Iran Agrees To Send Uranium Abroad
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has announced that Iran is ready to send 3.5 percent enriched uranium abroad for further enrichment, as requested by the United Nation.
But in an interview with Radio Farda, political analyst Reza Taghizadeh says Iran’s position has not really changed at all. “What Mr. Ahmadinejad has said is an almost insignificant tactical move in order to continue the status quo, and probably prepare new grounds for negotiations,” he says.
[listen in Farsi / read in English]
Radio Farda Web site viewers respond:
One viewer says that the Iranian regime is intimidated of the people’s Green Movement, so it is resorting to anything to prevent being overthrown.
“Ahmadinejad’s words should be regarded with suspicion; he is trying to prevent further sanctions against Iran,” another viewer comments.
Iranian Writers Abducted, Detained
One of the members of the Iranian Writers Association, Reza Khandan, has been abducted on a street in Tehran. Another member, Alireza Saghafi, has been detained after being summoned to the Intelligence Ministry.
“Making such arrests without any good reason is nothing new,” prominent poet Simin Behbahani tells Radio Farda. “Over the years, members of our association have been killed or arrested.”
Behbahani says Alireza Saghafi’s wife told her that security forces also took away her husband’s writings. “Members of the Iranian Writers Association, as with the rest of the people living in Iran, have no security,” she adds.