Friday Prayer Leaders Criticize Ministers' Letter to Leader Regarding Anti-Money Laundering Bills

As protests were held in some Friday prayers and mosques against the bills related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) regulations, several Friday prayer leaders criticized a letter from several ministers to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic regarding these bills. According to ISNA news agency, Kazem Sedighi, the Friday prayer leader of Tehran, opposed these bills during his sermon on January 25 and urged the Expediency Discernment Council to make a 'wise decision' about them. Mr. Sedighi emphasized, 'We are currently in an economic war, and in war, concealment is one of the important issues.' He also claimed that Germany had raised questions about the actions of the Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the South Pars project, and if Iran approves the FATF bills, it would be 'legally obligated to respond' to these questions. Several ministers requested Ayatollah Khamenei to approve two bills related to FATF regulations before the deadline set by the group, which is about a month away. Meanwhile, the Friday prayer leader of Karaj described this letter as 'bitter and upsetting.' Mohammad Mahdi Hosseini Hamadani stated that he was unaware of the details of the letter but said that its authors wanted to 'advance their futile work' by attracting the Supreme Leader's attention. He added, 'Why does a minister of an Islamic country not know what to ask from his leader after forty years? Do they not know about the open enmities of the enemies?' Resul Fallahati, the Friday prayer leader of Rasht, also found it 'surprising' that some officials insisted on passing laws related to FATF, stating that despite the oppressive nature of the 'CFT' law, some still pursue its implementation in the country. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also stated on Wednesday, January 25, that Iran's friends are waiting for the approval of these bills. Despite Ayatollah Khamenei's previous opposition, a letter from him was read in the public session of the parliament on October 7, stating, 'I have no objection to the examination of these bills in the parliament.' However, some of Khamenei's appointees, including Friday prayer leaders, have called for the rejection of these bills. Meanwhile, a group of participants in the Friday prayer in Qom chanted slogans against these bills, including 'The Palermo bill is Pompeo's conspiracy' and 'The Expediency Council is taking revolutionary action.' Ahmad Amir Abadi, a representative from Qom in the parliament and a member of the Stability Front, also stated at this gathering, 'Do the ministers who wrote to the leader for the acceptance of the Palermo Convention guarantee that the people's problems will be solved by accepting these resolutions? Definitely, accepting FATF will exacerbate the country's problems.' In this gathering, Mojtaba Zolnouri, another representative from Qom, also spoke against these bills. Alireza Arafi, the temporary Friday prayer leader of Qom, stated that 'everyone must have a courageous and intelligent stance against international documents, including FATF and Palermo.' Similar gatherings have also been held in Gorgan and the Loulager Mosque in Tehran. Members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly insisted on their previous resolution regarding Iran's accession to the Convention on Combating the Financing of Terrorism during a session on Sunday, January 21, and this bill is set to be reviewed by the Expediency Discernment Council. A day earlier, the Expediency Discernment Council did not approve the bill for Iran's accession to the Palermo Convention on Combating Transnational Organized Crime and decided to make a decision on it in the next week's session after reviewing it in two committees. Two other FATF-related bills, including the 'Bill to Amend the Law on Combating the Financing of Terrorism' and the 'Bill to Amend the Law on Combating Money Laundering,' have been approved by the Guardian Council and the Expediency Discernment Council. The FATF expressed regret on October 19 that most of Iran's commitments remain unresolved and extended Iran's suspension from the group's blacklist for another four months, which was welcomed by Iranian officials. In this context, Rouhani stated that if FATF is not approved, transactions will become 20% more expensive. Alim al-Huda stated that the approval of the anti-money laundering bills is the precursor to the 98 sedition. The government has requested the Expediency Discernment Council to expedite the approval of the Palermo bill. The parliament referred the 'most important' FATF-related bill to the Expediency Council. The request from several ministers to Khamenei to expedite the consideration of the anti-money laundering bills in the council.