[FairfieldLife] Iran May Pardon Hanging Survivor
What can we say to a country that still hangs people as punishment for drug trafficking? Iran also hangs people for murder, rape, armed robbery and adultery. If this sharia law was applied in the USA, the prison overcrowding problem would be solved in no time. http://news.yahoo.com/iran-spares-life-hanging-survivor-085748048.html http://news.yahoo.com/iran-spares-life-hanging-survivor-085748048.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Invents Time Travel (sort of)
Iranian scientist claims to have invented 'Time Machine' that can predict the future Serial inventor Ali Razeghi registered The Aryayek Time Traveling Machine with Iran's state-run Centre for Strategic Inventions An Iranian scientist has claimed to have invented a 'time machine' that can predict the future of any individual with a 98 per cent accuracy. Serial inventor Ali Razeghi registered The Aryayek Time Traveling Machine with Iran's state-run Centre for Strategic Inventions, The Telegraph reported. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9985757/Irani\ an-scientist-claims-to-have-invented-time-machine.html According to a Fars news agency report, Mr Razeghi, 27, claims the machine uses algorithms to produce a print-out of the details of any individual's life between five and eight years into their future. Mr Razeghi, quoted in the Telegraph, said: My invention easily fits into the size of a personal computer case and can predict details of the next 5-8 years of the life of its users. It will not take you into the future, it will bring the future to you. Razeghi is the managing director of Iran's Centre for Strategic Invention and reportedly has another 179 inventions registered in his name. He claims the invention could help the government predict military conflict and forecast fluctuations in the value of foreign currencies and oil prices. According to Mr Razeghi his latest project has been criticised by his friends and family for trying to play God. Iranian authorities are keen to showcase the technological prowess of the country but have been criticised in recent months for allegedly faking pictures of a new jet fighter flying over mountains. Prior to that the government was accused of also faking claims that it successfully sent a monkey into space when before and after pictures appeared to show a markedly different animal. Click here for article with inevitable picture of a Delorean: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/iranian-scientist-cl\ aims-to-have-invented-time-machine-that-can-predict-the-future-8568147.h\ tml http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/iranian-scientist-c\ laims-to-have-invented-time-machine-that-can-predict-the-future-8568147.\ html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Warns US It Can Hit Bases in Minutes
Iran must feeling the pressure from the US and allies to give up its nuclear enrichment program. It may eventually cut off the Straight of Hormuz if the political situation worsens. http://news.yahoo.com/iran-hit-35-us-bases-minutes-151115760--abc-news-topstories.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran threatens to Attack
This is more bravado to prevent sanctions by other nations. It appears that the Iranian leadership is being cornered. An internal revolution could happen soon just like in Libya and other Arab Spring participants. http://news.yahoo.com/iran-says-attack-country-used-strike-soil-124225174.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Plays Down US Moves
That means they don't want to take on the US forces at this time. So, oil trade continues without interruption. This could be seen as a victory for the Obama doctrine. http://news.yahoo.com/iran-says-u-presence-gulf-not-issue-092321057.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Warns US Aircraft Carrier
They're apparently trying to assert its military might in the region. But the Americans have always maintained a policy of carrying a big stick to deter any potential aggressors. As such, the US Navy will be there no matter what the Iranians say. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/envoy/pentagon-pushes-back-iranian-warnings-u-aircraft-carrier-165850384.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Shows Downed US Spy Plane
The Iranians apparently possesses a sophisticated defense system to capture a plane fully intact. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/envoy/iran-releases-images-downed-u-spy-drone-171144210.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran Threat not Imminent?
It's only a matter of time that Israel will strike first against Iran. The question now is whether Iran has the ability to stop the air strikes from Israel. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/world/middleeast/20policy.html?_r=1hpw
[FairfieldLife] Iran warns West it will make its own nuclear fuel
I don't get it. Why don't we just destabilize Iran, as we've done before? When an invasion in the Middle East was announced, the average Iranian was disappointed when they discovered the invasion planned was against Iraq instead of Iran. Can't we send some pundits to Iran? http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9CVO0NO0show_article=1 TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran set a one-month deadline Saturday for the West to accept its counterproposal to a U.N.-drafted nuclear plan and warned that otherwise it will produce reactor fuel at a higher level of enrichment on its own. The warning was a show of defiance and a hardening of Iran's stance over its nuclear program, which the West fears masks an effort to develop a nuclear weapons capability. Tehran insists its program is only for peaceful purposes, such as electricity production, and says it has no intention of making a bomb. We have given them an ultimatum. There is one month left and that is by the end of January, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said, speaking on state television. Even if Tehran started working on the fuel production immediately, it would likely take years before it could master the technology to turn uranium enriched to the level of 20 percent into the fuel rods it needs for a medical research reactor. Still, any threat to enrich uranium to a higher level is likely to rattle the world powers that have been trying to persuade Iran to forgo enrichment altogether. Enrichment is at the center of the West's concerns because at high levels it can be used in making nuclear weapons. At lower levels, enriched uranium is used in the production of fuel for nuclear power plants. Iran dismissed an end-of-2009 deadline imposed by the Obama administration and its international partners to accept a U.N.-drafted deal to swap most of its enriched uranium for nuclear fuel. The deal would reduce Iran's stockpile of low-enriched uranium, limiting—at least for the moment—its capability to make nuclear weapons. The U.S. and its allies have demanded Iran accept the terms of the U.N.-brokered plan without changes. Instead, Tehran came up with a counterproposal: to have the West either sell nuclear fuel to Iran, or swap its nuclear fuel for Iran's enriched uranium in smaller batches instead of at once as the U.N. plan requires. This is unacceptable to the West because it would leave Tehran with enough enriched material to make nuclear arms. