Iran's revolution? The hardliners won -by Simon Tisdall
If anyone still wonders what happened to the Iranian revolution of 2009, the answer is: the hardliners won. A raid today on the Tehran office of the vanquished presidential candidate, Mehdi Karoubi, crude threats against leading opposition figures, pre-emptive arrests of students returning to university, more fierce rhetoric aimed at foreign "plotters" – these are but the latest unpleasant manifestations of the regime's retrenchment after the feverish days in June when it nearly lost control.
Mahmoud Amadinejad's reviving confidence is evident, too, in his mockery of western countries keen to revive talks about Iran's nuclear programme. This discussion is closed, the president declared this week, although he offered to discuss "global issues" with Barack Obama any place, any time. The best forum would be live on television, he added. Given that Iran has yet to formally respond to Obama's "unclenched fist" initiative, a second question may also be answered with confidence. Is Iran taking western concerns seriously? No, it is not.
No comments:
Post a Comment