Severe Internet disruptions and increased censorship have been reported in Iran this week by Iranians who have complained on social media websites and via messages and telephone calls to RFE/RL’s Persian Service, Radio Farda.

They say their access to Google services has been blocked and that they haven’t been able to access other sites like Facebook even with the usual antifiltering software.

The reason for the disruption is not clear. It could be an attempt by government authorities to prevent a planned silent protest that has been called by the opposition Green Movement for February 14.

The Green Path of Hope coordination council issued the call to mark the anniversary of a protest last year, which attracted tens of thousands of people and led to the house arrest of opposition leaders Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi.

Iran has disrupted the Internet before ahead of planned opposition demonstrations. 

There is also speculation that the blackout is related to the government's plan to launch a national Internet, which it reportedly has been testing for months.

Iranian officials have said that the national network will be launched soon, amid concerns that it will cut off Iranians from the World Wide Web.

Whatever the reason for the increased censorship, it has upset many. 

An Iranian man who left a message on RFE/RL’s voice mail system described the disruption he has experienced:


Another man, Amin, claimed via e-mail that he hasn’t been able to access Facebook or his Yahoo mail even with "the strongest antifiltering tools."

"This demonstrates the degree of freedom we enjoy here; we can’t even check our e-mail," he said.

Another man called to ask for help in bypassing the tightened controls:


The Internet disruption has also been acknowledged by some websites inside Iran, including "Tabnak," which has called on authorities to tell citizens why they can't access Gmail and other Internet-based e-mail programs. 

Iranian officials have had no comment on the reports.

-- Golnaz Esfandiari

Iranian news websites report that Saudi Arabia has blocked the official website of Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which is available in a dozen languages, including Arabic.

"Shafaf" says Khamenei's website was blocked by Saudi officials ahead of his sermons for Friday Prayers on February 3, parts of which the Iranian leader delivered in Arabic.

The hard-line "Shafaf" website posted a screenshot of the page it claims Saudi users get when they try to access Khamenei's website.

The website claims Saudi officials decided to block Khamenei's official website because of what it described as Iran's influence on the "Islamic awakening." Iranian officials have been using the term as part of their efforts to put their own stamp on the Arab Spring uprisings, which they claim have been inspired by Iran's own 1979 revolution.

Political tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia have been escalating over Tehran's alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington and also over last March's intervention in Bahrain by Saudi forces to help the country's Sunni rulers crush pro-reform demonstrations by the Shi'ite majority.

In his Friday Prayers sermons, Khamenei dismissed accusations that Iran has supported the Shi'ites in Bahrain:
Khamenei spoke at length about the revolutions and revolts in the region over the past year. He fell short, however, of mentioning the ongong antigovernment protests in Syria.

Ties between predominantly Shi'ite Iran and predominantly Sunni Saudi Arabia have been marked in past years by rivalry and  mistrust.

Iran last month warned Saudi Arabia not to compensate on global markets for any loss of Iranian oil exports if Tehran is hit by international sanctions, calling a pledge by Riyadh to boost output "not friendly."

Both Iran and Saudia Arabia are considered "enemies of the Internet" by the French media watchdog Reporters Without Borders over their efforts to suppress freedom of expression.

-- Golnaz Esfandiari

Security officials with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) have used the Internet to interrogate an employee of the London-based BBC Persian service, according to a February 2 report on the opposition website "IranGreenVoice."

The report says the sister of a BBC reporter was detained and put in Tehran's Evin prison, where the IRGC is thought to exert considerable control.

IRGC officials then contacted the reporter in London using e-mail information obtained from her detained sister.

They told the BBC staffer that if she talked to them, her sister would be released.

No names were mentioned in the "IranGreenVoice" report, which said the BBC reporter consulted with the head of BBC’s Persian service before she agreed to speak over the Internet with IRGC security officers.

The conversation lasted 40 minutes and took place at her home in London, according to the website.