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, refused to comment Saturday on Iran's announcement of a one-month deadline. The U.S. State Department also had no immediate comment. The U.N. deal has been the centerpiece of the West's latest diplomatic push to get Iran to scrap a key part of its nuclear work. Under the plan, drafted in November, Iran would export most of its stockpile of low-enriched uranium for further enrichment in Russia and France, where it would be converted into fuel rods. The rods, which Iran needs for the research reactor in Tehran, would be returned to the country about a year later. Exporting the uranium would temporarily leave Iran without enough of a stockpile to further enrich the uranium into material for a nuclear warhead, and the rods that are returned cannot be processed further for use in making weapons. They (the West) must decide on supplying fuel for the Tehran reactor on one of the two offers—purchase or swap, Mottaki said. Otherwise, the Islamic Republic of Iran will produce the 20 percent enriched fuel with its own capable experts. Iran currently has one operating enrichment facility that churns out enriched uranium at a level of 3.5 percent. The country needs fuel enriched to 20 percent to power the Tehran medical research reactor. For nuclear weapons, uranium needs to be enriched to 90 percent or more. The U.N. has demanded Iran suspend all enrichment, a demand Tehran refuses to meet, saying it has a right to develop the technology under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran has also defiantly announced it intends to build 10 new uranium enrichment sites, drawing a forceful rebuke from the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency and warnings of the possibility of new U.N. sanctions. Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Update/BBC World News'
Page last updated at 19:29 GMT, Saturday, 20 June 2009 20:29 UK Iranian police have used water cannon, batons, tear gas and live rounds to break up protests over the presidential election, witnesses in Tehran say. A BBC reporter said he saw one man shot and others injured amid running fights. Defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi repeated calls for the election to be annulled on the grounds it was rigged. US President Barack Obama urged Iran's government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people, saying the world is watching. TEHRAN EYEWITNESS BBC CORRESPONDENT Security forces were everywhere in central Tehran in the late afternoon and early evening. As I spent a couple of hours driving around in heavy traffic I could see thousands of men, some uniformed members of the military riot squads, some units of revolutionary guard, and everywhere basijis - militiamen who look like street toughs. The security men were deployed on every street corner, in long lines down the sides of the roads, and in all the main squares. The basijis wore riot helmets and carried big clubs. It was designed to intimidate, and while I was there, it was working. BBC eyewitness: Heavy security The country's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei had warned protesters on Friday not to continue their rallies, but they openly defied his words. President Obama said the US stood by all who sought to exercise their right to free speech and assembly. He added: If the Iranian government seeks the respect of the international community, it must respect the dignity of its own people and govern through consent, not coercion. It was unclear if Iranian political leaders had backed their supporters continuing to march. In a letter to the electoral body, the Guardian Council, Mr Mousavi, who had not made a public comment for two days, reiterated his calls for the election to be declared void. He alleged the vote, held on 12 June, was rigged months previously. Official results of the presidential poll gave President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a resounding 63% of votes, compared to 34% for Mr Mousavi, his nearest rival. In other developments: * Thousands of police, militia and secret policemen blocked access to Enghelab and Azadi squares, and protesters were throwing stones in surrounding streets * A BBC correspondent saw one man shot in a crowd and another with injuries from a razor-wielding secret policeman * About 3,000 protesters were reportedly gathered at Enghelab Square, according to Associated Press news agency. They chanted Death to the dictator and Death to dictatorship * One witness told Reuters news agency that protesters loyal to defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi set fire to a building in southern Tehran used by backers of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad * A column of black smoke is hanging over the city centre, our correspondent says * Two Iranian news agencies reported that the suicide bomber died and two people were injured in the bombing at the shrine of Ayatollah Khomeini, leader of the 1979 revolution. Some reports could not be independently confirmed. Foreign news organisations - including the BBC - have been subjected to strict controls which prevent reporters from leaving their offices. A BBC correspondent in Tehran says his impression is that the police have broken up large crowds into smaller groups to prevent them assembling. Confusing signals Early on Saturday, the wife of Mr Mousavi and an aide to another rival candidate, Mehdi Karroubi, said the rally would go ahead, although this was later contradicted by his party. Speaking on state TV, deputy police chief Ahmad Reza Radan warned police would certainly fight against any form of illegal gathering and protest. He also said protest organisers would be arrested. The result triggered almost daily street protests - a challenge to ruling authorities unprecedented since the Islamic revolution of 1979. Mr Mousavi had been expected, along with fellow challengers Mr Karroubi and Mohsen Rezai, to discuss more than 600 objections they had filed complaining about the poll at a meeting of the Guardian Council, which certifies elections, on Saturday. But neither Mr Mousavi nor Mr Karroubi attended the meeting - which suggests, our correspondent says, they have abandoned their legal challenge to the election results. State TV quoted the Guardian Council as saying it was ready to recount a randomly selected 10% of ballot boxes. It had previously offered a partial recount of disputed ballots from the election, rather than the full re-run of the election demanded by protesters. Are you in Iran? What do you think of the current situation? Are you taking part in the demonstrations? If you have any information you would like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below: Send your pictures and video to yourp...@bbc.co.uk or text them to +44 7725
[FairfieldLife] Iran: All those close to Mousavi have been arrested
Mousavi's international spokesman Mohsen Makhmalbaf writes for the UK Guardian: I have been given the responsibility of telling the world what is happening in Iran. The office of Mir Hossein Mousavi, who the Iranian people truly want as their leader, has asked me to do so. They have asked me to tell how Mousavi's headquarters was wrecked by plainclothes police officers. To tell how the commanders of the revolutionary guard ordered him to stay silent. To urge people to take to the streets because Mousavi could not do so directly. All those close to Mousavi have been arrested, and his contact with the outside world has been restricted. People rely on word of mouth, because their mobile phones and the internet have been closed down. That they continue to gather shows they want something more than an election. They want freedom, and if they are not granted it we will be faced with another revolution. Thirty years ago we supported each other. When police used tear gas, fires would be lit to neutralise its effects. People would set their own cars on fire to save others. Since then, the government has tried to separate people from one other. What we lost was our togetherness, and in the past month we have found that again. All the armed forces in Iran are only enough to repress one city, not the whole country. The people are like drops of water coming together in a sea. Full article: http://snipurl.com/kh2zx [www_guardian_co_uk] via: http://snipurl.com/kh31d [www_huffingtonpost_com]
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran is a Dictatorship/Not a Democracy'
Iran: Der Fuhrer Speaks...
