Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi - December 16, 2002.

Mr. [Ahmad] Pishbin, the representative of Baft, came. He said that the [Sixth] Parliament does nothing but political work, and the country's affairs are not under proper administration. Many expect you to save the Revolution, just as you did during the country's crises. He added that the right-wing faction has realized today that it made a big mistake in not appreciating your great works, and the left-wing faction has understood that the country cannot be managed by slogans. He mentioned that Mr. [Gholamali] Haddad-Adel, [Tehran's representative and head of the minority faction in the Sixth Parliament], spoke of obstruction without consulting the minority faction, which is impractical. He asked for my help in implementing a resolution I had previously approved for the establishment of a state university unit in Baft, which has not yet been executed. He expressed gratitude for the great impact of the Islamic Azad University [in Baft, Kerman] on the town's prosperity; it has two thousand students.

Mr. [Hossein] Mahlouji, [former Minister of Mines and Metals], came. He had traveled to the UAE to get a visa for a trip to the US for leg pain treatment. In a meeting with Mahdi Tajer, he heard many things about Iraq, including that the US and UK are paying attention to Mr. [Ayad] Allawi, who is an educated Shiite, to replace Saddam [Hussein, President of Iraq], and they do not favor [Ahmad] Chalabi and others. In the past, they had relied on Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, and they believe they cannot force Saddam out of Iraq like Reza Khan. He said that Allawi was in Iran a few days ago and insisted on meeting with me. He spoke of the rapid development of the UAE, especially Dubai.

In the afternoon, Mr. Mohsen Rezaee, [Secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council], came. We had a detailed discussion about the fate of Iraq. The conclusion was:

Saddam exposed his weakness by accepting that dangerous resolution.

It is possible that, with the same weak resolve, he might surrender to pressure and hand over the government.

If he does not surrender, a military attack by the US and UK is highly probable.

The US expects a rapid result from the lightning attack.

But it is possible that Saddam could resist for a long time.

Iran can benefit from the future events in Iraq, just like the previous US attack during the occupation of Kuwait.

Complete freedom in a unified Iraq, the partition of Iraq, or even federalism in Iraq, could be beneficial for the Iraqi Shiites and Iran.

Only the creation of a dictatorship dependent on the US would cause great harm to Iraq and the region, which is unlikely to happen.

The conference of Iraqi opponents in London, which was supposed to last two days, has been extended to four days due to a lack of consensus, and 13 groups are competing outside the conference.

Bashar al-Assad, [the President of Syria], has traveled to England, and his opponents have launched extensive propaganda regarding the violation of human rights in Syria, especially the Kurds, who have introduced their population as 2.5 million and oppressed, stating that the [Syrian government] does not issue identification cards to many of them.