Less than a week until good news is announced to Iranians

Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, emphasized in an interview with Etemad newspaper the proximity of the 'implementation day' of the JCPOA and the 'lifting of sanctions', stating: 'There is less than a week left until this good news is announced to Iranians.' Shargh newspaper, in its Tuesday issue, examined the statements of officials regarding the possibility of punishing those responsible for the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, quoting legal experts who stated: 'More than 10 years of imprisonment awaits the attackers.' Vaghaye Ettefaghieh newspaper also referred to the 'simultaneity of the approval of an urgent anti-terrorism law with the investigation of the attack on the Saudi embassy', raising the question of whether 'the rogue elements are terrorists?' Kayhan newspaper, in a harsh attack on several newspapers, reiterated the necessity for Hassan Khomeini to withdraw from the Assembly of Experts elections or for the Guardian Council to disqualify him, stating its aim is to save the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini from the 'trap of false claimants.' Concurrently, Shargh newspaper dedicated its front page to Abdolkarim Mousavi Ardebili, a religious authority based in Qom, quoting him as saying: 'Seyyed Hassan has the qualifications to be present in the Assembly of Experts.' Etemad newspaper also reported on the 'endorsement of scholars and authorities regarding Hassan Khomeini's record', stating: 'According to news published by websites and social media pages close to Seyyed Hassan Khomeini, several scholars and authorities in Tehran have confirmed his scientific qualifications.' This newspaper wrote: 'Ayatollah Alavi-Gorgani, Ayatollah Abbas Mahfouzi, Ayatollah Seyyed Jafar Karimi, Ayatollah Ali Akbar Masoudi Khomeini, as well as Ahmad Beheshti and Ghorbanali Daryanajafabadi, two current members of the Assembly of Experts, are among the high-ranking authorities and clerics who emphasize that Hassan Khomeini's scientific qualifications are 'confirmed.' The newspaper reported that 'Ayatollah Morteza Moqtadai joined the supporters of this issue on Sunday.' The Javan newspaper, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, dedicated its front page to Alireza Zakani's statements against the Minister of Oil, quoting this member of the ninth parliament and candidate for the tenth parliament elections as saying: 'Zanganeh is seeking to repeat a betrayal with new oil contracts that will lead to various versions of Kowsar.' The Law newspaper, in its Tuesday issue, published a photo of a banner installed in Tehran advising women to 'not talk too much with shopkeepers' and to associate with their 'Mahram', describing the installation of these banners as 'enjoining good in a modern style.' The Citizen newspaper reported that on Sunday 'the groundbreaking ceremony for a burn and trauma hospital on a 5,344 square meter endowment land on Youssefian Street, Motahari, was supposed to take place by the Minister of Health and several officials of the Endowment Organization, but due to public protests against the construction of a large hospital instead of green space, the groundbreaking ceremony was accompanied by many controversies' and ultimately stopped. The World Industry newspaper, in a report titled 'Tehran, a victim of speculation', wrote: 'The Supreme Council of Urban Planning and Architecture has approved that the Tehran Municipality is obliged to submit a report on the latest status of high-rise construction in the capital along with the amount of issued permits for high-rise buildings within the next month, as according to existing reports, there are currently 908 high-rise buildings in Tehran, 665 of which are over 12 stories.' 'Less than a week until good news is announced to Iranians.' Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, stated in an exclusive interview with Etemad newspaper that the countdown to the implementation day of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action has begun, emphasizing the proximity of the 'implementation day' of the JCPOA and the 'lifting of sanctions'. Sarah Masoumi, a reporter for Etemad newspaper, emphasized that 'the countdown to the implementation day of the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan has begun', writing: 'John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, claims that in a few days the two sides can announce the entry into the implementation phase, and Hamid Baidi-Nejad, head of the Iranian expert team, also stated that he and the accompanying Iranian delegation are currently engaged in discussions in Geneva regarding the remaining issues concerning the lifting of sanctions, which could be another significant step in the implementation of the JCPOA.' According to Etemad newspaper, concurrently, Behrouz Kamalvandi announced that 'Iran has maintained a higher level of assurance than the predicted figure at all stages of fulfilling its commitments under the JCPOA, and in many of these stages, profitable deals for Iran have been made.' The spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran emphasized that 'we have nearly completed all the tasks assigned to us under the JCPOA, and there is nothing left to do', stating: 'Except for the Arak issue, where parts of the work have started and the remaining parts can be completed in a short time. The remaining work in Arak also requires a few small tasks, and we hope that these remaining tasks will be completed quickly' and even 'it is likely that they can be completed in less than seven days.' 