Hardliners In Iran Planning For Elections, With Next Leader In Mind

According to a report by ILNA news agency in Tehran, Heydar Mohseni, a married father of two, took his own life on Thursday after receiving a dismissal order following 18 years of service at the petrochemical complex in the southwestern province of Ilam. This marks the fourth such incident within the past 12 months.

The news of Mohseni's suicide prompted a gathering of workers at the petrochemical area and the Chovar governorate. As a consequence, the Chovar security council restricted the entry of several petrochemical managers into the workplace. Nevertheless, some workers expressed concern that those responsible for Mohseni's dismissal have yet to face repercussions.

In a similar incident in December, Arash Tabarrork, a contracted worker at the plant, committed suicide after ingesting aluminum phosphide after he was prohibited from entering Chovar Petrochemical Company. Furthermore, in August 2022, Mohammad Mansouri and Ali Mohammad Karimi, both young workers, also took their lives within a 24-hour period.

Reports indicate that employees at Chovar have to endure hard working conditions and receive very low wages. This, compounded with worsening economic situation in Iran has contributed to unbearable livelihood problems and have driven at least 10 individuals to end their lives between June and August 2022.

A notable issue highlighted by ILNA is the absence of an independent trade union organization for the over 1000 workers at Chovar Petrochemical, most of whom are contracted employees, meaning that they lack job security, insurance and benefits. Their appeals to the labor ministry and governorship have not yielded positive outcomes.

The agreement, signed in March in Beijing, stipulated that the two countries would reopen their embassies within two months. However, the timeline for the reopening of the Saudi embassy in Tehran remains unclear. Alireza Enayati, the designated Iranian ambassador to Riyadh, said that the Saudi embassy will reopen but "at a time they see fit."

Enayati expressed his observations on Saudi Arabia's approach, stating, "what we see from the notes and actions of Saudi Arabia is that the country is trying to open its embassy when it suits them." Despite not yet submitting his credentials to the Saudi authorities after being appointed as ambassador, Enayati remains hopeful for progress.

The Iranian Embassy in Saudi Arabia was reopened in mid-June, following a one-month delay, marking the restoration of diplomatic relations after seven years of closure.

In response to repeated postponements, some media outlets speculated that the Saudi embassy might reopen after the religious holiday of Eid al-Adha in late June. However, the Saudi authorities have yet to offer any official explanation regarding the possible reopening of their embassy in Tehran.

Recent reports indicated the deployment of Saudi diplomats to the Espinas Palace Hotel in Tehran's north. Jahan Sanat newspaper highlighted the hotel's strategic advantage for embassy personnel and diplomats, as it includes a helipad that enhances their security during potential emergencies or attacks.

However, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson has raised concerns about the potential establishment of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel and how that may impact Iran. These comments come in line with comments from US President Joe Biden who indicated that an agreement on the normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel is likely.

During his weekly press conference Monday, Nasser Kanaani, the spokesperson of Iran's foreign ministry, said that normalization of ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel would harm regional peace and stability.

His remarks came as US President Joe Biden said July 28 that a deal may be on the way after talks his national security adviser held with Saudi officials in Jeddah on the issue.

The Islamic Republic, Israel's sworn enemy, has always opposed normalization of relations between Arab countries and the Jewish state. The regime has repeatedly described the two-state solution – perhaps the only peaceful way to resolve the conflict between Israel and Palestinians -- as a betrayal of the ‘Palestinian cause.’ Top Iranian officials in the past have called for the annihilation of "the Zionist entity.".

“It is quite clear that strengthening and stabilizing the position of the Zionist regime in the region has been America's first priority for many years," Kanaani said, noting that the United States has succeeded in establishing relations between Israel and several regional countries. “But what happened in practice was allowing the Zionist regime to increase its crimes against the Palestinian nation,” he claimed.

“Peace with the Zionist regime will not help the Palestinian nation; Iran considers any step taken towards the recognition of the regime neither in the interest of Palestine nor in the interest of peace and security in the region,” Kanaani said in a tacit threat that could potentially lead to further unrest in the region by Tehran’s proxies.

