The Issue of Disqualification of Hassan Rouhani in the Next Election Cycle

The newspaper Khorasan reported that Abbasali Kadkhodai, the spokesman for the Guardian Council, stated during a press conference on Saturday regarding the discussion of "the issue of reviewing the qualifications of the incumbent President for a second term and the possibility of his disqualification by the Guardian Council": "The qualification announced by the Guardian Council is only for one term, and in each election cycle, the qualifications of individuals are reviewed again." The newspaper Shargh also highlighted the spokesman's reaction to the possibility of disqualifying Hassan Rouhani in the next presidential election, quoting Abbasali Kadkhodai as saying, "Qualification approval is for one term only." At the same time, the newspaper examined "scenarios for the removal of Hassan Rouhani" and quoted Mohammad Javad Haqshenas, a reformist figure, stating: "The first scenario is considered a project for Rouhani's self-withdrawal by the opposing faction. They are trying to narrow the space for him, which is defined in two phases"; the first phase being "voluntary withdrawal" and the second phase "forced withdrawal." This senior member of the National Trust Party pointed to signs of the project aimed at forcing Hassan Rouhani to withdraw, mentioning "pressure on the president's close associates," "a project that took shape last year and resulted in the arrest of several journalists," and also "projects like the claim of involvement of the president's close associates in certain appointments such as the appointment of the CEO of Bank Mellat and initiating the Sarakheh project," as well as "some claims about the educational conditions of the president's brother, which are also in this context." Mohammad Javad Haqshenas described the "second scenario," which he termed "the disqualification project for Rouhani," stating: "If the self-withdrawal project does not succeed, there is a possibility that they will raise the issue of Rouhani's disqualification, which has already been initiated. For example, in the last election, Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani was eliminated. The disqualification of Hojjatoleslam Seyyed Hossein Khomeini was also the second step of this project." The newspaper Shargh quoted this reformist political activist as saying that if the "scenario of disqualifying Hassan Rouhani" is implemented, in order to "minimize the cost of eliminating Rouhani, it is possible that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will also be disqualified to tell public opinion that both the previous and current presidents have been eliminated. Similar to what was done in the last election with the simultaneous elimination of Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei." Mohammad Javad Haqshenas also noted that "if the first and second scenarios do not succeed, they may reduce Rouhani's chances of winning by introducing competitors who decrease his chances of victory. At this stage, the opposing faction will not repeat the mistakes of 2013 and will not enter the field with six candidates," and in this case, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presence "could steer the atmosphere in a direction that diminishes Hassan Rouhani's electoral support." Shargh reminded that "if previously the rhetoric of the president's opponents was merely criticism, these criticisms have now taken on a threatening tone. The most explicit of these came from Hamid Rouhani," who, as a historian of the Islamic Revolution, apparently unveiled a project that is at least being discussed as an option on the table. In his remarks, he accused the legally elected president of treason and stated that he should be tried for this crime," and even spoke of the necessity of moving beyond Ahmadinejad and Rouhani simultaneously in the 2017 elections. Abdullah Naseri, a reformist figure, however, told Shargh that "Hamid Rouhani's remarks do not hold much significance and have no standing in the country." Meanwhile, the newspaper Kayhan, in its front page titled "The Danger of Long-Term Commitments in the Final Year of the Government," implicitly accused Hassan Rouhani of violating some principles of the Constitution, stating: "The Constitution has determined a historical and decisive solution in its two principles to prevent dictatorship. In Article 77, it states that "treaties, agreements, contracts, and international accords must be approved by the Islamic Consultative Assembly," and in Article 125, it emphasizes that "the signing of treaties, agreements, contracts, and accords of the Iranian government with other governments, as well as the signing of treaties related to international unions, is subject to the approval of the Islamic Consultative Assembly with the President or his legal representative." Kayhan wrote: "These two principles clearly indicate that any treaty that creates obligations for the country must be approved by representatives, and the president's signature only has value after the representatives' approval. Now that the president's signature is such, the status of the signatures of ministers and other officials is completely clear." However, "given this, have these important principles of the Constitution been observed in the eleventh government!?" The newspaper Hamdeli quoted Es'hagh Jahangiri, Hassan Rouhani's first vice president, as saying: "Official platforms are in the hands of the government's opponents." Hamid Reza Jalai-Pour, a reformist figure, also told the newspaper Etemad that we must "be both critical of Rouhani and grateful to him" because "without Rouhani, Venezuela's fate awaited us." The newspaper Arman reported on its front page that on Tuesday, "Putin and Rouhani will sit at the negotiating table" and wrote that ahead of the meeting between the presidents of Russia and Iran, "new Kalashnikovs have entered Iran." According to this newspaper, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's press secretary, announced