[FairfieldLife] Iran protests stolen election
News: Iranian sources say reformist leaders, including presidential candidates Mousavi and Karoubi, placed under house arrest. Police forces deploy in Tehran University to counter potential protests, dozens of journalists detained http://tinyurl.com/kqctde http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3730810,00.html Video: Protest against fake elections TEHRAN IRAN 13 June 2009 17:45 PM http://tinyurl.com/m529ue http://riverdaughter.wordpress.com/2009/06/14/late-night-open-thread-iranian-uprising/ Twitter: http://tinyurl.com/moh5sz http://www.breakingtweets.com/2009/06/13/violence-escalates-in-iran-first-deaths-reported-communication-cut-off/
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Burns' (Agnim Shr Namah)
'Iran Ass Hole'
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran in the Cross-Hairs'
They May Not Want The Bomb ~And other unexpected truths. Emerging Iran Inside a land poised between tradition and modernity A Photographic Journey By Fareed Zakaria | Published May 23, 2009 Everything you know about Iran is wrong, or at least more complicated than you think. Take the bomb. The regime wants to be a nuclear power but could well be happy with a peaceful civilian program (which could make the challenge it poses more complex). What's the evidence? Well, over the last five years, senior Iranian officials at every level have repeatedly asserted that they do not intend to build nuclear weapons. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has quoted the regime's founding father, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who asserted that such weapons were un-Islamic. The country's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued a fatwa in 2004 describing the use of nuclear weapons as immoral. In a subsequent sermon, he declared that developing, producing or stockpiling nuclear weapons is forbidden under Islam. Last year Khamenei reiterated all these points after meeting with the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei. Now, of course, they could all be lying. But it seems odd for a regime that derives its legitimacy from its fidelity to Islam to declare constantly that these weapons are un-Islamic if it intends to develop them. It would be far shrewder to stop reminding people of Khomeini's statements and stop issuing new fatwas against nukes. A Photographic Journey Following a civilian nuclear strategy has big benefits. The country would remain within international law, simply asserting its rights under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, a position that has much support across the world. That would make comprehensive sanctions against Iran impossible. And if Tehran's aim is to expand its regional influence, it doesn't need a bomb to do so. Simply having a clear breakout capacity—the ability to weaponize within a few months—would allow it to operate with much greater latitude and impunity in the Middle East and Central Asia. Iranians aren't suicidal. In an interview last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the Iranian regime as a messianic, apocalyptic cult. In fact, Iran has tended to behave in a shrewd, calculating manner, advancing its interests when possible, retreating when necessary. The Iranians allied with the United States and against the Taliban in 2001, assisting in the creation of the Karzai government. They worked against the United States in Iraq, where they feared the creation of a pro-U.S. puppet on their border. Earlier this year, during the Gaza war, Israel warned Hizbullah not to launch rockets against it, and there is much evidence that Iran played a role in reining in their proxies. Iran's ruling elite is obsessed with gathering wealth and maintaining power. The argument made by those—including many Israelis for coercive sanctions against Iran is that many in the regime have been squirreling away money into bank accounts in Dubai and Switzerland for their children and grandchildren. These are not actions associated with people who believe that the world is going to end soon. placeAd2(commercialNode,'bigbox',false,'') One of Netanyahu's advisers said of Iran, Think Amalek. The Bible says that the Amalekites were dedicated enemies of the Jewish people. In 1 Samuel 15, God says, Go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. Now, were the president of Iran and his advisers to have cited a religious text that gave divine sanction for the annihilation of an entire race, they would be called, well, messianic. Iran isn't a dictatorship. It is certainly not a democracy. The regime jails opponents, closes down magazines and tolerates few challenges to its authority. But neither is it a monolithic dictatorship. It might be best described as an oligarchy, with considerable debate and dissent within the elites. Even the so-called Supreme Leader has a constituency, the Assembly of Experts, who selected him and whom he has to keep happy. Ahmadinejad is widely seen as the mad mullah who runs the country, but he is not the unquestioned chief executive and is actually a thorn in the side of the clerical establishment. He is a layman with no family connections to major ayatollahs—which makes him a rare figure in the ruling class. He was not initially the favored candidate of the Supreme Leader in the 2005 election. Even now the mullahs clearly dislike him, and he, in turn, does things deliberately designed to undermine their authority. Iran might be ready to deal. We can't know if a deal is possible since we've never tried to negotiate one, not directly. While the regime appears united in its belief that Iran has the right to a civilian nuclear
[FairfieldLife] Iran and the Jews
But the equating of Iran with terror today is simplistic. Hamas and Hezbollah have evolved into broad political movements widely seen as resisting an Israel over-ready to use crushing force. It is essential to think again about them, just as it is essential to toss out Iran caricatures. I return to this subject because behind the Jewish issue in Iran lies a critical one the U.S. propensity to fixate on and demonize a country through a one-dimensional lens, with a sometimes disastrous chain of results. It's worth recalling that hateful, ultranationalist rhetoric is no Iranian preserve. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's race-baiting anti-Arab firebrand, may find a place in a government led by Benjamin Netanyahu. He should not. Nor should racist demagoguery wherever prompt facile allusions to the murderous Nazi master of it. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/02/opinion/02cohen.html
[FairfieldLife] Iran: the friendliest people in the world
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/destinations/middle_east/article5768065.ece http://tinyurl.com/b9g4rp The Iranians are extremely friendly. But so are the rest of the Muslims in the Middle East. It's amazing to compare the way we regard these countries from the outside and the way the people act inside their country.
[FairfieldLife] Iran: Another urban myth
Anand Utsav sent a mail to many with the subject unbelievable! !! An 8 years old child was caught in a market in Iran for stealing bread. In the name of Islam he is being punished, his arm will be crushed by a car. He will loose forever the possibility to use his arm again. Is this a religion of peace and love? The horrible pictures are on YouTube An Atrocious Crime http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=9htpx1N2qco Unbelievable? indeed! Only a little reasearch shows, it is nothing but an urban legend. But people are ready to believe anything, especially about Islam and Iran. There are already enough splits in the world. No need to create even more. Comments: The preceding images are apparently authentic -- they were published as such in 2005 on the Iranian news Web site Peyke Iran, at any rate -- but the accompanying caption doesn't jibe with the original report and was clearly fabricated after the fact. According to a Peyke Iran spokesperson who corrected the record last November in a note posted on Little Green Footballs, the young boy whose arm was run over was not being punished for a crime. He was part of a Maareke giry or street magic act and allegedly performed the stunt for money (note the gentleman speaking into a microphone in image #1). The seventh and eighth pictures in the series, which appear to show the child shaken but otherwise unharmed after the ordeal, were omitted from the email flier but can still be viewed on Peykeiran.com (where all the images are attributed to photographer Siamak Yari). From http://urbanlegends .about.com/ library/bl_ caught_stealing_ bread.htm See also http://www.snopes. com/photos/ gruesome/ crushboy. asp Here the missing last picture can be seen.
