Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi - January 7, 2002 - Participation in a Political Advisory Meeting at Ayatollah Khamenei's Offic

Hashemi's Trip to Markazi Province and Listening to Local Officials' Reports, along with the Martyrs of the Clergy Conference and Sheikh Mojtaba Zolnoori's Remarks

Participation in a Political Advisory Meeting at Ayatollah Khamenei's Office and the Supreme Leader's Comments on the Arrest of Hossein Laghmanian, Criticism of Mohsen Mirdamadi's Support, Comments on Hajari Shirazi and Jafari Gilani, and Seyyed Reza Taghavi's Reaction

Complete Daily Entry:

Last night, it rained well. I worked at my office until 11:00 AM and then flew by helicopter to Arak. We landed at Arak Airport at noon. After a welcoming ceremony by local officials and clergy, we went to the home of Ayatollah [Ahmad] Mohseni [Gorkani], the Friday prayer leader, and then to the governor's office for lunch and rest.

The Deputy for Urban Development stated that Arak has benefited from important infrastructure projects during the Reconstruction period. The refinery, petrochemical plant, and the approval of a 1% tax on large units by the Reconstruction Government have brought many blessings and continue to do so. This has resulted in billions of tomans collected. A massive dam project is underway, and the once-dangerous road from Salafchegan to Arak has been converted into a four-lane road, improving safety and extending to Borujerd. Currently, work is underway on a ring road, and a pressure irrigation project is also being pursued.

We attended a memorial for 72 martyrs of the clergy in Markazi Province at the mosque. It is a beautiful building with 10,000 square meters of space. A large crowd gathered, expressing warm feelings. Mr. [Mojtaba] Zolnoori, the commander of Imam Sadiq Brigade, Ayatollah Mohseni, and [Ali] Jabarian, the governor, welcomed us and appreciated the services rendered in the front lines, reconstruction, and parliament.

Mr. Zolnoori shared interesting memories of my presence on the front lines, especially in Halabja and Majnoon. Mr. Panahian recited a eulogy, and I gave an extensive speech about Markazi Province, the clergy, the 19th of Dey, and the martyrs of the clergy. We flew back to Tehran in the evening.

At 6:30 PM, I went to the Leader's office. We discussed the current political situation and the ongoing plans by some parliament members against the head of the judiciary. I provided a report on the meeting of the leaders. He stated that he is unwilling to pardon Mr. [Hossein] Laghmanian, [the representative from Hamadan]; if they have a legal way for his release, they will not oppose it. He mentioned examples of treasonous and deceitful actions and expressed surprise that some representatives, including [Mohsen] Mirdamadi, [the representative from Tehran and head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission], defend him.

They expressed dissatisfaction with the government's performance regarding Afghanistan and mentioned that a meeting was held where directives concerning involvement in Afghanistan and participation in reconstruction were issued, but no actions have been taken yet. They stated that the U.S. has decided to send 1,200 military personnel to Herat, Afghanistan, and Iran should oppose this as it is near our border and serves no purpose other than countering Iranian policy.

They also expressed discontent with Mr. [Mahdi] Karroubi, [the Speaker of Parliament], regarding his stance on national-religious figures, stating that he has a policy of appeasing everyone for specific goals, which is ineffective, particularly as he cannot implement such a policy. We discussed the establishment of a comprehensive university in Qom. They agreed with the fundamental idea but had some reservations. Regarding Mr. [Mohammad] Jafari Gilani, the head of the Islamic Propagation Office in Qom, they stated that there is no intention to replace him. While I was in Qom, some members of the office expressed concern about his potential replacement. They also indicated that there are no plans to replace the Friday prayer leader of Shiraz, expressing dissatisfaction with Mr. [Seyyed Reza] Taghavi, [the head of the Council for the Political Coordination of Friday Prayer Leaders], who has raised the issue of his resignation.

We discussed recent mischievous actions by Israel, noting that there is a possibility of malicious intent, and it is likely they are coordinating with the U.S. and Russians to disrupt the Bushehr nuclear plant under the guise of opposing the Mujahideen.

Tony Blair, [the Prime Minister of the UK], who has traveled to India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, stated that he has been unable to take any action regarding the conflict between India and Pakistan. It appears that the U.S. and the UK want to keep Pakistan in a state of war threat to gain further concessions.

Recent snowfall and cold weather in the West have caused significant casualties and issues, even affecting Christmas celebrations. A fire in part of the forests of Australia was extinguished after 14 days of rain.