Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (r.) and Esfandiar MashaieTehran. 22 July 2009. Photo by Reuters’ Yalda Moaiery.
Printed on 26 July 2009 edition of CSM
In a column on Sunday 26 July 2009 edition of The Christian Science Monitor, Iason Athanasiadis examines the growing tensions among Iran’s hardliners. President Ahmadinejad fired his intelligence minister on Sunday after being forced to take back the nomination of Eskandar Mashaie, a close advisor, as his first VP. Athanasiadis also quotes this blogger on the balance of fear between the government and the opposition.
"A delicate and prolonged period of balance of fear has started between the government and the opposition," says Nader Uskowi, a Washington-based Iran analyst and president of Uskowi Associates. "After enduring a month of relentless attack by government forces, the opposition reaffirmed its strength, but the government will hang onto power with support from the armed forces and a segment of the more traditional and rural population" [CSM, 26 July].
Khamanei's low popularity in Iran gives this leverage to Ahmadinejad to stand up against the leader's growing demands. Khamenei supporters and he, himself, try to get a bigger share of Ahmadinejad's cabinet and turn him into a puppet in his second term as reward to their full support in the lates election which was obviously rigged.
ReplyDeleteThis row (Mashai) was a show of might by Ahmadinejad to redeem himself!