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran aid ship nearing Gaza'
Oh, great! Imagine if Iran blows up that aid-ship to look like Israel did it! Yi-Yi! Arhata 'Iran aid ship nearing Gaza' http://whatreallyha ppened.com/ content/iran- aid-ship- nearing-gaza An Iranian ship carrying humanitarian aid for Palestinians is scheduled to arrive at the port of Gaza in the coming days, a report says. The ship, which carries medicine and foods, has passed through the Suez Canal and awaits for legal permissions to enter Gaza, IRIB reported. According to the report, it is likely that the ship will dock at the port of Gaza on Saturday. === An Iranian aid ship due to dock in Gaza on Jan 6 DEBKAfile Special Report December 30, 2008 http://www.debka. com/headline. php?hid=5795 Iran's Red Crescent will send an aid shipment to the Gaza strip in the face of the Israeli blockade, according to a state broadcast Friday. The cargo of 2,000 tonnes of food and medicines accompanied by 12 Iranian doctors will sail from Bandar Abbas, HQ of the Revolutionary Guards Navy, and arrive Tuesday, Jan. 6. DEBKAfile's sources report that normally an Iranian shipment for Gaza would transit Egypt, but this week, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak denounced the deepening ties between Tehran and Damascus, further souring relations. Tehran will therefore stage-manage the delivery to show the Muslim-Arab world it can break the Israeli blockade and bring aid to Gaza's Palestinians without help. Announcement of the shipment was made by the Bandar Abbas provincial Red Crescent director Ahmad Navvab, in order to deter the Israeli navy from interfering or seizing the vessel dispatched by an international organization recognized by Israel. Tehran would then complain to the UN Security Council. It was the first time Iran acted overtly to help the Palestinians in a way that could provoke a confrontation with Israel. Israel has allowed 4 aid ships to reach the Gaza Strip, but turned a Libyan vessel always from the Hamas-ruled enclave's shore. Friday, Dec. 26, Israel opened the border crossings to Gaza to allow 90 truckloads of fuel, food and other essentials to reach the Palestinian population amid the ongoing Hamas mortar barrage. === 'Iran aid ship nearing Gaza' Fri, 09 Jan 2009 http://www.presstv. ir/detail. aspx?id=81228 sectionid= 351020202 An Iranian ship carrying humanitarian aid for Palestinians is scheduled to arrive at the port of Gaza in the coming days, a report says. The ship, which carries medicine and foods, has passed through the Suez Canal and awaits for legal permissions to enter Gaza, IRIB reported. According to the report, it is likely that the ship will dock at the port of Gaza on Saturday. The Gaza strip has been gripped by a humanitarian crisis since it came under massive Israeli fire on December 27. Gaza residents are suffering from a shortage of fuel, medicine, food and water. Hospitals are also running out of fuel required for the operation of generators that provide power supply to health facilities. According to of operations for the ICRC Pierre Kraehenbuehl, the situation of Gaza civilians is extreme and traumatic. Since the start of the Israeli attacks, at least 763 Palestinians have been killed and thousands are reported wounded. === Iranian ship destined for Palestine -- to dock at Gaza on Saturday Thursday, January 8, 2009 An Iranian aid ship, destined for Palestinians, has reportedly entered Egyptian waters and scheduled to dock at the port of Gaza on Saturday. According to IRIB, the ship, with 2000 tons of humanitarian aid, passed through the Suez Canal and will head for Gaza After obtaining needed permissions . The move came as the Israeli 13-day onslaught on the improvised strip has killed 763 Palestinians and injured thousands more. Since 2007, Tel Aviv also imposed a siege on the tiny coastal region that inflicted a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, putting lives of almost 1.5 million residents at stake. The Iranian ship carried medicine and foodstuffs including rice, flour, sugar as well as a group of medics and nurses. The Islamic Republic has also sent several consignments of humanitarian aid to the tiny land via Egypt so far. * * * * * * *** WORLD VIEW NEWS SERVICE To subscribe to this group, send an email to: wvns-subscribe@ yahoogroups. com NEWS ARCHIVE IS OPEN TO PUBLIC VIEW http://finance. groups.yahoo. com/group/ wvns/ Need some good karma? Appreciate the service? Please consider donating to WVNS today. Email ummyak...@yahoo. com for instructions. To leave this list, send an email to: wvns-unsubscribe@ yahoogroups. com
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran/Cia connections?'
