The Latest from Iran (13 February): Waiting for Tomorrow

"I'm Going with Mom & Dad. Join Us"2210 GMT: Isolating Mousavi and Karroubi. Ardeshir Amir-Arjomand, a senior advisor to Mir Hossein Mousavi, has said that the phone lines of Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi have been cut.

The cutting of Karroubi's communications had been related, along with his effective house arrest, at the end of last night, but this is the first report of an attempt to cut off Mousavi.

2040 GMT: 25 Bahman. The Mothers of Mourning, known for their weekly gatherings in Laleh Park in Tehran to remember the dead and detained of the post-election conflict, have issued a statement of support for Monday's rally.

Journalist Isa Saharkhiz, detained since July 2009, has also congratulated those challening Iranian dictators.

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The Latest from Iran (7 January): The Closing of the Bookstores

2025 GMT: The Nuclear Talks. A spokesman for the European Union's representative for foreign policy, Catherine Ashton, has confirmed that the next round of discussions between Iran and the 5+1 Powers (US, UK, Germany, France, China, and Russia) will take place on 20-21 January in Istanbul.

1815 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. The daughter of former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, Faezeh Hashemi, has visited the family of the detained reformist leader Feizollah Arabsorkhi. 

1800 GMT: Karroubi and the Detained Journalist. On Wednesday, Mehdi Karroubi visited the family of detained journalist and activist Emaduddin Baghi. Karroubi expressed regret over the recent arrest of Baghi's son-in-law Ali Maghami and said, "Baghi is a man of faith who has remained true to our social ideals. He has never hesitated to sacrifice for his beliefs and for the reform of our society."

Karroubi added, "The political system should encourage our youth to remain engaged in defining their destiny. This type of action, unfortunately only seeks to weaken hope in society. We must of course never give up on our rights and on our hope to achieve sovereignty."

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The Latest from Iran (26 November): Connect the Meetings

2055 GMT: Parliament v. President. Ali Motahari, the leader of the movement to summon Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for Parliamentary questions, said that the demand will be made after the implementation of subsidy cuts. Motahari again said that there were nearly enough signatories --- 1/4 of the 290 MPs --- to call in Ahmadinejad, and that most of those signing were principlists.

Khabar Online, linked to Speaker Ali Larijani, posts a recent history of Parliament-President relations, documenting how Ahmadinejad has faced possible questioning on several previous occasions.

Khabar also claims that the battle for control of the Central Bank continues. Parliament recently voted to take oversight away from the President.

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The Latest from Iran (25 November): Taking a Break?

2144 GMT: Election and Sedition. Another take-away from the Supreme Leader's speech to Basij militia today....

Ayatollah Khamenei said the post-election protesters put their desire for power above the Islamic Republic in a “complex sedition” which endangered the “interests of the country and the righteousness of its path". He added, “They acted in such a way that drew the excitement and support of Western leaders and the Iranian nation’s first grade enemies.”

The Supreme Leader also laid down the lines on loyalty: “A society is either led by the just Imam...or it is run by human beings who know nothing of righteousness....It cannot be any other way.”

2138 GMT: Controlling the Mourning. As the anniversary of the death of Grand Ayatollah Montazeri approaches, Commander Mohammad Reza Heydari has announced the establishment of "Muharram Police" in Qom to control religious ceremonies.

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The Latest from Iran (13 November): Sanctions, Talks, and a Twist on Iraq

1838 GMT: Economic Revelation of Day. Minister of Welfare and Social Security Sadegh Mahsouli has explained that Iran cannot define a poverty line due to huge differences between rural and urban areas, although the Government "does everything to distribute national wealth".

Fun Fact: Sadegh Mahsouli is a millionaire.

1835 GMT: Subsidy Cuts Watch. Arsalan Fathipour, the head of Parliament's Economy Commission, has said that the Majlis has no information on the government's "support packages" to ease the economic pain of the cuts.

1830 GMT: Soft War is Everywhere! It's in the pulpits: Kalemeh claims an official order has been sent to Friday Prayer leaders for the holy month of Muharram (December/January), telling them to explain the 2009 "fitna" (sedition) and informing people about the soft war.

And it's on the easels: Minister of Culture Mohammad Hosseini has declared that artists are "front commanders" in the soft war.

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The Latest from Iran (9 November): The "Rule of Law"

1610 GMT: Press Watch. ICHRI claims, from a "reliable source inside Hamshahri newspaper", that four senior journalists have been suspended and a reporter has been dismissed. Though there have been many dismissals at Hamshahri Newspaper in the past, the suddenness of the actions has surprised many of the people who work at the newspaper. The source says it is feared that the suspensions are the beginning of an intiative to put in journalists who have the same political orientation as the paper’s management. In the last year, Hamshahri’s management has been filled by individuals who formerly worked in the police force or the judiciary, including Managing Director Mehdi Zakeri.

1508 GMT: A Change of Philosophy. The United Nations Educational and Scientific Organization has withdrawn from the holding of World Philosophy Day in Tehran, less than two weeks before the event.

There had been sustained protests, including an academic challenge led by philosopher and former political prisoner Ramin Jahanbegloo, against UNESCO's persistence in supporting the gathering. The arrangements had been made in 2008 but came under fire amidst post-election conflict, repression, and the Iranian regime's restriction on Western humanities in universities.

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The Latest from Iran (31 October): Please Do Not Be Scared

1940 GMT: Subsidy Cuts Watch. Rah-e-Sabz reports that legislators have been not convinced by the government's remarks on subsidy cuts and have asked for a new meeting.

The website adds that the government will take money from banks for refunds.

1755 GMT: Holding Off on More Repression? Gholamhossein Esmaili, the head of Iran's prisons organisation, says the definition of "political crime" has been postponed because of more important issues.

1735 GMT: Warning of the Day. Approaching 4 November, the anniversary of the takeover of the US Embassy, Revolutionary Guard Commander Masoud Jazayeri has warned that today some embassies play the same role as the US embassy did in 1979. Jazayeri said Iran must turn the day into an international day of "Death to America" against spies and foreign intervention.

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The Latest from Iran (22 October): The Surprise of the Unexpectedly Slow

2045 GMT: The Khamenei Road Trip. Fars and Mehr are reporting a big breakthrough for the Supreme Leader: his Friday meeting with clerics included Grand Ayatollah Safi Golpayegani.

No details are given.

1930 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Mahdieh Mohammadi, the wife of detained Iranian journalist Ahmad Zeidabadi, has said that the Ministry of Intelligence has denied her husband a furlough.

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The Latest from Iran (28 September): Rumbling On

2010 GMT: Rumour of Day. We have listened for days as chatter spread about the killings last week of two Tehran doctors,  Abdolreza Sudbakhsh and Gholamreza Sarabi, by gunmen on motorcycles. 

Iran officials said Dr. Sarabi was killed in revenge over a botched medical case while there were no comments about the case of Dr. Sudbakhsh.

Now Rah-e-Sabz has offered a political link in the case of Dr. Sudbakhsh, who was one of the physicians responsible for inmate health at the Kahrizak detention center, where post-election protesters were abused and killed.

The website claimed that Dr. Sudbakhsh had been ordered by Iranian security officials to give false diagnoses regarding Kahrizak detainees. For example, Mohsen Ruholamini, the son of the campaign manager of conservative presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei, was initially said to have died from meningitis. Later it was established --- and confirmed in a parliamentary report --- that he died from beatings at Kahrizak.

We're still cautious but the story has now spread to the pages of The New York Times.

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