It said “IRGC officials could see her but she could only hear their voices.”

Following the online interrogation, her sister was released.

Not An Isolated Incident

Two sources familiar with the situation have confirmed the report to RFE/RL.

Sadeq Saba, the director of the BBC’s Persian-language television service, told RFE/RL that a relative of a BBC Persian staff member had been detained in Tehran in an attempt by authorities to put pressure on the London-based BBC employee.

He said he could not discuss any more details because of security issues, but indicated that it wasn't an isolated incident.

“In recent months, the Iranian establishment has put a lot of pressure on the families of some of the BBC Persian service staff," he said. "In some cases, they have been interrogated. In other cases, their passports have been confiscated. 

"These measures have been going on in Iran for several months. Recently, a member of the family of a BBC Persian employee was detained and through that person they pressured the BBC staff member in London.”

In October, the BBC reported that Iranian police and officials had been harassing BBC staff by arresting, questioning, and intimidating their relatives in Iran.

'Hideous' Tactics

Peter Horrocks, the director of BBC Global News, said as many as 10 BBC staffers have experienced such treatment.

Saba claimed Iranian officials are trying to get the BBC staffers to quit their jobs, and he called their tactics "hideous."

“[Iranian authorities] probably feel that the BBC’s style of information is not to their benefit, therefore they want to discredit the BBC and frighten members of the BBC Persian service so that they stop working," Saba said. "These methods by Iran -- particularly, pressuring the families -- is not acceptable in the modern world."

He also said the BBC is determined to continue its work and is exploring possible ways to condemn what he called Iran’s “inhumane” actions through the European Union and human rights groups.

Iranian officials have had a tendency to harass the families of their targets, including political activists and prisoners, but this appears to be the first time they used the Internet for that purpose.

Relatives who have publicized the cases of their loved ones have also been targeted.

In December, the mother of a jailed human rights activist was sentenced to 23 months in prison for talking about her son’s case in an interview.

-- Golnaz Esfandiari

On February 1, 1979, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -- the leader of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution -- returned triumphantly to Tehran on an Air France flight from Paris after 14 years in exile.

Now, 33 years later, that return was reenacted in a bizarre ceremony that saw guards carrying a giant cardboard cutout of Khomeini down the stairs of a passenger plane and a waiting crowd paying their respects to "him."

Iranians have been faced with many unusual and absurd events in the past three decades of the rule of the clerics. The February 1 ceremony, however, may have topped them all.

A series of pictures posted by the semi-official Mehr news agency shows two solemn looking guards carrying a cardboard Khomeini as others give the serious-looking, white-bearded cleric a military salute. A marching band is seen playing music in the background.

Another cardboard Khomeini -- this one smiling and seated -- popped up at a ceremony attended by Education Minister Hamid Reza Haj Babayi and other officials to mark the ayatollah's return to the Refah School, where he set up his headquarters 33 years ago. This cardboard Khomeini sat there while the others -- some looking a bit uncomfortable next to him -- drank tea and chatted.

The ceremonies with the cardboard Khomeini were aimed at glorifying an important moment in Iran’s modern history. But they appear to have had the opposite effect, producing several jokes and mocking comments among Iranians.

Upon returning to Tehran, Khomeini was asked by a foreign reporter how he felt about coming back to his homeland after so many years. He famously replied, “Nothing.”

One joke making the rounds of social media parodies that well-known exchange:


​​Khomeini’s cardboard cutout arrived in a very different Iran than the one the real Khomeini promised Iranians. He talked of freedom and justice, but the gap between the rich and poor has been widening and the country is frequently criticized by international human rights groups for its repressive policies.

The revolutionary fervor is long gone amid widespread disillusionment.

More than three decades after the 1979 revolution, Iran has repressed many of the children and founding fathers of the revolution with whom Khomeini helped establish the Islamic state.

