Akbar Hashemi's Memoirs - November 5, 1999 - Report by Seyyed Hassan Khomeini on the Condition of Religious Seminaries and Reformist Views of Ayatollahs Sanei and Mousavi Ardebili

In today’s memoir, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani reviewed a letter addressed to Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia regarding the establishment of the “Asia-Africa Foundation,” an idea proposed by Hashemi that ultimately did not come to fruition.

Seyyed Hassan Khomeini provided an update on the status of religious seminaries in Qom and discussed the reformist views of Ayatollahs Sanei and Mousavi Ardebili, noting that their teachings and influence within the seminary have waned compared to others. According to Khomeini, the leadership of the seminary is firmly in the hands of those supportive of the Islamic Republic, and opposition movements have little visibility.

Khomeini also mentioned the upcoming launch of the Bayan newspaper, set to be managed by Seyyed Ali Akbar Mohtashami. He predicted that its publication would create divisions within the reformist camp, as Mohtashami opposed the liberal and Western-leaning tendencies of the Second of Khordad Movement. He sought to understand whether Rafsanjani would be a candidate in the upcoming elections, to which he received a standard response. Khomeini also remarked that Abdullah Nouri’s confrontational stance was not in his best interest and noted the growing tensions between the Combatant Clergy Association and the Participation Party.

In international news, significant divisions have emerged among Zionist factions in Israel, following permission to build a mosque near the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth—where Mary is believed to have received the news of Jesus' birth—and Prime Minister Ehud Barak’s order to evacuate 12 Jewish settlements.