Students Protest Against Parliament and Government

The daily Arman reported with the headline "Students Protest Against Parliament and Government" that during the Student Day ceremony hosted by the "Islamic Freedom Association of Beheshti University," a number of students protested the performance of the Hope faction in Parliament with slogans. Masoud Pezeshkian, the Vice President of Parliament and speaker at the event, told the students: "You are incompetent for voting for these incompetent representatives." According to the newspaper, the students present in the Aboureyhan Hall of Beheshti University considered Pezeshkian's remarks insulting and intensified their protests. In response, the Vice President implied that the students' protests were a result of the cultural backwardness of the attendees, to which the students reacted with the slogan "Students will die, but will not accept humiliation." The Arman newspaper also reported that during the Q&A section of the event, when a student referred to the commodification of higher education, the absence of a student council at Beheshti University, the collection of tuition fees from daily government master's students, and the problems of the university and Pezeshkian's debt to the people's vote, the Vice President emphasized that he does not consider himself indebted to the people and told the student, "In Tabriz, no one listens to you, and your words will not be a factor for voting for or against me." The newspaper also quoted Ali Shakouri Rad, the Secretary-General of the Unity Party of Islamic Iran, criticizing Pezeshkian for arriving at the university in an "escort vehicle" and discussing the reformist faction's support for Hassan Rouhani, stating: "We have shifted from reformists to improvement seekers and did not support a reformist candidate in 2013 because we believed there would be no opportunity for participation in the electoral competition. We knew since 2012 that there would be no opportunity left for the presidency of reformists, and even if someone hypothetically reaches the presidency, they will not be able to work." The Arman newspaper also reported Shakouri Rad as saying: "I am not saying we should firmly support Rouhani; he is not our desired candidate, but we should pursue expectations based on realities," adding that "Azar Mansouri and several members of our party have been 'starred' and we strongly protest to the Ministry of Science." However, "we have come from the hardships before 2012 to today, where we can act with more resources. I consider the young student as an idealist, and they should shout, but there is no need to bring this shout to someone who should not hear it." The newspaper Javan, close to the Revolutionary Guards, emphasized in its front page that "the opposition of the Islamic world and Christianity to the recognition of Jerusalem" as the capital has opened "the gates of hell for Israel." This newspaper stressed that "Palestinian groups consider the U.S. president's decision as 'crossing all red lines.' Arab and Muslim countries have warned about the explosive conditions in the region, and Europe, Russia, and China have expressed concern, calling it a catastrophe." The newspaper did not mention that Russia had previously recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel before the U.S. but quoted a Turkish government spokesperson saying: "Recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel will ignite a fire in the region and the world whose end is uncertain." Kayhan also reported on its front page, quoting the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, stating: "Palestine will be free" and "the claim of Jerusalem's capital in occupied Palestine is a sign of the enemies' impotence." According to this newspaper, Ali Khamenei stated that the U.S., Israel, reactionaries, and their affiliates are "the Pharaohs of today's world." The government-aligned newspaper Iran also published the Supreme Leader's statements with a similar headline, stating: "Palestine will definitely be free." Fereydoun Majlisi, a former diplomat, in a note in the Iran newspaper, assessed the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital as contrary to U.S. national interests, stating that Donald Trump's electoral promise for this action was made "during the campaign to attract the generous support of wealthy Jewish lobbies. However, the president, who in that unconventional speech at the United Nations General Assembly stated that his only criterion for decision-making was U.S. interests, should have at least considered the national interests of his country in his announcement about recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel." The columnist noted that "UN Security Council Resolution 242 obliges Israel to withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The recent resolution in 2016 also prevents Israel from building homes in occupied territories after the 1967 war and encourages the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital." The Iran newspaper simultaneously reported on "hopeful shadows over the negotiations to determine the legal regime of the Caspian Sea," quoting the Russian Foreign Minister stating: "The main text of the convention on the legal regime of the Caspian Sea is ready to be presented at the summit in the first half of 2018." This government-aligned newspaper emphasized that "a bright outlook for resolving the unresolved issue of determining the legal regime of the Caspian Sea has emerged. This outlook was highlighted during the encouraging meeting of the foreign ministers of the five Caspian Sea countries in Moscow, giving hope that the next summit of the five countries—Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan—will mark the end of long negotiations to determine each country's territorial share and their collective approach to benefiting from the resources of the Caspian Sea." The Iran newspaper emphasized that "Iranian officials are pursuing a model based on international maritime law and equitable division of the seabed and subsoil of the Caspian Sea, which, if agreed upon by other Caspian countries, considers approximately 18 percent for it. This share, after presenting complete models of surface, seabed, and subsoil, has been considered for 20 percent of each coastal country and shared surface resources." The Iran newspaper quoted Mohammad Javad Zarif stating: "The signing of the Tehran convention and multiple agreements on security cooperation, protection of living aquatic resources, and climatological agreements, along with the preparation of 12 agreements and protocols, are among the tangible results of the Caspian Sea negotiations."