Iran's Minister of Education Protests Basij Commander's Plan for Schools

The Minister of Education of Hassan Rouhani's government has expressed opposition via Twitter to the Basij commander's statement regarding the deployment of members of this military force in schools across the country. According to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), the Basij commander announced last Thursday a plan to assign members of this force to schools to 'assist in educational tasks.' According to Gholamhossein Ghaibparvar, head of the Basij Organization, a seven-year plan titled 'Martyr Behnam Mohammadi' is set to be implemented in Iranian schools starting next year. Under this plan, 'two or three Basij members from each mosque will go to assist parents and school staff in educational tasks.' Ghaibparvar stated that this plan will initially cover 'one million students' and will last for seven years. He believes that 'our schools should be centers of education before instruction, and a country with educated and insightful people will not have enemies infiltrating it.' In response to this news published on Thursday, January 21, the Minister of Education tweeted that any program must receive permission from this ministry before implementation. Mohammad Bat'haei wrote in his tweet: 'Please do not unnecessarily worry the public for any reason! The implementation of any program by any entity in schools must be with the permission and coordination of the Ministry of Education.' The comments from the head of the Basij Organization came just days after nationwide protests in Iran and the arrest of several students, as well as the deaths of at least two students. In this context, the Minister of Education stated on January 19 regarding the presence of some students in protests: 'The presence of some students in recent events was due to economic problems.' So far, Iranian officials have not provided specific statistics on detained students, but Mohammad Reza Aref, head of the reformist faction in the parliament known as the 'Hope Faction,' stated on January 20 that all students except for a very few have been released. Behnam Mohammadi, a Basij teenager, was killed in October 1980 during the Iraqi forces' attack on Khorramshahr.