Motahari on the House Arrest of Green Movement Leaders: The Leader's Opinion May Have Changed

Ali Motahari, the Deputy Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, expressed hope for a formal vote in the Supreme National Security Council regarding the lifting of the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders, stating that the Supreme Leader's opinion on their detention may have changed. Mr. Motahari, who is currently in France, told Le Monde that 'many principlist officials' who previously supported the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders now believe 'this issue can no longer be beneficial for the country.' He referred to his discussions two years ago with the Supreme Leader, indicating that Ayatollah Khamenei was opposed to lifting the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, but now 'the situation has changed' and both individuals are 'facing health issues.' The Deputy Speaker added that 'it is possible' that the Supreme Leader's opinion on this matter has changed. Mr. Motahari had previously reported that the Supreme Leader opposed his request for the trial of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, stating that their verdict would be 'heavy' if a trial were to take place. Apart from Mr. Motahari, some political figures, including Ali Akbar Nategh Nouri, have stated that the decision regarding the lifting of the house arrest is solely in the hands of the Supreme Leader. Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi have repeatedly called for their public trial, but judicial officials have opposed this request, stating that their house arrest was decided by the Supreme National Security Council. According to Article 176 of the Constitution, the resolutions of the Supreme National Security Council can only be implemented with the approval of the Supreme Leader. In recent weeks, the topic of the recent meeting of the Supreme National Security Council regarding the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard has made headlines. While the government spokesman spoke of Hassan Rouhani's 'explicit, transparent, and courageous' positions in this meeting, the judiciary spokesman announced that no new decisions had been made in this meeting and 'the house arrest remains in effect.' Subsequently, Keyvan Khosravi, spokesman for the Supreme National Security Council, reported that the issue of house arrest was not on the agenda of the recent council meeting, and only a report on 'the openings created in the situation of the detainees' was presented, with 'no new decisions made regarding the main issue of house arrest.' Meanwhile, Mr. Motahari, in an interview with the French magazine Le Point, also referred to the 'unofficial' discussion of the house arrest in the Supreme National Security Council, stating that the members of this council agree that 'it is important to find a solution to this issue.' He expressed hope that this matter would be 'officially raised and voted on quickly in the Supreme National Security Council.' Regarding the solution to end the house arrest, he stated that Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi should either be freed or publicly tried, and 'of course, the accusations against the opposing side should also be addressed.' The Deputy Speaker emphasized: 'Even from the perspective of logic and justice, if these two individuals have committed an error, it can be considered that with seven years of house arrest, they have served their punishment.' Ali Motahari has previously called for the simultaneous trial of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. On August 30, he wrote a letter to the judiciary spokesman reiterating that the continued house arrest of the Green Movement leaders by the resolution of the Supreme National Security Council is 'against the Constitution' and raised the question of whether the opposition to their trial 'does not create the suspicion of fear of revealing the truths?' Mir Hossein Mousavi, Zahra Rahnavard, and Mehdi Karroubi, leaders of the protests against the results of the 2009 presidential election, have been under house arrest without trial since February 2011. Mehdi Karroubi went on a hunger strike on August 25, which led to a deterioration in his health and his transfer to the hospital. The withdrawal of security agents from his home and his trial were his two conditions for ending the hunger strike. Ultimately, Mr. Karroubi ended his hunger strike after the security agents left his house, and according to his family, security forces are now present outside his home. Lifting the house arrest has been one of the main demands of Hassan Rouhani's supporters in the two presidential elections of 2013 and 2017, and in both elections, Mr. Rouhani made promises explicitly or implicitly regarding lifting the house arrest. Although during the four years of Mr. Rouhani's first government, no public action was taken to fulfill this promise, restrictions on figures like Mohammad Khatami were further increased. Meanwhile, a group of national-religious activists inside the country recently stated in a letter that the President, in his capacity as the head of the Supreme National Security Council, has 'sufficient authority' to intervene in this matter and 'to persuade the high-ranking officials of the system.'