In June, Jaber Rajabi, a political analyst and activist, told Iran International that although the Islamic Republic seeks to portray itself as sympathetic to the Palestinians and championing their cause, it never supports those Palestinians who seek peace and stability, such as the Palestine Liberation Organization, and only supports militant groups. 

Rajabi said that the Islamic Republic is not committed to what he described as the Palestinian cause, noting that the regime views the Palestinian issue as a bargaining chip. Among the few cards that the Islamic republic can play in the international arena is fomenting unrest in Israel, he claimed, adding that the regime believes it can only make gains if there is a crisis.

In April, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei claimed that Israel is on the defensive, and the United States has suffered major setbacks and consecutive defeats in the region.

During the Monday press briefing, Kanaani also claimed that Iran is pursuing a policy of good neighborliness and seeks to resolve disputes with neighboring states through dialogue. However, he reiterated that the regime will not tolerate a violation of its rights over a disputed Persian Gulf natural gas field shared with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

Called Arash in Iran and Durra or Dorra by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait -- the offshore field was discovered in 1967 and is estimated to have a total proven reserves of around 310 million barrels of oil and 20 trillion cubic feet of gas. Kuwait and Saudi Arabia insist that Iran has no right over the field, claiming “exclusive” right, while Iran says any development without its consent is “illegal” according to international laws as it claims 40 percent of the field located in its territorial waters.

“Iran believes that such issues should be discussed within the framework of technical, specialized, and legal negotiations and that it is not helpful to raise them in the media,” Kanaani emphasized. 

His remarks – as well as similar ones by the country’s oil minister on Sunday – came after Kuwait's oil minister Saad Al Barrak told SkyNews Arabia July 27 that his country will start drilling and begin production at the gas field without waiting for border demarcation with Iran, reiterating the two Arab countries’ position that Iran must validate its claim to the field by demarcating its own maritime borders first.

As controversies surrounding the case are escalating, the disputed maritime field in the Persian Gulf has become a litmus test for the recent détente between Tehran and Riyadh.

He made these statements in an introduction he wrote for a research paper on the topic of hijab.

In recent months, there has been a notable increase in police and judicial actions against women and girls who choose not to wear the mandatory hijab. The Hijab and Chastity Bill, which was approved by the Judicial and Legal Commission of the Parliament, to confiscate up to 10 percent of celebrities' assets and incomes if they violate hijab rule has been met with criticism as it targets women who refuse to comply with the mandatory hijab.

Addressing the issue, Mohammad Khatami wrote that “relying on coercion has not proven to be successful and has instead led to widespread protests”. He highlighted the need “to understand the diverse and evolving nature of society and seek realistic solutions to the challenges arising from this transformation.”

The opposition to the mandatory hijab has gathered pace, particularly in recent months after the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the morality police, and the ensuing Women, Life, Freedom protests. Women continue to defy coercive measures imposed by the Islamic Republic and appear in public places without the mandatory hijab.

Recently, reports have surfaced regarding the regime's actions against institutions and online companies due to the publication of images of their female employees without the mandatory hijab.

The suspects planned to carry out bombings at several sites including the Chabad House Jewish Center in Mumbai, which was the site of a deadly attack in 2008.

Mohammed Imran and Mohammed Yunus Saki were apprehended in Pune in possession of explosives, drone equipment, laptops, and incriminating books in Arabic.

The investigation into the local Islamist terror group known as Al-Sufa led to the arrests, with documents discovered on one of the suspect's phones. The Chabad House was targeted in 2008 by Islamist Pakistani gunmen during a series of attacks in Mumbai, resulting in the deaths of seven people.

Apart from the 2008 Chabad attack, there have been other terror attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets in India. In 2021, a blast outside the Israeli embassy in New Delhi damaged cars but caused no injuries, with India attributing the attack to the Quds Force branch of Iran's IRGC.

During the past two years, Israel foiled attacks organized by the IRGC-affiliated agents in countries including Georgia, Turkey and Cyprus all aimed at killing citizens of Jewish origin.

Israel's National Security Council has also warned of continued attempts by Tehran to target Israelis worldwide, particularly in countries near Iran in West Asia, such as the United Arab Emirates, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Bahrain, and Iraq's Kurdistan region.