Prospects Ahead for Hassan Khomeini

Hassan Rouhani's remarks during the Wednesday cabinet meeting, emphasizing the need to deal with those responsible for the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, have been welcomed by newspapers such as Etemad, Shargh, Iran, Vaghaye Ettefaghieh, Hamdeli, Arman, and Iran. Vaghaye Ettefaghieh reported on its front page, quoting Hassan Rouhani regarding the attackers of the Saudi embassy: "They are criminals." Etemad's front page on Thursday stated that Hassan Rouhani urged the judiciary to address the case of the attack on the Saudi embassy "out of turn." Hamdeli's front page titled "Coalition Against Lawbreakers" noted: "These days, regardless of internal political factions, a demand is heard from all domestic platforms for serious and explicit action against lawbreakers and attackers of the Saudi embassy in Tehran. This issue has been clearly stated and emphasized by the President, the Foreign Minister, the Head of the Judiciary, the Commander of the Police Force, and other system figures." The newspaper Hemayat, affiliated with the judiciary's prison organization, reported on its front page about the "Saudi scandal in systematic human rights violations," stating: "The UN warned Saudi Arabia about the use of cluster bombs in the Yemen war." Kayhan also stated on its front page: "Saudi Arabia is too small to be a rival to Iran." Resalat dedicated its front page photo to Nasir Makarem Shirazi, quoting this cleric based in Qom: "Countries that severed relations with Iran will return with begging." Resalat also published part of statements by Hamidreza Hajizadeh, the missile commander of the Revolutionary Guards, at a Friday prayer leaders' conference, quoting him: "We have not missed a moment in enhancing missile capabilities." The newspaper Javan, close to the Revolutionary Guards, published Mohammad Reza Naqdi's attack on the policies of the 11th government and Hassan Rouhani on its front page, quoting the Basij commander: "The wheels of factories and centrifuges have both been punctured." The newspaper Shahrvand dedicated one of its main headlines to the latest developments in the oil market, emphasizing "Iran's oil flexibility for a calm return to the market," quoting the international affairs manager of the National Oil Company: "Iran avoids an oil war." Shargh reviewed the candidacy process of Hassan Khomeini for the Assembly of Experts elections, examining the "prospects ahead for Seyyed Hassan" to overcome the disqualification barriers of the Guardian Council. The newspaper Arman dedicated its front page to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, quoting him: "The people's determination for change is firm." The newspaper Qanoon described Ahmad Tavakoli's criticisms of some members of the "Coalition of Principlists" with the headline "Old Principlist Against New Principlists," stating: "As the end-of-year elections approach, like the 2013 campaign, the internal divisions among the principlists have become clearer." The newspaper Hamdeli highlighted another part of Ahmad Tavakoli's statements, reporting: "Ahmad Tavakoli, the representative of Tehran in the parliament, stated that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's mistakes in the 2009 elections were greater than those of Mir Hossein Mousavi." Mohammad Atrianfar, in an interview with Vaghaye Ettefaghieh, emphasized that "the spirit of separatism is rampant among the principlists," and regarding the coalition of reformists and moderates, he stated: "We consider Mr. Aref to be among the forces aligned and in agreement with the Kargozaran, and in many issues, we can be allies, even if our approach to managerial issues may differ." The newspaper Ebtekar reported on the efforts of labor groups to "realize wages" in the coming year, stating: "Currently, the wage backlog for workers is about 70%, and raising the issue of compensating for wage delays is seen as a glimmer of hope for workers." The newspaper Arman reported on the Tehran prosecutor's warning to athletes and artists, quoting Abbas Jafari Dolat Abadi: "The publication of inappropriate photos by an athlete is contrary to the spirit of chivalry and the essence of nobility, and artists should refrain from posting inappropriate photos on social media, as the publication of photos contrary to Islamic standards by some athletes and artists in cyberspace has led the Tehran prosecutor's office to intervene from a public crime perspective and deal with offenders." According to this newspaper, the Tehran prosecutor addressed the community of athletes and artists, saying: "Authentic athletes and artists must expel pretenders from the sports and artistic community so that the consequences of the actions of some offenders do not reflect on the artistic and sports community of the country." The prospects ahead for Hassan Khomeini to overcome