Ali Motahari: New Conditions Have Emerged for Mousavi, Karroubi, and Rahnavard

Ali Motahari, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, stated on Sunday, November 14, that it seems "new conditions" have emerged for Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard, leaders of the protesters against the 2009 election results. According to ISNA news agency, Mr. Motahari described what he called "new openings for the house-arrested" as a means to "strengthen national unity" and expressed hope that "house arrest will gradually be lifted." His remarks referred to recent meetings between the daughters and two sisters of Mir Hossein Mousavi with him and Mrs. Rahnavard, as well as the meeting of Ismail Doosti, a member of the National Trust Party, with Mehdi Karroubi. Earlier, Ali Shamkhani, the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, stated on November 9 that the leaders of the 2009 election protests are not under house arrest and can meet anyone they wish. Hours after these remarks, the children of Mehdi Karroubi, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard announced that they are still under house arrest. Following these criticisms, according to the Kaleme website, the two sisters of Mir Hossein Mousavi, who criticized Ali Shamkhani's remarks and stated that they have been deprived of seeing their brother for months, met with Mr. Mousavi and Mrs. Rahnavard on Friday, November 12. According to this report, the daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard were also present at this meeting. ISNA reported that Ali Motahari stated, "They intend to open up the space a bit and create new conditions" and added, "We thank the officials who made this decision because in the current conditions of the country, this can help national unity." The Deputy Speaker of Parliament also pointed out that Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard "have repeatedly stated that they accept the principle of velayat-e faqih (guardianship of the Islamic jurist) and there is no concern that their freedom will create insecurity in the country." He added, "The more united and stronger we are inside, the better it is for the country." Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard have been under house arrest without trial since February 2011. Their requests to attend a public trial have not been accepted so far, and some military and clerical supporters of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic have threatened them with heavy sentences, including execution. Lifting the house arrest was one of the main demands of Hassan Rouhani's supporters in the presidential elections of 2013 and 2017, and he made promises regarding lifting the house arrest both explicitly and implicitly in both elections. However, during the four years of Mr. Rouhani's first government, no practical action was taken to fulfill this promise, and during his second term, restrictions against Mohammad Khatami, the former President of Iran, have also increased. In this context, the daughters and two sisters of Mir Hossein Mousavi met with him on Friday, and a member of the National Trust Party has met with Mehdi Karroubi for the second time in recent weeks. "The issue of house arrest has been resolved," the response of the children of Karroubi, Mousavi, and Rahnavard to Shamkhani's remarks: house arrest continues. Shamkhani: the use of the term house arrest is not correct.