Author: Emil Lazarian

RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
_________________________________________ ____________________
RFE/RL Iran Report
Vol. 9, No. 31, 22 August 2006
A Review of Developments in Iran Prepared by the Regional Specialists
of RFE/RL’s Newsline Team
******************************************** ****************
HEADLINES
* HAILING HIZBALLAH ‘VICTORY,’ IRANIAN OFFICIALS CONDEMN U.S., U.K., ISRAEL, AND UN
* IRAN’S AMBITIONS WORRY LEBANESE LEGISLATOR
* UN NUCLEAR RESOLUTION DISMISSED BY IRANIANS
* U.S. TREATMENT OF WOULD-BE IRANIAN VISITORS CAUSES WORRY
* CHINA GETS NEW IRANIAN ENVOY
* PRESIDENTIAL CABINET COMES IN FOR CRITICISM
* PUBLICATIONS ENCOUNTER LEGAL DIFFICULTIES
* POLICE CONFISCATE SATELLITE DISHES
* AHMADINEJAD MAKES PROVINCIAL VISIT
* POLICE AMBUSH BACKFIRES
* KURDS SHELLED BY IRAN AND TURKEY
* IRANIAN-AMERICAN SENTENCED FOR TRYING TO SEND DUAL-USE GOODS TO IRAN
* IRAN REPORTEDLY ACTING AGAINST BIRD FLU, CHOLERA
* CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL FOREIGN WORKERS
* IRAN WILL IMPORT FUEL TO MEET DEMAND
******************************************* *****************
HAILING HIZBALLAH ‘VICTORY,’ IRANIAN OFFICIALS CONDEMN U.S.,
U.K., ISRAEL, AND UN. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wrote to
the Hizballah chief Hassan Nasrallah on August 17 to congratulate him
on what he termed a “victory for Islam” over Israeli forces in
Lebanon, Hizballah’s Al-Manar television and the Islamic Republic
News Agency (IRNA) reported the same day. Hizballah faced off Israeli
attacks in Lebanon from July 12 to August 14.
“You imposed your military superiority over” Israel and
“ridiculed the myth of invincibility and false aura of the Zionist
army,” IRNA quoted Khamenei as saying in the letter. He added that
the war showed “the real face of American rulers and some European
countries” who he described as standing by “the disgusting and hated
face” of Israel. Khamenei claimed the Israeli operations “showed what
disasters can befall human societies when the rulers of countries are
detached from mercy…and reason and sincerity.”
Khamenei also said Hizballah resistance has thwarted the
United States’ and Israel’s “illusory plan for the Middle
East.” But in a presumed reference to postwar plans to extend
Lebanese government control to Hizballah-controlled areas and disarm
the group, Khamenei warned that the “enemy is now trying to cut this
potent…arm, sow discord among statesmen, and sow the virus of
impatience and doubt.”
Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani told
reporters in Tehran on August 16 that the United States and United
Kingdom are responsible for all the Lebanese who died in the recent
conflict with Israel and for all the damage to Lebanese
infrastructure, IRNA reported. Larijani praised what he described as
Hizballah’s victory, and he added that “Hizballah is a matter of
honor for all Arab states.” Larijani said UN Security Council
Resolution 1701, which halted the conflict, should have come much
sooner. He also criticized aspects of it for interfering with
internal Lebanese politics.
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said during his tour of Ardabil
Province on August 16 that the United States and United Kingdom
should be expelled from the Security Council, IRNA reported. “Those
intending to block global peace and tranquility from taking hold are
not qualified to be in the [Security Council],” he said, adding that
the United States and United Kingdom should face a war crimes trial.
Earlier in the day, Ahmadinejad said the United Nations is a
tool of the United States and Israel, IRNA reported.
Also on August 16, the legislature’s national security
and foreign policy committee issued a statement calling for Israel to
be punished for “crimes against humanity” and for it to pay
compensation to Lebanon, IRNA reported.
Ahmadinejad told a crowd in the northwestern city of Ardabil
on August 15 that “we can see that God’s pledges came true in
Lebanon” as he hailed a Hizballah “victory” in the recent
Israeli-Lebanese conflict, state television reported. Israel once saw
itself as “invincible,” Ahmadinejad continued, but Hizballah defeated
“these idolatrous powers within 33 days with the help of God, and
[now they] fly the flag of victory in the proud Lebanon.”
The parliament’s speaker, Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, said on
August 15 that Hizballah emerged as the victor in its recent conflict
with Israel, IRNA reported. “The army of the Zionist regime showed
itself powerless for the first time after failing to break the
determination of the Lebanese people and the Islamic resistance
movement [Hizballah] 33 days after the start of the war in Lebanon,”
Haddad-Adel said. He went on to congratulate the Lebanese people —
nearly 1 million of whom were displaced by the fighting — and
government, as well as Hizballah Secretary-General Sheikh Hassan
Nasrallah. Haddad-Adel also spoke out against Arab states that were
silent, and he criticized UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which
ushered in a cease-fire.
Hojatoleslam Ahmad Khatami, a substitute Tehran Friday Prayer
leader and member of the Assembly of Experts, said on August 15 that
the conflict in Lebanon should serve as a lesson to Israel and the
United States if they are considering an attack on Iran, state
television reported. “The Lebanese Hizballah’s 70-kilometer-range
missiles transformed Israel into a country of ghosts,” Khatami said.
