[DoctorZIn]

Iran: Back the Freedom Fighters
By Michael Ledeen
Monday, June 23, 2003;

Win or lose, democratic revolution has broken out in Iran. Even the fragmentary reports from journalists operating under tight regime control in very limited areas of the country show that the mass demonstrations now involve all classes and regions. This is no longer purely or even primarily a "student" movement, as it has been for the past four years -- although many of its leaders come from student ranks. People of all ages, from all walks of life, in every major city in the country, have taken to the streets every night for more than a week to demand an end to the Islamic Republic and the free election of a secular, democratic government.

For several years, many people have held out hope that the mullahs would be willing to have their absolute powers limited by a process of gradual, evolutionary reform, the symbol of which was the popularly elected president, Mohammad Khatami. But Khatami failed, and has become the Kerensky of the Iranian revolution. His day has passed, and the battle now is between the doubly old regime (both in tenure in office and geriatric status) and the people. The people no longer clamor for reform. They want freedom, now.

I believe we are at the beginning of the end of the mullahcracy that has oppressed and robbed the Iranian people and supported violent terrorists, from Hezbollah to Islamic Jihad, from Hamas to al Qaeda, all over the world. The demonstrators know that if they stop their struggle, they will be killed or tortured for years. The leaders of the regime fear a similar fate -- although I suspect the Iranian people would be delighted simply to be rid of them, without demanding the sort of punishment they deserve -- and are unlikely to go quietly.

Support for democratic revolution comes naturally to Americans, and we all thrill at the spectacle of brave people challenging corrupt tyrants in the name of freedom. Yet a surprising number of commentators and policymakers are fighting against the prospect of open American support for the Iranian revolutionaries. Their most recent argument is that open approval and, worse still, modest material support from the United States would somehow tarnish the purity of the Iranian uprising and even prove counterproductive.

This sort of argument is not new; we have heard it whenever we have had a president brave enough to speak the truth to tyranny. We were told that it would be counterproductive to denounce the gulag system and support the Soviet dissidents, that the Jackson-Vanik law (linking trade with the Soviet Union to freedom to emigrate for Soviet Jews) would be counterproductive, and that we must at all costs refrain from calling for greater human rights in the People's Republic of China. Yet every time another tyrant falls, his surviving victims invariably tell us that our words of support gave hope and strength to the freedom fighters and weakened the resolve of their oppressors. Bukovsky, Sharansky, Ginsburg, Walesa and Havel know the power of American support, as do Gorbachev, Jaruzelski, Milosevic and Marcos.

Crafty silence is simply another way to appease tyranny, and a tactical retreat in our life-and-death war against the terror masters. Those who are fighting against support for the Iranian revolutionaries have it exactly backward. The silence they advocate would be a demoralizing blow to the Iranian people, and to our democratic soul. President Bush has advanced our interests and our honor by condemning the wicked regime in Tehran and hailing the courage and sacrifice of the Iranian freedom fighters. His critics in and outside the government should be ashamed of their cowardice and betrayal of our best instincts and traditions.

Finally, there is the broader strategic imperative: We are now engaged in a regional struggle in the Middle East, and the Iranian tyrants are the keystone of the terror network. Far more than the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, the defeat of the mullahcracy and the triumph of freedom in Tehran would be a truly historic event and an enormous blow to the terrorists.

Morally and strategically, the Iranian people deserve our support. Instead of looking for excuses to appease the terror masters, we should now devote our considerable energies and imagination to hastening the success of the Iranian revolution.

