Two Ayatollahs Reached an Agreement

Abbas Abdi, in the editorial of the Etemad newspaper, wrote about the consequences of presenting a 'unified list of principlists': 'If reformists wanted an event that would highlight their list, it is precisely this dichotomy resulting from the existence of a list among the principlists. In fact, the polarization of lists causes people to focus more on the votes they cast, which in turn leads to greater visibility for the reformists' list.' The editorial writer emphasized that principlists 'have always believed that their defeat was due to diversity and lack of unity among them,' reminding that 'this is not necessarily the case, as electoral votes in Iran do not work in such a way that if someone steps aside, their votes will be counted for another person they prefer.' Abdi pointed out that the unity among principlists is an example of the proverb 'the more you add, the less you get,' and 'instead of increasing their votes and decreasing their rival's votes, it will have the opposite effect.' He wrote: 'Respected principlists are playing the trumpet from the wrong end. Unity must form within society and political forces, and then reflect in a unified electoral list. It is inconceivable to imagine this path in reverse.' The Kayhan newspaper accused Hassan Rouhani's government on its front page of attempting to 'form a compliant and aligned parliament,' stating: 'If the government’s lawyers enter the parliament, the government will not be held accountable for its promises.' Hussein Shariatmadari, representative of the Supreme Leader in the Kayhan editorial, harshly attacked Hassan Rouhani, writing: 'Exaggeration beyond absurdity regarding the JCPOA has taken over all meetings, interviews, and speeches of the esteemed President and some other officials these days.' The Kayhan editorial writer stated that Rouhani and government officials believe that 'this balloon achievement can be counted towards the votes of the government-supported candidates,' questioning them: 'What significant achievement does the JCPOA have that there is talk of a JCPOA two?' Hussein Kashafi, a reformist figure, wrote in a note in the Arman newspaper that with the implementation of the Guardian Council's supervisory policies, reformists have now placed 'unknown' or 'less known' forces in their electoral lists in most electoral districts. The Arman editorial writer emphasized the necessity of 'voting for the list' in the upcoming elections, stating that supporters of the reformist faction should vote for those on the reformist lists without concern, as these individuals are recognized and approved by the Supreme Policy Council of Reformists. The Etemad newspaper also noted in an editorial titled 'One Vote, 30 Names' that the average votes of principlists in previous parliamentary terms in Tehran were 600,000, stating: 'If among more than five million eligible voters in Tehran, only 1.2 million write the 30-person list presented by reformists on their ballots, even the head of the principlist list will be prevented from entering the parliament.' The Sharq newspaper reported with the headline 'Jam'eh-tin Without Hashemi' that 'while the list attributed to Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani for the Assembly of Experts was published immediately after his first campaign speech on television, his name does not appear in the electoral list of the Society of Teachers of Qom Seminary, and Hussein Ebrahimi from the Society of Clerics of Tehran has also stated: 'Currently, his name is not on the list and is almost heading towards removal.' The Qanoon newspaper, by publishing photos of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Mohammad Taqi Misbah Yazdi, with the headline 'Two Ayatollahs Reached an Agreement,' examined 'the differences and commonalities of Hashemi's list and the Society of Teachers for the Assembly of Experts elections.' Fereydoun Majlisi, in a note in the Qanoon newspaper titled 'Why Was the American Captive Crying?!' wrote: 'Two carnival shows were held to humiliate America, or perhaps to provoke the harmful people of that country. One was the symbolic chaining and theatrical display of American captives and parading them in Tehran and Qom and perhaps elsewhere, and the other was showing a film on state television of kneeling captives, one of whom was crying.' The editorial writer of the Qanoon newspaper asked, 'What feeling and under what circumstances did a young soldier, backed by the number one superpower in the world and its destroyers and naval and air giants, fall to tears?' and wrote: 'The manner of dealing and kneeling them with hands placed behind their heads could remind that American youth of the scenes of American and European captives in orange clothes with hands placed behind their necks in scenes of ISIS executions, moments before their necks were cut or they received a final bullet.' This newspaper described the film broadcasted by the Islamic Republic's state television as a recreation of 'previous anti-Iranian propaganda and Daesh-like displays' and noted, regarding the release of American soldiers: 'Why should we help in spreading hatred and anti-Iranian propaganda for free, like harmful wall climbing?' The Iran newspaper, close to the government, reported on 'signs of Tehran and Riyadh's willingness to de-escalate.' According to this newspaper, more than a month after the severance of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, during the Munich conference, 'the foreign ministers of the two countries simultaneously showed positive signs regarding the willingness to repair relations,' including Mohammad Javad Zarif emphasizing that 'there is no obstacle to cooperating with our Saudi brothers for a better future for the region,' just as Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, stated in an interview with CNN that Saudi Arabia does not have a hostile approach towards the Islamic Republic of Iran and desires good relations with Iran. Reza Mirabian, former Iranian ambassador to Kuwait, also wrote in a note in the Iran newspaper: 'Zarif and his colleagues have emphasized for a long time that as long as the separation of opponents is not based on existing realities, the prospect of lasting peace will remain out of reach, and at the Munich meeting, a major part of their efforts was focused on convincing others of this key point.' The Vatan-e-Emruz newspaper, close to the Front of Steadfastness, criticized the government's regional diplomacy, alongside a photo of the foreign minister and with the sarcastic headline 'My Friend Adel al-Jubeir,' stating: 'Despite the intensification of anti-Iranian positions by the Saudi foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif's rhetoric about Al Saud remains at odds with the current realities between the two countries.' The Arman newspaper quoted Mohammad Ajami, the director general of foreign nationals and migrants in Khorasan Razavi, stating: 'According to estimates, the number of stateless children resulting from illegal marriages of Iranian women with foreign nationals in this province exceeds 20,000.' According to Mohammad Ajami, 'The number of marriages of Iranian women with foreign nationals in Khorasan Razavi is estimated to be over 12,000.' The Sepid newspaper reported under the headline 'Two Ceremonies for One Occasion' about the holding of two parallel programs for Nurse's Day, stating: 'On one side was the minister, and on the other side was the head of the Nursing System. One ceremony was in the international conference hall of the state television, and the other was in Milad Tower. Both sides expressed dissatisfaction that they did not have a joint ceremony.' According to this newspaper, Ali Mohammad Adabi, head of the Nursing System, criticized the holding of another ceremony with the presence of the health minister, stating: 'Holding a showy celebration with a nurse impersonator and plastic people elsewhere does not solve any problems,' and even 'I have heard that 400,000 tomans were given to matrons and hospital supervisors to not attend this celebration and go to that showy celebration.' The Shahre Vahdat newspaper quoted Amir Mohsen Ziaei, head of the Red Crescent Society, stating that against the potential earthquake, 'some areas of Tehran are more vulnerable than Bam,' and therefore 'it is essential to create the necessary sensitivity about the earthquake in Tehran among officials before the people.'