حزب مردم بلوچستان Balochistan People’s Party بلوچستانءِ اُستمانءِ گــَل
Israeli hasbara to say it in Persian
Jul. 8, 2007; http://www.jpost.com
While American and Israeli leaders vow that
all options remain on the table in dealing with Iran's race to acquire
nuclear weapons, it seems that all options are being kept open on the
desktop as well.
The Foreign Ministry unveiled a Persian-language version of its Web site on
Monday that it hopes will speak "above the heads" of the regime in Teheran,
directly to Iran's younger generation.
The site is part of diplomatic efforts to educate the Iranian people about
the Jewish state, "who have been purposely distanced from information about
Israel, and fed lies and hatred by the Iranian regime." The site, called
Hamdami ("clarity" in Persian), can be found at https://hamdami.com.
The site was the brainchild of Israel's ambassador in Dublin, Dr. Zion
Avroni during his tenure as head of policy planning at the foreign ministry.
The site is managed by the department of Arab communications in the
ministry's public diplomacy division. Menashe Amir, the former director of
Israel Radio's Persian service, is its editor-in-chief, supervising a small
staff who will translate content into Persian, as well as answer questions
from readers and provide on-line feedback.
Amir told The Jerusalem Post his team was expecting a great deal of such
feedback. "Studies show that over 60 percent of the Iranian population is
under 40 years of age, and that the number of Web surfers is somewhere
around 11 million out of a population of 70 million. So the Internet is now
the most effective means of communication to the Iranian people," he said.
The ministry has versions of its site in Hebrew, Arabic and English. The
Arabic site receives a large volume of feedback ranging from requests for
information from students and researchers, to requests for immigration
information, asylum and employment, as well as encouragement and of course,
vicious slurs. The sites are frequently attacked by hackers. All of the
ministry's sites are subjected to constant cyberspace attacks, even more so
than the other Israel government Web sites, a Foreign Ministry
representative told the Post.
The Persian-language site is expected to come under particularly vicious
cyber-attacks, as the Iranian regime sees the Internet as a potent threat to
its hold on power and is particularly worried about the spread of Western
influence through the Internet, especially when it comes to culture and
religion.
"Iran's regime actively fights against the spread of Internet freedom in
Iran, and we have taken this into account," a ministry representative said,
adding that the ministry had a department that combated, "in a Sisyphean
manner," attacks on Israeli government cyber assets.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite images show work near Iran nuclear site
Mon Jul 9, 2007; http://www.reuters.com
By Carol Giacomo, Diplomatic Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Commercial satellite imagery shows Iran is building a
new tunnel facility inside a mountain near a key nuclear complex -- a
possible attempt to protect parts of its uranium enrichment program from
aerial attack, nuclear analysts said on Monday.
The pictures taken on June 11 were obtained from DigitalGlobe, a commercial
satellite imagery firm, by the Institute for Science and International
Security, whose president is David Albright, a physicist and former U.N.
weapons inspector in Iraq.
"The construction activity is taking place in the closest mountainous area
to the Natanz site, strongly suggesting that the site is affiliated with
Natanz," Albright and colleague Paul Brannen said in a written analysis.
Natanz, in central Iran, is where Tehran is enriching uranium in defiance of
U.N. Security Council demands and limited sanctions.
Albright told Reuters that Iran probably would use the tunnel facility for
storage -- of low enriched uranium or centrifuge manufacturing equipment --
rather than for housing an operational program.
Relocating thousands of centrifuges, the rotating cylinders that are
interconnected in cascades to enrich uranium, is unlikely because it would
be difficult and costly, he said.
Enrichment is key to producing fuel for both nuclear weapons, which major
powers say is Iran's goal, and nuclear energy, which Tehran insists is its
objective.
The researchers said the construction is new and was not evident in January
images taken by DigitalGlobe.
Tunnel entrances are not visible in the
satellite photos, but two roads under construction can be seen, with one
appearing to lead into a tunnel facility, the analysis said.
