Wednesday's Daily Briefing on Iran

DoctorZin reports, 8.3.2005:

Meet a Key to a Golden Iranian Future

Rachel Zabarkes Friedman, The National Review:

You may not know or recognize his name, but you’ve probably seen Ahmad Batebi’s face. In the picture that made him famous six years ago, Batebi, then just 21, his longish dark hair held back with a cloth band, is holding a bloody t-shirt above his head. That picture was taken at a student demonstration in Tehran in July of 1999, and the t-shirt belonged to a colleague of Batebi’s, a victim of government-backed violence against the peaceful protesters.

Soon after that demonstration, The Economist ran Batebi’s photo on its cover. Unwittingly transformed into a symbol of the Iranian student movement, a diverse and sizeable pro-liberty force, Batebi was thrown in jail for tarnishing the Islamic republic’s image. His sentence was originally death... READ MORE

Rachel published an interview with Batebi who is in hiding in Iran.

Here are a few other news items you may have missed.

• SMCCDI reported that tens of Saghezi residents have been killed or wounded following bloody aerial attacks.
• Potkin Azarmehr, Iran va Jahan reported that protests by the Iranian Kurds condemning the brutal murder of Shwane Ghaderi reached the Kurdistan province capital, Sanandaj.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that the Bush administration has justified its softly-softly approach to the Iranian nuclear program on grounds it has firm commitments from the Europeans to get tough should diplomacy fail. Those promises are about to be put to the test now.
• Middle East Newsline reported that Iran has asserted that its enhanced Shihab-3 intermediate-range ballistic missile can strike targets at distances of nearly 2,000 kilometers. Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani was quoted as saying, the liquid-fuel Shihab could also be fitted with a nuclear warhead.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad received religious approval to take office. He is sworn to be in on Saturday. BBC News reported also. Photo.
• ScanIranic asked, who assassinated Judge Moghaddas (the judge who sentence Ganji)?
• The NY Sun in an editorial said, the suffering of Akbar Ganji epitomizes why America can't afford to let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon.
• Reporters Without Borders staged a "Free Akbar Ganji" protest outside Iran Air office in Paris. Photos. Iranian/Americans held a demonstration in San Francisco.
• Roozonline reported that Masoumeh Shafiee, Akbar Ganji's wife, is going through the most difficult times yet saying, They want to kill him. Please help us.
• Roozonline reported on an meeting on Iran's nuclear program where Javad Larijani, tipped to be the next Iranian Foreign Minister, reportedly said, that nuclear weapons would bring more headaches than solutions to Iran and that Iran should not rule them out against the country’s enemies, arguing that since Iran possesses nuclear facilities, it is only natural for it to also have a nuclear defense.
• Iranian blogger, Mehrdad Sheibani, Roozonline published an interesting compilation of statements by world leaders on Iran's threat the restart parts of its nuclear program.
• Ray Takeyh, The Washington Post published a book review on Ken Timmerman's: COUNTDOWN TO CRISIS. Ken responds.
• And finally, Mahabad.org published photos showing Iranian Kurds protesting.