the disqualification barriers of the Guardian Council were examined by the newspaper Shargh, which noted that "the scientific exam of the Experts Assembly was held under conditions where one of its notable absentees was Seyyed Hassan Khomeini." The newspaper stated: "Since Hassan Khomeini decided to register for the fifth Experts Assembly elections, one of the questions raised about him was whether the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini would participate in the Ijtihad scientific exam or not, a question that was answered on the 15th of Dey when he did not attend the exam session and, as usual, went to his classes and teaching at the Dar al-Shifa school in Qom." Shargh reviewed media reports during Hassan Khomeini's candidacy, sequentially mentioning "rumors of Seyyed Hassan not needing to participate in the exam," two announcements from the Guardian Council prior to the Ijtihad exam that outlined the general conditions for candidates to participate in this exam and exemptions from it, and also referenced statements by Mohammad Momen, a member of the Guardian Council's clerics, who said: "One of the conditions for candidates of the Experts Assembly to participate in the electoral competition is the confirmation of their Ijtihad by the clerics of the Guardian Council, and one of them is the holding of the Ijtihad exam; however, sometimes someone who registers has been our friend for a long time and is more knowledgeable than us, and we know him, so this person does not need to take the exam. Likewise, someone we do not know but teaches in the field, and his lesson recordings are available, has also expressed opinions on political matters, and his positions are clear; this person also does not need to take the Ijtihad exam." The newspaper referenced statements from other members and officials of the Guardian Council before and after the Ijtihad exam and then reviewed Hassan Khomeini's teaching history, books, and "permission for Ijtihad," stating: "Although Hassan Khomeini did not participate in the exams on the 15th of Shahrivar and the 15th of Dey and is also not considered among the current and past members of the Experts Assembly, he is among the esteemed teachers of the seminary with a twenty-year teaching record. He has taught at advanced levels for 20 years and has been conducting advanced jurisprudence classes for six years. Holding a position in the advanced jurisprudence and principles teaching chair is considered a matter of seminary Ijtihad. Seyyed Hassan Khomeini has been in the advanced teacher's chair since the fall of 2010." Shargh then referred to Hassan Khomeini's "permission for Ijtihad," stating: "Hassan Khomeini has also received his Ijtihad permission. Although he has not yet announced from which authorities he received this permission or, in other words, this license, Abdulvahed Mousavi Lari, the Minister of Interior in the reformist government, announced that Seyyed Hassan received his Ijtihad permission from Ayatollah Wahid Khorasani. He has this permission from other Ayatollahs as well, which have not yet been disclosed," and among them, "the son of Sadegh Ahangar, Mohammad Ali Ahangar, wrote on his Instagram page about the Ayatollahs who confirmed Seyyed Hassan's Ijtihad: Ayatollah Mousa Shabiri Zanjani, Ayatollah Amini, Ayatollah Mohaghegh Damad, Ayatollah Seyyed Jafar Karimi, and Ayatollah Ghodnfari Khonsari are among the Ayatollahs who have confirmed and signed Seyyed Hassan's Ijtihad." The newspaper then discussed the statements of Najatollah Ebrahimian, spokesperson, and Siamak Rahpeyk from the Guardian Council regarding sending "text messages" to candidates and the denial of such messages being sent by Hassan Khomeini's associates and several other candidates for the Experts Assembly, stating: "So far, there have been two hypotheses. The first is that the Guardian Council has considered Seyyed Hassan's educational and teaching background as a criterion and therefore will confirm his Ijtihad. The second is that the Guardian Council will consider Seyyed Hassan Khomeini's Ijtihad permission as a criterion and confirm his Ijtihad. These two cases have been almost eliminated due to the denial from Ayatollah Momen's office, which implicitly emphasized Seyyed Hassan's presence in the exam, as well as Rahpeyk's statements." However, Shargh quoted Mohsen Rahami, the head of the legal and advisory committee of the Reformist Policy Council, stating: "There are other ways, including reviewing the books and writings of candidates and their classes as a basis for Ijtihad, and participation in the exam is only one of the ways to prove Ijtihad." Mohsen Rahami emphasized: "In a meeting I had with several esteemed clerics of the Guardian Council, it was stated that if two members of the esteemed Guardian Council are assured of a candidate's Ijtihad, this matter will be sufficient for the