It said Iran had earlier built a tunnel complex near the Esfahan uranium
conversion facility to protect nuclear-related equipment and materials and
natural uranium hexaflouride.
"Iran may be constructing a similar facility near Natanz, fearing that the
underground halls at Natanz are vulnerable to destruction by military
attack," they said.
Albright said the site could also be for direct defense of Natanz, housing
anti-aircraft batteries or command and control equipment.
U.S. officials insist they remain committed to a diplomatic solution to the
nuclear dispute with Iran, but that all options, including a military
response, are open.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack refused to comment on the tunnel
report, saying he would not discuss intelligence matters.
Albright said the tunnel project is significant because of its rapid
construction and underscores the difficulty of planning a military strike
against Iran's nuclear program.
The discovery could set up a confrontation between Iran and the
International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, if Iran
refuses to let U.N. monitors inspect the site, he said.
"The inspectors need to go in there and make sure there is no nuclear
material being hidden there," Albright added.
Other nuclear experts played down the construction.
"It is something that the IAEA wants to
clarify, but it does not mean it is related to the nuclear issue just
because it is close to Natanz," said a diplomat close to the International
Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
Asked if the apparent tunnel-building would be on the agenda during an IAEA
visit to Iran later this week, the diplomat said: "It is not the main
objective, but it is something that might come up."
A senior U.N. official familiar with IAEA operations in Iran said: "The
excavations have been there for a while."
(Additional reporting by Mark Heinrich and Karin Strohecker in Vienna)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bahrain wants Iran to clarify ‘province’ claim
15/07/2007
Source ; http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com
MANAMA • Claims by the editor of a hardline
Iranian newspaper that Bahrain is part of Iran and should be returned have
provoked uproar in the Gulf Arab island which is seeking an explanation from
Tehran.
Hossein Shariatmadari, editor of conservative Iranian daily Kayhan, said in
an article published on Monday that Bahrain was a province of non-Arab,
Shi’ite Iran, and that Bahrainis were demanding the island's return to its
"native land".
“It goes without saying that such an indisputable right for Iran and the
people of this province should not and cannot be overlooked,” Shariatmadari
wrote, as he claimed that Bahrain was separated from Iran “through an
illicit conformity between the former Shah and the governments of Britain
and the US.”
The comments caused a firestorm in Bahrain, which has a majority Shi’ite
population but is ruled by a Sunni royal family, and threaten to escalate
into a diplomatic spat.
"We are awaiting an official response from Iran on the ... Shariatmadari
issue," a Bahraini Foreign Ministry official who declined to be named
yesterday.
Sectarian tensions have flared in Bahrain in the past, as Shi’ites complain
of discrimination in jobs and services.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to whom Shariatmadari is
considered close, is one of a number of religious leaders to whom Shi’ite
Muslims look for guidance, although only a minority of Bahraini Shi’ites
follow Khamenei.
Bahrain's Shura Council, or upper chamber of parliament, condemned
Shariatmadari's comments.
"The shura council in Bahrain has strongly deplored the irresponsible
statements released by the adviser to Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei and managing editor of Iranian daily Kayhan, Hossein Shariatmadari,"
it said in a statement.
Bahrain is an ally of the United States and hosts the US navy's Fifth Fleet,
whose deployment of two aircraft carriers off Iranian waters in recent
months has raised pressure on the Islamic Republic in its nuclear standoff
with the West.
Iran says its nuclear enrichment programme is peaceful but Western powers
suspect it is secretly building a bomb.
Iran's embassy in Bahrain said Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki
would address the issue during a trip to the tiny Gulf Arab kingdom today.
It was not clear whether Shariatmadari's comments triggered the visit.
Embassy spokesman Abulghasem Vafaei distanced Iranian policy from
Shariatmadari, saying he did not advise Iran's leadership in foreign
affairs. "This article is completely his personal view, it is not related to
any official. This man is a journalist, not an adviser in foreign policy,"
he said.
“Hands off Bahrain!” read the main front page title in yesterday’s Gulf
Daily News, quoting from the harsh response made by Abdulrahman Al Attiya,
Secretary-Ggeneral of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), to Iranian claims
that the small but oil-rich archipelago-nation of Bahrain was a province of
Iran and ought to be reunited with the Islamic Republic.
