The Emergence of ISIS Activities in Iran's Cyber Space

The newspaper Qanoon published photos of the attack on Abdolvahed Mousavi Lari and also a photo of Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, the representative of Varamin, among the attackers on the reformist Minister of Interior. This attack has been described as "ISIS play in Varamin." The newspaper Etemad, in its front page, reported on "standing against pressure groups," highlighting the "timely action of the Ministry of Interior against the attack by the worried faction in Varamin on the legal gathering of reformists," stating that "under the order of the Minister of Interior, the offenders will be identified and referred to judicial authorities." Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, the representative of Varamin, who was present among the protesters against the reformists' ceremony, confirmed his presence among those disrupting Mousavi Lari's speech, stating: "The attack on Mousavi Lari was their own doing" and "we are not against any legal actions and will never disrupt such gatherings, nor do we oppose them. It is not like that at all. Our protest was against the presence of seditionists. If someone issues a permit for the presence of seditionists, they are a seditionist themselves, even if they are the Minister of Interior." The newspaper Javan, close to the Revolutionary Guards, emphasized that "the presence of seditionist elements disrupted the reformists' meeting in Qarchak," accusing the reformists of "trying to turn this peaceful protest into a confrontation." This newspaper quoted Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, stating that the reformists "are seeking to create the grounds for another sedition in the country with such unrest, and they need another Neda Agha Soltan; otherwise, the Hezbollah people of the region, while maintaining decorum, only expressed their protest against the presence of seditionists." The newspaper Jomhouri Eslami, in an editorial titled "Prerequisite for Elections," strongly criticized the attackers on the Minister of Interior and wrote about the incident involving the attack on the reformist Minister of Interior: "The fact that some citizens of the Islamic Republic cannot safely form legal gatherings and express their opinions is recorded as a significant flaw in the record of this system, and the existence of such a flaw is a source of shame for this only Islamic system in the world." The newspaper Bahar, with the headline "Internet ISIS," reported on the "presence of ISIS in cyberspace" in Persian. The newspaper Iran dedicated its front page to hostage-taking in Mali, stating: "This time, Takfiris in Africa have taken Western nationals hostage." The newspaper reported that while "the death of Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the mastermind of the Paris attacks, has been confirmed in a French police operation, France remains tense, and the country still feels the danger close at hand." The newspaper Arman dedicated its front page to Hassan Khomeini, reporting a "decisive yes" to his candidacy in the Assembly of Experts elections, stating: "Polls indicate the leading position of the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini among potential candidates for the Experts Assembly." Simultaneously, the newspaper quoted Hassan Khomeini as saying: "Certainly, we will act on what is our responsibility." The headline of the newspaper Arman reads: "Behind the scenes of embezzlements has also raised the voice of Qom." The newspaper reported that "Abdolkarim Mousavi Ardebili, a source of emulation in Qom, called for informing about the 'behind-the-scenes of embezzlements' during a meeting with the head of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, saying: 'Why do they not tell the people who the individuals are that commit astronomical embezzlements, who they are connected with that gives them access to these financial resources and allows them to commit billion-dollar embezzlements?'" The newspaper Arman also reported on a three-day-old baby abandoned by the roadside, quoting Ali Kafashi, head of the Red Crescent Society in Badroud, Isfahan province, stating: "This baby was found by the roadside, and the footage we received of this tragic incident shows that the baby was thrown without any covering, while a plastic covering was placed on its body." The newspaper Jam-e Jam, affiliated with the Islamic Republic's Broadcasting Organization, described the UN Third Committee's resolution on human rights violations in the Islamic Republic as a "shameful resolution." The newspaper Jahan San'at published a report on "the consequences of three million children being deprived of education," reporting on the "failure to eradicate illiteracy" in Iran. The newspaper also reported on the "identification of several doctors among the homeless," quoting Mohammad Reza Azarnia, head of the Tehran Drug Control Coordination Council, stating: "The population of white-collar individuals or educated people, even doctors, has also been added to the addicts we identified