Iran Analysis: Interpreting Khamenei's "Re-Appearing" Fatwa (Verde)

Mr Verde writes for EA:

In a development almost unnoticed outside Iran, the Supreme Leader's office has not only re-claimed the "I am the Rule of the Prophet" fatwa but has done so with a loud defence of the decision to issue it.

The latest statement on Ayatollah Khamenei's website says that only “state orders” of the Supreme Leader must be obeyed. It blames the "media of the enemy" for creating a fuss over the fatwa, since Ayatollah Khomeini held the same views, and complains about publication of the text of the fatwa next to photographs of the SL’s meeting with military commanders. [Editor's note: is this the reason why the fatwa "disappeared" for several days? But if so, why did it not appear on Khamenei's official website in the first place, removing any ambiguity?]

Iran Analysis: The Supreme Leader & the Disappearing Fatwa (Verde)

The statement also claims that the issuing of this fatwa will help widen the circle of regime insiders, continuing Khamenei’s call last year for inclusion.

Observations

The statement is a very angry one which tries to blame the enemy for the fuss over the fatwa and to hide behind Khoemini as well as claiming --- without saying how --- that Khamenei wants to expand the number of people within the regime.

When the fatwa was originally issued, there were probably three objectives:

1) To provide more ammunition for sackings, disqualifications and imprisonments by regime officials
2) To attempt to counter the increasing criticism of Khamenei.
3) Perhaps most significantly, to try and stop the haemorrhage of support for Khamenei within the regime’s conservative/principalist camps.

Once the fatwa was issued, it was probably met with a torrent of criticism not just from people outside of the regime, but by regime insiders and high ranking clerics. The criticism probably not only included the fatwa itself but the claimed authority of Khamenei to issue fatwas in the first place.

That may have been the reason for the fatwa being pulled from sites, but once it was, it was interpreted as a quick retreat by Khamenei. That probably led to his advisors thinking that this was even worse than the criticism of the fatwa, because it would be seen as the Supreme Leader's acceptance that the criticism was correct.

This probably led to the re-appearance of the fatwa but this time his office seems to be trying to come out fighting. If so, I must say it is a feeble attempt at a strong stand and a fight.

Conclusion

To my knowledege, this is the first time that Khamenei’s office has been forced to issue a statement about an issue over which the Supreme Leader has been criticised. Is this a sign that even the Supreme Leader’s office now believes it needs to respond to public pressure and criticism?

Note that the original fatwa says that the principle of veiayat-e-faqih (clerical supremacy) is a branch of the rule of the Prophet and Shia Imams. Now, however, the statement says that the fatwa covers only “state orders”. This may be a retreat, as the original aim of the fatwa was to assert that the Supreme Leader's verdict is final in all circumstances.