Other newspapers of the region react in a similar way. Bahrain “was never
and will never be part of Iran," the Al Waqt daily said.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iranian security forces infiltrating Baloch oppositions
July 15, 2007
Iranian government is using expulsion of illegal Afghan nationals to
infiltrate people resistance movement (former Jondollah) and other Baloch
opposition parties.
The expulsion of Afghans intensified after Jondollah’s attacks on Iranian
security forces in Zahedan. Before that Iran was following United Nations
guidelines for sending afghan nationals back to Afghanistan. Along with
Afghan expulsions, Iranian government is rounding up Iranian Baloch and
expelling then to Afghanistan The Baloch are expelled for not having a valid
Iranian identity card or are accused of having fake identity cards while
Baloch have valid identity cards and own houses, farms, parents in Iranian
Balochistan, the Iranian government knows that the expelled Iranian Baloch
would be attracted and absorbed by Jondollah and other Iranian Baloch
activists. Some of the expelled Iranian Baloch are trained by Iranian secret
agents to act as innocents who have been expelled for the wrong reason from
their country and majority of expelled Iranian Baloch are innocent people
who are used as escape goat to implement this infiltration tactics.
Thousands of innocent Baloch who have valid identity cards, legitimate
business, employed by private sector, are expelled to Afghanistan to achieve
number of objectives.
The first one is to infiltrate the Jondollah and Iranian Baloch opposition
parties; the second is to implement ethnic cleansing and changing
Balochistan demographics to populate it with Shiites and government
sympathetic Persian speaking. The other is to strike fear in Baloch hearts
as not to support Jondollah. The Iranian government employs many tactics
such as giving immunity to smugglers for infiltrating People resistance
movement, hiring tribal chieftains but this one would be their best result
oriented tactic and its guaranteed to produce results if Baloch activists
are not careful in their screening and recruiting and eventually will bring
the Iranian Baloch oppositions to its knees.
Iranian spy agents are very active among Baloch communities in Pakistan and
Afghanistan. They are also very active among Iranian opposition in Europe,
United States of America and Canada to control and direct the Iranian
opposition parties against Iranian Baloch that is why the Iranian opposition
abroad is dead silent in Europe, United States of America and Canada about
Iranian government crimes against Iranian Baloch. In some cases Iranian
opposition abroad may be helping Iranian government to thwart Iranian Baloch
activities against Iranian government. To counter Iranian spy agencies, the
Iranian
Baloch recruiters must ask the potential fighters to write their diaries,
then analyze their diaries, looking for discrepancies, asking questions
about unclear answers over and over but do not punish the liars or caught
Baloch agents, simply retrain them on love for Baloch and Balochistan then
send them back to their families.
The following tactics may be used in recent Baloch expulsions to Afghanistan
and Pakistan.
They have the following briefs practiced repeatedly. The process is
supervised and completed by the higher agents of the Etela-at. One of the
disclosed agents of the etela-at has said that “intelligence agent got my
diary more then 30 times and corrected it.” The reason is that the indicator
for the success of any infiltration mission is that contrary to the past,
the dispatched agent should be able to answer any question in regards to
himself and his past history and not to dodge to answer any question.
· Trained Baloch etela-at agents are told that Don't show enthusiasm to join
Jondollah or other and try to stay some more time in Afghanistan or Pakistan
and tell them that you don't want to join Baloch oppositions and if they
want you to do something for them, you would do it for them in Afghanistan,
Pakistan or other countries. If they do not agree, show that as if you are
helpless and you have no other choice so you have to go to their camps.
· When you get to Afghanistan, Pakistan, say that you were expelled by the
criminal Iranian government and then you want to try to find a home (Place
to stay, live) in Afghanistan, Pakistan or abroad. And tell them that you
cannot tolerate being away from your family or staying here. This way you
prompt them to ask you, to join the organization. When you see some one you
know in their camps, cry and try to make an emotional atmosphere. Tell your
acquaintance, friend that you just saw, that you want him/them to be with
you more and insist very much that he stay with you very much longer so that
they wouldn't have any doubt about you.
