Delay in Approval of Qualifications for Heads of 30 Universities

The reaction of Iranian officials to the speech of the Israeli Prime Minister at the US Congress has taken a prominent place in the headlines of Iranian newspapers on Thursday. The government-aligned newspaper Iran, in its front page headline "Iran and the World United Against Netanyahu," quoted President Hassan Rouhani as saying: "A violent and wicked man reveals his nature in the US Congress and says that if America does not accompany them, they will stand alone against Iran. These words are ridiculous and laughable." According to this newspaper, Hassan Rouhani emphasized in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that "we are seeking an agreement in negotiations that benefits Iran, the region, and the entire world," stating: "The world is pleased with the progress in negotiations between Iran and the 1+5, as the fruits of this progress and agreement benefit the region, the world, and contribute to development, trade, economy, culture, and resolving the problems and threats posed by extremism in the region and the world today. However, there is only one aggressive and occupying regime that sees its survival in the shadow of war and aggression, which is angry and upset about these negotiations." The newspaper Etemad also described the reaction of Iranian officials to the Israeli Prime Minister's speech as a "unified response from Tehran," stating: "A speech in Washington elicited several reactions in Tehran; none of the Iranian officials took Netanyahu seriously. This was a common theme in all reactions, not only in Tehran but even in Washington itself." Etemad reported that Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the 9th Parliament, in his pre-speech remarks about the Israeli Prime Minister's speech, said: "The whole affair was presented as a political show in Congress, showing that the Congress of a great country that claims global management is under the control of a hollow regime." The newspaper noted that Hassan Rouhani also described Netanyahu's remarks as "laughable and ridiculous," adding that Sadeq Larijani, the head of the judiciary, characterized the Israeli Prime Minister's speech as a "television show" that "contained no new points." The newspaper Javan, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, quoted Larijani as saying: "Comparing the concerns of representatives with the hostile behavior of Israel is unfair." This newspaper emphasized that these remarks were "Larijani's response to the statements of Hashemi Rafsanjani." Two days prior, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani criticized the obstructions from the parliamentary podium against the nuclear negotiating team, stating: "The alarmists have harmonized with Netanyahu." The newspaper Shargh reported on the further delay in the "approval of the qualifications of 30 university heads" by the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution, stating: "The Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution has once again postponed the approval of university presidents." This newspaper wrote: "Now, political games in the Ministry of Science have moved from the Islamic Consultative Assembly to the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution." The newspaper Shahrvand reported, quoting Abbas Qayed Rahmat, a member of the Social Commission of the Parliament, that nearly "50 percent of university graduates are unemployed." In its Thursday issue, Shahrvand published a report about the "long queue for retribution for acid attack criminals," stating: "On the morning of Tuesday, the first acid attack perpetrator was punished after 56 years since the law on retribution was passed for such crimes, and reactions varied. The execution of this sentence has now made many victims more determined to stand by their right to retribution in their cases." This newspaper emphasized that "perhaps 1393 (2014) will be the most acidic year, with one victim in Dehdasht, four victims in Isfahan, two victims in Tehran, and a total of seven victims. These are only the victims whose cases were reported in the media, and there is no accurate statistic on the potential acid attacks occurring in various parts of the country." Shahrvand, while reviewing the opinions of several acid attack victims regarding the execution of "retribution" against the accused, quoted Soheila Jorkesh as saying that "she is confident that the fugitive accused in the Isfahan acid attacks will be arrested and the sentence will be executed for him as well." This victim of serial acid attacks against women in Isfahan stated: "Soheila Jorkesh will break the acid and will not allow another acid attack to occur. I will not forgive and will not give my consent." The newspaper Jahan San'at, in its front page on Thursday, emphasized that "the wage for 94 remains suspended," reporting that "the meeting of the Supreme Labor Council, which was supposed to clarify the increase in the minimum wage for the next year, ended without results." According to this newspaper, "In the Supreme Labor Council meeting held on Wednesday afternoon with the presence of representatives of workers, employers, and the government along with deputies of some economic ministers to determine the amount of the minimum wage increase for next year, the final and decisive discussions regarding the presentation of the wage package for next year's workers were raised, but as expected, no results were achieved." It is noted that "in recent days, some informed sources have reported the likelihood of no agreement in this meeting due to disagreements and the remaining numerous discussions about the amount of wage increases." Jahan San'at pointed out that "so far, the Supreme Labor Council has made decisions regarding a 20,000 tomans increase in housing allowance for next year for those covered by labor law and also a daily increase of 500 tomans in seniority pay from the beginning of next year, but discussions regarding the amount of the minimum wage increase, wages for other occupational groups, cash benefits, etc., remain, and the Supreme Labor Council has only 17 days left to determine the wage package for 94 for workers and those covered by labor law." The report indicates that investigations and follow-ups of the opinions of workers and employers show that "the increases next year will not be as much as the wage package of the current year and will be significantly lower," and it is predicted that considering that the government has set the wage increase for employees at 14 percent, the increase in workers' wages "at best will not exceed 18 percent." The newspaper Jahan San'at, quoting Faramarz Tofighi, an advisor to the Supreme Assembly of Workers' Representatives, stated: "The government has set the wage increase for 94 for employees at 14 percent, but they have other benefits that workers do not have, and now that the inflation rate has decreased, according to the routine of the Supreme Labor Council, part of the deficit in wage increases for workers in years when the inflation rate was very high should be compensated in the wage package for 94, as workers have been owed a 19 percent wage increase from previous years." Jahan San'at wrote: "Now that an 18 percent increase is being considered, if workers' wages increase by 18 percent, it will add approximately 109,602 tomans to 608,900 tomans, making the workers' wage for next year 718,502 tomans." According to this newspaper, "In previous meetings of the Supreme Labor Council, the increase in the monthly housing allowance from 20,000 tomans to 40,000 tomans for application in 94 has been confirmed, and the daily seniority pay increase from 500 tomans to 1,000 tomans has been finalized. It seems that the increase in food allowance from 80,000 tomans to 100,000 tomans for next year will also be approved in the next meetings of this council."