“So if one day they decide to carry out even a minor aggression
against Iran, they must fear the day that our 2,000-kilometer-range
missiles strike the heart of Tel Aviv.” Israel and the United States
should forsake “their aggression and expansionist policies,” Khatami
said. (Vahid Sepehri, Bill Samii)
IRAN’S AMBITIONS WORRY LEBANESE LEGISLATOR. Lebanese
parliamentarian Walid Jumblatt, who is the leader of the Druze sect
and the Progressive Socialist Party, has spoken out against the
Iranian and Syrian roles played in his country’s affairs, “Le
Monde” reported on August 15. Jumblatt conceded that Hizballah has
destroyed the image of Israeli invincibility but put it in the
context of “the Syrian-Iranian game.” “Iran is negotiating on the
scorched earth of Lebanon the terms of the continuation of its
nuclear program,” Jumblatt said. “As for Syria, it wants to avenge
itself in Lebanon, from which its troops were chased out [in April
2005], and it is now sidelined by Iran.” Jumblatt added, “The Syrians
and Iranians wasted no time saying that the UN resolution [1701] is
not in Lebanon’s interest.” (Bill Samii)
UN NUCLEAR RESOLUTION DISMISSED BY IRANIANS. President Mahmud
Ahmadinejad said in the Ardabil Province city of Kosar on August 17
that Western states are in no position to denounce others as threats
to international peace when “they are the only group that violates
the independence of states,” IRNA reported. “These are the people”
who bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, he said, “and are now
taking on a peace-loving countenance and depriving the Iranian nation
of its right to use peaceful nuclear energy.” He said Iran has
repeatedly stated the peaceful aims of its nuclear program, and “in
spite of [its] clarifications, they say Iran may [deviate] toward
making a nuclear bomb,” IRNA reported.
“The governments that make this charge against Iran must
themselves be disarmed,” he said. Ahmadinejad added that when “a
group appears and tries to stand up” to these states “and reveals
their dirty face to the world, they label them terrorists.” He said
unspecified efforts to sow discontent in Iran would fail. “They think
that by provoking certain people…and with their public postures,
they can create divisions between the people of Iran,” when “Iran is
a large, close-knit family,” he said.
Speaking in Tehran on August 16, Foreign Minister Manuchehr
Mottaki said after a meeting with Malian Foreign Minister Moctar
Ouane that Iran is willing to discuss the suspension of uranium
enrichment with Europe, Radio Farda and IRNA reported. There is no
rationale for a suspension, he added, but Tehran is willing to talk
about that or any other subject.
Supreme National Security Council Secretary Larijani said
during an August 16 meeting in Tehran with Chinese Deputy Foreign
Minister Cui Tiankai that UN Security Council Resolution 1696, which
calls on Iran to suspend nuclear enrichment activities by August 31,
will not affect the country’s nuclear policy, state television
reported. Larijani said the issue can be resolved through dialogue
and added that Tehran will respond on August 22 to the international
package of incentives it received in early June. Larijani said Iran
intends to begin industrial-scale uranium enrichment and that it is
entitled to do so.
Kermanshah parliamentary representative Jahanbakhsh Amini
noted that 14 of 15 Security Council members voted in favor of the
resolution (Qatar opposed it), “Aftab-i Yazd” reported on August 15,
and said Tehran must take serious diplomatic measures if it wants to
dissuade other countries from joining this group. Tabriz
representative Eshrat Shayeq described the resolution as
“unacceptable” and added that “neither we nor any other country
consider ourselves as obligated to pay for the political
reconstruction of superpowers.” She accused Washington of trying to
impose its will, and she added that the UN and the Security Council
are not impartial.
In an August 14 speech to the nation on the state of the
economy, President Ahmadinejad discussed the nuclear situation,
saying that those who have harnessed the use of nuclear power are
trying to prevent Iran from doing so, state television reported. He
accused other countries of trying to undermine Iranians’ unity,
and Ahmadinejad said it is bad for Iranians to speak with multiple
voices. “They lie when they claim that they have given up trying to
create discord among us,” he charged. Ahmadinejad also detailed his
administration’s accomplishments and described the steps he has
taken to deal with unemployment and waste. (Vahid Sepehri, Bill
Samii)
U.S. TREATMENT OF WOULD-BE IRANIAN VISITORS CAUSES WORRY. Iran is
protesting the detention and fingerprinting of a group of Iranian
academics and engineers when they tried to enter the United States to
attend a scientific gathering. They all had valid entry visas and
were bound for a northern Californian reunion organized by alumni of
Tehran’s prestigious Sharif University of Technology on August
4-6. Iranians living in the United States have expressed fear that
the travelers were victims of rising tensions between Washington and
Tehran.
Behnam Kamrani was among the Iranian engineers, scientists,
and company executives who traveled to the United States to attend a
forum on disaster management and entrepreneurship in Santa Clara,
California.
Kamrani is a Sharif University alumni who currently lives in
Sweden and works for a U.S. company. He told Radio Farda that upon
his arrival at Minneapolis airport, he was simply told his visa has
been revoked.
“We had requested a visa, [and] the U.S. Embassy did a
background check on us and gave a positive answer,” Kamrani said.
“They issued the visa, [and] we bought a ticket and informed them as
to the date on which we would enter the U.S. Then, when we got to the
U.S., everything collapsed. They temporarily detained and
interrogated us and asked us strange questions.”
Despite the nine hours that Kamrani spent at the airport
before being sent back, he considers himself among the lucky ones.
Academics who had entered the United States at other ports of
entry — including Los Angeles and San Francisco — appear to have
faced tougher conditions. Some have described their experience as a
“nightmare,” and said that they had to spend the night in a jail
alongside criminals.
Kamrani recalls meeting a few of them: “They had handcuffed
them and taken them to a prison. One lady who had two daughters said
they had separated them during the night. The ladies said that a man
who was in charge had told them the next day — when they were about
to be sent back — that the visas were canceled because it was
thought likely that those who come from Iran might exchange
information about the nuclear issue.”
Some of the Iranians claim to have been told that their visas
were revoked due to U.S. national security concerns. They were
reportedly given the choice of withdrawing their applications or
being deported.
Some said they were told that they could not apply for U.S.
visas for up to 10 years.
