http://www.rferl.org/archive/Persian_Letters/latest/2098/2098.html A blog bringing you the latest trends and topics from the Iranian blogosphere http://www.rferl.org/img/rssLogo_RFERL.gif http://www.rferl.org/archive/Persian_Letters/latest/2098/2098.html en-US Copyright 2010 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:09:08 +0000 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Three days after Hassan Rohani's surprising victory, many Iranians and Iran observers are still trying to wrap their heads around how and why the moderate cleric was able to win what was expected to be a carefully managed contest. http://www.rferl.org/content/rohani-rouhani-iran-how-did-he-win/25020766.html http://www.rferl.org/content/rohani-rouhani-iran-how-did-he-win/25020766.html Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:02:58 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) In his first press conference, Rohani was asked indirectly by a reporter with the "Etemad" daily about his campaign promise to release opposition figures Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-president-jailed-opposition-musavi-karrubi/25020187.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-president-jailed-opposition-musavi-karrubi/25020187.html Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:06:56 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-president-jailed-opposition-musavi-karrubi/25020187.html#relatedInfoContainer The following is a selection of recent statements attributed to Hassan Rohani, the cleric and relative moderate who emerged the winner from Iran's June 14 presidential vote. The remarks -- on a broad range of topics from the media to morality, the Internet and hobbies, the economy, and state intervention in people's private lives -- were compiled from a recent interview with the "Sharq" daily newspaper, Rohani's website, and the televised presidential debates. http://www.rferl.org/content/rohani-quotes-iran-president-election/25018448.html http://www.rferl.org/content/rohani-quotes-iran-president-election/25018448.html Sun, 16 Jun 2013 08:28:25 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/rohani-quotes-iran-president-election/25018448.html#relatedInfoContainer Iranians have reportedly taken to the streets of Tehran and other cities to celebrate Hassan Rohani's election victory. Analysts say the cleric's win in the June 14 presidential vote demonstrates a desire for change and a move toward more moderate politics in Iran. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-victory-signals-desire-for-change/25018300.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-victory-signals-desire-for-change/25018300.html Sat, 15 Jun 2013 20:43:52 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-victory-signals-desire-for-change/25018300.html#relatedInfoContainer Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among the first to cast a ballot in the June 14 presidential election, held to vote in a successor to President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, who won a second term in a controversy-marred poll in 2009. http://www.rferl.org/content/persian-letters-supreme-vote/25017740.html http://www.rferl.org/content/persian-letters-supreme-vote/25017740.html Sat, 15 Jun 2013 07:11:39 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/persian-letters-supreme-vote/25017740.html#relatedInfoContainer Ahead of Iran's presidential election on June 14, RFE/RL asked top U.S. observers to weigh in on the effectiveness of sanctions, the end goal of nuclear negotiations, and the possible benefits of taking a more diplomatic approach toward Tehran. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-election-dennis-ross/25015144.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-election-dennis-ross/25015144.html Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:50:34 +0000 Iran Ahead of Iran's presidential election on June 14, RFE/RL asked top U.S. observers to weigh in on the effectiveness of sanctions, the end goal of nuclear negotiations, and the possible benefits of taking a more diplomatic approach toward Tehran. RFE/RL correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari spoke to Vali Nasr, a renowned expert on the Middle East and South Asia who served as an adviser to former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-interview-vali-nasr-/25015129.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-interview-vali-nasr-/25015129.html Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:40:31 +0000 Iran Ahead of Iran's presidential elections, top U.S. observers weigh in on the effectiveness of sanctions, the end goal of nuclear negotiations, and the possible benefits of taking a more diplomatic approach toward Tehran. RFE/RL correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari spoke to Ryan Crocker, a career U.S. diplomat who has served in ambassadorial posts throughout the Middle East and South Asia, including Afghanistan and Pakistan, and was assigned to the U.S. Consulate in Khorramshahr, Iran in the early ... http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-interview-ryan-crocker/25015115.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-interview-ryan-crocker/25015115.html Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:16:45 +0000 Iran Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Said Jalili, has been described by some observers as the Iranian establishment's candidate of choice in the upcoming presidential election. But others say that perception has been inflated by his campaign and may not necessarily be accurate. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-jalili-khameneis-choice/25014572.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-jalili-khameneis-choice/25014572.html Wed, 12 Jun 2013 09:09:19 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) Recent reports suggest that conservative media in Iran, including blogs and news websites, have also been increasingly targeted by censors ahead of the June 14 presidential election. