Interim Friday Prayer Leader of Tehran: The Sedition Has Not Been Rooted Out

Kazem Sedighi, the interim Friday prayer leader of Tehran, stated during the Friday prayer on January 1 that "the sedition is still present and has not been eradicated." "Sedition" is a term used by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic and his supporters to describe the Green Movement and the events following the 2009 elections. In another part of his speech, Sedighi warned that "the infiltration of some seditionists into the executive branches of the country is a serious warning about the resurgence of some seditionists who were active during the sedition, and currently, some universities have become safe havens and promotional clubs for these individuals." The Tehran Friday prayer leader added, "Seditionists are already planning for the Assembly of Experts and the Parliament, using resources that are not rightfully theirs to prepare the Parliament for themselves and to have influence in the Assembly of Experts to plan for destabilizing the system." According to Fars News Agency, Mr. Sedighi thanked what he called "the awake, insightful, and loyal people of Iran for their magnificent commemoration of January 1," and in his Friday prayer sermon, he said that "the people raised alarms to the seditionists and were also aware that the sedition has not been rooted out." He further explained: "Imam Ali said in the Battle of Jamal not to kill the wounded and not to pursue the fugitives, but in the war against Muawiya, he ordered the pursuit of the fugitives and said that in the Battle of Jamal, the root of sedition was uprooted, but as long as Muawiya is alive, this root continues." Kazem Sedighi continued, "Currently, the root of sedition is still present, and the supporters of sedition, who are in the minority, are still waiting for opportunities to destabilize the system, as they supported the sedition on December 7." Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, and other officials of the Islamic Republic refer to the rally of their supporters on January 1, 2009, as the day the "sedition" ended, and the anniversary of this event is celebrated every year by various governmental or government-affiliated institutions. Mr. Khamenei stated on December 12, 2011, that "the people came on January 1 to wrap up the sedition and the seditionists." Hassan Rouhani, the President of the Islamic Republic, also said that "January 1 means a renewed allegiance to the Islamic Republic of Iran, leadership, the Islamic Revolution, the principle of velayat-e faqih, and the family of Imamate, and it is a day of solidarity, unity, cohesion, and national unity." The speaker of the January 1, 2009, ceremony in Tehran was Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday prayer leader of Mashhad and a member of the Assembly of Experts, who referred to those who, according to him, insult the velayat-e faqih as "a bunch of kids and calves." Mir Hossein Mousavi, one of the two candidates who contested the results of the 2009 elections, recently sent a message from house arrest criticizing the Iranian government, saying: "If they did not label the growth and maturity of a nation as the chaos of a bunch of kids and calves, they would not have to deny major corruption today and distract public opinion from the dangers of all this corruption and decay with psychological warfare and the launching of narrative caravans." Three days before January 1, 2009, which coincided with Ashura, one of the bloodiest protests against the results of the 2009 presidential election took place in Tehran and other cities, during which harsh slogans were chanted against the leader and the government of the Islamic Republic. This protest left several dead and wounded among the protesters, but the media and government officials immediately claimed that the protesters insulted the third Imam of the Shiites and attacked his mourners.