In Response to Ansar Hezbollah, Hassan Khomeini Blames the Ministry of Interior

Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of the founder of the Islamic Republic, reacted to a threatening statement attributed to Ansar Hezbollah Golestan opposing his speech, stating that the "weak response of the Ministry of Interior" to the attack on Ali Motahari in Shiraz has "emboldened other groups". Meanwhile, hours after these remarks, Mehdi Hassan-zadeh, the head of Ansar Hezbollah Golestan, denied the published statement attributed to this group and expressed regret that the memorial ceremony for former representatives of Golestan province had become a "platform" for what he described as the "cleansing of the leaders of the sedition and their supporters in Golestan". The head of Ansar Hezbollah considered this statement to be the result of the "mischief" of reformists. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, and his close supporters refer to the protests against the results of the 2009 presidential elections as "sedition". Recently, the website "Golestan Ma" published a statement attributed to Ansar Hezbollah Golestan opposing the speeches of Akbar Nateq Nouri and Hassan Khomeini at a memorial for several representatives from this province who died in a plane crash in 2001. This statement, which was also republished in the Shargh newspaper on Wednesday, May 2, threatened that an incident similar to that which occurred for Ali Motahari in Shiraz would happen to Hassan Khomeini and Akbar Nateq Nouri. Ali Motahari traveled to Shiraz on March 9, 2015, for a speech at Shiraz University, but before reaching the university, he was attacked by "plainclothes forces" at the airport and was ultimately forced to return to Tehran. Following this incident, Mr. Motahari protested the performance of the Fars governorate for not addressing the attackers and for canceling his speech, a protest that has not yet officially reached any conclusion or resulted in the formal condemnation of anyone. Meanwhile, Hassan Khomeini on Wednesday, May 2, in response to the statement attributed to Ansar Hezbollah Golestan, said that "the weak response of the Ministry of Interior in the Shiraz incident has emboldened other groups". According to the Jamaran website, he also added: "I did not know that this program existed and did not intend to travel, but if there was a travel program, I would not cancel my trip due to such threats, and I am sure that the people and the followers of Imam will put these very few extremist groups in their place." Hours after these remarks, Mehdi Hassan-zadeh, the head of Ansar Hezbollah Golestan, in an interview with the "Golestan Ma" website, which published the statement attributed to this group, called the statement "fake" and described this action as a "new mischief of the false reformist claimants". The statements of the head of Ansar Hezbollah Golestan come while the "Golestan Ma" website, which published this statement, is associated with the principlists of Golestan province. This same website on Wednesday referred to Elaheh Kolayi, a member of the Participation Front, as the "intellectual authority of the 2009 sedition" and protested against her scheduled speech on May 26 in Gorgan. The head of Ansar Hezbollah Golestan also expressed regret that the memorial ceremony for the representatives of Golestan province had become a platform for what he described as the "rampage of a known political current" and the "cleansing of the leaders of the sedition and their supporters in Golestan". Mr. Hassan-zadeh emphasized: "Another misuse of this ceremony is the holding of a political meeting for those who have no political weight and popular background, but are seeking votes in this ceremony." Since the rise of Hassan Rouhani's government, several political conferences and speeches by reformists and critical figures have been canceled due to opposition and threats from pressure groups. For instance, in June 2014, conferences and speeches by reformists to commemorate "June 2" were canceled in several cities in Iran, including Yasuj and Bushehr. In this context, in the case of the attack on Motahari, officials at Shiraz University were found to be responsible, and Motahari identified "some" members of the Fars Security Council as being involved in the attack on him.