Did the CIA give the Iranians blueprints to build a bomb? State of War, by James Risen She had probably done this a dozen times before. Modern digital technology had made clandestine communications with overseas agents seem routine. Back in the cold war, contacting a secret agent in Moscow or Beijing was a dangerous, labour-intensive process that could take days or even weeks. But by 2004, it was possible to send high-speed, encrypted messages directly and instantaneously from CIA headquarters to agents in the field who were equipped with small, covert personal communications devices. So the officer at CIA headquarters assigned to handle communications with the agency's spies in Iran probably didn't think twice when she began her latest download. With a few simple commands, she sent a secret data flow to one of the Iranian agents in the CIA's spy network. Just as she had done so many times before. But this time, the ease and speed of the technology betrayed her. The CIA officer had made a disastrous mistake. She had sent information to one Iranian agent that exposed an entire spy network; the data could be used to identify virtually every spy the CIA had inside Iran. Mistake piled on mistake. As the CIA later learned, the Iranian who received the download was a double agent. The agent quickly turned the data over to Iranian security officials, and it enabled them to roll up the CIA's network throughout Iran. CIA sources say that several of the Iranian agents were arrested and jailed, while the fates of some of the others is still unknown. This espionage disaster, of course, was not reported. It left the CIA virtually blind in Iran, unable to provide any significant intelligence on one of the most critical issues facing the US - whether Tehran was about to go nuclear. In fact, just as President Bush and his aides were making the case in 2004 and 2005 that Iran was moving rapidly to develop nuclear weapons, the American intelligence community found itself unable to provide the evidence to back up the administration's public arguments. On the heels of the CIA's failure to provide accurate pre-war intelligence on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction, the agency was once again clueless in the Middle East. In the spring of 2005, in the wake of the CIA's Iranian disaster, Porter Goss, its new director, told President Bush in a White House briefing that the CIA really didn't know how close Iran was to becoming a nuclear power. But it's worse than that. Deep in the bowels of the CIA, someone must be nervously, but very privately, wondering: Whatever happened to those nuclear blueprints we gave to the Iranians? The story dates back to the Clinton administration and February 2000, when one frightened Russian scientist walked Vienna's winter streets. The Russian had good reason to be afraid. He was walking around Vienna with blueprints for a nuclear bomb. To be precise, he was carrying technical designs for a TBA 480 high-voltage block, otherwise known as a firing set, for a Russian-designed nuclear weapon. He held in his hands the knowledge needed to create a perfect implosion that could trigger a nuclear chain reaction inside a small spherical core. It was one of the greatest engineering secrets in the world, providing the solution to one of a handful of problems that separated nuclear powers such as the United States and Russia from rogue countries such as Iran that were desperate to join the nuclear club but had so far fallen short. The Russian, who had defected to the US years earlier, still couldn't believe the orders he had received from CIA headquarters. The CIA had given him the nuclear blueprints and then sent him to Vienna to sell them - or simply give them - to the Iranian representatives to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). With the Russian doing its bidding, the CIA appeared to be about to help Iran leapfrog one of the last remaining engineering hurdles blocking its path to a nuclear weapon. The dangerous irony was not lost on the Russian - the IAEA was an international organisation created to restrict the spread of nuclear technology. The Russian was a nuclear engineer in the pay of the CIA, which had arranged for him to become an American citizen and funded him to the tune of $5,000 a month. It seemed like easy money, with few strings attached. Until now. The CIA was placing him on the front line of a plan that seemed to be completely at odds with the interests of the US, and it had taken a lot of persuading by his CIA case officer to convince him to go through with what appeared to be a rogue operation. The case officer worked hard to convince him - even though he had doubts about the plan as well. As he was sweet-talking the Russian into flying to Vienna, the case officer wondered whether he was involved in an illegal covert action. Should he expect to be hauled before a congressional committee and grilled because he was the
[FairfieldLife] Iran Invasion Opponent Admiral Fallen Resigns
Now its full speed ahead for chunklenuts and Darth Cheney to invade and occupy Iran on your dime! Fallon was opposed to the White House gangster's Iran plans. http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Mideast_military_chief_resigns_after_magazine_0311.html David Lindorff piece on this. Note that US Naval ships are positioning themselves off the shore of Iran right now: http://baltimorechronicle.com/2008/031208Lindorff.shtml How long do we have to put up with these criminals in office? January 20th, 2009 may be too late.
[FairfieldLife] Iran oil bourse opened 17 February
http://wikileaks.be/wiki/Wikileaks http://www.energybulletin.net/12125.html Iranian Oil Bourse by Krassimir Petrov the economic foundation of every single empire is the taxation of other nations. The imperial ability to tax has always rested on a better and stronger economy, and as a consequence, a better and stronger military. One part of the subject taxes went to improve the living standards of the empire; the other part went to strengthen the military dominance necessary to enforce the collection of those taxes. Historically, taxing the subject state has been in various forms— usually gold and silver, where those were considered money, but also slaves, soldiers, crops, cattle, or other agricultural and natural resources, whatever economic goods the empire demanded and the subject- state could deliver. Historically, imperial taxation has always been direct: the subject state handed over the economic goods directly to the empire. For the first time in history, in the twentieth century, America was able to tax the world indirectly, through inflation. It did not enforce the direct payment of taxes like all of its predecessor empires did, but distributed instead its own fiat currency, the U.S. Dollar, to other nations in exchange for goods with the intended consequence of inflating and devaluing those dollars and paying back later each dollar with less economic goods—the difference capturing the U.S. imperial tax. Here is how this happened. http://www.energybulletin.net/40371.html only six Honda Accords built by hand http://tinyurl.com/372wye The voice is that of Garrison Keiller. Living past 90, and living well, may be more than a matter of good genes and good luck. Five behaviors in elderly men are associated not only with living into extreme old age, a new study has found, but also with good health and independent functioning. The behaviors are abstaining from smoking, weight management, blood pressure control, regular exercise and avoidingdiabetes. The study reports that all are significantly correlated with healthy survival after 90. While it is hardly astonishing that choices like not smoking are associated with longer life, it is significant that these behaviors in the early elderly years — all of them modifiable — so strongly predict survival into extreme old age. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/health/19agin.html Herbs, Hypnosis May Ease Pain in the ___ http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/18/herbs-hypnosis-may-ease-common-bowel-pain/ Inside the Mind of the Boy Dating Your Daughter http://tinyurl.com/273se5 To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links * To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ * Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional * To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/join (Yahoo! ID required) * To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
Re: [FairfieldLife] 'Iran Again Speaks of Madness'
In a message dated 1/23/07 10:27:54 P.M. Central Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Ahmadinejad has threatened the State of Israel with annihilation several times in recent months, and has recently added the US and Britain to the list of countries he says will be destroyed. Now, is Ahmadinejad actually threatening annihilation or is he speaking prophetically of annihilation? He can't blame people if they take it as a threat and if he only means it prophetically then he comes off as a nut.
Re: [FairfieldLife] 'Iran Again Speaks of Madness'
On Jan 24, 2007, at 11:52 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: In a message dated 1/23/07 10:27:54 P.M. Central Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Ahmadinejad has threatened the State of Israel with annihilation several times in recent months, and has recently added the US and Britain to the list of countries he says will be destroyed. Now, is Ahmadinejad actually threatening annihilation or is he speaking prophetically of annihilation? He can't blame people if they take it as a threat and if he only means it prophetically then he comes off as a nut. If you get LinkTV, check out the program Mosaic usually on before Amy Goodman's Democracy Now. Mosaic is the news as it's shown in the middle east and various Islamic countries. You wouldn't believe some of the things these guys say. Most of it never makes it to the US newsfeeds and only occasionally the BBC.