· Our tricks are known to them (Etela-at says that to potential spy) and
they don't take anyone to camps easily anymore. But you pretend that you
don't know about this and that you want to go back to Iran through where the
camps are located (don’t mention the camps, mention the city that the camps
are near by) so that they wouldn't have any doubts about you. You should
insist to go back home to Iran, if they agreed, go back to Iran, if they
suggest you to seek politic asylum, go ahead and do it. If they don’t
suggest asylum or don’t agree tell them that you want to stay for a while to
find a safe way back to Iran and then you go back to Iran, if they insist to
join them, tell them you are ready to work for them in Iran. By this offer
try to get some clues on their command headquarter inside Iran and their
contacts.
Balochistan United Front-Federal Republican
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IS THIS THE REGIME
TALKING ABOUT ISLAMIC UNION?
THE DOCUMENTS PROVING THAT THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC REGIME CANNOT STAND THE
OPINIONS OF MORE THAN ONE BILLION SUNNI MUSLIMS
15-07-2007
Since its foundation the Islamic Republic has
always been talking about exporting its reactionary religious views. This
regime defines the Islamic revolution an ideological one and tries to export
Shiite ideology to the whole world.
Following the opposition of the Sunni Turkmen, Baluchi, Arab, Farsi and
other nations in Iran against this regime, certain parts of the regime's
constitution has been amended. However, the main objective of the regime is
to object the Sunni ideology, to try to convert the Sunni people to Shiite
beliefs and to land blows on Islamic countries through open and covert
means. On the other hand, the Sunnis in Iran are living under difficult
conditions.
Millions of dollars is invested in religious institutions in several parts
of the world; Shiite proselytizers propagate in Africa, the Middle East, the
Central Asia and the Caucasus under the guise of charity and relief
organizations; numerous websites are established in dozens of different
languages; and books are published by this regime so as to bring doubts and
harm on the Sunni belief.
On the other hand, it is impossible for the Sunnis in Iran to respond to the
insulting topics rendered in the books published by the Islamic Republic
regime, because the regime does not permit the publication of any religious
books by the Sunnis to protect their rights. People still remember the
serial murders committed by the Ministry of Intelligence of this regime
against the Sunni clerics.
The Turkmensahra Liberation Organization for
the first time exposes a few documents so as to reveal a part of the
animosity of the Islamic Republic regime against the Sunnis and the
oppression they have perpetrated.
A Turkmen calendar named Erkin is published
every year in Iran. This calendar has been regarded and approved as the only
Turkmen calendar by the Turkmen people. This calendar contains the
national-cultural events of the Turkmens and certain religious occasions
about the Sunni creed since the Turkmens are Sunni.
This year, upon the application of the publication of this calendar, the
Ministry of Cultural and Islamic Guidance revealed the regime's antagonism
against more than one billion Sunnis in the world. The publication of this
calendar was subjected to the amendment of its several sections. Those
sections indicate the direct disrespect of this regime towards the beliefs
of the Sunni. The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance of the regime
objected the following topics in the mentioned calendar:
1. The phrases of Imame Azam and Hazrat should be removed from Wednesday 6
Tir. (Imame Azam is the forename of Abu Hanefe, the founder of the Hanefe
sect.)
2. The phrase of Seddiq should be removed from Monday 16 Tir. (They demanded
the removal of the adjective of Hazrate Abu Bakr Siddiq. Rumor has it that
the title of Siddiq was given by the Prophet of Islam to Hazrate Abu Bakr.)
3. The word Imam should be removed from Sunday 14 Mordad. (They demanded the
removal of Hazrate Omar ibn Abdol Aziz's Imam title.)
4. The word Imam should be removed from Tuesday 23 Mordad. (They demanded
the removal of the forename of Imame Shafee, the imam of the Shafii Sunnis.)