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-internet-filtering-election-media/25013289.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-internet-filtering-election-media/25013289.html Tue, 11 Jun 2013 07:25:45 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-internet-filtering-election-media/25013289.html#relatedInfoContainer The United States says Iran’s upcoming presidential election is not free, fair, or credible by international standards. The comments by U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman come less than a week before Iranians go to the polls to choose their next president. Speaking in an exclusive interview with RFE/RL correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari, Sherman says the outcome of the vote and what it means for the future of the country is unclear. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-us-wendy-sherman-interview/25011529.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-us-wendy-sherman-interview/25011529.html Sun, 09 Jun 2013 09:56:12 +0000 Iran Iranian politicians often cry. Yet to this point it was rare for presidential candidates to include weeping in an official campaign video. Not so for the 2013 election, which will be held June 14. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-crying-game/25007719.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-crying-game/25007719.html Wed, 05 Jun 2013 10:22:29 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-elections-crying-game/25007719.html#relatedInfoContainer Thousands of people reportedly chanted antiestablishment slogans on June 4 at the funeral of a dissident ayatollah who died over the weekend in Iran. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-taheri-funeral-protest/25007195.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-taheri-funeral-protest/25007195.html Tue, 04 Jun 2013 19:08:53 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-taheri-funeral-protest/25007195.html#relatedInfoContainer While many Iranians remain undecided about who they will vote for in the June 14 presidential election, one of the country's most powerful military commanders has apparently made up his mind. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-election-quds-commander/25006485.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-election-quds-commander/25006485.html Tue, 04 Jun 2013 09:04:53 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-election-quds-commander/25006485.html#relatedInfoContainer The lifting of U.S. sanctions on the export to Iran of communication tools has been welcomed by activists and groups who had pushed for such a move and argued that the sanctions end up hurting ordinary Iranians, not the regime. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-us-communications-sanctions-lifted-reaction/25002764.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-us-communications-sanctions-lifted-reaction/25002764.html Fri, 31 May 2013 06:22:55 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) Iranian presidential candidate Hassan Rohani has accused Iran’s state-controlled broadcaster of lying, and another candidate, former Revolutionary Guards commander Mohsen Rezai, has accused it of censorship. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-rezai-state-broadcaster-censorship/25000617.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rohani-rezai-state-broadcaster-censorship/25000617.html Wed, 29 May 2013 10:35:00 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) Iran's establishment has prepared itself for the June 14 presidential election by upping intelligence-gathering efforts, disrupting the Internet, and launching special units intended to help it prevent the type of mass unrest seen after the 2009 vote. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-presidential-election-security-measures/24996694.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-presidential-election-security-measures/24996694.html Fri, 24 May 2013 19:49:06 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) The front page of Iran's "Ebtekar" daily is a good indication of how many Iranians felt when they heard the news that former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani -- one of the pillars of the Islamic establishment -- had been banned from running in next month's vote. http://www.rferl.org/content/rafsanjani-disqualification/24993877.html http://www.rferl.org/content/rafsanjani-disqualification/24993877.html Wed, 22 May 2013 12:13:02 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/rafsanjani-disqualification/24993877.html#relatedInfoContainer The decision by Iran’s powerful Guardians Council to bar former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from running in next month's presidential election paves the way for the country’s establishment to bring a loyalist to power. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rafsanjani-elections-/24993245.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rafsanjani-elections-/24993245.html Tue, 21 May 2013 21:54:48 +0000 Persian Letters internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari) The spokesman for Iran's Guardians Council -- the oversight body that vets all the country's election candidates -- has said that physically weak candidates will not be allowed to run. The comments appear to be a reference to the age of 78-year-old presidential hopeful Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is considered a challenge to Iran’s establishment. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rafsanjani-allowed-run/24992070.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-rafsanjani-allowed-run/24992070.html Mon, 20 May 2013 19:10:36 +0000 Iran internet_team@rferl.org (Golnaz Esfandiari)