Re: [FairfieldLife] 'Iran Again Speaks of Madness'
On Jan 24, 2007, at 12:15 PM, Vaj wrote: On Jan 24, 2007, at 11:52 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: In a message dated 1/23/07 10:27:54 P.M. Central Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Ahmadinejad has threatened the State of Israel with annihilation several times in recent months, and has recently added the US and Britain to the list of countries he says will be destroyed. Now, is Ahmadinejad actually threatening annihilation or is he speaking prophetically of annihilation? He can't blame people if they take it as a threat and if he only means it prophetically then he comes off as a nut. If you get LinkTV, check out the program Mosaic usually on before Amy Goodman's Democracy Now. Mosaic is the news as it's shown in the middle east and various Islamic countries. You wouldn't believe some of the things these guys say. Most of it never makes it to the US newsfeeds and only occasionally the BBC. Actually they're online now too: http://www.linktv.org/mosaic/streamsArchive/index.php4
Re: [FairfieldLife] 'Iran Again Speaks of Madness'
In a message dated 1/24/07 11:31:49 A.M. Central Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: If you get LinkTV, check out the program Mosaic usually on before Amy Goodman's Democracy Now. Mosaic is the news as it's shown in the middle east and various Islamic countries. You wouldn't believe some of the things these guys say. Most of it never makes it to the US newsfeeds and only occasionally the BBC. Oh, I agree! I saw a documentary called Obsession a few months ago which showed what the average person in the middle east sees on TV and it looked as hate filled as any Ku Klux Klan rally you could ever imagine. You are absolutely right when you say you wouldn't believe unless you actually see it for your self.
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Again Speaks of Madness'
Iran: Israel, US will soon die
Ahmadinejad: Be assured that the US and Israel will soon end lives Yaakov
Lappin Published: 01.23.07, 22:24
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Israel and the United States will soon be destroyed, Iran's President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad said Tuesday during a meeting with Syria's foreign minister, the
Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) website said in a report.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
assured that the United States and the
Zionist regime of Israel will soon come to the end of their lives, the Iranian
president was quoted as saying.
Sparking discord among Muslims, especially between the Shiites and Sunnis, is
a plot hatched by the Zionists and the US for dominating regional nations and
looting their resources, Ahmadinejad added, according to the report.
The Iranian president also directly tied events in Lebanon to a wider plan
aimed at Israel's destruction. He called on regional countries to support
the Islamic resistance of the Lebanese people and strive to enhance solidarity
and unity among the different Palestinian groups in a bid to pave the ground
for the undermining of the Zionist regime whose demise is, of course,
imminent.
Ahmadinejad has threatened the State of Israel with annihilation several times
in recent months, and has recently added the US and Britain to the list of
countries he says will be destroyed.
Syria's Foreign Minister, Wailed Mualem, accused the US of attempting to carry
out a massacre of Muslims and of sowing discord among Islamic faiths in the
region.
Mualem called on regional states to pave the ground for the establishment of
peace and tranquillity
while preventing further genocide of the Muslims, the
IRIB website said.
-
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[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Prepares For War'
Iran says to launch large military exercise www.chinaview.cn 2006-08-18 00:49:13Related special report: Iran Nuclear Crisis TEHRAN, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian army said on Thursday that it would launch a large-scale military exercise Saturday, the state television reported. The maneuver will begin in southeastern Iran Saturday, military spokesman Gen. Mohammad Reza Ashtiani was quoted as saying. "It will be carried out stage by stage for a period," he added, without revealing exactly when the exercise would end. "The maneuver is aimed at introducing our new defensive doctrine," Ashtiani said, adding that 12 infantry regiments would participate in the upcoming exercise dubbed "The Blow of Zolfaghar." Zolfaghar is the sword used by Imam Ali, one of the most revered figures for Shiite Muslims. In addition, Ashtiani said that the maneuver came against a backdrop of tensions in the Mideast, saying "We must be ready to fight against any threat and we should be a role model for other countries." "The army is prepared to destroy all plots against the Islamic Republic," he added. In April, Iran launched another large-scale military exercise, the biggest in several years. During the game, Iran said it had tested advanced weapons including missiles and torpedoes. The new Iranian war game will come when Tehran is facing heightened pressure as a UN Security Council resolution urges it to halt uranium enrichment by Aug. 31. EnditemEditor: Get your email and more, right on the new Yahoo.com __._,_.___ To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS Visit your group "FairfieldLife" on the web. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. __,_._,___
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Arming Hezbollah/To The Teeth'
Israel's enemy is no ragtag militiaAnti-tank missiles proving deadlyAug.5, 2006. 01:00AMBENJAMIN HARVEY ASSOCIATED PRESS JERUSALEMHezbollah's sophisticated anti-tank missiles are perhaps its deadliest weapon in the fighting in Lebanon, with their ability to pierce Israel's most advanced tanks. Experts say this is further evidence that Israel is facing a well-equipped army in this war, not a ragtag militia. Hezbollah has fired Russian-made Metis-M anti-tank missiles and owns European-made Milan missiles, the army confirmed yesterday. In the last two days alone, these missiles have killed seven soldiers and damaged three Israeli-made Merkava tanks, vaunted as symbols of Israel's might, the army said. Israeli media say most of the 44 soldiers killed in four weeks of fighting were hit by anti-tank missiles. "They (Hezbollah guerrillas) have some of the most advanced anti-tank missiles in the world," said Yossi Kuperwasser, a senior military intelligence officer who retired earlier this summer. "This is not a militia, it's an infantry brigade with all the support units," Kuperwasser said. Israel contends Hezbollah gets almost all of its weaponry from Syria and by extension Iran, including its anti-tank missiles. That's why cutting off the supply chain is essential and why fighting Hezbollah after it has spent six years building up its arsenal is proving so painful to Israel, officials say. "To the best of my understanding, they (Hezbollah) are as well-equipped as any standing unit in the Syrian or Iranian armies," said Eran Lerman, a retired army colonel and now director of the Israel/Middle East office of the American Jewish Committee. "This is not a rat-pack guerrilla, this is an organized militia." Besides the anti-tank missiles, Hezbollah is also known to have a powerful rocket-propelled grenade known as the RPG29. These weapons are also smuggled through Syria, an Israeli security official said, and were used by Palestinian militants in Gaza to damage tanks. Yesterday, Jane's Defence Weekly, a defence industry magazine, reported that Hezbollah asked Iran for "a constant supply of weapons" to support its operations against Israel. It cited Western diplomats as saying Iranian officials promised Hezbollah a steady supply of weapons "for the next stage of the confrontation." Top Israeli intelligence officials say they have seen Iranian Revolutionary Guard soldiers on the ground with Hezbollah troops. They say that permission to fire Hezbollah's longer-range missiles would likely require Iranian go-ahead. Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. __._,_.___ To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS Visit your group "FairfieldLife" on the web. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. __,_._,___
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran-Conta/Dealing With The Devil?'