The writer is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and author of "The War Against the Terror Masters."

http://www.iran-daneshjoo.org/cgi-bin/smccdinews/viewnews.cgi?category=5&id=1056352434

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail me”

[DoctorZIn]

For those interested in checking out all 14 days worth of the Iranian Alert Threads, go to:

http://www.freerepublic.com/~doctorzin/

[DoctorZIn]

USA: Andrew Sullivan: Words, not weapons, will fell the tyrants of Tehran

Times of London 6/22/2003

It’s perhaps only natural that the subject of Iran would be so contentious in American politics. It destroyed one presidency — Jimmy Carter’s — and it rubbed the gloss off another — Ronald Reagan’s. Since the collapse of the Shah in 1979, the country has exerted a pull on American fears and hopes in the Middle East unlike most others.
In the war against Islamist terrorism, Iran is also the biggest deal there is. Bigger than Iraq, it is far closer to a nuclear capability than Saddam was in recent years. Bigger even than Saudi Arabia, because its government is so viscerally hostile to the West. As the first country to have completely succumbed to the new and lethal ideology of Islamo-fascism, it’s also the pre-eminent symbol of the status quo America needs and wants to change after September 11.

Were the mullahs who now act as de facto dictators to fall, the psychological, political and criminal impact would be unprecedented.

It would galvanise the transition to democracy in Iraq. It would cut off critical funds to terrorist groups like Hezbollah. And Tehran’s wide and deep contacts with Islamist terrorists more generally would be ruptured.

And yet Washington worries. And fidgets. And procrastinates. Several top-level White House meetings on the future of policy towards Iran have been put off.

No policy shift towards explicitly favouring regime change in Tehran has been announced. The White House seems in some kind of suspended animation on the matter. Having denounced Iran as part of an “axis of evil”, the Bushies seem reluctant to follow through. Part of this is simple caution in the face of a complicated and volatile situation, as opposition protests break out all over Iran but reliable news and credible intelligence are hard to get. Part of it is endemic State Department wariness about diplomatic conflict.

But part too is a result of the conclusion of a certain internal debate. For a while in the late 1990s and early 21st century, foreign policy analysts believed that “moderate” reformers could actually liberalise Iran from within, in a long, fitful process of democratisation. Very few analysts now buy that notion — even those in the Blair government who once held out hope for some kind of outreach to moderates. And you can see why the new consensus emerged: the past few years have seen no real emergence of a genuinely powerful or independent moderate bloc. However well reformers have done in elections, they wield no effective power — especially over the military and intelligence sectors.

So what to do? Rumsfeldians argue that military force cannot be ruled out in terms of Iran’s potential nuclear capability. An Osirak-like raid (when the Israelis destroyed a nuclear power plant outside Baghdad in 1981) on an Iranian nuclear power plant has therefore not been ruled out. And Bush’s statement this week that he and other western leaders will simply not tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran was a clear statement of his willingness to use all means possible to avoid this.

Again, the logic is impeccable. If you have just waged a war in part to ensure that one hostile dictatorship in the Middle East cannot achieve capacity for weapons of mass destruction (WMD), how can you sit around and watch a more urgent threat take form? But any use of force against Iran would be entirely targeted on WMD capability — and only as a very last resort. It is not American policy to promote actual regime change in Iran through military force. As a paid-up member of the “neo-con” cabal in Washington (we meet in secret every month to plot the American takeover of the entire world) I can assure you that nobody is interested in an invasion.

And nobody wants to add to the military and logistical strain of rescuing the broken country of Iraq next door. So the question essentially comes down to how to achieve regime change without armed invasion.

For the first time in a long while, that now seems possible. The inspiring stories from Iran of students and opposition groups braving hired Afghan thugs to demand freedom and democracy have finally woken up Americans to the possibility of a win-win.

“When the time is right we will all join,” a female student told the BBC last week. “I can smell it in the air. This time is different. I despise Islam and the mullahs even though I am officially a Muslim now. I don’t have the right to change my religion in Iran. I despise the regime and so do 90% of Iranians.

“All the people who elected Khatami (the democratically elected but powerless leader of the so-called reformers) despise the regime and they thought he’d bring change. We fight for a referendum conducted by the United Nations. The masses support the students and are waiting for the right time to make the final impact.”