that "the expansion of technical and defense cooperation between Tehran and Moscow is one of the main topics of the negotiations on Tuesday between the presidents of Iran and Russia in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan." Arman emphasized that "while the Kremlin spokesman announces bilateral talks between Iran and Russia regarding increasing the level of defense and military relations, on Saturday, the news agency Tasnim reported the purchase of a new generation of Kalashnikov weapons from Russia and their entry into the country. Accordingly, Iran has purchased the Kalashnikov 103 weapon from Russia, and these weapons have entered the country." Kamabiz Nourouzi, a lawyer and journalist, wrote in a note in the newspaper Shahrvand: "On August 7, everyone remembers that it is Journalist Day. It is a time to commend and praise journalists." The columnist emphasized that "the fear of unjust reprimands, the economic constraints arising from job-related issues, the lack of professional support, and... remain challenges for this profession, which journalists face with indifference from responsible authorities," adding that "to all of this, a new indifference, which may be more significant in some respects, has been added, and journalists are considered strangers in designing and drafting regulations related to themselves." The newspaper Aftab Yazd reported in a piece titled "Reformist Media in Exile" that on Journalist Day, Mohammad Reza Aref went to the conservative news agency Tasnim, Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the government spokesman, went to the news agency of state television, and Mohammad Nahavandian, the head of Hassan Rouhani's office, also went to the "Government News Agency." "Criticism of the National Petrochemical Company’s Deflections" is the title of an interview with "Gholamhossein Najabat, the former CEO of the National Petrochemical Company," in the newspaper Teadul regarding the repeated fires in petrochemical companies, including the fire at Bou Ali Petrochemical. The former CEO compared the oversight of this industry to that of "environmental guardians" who lack the necessary tools to confront danger, explicitly stating that creating infrastructure for firefighting at Bou Ali Petrochemical was the government's responsibility, and now the government should not create a refuge for itself by blaming the private sector for the incident. Gholamhossein Najabat pointed out that due to the lack of proper laws and the absence of a suitable regulatory organization, when an incident occurs, everyone disclaims responsibility and shifts the blame onto others, stating: "The private sector also considers the petrochemical industry in Iran to lack the necessary international class." The newspaper Vatan Emruz, close to the Front of Steadfastness, attacked the Sunni Friday prayer leader of Zahedan and a senior Sunni cleric in Iran for protesting the execution of a group of Sunni prisoners, writing: "Abdulhamid Ismailzahi has stirred controversy again and, with suspicious remarks, defended the rights of terrorists who are part of the puzzle of operations to destabilize Iran's borders by Al Saud." According to this newspaper, Mowlavi Abdulhamid Ismailzahi described the mass execution of several Sunni prisoners in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj as lacking foresight and tolerance, stating: "With the execution of one person, in addition to leaving his wife and children without support and creating many problems for them, it also creates hatred and resentment in people's hearts; however, executions have other negative consequences that cannot all be expressed at this opportunity." The newspaper Vatan Emruz implied that Mowlavi Abdulhamid Ismailzahi's remarks could lead to "increased security suspicions" and stated: "Given the realities related to Iran, especially in Sunni-populated areas, it seems that the dream of presidency cannot be realized through support for terrorists and murderers." The newspaper Shargh published a photo of Shahram Amiri and reported on his execution. This newspaper wrote: "Shahram Amiri was a researcher and specialist in medical radioisotopes at Malek Ashtar University, who disappeared during the Umrah pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia in June 2009 and about a year later, after several contradictory video clips of him were released, finally went to the Iranian Interests Section in the USA on July 13, 2010, and then returned to Iran." This newspaper reminded that Shahram Amiri's execution was announced while during his return to Iran, "officials, including the then Deputy Foreign Minister of Ahmadinejad's government, welcomed him. The officials who welcomed Amiri at the airport placed a wreath around his neck and some even called him a nuclear hero." The newspaper Iran dedicated its front page to "the parade of Iranian athletes at the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics" and described it as "the parade towards honor," stating: "Without a doubt, one of the special figures of the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics was none other than Zahra Nemati, the flag bearer of Iran's delegation." According to this newspaper, "the opening ceremony of the 2016 Rio Olympics was held at 3:30 AM on Saturday in the 85,000-seat Maracanã Stadium, and ultimately, the 31st Olympics was officially inaugurated with the lighting of the Olympic flame." The newspaper Iran also reported on "a gas pipeline explosion in Genaveh," stating: "The fire resulting from an explosion that occurred at 12:30 AM on Friday night at the gas line's choke station in the village of Shool in Genaveh County was extinguished after five hours of efforts by firefighters and rescue forces," but in this incident, at least "one person died due to severe burns." In this context, concerns of some judicial and security officials about the Pokémon game, the alarming water crisis, and the need for more transparency from the president were also highlighted.