Alimohammadi's Protest Against 'Political Implications' Regarding the Origin of Protests from Mashhad

Nearly three weeks after nationwide protests in dozens of cities in Iran and a few days after their conclusion, the Friday Imam of Mashhad officially protested against 'the implications of some political figures' regarding the start of the movement in Mashhad. Ayatollah Ahmad Alimohammadi, a staunch critic of the government, stated in a letter to Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, dated January 26, that he was 'in a trip to Sabzevar' on the first day of the protests. A few days after the nationwide protests that spread to over a hundred cities, several news websites reported that Ali Shamkhani had severely reprimanded Alimohammadi for 'his behind-the-scenes actions in the Mashhad gathering' and stated that his case would be sent to the Special Court for Clergy. This news was immediately denied on Alimohammadi's official website, and it was later reported that he had filed a complaint against Gholamhossein Karbaschi, the former mayor of Tehran and Secretary-General of the Executives of Construction Party, and Hamidreza Jalai-Pour, a member of the Central Council of the Participation Front, for 'disturbing public opinion and spreading falsehoods.' Initially, reports indicated that the news of the Imam's summons was published on Karbaschi's Telegram channel, but the former mayor later announced that he did not have a Telegram channel at all. Now, in his official letter published on Thursday, January 28, on his website, Alimohammadi states that 'accusations regarding my role in this matter have been expressed by some mouths, some of whom are responsible individuals in the system,' and he wrote this letter to the National Security Council with the intent of filing a complaint and seeking justice. He claims that this accusation was made 'recently with the aim of disturbing public opinion and misleading people's thoughts.' The letter states: 'Some political figures residing in the electoral competition space are trying to convey that the start of these movements was from Mashhad, while there is ample evidence that this wave of protests began in Tehran.' However, the Imam of Mashhad did not refer to any of these 'multiple pieces of evidence' in his letter. Nevertheless, almost all news and reports published from the first day regarding the protests of the people in the country indicate that their start was in the city of Mashhad with slogans against the economic policies of Hassan Rouhani's government and the dire living conditions of the people. Besides these reports, during and after the protests, several individuals and legal entities also directly or indirectly indicated that the 'spark' of the protests was ignited in the city of Mashhad. For instance, in the first official reaction from a government official, the First Vice President warned on January 8, one day after the rallies in Mashhad, that 'those who initiated some actions against the government should know that the smoke of their actions will come back to their eyes. When a political movement starts in the streets, others will ride on it, and those who started that movement are not its enders.' No political group in Iran issued an official call to participate in the gathering on January 7 in the cities of Razavi Khorasan Province. However, some social media users and political activists announced that the initial call for the gathering in the cities of Razavi Khorasan Province was issued by some conservative groups opposing Hassan Rouhani's government. The National Trust Party also wrote in a detailed statement published on January 17 about the roots of the protests, stating: 'On Wednesday night [one day before the rally in Mashhad], the muezzin of the congregation prayer at the Razavi shrine announced after the prayer the plan for the rally on Thursday morning against the municipality and the BRT line, inflation, and economic conditions, inviting worshippers to participate in this rally.' Previously, Mustafa Moein, former Minister of Science, also stated in an interview with ILNA news agency that the 'spark' of the recent nationwide protests in the country was 'the provocations and slogans of the opponents of the government in Mashhad.' Ali Shamkhani has not yet reacted to the mention of Ahmad Alimohammadi's name in connection with the protests in the country, and only on January 12 did he criticize several foreign countries, stating that Saudi Arabia and 'some countries' were 'provoking the atmosphere inside Iran through the internet.' Protests and demonstrations in dozens of cities in Iran lasted nearly two weeks, resulting in 25 deaths and thousands of arrests.