5. The word Imam should be removed from Monday 5 Shahrevar. (They demanded
the removal of the title of Imam Nesai Khorasani, one of the Sahehe Sattah
hadith writers.)
6. The wedding of Hazrate Ali (A.) and Hazrate Zahra should be cited before
the birth of Abu Hanefe.
7. The word Imam should be removed from 21 Azer. (Imame Azam is the forename
of Abu Hanefe, the founder of the Hanefe sect.)
8. The word Shahada should be changed as Demise. (The day when the 3rd
Caliph Hazrate Othman was martyred.)
9. The word Shahada should be changed as Demise and the word Suffering a
Blow as Taking a Blow. (The day when the 2nd Caliph Hazrate Omar was
martyred.)
10. The word Imam should be removed from Thursday 2 Bahman. (The day
intended by the censorship officer of the Ministry of Guidance is 2 Esfand.
They demanded the removal of the title of Imam Ahmad ibn Shooayb Nesai, one
of the Sahehe Sattah hadith writers.)
11. The words Imam and Imame Azam should be removed from Thursday 23 Esvand.
(They demanded the removal of the title of Imame Azam Hazrate Hanefe.)
Furthermore, they gave permission to the publication of the Erkinâ calendar
on the condition to include the phrase of â Special to the Sunnis on the
cover. However, no calendar published by the regime has the phrase “Special
to the Shiiteâ€. Nevertheless, the Erkin calendar belongs to the Turkmen and
the Sunni creed covers not all but a part of the Turkmen beliefs. For this
reason, the phrase Special to Sunnis cannot be explained anyway. This
resembles the marking of the Jews with the star of Davud by Hitler.
This document indicates a part of the animosity of the Islamic Republic
regime against nations and beliefs. This regime, pursue highly disgusting
efforts to destroy everything that opposes its reactionary religious views.
This regime is still against the light. This regime destroys the billion
dollar budget of the nation so as to export the Islamic revolution. However,
nations are conscious in the 21st Century and for this reason the regime
hopes for help from Africa and Latin America since it is hopeless for the
support of the nations within the country. This regime is neither a Republic
nor Islamic. It may be a combination of underdevelopment and fundamentalism.
TURKMENSAHRA LIBERATION ORGANIZATION
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belarusian leader promises weapons cooperation with Iran
The Associated Press
July 15, 2007; http://www.iht.com
MINSK, Belarus: Belarus' president promised
aid to Iran's military Thursday, and held talks with the visiting Iranian
defense chief.
"Our cooperation with Iran in the military-technical sphere is based on the
development, above all, of high technologies," Alexander Lukashenko said
during a meeting with Mostafa Mohammad Najjar.
He also said that Belarus would implement contracts it had signed with Iran,
but it was unclear whether he was talking about weapons sales or other trade
deals. Belarusian officials declined to comment.
Najjar said that "Belarus holds a special position in Iran's foreign policy"
and that "cooperation between Belarus and Iran is developing thanks to
mutual understanding on the presidential level."
Less than two months ago, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad traveled to
the ex-Soviet republic and pledged solidarity in the face of foreign
pressure.
Lukashenko and Ahmadinejad are vocal critics of the United States and have cultivated ties with other countries at odds with the West.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bahrainis protest against Iran province claim
Friday, July 13, 2007; www.keralanext.com
MANAMA, Bahrain - Protesters hit the streets
of the Bahraini capital Manama on Friday in response to an Iranian newspaper
editorial claiming that Bahrain was a province that should be returned to
Iran.
Following traditional Friday prayers, protesters chanting anti- Iranian
slogans and waving Bahraini flags gathered in front of the heavily-fortified
Iranian embassy compound in Manama, calling for the expulsion of the Iranian
ambassador if the Iranian government failed to present a formal apology.
Some protesters also called for the liberation of Ahwaz, an Iranian city
with a large Arab population.
Bahraini and Iranian embassy officials had played down the importance of the
comments written in Iran’s hardline Kayhan newspaper by its publisher and
adviser to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Hussain Shariatmadari.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki is also expected to arrive in
Manama late Friday to clarify his government’s position, following repeated
assurances from the Iranian embassy that the statements in the editorial did
not reflect the government position.
