Controversial Murder of Ardabil Doctor

The Iran newspaper, close to the government, reported in its Saturday issue about the "release of some political prisoners" and wrote: "Ahmad Zeidabadi, a journalist, and Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, along with several other prisoners, were released on Thursday, August 1st." The Etemad newspaper also welcomed the release of several political prisoners in a note titled "Let's Welcome Good Actions," stating that in addition to the Vienna agreement, there are "other promising news these days, including the release and cessation of punishment for some prisoners who were sentenced following the unfortunate events of 2009." The Shargh newspaper published an interview with Amir Khajasteh, reporting that, following the investigation committee's efforts, "hundreds of billions of tomans of the Martyrs Foundation's assets have returned to the public treasury," but simultaneously emphasized that "the reading of the Martyrs Foundation report in the open parliament is gradually becoming a dream." The news of the murder of Asghar Pirzadeh, a specialist doctor from Ardabil, has received widespread coverage in Saturday's newspapers, including Arman, Shahrvand, Etemad, and Jahane San'at. The Jahane San'at newspaper, referring to the reactions of at least two ministers, the Minister of Health and the Minister of Interior, to the news of Asghar Pirzadeh's murder, wrote: "This level of reaction from officials regarding the murder of a doctor is considered strange" and added that "such incidents occur for all professions and classes, yet no voice comes from any profession." The Iran newspaper reported on its front page about the presence of "150 Iranian and European companies at the Vienna meeting" and wrote: "The two-day conference on Iran and the European Union - trade and investment took place last Thursday and Friday." Simultaneously, the Te'adol newspaper, in its Saturday issue, examined the status of Iran's goods and wrote: "Today's economic conditions in Iran are complex because the interpretations do not show a clear trend. On one hand, economic indicators present a stable picture, while on the other hand, market operators report no specific openings. This apparent contradiction serves as a warning that one should not limit their view to numerical parameters." The Qanoon newspaper dedicated its front page to the U.S. Secretaries of State and Energy, stating: "On Friday, John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, went to the Council on Foreign Relations" and "in this detailed session, he defended the Vienna nuclear agreement. A full defense." The news of the possible visit of the French Foreign Minister has elicited different reactions from newspapers. The Javan newspaper referred to the French Foreign Minister as someone who "reminds everyone of hemophiliac patients" and the case of contaminated blood imported from France, while the Qanoon newspaper reported such reports as "hardliners' propaganda against Fabius's visit to Tehran" and wrote: "Let's give France a chance to make amends." The press coverage of the release of several "political prisoners" The Iran newspaper, close to the government, reported in its Saturday issue about the "release of some political prisoners" and wrote: "Ahmad Zeidabadi, a journalist, and Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, along with several other prisoners, were released on Thursday, August 1st." This newspaper reported that Mahdieh Mohammadi Gorgani, Ahmad Zeidabadi's wife, wrote on her Facebook page: "Ahmad Zeidabadi came to Tehran for a five-day leave from Gonabad and today we were informed that he is free." The Iran newspaper also reported that several political prisoners were released as "beneficiaries of the Eid al-Fitr amnesty from Evin prison," while "some of these prisoners were nearing the end of their sentences," including Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, a member of Mir Hossein Mousavi's electoral headquarters, who had been in prison since 2009 and "was normally about a month away from the end of his sentence." Judicial officials of the Islamic Republic deny the existence of "political prisoners" in Iran, and journalists and civil activists refer to imprisoned individuals as "security prisoners." The Etemad newspaper also welcomed the release of several political prisoners in a note titled "Let's Welcome Good Actions," stating that in addition to the Vienna agreement, there are "other promising news these days, including the release and cessation of punishment for some prisoners who were sentenced following the unfortunate events of 2009." This newspaper emphasized that "a significant portion of these individuals have served their sentences until the end of the legal term, but there are also some who have been exempted from punishment before or during their exile, and news regarding them was announced last week." Etemad wrote: "The presence of these individuals in prison not only does not help the political atmosphere inside the country, but it also has its own international repercussions. Therefore, we should welcome the judicial officials who have recently acted to end these sentences prematurely in several cases and expect this process to soon encompass all these individuals, especially now that we have entered a new era of regional interactions internationally, we should also witness this trend and transformation inside." The editorial writer of Etemad also wrote: "Although judicial officials believe that there are no political prisoners, and this claim is correct in that none of these individuals have been convicted of political crimes as defined by law, hence they are imprisoned under the title of security prisoners and solely based on Articles 498 and onwards of crimes against internal and external security of the penal code, the reality that exists in the minds of society and public opinion cannot be changed by referring to legal articles, especially not forgetting that political crime is recognized in the constitution, and if after nearly four decades this crime has not been defined and accepted in ordinary laws, it does not mean its absence in the essence and reality of society." This newspaper, while implicitly calling for the release of other political prisoners, described it as "indicative of the authority and power of the government in the internal arena" and wrote: "Regardless of why and with what motivations all individuals involved in the 2009 events entered the matter and regardless of how much responsibility each of the players in this matter had and who bears political and legal responsibilities, it must be noted that undoubtedly this matter was a political game of a lose-lose nature." Etemad emphasized that "there is no doubt that both sides of the 2009 events have realized that they made fatal mistakes, and worse, that each of these mistakes has had a negative impact on the other side, resulting in a game that has caused losses all around," expressing hope that the "new policy of releasing" political prisoners "will continue and be met with an appropriate response from the other side" and that "a new phase of political rationality will be experienced inside the country." The reading of the investigation report on the