I understand that the Reagan administration dealt with the Iranians; In the 80's... The hostages, in captivity for 444 days under Jimmie Carter; Were suddenly released in Ronald's inauguration day, that January, 1981... Remember, Ollie North, and all of that nonsense... Now, we are 'Dealing' with the Iranians, again? Make's no sense to me... This guy in Iran, reminds me of AdolfHitler, doesn't he to you? Same type, a little man, in stature, Has sexual issues as well; I am sure... Anyway, this guy's obviously sold his soul to the Devil; And we are dealing with him, Why??? If the Israel's seem a Little aggressive in pursuing their goal; Of self-survival... In the end, can they really depend on the United States; Not to sell them out? Robert Gimbel Seattle,WA. Do you Yahoo!? Next-gen email? Have it all with the all-new Yahoo! Mail Beta. __._,_.___ To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS Visit your group "FairfieldLife" on the web. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. __,_._,___
[FairfieldLife] Iran and Hizbullah
--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, sparaig [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: For the Iranians to take such blatant action makes no sense, IMHO. Getting someone ELSE to attack Israel, maybe, but attacking Israel directly? That's an act of war. I agree with you, see below article with regard to Iran and Hizbullah connection. (sorry it's a bit long) Since Khomeini's rise to power in 1979, Iran has maintained aspirations to lead the radical Islamic camp and continues to deepen its ties to extremist states and terrorist groups throughout the Middle East (Hizbullah in Lebanon, Hamas and the Islamic Jihad in the West Bank and Gaza). At the same time Iran has engaged in a public relations campaign aimed at convincing the West, as well as its neighboring Gulf States of its benign intentions and fitness to be fully integrated into the community of nations. The one realm where Iran has made no attempt to disguise its ideological fervor is with regard to its implacable hatred of Israel. Iran remains committed to the proposition that Israel has no right to exist and that its destruction is a desideratum. The following statements, coming from the highest levels of authority in Teheran, give evidence of the ideological obsession which Iran has with Israel's very existence: The government and people of Iran are of the opinion that the Israeli entity is false and artificial. In fact there is no nation named 'Israel'.The Zionists scraped together some people from all over the world and, based only on racism, brought about the Zionist regime by virtue of the conquest of Palestine. (Pres. Ali Khameini addressing senior officers of the Iranian Air Force, Feb. 8, 1996 - Radio Teheran.) The power of Islam will ultimately bring about the end of the usurpatory and rootless Zionist regime, which has forced its presence upon Palestinian land and which must be destroyed. (Friday sermon delivered by Pres. Ali Khameini on Feb. 20, 1996 - Iranian News Agency - IRANA.) When others talk about liberating Palestine they mean the 'annexed' territories of 1967, we mean all Palestinian Land...Iran is the only country which is opposed to the basic existence of Israel (Foreign Minister Velliati, Feb. 6, 1996 - interview in Salaam.) It comes as no surprise, then, that one of Iran's major policy goals is the wrecking of the Middle East peace process. An Arab World, which is overwhelmingly Moslem, at peace with Israel contradicts an essential pillar of Iranian ideology. To this end Iran has fomented terrorism, either in the West Bank and Gaza or on Israel's northern border, in an attempt to bring about the collapse of the peace process. Putting its creed into deed, Iran has been implicated in terror attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets throughout the world (i.e. the bombing of the Israel Embassy in Buenos Aires in March 1992, the attempt on the life of Jewish communal leader Jaques Kimche in Istanbul in June 1993, and the bombing of the Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires in July 1994). Iranian Embassies and Consulates are forward outposts for terrorist operations with numerous attaches coming and going in the weeks prior to and following bombings and assassinations. The Iranian diplomatic mail service, which is inviolable to search and seizure, is constantly used to ferry arms and explosives to operatives around the world. Recognition of official Iranian direction of terrorist activities was evidenced by the warrant for the arrest of Security Minister Falahian issued by German authorities. Falahian is suspected of having engineered the assassination of Iranian dissidents living in Germany in the early 1990's. In March 1996 a major shipment of arms and explosives destined for Iranian terrorists based in Germany was discovered at the Belgian port of Antwerp. Security sources indicate that the shipment was to be used in terrorist attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in Europe. Iran views Hizbullah as its spearhead in the battle against Israel. Hizbullah terrorists are almost in constant combat against IDF troops. The geographic location of Lebanon coupled with its political situation easily enables Iran to ship weaponry, with Syrian acquiescence, to Hizbullah units operating on Israel's border. In January 1996 three Iranian trucks loaded with arms were intercepted by Turkish authorities on their way to Lebanon via Turkey and Syria. Reliable reports indicate that since April 1996 thirty (30) Iranian planes loaded with ammunition and weapons have landed at Damascus airport. Their cargo, which included Sagger anti-tank missiles, long range Katyusha rockets and high explosive anti-tank mines, was subsequently transferred to Hizbullah forces in south Lebanon. Moreover, according to reports in El-Hiyatt (January 21, 1997) Syria and Iran continue to jointly coordinate Hizbullah's current role and political future. Iran was instrumental in the
[FairfieldLife] Iran
What counts are the facts on the ground: i.a. the momentum Iran and the world is caught up in, as represented by Iran's current leadership. Find below an attempt to aid the serious seeker for information. IRAN'S NUCLEAR AND MISSILE PROGRAMS: http://www.hsfk.de/downloads/Panel1%20-%20Cordesman.pdf INTERNAL AFFAIRS: http://www.rferl.org/reports/iran-report http://www.merip.org/mero/mero011805.html RECENT DEVELOPMENTS.. [GOOGLE] http://news.google.com/news?as_q=iran+terrorsvnum=10as_scoring=rhl=enned=usie=UTF-8btnG=Google+Searchas_epq=as_oq=as_eq=as_nsrc=as_nloc=as_occt=anyas_drrb=qas_qdr=as_mind=18as_minm=3as_maxd=17as_maxm=4 [BBC] http://newssearch.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl?scope=newsukfstab=newsedition=dq=Irango.x=0go.y=0go=go GREAT RECENT BACKGROUND ON IRAN AND U.S. FAILURE'S IN THE MIDDLE EAST: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/104-5257491-0240728?%5Fencoding=UTF8dym=0search-type=ssindex=stripbooks%3Arelevance-abovefield-keywords=Robert%20Baer To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links * To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