'More than ten years of imprisonment awaits the attackers of the Saudi embassy.' Shargh newspaper, in its Tuesday issue, examined the statements of officials regarding the possibility of punishing those responsible for the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, quoting legal experts who stated: 'More than 10 years of imprisonment awaits the attackers.' Masoud Kazemi, in a report for Shargh newspaper, noted that 'about ten days have passed since the attack on the Riyadh embassy in Tehran, and during this time, nearly all officials have condemned this incident', referring to the statements of Hassan Rouhani, the President of the Islamic Republic, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, the Minister of Interior, Hossein Ali Amiri, the Deputy Minister of Interior, Ebrahim Raisi, the Attorney General, and Hossein Ashtari, the Commander of the Police Force, regarding the 'criminal and guilty' nature of the attackers on the Saudi embassy. He also quoted Ebrahim Raisi as saying: 'Many questions arise regarding this issue that need to be answered, and for this purpose, in addition to the judicial and police systems, the intelligence and security apparatuses are also investigating various aspects of this issue to provide a definitive statement.' Shargh newspaper also recalled the statements of Hossein Ali Amiri, spokesman and Deputy Minister of Interior, regarding the arrest of '60 individuals' involved in the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, quoting Hossein Ashtari, the Commander of the Police Force, as saying: 'The detainees from the incident at the Saudi embassy are in the custody of the judiciary. We have done our job, and the judiciary is currently addressing their situation. The judiciary is now investigating the factors involved in this incident and will announce the results after compiling them.' Houshang Pourbabayi, a lawyer and legal expert, told Shargh newspaper about the potential punishments for the attackers of the Saudi embassy in Tehran: 'Based on what officials have stated so far and the evidence and images from the attack on the Saudi embassy, the accused fall under Article 610 of the Islamic Penal Code concerning crimes against the internal security of the country. This article is inherently very strict,' adding that 'Article 618 of the Islamic Penal Code, which refers to public disorder, also applies to the status of the accused in this case. Additionally, Articles 675, 676, and 677 of the Penal Code apply to the attackers of the Saudi embassy, under which the court can sentence the accused to more than 10 years in prison.' This legal expert also mentioned the 'possible theft from the embassy premises', stating: 'According to Article 651 of the Islamic Penal Code, those accused of theft from that location can face sentences ranging from 5 to 20 years in prison and 74 lashes.' Mohammad Saleh Nikbakht, a legal expert and attorney, commented on the 'charges' against the attackers of the Saudi embassy in Tehran, stating: 'It seems that this act falls under the provisions of Article 610 of the Islamic Penal Code, titled actions against the internal security of the country,' and 'according to Article 610 of the Islamic Penal Code, if two or more individuals gather and conspire to commit crimes against the internal or external security of the country or prepare the means for committing such crimes, if they are not classified as combatants, they can be sentenced to two to five years in prison.' This legal expert pointed out that Articles 618 and 675 of the Islamic Penal Code are also among the charges against the attackers of the Saudi embassy in Tehran, which carry penalties such as 'imprisonment from three months to one year' and 'imprisonment from two to five years', respectively. He noted that 'the police officers present at the scene' are also among the accused in this incident due to their 'failure to perform their legal duties.' Mahmoud Alizadeh Tabatabai, a lawyer, also stated that 'the attack on the Saudi embassy is undoubtedly an example of actions against the security of the country. The fact that such an incident occurs in front of the police and that the police lack the authority to prevent these rogue actions indicates the government's inability to maintain security.' However, 'what we are currently witnessing is that out of several hundred individuals who are clearly present in the attack on the embassy in the available videos, the police claim to have arrested 60 individuals, and no one is saying how these arrested individuals and the other attackers were organized, as the organized nature of this