mid-ranking democrat, monarchist, Marxist or other leftist elements that lack the name-recognition needed for "Mandelaization." No one knows how many are still alive.

Our search for potential Mandelas, therefore, has to focus on the 2,000 or so prisoners who emerged from within the regime.

This is a motley crowd and includes former hostage-takers, former terrorists, repentant Khomeinist clerics, and former high officials.

The longest-held prisoner in this category is Abbas Amir-Entezam, aged 70, who was deputy prime minister in the mullahs' first cabinet in 1979. He was jailed on a charge of espionage for the CIA in 1980 and has been behind bars ever since.

Also noteworthy is Hashem Aghajari, a former Revolutionary Guard member, who started calling for a separation of mosque and state last year, now in prison under a suspended death sentence.

Mention must also be made of Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri, aged 81, who has been under house arrest for some 15 years. In 1979, he was the Islamic Revolution's number-two, after Khomeini, who named him his political heir. Montazeri broke with Khomeini in 1986 and since then, in his own words, "has tried to pay for some of my sins in the revolution."

That's about it. Sorry, guys, no Mandela in our neck of the woods.

The writer, an Iranian author and journalist, is editor of the Paris-based Politique Internationale.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1069304427836&p=1006953079845

Call for an End to Impunity for Murderers in Iran

November 21, 2003
Reporters Without Borders
RSF

Reporters Without Borders has called on the Iranian authorities to break the impunity enjoyed by murderers and especially those who instigated killings, on the fifth anniversary of the serial murders of journalists and intellectuals.

In November and December 1998 several intellectuals and opposition figures were murdered in Iran, including Daryush and Parvaneh Forouhar, prominent liberal opposition figures, Majid Charif, editorial writer for the monthly Iran-é-Farda, writers and journalists Mohamad Mokhtari and Mohamad Jafar Pouyandeh.

A few months earlier Pirouz Davani, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Pirouz disappeared without trace and his body was never found. This wave of killings and disappearance led to angry protests in a significant section of the reformist press.

"We have reached the conclusion that highly-ranked figures are implicated in this case, figures whom we cannot challenge. That is why this file is frozen, " said Hossein Ansari-Rad, Iran's head of the Article 90 Commission of Parliament, whose role is to investigate written complaints against the executive, legislature or judiciary.

In January 1999, the intelligence ministry officially acknowledged that some of its agents were implicated in killings and announced the arrest of dozens of suspects. In January 2001, 15 agents of the intelligence ministry were convicted in the Forouhar murder case. Three were sentenced to death and 12 were sentenced to prison terms. Three others suspected of involvement were acquitted.

The case then went to the supreme court, which confirmed the verdict. Only two people were sent to jail for 15 years. As for the Davani case, the authorities never showed any inclination to investigate it further. Those who ordered his disappearance have therefore been guaranteed complete impunity.

There is never any discussion about who were the masterminds behind the killings.

A few weeks ago the Forouhar's daughter Parastou told Radio Farda - that broadcasts from outside Iran - that "after five years of the files going two and fro between the different justice departments, there is no chance of a satisfactory outcome. Now we are sure that Iranian justice refuses to investigate this case and refuses to punish the murderers and those behind the murder."

All the families of victims have complained that the question of who instigated the killings has never been raised. Since November 2002, they have been making complaints to international justice organisations. Reporters Without Borders supports these families and hopes that the international bodies will do everything within their power to see that justice is done.

(norddelafrique@rsf.org / northernafrica@rsf.org / iran@rsf.org)
Bureau Nord de l'Afrique - Iran / Northern Africa - Iran desk

Reporters sans frontières / Reporters Without Borders
Agnès Devictor
5, rue Geoffroy-Marie
75009 Paris - FRANCE
Tél. (33) 1 44 83 84 84
Fax. (33) 1 45 23 11 51

http://www.rsf.fr/article.php3?id_article=8580

U.S. Envoy Criticizes U.N. Agency on Iran

November 21, 2003
The Associated Press
Vanessa Gera

VIENNA, Austria -- An American envoy criticized the U.N. nuclear agency Friday for going too easy on Iran, accusing Tehran of "violations and lies" and provoking an unusually sharp response from the agency's director.

Diplomats called the exchange unprecedented in the more than two decades since the International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-nation board of governors began meeting as the agency's executive body.

It reflected tensions dividing the board as it wrestles with the language of a resolution that would balance U.S. demands for a harsh response to Iran's past nuclear cover-ups and Europe's calls for milder language in recognition of Tehran's recent pledges to cooperate.

After two days of failing to find consensus, the board adjourned its meeting until Wednesday in hopes of finding a compromise to bridge the trans-Atlantic divide. IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told reporters the pause would give a chance for high-level negotiations.

