Ahmad Jannati: The Roots of the 'Sedition' in Iran Have Not Yet Dried Up

Ahmad Jannati, the head of the Assembly of Experts, stated that the roots of the 'sedition' in Iran have not yet 'dried up' and that some 'new hypocrites' are still attempting to continue that movement. According to a report on Tuesday (December 4), Jannati made this statement at the third congress of 'Allameh Baladi Research and Scientific Congress' in Bushehr. He further claimed that the protests following the 2009 election, referred to as 'sedition' in the political lexicon of the Islamic Republic, were 'not related to the election but were designed to overthrow the Islamic system of Iran.' Jannati added that the events of 2009 in Iran were 'executed with the design of Americans and internal forces, and the seditionists thought they could destroy the Islamic system of Iran with a velvet revolution, just as the Zionist regime did with 10 million dollars for a velvet revolution in Georgia.' According to IRNA, the head of the Assembly of Experts praised the state-sponsored rally on December 30, which was organized in opposition to the 2009 protests, stating: 'The sedition in Iran has been extinguished, but its roots have not dried up. There are still some new hypocrites attempting to continue that movement.' He also warned about the 'enemy' entering the virtual space, adding that through this, 'Islamic ethics, chastity, and hijab have been overshadowed.' His remarks about the ongoing nature of the 2009 protests come at a time when senior clerics and military officials of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly declared the 'death' of what they call 'sedition.' Previously, Hamid Hassan Asfari, a member of the National Security Commission of the ninth parliament, stated that as long as the traces of 'sedition' remain in society, the case of 2009 will not be closed. Asfari mentioned in an interview with the website Nameh News that Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, the leaders of the 2009 protests, are two individuals who 'imposed costs on the system that it will not easily overlook, and the system will not forgive them without their repentance.' Sadegh Larijani, the head of the judiciary, also stated in December 2016: 'There are still some who criticize us for repeatedly reopening the sedition case. In fact, this case is still open.'