Is Supreme Leader Throwing Rafsandjani Under the Bus ?
Oktober 11, 2010 Hinterlasse einen Kommentar
This morning we noted the report of the Islamic Republic News Agency that the Supreme Leader had made a „final and definite“ opinion over control of Islamic Azad University, Iran’s largest university system. The private system has been overseen by officials linked to former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, but earlier this year the Ahmadinejad Government sought to take charge.
Well, we’ve checked with correspondents, and Ayatollah Khamenei’s declaration is a knockout victory for Ahmadinejad. Indeed, the verdict — that the rights of the IAU are determined by the Supreme Leader and that it falls under the Government’s jurisdiction — may point to a even bigger political decision by Ayatollah Khamenei.
Between now and a week on Tuesday, the Supreme Leader will journey to Qom, the key religious centre of Iran, for a stay of several days. Formally, he will commemorate the birthday of Reza, Shi’a’s 8th Imam, but the politics go far beyond that ceremony.
Khamenei’s trip is no less than an appeal to the marja, the highest clerics of Iran, to support him amidst the political, economic, and international challenges that Tehran is facing. The Supreme Leader will not frame this as a Back Me or Sack Me appeal: instead, he will say that the marja should support the Islamic Revolution and the Government as they face foreign threats. Their endorsement of velayat-e-faqih, the system headed by Khamenei, would then be taken as given.