financial corruption of the Martyrs Foundation has become a dream. The Shargh newspaper published an interview with Amir Khajasteh, reporting that, following the investigation committee's efforts, "hundreds of billions of tomans of the Martyrs Foundation's assets have returned to the public treasury," but simultaneously emphasized that "the reading of the Martyrs Foundation report in the open parliament is gradually becoming a dream." Amir Khajasteh, the head of the investigation committee on the Martyrs Foundation, emphasized that "with the pressure of the investigation, extensive financial resources have returned to the public treasury, and many other untold issues remain that I must address in the open parliament, and I am currently unable to disclose more technical details of the report." According to this parliament member, "part of the financial resources returned is related to those that had previously been illegally taken out of the country" and "most of the violations that occurred in the Martyrs Foundation happened within the economic structures of this foundation." Ameneh Shirafkan, a parliamentary reporter for the Shargh newspaper, reported that the newspaper's inquiries indicate that "Ali Larijani will present the final 14-page report of the investigation of the Martyrs Foundation to the board of directors this Sunday, and a final decision will be made regarding its reading in the open parliament; a report that refers to widespread violations in the Martyrs Foundation." This newspaper recalled that the "investigation and inquiry into the Martyrs Foundation" was initiated in May 2013, noting that "the corruption of 170 billion tomans in the Martyrs Foundation and its transfer abroad" and also "the discovery of a 15 billion tomans embezzlement in this foundation were among the reasons for the investigation and inquiry into the Martyrs Foundation." According to the Shargh newspaper, after conducting the investigation and inquiry into the Martyrs Foundation, "the first report was 500 pages long, which has been reduced to 270 pages, 198 pages, 40 pages, and now 14 pages," and "this 14-page report will be read in the open parliament, and the 500-page report along with related documents will be sent to the judiciary." The dual narrative of newspapers regarding the "murder of Asghar Pirzadeh, a specialist doctor from Ardabil." The news of the murder of Asghar Pirzadeh, a specialist doctor from Ardabil, has received widespread coverage in Saturday's newspapers, including Arman, Shahrvand, Etemad, and Jahane San'at. The Arman newspaper dedicated its front page to a report about the "murder of the Ardabil doctor" and, referring to the stabbing death of Asghar Pirzadeh, wrote: "This could be seen as a similar incident to thousands of strange events that occur beneath the surface of the city, but it certainly does not mean that we should pass by it easily, and the protest of the medical community is also a reminder to officials to take this matter seriously." The Shahrvand newspaper, noting the publication of "two ambiguous narratives in the case of the murder of the Ardabil specialist doctor," wrote: "The deadly knife blows marked the end of the last visit of the Ardabil specialist doctor with his patient. Dr. Pirzadeh was killed by a young man's knife on Thursday morning while there are different narratives regarding the main motive behind this crime. The relationship between the doctor and the patient and the friendship between the killer and the victim are two different narratives that have left the details of this incident shrouded in ambiguity." According to this newspaper, "At 11 AM on Thursday, Dr. Asghar Pirzadeh was killed by a young man's knife before reaching the hospital, and the news of this Ardabil doctor's murder quickly spread on social media, leading to various rumors," but "the main motive and details of this crime have not yet been revealed, and no one knows why and how the killer inflicted the deadly knife blow on Dr. Pirzadeh. Some say Dr. Pirzadeh was attacked with a knife while visiting a cancer patient at their home." It is said that the killer was with a patient who was severely injured by the half-dead body of this Ardabil doctor and was taken to the hospital, but the doctors' efforts were in vain, and he died; however, some reports also indicate that the killer was a friend of Dr. Pirzadeh who was invited to his home and killed him with knife blows." According to the Shahrvand newspaper, Farhad Pourfarzi, the head of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, confirmed the details of this incident, stating that "the killer and the victim had a doctor-patient relationship," and said: "Dr. Pirzadeh went to examine a patient at their home on Thursday afternoon and was attacked by the patient's teenage companion for unknown reasons and was injured by knife blows. Following this incident, other companions of the patient contacted emergency services, and this doctor was taken to Fatemi Hospital in Ardabil, but he died upon arrival at the hospital. The perpetrator of this incident was immediately arrested." This newspaper also quoted "one of Asghar Pirzadeh's close friends" as saying: "Dr. Pirzadeh, the only oncology specialist in Ardabil, my longtime friend, was so kind that he went to the patient's house to visit them, but was attacked by the patient's companions with knife blows to his left abdomen. After this murder, it became clear that the killer was an 18-year-old boy who was crying in the emergency room and was concerned about his survival. When I asked that young boy about his behavior, he said, 'I won't answer you.'" The Shahrvand newspaper also quoted another Ardabil specialist as saying: "The young assailant's father had been under Dr. Pirzadeh's care for seven years, but his condition had worsened in recent years. This had led to this crime occurring; therefore, the Ardabil medical community has also declared Saturday a day of public mourning in solidarity with Dr. Pirzadeh's family." Another "Ardabil specialist," speaking anonymously to the Shahrvand newspaper, stated: "Dr. Pirzadeh was one of the reputable, educated, and meticulous specialists who was also an assistant professor at the university and always had a special commitment to his patients. When he was at the hospital on Thursday morning, the family of one of his patients, who had been under his treatment for several years and had cancer, contacted him. He went and never returned. The exact motive of the accused is still unclear, but it seems that the accused said that his father should not have undergone chemotherapy, yet the doctor had treated him with chemotherapy. That is why he killed him." This Ardabil specialist, however, stated that "nothing is certain, and official sources have not yet disclosed the details of this crime, and we must wait for further news." The Etemad newspaper also reported on the funeral and burial of Asghar Pirzadeh in Ardabil, stating: "The funeral ceremony for Dr. Asghar Pirzadeh began on Friday at 5 PM from in front of the Novab Safavi Mosque" in Ardabil, and the body of this doctor was buried in the Jajin cemetery. This newspaper noted the widespread presence of medical students, the medical community, and several citizens of Ardabil at this ceremony.