Pahlavi’s Visit Opened Way To Revive Israel-Iran Ties – Intel Minister

Reformist daily Shargh wrote in a commentary on April 20 that economic, political and social conditions in Iran are fragile and the three challenges of Iran's involvement in the Ukraine war, differences with International Atomic Agency (IAEA) over "safeguard" issues and the Iranian regime's human rights record cast a shadow of doubt over the future of the nuclear deal (JCPOA).

Media commentator and former diplomat Ali Bigdeli wrote in a commentary in Etemad Online that the revival of the nuclear deal is the prerequisite for maintaining relations with all the of the regional countries. Bigdeli added that "although Saudi Arabia has said that it is prepared to invest in Iran, no investment will be possible without first solving the problem of the JCPOA."

During the past six weeks, media in Tehran have been discussing the implications of Iran's rapprochement with Saudi Arabia on the future of Tehran's foreign policy and developments in West Asia and beyond. The media generally believe that the resumption of ties between Tehran and Riyadh is a prelude to a wider range of developments in Yemen and Syria and will also positively affect ties between Saudi Arabia and Palestinian groups, Shargh wrote.

Shargh newspaper argued that the improved relations with Riyadh can also lead to the mending of Iran's regional ties with countries such as Bahrain, Jordan and Egypt.

However, the significance of the rapprochement with Saudi Arabia has even overshadowed by other issues such as the fate of Iran's nuclear program and Tehran's negotiations with the United States to revive the JCPOA. But a key question is whether Iran now believes it no longer needs to settle its differences with the IAEA and revive the nuclear deal.

The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry Naser Kanaani has responded to the same question by reiterating that the current government in Iran will not mix the issue of a nuclear agreement with key economic issues or diplomacy in other areas.

Kanaani further said that Tehran will benefit from the rapprochement with Riyadh to serve its interests and enhance its coordination with regional countries and beyond.

Regardless of how consistent the spokesman's statement is with what is taking place on the ground, Shargh noted, that Iran's relations with Saudi Arabia are affected by international developments. Shargh argued in the commentary that Iran cannot ignore the significance of reviving the JCOA in its international relations. If Tehran mends its ties with the big powers, its regional relations will also be put on the right track.

Bigdeli in his commentary maintained that Saudi Arabia's first motivation for the rapprochement with Iran was end the Yemeni crisis. Riyadh needed to end the conflict in Yemen to be able to further major development projects on the shores of the Red Sea. Riyadh also needed security for its $500 billion project to build a new city. Bigdeli added that Riyadh has undertaken to reconstruct Yemen, pay the government employees’ deferred salaries and create a central government in Sana.

For Iran, the benefit was to end it isolation in the region. Nonetheless, Iran is eyeing the diplomatic rather than the economic benefits of the restoration of its ties with Saudi Arabia. Without resolving the JCPOA issue and opening the international banking system shut off by US sanctions, no one can invest in Iran. Bigdeli added that even an interim agreement with the United States will not solve Iran's problems although it may instil hope in Tehran.

Ayatollah Ahmad Alamolhoda, father-in-law of President Ebrahim Raisi and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s representative in the religious city of Mashhad, is known for his fundamentalist views, who is famous for banning cultural activities in the city.

Alamolhoda said in his Friday sermon April 21 that if people convert their capital to foreign currencies and gold it is sin “equal to hoarding and profiteering,” which is considered an offence according to Sharia.

Iran’s currency, the rial, has halved in value since mid-2022, with inflation above 50 percent and the middle class fast becoming impoverished. The US dollar has risen from 260,000 rials to around 520,000 since August.

People have been trying to invest in foreign currencies, gold and those with more resources in real estate to preserve their savings.

Alamolhoda also referred to women refusing to wear headscarves, which has angered religious hardliners. He said the Islamic Republic faces two big challenges: Economic crisis and a cultural crisis. He insisted however that these two problems are not related to one another.

Ordinary people who have been protesting against the regime, see the economic crisis as the result of government’s foreign policy and mismanagement and the enforcement of hijab as its undue interference in their private lives.

The regime that has refused to compromise over its nuclear program with the West, is determined to use repression to pacify the population.

A group of nearly 20 Republican and Democratic members of the US House has formed the Iranian Women Congressional Caucus, condemning the Iranian government over the recent poisoning of schoolgirls. 

Amplifying the growing criticism in Washington against the Islamic Republic and its disregard for human rights, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) and Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) -- who cochair the caucus – said Thursday that they are working on a resolution that condemns the Iranian government over the recent poisoning of schoolgirls.

The resolution, already backed by over a dozen lawmakers from both parties, calls on the State Department and the UN to investigate the attacks.

“So many Iranian women are showing their bravery and resiliency in the face of challenges in their fight for equality and human rights. We will be on the side of freedom and oppose the oppression of women, in the United States, Iran, and around the globe,” said founding co-chair Mace.