among the hangouts." The newspaper Jahan San'at dedicated its front page to Ali Jannati's visit to bookstores in Tehran, reporting that during this visit, booksellers raised their issues with the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, stating: "Booksellers told the Minister of Guidance that it is enough for the government not to take anything from us." The newspaper Javan dedicated its front page to the "Al-Bayt al-Maqdis" maneuver with the participation of 120 Basij combat battalions, quoting Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the commander of Basij, stating: "Infiltration means believing that our enemy has become our friend." The newspaper Sharq published a report on the various narratives of the price fluctuations of the drug crystal meth in Iran, stating: "The rise and fall of the price of crystal meth has a cycle within itself," as "increased confrontation leads to an increase in the price of meth, the increase in price brings about an increase in impurity, the increase in impurity leads to an increase in hallucinations and aggression and AIDS and various diseases, and consequently, these lead to more deaths among addicts." This newspaper wrote: "Perhaps the goal of this cycle is not to reach this conclusion, but the question arises whether the goal of these tightening and loosening measures in the cycle of production, supply, and consumption of meth is merely to control the harmful addiction market?" "ISIS play in Varamin" The newspaper Qanoon published photos of the attack on Abdolvahed Mousavi Lari and also a photo of Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, the representative of Varamin, among the attackers on the reformist Minister of Interior. This action has been described as "ISIS play in Varamin." This newspaper emphasized that "the self-styled individuals attacked the legal speech of Mousavi Lari," writing: "A few days have passed since the terrorist events in Europe. The public opinion and media in Iran have dedicated all their headlines to these actions. There is no news in the domestic political arena, but suddenly a self-styled attack draws attention to an old crisis in Iran's internal political maneuvering. Certainly, today when ISIS is mentioned, more than a paramilitary group is intended, it refers to a political outlook that does not allow others to breathe. Those who do not allow anyone other than themselves to speak take lives in France, Germany, and Syria, and in another geography, they stifle dissent." According to the newspaper Qanoon, "The story began when a seminar centered on reforms in Varamin received permission from the Ministry of Interior. An event that was managed by reformists but was turned into chaos by the actions of the worried extremists, and this group attacked the speakers of the event. Like all obstructions, the number of those executing this chaos was small, but they raised their voices. They shouted and threatened, and during this attack, Mousavi Lari's turban also fell off his head. This newspaper referred to eyewitness accounts of Hossein Naqvi Hosseini's role in leading the attack on Abdolvahed Mousavi Lari, writing: "A group had gathered around Naqvi Hosseini and threatened that if the reformists came to their city again, they would see everything with their own eyes, and of course, Naqvi Hosseini's remarks also fueled this chaos. When he shouted in a particular tone, 'I will bring the Minister of Interior to the parliament so that such things do not happen again.'" Qanoon wrote: Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, a representative close to the steadfast faction, said: "After the people of the Wilayat-madar county of Qarchak heard that the reformists were holding a meeting in this city, where several convicts and detainees from the events of 88 were present, they protested their presence." This newspaper pointed out that in the year of the elections, "if the trend continues like this, that one day Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani is attacked, and another day Ali Motahari is beaten in Shiraz, and today the turban is taken off a cleric's head, we should read the funeral prayer for political development, freedom of expression, and religious democracy," writing: "The government, and at the head of it, the President, who is responsible for defending and safeguarding the Constitution, must act more vigilantly regarding these atrocities so that no one can label individuals as seditionists, irreligious, and apostates at their discretion." The newspaper Etemad, in its front page, reported on "standing against pressure groups," highlighting the "timely action of the Ministry of Interior against the attack by the worried faction in Varamin on the legal gathering of reformists," stating that "under the order of the Minister of Interior, the offenders will be identified and referred to judicial authorities." This newspaper pointed out that "the dimensions of the Varamin incident were such that last night rumors about the dismissal of the governor of Tehran spread on social media," but the Deputy