Shariatmadari, who was appointed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
had claimed in his editorial that public demand in Bahrain backed
reunification of ‘this province (Bahrain) with its motherland,’ Iran.
The article also claimed that Bahrain was separated from Iran through an
illicit agreement between the former Shah and the governments of Britain and
the United States.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iran cleric says TV "confessions" prove U.S. plot
Fri Jul 20, 2007
TEHRAN (Reuters) - A senior Iranian cleric
said on Friday televised "confessions" of two detained American-Iranians
proved a U.S.-backed plot to carry out a "velvet revolution" using
intellectuals to topple Iran's clerical establishment.
Haleh Esfandiari, an academic at the U.S.-based Woodrow Wilson International
Centre for Scholars, and Kian Tajbakhsh, a consultant with George Soros'
Open Society Institute, have been detained separately since May for
endangering Iran's security.
Iran's state television aired a program called "In the Name of Democracy"
featuring interviews with Esfandiari and Tajbakhsh on Wednesday and
Thursday. Washington has called the program illegitimate and coerced.
But Ahmad Khatami, a member of the Experts Assembly with the power to
appoint or dismiss Iran's supreme leader, disagreed.
"Confessions of the executors of America's policies proved that America
wanted to bring about a velvet revolution in Iran," Khatami told worshippers
at Tehran University. His remarks were broadcast live on state radio.
Esfandiari, detained when visiting Iran from the United states, said on
Thursday she had helped create a network "to lead to very fundamental
changes in Iran's system."
The U.S.-based Soros Foundation's Open Society Institute said it was "deeply
concerned over Iran's use of deliberately contrived television footage" of
the pair.
ACCESS
A U.S. State Department spokesman told reporters in Washington: "This should
be an embarrassment to the Iranian regime. Is it really possible to imagine
that a government is so fragile and so under siege that individuals coming
to visit elderly family members threaten its existence?"
The spokesman, Tom Casey, said the United States had requested consular
access to the pair through the Swiss and other embassies in Tehran, but the
requests were refused. The United States has no diplomatic relations with
Iran.
"The Iranian regime should be embarrassed by its behavior and should do the
right thing and let them go," he said.
Khatami said the program had achieved its aim to "neutralize America's plot
to carry out a velvet revolution in Iran". The country's top authority,
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has warned of a U.S.-backed "velvet
revolution".
Tajbakhsh, a consultant with the Soros institute, founded by billionaire
investor George Soros, told the same program: "The aim of the Soros centre
was to bring a model of the Western democracy" to Iran after an eventual
conflict.
State television has in the past broadcast what it said were confessions by
dissidents serving jail sentences for alleged attempts to undermine the
Islamic Republic.
The program made no mention of two other American-Iranians detained on
spying charges, one of whom has been freed on bail.
Long-time foe Washington is leading efforts to isolate Iran over what it
says are plans to build nuclear arms. U.S. forces have detained five
Iranians in Iraq on charges of backing militants there. Iran denies the
charges.
The two countries are set to hold fresh talks in Iraq soon, following a
landmark meeting in Baghdad in May.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iran Arabs denounce discrimination
By Ahmed Janabi; http://english.aljazeera.net
The Iranian government accused Britain of involvement in the Ahwaz bombings
in 2006 Iranian Arabs in the oil-rich province of Khuzestan in southwest
Iran have expressed a strong will to split from Iran and restore their own
state, accusing Tehran of suppressing them racially, economically, and
politically.
Ahwaz has been witnessing sporadic bombings and confrontations between
residents and Iranian police.
In 2006, a bomb exploded in the city, causing tension between Britain and
Iran after Manouchechr Mottaki, the Iranian foreign minister, accused
Britain of involvement in the unrest. Arab activists have complained about
Iranian indifference to their demands and calls for dialogue.