They include Khomeini’s protege, former prime minister turned opposition leader Mir Hossein Musavi, who has been under house arrest since last February. Reformist cleric and opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi, one of the founding fathers of the revolution, is also under house arrest.

Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been isolated and sidelined because of his rivalry with President Mahmud Ahmadinejad and his criticism of the 2009 postelection crackdown.

Some of Khomeini’s relatives have also come under pressure over their support for the opposition movement.

A Photoshopped picture of Khomeini's cardboard cutout making the rounds on the Internet alludes to the present-day situation. It shows the seated Khomeini saying to officials next to him:


A man in Tehran told RFE/RL that the cardboard Khomeini ceremonies are a “huge charade.”

"Is this how [Iranian authorities] want to regain legitimacy? By creating a cardboard idol?” he asked.

-- Golnaz Esfandiari

An Iranian opposition group has called for silent rallies to be held in Tehran and other Iranian cities on February 14, accusing the government of wasting the country’s interests and resources.

The Coordination Council of Green Path of Hope issued the call on the anniversary of a protest last year that attracted tens of thousands of people and led to the house arrest of opposition leaders Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi.

The council has called for demonstrations in the intervening 12 months, but those calls have triggered tight security measures by the Iranian establishment and failed to draw opposition activists out into the streets.

Musavi adviser and Coordination Council of Green Path of Hope spokesman Ardeshir Amir Arjomand told Radio Farda that the Iranian establishment, which has heaped praise on the so-called Arab Spring demonstrations in Egypt and Tunisia, should grant Iranians the right to protest.

We're in a very difficult and dangerous situation, we have to do all we can to change the situation," Arjomand said. "The economy is mismanaged, there’s growing poverty, [and] economic structures are collapsing."

He described Iran’s international status as "shrinking significantly" and said his country is "facing major threats."

"Because of all these issues, we need to change the situation and bring people to the scene so that their voices of protest can be heard by the establishment," Arjomand said.

The Green Movement is an initiative led by Musavi that emerged after the disputed reelection of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad in June 2009 and massive street protests challenging the result.

But the ensuing crackdown -- which included disappearances and allegations of torture, police sweeps, and televised mass trials -- has led opposition supporters to engage mostly in online protests rather than street demonstrations. More recently, security forces have outnumbered the few protesters who have dared to come out.

The Green Movement -- hobbled by the house arrest of founder Musavi -- has not been present as an organized force but its sympathizers have maintained their demands.

Based on reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda and RFE/RL

Iran’s cyberpolice say they have arrested four administrators of a Facebook group called “Daaf and Paaf,” which had launched an online beauty competition.

The chief of the cyberpolice, Kamal Hadian, made the announcement on January 30 in a press conference in Tehran.

He said the force had “destroyed” the group, which he accused of spreading corruption and immorality.

The cyberpolice also posted a note on the group's Facebook wall in which it said that the two women and two men who administered the page have confessed to their crimes.

“In the name of God, we inform you that the page 'Daaf and Paaf' is now under the control of [the cyberpolice]," the note said. "The four main managers of this group have been identified and arrested on the charge of inciting and encouraging individuals to access vulgar content through the Internet.”

Under the note by the cyberpolice, many users have left comments condemning the move, sometimes using pejorative language.

“You...took away the right of the youth to be happy in the streets; they are all sitting at home spending their days and nights having online fun. Now you have an issue with this too?" wrote one user.

Others targeted Iran’s supreme leader with comments such as “Down with Khamenei! Down with the dictator!”

Fears Of A Clampdown

The Facebook group had called on its 27,000 fans to send in pictures to take part in a competition for choosing “hot” Iranian men and women. 

The wall of the group is filled with the pictures of young Iranians of both sexes who are identified only by their first names.

It is feared that any Iranian residents in these photos could now be identified and prosecuted by the authorities, who are intent on cracking down on such "immoral" use of social media.

