Harsh Slogans Against Ali Larijani at Mourning Ceremony in the Leader's Office

The website Entekhab reported on Saturday that a number of attendees at a mourning ceremony in the office of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic shouted "harsh slogans" against the Speaker of the Parliament and the President during their presence at the event, as well as against the Vienna nuclear agreement. According to the report, these individuals on Saturday, November 2, shouted slogans such as "Insight-less elites, a disgrace to the nation," "The JCPOA memorandum, a futile effort," "Death to the hypocrite," and "Heedlessness is humiliation." The report also indicated that these individuals had shouted similar slogans on Friday evening when President Hassan Rouhani was present at the ceremony. On Friday evening, reports circulated on social media about some participants at the mourning ceremony in the office of the Supreme Leader protesting against Hassan Rouhani and the Vienna nuclear agreement. The Entekhab website referred to these individuals as "supporters of hardline factions." The mourning ceremony of Muharram in the office of the Supreme Leader, known as the "Leader's House," is held annually with the presence of Islamic Republic officials. The mourners and speakers at this ceremony are generally figures close to hardline groups supporting Ayatollah Khamenei. Previously, members of the Stability Front in Parliament had severely criticized the Vienna nuclear agreement and Ali Larijani's role in approving the plan known as the implementation of this agreement. Mr. Larijani also reacted to these protests on Sunday, October 26, calling Iran's nuclear file the "Leader's file" and stating that this plan was "coordinated with the country's macro policies and system." However, the next day, Alireza Zakani, head of the Parliament's JCPOA Commission, called Mr. Larijani's statements "incorrect" and stated that "the responsibility for the nuclear file lies with Larijani and Rouhani." A group of opponents of the Vienna nuclear agreement had previously disrupted a class by Ayatollah Javadi Amoli in Qom on Sunday, October 12, by attempting to enter the classroom. The chanting of attendees at the Supreme Leader's office against the President and the Speaker of the Parliament comes after Hassan Rouhani's speech at the Imam Khomeini shrine was disrupted by protest slogans from some attendees on June 13. On February 11, 2013, a group of clerics and plainclothes individuals interrupted Mr. Larijani's speech at the "Hazrat Masoumeh" shrine in Qom by throwing shoes and prayer beads at him. Since the rise of Hassan Rouhani's government, several political reformist gatherings and speeches by critics have been canceled due to opposition and threats from pressure groups. For instance, Ali Motahari, who traveled to Shiraz on March 9, 2015, to speak at the university, was attacked by "plainclothes forces" at the airport and ultimately forced to return to Tehran. Mr. Motahari has previously implied that some of his attackers were affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.