Several of the detainees have said they were insulted and
humiliated, and subjected to what they have described as harsh
treatment.
Conference organizers have said that more than 50 Iranians in
all were refused entry and sent back to Iran.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Janelle Hieronymus declined
to explain the refusals, saying only that “all visa applications are
adjudicated in accordance with the U.S. Immigration And Nationality
Act. Each application for a visa is adjudicated on a case-by-case
basis.”
State Department official Laura Tischler would not comment on
specific cases to RFE/RL, but she noted that U.S. officials are
obliged to turn away anyone whose visa has been revoked.
Tischler suggested that the Iranians’ visas might have
been revoked “when they arrived, or when they were in transit.”
Some observers speculate that the travelers are victims of
growing U.S.-Iranian tensions over the current conflict in Lebanon
and Iran’s refusal to abandon sensitive nuclear activities.
Najmedin Meshkati, a graduate and professor at the University
of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering and an
alumni of Sharif University, told RFE/RL that the treatment the
academics received at U.S. hands has outraged Iranian-Americans.
Meshkati said the U.S.-based Sharif University of Technology
Association is taking steps to protest the incidents and encourage
some investigation.
“One [step we’d like to take] concerns the legal aspect
— we want to find out what the rights of the people who were
returned are and what can be done legally. The other [step] is public
relations,” Meshkati said. “The third step is to contact U.S.
authorities — including senators from California — so the issue is
investigated in the U.S. Congress. If they treat Iranians who visit
this country legally in this heinous manner, then [there is a risk
that] there is no difference for Iranians who live in this country
legally. I really think that enough is enough — we are really hurt
about this disrespect. We should really stand up to it.”
Meshkati said Iranians should not be punished for the
policies of their government.
“I don’t know why Iranians who travel to the U.S. must
pay the price for the Iranian government’s actions,” he said.
“Are Saudi citizens paying the price for the actions of [Saudi-born
Al-Qaeda leader Osama] bin Laden? No. I don’t understand why
everything goes wrong when it comes to us Iranians.”
The United States cut diplomatic ties with Iran following
that country’s Islamic Revolution and the abduction of U.S.
diplomats at its embassy in Tehran in 1979.
But limited cultural, scientific, and sports exchanges have
continued between the two countries. (By Golnaz Esfandiari; Radio
Farda correspondent Elaheh Ravanshad contributed to this report from
Sweden; RFE/RL correspondent Heather Maher contributed from
Washington, DC.)
CHINA GETS NEW IRANIAN ENVOY. Iran has appointed Javad Mansuri, a
former ambassador in Pakistan and former deputy foreign minister, as
its next ambassador in China, Mehr reported on August 9, adding that
he will be taking up his post “in the coming days.” Mansuri was
proposed by Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki and approved by
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, the agency stated. Mansuri was a deputy
foreign minister for cultural and consular affairs, then Asia-Pacific
affairs, between 1981 and 1990, Iran’s envoy in Pakistan until
1993-94, after which he has been an adviser to the foreign minister,
Mehr stated.
Separately, Iran’s ambassador in Turkey, Firuz
Dolatabadi, said Iran will continue its support for Lebanon’s
Hizballah, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reported on August 9, citing an
interview with the Turkish daily “Radikal.” Dolatabadi reportedly
accused Great Britain and the United States of trying to dismember
Lebanon and Iraq, using the Kurdistan Workers Party to do that in
Iraq. (Vahid Sepehri)
PRESIDENTIAL CABINET COMES IN FOR CRITICISM. Hojatoleslam Hussein
Ebrahimi, a member of the conservative Tehran Militant Clergy
Association (Jameh-yi Ruhaniyat-i Mobarez-i Tehran), said on August
16 that President Mahmud Ahmadinejad’s trips to the provinces and
his legislative measures are well-intended but that some cabinet
members seem unable to execute the relevant tasks, ISNA reported.
Ebrahimi advised the president to ensure that the cabinet’s level
of commitment equals his own. Ebrahimi also recommended warning or
replacing unnamed government managers who he said do not implement
presidential policies for political reasons.
Reformist former legislator Davud Suleimani criticized the
cabinet for its failure to fulfill campaign pledges to improve
people’s economic well-being, “Etemad” reported on August 15. He
called for a report on the government’s performance that would be
publicly available so people can judge for themselves, and he
recommended a complete change in the cabinet.
Ilam parliamentary representative Dariush Qanbari said in
“Etemad” that the cabinet has been unsuccessful, adding that
Ahmadinejad intends to change his commerce, roads and transportation,
and welfare and social security ministers. Qanbari added that many of
his colleagues would like to see the agricultural jihad, education,
and health ministers replaced as well. (Bill Samii)
PUBLICATIONS ENCOUNTER LEGAL DIFFICULTIES. “Karnameh” had its license
revoked and Managing Editor Negar Eskandarfar received a suspended
one-year prison sentence on August 14 for articles offending morality
and chastity, ILNA reported. The Tehran Penal Court’s decision
follows a ban on the same publication by the Press Supervisory Board.
Eskandarfar has appealed the decision.
Also on August 14, “Cheshmandaz” Managing Editor Lutfollah
Meysami was found guilty of publishing materials that damage the
system and the country, insulting and libeling the police, and
propagandizing against the system, ISNA reported. The Tehran Penal
Court acquitted Meysami on charges of publishing false reports,
publishing anticonstitutional reports, publishing materials that are
offensive to Islam, and insulting the country’s judiciary.
On August 7, the Press Supervisory Board instructed “Sharq”
newspaper to replace its managing director, ISNA reported on August
12, because the paper has received 70 warnings to date. These
warnings relate to the alleged publication of atheistic materials,
divisive materials, and materials that violate Supreme National
Security Council directives.