Of course, these protests have been going on for years; and some of them have been unabashedly pro-American. But the impact of nascent democracy next door in Iraq and the continued failure of the mullahs to provide anything approximating accountable government seem to have pushed the opposition to new heights. The fact that the Islamist dictators have had to rely on imported vigilantes to maintain order suggests how fragile their regime might now be.

Some sophisticates argue that America should simply sit back and say nothing; if the opposition is identified as American proxies, US intervention could play into the hands of the mullahs. The trouble with this is that the American government has to say something; and many of the students are looking for American support. President Bush’s careful phrases — describing the protests as “the beginnings of people expressing themselves toward a free Iran” and urging the mullahs to treat the dissidents with respect — struck a balance between moral support and avoidance of a direct call to rise up, when such a rising might be prematurely put down.

But the clarity of an American president’s support for basic democratic rights is still a critical component for democracy in Iran. Every dissident movement has told us in retrospect that they were grateful for rhetorical support from the West during the dark periods of repression. That is true for those who struggled against tyranny in South Africa and eastern Europe. Besides, if inflammatory rhetoric from Washington always undermined those it wants to support, the Iranian student movement would be dead by now. Bush’s much-derided description of Tehran as part of an axis of evil didn’t kill off protest. It helped sustain it.

Perhaps the most effective weapon the West can now wield is grass-roots. The impact of Iranian-exile satellite television on the current situation has been profound. By broadcasting the brutality of the clampdown, these new stations helped force the government into something of a climbdown last week. The internet has been a critical tool as well. Denied real access to the media, many Iranians, especially students, are online. Websites connect them to the outside world, to exiles and to one another. The blogosphere is exploding in Iran, helping spread information and providing a virtual model for free speech that the mullahs will never be able to excise.

If western governments can help finance some of this, support it and encourage it, the consequences could be enormous.

[glock rocks]

Unraveling of Iran's mullahs - Mark Steyn

[Constitution Day]

Asia Times: Iran's nuclear allies play with fire

[DoctorZIn]

SMCCDI: Death of arrested protesters rocks the northen city of Rasht


SMCCDI (Information Service)
June 23, 2003
The death of an arrested demonstrators rocked the northen City of Rasht as hundreds of residents clashes with the regime forces.

The death of the arrested happened as the patrol car which tried to escape from the angery residents hit a wall causing the death of the young man.

Several patrol cars and public materials were set ablaze by the angry crowd as several members of the plainclothes milia, carrying talkie walkies, were identified and beaten in retaliation.

The situation of this usually calm city and its neighboring cities are very tense and many young are known to have taken refuge in the mountains and the dense forrets in order to create commando groups intending to carry and "armed Rebellion" against the regime.

Source: SMCCDI

http://www.iran-daneshjoo.org/cgi-bin/smccdinews/viewnews.cgi?category=5&id=1056374281

[DoctorZIn]

SMCCDI: More of Lebanese Hezbollah members transferred to Iran

More of Lebanese Hezbollah members transferred to Iran
SMCCDI (Information Service)
June 23, 2003

More of the Lebanese Hezbollah members have been transferred in the last days to Iran in order to reinforce the security preparations to smash the popular rallies and demos that will take place on July 9th at the occasion of the commemoration of the 4th anniversary of the 1999 Student Uprising.

Already, the regime is using thousands of its foreign mercenaries recruited among the Iraqi and Afghan refugees living in Iran and also among radical and fanatic muslim activists harbored in the country, such as, from Palestine, Tunisia, Algeria, Indonesia and Moracco.

These troops and have been deployed in most cities from the beginning of the current wave of unrests and are known for their extreme brutality in dealing with the demonstrators.

Hundreds of them have been lodged in the northern and central caserns of the Pasdaran Corp. in Tehran which has caused tensions among many Iranian members of this armed wing of the regime. False statement has been made by their superiors stating that these troops are the Iranian Arabs legions transferred from the cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas and that they're not foreigner.