attack is undeniable.' This lawyer emphasized that 'regarding the perpetrators of this attack, the minimum charge against them is certainly actions against national security,' stating that 'the important point in pursuing this matter is that it should not be limited to punishing the perpetrators; the organizers and those responsible should be identified, introduced, and punished so that we can be accountable in international forums. Because for such an incident to occur in our capital and for our own government not to condemn it is unacceptable from an international perspective.' Houshang Amirafshar, a senior expert in criminal law and criminology, told Shargh newspaper: 'If it is established in the investigation and proceedings that the instigators and perpetrators of the arson and destruction of the Saudi embassy and consulate in Tehran and Mashhad, as well as the assets and documents therein, acted with the intent to disrupt internal and external security, then the act can be classified under the prohibition of issuing Article 286 of the Islamic Penal Code approved in 2013.' However, 'if the instigators and perpetrators of the attack did not intend to disrupt the security of the country and merely acted out of momentary political emotions, retaliating against the Saudi government's anti-human rights actions, the act can be classified under Articles 675 without considering Note 1, 677, and 678 of the Penal Code approved in 1996,' and under these laws 'the accused should be sentenced to imprisonment ranging from four years and six months to 13 years.' Kayhan's role as the savior of Hassan Khomeini from the 'trap.' Kayhan newspaper, in a harsh attack on several newspapers, reiterated the necessity for Hassan Khomeini to withdraw from the Assembly of Experts elections or for the Guardian Council to disqualify him, stating its aim is to save the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini from the 'trap of false claimants.' This newspaper, which is published under the supervision of the representative of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, had previously advised Hassan Khomeini in its editorial on Saturday, January 19, to take advantage of the opportunity of not participating in the Ijtihad exam for candidates of the Assembly of Experts to withdraw from the elections, while simultaneously urging the Guardian Council not to approve the Ijtihad of the grandson of the founder of the Islamic Republic. However, after part of the editorial of this newspaper regarding 'a call from a member of the Assembly of Experts' presidency to invite Hassan Khomeini to the Ijtihad exam' was denied by members of the presidency of this Assembly, this newspaper wrote in the headline of its Tuesday issue: 'Kayhan hit the target, the sedition camp was disrupted.' Kayhan also wrote: 'The psychological operations command room of the sedition lined up dozens of newspapers and websites to deny the news and analyze Kayhan's enlightening article. This alignment of a chain of websites and newspapers to deny Kayhan indicates that, firstly, a range of media is managed from a common command room, and secondly, Kayhan has accurately targeted its recent note titled 'One Incident and Several Speculations' and disrupted the plan of that psychological operations room.' This newspaper, in a harsh attack on Shargh, Etemad, Aftab Yazd, Farhikhtegan, and Arman newspapers for denying part of the editorial of Kayhan's Saturday issue, wrote: 'According to the official and public announcement of the Guardian Council, all candidates for the Assembly of Experts, except for three groups below, were required to participate in the exam.' And 'according to the law, all 531 candidates who were not part of these three categories, including Seyyed Hassan Khomeini, were required to participate in the aforementioned exam to prove their scientific and jurisprudential qualifications, among whom about 400 individuals, including some teachers and scholars of the seminary and respected Friday prayer leaders, adhered to the rules of law and justice and participated in this exam. On the other hand, about 130 individuals, including Agha Tehrani, Pourmohammadi, Ansari, Novab, Montajebnia, Amjad, etc., did not participate and prevented the possibility of qualification verification.' Kayhan wrote: 'Although it has been said that there were other ways to verify candidates' qualifications, it is natural that holding a fair exam for all candidates prevents arbitrary practices, exceptions, discrimination, or pressure on the offices and creates ethical dilemmas for the authorities.' This newspaper stated that its efforts to have Hassan Khomeini withdraw or not be approved for the Assembly of Experts elections aim to save the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini from the 'trap' and wrote that 'the claim of support from disreputable elements for Seyyed Hassan Khomeini increases sensitivities and suspicions.' It emphasized that 'Kayhan is seeking to neutralize a trap that false claimants of support for the Imam's heir have prepared for him.' Modern-style banners for enjoining good in Tehran.