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad recently offered congratulations
on the eve of Journalists Day (August 8), IRNA reported. (Bill Samii)
POLICE CONFISCATE SATELLITE DISHES. Police raided Tehran’s
Behjatabad residential district on August 14 and confiscated
residents’ satellite dishes, Radio Farda and ILNA reported.
Tehran police chief Morteza Talai described it as a “routine task.”
“The police are duty-bound to enforce the law,” he explained, “and as
long as the use of satellite dishes is illegal, we have to perform
our duty to that end.” Residents complained that they did not receive
advance notice of the raid.
Tehran prosecutor Said Mortazavi said in early August that
the headquarters for the promotion of virtue and prohibition of vice
recently discussed satellite dishes, “Etemad” reported on August 7.
Some people set up the dishes where they are visible, he said, and
the action is necessary because this is a violation of social norms.
Special teams will be trained to deal with satellite dishes, he
added. If people turn their dishes in, he continued, the police will
not take action against them. (Bill Samii)
AHMADINEJAD MAKES PROVINCIAL VISIT. Ardabil Province’s
governor-general, Ali Nikzad, announced on August 13 that President
Ahmadinejad would visit on August 15, provincial television reported.
Nikzad said the president and his cabinet will visit nine cities.
Also on August 13, commanders of the Ashura and Al-Zahra
battalions of the Basij met in Asadabad’s Jameh Mosque for a
briefing on upcoming war games, provincial television reported.
One week earlier, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’
new Imam Hussein base was inaugurated in the province’s Aslanduz
district, provincial television reported, and the Ashura battalions
began a three-day exercise at the IRGC’s Qods garrison in
Meshkinshahr. (Bill Samii)
POLICE AMBUSH BACKFIRES. Eight policemen were killed and three others
were wounded in an August 12 gunfight with bandits along the
Bam-Zahedan road in southeastern Iran, state radio reported. “The
incident took place during an ambush laid by the [police] to capture
the bandits in that region,” Interior Minister Purmohammadi said on
August 13, according to ISNA. Eastern Iran has been plagued by
violence for many years in what appears to be a low-level insurgency
and also in incidents relating to smuggling, and Purmohammadi said
more military bases will be established in the region. (Bill Samii)
KURDS SHELLED BY IRAN AND TURKEY. As operations against the Kurdish
Pejak group continue, Iranian and Turkish artillery fired on areas
predominantly inhabited by Kurds along their shared border on August
13, Iraq’s Al-Sharqiyah Television reported (see “RFE/RL Iran
Report,” July 7, 2006). Pejak is affiliated with the Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK). The Iranian artillery reportedly shelled
Khumyrah, Lulan, and Nazdaridakh, and Turkish artillery shelled Qabir
Zahir, Khwakurk, and Gurghan. (Bill Samii)
IRANIAN-AMERICAN SENTENCED FOR TRYING TO SEND DUAL-USE GOODS TO IRAN.
Mohammad Fazeli, a computer technician from California, was sentenced
by a U.S. federal court on August 7 to one year in prison for his
effort to ship dual-use products to Iran, “The San Jose Mercury News
Reported” on August 8. The 103 Honeywell pressure sensors that Fazeli
tried to send to Iran via the United Arab Emirates detect pressure in
liquids or in gases and can be used as components in detonators for
explosives. (Bill Samii)
IRAN REPORTEDLY ACTING AGAINST BIRD FLU, CHOLERA. Hussein Behbudi,
the head of the Gilan Medical Science University in northern Iran,
told Fars News Agency on August 9 that “about a month ago,” local
authorities detected bird flu among poultry on a farm near the town
of Imamzadeh Hashem in the northern Gilan province, prompting
officials to kill all domestic poultry within a 2-kilometer radius as
a precautionary measure. He said the symptoms have not been seen
among wild birds, but “there is still bird flu in Gilan.” He added
there are no cases so far in Iran of bird flu spreading to people.
Police and local authorities have also killed 1,800 chickens,
turkeys, and ducks suspected of having bird flu at an unspecified
date in “villages around the town of Masal” in Gilan, the daily
“Aftab-i Yazd” reported on August 10.
Separately, Health Minister Kamran Baqeri-Lankarani said on
August 9 that Iran is taking precautionary measures to prevent
cholera entering into the country from neighboring states, IRNA
reported. “Neighboring states are denying there is endemic cholera in
their countries, but preventive measures are being carried out…in
Iran,” he said. Baqeri-Lankarani added that Health Ministry officials
are trying to obtain “clear information from these countries” on the
disease. Preventive moves may include “quarantine” in frontier zones,
especially on the eastern frontier, he said. (Vahid Sepehri)
CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL FOREIGN WORKERS. Police in the eastern Iranian
city of Mashhad have arrested more than 1,000 foreigners recently who
did not possess valid documents, ISNA reported on August 15. In the
month beginning October 22, new measures will be implemented in an
effort to curtail the employment of foreigners working illegally in
Iran, “Kayhan” reported on August 13.
Mohammad Hussein Salehi-Maram, director-general of
foreigners’ affairs at the Labor Ministry, said 1 million
foreigners — mostly Afghans — are working illegally in Iran and
they take jobs from Iranians. Many foreigners work in construction,
tailoring, or textiles, he added.
Salehi-Maram said foreigners are used because they are cheap,
because some employers are ignorant of the law, and because the
foreigners themselves are unfamiliar with the relevant legislation.
He added that some contractors in the state sector and the parastatal
sector also use illegal foreigners, and this sets a bad example.
Under the new plan, those who employ illegal foreigners will be fined
five times the daily minimum wage, 300,000 rials ($34). (Bill Samii)
IRAN WILL IMPORT FUEL TO MEET DEMAND. Iran will not curb domestic
gasoline consumption despite expected shortages but rather import
more to meet demand, Reuters and RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reported on
August 17. Iranian officials are expecting shortages in the second
half of the Persian year running to March 20, 2007. Iran recently
bought several cargoes of gasoline for delivery in September,
indicating a decision to renew imports after a month-long suspension
of such purchases, Reuters reported on August 15.