The caucus is the latest move by US lawmakers to denounce the treatment of women in Iran, especially since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in custody of hijab police in September 2022, which led to the boldest revolt against the clerical regime since its establishment in 1979.

More than 500 people have been killed in the nationwide rallies, nearly 20,000 have been detained, and several were executed on trumped up charges.

Moreover, a series of suspected chemical attacks at girls’ schools began in November and sending hundreds of schoolgirls to hospital, fueling claims about the violation of women’s and girls’ rights and prompting demonstrations in protest to the regime’s inaction and possible involvement.

In January, the House overwhelmingly approved a resolution expressing solidarity with the protesters. The 420-1 vote voiced support for the people in Iran who have been risking imprisonment and even death to protest against the country’s theocracy, which has engaged in a brutal crackdown of its citizenry. 

Advocates and human rights groups have called on the US and other Western democracies to cut ties with the Islamic Republic and impose harsher sanctions on the top officials, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Ebrahim Raisi. 

The House Foreign Affairs Committee has finally scheduled the Mahsa Amini Human rights and Security Accountability Act -- or the MAHSA Act -- for a markup on April 26.

Late in January, House Armed Services Committee Member Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced the bipartisan MAHSA Act to sanction Iran’s ruler and his inner circle, saying “Regular Iranians like Mahsa Amini are being murdered and persecuted by the Iranian regime, but the Biden administration is still trying to cozy up to Iran’s senior officials so he can cut an even more disastrous nuclear deal.”

The markup session will be held by efforts of members of the Iranian-American community as well as more than 80 Democrat and Republican co-sponsors of the Act and Representative Michael McCaul (R-TX), the chairman of the committee. 

The National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI) announced in January that “NUFDI as a grassroots Iranian-American organization, is proud to support the re-introduction of the MAHSA Act in the 118th Congress,” urging “all members of Congress, regardless of their political affiliation, to support the MAHSA Act.”

Another advocacy group United Against a Nuclear Iran said, "The MAHSA Act provides a critical pillar in holding Iran's regime accountable for its crimes against the Iranian people and the international community. The supreme leader has evaded US counterterrorism and human rights abuse sanctions for years.”

However, some lobbyists and a few lawmakers try to dilute the act, describing it as “Islamophobic” or “not leading to any increased sanctions.” 

NIAC, advocating non-confrontational policies toward the Islamic Republic, said in a statement that “the bill would make it more difficult for a President to lift sanctions on these officials as part of any diplomatic agreement... This bill does not include a sunset and would target the offices themselves, rather than individuals. As a result, it would remain in effect indefinitely and be applied to any future Supreme Leader or President of Iran until its repeal." 

Mahmoud Mahmoudi, a representative of the Supreme Leader and Friday prayer imam of the city of Kangan in Bushehr province, claimed that “the resistance groups opened the gates of hell to the Zionists with intense attacks and now they are surrounded by the resistance forces.”

Iran’s Islamic regime calls its proxy militias in the region “the resistance front”.

The contents of Friday Prayer sermons delivered by Khamenei's local representatives in various cities are dictated by two state bodies close to Khamenei's office, officially known as "The Policy-making Council for Friday Prayer Imams" and the "Friday Prayer Headquarters," both dominated by hardliner clerics.

Mahmoudi’s remarks came as leading opposition figure Pahlavi has just ended a historic tour of Israel, meeting with Israeli premier and president as well as several other officials with a message of peace between Iran and Israel after the collapse of the Islamic Republic.

During a press conference in Tel Aviv, Pahlavi talked about the prospects of peace and calm in the region when the Islamic Republic falls. “Imagine a different Iran, not ruled by a religious dictatorship, but [what] a secular democratic Iran could mean for our region, for stability and how it would impact the world positively,” he said.

Mowlavi Abdolhamid was speaking on Friday, as Iran’s Sunni minority celebrated the holiday, despite Supreme Leader Khamenei decreeing that Eid is on Saturday.

Addressing the devaluation of the rial, he observed that even government officials and members of the armed forces are unhappy with the current situation, saying: "It seems that the government is unable to solve this problem.

"People are tired of this situation. There is a need for big changes in the country, and people will not achieve their wishes with minor changes."

Abdolhamid, the unofficial voice of the country’s Sunni community – about 10% of Iran’s population of 88 million – announced Friday as Eid al-Fitr, celebrated by Muslims worldwide as the end of the month-long dawn-to-sunset fasting of Ramadan.

In Iran, in the last days of the month of Ramadan, several groups of experts representing Khamenei go to the different zones of the country to determine the date of the festival.

Although he did not mention Khamenei by name, Abdolhamid appeared to criticize the Supreme Leader, saying that "Islam should not be harmed by the behavior of the officials."

While stressing the importance of "territorial integrity" and "national security", he said that "protests and free speech are people's right.”