They have voiced concerns over the low living standards, and the lack of
education and medical services in their community. Tahir Aal Sayyed Nima,
chairman of the Ahwaz National Liberation Movement (ANLM), told Al
Jazeera.net that Iran was treating its Arab nationals as second-class
citizens. He said: "Arabic is banned in government departments and
parliament. Arabic is not allowed to be taught at schools or learning
centres. We see this as a bid to assassinate our Arab identity.
"Schools are not available in villages, peasants' children have to go to the
city on daily basis to be able to study, which is very impractical of
course. Hence, illiteracy in Ahwaz is estimated at 90 per cent, and as long
as the Iranian government blocks education, it is unlikely that this
percentage would ever go down."
Illiteracy in Iran in general is estimated at 33 per cent.
Federalism
Most of Ahwazi political movements demand full independence for their
region, but the Democratic Solidarity Party of al-Ahwaz (DSPA) demands
self-rule within a federal state.
Mansour al-Ahwazi, a spokesman for the DSPA, told Al Jazeera.net: "We think
it is closer to logic for the time being if we ask for self-rule within a
federal state, provided that we enjoy the right of self-determination.
"We have come to the conclusion that the current Iranian regime cannot be
reformed, and that is why the reformists have failed to achieve something.
"Our party along with 15 Iranian opposition organisations, have formed the
Congress of Iranian Nationalities for Federal Iran. It includes all
ethnicities in Iran, and we hope that its outcome will be the appropriate
replacement for current regime."
Discrimination
Despite the difference in their approaches, Nima and al-Ahwazi are united in
their belief that Ahwazi Arabs are discriminated against by the Iranian
government.
Nima said: "An Arab cannot have a job even in his own region. Government
departments in our region are full of Persian Iranians. It is nearly
impossible for an Arab to get a job at a government department in Ahwaz. How
can we get jobs when the Persians call us Kwawla, meaning Gypsies?"
He continued: "Iranians have established agricultural settlements just like
those in Israel. By doing this, they are filling the region with Persians
and eventually they will achieve their strategic goal of changing the area's
demography and make the Persians a majority."
Iran has launched several big projects in the Ahwaz region, such as the
Sheeren Shah settlement and the Sheelat settlement, for the fishing
industry.
Abd Allah al-Nafisi, a Kuwaiti political analyst and author, told Al Jazeera
that the Ahwaz region was vital to Iran's economy. But it is also inhabited
by non-Persians, which makes it tricky for Tehran to strike a balance
between economic interests and national security.
"Ahwaz is an oil-rich province, so it would be a fundamental region to the
government, but at the same time it is inhabited by Arabs. Moreover,
geographically it is adjacent to Iraq and Kuwait and stretches along the
west shore of the Gulf.
"For the sake of argument, if this region is granted independence or even a
self-rule, it would form with Iraq and the Arab states of the Gulf a huge
Arab bloc at the gates of Iran," he said.
Constitution
The Iranian constitution states that non-Persian Iranian communities should
enjoy the right to preserve their ethnic and religious identities, along
with citizenship rights.
Persians constitute 51 per cent of Iran's population of 69 million people.
Iran says its Arab population is about two million, but Ahwazis dispute that
and say their community has at least five million.
Said Al-Ahwazi: "The Iranian constitution touches on non-Persians' rights,
but not clearly and directly. However, we would stick to what we have now.
"We have a problem with the government which is still in a state of denial
about its own constitution. If the constitution were implemented fairly, at
least we would have been able to teach our language to our children and we
would have been able to get jobs."
He said that the first to ask the government to abide by the constitution
and give Arabs and other non-Persian Iranians their rights, was a former
member of parliament, Jassim al-Tamimi, of the Ahwazi Accordance party.
But the Iranian parliament considered al-Tamimi's requests as a threat to
Iranian national security, and banned him from running for the 2005
parliamentary elections.
He was also imprisoned for a week during the Ahwazi uprising in April 2005.
Al Jazeera contacted al-Tamimi at his house in Iran, but his family said he
was out of Iran and refused to reveal his whereabouts or give any contact
details.
Al Jazeera also contacted the Iranian government for its comments, but no
Iranian official was forthcoming.