On August 16, Farhad Rahbar the head of the Management and
Planning Organization, said “gasoline rationing is off the government
agenda until further notice,” Mehr reported. “There will be no
rationing…while the state of transportation…is not organized,” he
told a Tehran seminar. Rahbar said people’s “living and welfare
situation” will suffer if they have to buy expensive gasoline above a
fixed weekly or monthly amount charged at current, subsidized prices.
He added that the government is working on expanding public
transportation and removing old, fuel-inefficient cars.
Petroleum Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh said in Tehran on
August 8 that gasoline consumption in Iran is equivalent to a liter
per day for every Iranian, “and this is unprecedented in the world,”
“Aftab-i Yazd” daily reported on August 9. He said fuel wastage has
become “ordinary for the people and government” and Iran’s
government has “not been prepared to put pressure on the people to
reduce their consumption.”
Vaziri-Hamaneh said the government is planning to introduce
an unspecified number of minibuses to increase the public-transport
fleet.
He said separately that President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has
instructed the petroleum and finance ministers to “examine the
executive procedures” of a plan — apparently proposed by Ahmadinejad
— to sell crude oil cheaper to poorer countries. “This is the
president’s own viewpoint,” Vaziri said. He said Iranian
officials have not yet discussed the use of oil as a “political
instrument” — for example, in response to UN sanctions over
Iran’s nuclear activities — but “we shall use any factor in the
system’s interests, even oil,” “Aftab-i Yazd” reported. (Vahid
Sepehri)
********************************* ************************
Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
The “RFE/RL Iran Report” is a weekly prepared by A. William Samii on
the basis of materials from RFE/RL broadcast services, RFE/RL
Newsline, and other news services. It is distributed every Monday.
Direct comments to A. William Samii at [email protected].
For information on reprints, see:
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

KAREL DE GUCHT SAYS BELGIAN CHAIRMANSHIP, MINSK GROUP TO CONTINUE DOING EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO REGISTER PROGRESS IN KARABAKH CONFLICT REGULATION PROCESS
Armenpress
Aug 22 2006
YEREVAN, AUGUST 22, ARMENPRESS: OSCE Chairman-in-Office Karel De
Gucht told in an interview to Armenpress news agency that the Belgian
Chairmanship, in co-operation with the co-chairmen of the Minsk group,
will continue doing everything possible to move the Karabakh conflict
regulation process forward.
“There seemed to be a window of opportunity earlier this year for the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, the meetings of the presidents
of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Paris and Bucharest failed to confirm
that opportunity. It will take time and a lot of wisdom and courage
on the parts of both presidents to overcome them,” Karel De Gucht said.
Speaking about the military regulation of the conflict OSCE
Chairman-in-Office said “The international community, the OSCE and
the co-chairs of the Minsk group, all want a peaceful settlement of
the issue. Statements that go against this line and call for military
solutions are not helpful. I hope parties realize that a military
scenario would be a disaster not only for the parties, but for the
population and especially for the region as a whole. The international
community will judge severely the party that resorts to violence,”
the Chairman-in-Office said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NFSAT AND CRDF ANNOUNCE AWARDS UNDER “GRADUATE RESEARCH SUPPORT PROGRAM” COMPETITION
Lragir.am
21 Aug 06
The National Foundation of Science and Advanced Technologies (NFSAT)
and the U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF)
are pleased to announce the results of the “Graduate Research Support
Program” (GRSP) competition.
The goal of this program is to provide early-career Armenian
investigators (aspirants) involved in full-time research the following:
1. the ability to concentrate solely on full-time graduate study
2. funds to perform high-quality research in the field of basic science
3. the opportunity to become more integrated in the international
scientific community by participating in international conferences,
workshops and meetings.
NFSAT and CRDF received 57 eligible proposals for this competition.
According to the international independent peer-reviewed assessments
of each project 26 post-graduate students (aspirants) will receive
grants under this competition up to $5,000 each.: maximum $2,000
for individual financial support and minimum $3,000 for research
related expenses.
The NFSAT and the CRDF will provide 12 months of support to
post-graduate students (aspirants) in the Republic of Armenia who
received awards under this competition.
