Ali Motahari on Shiraz Incident: Attackers Were Free to Act

Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, wrote on his website about the attack by plainclothes forces on him on Monday, March 9, stating that "the attackers were free to act as they pleased." The governor of Fars also mentioned that the assailants were not "ordinary individuals" and that "this same group" had intended to attack Ali Yunusi, the special assistant to the President of Iran on ethnic and religious minorities, upon his arrival in Shiraz, but "was anticipated and prevented." According to reports, Ali Motahari, who traveled to Shiraz on March 9 to give a speech at Shiraz University, was "assaulted by plainclothes forces" at the airport and was ultimately forced to return to Tehran. On Tuesday, March 10, Motahari noted on his website that a group of thirty to forty people attacked the taxi carrying him, stating: "One person threw himself onto the hood of the car. The driver managed to push him off, but further ahead, stones, bricks, and tomatoes were coming towards us." The taxi carrying Ali Motahari had its windows broken by the attackers in Shiraz. He added: "The rear window and the side windows of the car were completely shattered, and fragments hit our heads, faces, and hands, some of which penetrated. Pepper spray was also another weapon they used up close, and for about a minute, I couldn't breathe." Earlier, the Iranian Students' News Agency, ISNA, reported that the attackers had also used "pepper spray," which caused respiratory distress for Ali Motahari. According to this news agency, Motahari suffered "minor eye injuries." He further stated: "It seemed they came with the intent to kill or maim. The driver somehow escaped through them, but they pursued us with heavy motorcycles and a pickup truck, throwing stones and other objects and shouting obscene insults like 'bastard' at us. The driver had to enter Police Station 20 in Gol Sarakh, Shiraz." He added: "We thought the police would arrest these individuals, but we saw no reaction from them; they only prevented the attackers from entering the police station. Apparently, it was an accepted principle that these individuals, as indicated by their equipment like heavy motorcycles and pepper spray, were free to act in such matters, and no one had the right to interfere with them unless the attacked individual died from the severity of the blows." Previously, the 'Ensaf News' website reported that some of the attackers on Motahari were riding "heavy motorcycles," and some of these individuals were also "masked." "Heavy motorcycles" are typically used by military and Basij forces in Iran. Ali Motahari continued in his writing: "I told the police chief... now that these individuals are in your reach, arrest them... He said we have information and photos of all of them, and we will arrest them later; and I am waiting for their arrest!" This Tehran representative added: "I was hopeful that the provincial executive officials would, with appropriate orders, arrest those thugs and escort me to the university. However, from the calls being made, I understood that... their main effort and decision was to ensure that the authorized speech session would not take place and that they had no intention of taking action against the attackers, who were free to act as they pleased. It was here that I understood a glimpse of the strategy of the eleventh government." According to Motahari, the Fars governorate falsely announced in the speech hall that he had returned to Tehran to disperse the crowd. According to ISNA, the gathering of students waiting for Ali Motahari continued until 8 PM on Tuesday, and they dispersed after hearing the news of Motahari's return to Tehran and after chanting slogans. At the end of his writing, Motahari stated: "I told the provincial and police officials in Shiraz that if there is to be a social showdown, let me know so I can call my supporters to the streets; in that case, these thugs would be easy prey for them." He emphasized: "I tell the honorable President to think about Fars province, and of course, the results of the give-and-take in introducing the Minister of Interior to the parliament cannot be better than this, and these incidents are the result of that wrong decision." The governor of Fars also said on Tuesday regarding the attack on Motahari: "Certainly, those who orchestrated these events were not ordinary individuals." Mohammad Ahmadi also stated that the Fars governorate, through the Jahrum mayor, who has a friendly relationship with Motahari, had asked him not to come to Shiraz for the speech and to delay his trip by a few days. He added: "This same group wanted to attack Mr. Yunusi upon his arrival in Shiraz, but it was anticipated and prevented." The governor of Fars emphasized: "If Mr. Motahari had reached the speech location, given the atmosphere created there due to the presence of his opponents, the possibility of much worse incidents occurring was very high." Previously, Motahari's requests for the removal of the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, two candidates who protested the results of the 2009 presidential election, had repeatedly caused protests from supporters of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran. For instance, on January 21, an "attack" by some members of parliament on Ali Motahari, the Tehran representative, and a physical altercation after his repeated request for the removal of the house arrest of Mousavi and Karroubi during a speech led to a temporary suspension of the public session of parliament. In this context, "physical altercation" with Ali Motahari in the public session of parliament, 138 university professors demanded accountability from Larijani regarding the attack on Motahari. Motahari: Freedom of expression has become more restricted under Rouhani's government. Motahari: The Supreme National Security Council has no resolution regarding Khatami's media ban. The attack by plainclothes individuals and "masked" people on Motahari in Shiraz. The Iranian judiciary accused Ali Motahari of "spreading falsehoods."