[FairfieldLife] Iran - good news for a change...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4907406.stm Growing popularity of Sufism in Iran Roxana Saberi BBC News Tehran The lights are dimmed in a home in northern Tehran. The men, women and teenagers gathered in the large living room close their eyes and rock back and forth to the beat of live music. As the tambourine and drums beat louder and faster, some members of the group climb to their feet. They begin to swirl slowly in circles and raise their hands to the ceiling. A few fall into trances. You can somehow touch relaxation, says 22-year-old Mahsa, who believes that music and dance can provide a direct route to Allah. It's a very good sensation, and you think your soul is flying, that somehow you're not in your body. These Iranians consider themselves Shia Muslims, as do most Iranians, and look to the first Shia Imam, Ali, as a spiritual guide. But they also call themselves Sufis. Sufis believe that at the core of all religions lies the same truth and that God is the only reality behind all forms of existence. They also believe that the individual, through his or her own efforts, can reach spiritual union with God. Spread of Sufism Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, appeared in the eighth century in present-day Iraq. Iranian Sufis say Islamic mysticism has become more and more popular in the country in recent years. The authorities are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all. They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic Heshmatollah Riazi Iranian academic No official statistics are available, but Heshmatollah Riazi, a former professor of philosophy and theology in Iran, believes two to five million Iranians practice Sufism today - compared to only about 100,000 before Iran's Islamic Revolution of 1979. He says Iran is home to the largest number of Sufis in the Middle East. Sufis have nothing to gain from superficial religious thoughts, and they seek spirituality, says Mr Riazi. Nowadays, hundreds of young Iranians are increasingly joining Sufi groups. They need something to develop love and their internal sense of freedom. Some Iranians who are attracted to Sufi sessions say their gatherings provide entertainment and camaraderie. Others say they like Sufism for its liberal view of religion. Official religion has a series of limitations, and its limitations are much stricter than in Sufism, says 20-year-old Ashkan, a member of the New World Unity Sufi group in Iran. Growing tensions Many Iranian Sufis also report that the growing popularity of Sufism has contributed to greater tensions between them and certain elements of the Islamic regime. Earlier this year, violent clashes broke out after authorities ordered the closure of a Sufi house of worship, or Husseinieh, in the central Iranian seminary city of Qom. Iran - contrary to the propaganda that the world spreads against it - is one of the freest countries of the world, and Sufis also are part of this country and are completely free Javad Arianmanesh Parliamentary Cultural Commission Members of the Nematullahi Gonabadi Sufi group say the Husseinieh was set on fire and that hundreds of their members who had refused to leave the building were arrested, although most have been released since then. Qom's governor, Abbas Mohtaj, has said the Sufis were ordered to leave because they had begun building on the property without the necessary permits, the government-run Iran newspaper reported on its website. Mr Mohtaj has also been quoted as saying the Sufis had ties to foreign countries that were trying to create insecurity in Iran. But Riazi denies these charges and says the authorities had other motives for shutting down the Husseinieh. [The authorities] are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all, says Mr Riazi, a member of the Gonabadi group, which does not have music or dancing at its gatherings. They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic. Sufism and orthodoxy In the past, certain Sufi groups have come into conflict with orthodox Islam. They caused concern among some clergy over the observance of practices that departed from traditional ritual. Sufi musicians at a gathering in Tehran Some Sufis say before Iran's Islamic Revolution, Mohammad Reza Shah imprisoned some Sufi leaders. They say in the early years after the revolution, the new regime also confronted some Sufi groups - detaining some leaders and shutting down their gatherings. Sufis look to their own spiritual leaders, while Iran's official version of Islam advocates the practice of following a Marja-e taqlid, or a cleric who is an expert in Islamic jurisprudence. And in contrast to Sufis, orthodox Muslims believe that a person can never become God or be united with him.
[FairfieldLife] 'Iran Offers Oil/Bush Says No!'
By ALI AKBAR DAREINI, Associated Press Writer Wed Sep 7,12:54 PM ET TEHRAN, Iran - Iran offered to send the United States 20 million barrels of crude oil in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina if Washington waived trade sanctions, but a State Department official said Wednesday that offer was rejected. In a gesture that mirrors American aid offers after a devastating 2003 earthquake in Iran, Tehran's envoy to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said his government would ship up to 20 million barrels of oil, state radio reported late Tuesday. "If U.S. sanctions are lifted, Iran is prepared to send that quantity of oil to America," the radio quoted Hossein Kazempour as saying. But in Washington, the State Department's executive secretary, Harry K. Thomas Jr., said the offer was rejected because it was conditional. Last week, the Iranian Foreign Ministry offered to send relief supplies to the American Red Cross' name=c1> SEARCHNews | News Photos | Images | Web' name=c3> American Red Cross; Iranian newspapers reported that no response had been received. Iran's offers reciprocates the goodwill that the United States displayed after an earthquake flattened the southeastern Iranian city of Bam in 2003, killing more than 26,000 people. The United States flew in emergency supplies, which were gratefully unloaded at an Iranian airport. The Bam gesture did not, however, lead to an improvement in relations. The United States and Iran have had no diplomatic relations since militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held its occupants hostage in 1979. Washington then imposed a range of sanctions on Iran. The United States accuses Iran of sponsoring terrorism and secretly trying to build nuclear bombs charges that Iran denies. Hurricane Katrina has severely disrupted U.S. oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico and reduced the country's refining capacity by more than 10 percent. Thomas said the United States has accepted offers of nearly $1 billion in assistance from some 95 countries after Hurricane Katrina. Cuba offered to send medical personnel. Washington and Havana do not have diplomatic relations, and the United States has had trade sanctions on Cuba since 1963. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said earlier that the offer was being considered.__Do You Yahoo!?Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS Visit your group "FairfieldLife" on the web. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.
