Achilles' Heel

With the introduction of two main candidates for the U.S. presidential election, some Iranian newspapers have also evaluated and speculated on this matter in their Thursday issues. The newspaper Etemad dedicated its front page to Hillary Clinton and reported with the headline 'It's a Woman's Turn,' stating: 'Hillary Clinton officially became the first woman to be nominated by one of the two major parties in the U.S. on Tuesday night, an event that was hard to imagine even two decades ago.' The newspaper also noted: 'Now, Hillary Clinton not only enters the electoral campaign as the first female candidate from the Democratic Party but currently has the chance to become the first woman in history to enter the White House and take the helm of the United States.' The newspaper Shargh published photos of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Hillary Clinton on its front page and described Julian Assange's statements about the disclosure of more documents regarding the U.S. elections as 'Putin's conspiracy,' while also mentioning that 'in December 2011, when widespread protests against Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, erupted in Moscow, Putin clearly stated who he thought was behind these protests: Hillary Clinton, the U.S. Secretary of State.' The newspaper Jahan San'at also dedicated its front page to introducing the Democratic Party candidate, stating: 'Hillary Clinton made history.' The newspaper Noavaran dedicated its front page to Hossein Fereydoun, the brother of Hassan Rouhani, describing him as the 'Achilles' heel' of the President and stating: 'In the final months of Rouhani's government, Hossein Fereydoun has the potential to unwittingly play the role of the Eyeball of the Eleventh Government.' This newspaper pointed out that the rhythm of attacks on Hossein Fereydoun intensified when he met with Mostafa Tajzadeh after being released from prison, noting that accusations such as lobbying for Hossein Rastgar, the resigned and detained director of Refah Bank, and 'partnership in a currency exchange' are among the allegations against Hassan Rouhani's brother. In the latest instance, Moussa Ghasemfarabadi, the head of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, stated in an interview with the Basij News Agency: 'The President himself should issue a heavy sentence for his brother and at least request a life sentence from the court.' The newspaper Noavaran emphasized that 'as we get closer to next year's presidential election,' attacks on the brother of the Eleventh Government will increase because 'opponents and critics of the government are thinking of creating an Achilles' heel for the government to tarnish its image in the public arena and, in their opinion, reduce Rouhani's votes.' This newspaper quoted some principlist figures such as Alireza Zakani and Elias Naderan criticizing Hassan Rouhani's brother, stating that Sadegh Khrazi also criticizes 'the special role of Hossein Fereydoun in Rouhani's government' and says that Hossein Fereydoun prevented his appointment as 'deputy' foreign minister by Mohammad Javad Zarif. Meanwhile, Ismail Gerami Moghadam, the former spokesman of the National Trust Party, told this newspaper: 'Considering that Rouhani is the leader in the fight against corruption resulting from the performance of previous governments, he should react regarding Hossein Fereydoun and show more caution towards his brother than others in accordance with the Constitution.' Hossein Kan'ani Moghadam, the Secretary-General of the Green Party of Iran, criticized the statements of the head of the Revolutionary Court to the newspaper Noavaran, saying: 'No one opposes the trial of offenders in accordance with all legal positions, but I oppose the statements of the head of the Revolutionary Court; because until a person is tried in a competent court and their crime is determined, it is illegal to discuss it in the press.' The newspaper Arman also dedicated its front page to Hassan Rouhani's brother, reporting with the headline 'In the Name of Fereydoun, to the Delight of the Worried Ones,' stating: 'Rouhani's opponents know better than anyone else that they are executing a part of a new psychological warfare program that was recently ordered from the demolition room against the government.' This newspaper described Hossein Fereydoun as a 'shield for his brother' and stated that government opponents 'would love to portray the President's brother similarly to Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei and settle scores in some way,' and many believe that with these attacks, they aim to reduce 'Hassan Rouhani's credibility and popularity for the 96 elections.' The newspapers Javan and Vatan-e Emruz reported on 'the suspension of the implementation of Iran's agreement with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and international actions to combat money laundering.' The newspaper Javan, close to the Revolutionary Guards, emphasized that 'an order for a review of the agreement with FATF has been issued,' stating: 'Negotiations with foreign parties are to be conducted to amend this agreement in the direction of national interests, while some supervisory bodies have also emphasized the non-implementation of this agreement until the results of further investigations are announced.' This newspaper wrote: 'One of the significant dangers of the agreement with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) for Iran is the risk of intelligence infiltration and access to the financial transaction information of Iran's banking system,' and also 'the risk of intelligence and judicial cooperation of Iran's banking system with this group to limit