LIST of GRANTEES
Ani Tshantshapanyan, Institute of Applied Problems of Physics of NAS,
supervisor – E. Ghazaryan
Hayk Poghosyan, Institute of Mechanics of NAS, supervisor -L.Aghalovyan
Gegham Zakharyan, Yerevan State University, supervisor -R. Hakobyan
Smbat Tonoyan, Institute of Informatics and Automation Problems of NAS,
supervisor -M.Harutyunyan
Simon Zhamkochyan, Yerevan Physics Institute, supervisor -A.Margaryan
Babken Avchiyan, Yerevan State University, supervisor -H.Avetissyan
Levon Ananikyan, Yerevan Physics Institute, supervisor – N.Ivanov
Vardan Dallakyan, State Engineering University of Armenia, supervisor
-R.Vardanyan
Rafayel Barkhudaryan, Institute of Mathematics of NAS, supervisor
-A.Nersesyan
Karo Khachatryan, Yerevan State University, supervisor -Y.Avetisyan
Gevorg Vardanyan, Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics of NAS,
supervisor -A.Yeremyan
Levon Manukyan, Institute of Molecular Biology of NAS, supervisor
-A. Boyajyan
Aren Khoyetsyan, Institute of Molecular Biology of NAS, supervisor
-A. Boyajyan
Emil Gazazyan, Institute of Physical research of NAS, supervisor
-A.Papoyan
Artak Tovmasyan, Yerevan State Medical University, supervisor
-R.Ghazaryan
Vardan Gevorgyan, International Scientific-Educational Centre of NAS,
supervisor -A. Sargsyan
Narek Sisakyan, Institute of Physical research of NAS, supervisor
-Y.Malakyan
Hovik Hayrapetyan UNESCO Chair-Life Sciences International Postgraduate
Educational Centre, sup. – S.Ayrapetyan
Artur Reymers, Yerevan Physics Institute, supervisor -A.Chilingarian
David Mheryan, Institute of Mechanics of NAS, supervisor -M.Belubekyan
Eva Grigoryan, Institute of Chemical Physics of NAS, supervisor
-S.Kharatyan
Mihran Yamukyan, Yerevan State University, supervisor – S.Kharatyan
Gevorg Harutyunyan, Institute of Applied Problems of Physics of NAS,
supervisor – A.Aramyan
Levon Matevosyan, Molecule Structure Research Centre of NAS, supervisor
– R.Tamazyan
Gurgen Khachaturyan, Institute of Applied Problems of Physics of NAS,
supervisor – A.Lazarian
Ruzan Sokhoyan, Engineering Center “Mashtots” of NAS, supervisor –
A.Ishkhanyan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

SYNOPSYS ARMENIA TO BE LOCATED AT VIASPHERE TECHNOPARK
Noyan Tapan
Aug 21 2006
YEREVAN, AUGUST 21, NOYAN TAPAN. The company Synopsys Armenia, a branch
of Synopsys (US) – international leader in chip design and production
of chip design programming tools, will be located in the area of
Viasphere Technopark in the autumn 2006. The technopark’s director
general Aram Vardanian told NT correspondent about it. According ti
A. Vardanian, Viasphere got the right to locate Synopsys Armenia in
its area, after the latter won a tender. Synopsys Armenia was offered
the best conditions in terms of using the technopark’s territory and
infrastructures, and will occupy a production area of 9 thousand square
meters out of the total area of 25 thousand sq.m currently occupied
by 18 companies. A. Vardanian pointed out that this step of Synopsys
Armenia shows that Synopsys continues to expand its activities in
Armenia. The company started its operation in Armenia by purcashing
Monterey Arset, Leda Systems and HPL Armenia companies in 2004-2005,
as a result of which Synopsys Armenia became the biggest company not
only in chip design and chip design programming tools production but
also in the whole IT sector. In December 2005, Synopsys employed about
300 people. To recap, in late 2005, the management of Synopsys and
Synopsys Armenia announced their intention to increase sharply the
number of their empoyees in Armenia in the next few years, for which
purpose they started cooperating with Yerevan State University and
the State Engineering University of Armenia by opening chip design
departments and laboratories there.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIANS SET FIRE TO FOREST BELTS IN OCCUPIED AZERBAIJANI REGION
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Aug. 21, 2006
Armenian Armed Forces began to set fire to forest belts in the
occupied mountain ranges of the Azerbaijani region of Agdam from
yesterday evening.
APA’s Garabagh bureau reports the arsons were observed from the
dwelling places along the front.
Internally displaced persons from these areas said the enemy is
damaging the rare trees realizing that it cannot cut and use them.
Armenians committed arson in the occupied Khojavend region of
Azerbaijan last day too.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IRANIAN PRESIDENT BRINGS INTRIGUING POSSIBILITIES TO TBILISI
The Messenger, Georgia
Aug. 21, 2006
On August 14-15, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, Mehdi Safari,
visited Georgia. In a development labeled by some as ‘sensational’,
the visit concluded with President Saakashvili inviting Iranian
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad himself to Tbilisi. Unsurprisingly, this
made waves given the somewhat tense (to put it mildly) relationship
between Iran and Georgia’s key ally, the USA.
The Russian media immediately painted this step as a rebellious
anti-American move; indeed, some Georgians as well aired concern
that this could have a negative influence on all-crucial Georgian-US
relations. For certain experts, however, Saakashvili’s invitation
resounds with a far more subtle tone than that.
These experts presume that any diplomatic overtures to Tehran
from Tbilisi have the tacit approval of the White House. Georgian
analysts, in a perhaps overly generous estimation of Saakashvili’s
cachet as a statesman, suggest that Tbilisi could be stepping into
the role of mediator between Washington and Tehran, a position
hitherto tenuously played by Moscow. Georgian experts speculate that
Tbilisi would be a more trustworthy substitution for the Kremlin in
discussions between Iran and the West, as Russian intervention is of
questionable helpfulness. Political analyst Soso Tsintsadze, speaking
with Rezonansi, argued that after Putin and Ahmadinejad met, Iranian
leadership, far from making concessions, became even more radical.
Whether or not Saakashvili is on deck to take over as a mediator,
it is too soon to tell, but a meeting of the Georgian and
Iranian presidents should take no unintended toll on relations
between Georgia and the West. Georgian pundits point to the Iranian
president’s trip to Azerbaijan, which befell no ill on US-Azerbaijani
relations. Additionally, Armenia and Central Asian post-Soviet states
are becoming more open to interactions with Tehran, and don’t seem
to fear any diplomatic reprisal from Washington.
The Russian media reports that Iranian diplomatic circles, meanwhile,
are not pinning any outsized expectations on the possible visit.
Still, it’s a promising opening for Tbilisi, as there are serious
shared economic interests between Iran and Georgia which could make
their way to the table. Iran wants to pipe its natural gas northwest
for sale, and Georgia has a vital need to find an alternative
to Russian natural gas supplies. There is already a history of
cooperation-when faced with a severe energy crisis last winter as
gas failed to make its way south, Iran immediately came to Georgia’s
assistance by supplying the country with natural gas.