Source: SMCCDI

http://www.iran-daneshjoo.org/cgi-bin/smccdinews/viewnews.cgi?category=5&id=1056375490

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail me”

[DoctorZIn]

Reza Pahlavi: It's Just a Matter of Time for this Regime to Fall

CNN ^ | 6.23.2003 | Wolf Blitzer
Posted on 06/23/2003 9:16 AM PDT by DoctorZIn

Reza Pahlavi: It's Just a Matter of Time for this Regime to Fall (Excerpt)

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/934089/posts

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail me”

[DoctorZIn]

This just in...

It appears the work slow down and strikes in the country are already starting. The protest movement has been pointing to July 9th as the big day, but there are reports that the slowdown has already begun.

[DoctorZIn]

For those who have seen articles about the arrest in France of members of the MEK, a left wing counter insurgency group trying to topple the Iranian regime I thought you should be aware of this article.

Islamist, Marxist, Terrorist
June 23, 2003
The Wall Street Journal

http://iranvajahan.net/cgi-bin/news_en.pl?l=en&y=2003&m=06&d=23&a=6

The article is written by one of the finest journalists in the middle-east, Amir Taheri.

I will quote the end of the article for you.

“More than 300 U.S. legislators from both parties have at one time or other signed petitions in support of the MEK, and MEK spokesmen say they have offered the sect's services to the U.S. in case of war with Iran. But there is little possibility of the U.S. accepting the services of an organization that it classifies as "terrorist." The French, however, seem to have additional reasons. With Saddam gone, France has no friends left in the Middle East and seems to have decided to score points with Tehran by dismantling the MEK. That may well encourage the mullahs to warm to France, especially as the prospect of a direct clash with the U.S. begins to take shape.”

[DoctorZIn]

I received this from a parent of one of the protesters in Iran. I don't know if I should show many of these pictures but they want it shown, so here is what I received...

Dear XXXXXXXX,

I am one of the Iranian people, who is living under the force of Islamic terrorist regime. My son is captured by Civil guard of The leader Khamenei.

He was released for one day, and we took a picture of backside of his body, they captured him again 2 days and we have no news of where he is now.

In Iran there are many people like me that are looking for their sun or daughter or husband, they may be in very bad condition in jail or they are killed by the Islamic terrorist regime.

Please help us,

M. F. From Esfahan

[DoctorZIn]

Armed Attack Against Basij Base in Central Iran

June 23, 2003
AFP
Yahoo News

TEHRAN -- A group of armed men carried out two armed attacks on a base of the Basij militia and morals police near the central city of Isfahan, resulting in five people being injured and 21 arrested, the student news agency ISNA reported.

The attacks, carried out late last Thursday and Friday, occurred in the town of Dizicheh, situated around 40 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of Isfahan.

Quoting an official from the local prefecture, ISNA said the attackers carried out the first raid on Thursday and managed to steal a weapon.

"The next evening, the armed hooligans attacked a Basij base and in the clashes five people were injured on both sides," the official told ISNA.

It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack, but the local press had reported particularly violent clashes around Isfahan last week after anti-regime protests spread from the capital to the provinces.

The Basij are a hardline volunteer militia that has been used to quell the demonstrations.

No further details were immediately available.

http://news.yahoo.com/?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20030623/wl_mideast_afp/iran_unrest_attack_030623074310

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail me”

[ChadGore]

May God hear freedoms call.

[DoctorZIn]

Financial Times (UK): US arms talks test 'realism' in EU relations

US arms talks test 'realism' in EU relations
The Financial Times
By Judy Dempsey in Brussels

June 23 2003 18:13

The European Union's first security doctrine and policy towards weapons of mass destruction marked a "new realism" in transatlantic relations, US diplomats said ahead of Wednesday's first summit between the US and EU since the war in Iraq.

The more upbeat tone from Washington reflects an attempt by some parts of the administration to rebuild a relationship severely battered by the Iraq war.

The "realism" will be put to the test in Washington, where both sides were on Monday still negotiating a joint declaration on WMD proliferation that will include Iran.

