Monday 18 February 2013

Iran Live Coverage: Ahmadinejad Refuses to Back Down

0620 GMT: The letter, posted on President Ahmadinejad's website, was a brief one but it had a pointed, if coded, message.

Ahmadinejad, writing to the Supreme Leader, expressed his respect and devotion to Ayatollah Khamenei and his dedication to the Iranian people. But he did not utter a single word of apology for the incident on 3 February in which he had used a speech on the floor of Parliament to accuse Speaker Ali Larijani and his family of corruption.

He did not do so, even though the Supreme Leader had said clearly on Saturday morning that the President's behaviour was "bad", "immoral", and "illegal".

He did not do so, even though the Larijanis had quickly reacted within hours by apologising and thanking the Supreme Leader for his "compassionate wisdom". He did not do so even though Ali Larijani had organised a Parliamentary apology on Sunday morning for impeaching the Minister of Labor, the catalyst for Ahmadinejad's speech in the Majlis.

He effectively said, "The ball is in your court, Supreme Leader. What do you do now?"

An EA correspondent goes farther. Ahmadinejad is wrecking the attempts, backed by Ayatollah Khamenei, for a "unity" candidate to win June's Presidential election --- he continues to push for a successor, such as his right-hand man, Esfandiar Rahim-Mashai. The correspondent declares:

Ahmadinejad just told Khamanei: accept Rahim-Mashai, or I will make even bigger trouble. Khamenei can do next to nothing: putting more pressure on Ahmadinejad and his cronies will end up in even more fierce reactions.

The Supreme Leader is chained to his darling --- if Ahamadinejad goes down, he will drag Khamenei down as well.

from EA WorldView: EA Iran

Posted via email from lissping

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