Despite a plurality of nearby nations with significant natural gas
reserves, Georgia is not spoilt for choice in meeting its energy
needs. Kazakhstan natural gas is transported through Gazprom-owned
pipelines. Azerbaijan, until recently, was not extracting adequate
gas for domestic consumption and had to lean on a Russian supply. As
the vast Shah Deniz field comes online, Azerbaijan will finally enjoy
a surplus, exporting what it doesn’t use through Georgia to Erzerum
(Turkey). Georgia will be able to dip into a share of the gas,
but it won’t be enough to replace the natural gas lifeline Russia
dangles south.
A deal between Tehran and Tbilisi, although beset by myriad political
and logistical concerns, would have the potential to bear some valuable
fruit for each country. Iran could gain a foothold in a market which
a steppingstone to Europe, and Georgia could finally wean itself off
of Russian natural gas. A meeting between Saakashvili and Ahmadinejad,
then, would surely be intensely watched by eyes from around the map.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARONIAN’S NEW ACHIEVEMENT
AZG Armenian Daily
22/08/2006
The match between Levon Aronian and Peter Svidler to decide the world
champion in Chess960 (Fischer Random) came to its end in Hilton Hotel
in Mainz, Germany.
Levon Aronian took this honorable title from Peter Svidler of Russia
defeating him with the score 5:3.
Opening the match with two victories, Aronian succumbed the other day
allowing the Russian to equalize. In the game five playing black pieces
Aronian suffered another defeat thus giving Svidler the lead. But in
the last three games of the match Aronian overcame his rival making
the score 5:3.
Next year Levon Aronian will defend his title in a match against
Frenchman Etienne Bacrot.
In the Random Chess tournament held simultaneously in Mainz Vishvanatan
Anand of India overcame Azerbaijani Teimur Radjabov with the score 5:3.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

“NKR IS FORMATED AND ANNNOUNCED AS AN INDEPENDENT REPUBLIC ON ITS LAND, WHICH HAS NOTHING COMMON WITH AZERBAIJAN”
ArmRadio.am
21.08.2006 09:49
“It is a fact that NKR is an independent and self-governmental republic
with state institutions and civic society. The Azerbaijanian government
can not accept this fact. The Azerbaijanian people have accepted this
fact long ago.
The government does not accept the NKR indepedance as in order to
stay in the government they have to look for external enimies and
have to load people with “all-national” problems. This is a strategy
which unfortunatly has justified itself. In reality I have not noticed
that the Azerbaijanian authorities have the wish to find the rational
solution of the problem”, said Arman Melikian, the counsellor of
foreign policy issues of the NKR President, to “Radionews” .
“I am more than confident: in order to solve the problem the NKR
participation is nessecary and there are also some other problems
which need to be disscused”, Melikian added.
“It is not new that Azerbaijan announces Nagorny Karabagh as a part
of Azerbaijan, but this is not the reality” told the former minister
of Foreign Affairs, now the counsellor of foreign policy issues of
the NKR President Arman Melikyan, evaluating the ordinary document
that Azerbaijan is spreading within UN.
The other day the minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Araz
Azimov announced that in September new proposals are awaited from
the Co-chairs of the Minsk Group and that this time “they will here
constructive suggestions”.
According to the words of the counsellor of foreign policy issues of
the NKR President it is good that Azimov has such an opinion but it
would be better if we could hear such words from the Co-chairs . “I
do not know maybe Azimov is the confidential person for them and he
has the “right of the first news” and he may announce the news to
the world”, said Arman Melikyan in sarcastic tone.
“Let the Co-chairs give their suggestions and we will see if it will
be in September or in January, the time and circumstances will show”,
he added.
Arman Melikyan also spoke about the caracterization of the suggestions
of the Co-chairs by Azimov as “constructive”, saying “As long as
I have noticed these past years the suggestions of the Co-chairs
have always been refused by Azerbaijan and I want to mention that
“constructiveness” is different for Azerbaijan than it is in our
imagination. We mix the reality with the desired”.
“I can agree that Azerbaijan does not want the existance of a second
or third Armenian State on their land. But NKR has been formed and
announced about itself on their land that has nothing common with
Azerbaijan,” mentioned the counsellor of the NKR President.
Speaking about the current status of the peace process, Arman Melikyan
expressed the opinion that there is nothing strange that Azerbaijan
and Kharabagh were against the suggestions of the Co-chairs, but
Armenia was not against with some abstemiousness.
“We have to take into account that the status of Armenia in this
negotiations is as much mediatory as the status of the Co-chairs
is. Armenia is interested in the protection of its national interests,
and on the other hand Armenia is interested in the quickening of the
peace process. In that sense the position of Armenia is milder.
Conerning some other problems, Arman Melikyan thinks that they can
be solved in the framework of Azerbaijan-NKR negotiations. There are
such problems where Armenia does not have the opportunity to tell
its opinion.
“For example, in the solving of the problem of the Armenian refugees of
Azerbaijan. This is a problem that NKR has to arise and to solve. Or
the problems concerning the territories under the control of NKR,
or the problems concerning the Azerbaijani internal displaced
persons. There is a package of Kharabagh-Azerbaijan bilateral
negotiations, formulated the counsellor of foreign policy issues of
the NKR President.
According to his considerations, superpowers and other interested big
centers have their strategy and as they tell it is easier to solve the
problem in the framework of bilateral that in trilateral negotiations,
but “I think that time will show that the negotiations have to be
continued in other framework and have to include other problems that
do not exist in the agenda now. I am more than sure that in order to
overcome the dead lock the participation of Kharabagh and disscusion
and solving of some other problems is mandatory “.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIAN COUPLE ARRESTED FOR STEALING GOLD CHAINS FROM SHOP; EGYPTIAN GIRL FOILS MOLESTATION BID
Arab Times, Kuwait
Aug. 20, 2006
KUWAIT CITY: Police have arrested an Armenian couple for stealing gold
chains worth KD 1,400 from a jewelry shop in Fahaheel in addition
to 210 grams of gold from another shop, reports Al-Rai Al-Aam
daily. Acting on a complaint securitymen disguised as women set a
trap for the suspects and arrested them. During interrogation the
couple admitted to committing the crime and guided police to their
accomplices. However, the Al-Anba daily said one of the arrested
persons is a transvestite who distracted the salesman by pretending
to flirt with him while the other stole the gold.