WMD will dominate the "restricted" session headed on the US side by President George W. Bush and Colin Powell, US secretary of state. The EU side will be led by Romano Prodi, EU Commission president, Costas Simitis, Greek prime minister and Javier Solana, EU foreign policy chief.

EU officials said the US would like to beef up language, specifically over the circumstances in which force would be used.

The EU will insist on making force dependent on the United Nations charter. It will press its case for "effective multilateralism" in which those who break the rules will face serious consequences beyond economic sanctions. That aside, diplomats from both sides of the Atlantic on Monday said the US and Europe had little choice but to pull together, even though fundamental disagreements over global warming, genetically modified food and the new International Criminal Court persist.

The two account together for more than half the world's gross domestic product and their economies are intertwined - two-way trade in goods and services last year amounted to €650bn ($753bn, £453bn). Businessmen and diplomats said on Monday a more effective multilateral system was needed to channel such economic power and influence.

"You can't expect the economic track of multilateralism to proceed indefinitely and without problems if there is no progress on the political track," said George Schöpflin, political science professor at London University.

EU diplomats have been critical of Washington's tendency towards unilateralism. But they say the economic interdependence between the US and Europe, in addition to the security difficulties in postwar Afghanistan and Iraq, is beginning to have an impact on the administration. It needed partners for state building and economic reconstruction and bringing security to the Middle East, said an EU official.

The new global threats posed by al-Qaeda and the proliferation of WMD have also changed the EU's attitude towards terrorism, as confirmed in its "action plan" on WMD, Iran and the security doctrine unveiled at the Thessaloniki summit.

In a nutshell, the EU wants to strengthen export controls of nuclear material, link trade and economic links to a stringent sets of conditions. These would be based on human rights, combating terrorism and compliance with international treaties, with the use of force as a last resort.

US officials said Washington did "take seriously" the EU's policies on WMD proliferation. The security doctrine was a "sign of the maturing of the [transatlantic] relationship," one said.

Proposals on extradition and judicial co-operation have been clinched ahead of joint statements tomorrow. On container security, both sides are nearing an accord. Since September 11 the US has been signing bilateral agreements with EU member states that enable US customs officials based in ports throughout Europe to inspect containers.

The European Commission initiated infringement procedures against member states that signed up to such accords since they contravened Community competences that include trade and customs.

http://www.iran-daneshjoo.org/cgi-bin/smccdinews/viewnews.cgi?category=5&id=1056409503

[DoctorZIn]

SMCCDI: Another night of sporadic and organized protests rock Iran

Another night of sporadic and organized protests rock Iran
SMCCDI (Information Service)
June 23, 2003

Another night of sporadic but organized protests rocked again, on Monday night, several cities accross Iran and especially the Capital in the Amir Abad and the eastern parts of Tehran.

As like as the last 13 consecutive nights, several thousands of active protesters and supporters in cars came into the streets despite the heavy presence of the regime's brutal forces.

Sporadic clashes took place as the regime's agents tried to capture the demonstrators who defyied their presence by shouting slogans against the regime and its leaders.

The actions which are smaller but more organized intend to keep the pressure on the regime forces but the biggest rallies ever prepared are to take place on July 9th at the occasion of the 4th anniversary of the 1999 Student Uprising.

http://www.iran-daneshjoo.org/cgi-bin/smccdinews/viewnews.cgi?category=5&id=1056410329

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail me”

[DoctorZIn]

This just in...

It was just reported that Mullah in Tabriz, Itan(northwestern Iran) was beheaded today.

In the city of Shiraz is has been reported that 14 Basji we beaten by protesters so badly that they needed hospitalization.

[DoctorZIn]

This thread is now closed go to the new thread listed below.

Iranian Alert -- DAY 15 -- LIVE THREAD PING LIST

Live Thread Ping List | 6.24.2003 | DoctorZin
Posted on 06/24/2003 1:00 AM PDT

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/934512/posts