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NYT: "Hundreds of black-clad riot police officers, some in bullet-proof vests, deployed in key locations in central Tehran on Monday to thwart an opposition march in solidarity with the uprising in Egypt - an event Iranian leaders cheered as the popular overthrow of an Arab strongman... The authorities have made no secret of their resolve to stop the march and deny the protesters a permit to demonstrate. 'These elements are fully aware of the illegal nature of the request,' Mehdi Alikhani Sadr, an Interior Ministry official, said in comments published Sunday by the semiofficial Fars news agency. 'They know they will not be granted permission for riots.' The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps was blunt. 'The conspirators are nothing but corpses,' Hossein Hamadani, a top commander of the corps, said Wednesday in comments published by the official IRNA news agency. 'Any incitement will be dealt with severely.' But opposition supporters, hoping the democratic uprisings sweeping the region will rejuvenate their own movement, insisted the march would go forward." http://t.uani.com/fhWxTS
AP: "Security forces cut phone lines and blockaded the home of an Iranian opposition leader Monday in attempts to stop him attending a planned rally in support of Egypt's uprising, a reformist website reported. Iranian authorities have poured police and militiamen onto the streets of Tehran to challenge any pro-Egypt marches, which officials worry could turn into demonstrations against Iran's ruling system. The security clampdown is reminiscent of the backlash that crushed a wave of protests after the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June 2009. But opposition supporters revived a tactic from the unrest, shouting 'Allahu Akbar,' or God is Great, from rooftops and balconies into the early hours Monday in a sign of defiance toward Iran's leadership. The reformist website kaleme.com said police stationed several cars in front of the home of Mir Hossein Mousavi ahead of the demonstration called for Monday in central Tehran." http://t.uani.com/ehFhGW
WashPost: "Crowds gathered on a central boulevard in the Iranian capital Monday for a rare anti-government protest that drew inspiration from the successful popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. Thousands of people shouted slogans such as 'Death to the dictator,' 'We are all together' and 'Down with Taliban, in Cairo and Tehran.' It was not immediately clear how many people were joining the protests. But thousands could be seen marching from Enghelab (Revolution) Square toward Azadi (Freedom) Square, overwhelming police efforts to stop them. The gathering appeared to be the most significant anti-government protest here since security forces cracked down on a series of large demonstrations in 2009." http://t.uani.com/eMiNuL
Nuclear Program & Sanctions
AP: "The Post's Lally Weymouth talked to Yukia Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, last week in Vienna. Excerpts: ... Q: How badly was Iran's centrifuge program affected by the [Stuxnet cyber] worm from 2009? A: Iran is somehow producing uranium enriched to 3.5 percent and 20 percent. They are producing it steadily, constantly. Q: The amount of enriched uranium has not been affected? A: The production is very steady." http://t.uani.com/g88kJv
NYT: "The Stuxnet software worm repeatedly sought to infect five industrial facilities in Iran over a 10-month period, a new report says, in what could be a clue into how it might have infected the Iranian uranium enrichment complex at Natanz. The report, released Friday by Symantec, a computer security software firm, said there were three waves of attacks. Liam O Murchu, a security researcher at the firm, said his team was able to chart the path of the infection because of an unusual feature of the malware: Stuxnet recorded information on the location and type of each computer it infected. Such information would allow the authors of Stuxnet to determine if they had successfully reached their intended target... The Symantec team said it had collected five Internet domains that were linked to industrial organizations within Iran. They said because of the company's privacy policies, they would not disclose the domain names." http://t.uani.com/ebimur
FT: "Majid Shahriyari became an Iranian martyr while he was driving to work on an autumn day in Tehran. As he made his way along Artesh Boulevard, an explosive device ripped through his car. The 45-year-old was a devout man: Iranians would describe him as a Hizbollahi, a person fiercely loyal to the country's Islamic system and easily identified by his unshaven face and simple clothes. But Shahriyari also stood out for another reason. He was one of Iran's leading atomic scientists, an expert on nuclear chain reactions. Iran has long maintained that its atomic programme is aimed at developing peaceful nuclear energy. But much of the outside world believes its true intention is to build a nuclear weapon. Either way, Shahriyari was indispensable... Who is killing Iranian scientists? Two and a half months after Shahriyari's death, the answer is still a mystery... What is not in doubt, however, is the timing. The murders have taken place in a period when intelligence agencies in Israel, the US and the west have embarked on a high-risk, and high-tech, bid to sabotage Iran's nuclear programme - whether or not it is aiming for nuclear capability or to build an actual nuclear bomb." http://t.uani.com/falBkf
Reuters: "An Iranian nuclear scientist who survived an assassination attempt last November has been appointed Iran's new nuclear chief, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Sunday. Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani was slightly wounded by one of two bomb attacks on November 29. The other attack killed another nuclear scientist. Tehran said the double-bombing was an Israeli operation aimed at harming its nuclear programme. Abbasi-Davani, head of physics at Imam Hossein University, has been personally subjected to U.N. sanctions because of what western officials said was his involvement in suspected nuclear weapons research." http://t.uani.com/hYspwo
AFP: "French Prime Minister Francois Fillon called in Saudi Arabia on Saturday for stronger sanctions against Iran over its controversial nuclear programme. 'In Istanbul, in January, Iran opposed our renewed proposal for serious dialogue over its nuclear programme,' Fillon said aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle off the Red Sea city of Jeddah. 'To convince Iran to return to the negotiating table, we'll have to strengthen sanctions,' he told military personnel on the French navy's flagship which is holding joint exercises with the Saudi military." http://t.uani.com/dEeH4A
