Mousavi and now Karoubi have been under siege – a blockade – on their homes for weeks (and days) respectively. Their daughters have written a letter, petrified for their parents’ well being: the lights in the house never turn on. Who knows where they really are? Or what they’re being fed? What treatment they are [...]
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As I contemplate the loss of life, I can’t help but also mourn the loss of so many things that meant so much in this old, exhausted city: the death of art, music, books, … Everything that lived on so strongly, despite the crusades. They are not dead, but buried deep within, and will be, [...]
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In remarks he made yesterday, Mir Hossein Mousavi has actually pointed to the 1987 executions. He said: ”we must look at the events of 87 through the historic lens in which they were situated, and then we must see if the government had any knowledge about them at all? Did the government play any role? Did it even had [...]
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I first wrote about Mohammad Ali Ramin, the deputy at the Cultural Ministry and Ahmadinejad BFF on November 9th. He’s back now, with more mind-numbing statements. Following the suspension of both Etemad and Iran Dokht, Ramin was interviewed by state TV. He said that in Europe and North America, they do not suspend publications which [...]
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How this: created this: What TV show will it be next? Friends? I Love Lucy? I first covered Mr. Hassan Abbasi on July 3rd: Meet Mr. Abbasi He had been missing for some time, and when he reemerged, I had this post: He’s Baaaaaaaaaaack And this is the translation of a speech he gave in [...]
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Asghar Hashemi is P.O.W who fought in the Iran-Iraq war. He was, for quite a number of years lost without any trace and his family feared the worse, thinking he had died. He was to reemerge years later, in a prisoner swap between Iran and Iraq. His son, Sourena Hashemi is now one of the [...]
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How this: helped create this: Seems our focus today is going to be nutty news agencies – we have too many of them in Iran. Now before I go on, I think there’s much, much to be said about the disastrous ways that television has influenced our society for the worse. I too think there [...]
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Students of Professor Ali Mohammadi wrote a tribute to him and here it is, taped to his mailbox: (Poem) Look through his lifeless eyes to see the destiny that awaits patriots More photos of the department of physics: (same poem)
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They remind me of huge ninjas. Formally, they are called “guard-e vijeh” (special guards). They cover their face and wear huge black uniforms with padded shoulders which creates the illusion that they are much bigger and heavier than they really are. They carry a collection of weapons and have gained a reputation for total and [...]
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This is Behzad Nabavi head of the reformist Mojahedin party, and the man famously known as the “old guerrilla fighter” just a few months ago: And this is him with his wife three days ago. He was released on bail ($800,000) and allowed to go home for 10 days.
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Just finished watching “A Death in Tehran.” Maybe you’ve already watched it? It will be all over Blogistan tomorrow. I’m glad they spoke to Mokhtari, a Kayhan contributor, but I would have hoped for more than just Mokhtari from the Ahamdinejad camp. And he got to tell one of the most controversial stories: did civilians [...]
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Ehsan Fatahiyan was hanged early this morning. Even his crime was not fully transparent. Never mind the sentence. And just like that: killed … zero … nothing … dead … void … emptiness …
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Behrooz Baghayi is in the center, wearing white, after performing Hamlet and Season Salad ———————————- Behrooz Baghayi is a well known Iranian stage actor, producer and writer. He was a frequent collaborator of Masoud Rassam and Bijan Birangh. It was just announced that he suffered a stroke last night and is in coma. His doctor’s [...]
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The late Ahmad Bourghani was deputy minister of culture under the Khatami administration. He was once the U.N correspondent for IRIB. During the war, he oversaw the War Information Press. Jahanshah Javid remembers him as the gentle giant. He was one prominent example of the life and times of a young, raging revolutionary who had [...]
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According to just about every reliable report I read of 13 Aban, there was more security in the streets than there had ever been in any of the post-election demonstrations. The main grounds of the rally were sealed off completely to everybody except for pro-government factions. Outside these grounds, security forces made sure that large [...]
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