Addressing delegates, U.S. envoy Kenneth Brill suggested a statement in IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei's report on Iran was "questionable" in saying there was no "evidence" that Iran had tried to build nuclear weapons. No "proof" would have been the proper phrase, Brill said.

ElBaradei dismissed the argument as "disingenuous," according to diplomats inside the meeting. "In our dictionary, evidence is the same as proof," he said.

Fleming said ElBaradei "takes issue with the U.S. accusation that the agency has threatened its credibility," adding: "We believe that we are impartial and credible and that actually our credibility has been enhanced."

Brill assailed Iran for "violations and lies" that stretched over 18 years, including enriching uranium, processing small amounts of plutonium and other activities that Washington says point to a weapons agenda.

"Iran systematically and deliberately deceived the IAEA and the international community about these issues for year after year after year," he said. The purpose, he said, was "the pursuit of nuclear weapons."

Such conduct by Iran "constitutes noncompliance with its safeguards obligations," Brill said. The language indirectly accused Iran of violating the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty — an act that normally results in U.N. Security Council involvement.

Earlier, after hours of delay, Iran submitted a letter to the board agreeing to open its nuclear programs to pervasive spot inspections instead of waiting until seeing the text of the resolution.

But diplomats, who asked for anonymity, said Iran continued to insist it had the right to withdraw its promise to accept the inspections if the resolution made reference to Security Council involvement or contained other language it found unacceptable.

Such a move, however, would almost guarantee a strong resolution that might even meet U.S. wishes to have Iran declared in violation of safeguard agreements — triggering possible Security Council involvement.

Asked what links there were between a soft resolution and his country's acceptance of wider inspections as well as its decision to suspend uranium enrichment — both board demands — Ali Akbar Salehi, the chief Iranian delegate, said: "They all go together."

Salehi suggested the United States was isolated in the board.

"We think that the American delegation — or the U.S. as a whole — is sort of a hostage to its own accusations," he told reporters. "And I think the majority of the board are looking forward to see that this ... is resolved peacefully."

He suggested that Germany, France and Britain — the chief backers of a relatively soft resolution — had pledged to keep the issue from going to the Security Council if Iran continued to cooperate with agency efforts to probe its nuclear past and present.

"It's not only a promise on their side, this is a promise of every thoughtful, wise and prudent member of the board," he said.

Before the discussion moved to the board members' capitals, a draft discussed in Vienna and quoted to The Associated Press by a senior diplomat would have given the board the right to immediately call an emergency session should any evidence surface that Iran was guilty of "significant failures."

ElBaradei has said he wants a strongly worded report that nonetheless stops short of asking for Security Council involvement.

Determining whether Iran tried to build nuclear weapons, "will take some time and much verification effort," ElBaradei told the board.

On Thursday, diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity told the AP that the agency identified Russia, China and Pakistan as probable sources for equipment used by Iran for possible nuclear weapons development. They gave no other details.

Iran asserts the high-level traces were inadvertently imported on material it purchased abroad.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=736&e=3&u=/ap/20031121/ap_on_re_mi_ea/nuclear_agency_iran

Bush Warns Iran To Adhere To Non-Proliferation Treaty

November 21, 2003
Dow Jones Newswires
Alex Keto

SEDGEFIELD, England -- President George W. Bush warned Iran he expects that country to abide by the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and to turn over any al-Qaida suspects it may be holding.

Bush made the comments in an interview with an Arabic-language newspaper based in London on Wednesday. The White House released the transcript on Friday.

"They must adhere to the non-proliferation treaty that they agreed to. And they must be transparent and open and honest with the world about their ambitions," Bush said.

The U.S. strongly suspects that Iran has a clandestine program in place to build nuclear weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency has found traces of highly enriched uranium and plutonium in Iran but says it sees no evidence of a weapons program. On the other hand, the IAEA has also said it doesn't have enough evidence to prove Iran doesn't have a nuclear weapons program in place.

Bush has sought to rally the E.U. to join with the U.S. in confronting Iran over the issue.

Bush cited this effort and reiterated "we all need to speak with a unified voice that says to the Iranians 'get rid of your nuclear weapons ambitions'."

Bush also said the Iranians need to turn over any al-Qaida suspects they may be holding. The Iranian government has admitted it is holding several al-Qaida suspects including high-ranking members of the organization.

At various times, the Iranians have offered to send any suspect to his country of origin.

Bush indicated this would be fine with him.

"We would hope that those al-Qaida operatives were sent back," Bush said.

-By Alex Keto, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9256; Alex.Keto@dowjones.com

http://framehosting.dowjonesnews.com/sample/samplestory.asp?StoryID=2003112115300008&Take=1

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