Human Rights
AP: "Iran's official news agency says the judiciary has set up a special prosecutor's office for offenses related to media and culture. The move signaled new restrictions on journalists and artists, many of whom supported widespread protests against the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009. The news agency Irna reported Sunday that the new department will operate under Tehran's chief prosecutor and that a special court will also be established." http://t.uani.com/gftSZB
Foreign Affairs
AFP: "Abdullah Gul arrived in Tehran on Sunday on his first trip as Turkish president aimed at boosting economic and political ties with the Islamic republic. During his visit which ends on Wednesday, Gul will meet senior officials including his counterpart President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He is accompanied by a large delegation of ministers and businessmen. In an interview carried by Iran's state news agency IRNA on Saturday, Gul said Turkey backs a negotiated settlement of the Islamic republic's nuclear issue." http://t.uani.com/gCPbVb
AP: "The U.S. State Department began sending Twitter messages in Farsi on Sunday in the hopes of reaching social media users in Iran. On the Twitter account, USA darFarsi, the department told Iranians, 'We want to join in your conversation.' The second and third tweets were more pointed. The State Department accused Iran's government of illegalizing dissent while praising Egyptian protesters for the same activities. The U.S. then called on Iran 'to allow people to enjoy same universal rights to peacefully assemble, demonstrate as in Cairo.'" http://t.uani.com/ezccQP
AP: "Gallup's annual World Affairs poll finds that Americans' least favorite countries are still Iran and North Korea. The poll was released Friday and found that the two countries have 11 percent favorability ratings among Americans." http://t.uani.com/fueczp
Opinion & Analysis
Melik Kaylan in WSJ: "In another sign of its ever more improvisational approach to governance, the Iranian regime has outlawed Valentine's Day. 'Symbols of hearts, half-hearts, red roses, and any activities promoting this day are banned,' announced state media last month. 'Authorities will take legal action against those who ignore the ban.' Some 70% of Iran's population is said to be under the age of 30, so it seems natural that Valentine's Day has caught on in a country where the young keep trying to find non-state-mandated rituals to call their own. The state, for its part, continues to respond with a Whack-a-Mole approach to any social ripple not dreamt of in its philosophy. Theocratic regimes invariably suffer from the same besetting sin: As the world evolves, they must either revise their antiquated doctrines or try to hold the world rigidly in stasis. Iran's ruling mullahs keep choosing the latter option. And with mosque and state firmly conjoined, there's no stray detail of daily life so arcane that the scriptures can't be mobilized to rein it in. The Iranian state has pronounced against unauthorized mingling of the sexes, rap music, rock music, Western music, women playing in bands, too-bright nail polish, laughter in hospital corridors, ancient Persian rites-of-spring celebrations (Nowrooz), and even the mention of foreign food recipes in state media. This last may sound comically implausible, but it was officially announced by a state-run website on Feb. 6. So now the true nature of pasta as an instrument of Western subversion has been revealed. The regime's posture turns the smallest garden-variety gestures into thrilling acts of subversion." http://t.uani.com/eWKl2X
WSJ Editorial Board: "As it happens, yesterday was also the 32nd anniversary of the Shah's downfall in Iran. The hard men of Tehran are now seeking to tap into Egypt's revolutionary fervor, hailing Hosni Mubarak's downfall as 'a great victory.' Earlier on this Islamic Revolution's Victory Day, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called on Arabs to 'free' themselves from the 'arrogant powers' (i.e., the U.S. and Israel) in the spirit of Ayatollah Khomeini. The regime's words were all about 1979, but its actions suggested their minds are far more focused on 2009. Recall the Cairo-like scenes from Tehran two summers ago, when hundreds of thousands rose up over a stolen presidential election. Their uprising was brutally put down. The frustrations with a crony authoritarian regime that is far more savage than Mubarak's Egypt continue to fester. Iran this week jammed the BBC Persian TV's coverage of the Egyptian uprising. According to the Guardian, the Iranians acted after the BBC brought together Iranian and Egyptian callers on air to exchange ideas. Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who challenged Mr. Ahmadinejad for the presidency, asked permission to stage a rally in solidarity with the people of Egypt and Tunisia this Monday. It was a clever idea to get around the long-standing ban on public gatherings. The government turned them down. At least eight opposition activists and journalists have been detained since Wednesday. Clearly the mullahs are nervous about contagion." http://t.uani.com/fVYate
Praveen Swami in The Daily Telegraph: "Iran's men are having trouble dealing with the brave new world that's imposing itself on their bedrooms: an unnoticed tide of sexual change that could prove far more important in shaping the country's cultural and political values than the 2009 democratic revolt-that-failed. 'It is still widely accepted,' Negar Farshidi writes, 'that a groom can make his marriage conditional on the bride remaining a virgin, and cancel it if it turns out she isn't. Traditionally, a bloodstained sheet was produced after the wedding night as evidence of an intact hymen, but nowadays many men and their families ask for a virginity certificate in advance.' Similar practices are common throughout large swathes of Asia. But an official Iranian study, Farshidi records, has determined that more than half of all young people in Iran have had premarital sex - which means those certificates probably aren't worth a whole lot. Iran's powerful clerical establishment embraced the technological products of modernity, like computers and the internet, while railing against its cultural manifestations. But the fact is that modernity imposes its own culture. More and more young Iranians are working independently of their families. More and more Iranians are marrying late. More and more young Iranians are having premarital sex." http://t.uani.com/f6YjRz
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