the activities of resistance forces in the region.' The newspaper Vatan-e Emruz also reported: 'Ultimately, the multitude of criticisms from experts and authorities in the banking and financial system regarding Iran's commitments to the Financial Action Task Force has been influential, and an order for a review of this agreement has been issued.' According to this newspaper, 'the Financial Action Task Force, known as the international anti-money laundering body, announced in a statement on July 24, 2016, that the restrictions on Iran's monetary and financial system by this group would be suspended for 12 months to review Iran's progress in implementing an agreed-upon 'action plan' with this body.' The newspaper Vatan-e Emruz emphasized that one of the most important concerns regarding Iran's new commitments in this agreement is 'the issue of access to information related to the country's defense institutions,' as 'according to the group's standards, a unit called the 'Financial Intelligence Unit' must be active in the country,' a unit that focuses on 'important (over 15,000 euros) and suspicious transactions.' This newspaper also wrote: 'Another concern is about the constraints that this agreement may impose on the system and revolutionary institutions,' and for example, 'if we assume that Resolution 1929, which identified the Revolutionary Guards as a proliferation entity, is reimposed for any reason, the Central Bank of Iran must implement it,' or 'if this council requests Iran's intelligence and judicial cooperation to combat Hezbollah financing and Iran does not comply, from the perspective of the working group, this constitutes a failure to cooperate, thus Iran may return to the blacklist.' Meanwhile, the newspaper Ebtekar, in its front page headline 'The Government's Stick in the Wheel of Corruption,' quoted Saeed Leilaz as saying: 'As the government's share in the country's economy grows and the amount of government intervention and management increases, the level of corruption in that country will also increase,' and 'the more freedom of the press and generally freedom in the country is restricted, the more the possibility of corruption in various sectors of society, including the economy, will increase due to media silence and the restrictions imposed on them for publishing certain news.' Mehdi Taghavi, an economics professor at Allameh Tabatabai University, also told the newspaper Ebtekar: 'Financial transparency is an effective step in combating economic corruption.' The newspaper Etelaat reported that the Tehran prosecutor has called for 'the closure of violating businesses' and stated: 'The sale of clothing adorned with the symbols of corrupt and deviant groups is a crime.' This newspaper dedicated its front page to 'the ISIS terrorist attack on the Kurdish city of Qamishli in Syria,' reporting that this attack left '50 dead and 170 injured.' The newspaper Iran has a report about 'protests against the sale of the Mahmoudabad forest park,' stating: 'The residents of the Sarkharud region in Mazandaran province sent an open letter to the President, announcing that 12 hectares of the 19-hectare Malaklai Mahmoudabad forest park were sold for 600 million tomans to the Housing Foundation and then to an individual, demanding the annulment of the ownership document of this land and its return to natural resources.' The newspaper Resalat criticized the trial of the attackers on the Saudi embassy in Tehran in its Thursday editorial titled 'The Cost and Benefit of a Trial,' describing the trial of the attackers as 'a trial of youth' who 'attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran and Mashhad as part of the people in protest against the criminal actions of Al Saud.' The newspaper Resalat even wrote: 'It would have been good if the judicial authorities had thought about the cost and benefit of this trial publicly. In a space where people are waiting for the trial of the looters of public wealth, this trial should not provide a breathing space for domestic and foreign evildoers.' 'The Billionaires' Game' is the front-page headline of the newspaper Shahrvand, which features a report on 'the contract amounts of players and technical staff in the Premier League.' This newspaper wrote: 'Ghasem Hadadifar, with 1 billion and 430 million tomans, is recognized as the most expensive player in Iran, and although the creative midfielder of Zob Ahan has had strong customers in the transfer season, he has torn his cruciate ligament and will be out of the fields for months, and therefore may not receive this amount of money.' According to the newspaper Shahrvand, 'If we set Hadadifar aside, Luciano Edinho, the Brazilian striker of Tractor Sazi, is considered the most expensive player in the league with 1 billion and 400 million tomans. On the other hand, the cheapest players in the league are the soldiers of Tractor Sazi, such as Mohammad Akhbari and Hadi Mohammadi, who have contracts worth 1 million and 500 thousand tomans.' The newspaper Khorasan reported with the headline 'Pahlavan Arrested,' quoting Gholamali Sadeghi, the prosecutor of Mashhad, who stated that 'Mohsen Pahlavan, the former CEO of 'Padideh,' was arrested on Wednesday after being summoned to the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office in Mashhad and sent to prison.' Gholamali Sadeghi said that 'in the case of the former CEO of Padideh, several charges, including fraud and disruption of the economic system, exist, and some of the charges were communicated to this individual by the judge yesterday, and he was arrested after the issuance of a legal order to ensure that this case proceeds in a calm atmosphere, away from any noise and commotion.'