New Angles of Corruption in the Martyrs Foundation

The newspaper Hamdeli published statements by Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, regarding the arrest of the former CEO of Bank Dey, a subsidiary of the Martyrs Foundation, under the headline "New Angles of Corruption in the Martyrs Foundation." It noted that while there had been murmurs in recent weeks about a report on investigations into the Martyrs Foundation in the previous parliament, and it was said that the report from the ninth parliament could not be presented in the new parliament, the Tehran prosecutor stated that part of this report has gone to the prosecutor's office and actions will be taken regarding other sections as well. The newspaper also reported that Amir Khajasteh, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and head of the investigation committee into the Martyrs Foundation, announced that "500 billion tomans have been embezzled from the currency exchange of Bank Dey to Dubai," adding that "Bank Dey has issued loans amounting to 8 trillion tomans, of which nearly 2 trillion tomans are questionable. Why? Because they did not have valid guarantees. They have taken loans of 400 billion tomans with just a promissory note through connections. Can we remain silent? You have given large loans without collateral." The newspaper Shahrvand, in a report about the corruption case in the Martyrs Foundation, emphasized that "the report on the investigation into the Martyrs Foundation, although never read in the public session of the parliament, seems to be yielding results due to Amir Khajasteh's efforts and the arrest of the former CEO of Bank Dey," stating that "now, with Khajasteh's interview and the arrest of the former CEO, it seems the mysterious case of the Martyrs Foundation has come a step closer to transparency." The newspaper quoted the head of the investigation committee into the Martyrs Foundation as saying: "I suffered so much in this case that I did not suffer as much during my captivity in Saddam's prisons in Iraq," noting that economic corruption is like a multi-headed dragon that reemerges from different places no matter where you try to stop it. Unfortunately, sometimes they are so strong that they work as a team to try to push aside those pursuing the issue. The newspaper Etemad, in its headline "Against Money Laundering," wrote that "the Supreme Council for Combating Money Laundering responded to recent movements emphasizing national interests and defending the FATF." According to this newspaper, the Supreme Council for Combating Money Laundering, chaired by the Minister of Economy and including the Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade, as well as the Ministers of Interior and Intelligence and the Central Bank Governor, stated in its announcement that the Financial Action Task Force does not collect information on specific transactions and has no mechanism for receiving information from banks and countries, and its function is essentially to review policies and procedures, not data, transactions, and transactions. Behzad Saberi, an international law expert, also told Etemad: "Implementing the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force does not conflict with Iran's considerations." Meanwhile, Kayhan emphasized in its headline that "the ominous shadow of the FATF cannot be dispelled with a statement," writing that "there is no guarantee that the information requested by the 'Financial Action Task Force' from Iran will not be provided to Iran's enemies." The newspaper Javan, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, also emphasized that "why do legal and revolutionary institutions not complete the FATF work?" stating that "while the Islamic Consultative Assembly is turning towards drafting a plan instead of forcing the government to present a bill in this regard, the Supreme National Security Council is dealing with the issue of the JCPOA and FATF in an ambiguous-reactive approach, the Administrative Justice Court is preventing the enormous costs arising from this secret agreement with its mentioned approach." The newspaper Sharq dedicated its front page to the reactions of government officials and also the statements of experts and some members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly to criticisms regarding Iran's joining the 'Financial Action Task Force' to combat money laundering, quoting Mohammad Reza Bahonar as saying: "The FATF was approved by the seventh and ninth parliaments." Sharq also reported that Masoud Pezeshkian, the deputy speaker of the tenth parliament, criticized how his statements about the FATF were covered by the Fars news agency, stating: "Anyone who fears transparency is a traitor. If there is transparency in the country, tomorrow no one can be arrested for embezzling two billion and 800 million euros." The newspaper Khorasan published statements by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic against Saudi Arabia, quoting Ayatollah Khamenei as saying: "The Islamic world should not let go of the Saudi rulers," while the newspaper Jomhouri Islami, in its editorial, referred to the religious leaders of Saudi Arabia as "fatwas of the haram-eaters," stating that "what is more shameless than the original crime and atrocity is the endorsement of these crimes and even their justification by Wahhabi clerics, which is salt on the unhealed wounds of the survivors of last year's Hajj tragedy and the suffering nations in this regard." The newspaper Iran reported on the cancellation of a cycling event for "people and officials" by the police, stating that "the large cycling event for people and officials in Tehran, which was supposed to take place yesterday as part of the call for car-free Tuesdays, cycling from Laleh Park to the Artists' House, was canceled by the police due to what was stated as the lack of a permit." According to this newspaper, on the morning of Tuesday, September 6, a group of government officials, artists, university professors, environmental activists, and people, including Mohammad Mojabi, the legal deputy of the Environmental Protection Organization, Mohammad Darvish, the director of the public participation office of the Environmental Protection Organization, the mayors of Isfahan and Hamedan, the head of the Hamedan City Council, Hossein Akhani, a professor of environmental science at Tehran University, Ali Nazari Doost, the environmental manager of the UN office in Tehran, and artists such as Mitra Hajjar, Katayoun Jahangiri, Seyed Ali Salehi, and a group of athletes and champions of the country gathered in Laleh Park for the event, while "the police had also been present beforehand to ensure the safety of the cyclists at the event site, but minutes before the start of the cycling event, it was announced that the event had been canceled." The newspaper Ebtekar, in a report on the occasion of International Literacy Day, briefly reviewed the history of public education and adult literacy in Iran since 1936 by various organizations, including the Organization of Adult Education, the National Committee for the Global Fight Against Illiteracy, and the Literacy Movement, stating that "according to the latest published statistics, the number of absolutely illiterate and semi-illiterate people in the country remains at 20 million. This is while less than two weeks later schools will open, and according to official statistics, 350,000 and based on unofficial statistics, two million children have not yet registered in schools." The newspaper Ta'adol reported on "tension in the Tehran City Council" over the issue of the transfer of "astronomical properties," stating that in the council meeting on Tuesday, "when Mohsen Sarikhani, after presenting the report of the secretary of the councilors of region 14, referred to his criticisms of the council members and named some members, he angrily addressed Talayi, the head of the meeting, saying that you, as the head of the meeting, should not allow insults to members. Another council member, Taghipour, shouted at him that you have no right to speak. You have been slandering for two weeks and polluting the atmosphere." According to this newspaper, Nasser Amani, the deputy planning of the Tehran Municipality, also stated in the Tehran City Council meeting that "during this time, the reputation of 150 municipal managers has been tarnished." Mohammad Haqani, a council member who has been accused by the media of "rent-seeking of 42 billion tomans," also stated in this meeting that a piece of land "was purchased in 2008, has nine partners, one of whom is representing one of my relatives."