Guardian Council, and it will suffice to confirm candidates' Ijtihad, which seems to be the case for Ayatollah Hashemi, Seyyed Hassan Khomeini, and also Ayatollah Mousavi Bejnourdi." The newspaper also reported Mohsen Gharavian, a teacher at the Qom seminary, stating: "Ayatollah Momen said that we can confirm the qualifications of specific individuals through means other than the exam. In any case, besides Seyyed Hassan Khomeini, Mr. Alireza A'arafi and Mohammad Gharavi are also prominent figures who did not participate in the exam and have been confirmed through other means. It seems that there may be another way to confirm Seyyed Hassan Khomeini's qualifications other than the exam." However, the newspaper Shargh noted that the final prospect for Hassan Khomeini to overcome the Guardian Council's barriers is the sending of letters by high-ranking clerics or religious leaders to the Guardian Council, stating: "If the Guardian Council intends to maintain its criterion of participation in the exam and does not want to pay attention to these reasons, the only remaining option for Seyyed Hassan Khomeini is that the Ayatollahs who confirmed his Ijtihad send a letter to the Guardian Council," but "what is certain is that, so far, Seyyed Hassan has neither the intention to withdraw nor has he taken a position on this matter." The old principlist against the new principlists: The newspaper Qanoon described Ahmad Tavakoli's criticisms of some members of the "Coalition of Principlists" with the headline "Old Principlist Against New Principlists," stating: "As the end-of-year elections approach, like the 2013 campaign, the internal divisions among the principlists have become clearer." The newspaper reported that "this division became apparent when Ahmad Tavakoli, in a brainstorming session with members of the Central Council of the Islamic Iran Progress and Justice Party, referred to the situation of the principlists in the 10th parliamentary elections, stating: 'In my opinion, the Achilles' heel of the principlist coalition is the Stability Front, which can submit a list at the last minute that removes some and adds its preferred individuals, causing some to lose votes and others not to win.'" Ahmad Tavakoli spoke about the "Unique Front," which is a coalition of ministers and deputies from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's governments, stating: "If I were to decide, I would not allow their presence in the coalition because this group has gathered due to Ahmadinejad; however, they are present, and of course, there are principlist individuals as well." The newspaper Qanoon reported that this principlist representative of the 9th parliament stated: "Meetings like this are more a place for political bargaining and share-seeking, and the result is that representatives are eventually elected who do not take effective and significant actions against corruption." Ahmad Tavakoli, however, stated that within the principlist faction, "there is no escape from coalition" because "we are facing a rival that has secular elements among them and is effective, although there are also committed individuals and those who adhere to the principles of the revolution among them, but they remain silent against the actions of these individuals." The newspaper Qanoon reported that Ahmad Tavakoli also identified the "principlists' flaw" as "neglecting citizens' rights and freedoms in the country," describing Hassan Rouhani's victory in the 2013 presidential election as a result of the principlists' mistakes, stating: "If my wise friends had acted wisely, another person would be president now, and in the 2005 elections, if my friends had used their intellect, Qalibaf would have been president instead of Ahmadinejad, which did not happen." The newspaper Qanoon noted that Ahmad Tavakoli's statements were met with a response from Gholamali Haddad Adel, the spokesperson for the principlist coalition, reporting that Haddad Adel stated: "All individuals and currents are present in the principlist coalition, and decision-making is based on criteria and belief in principlism," and "I request all principlist friends to refrain from any statements or expressions that may cause disputes." The newspaper emphasized that "Tavakoli's statements and Haddad Adel's swift reaction as the spokesperson for the principlist coalition indicate that despite all the efforts of coalition members, they cannot cover up the deep divisions within this coalition," stating that the principlists' disagreements revolve around "two main axes: the Stability Front and Ahmadinejad himself," and "Tavakoli's clear reference to the Stability Front as the Achilles' heel indicates disagreements that led Ali Larijani to declare himself independent and Bahonar to refuse to join the coalition, and ultimately, the faction close to Qalibaf also distanced itself from this coalition.