Minister of Interior told Etemad: "I strongly deny the change of the governor of Tehran." The Deputy Minister of Interior told Etemad: "The Minister instructed the governor of Tehran to follow up on the incident in Qarchak and to identify all the factors and report them to the Minister of Interior. Given that this order was announced on Thursday night, the governor of Tehran must be given the necessary time to properly follow up on the issue, but the rumor about the change of the governor of Tehran is absolutely untrue." The representative of Varamin stated that anyone who issues a permit for seditionists is a seditionist, even if they are the Minister of Interior. Hossein Naqvi Hosseini, the representative of Varamin, who was present among the protesters against the reformists' ceremony, confirmed his presence among those disrupting Mousavi Lari's speech, stating: "The attack on Mousavi Lari was their own doing" and "we are not against any legal actions and will never disrupt such gatherings, nor do we oppose them. It is not like that at all. Our protest was against the presence of seditionists. If someone issues a permit for the presence of seditionists, they are a seditionist themselves, even if they are the Minister of Interior." This member of parliament rejected his opposition to "permitted ceremonies," stating: "I never said that this ceremony should not be held. Who said, anyone who said that is wrong." At the same time, he stated: "I am the representative of the people. I consider sedition a red line of the system. I am not afraid of the Minister of Interior and anyone else, and wherever I can, I will confront any kind of sedition and sedition-making. He has ordered judicial action. I also promise to confront the Minister of Interior in the parliament and will raise the question of the Minister of Interior next week. From our perspective, anyone who permits the presence of seditionists is also a seditionist and complicit with them. I am also ready to continue the process of confronting the Minister of Interior even up to impeachment." Hossein Naqvi Hosseini about his remarks among the attackers on the Minister of Interior said: "I said that first of all, it was a popular protest against the presence of seditionists. Not a protest against the ceremony and meeting. I stated this clearly and explicitly in my speech that we agree with any legal holding of a seminar, meeting, and gathering and consider it the right of all political currents and groups to have a legal gathering. However, what we protest is the presence of seditionists, convicts of sedition, and detainees of that time." He also described the attack on Mousavi Lari as a "popular movement" and told Etemad: "First of all, it was a popular movement, and no organization, institution, individual, or position was behind this to organize it. If we were to organize it, ten thousand people would gather there. A number of families of martyrs and children of witnesses were present, and scholars and clerics also came spontaneously. The protest was only against the presence of seditionists. Their main slogan is that the esteemed leader said that sedition is the red line of the system. No one in any position or clothing has the right to cross this red line, and we will not allow seditionists to be present." This principlist member of the ninth parliament, however, emphasized that he did not use the term "seditionists" for the Minister of Interior of the reformist era and said: "I did not say that Mr. Mousavi Lari was among these individuals. I am referring to others." According to the newspaper Etemad, Hossein Naqvi Hosseini rejected the statements of government officials regarding the "legality" of Mousavi Lari's speech in Qarchak Varamin, stating: "The seminar was not legal. They say the seminar had legal permission. Our first question is to whom this permission was granted? Is it a party, a group, what is it? Does this party and group have permission? Has it been registered with the Ministry of Interior? We do not have anything called the reformist current in the counties of Qarchak and Varamin with the permission of the Ministry of Interior and the approval of Article 10 of the parties. The Ministry of Interior should say to whom it granted permission." The Varamin incident; "A source of shame for the system" The newspaper Jomhouri Eslami, in an editorial titled "Prerequisite for Elections," strongly criticized the attackers on the Minister of Interior and wrote about the incident involving the attack on the reformist Minister of Interior: "The fact that some citizens of the Islamic Republic cannot safely form legal gatherings and express their opinions is recorded as a significant flaw in the record of this system, and the existence of such a flaw is a source of shame for this only Islamic system in the world." This newspaper pointed out that "on Friday, a number of self-styled individuals in Qarchak Varamin attacked Hojjatoleslam Mousavi Lari, the Minister of Interior of the reformist government, who had gone to this city to speak to the reformists in the region."