The daily also said the suspects were caught red-handed when they
tried to play the same game with another gold shop in the area. The
salesman was suspicious of the couple and without their knowledge
called police. Meanwhile, police are looking for an unidentified
person for attempting to molest an Egyptian girl, reports Al-Rai
Al-Aam daily. In his complaint to police the girl’s father said
his daughter was on her way home from a club in Salmiya, when an
unidentified person laying in wait in a deserted area surprised her
and ordered her to remove her clothes. The girl screamed for help
and the panicked attacker escaped from the scene.
3 sought for shooting in air: Sulaibiya police are looking for three
unidentified persons for shooting in the air, reports Al-Rai Al-Aam
daily. The daily quoting eyewitness reports said the men were seen
driving in a black 4×4 vehicle. After receiving information about the
incident the Interior Ministry pressed a helicopter into service but
failed to nab the men. The daily quoting unidentified police source
said one of the suspects is wanted by law for a criminal offence
and the men allegedly fired in the air when they approached a police
checkpoint.
Meanwhile, another source said the three men might have been either
hunting for birds, trading in alcohol or even attempting to smuggle
weapons out of the country.
In other news, as police patrols searched for the ‘black’ vehicle, they
arrested two Lebanese men for photographing sensitive establishments
in the area and referred them to the State Security Department,
reports Al-Watan daily.
Maid missing in Egypt: A Kuwaiti woman has filed a missing persons
report on her Sri Lankan maid with the police in Alexandria, Egypt,
reports Al-Rai Al-Aam daily. The daily quoting the woman said the
family was vacationing in Egypt and the maid allegedly escaped from
‘home’ after picking up a quarrel with one of the members of the
family.
GTD prepares violators list: The General Traffic Department is
preparing a list of names of employees in governmental departments
who had earlier been fined for committing traffic violations,
reports Al-Watan daily. Traffic sources said letters have been sent
to employees requesting them to pay the fines before Sept 15, or they
will be referred to the Traffic Court. The sources added the GTD will
not entertain any transactions unless the fines are paid.
Woman foils kidnap bid: A Kuwaiti woman, in her 30s, recently field
a complaint with the Khaitan Police Station accusing an Iraqi man of
assaulting her following a vain attempt to kidnap her, reports Al-Rai
Al-Aam daily. The complainant told police the suspect, identified
only as K.S., forced her into his car and drove off to South Surra.
When she discovered his plans she resisted him and jumped from the
car. A Kuwaiti motorist drove her to the police station.
Cash, jewellery stolen: Police are looking for an unidentified
person for breaking into the home of a Kuwaiti man in Taima, Jahra
and stealing KD 5,800; 31 million Iraqi dinars, jewelry, a mobile
telephone and two Saudi passports, reports Al-Rai Al-Aam daily. The
victim said the suspect climbed the fence and entered his home.
Syrian boy drowns: A 14-year-old Syrian boy drowned off a beach in
Abu Halifa, reports Al-Rai Al-Aam daily. The daily quoting eyewitness
reports said the victim was swimming with two other compatriots and
when he cried for help they tried in vain to save him. Several men
enjoying an evening out on the beach rushed to the rescue of the two
other youths and pulled them to safety. The boys have been admitted
to the Adan Hospital. The Coast Guard patrol boats and Sea Rescue men
searched the area and found the corpse of the victim among the rocks
on the beach. It has been reported the victim was pulled under water
by strong currents.
Army man rescued: A first lieutenant in the Kuwait swimming off
a beach in Julaiya suddenly felt weak and could not swim himself
to the shore. He cried for help and his friends pulled him ashore,
reports Al-Watan daily. The daily without going into details said the
army man was rushed to a hospital for medical checkup. In a similar,
unrelated incident, a five-year-old Iranian boy was rescued by an
unidentified person while swimming in the sea off Blajat Street. The
boy was unconscious and was surprisingly floating on water, reports
Al-Anba daily. It has been reported the victim was with the family
enjoying an evening out when suddenly went missing and the family
raised an alarm. The boy has been referred to the Amiri Hospital.
Sponsor’s house set on fire: An unidentified Asian man has been
detained for interrogation for allegedly setting fire to his sponsor’s
house in Al-Rabiya, reports Al-Qabas daily. The daily quoting a
security source said the male servant had an argument with his boss –
the daily did not give details about the argument – and in revenge
set the house on fire. The Fire Service Directorate after receiving
news of the fire dispatched fire engines, moved the occupants of the
house to safety and put out the fire.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Kucharian visits wind power plants built by Iran in Armenia
Mehr News Agency, Iran
Aug. 18, 2006
TEHRAN, Aug. 18 (MNA) – Robert Kocharian President of the Republic
of Armenia visited the wind power plants built by Iran in Armenia,
the Persian service of Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported
here on Friday.
The four power plants built by Iran have generated over 500,000
kilowatt/hours of electricity during the first half of the current
year, noted the Armenian president during his visit to the power
stations located in the Pushkin region of the Transcaucasian republic.
He pointed to another power plant also under construction by Iran in
Kurtan – one of the 107 villages of the Lori region in the northern
part of Armenia – and explained that the facility consisted of five
wind turbines with an annual capacity of 19.5 million kilowatts
of electricity.
There are 40 power plants currently operational in the republic,
he also commented adding that 30 more are expected to be added to
the figure.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress