Implicit Criticism by Two MPs Regarding the Arrest of Journalists

Following the arrest of several journalists, including Eisa Saharkhiz, Ehsan Mazandarani, Afrin Chist Saz, and Saman Safarzadeh, the newspaper Shargh highlighted President Hassan Rouhani's implicit reaction to these arrests in its front page on Thursday, quoting the President of the Islamic Republic: "We should not arbitrarily arrest one or two people here and there under some pretext, fabricate cases, and then come and exaggerate it in the country, claiming this is a line of infiltration and a current of influence." The newspaper also published statements from a 'security expert' from the IRGC Intelligence Organization regarding the arrests, stating that a person named 'Asif' mentioned in a special news dialogue program on Tuesday night that a group of experienced media activists from both foreign and domestic opposition were trying to create a perception through complex, layered networking with domestic journalists. At the same time, the newspaper reported that Hamid Reza Moghadamfar, cultural and media advisor to the IRGC commander, identified 'infiltration' as the most significant threat to the Islamic Republic today, stating that there are elements pursuing infiltration, but these are not necessarily agents of intelligence services; rather, they are individuals with a Western-oriented mindset representing the U.S. in Iran without connection or dependency. He noted that in the realm of hidden infiltration, intelligent organizations like the IRGC Intelligence Organization discover the masterminds and take action against them. Concurrently, the newspaper Etemad published implicit criticism from Ahmad Tavakoli, a conservative MP, regarding the arrests, quoting him as saying: "In the past couple of nights, news has emerged about the arrest of several journalists on charges of infiltration. I am not aware of the details of these arrests. The authorities will surely provide convincing reasons to the people, but based on previous experiences, I am concerned that the fundamental and deep concerns of the Supreme Leader may be reduced to security and police actions." Mohammad Reza Tabesh, a reformist MP from Ardakan, emphasized in an editorial in the newspaper Iran that 'playing with words and phrases in controlling infiltration does not solve problems.' The newspaper Quds reported that Mohammad Javad Larijani, the Deputy for Human Rights of the Judiciary, stated at a conference in Mashhad that 'American internet has now become a bridge for infiltration and heavy conspiracies against Iran.' The newspaper Jam-e Jam reported on the issuance of a directive by the Ministry of Industry, Mine, and Trade to impose restrictions on the import of 'consumer goods with American symbols.' The newspaper Ebrar Eghtesadi reported on its front page that according to a newly published report by the Statistical Center of Iran, household expenses increased by 14% during the year 1393 (2014). However, it noted that according to the Statistical Center's report on the annual income and expenses of households last year, on average, each urban household managed to save 'about 645,000 tomans in a year, or 53,000 tomans monthly.' The newspaper Jahan San'at, on its front page, pointed out that based on the latest report from the Statistical Center of Iran, 'income has surpassed expenditure,' while expressing skepticism about these statistics and emphasizing the 'paradox of statistics and the people's livelihood situation.' The newspaper Qanoon reported that the head of the Prison and Security Measures Organization announced the existence of 'seven thousand foreign prisoners in Iran,' mostly Afghan nationals. The newspaper Shahre Vahdat reported that 'high consumption of supermarket drugs in Iran' shows that 'over 400 million prescription visits to pharmacies occur annually, indicating that drug consumption in society is not low, while some medications are also purchased without prescriptions.' The newspaper Iran, close to the government, described the November 4th rally as 'a political denial of hegemony,' while the newspaper Javan, close to the IRGC, stated: 'The JCPOA did not silence the death to America.' Vatan-e Emruz, close to the Front of Steadfastness, referred to this rally as 'anti-infiltration,' attributing it to 'hatred of America and its internal agents,' while the newspaper Jam-e Jam, affiliated with the Islamic Republic Broadcasting, called it 'a cry of disbelief in America.' In response to the arrests of journalists, including Eisa Saharkhiz, Ehsan Mazandarani, Afrin Chist Saz, and Saman Safarzadeh, the newspaper Shargh highlighted President Hassan Rouhani's implicit reaction to these arrests, quoting him as saying: 'We should not play with the word infiltration.' According to this newspaper, Hassan Rouhani stated in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday: 'We should not arbitrarily arrest one or two people here and there under some pretext, fabricate cases, and then come and exaggerate it in the country, claiming this is a line of infiltration and a current of influence.' The newspaper Shargh also quoted Hassan Rouhani as saying: 'The guidelines and points raised by the Supreme Leader are aimed at strengthening national power and ensuring that the Iranian nation stands united against foreign infiltration and remains vigilant against conspiracies, and we should not allow some to misuse these words and phrases, so that from now on, anyone we disagree with is accused in some way and marginalized.' The President of the Eleventh Government also stated: 'We should genuinely strive to understand and implement the words of the Supreme Leader correctly and not allow individuals to misuse these words for their personal, group, and factional interests.' This newspaper also published the statements of an 'expert from the IRGC Intelligence Organization' regarding the arrests of journalists, stating that a person named 'Asif' mentioned in a special news dialogue program on Tuesday night that a group of experienced media activists from both foreign and domestic opposition were trying to create a perception through complex, layered networking with domestic journalists. According to the newspaper Shargh, this IRGC Intelligence official accused the arrested journalists and also implicated the U.S., U.K., Sweden, and the Netherlands in supporting 'perception creation' and 'infiltration in the press,' stating: 'Some of the agents of this network may not have been aware of the actions they were undertaking, but they were indeed involved in activities and even had attacks against certain institutions on their agenda.' Shargh simultaneously reported that Hamid Reza Moghadamfar, cultural and media advisor to the IRGC commander, identified 'infiltration' as the most significant threat to the Islamic Republic today, stating that there are elements pursuing infiltration, but these are not necessarily agents of intelligence services; rather, they are individuals with a Western-oriented mindset representing the U.S. in Iran without connection or dependency. He noted that in the realm of hidden infiltration, intelligent organizations like the IRGC Intelligence Organization discover the masterminds and take action against them. According to the newspaper Shargh, Hamid Reza Moghadamfar deemed 'factionalism regarding infiltration' as 'a mistake,' stating: 'After the JCPOA, a new opportunity has arisen for the enemy. They seek to exploit these opportunities and, by linking journalists, media activists, and managers to themselves, demand that their will for changing thoughts prevail over them,' and 'infiltration exists and is discussed in the media of all factions, and it is not limited to conservatives or reformists. For example, during the events of 2009, some of these individuals infiltrated conservative media and took people abroad or even brought elements into the media.' The implicit criticism from two reformist and conservative representatives regarding the arrests of journalists on charges of 'infiltration' was also noted in the newspaper Etemad, which published a note by Ahmad Tavakoli, a conservative MP, titled 'A Note on the Margins of the Arrest of Several Journalists,' a note that this conservative representative published on his Telegram channel, implicitly criticizing these arrests. Ahmad Tavakoli wrote: 'In the past couple of nights, news has emerged about the arrest of several journalists on charges of infiltration. I am not aware of the details of these arrests. The authorities will surely provide convincing reasons to the people, but based on previous experiences, I am concerned that the fundamental and deep concerns of the Supreme Leader may be reduced to security and police actions.' This conservative MP also noted that with the arrest of journalists on charges of 'infiltration,' the question arises: 'Why was this action not taken before the issue of infiltration was raised by the Leader? The threat of infiltration has not been a new issue for us. Therefore, it is expected that such actions be taken with more wisdom and precision so that the essence of the Leader's concern is not overshadowed.' According to the newspaper Etemad, Ahmad Tavakoli described the theory of 'infiltration' raised by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic as a macro issue, stating: 'Infiltration has broad dimensions. It is not limited to politics. The arrogance uses every opportunity and prepared ground for infiltration into the country. However, the main goal of infiltration for the arrogance is cultural and identity changes in individual and social behavior. Of course, the opportunity for infiltration requires a political context, and sometimes this occurs under economic pretexts. For this reason, the Supreme Leader considered the issue of infiltration after the JCPOA to be very serious. However, care must be taken that the Leader's concern does not become limited to slogan-based decisions and superficial actions in the political sphere.' Mohammad Reza Tabesh, a reformist MP from Ardakan, also emphasized in an editorial in the newspaper Iran that 'playing with words and phrases in controlling infiltration does not solve problems.' This MP from the Ninth Parliament wrote: 'As the President also mentioned in his remarks yesterday, we should not allow the statements made by the Supreme Leader to be politically and factionally exploited, and his remarks about confronting infiltration should not be appropriated. Rather, it is essential that everyone in every position and institution, according to their specialized and governmental responsibilities, take the most appropriate actions to realize the approaches mentioned by the Leader of the system.' Mohammad Reza Tabesh emphasized that the position of the Supreme Leader and his recommendations to senior officials should not 'open the door for divisions in society and lead to the spread of slander, accusations, and ungracious lies in society,' and 'any issue or position that causes division and discord among the people and officials is a deadly poison that acts even worse and more dangerously than foreign infiltration, as the main barrier of the country against infiltration, both in terms of psychological operations and physical actions, is the people themselves.' The newspaper Jam-e Jam reported on the issuance of a directive to impose restrictions on the import of 'consumer goods with American symbols.' This newspaper quoted Yadollah Sadighi, head of the Center for Trade and Business Affairs of Iran, stating: 'According to the discretion of the country's officials and the directive issued by the Minister of Industry, Mine, and Trade this week, consumer goods that have American symbols will face restrictions for entry into the country and distribution.' Yadollah Sadighi emphasized that 'no business license will be issued in the country for American brands, and if there were any in the past, it will not be done from now on.' He stated that the KFC brand, which had previously obtained a business license, has been shut down due to violations and that this company has obtained its business license from a neighboring country and has no connection with the American brand. According to Jam-e Jam, the head of the Center for Trade and Business Affairs of Iran regarding contracts made with two American companies for the import of cigarettes and American soft drinks stated: 'This contract was made in the private sector, and the government has not signed any contracts,' but 'the consumption of American goods with specific symbols will be prevented according to the directive of the Ministry of Industry, Mine, and Trade.' The newspaper Ebrar Eghtesadi reported on its front page that according to a newly published report by the Statistical Center of Iran, household expenses increased by 14% during the year 1393 (2014). This newspaper wrote that according to the report of the Statistical Center of Iran on the annual income and expenses of households, 'the average total net annual expense of an urban household is close to 23 million and 486 thousand tomans, which has increased by 14% compared to the previous year, and thus the average monthly expense of each urban household is one million and 957 thousand tomans.' According to Ebrar Eghtesadi, 'the findings of the Statistical Center regarding the annual income and expenses of households last year show that the average income of an urban household was about 24 million tomans and its average expense was about 23 million and 486 thousand tomans, which means that on average, each urban household managed to save about 645 thousand tomans in a year, or 53 thousand tomans monthly.' According to the report from the Statistical Center of Iran, 'of the total annual expenses of urban households, five million and 800 thousand tomans are...