Tehran's Daily Newspaper Review
Ayatollah Khamenei’s strong remarks in response to Washington’s allegations, and Majles’ negative vote to outspoken Ahmadinejad critic Ali Motahhari’s resignation from his legislative seat were the top headlines of Tehran's newspaper’s today.
Etemaad covered the parliament’s negative vote to MP Motahhari’s resignation with the headline: “Majles habituated to negative votes”, referring to Majles’ adverse vote of Tuesday which kept Finance Minister Shamsoddin Hosseini in his position. In the newspaper’s editorial, Ebrahim Amini criticized the proceedings of the Tuesday impeachment of Finance Minister, in terms of the thin arguments presented by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Ali Larijani (his PhD in philosophy sarcastically set forth by Amini) and lawmakers opposed to Hosseini’s dismissal.
“We will embarrass the US” Iran quoted the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, who spoke of 100 indisputable documents possessed by the Islamic Republic which prove connections between Washington and terrorist activities launched against Iran. Syria’s agreement with the Arab League reconciliation plan and the devastating flood in Thailand also appeared on the front page of Iran.
Jomhouri-ye Eslami chose the headline: “US is the major terrorist in today’s world” for Ayatollah Khamenei’s remarks, uttered in his meeting with students two days before the anniversary of US’ embassy seizure by Islamist students in the early months of the Islamic Revolution. Majles’ statement in defense of IRGC Qods Corps, target of allegations by the White House during the recent days, was also published by Jomhouri-ye Eslami. “A parliament that merely fawns the government has betrayed its constituents” the newspaper quoted Ali Motahhari, apparently upset with Majles’ rejection of his resignation and also the decision to shelve his request to summon the president to the parliament.
Kayhan quoted the Supreme Leader in its own peculiar style: “We have 100 documents, [that] if published, the US will be stripped of its dignity.” The newspaper also reported of the positive impact on the stock exchange market of Majles’ decision to keep the finance minister in his position. Kayhan’s editorial analyzed the consequences of US’ Embassy seizure in 1979 and its impact on the regional power balance in the Middle East.
Resalat’s top headline was taken from Ayatollah Khamenei’s remarks: “the Iranian nation continues its struggle until the overthrow of imperialism.” The newspaper’s editorial focused on Iran's victory over the “Great Satan”, the United States, with the takeover of the superpower’s “Den of Espionage”, as the embassy was called at those days, in 1979.
“Syrians want free elections” Shargh quoted Hojjat-ol-Eslam Mousavi, Iran's former ambassador to Syria, who warned that Bashar Assad will face serious problems if he does not expedite reforms. Respect for religion, freedom of speech, freedom of press and free elections are the key demands of Syrian demonstrators according to Mousavi. Shargh also reported a ban on issuing letters of credit in state-run banks, a reaction to the 2.6 billion dollar fraud which was a product of forged LCs and documents. “All Roads Lead to Doha”, Shargh’s editorial, analyzed Qatar’s leading role in the Arab Spring diplomacy.
In the wake of controversies over Mojataba Agha-Tehrani, a pro-Ahmadinejad MP, Green Card, Tehran-e Emrooz covered remarks made by Ahmadinejad's former Advisor in Clerical Affairs Hojjat-ol-Eslam Biriya, who criticized a number of legislators for confusing Green Card with the US’ citizenship and dubbed them as “biased” and “uninformed”. Meanwhile, the newspaper quoted Foreign Ministry Speaker who stressed that for the government, there is no difference between possession of a Green Card and dual citizenship, and both are against the law if one is a member of state-run institutions. In its report on the Majles’ decision to drop Ahmadinejad's summoning to the parliament, Tehran-e Emrooz quoted him saying that there are fears that the president would resort to his tactic in presidential election debates (i.e. disclosing documents on financial, economic etc. misconduct of his rivals.)
* Notes:
The editorial section of Iranian newspapers is not the work of the editor-in-chief or the senior editorial staff of the newspaper by default, but can be a contribution by experts and politicians (typically agreeing with the newspaper’s political stance.) The newspapers may also occasionally publish without an editorial.
Vatan-e Emrooz daily does not publish on Thursdays.
Trouble with understanding some terms? Check our Glossary of Iranian Political Terms.
Briefing
Etemaad is a Reformist newspaper owned by former MP Elias Hazrati. The newspaper supported Mehdi Karroubi in the 2005 and 2009 elections. In 2010, it was temporarily banned from publishing (for a three-month period) by the Judiciary.
Iran is the official organ of the administration. Its current editor-in-chief is Ali-Akbar Javanfekr, former media advisor to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Jomhouri-ye Eslami (The Islamic Republic) was known as the official organ of the Party of the Islamic Republic, founded in 1979 and disbanded in 1987. Currently, it is an open critique of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's policies and is known to be a mouthpiece of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
Kayhan (Universe) is a hard-line conservative newspaper. Its editor-in-chief –currently Hossein Shari’atmadari- is directly appointed by Iran's Supreme Leader. Shari’atmadari’s editorials often spark off controversy and debate inside Iranian political circles.
Resalat (Mission) belongs to the moderate wing of the Principlist camp. Resalat’s best known analyst is Amir Mohebbian, its political editor.
Shargh (East) is a moderate Reformist newspaper. It was the most popular and influential Reformist newspaper in its first period of publication which lasted from August 2003 until September 2006.
Tehran-e Emrooz (Tehran Today) is a “Principlist/Reformist” newspaper, connected to Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Tehran Mayor and a likely candidate of the 2013 presidential election.