Iran has in recent months increased its scrutiny of its citizens' online activities.

Earlier this month, new restrictions for Internet cafes were announced, which included installing security cameras and collecting the personal data of their customers, who are usually young people.

Last year at least two individuals were sentenced to prison because of their postings on Facebook.

Facebook is one of the most popular social-networking sites among Iranians, which they access using antifiltering tools.

-- Golnaz Esfandiari

"Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, the head of the powerful Guardians Council, is Iran’s oldest man. No one knows when he was born. He is said to have been on planet Earth before all of us, even before Adam and Eve..."

That's the gist of numerous jokes that are making the rounds about the senior cleric who is in his mid- eighties.

“Jannati has a copy of the Torah signed by Moses,” is how one joke goes.

Another one has Jannati speaking to scientists: "For you the Big Bang is just a theory," he says. "For me it's a memory.”

In a similar vein, another joke has Ayatollah Jannati talking to the Fars news agency about his memories of the extinction of the dinosaurs.

The jokes seem to be a reaction to Jannati’s three decades on Iran’s political scene and his status as one of the country’s key players.

As the chairman of the Guardians Council since 1988, Jannati has played an active role in banning any attempt at political reform and disqualifying reformist and liberal election candidates.

Sociologist Saeed Peivandi believes the continuation of Jannati's “negative role” and his disconnectedness with the realities of Iran and its young population are among the main reasons for the many jokes making fun of his age.

“There are other figures who have been involved in Iranian politics for as long as [Jannati], even if they might not be as old as him" he says. "Nonetheless, they have changed their positions and have also altered their views, which have been evolving over time. But the only one who seems to be repeating the same old views like a tape recorder is Jannati. This can be hard for the public to take and they see jokes as the only way to confront it.”

Conservative Media Hit Back

The number of jokes about the uncharismatic cleric and their quick dissemination through word of mouth, text messages, and social media, has elicited a response from some conservative media.

Last week, the “Panjere” weekly, which is associated with a conservative lawmaker, said that the jokes are an “election plot” aimed at damaging the Guardians Council.

“Why has Ayatollah Jannati been targeted by so many jokes in the past few months?" it asked. "Do they want to slowly erode his scientific and political record?”

Mohammad Mousavi Khoeniha, a former Iranian official and the head of the reformist Association of Combatant Clerics, recently poked fun at Jannati on his website when he was asked about the upcoming March Parliamentary elections.

“There are two permanent things in this world,” he wrote. “One is a good reputation; the other is Ayatollah Jannati.” 

Jokes About Leaders Are Nothing New

Iranians have always made fun of their leaders. In the early years after the 1979 revolution, many jokes targeted Ayatollah Montazeri the designated successor of the founder of the Islamic republic who later became a top dissident and was put under house arrest.

In the jokes, Iranians poked fun at Montazeri who was perceived as naive. The grand ayatollah who later became known as the Godfather of the Green Opposition movement, acknowledged the jokes in an interview that was aired after his death by the Persian Service of the BBC.

In recent years, Iranian president Mahmud Ahmadinejad has been the butt of many jokes, which are often related to his appearance or to some of his controversial and unusual statements.

It appears now, however, that Jannati has replaced him on the joke scene.

As the “Baztab” weekly reported, the jokes about the cleric started last year, after the Guardians Council dismissed a rumor that Jannati had passed away following some serious health issues.

The incident probably gave some Iranians the impression that the hard-line cleric, who sometimes leads Tehran’s Friday Prayers, would stay with them forever.

The impression is reflected in a number of jokes about how the angel of death, Azrael, has been unsuccessfully making elaborate plans to send Jannati to the afterworld.

One joke fresh from Tehran has Azrael asking other archangels for help in catching Jannati.

"Gabriel, you stand at the top of the street," he says. "Michael, please stand in the middle of the street, Israfel and I will stand at the other end.”

-- Golnaz Esfandiari