Judiciary Chief Accuses Rouhani of 'Falsehood' and 'Insult'

The head of Iran's judiciary reacted sharply and openly to Hassan Rouhani's comments criticizing the role of some newspapers in recent arrests, calling them 'false statements' that 'should not be expected from informed officials of the system.' On Sunday, November 8, during the opening ceremony of a press exhibition, President Hassan Rouhani mentioned the existence of a 'safe zone' for some media, stating, 'Through some newspapers, one can understand who will be arrested tomorrow.' This statement prompted a response from the Deputy Chief of the Judiciary, who stated that from the judiciary's perspective, 'no media has a safe zone.' However, the judiciary's reaction did not stop there; on Tuesday, the highest-ranking official of this branch responded bluntly to Rouhani's remarks, stating that the claim that one can know who will be arrested tomorrow through some newspapers is 'incorrect, false, and an insult to the judiciary.' Sadeq Larijani implicitly accused the executive branch's head of fueling 'false statements' with contradictory remarks, suggesting that 'a specific newspaper has a grip on the judiciary.' Larijani added that 'these are false statements that we never expect to hear from informed officials of the system.' He also stated that if 'a newspaper commits an offense' and misuses its information 'incorrectly,' it 'has nothing to do with the judiciary.' The judiciary chief's protest on Tuesday included a response to Rouhani's insinuation that 'the judiciary should be a refuge for society, and... if the salt becomes corrupt, it becomes very difficult,' questioning what the conditional meaning of these words is. He then stated that these words also apply to the executive branch, and one could say, 'If the executive branch becomes corrupt, if the government becomes corrupt, and if the president becomes corrupt, it becomes difficult.' Sadeq Larijani added that 'if the intention is to imply that the judiciary has become this way, it is slander, and if otherwise, it is an insult.' The judiciary chief further stated, 'Why should we admonish and insult an institution that is serving the people and, despite severe constraints and multiple budget and resource problems, handles 15 million cases a year, and provide a pretext for the ill-wishers?' Regarding the JCPOA, Larijani criticized 'extreme criticisms' of the nuclear agreement, stating there is no reason for the JCPOA to be considered a 'national honor.' He said, 'The JCPOA agreement was a wise and reasonable measure. However, there is no reason for this issue to be associated with national pride.' He added, 'At least for me, it is not clear whether the results of the JCPOA are indeed honorable. We have given many things in this agreement and gained many things; overall, it seems to be an acceptable agreement, but with the many concessions we have made, what honor exists?'