Pezeshkian at UNGA, Trump threatens Iran—and more

The Iranist for the week of September 27, 2024

Sep 27, 2024

NOTE: Apologies for not sending last week’s newsletter! I had to deal with a health issue.

۱/1 Pezeshkian makes his UNGA debut

This week, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian made his United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) debut in New York. He was joined by a delegation of forty, which reportedly included his two sons, daughter, and son-in-law (Iran International). Some analysts, activists, and US politicians—including Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump—expressed concern and dismay at Iranian officials receiving visas and drew attention to the fact the delegation was here with US taxpayer money paying for their security while Tehran had reportedly plotted to assassinate the former US president and other US officials. But as US Assistant Deputy Secretary for Iran and Iraq Victoria Taylor pointed out, “As the host country for the United Nations, we must abide by our legal obligations under the UN Host Country Agreement.” (Iran International)

WHAT PEZESHKIAN TOLD THE PRESS. On September 23, while speaking to reporters in New York, President Pezeshkian made the following comments:

On Israel and the Gaza war:

“We don’t want war... We want to live in peace. We don’t wish to be the cause of instability in the region... We know more than anyone else that if a larger war were to erupt in the Middle East, it will not benefit anyone throughout the world. It is Israel that seeks to create this wider conflict.” (Washington Post)

On the topic of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh’s assassination by Israel in Tehran, Pezeshkian said it would “not go unanswered.” (Washington Post)

On Hezbollah:

“We always keep hearing, well, Hezbollah fired a rocket. If Hezbollah didn’t even do that minimum, who would defend them?.. Curiously enough, we keep being labeled as the perpetrator of insecurity. But look at the situation for where it is.” (The Guardian)

On pro-Palestinian university protests:

Pezeshkian denied Tehran was backing the university protests in the United States, noting that Iran had trouble covering the country’s “domestic payroll.”

“How do we supply payroll to American students? So none of these American students have a conscience?.. They just seek money?” (Washington Post)

On arming Russia in its Ukraine war:

“We do not seek war in Ukraine either. And up to now, to the point that I’ve been able to follow through since I’ve taken office, we have not, and we will not supply them with any ballistic missiles,” referring to Russia. “We have not approved Russian aggression against Ukrainian territory.” (Washington Post)

The most that journalists seemed to press Pezeshkian about the human rights situation in Iran was whether they’d free Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi (Washington Post). There appeared to be no mention of the UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFMI) report from March that said crimes against humanity were committed during the Women, Life, Freedom uprising, which marked its second anniversary earlier this month. Read about how the movement changed Iranian society.

WHY IS ZARIF EVERYWHERE? If you watched the media coverage closely, Mohammad Javad Zarif, the former foreign minister and current vice president for strategic affairs, was occupying much of the airwaves instead of the sitting Iranian president. This was no accident. Writer Robin Wright noted, “Pezeshkian had come under rapid-fire criticism from hardliners at home for the modest overture he made to the West at our meeting the day before. The Iranian mission cancelled a full press conference...” (New Yorker)

A source explained to me:

“There appears to have been some concern about Pezeshkian’s off-the-cuff remarks, especially at the meeting with US media editors at the beginning of the trip, and this probably explains why Zarif took many of the interviews and that there wasn’t a bigger press conference at the end of the trip, as usually planned.”

On September 23, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said while in New York:

“If the other parties are willing, we can restart the negotiations during this trip. I will stay in New York for a few more days than the [Iranian] president and will have more meetings with various foreign ministers. We will focus our efforts on starting a new round of talks regarding the nuclear pact.” (Reuters)

UNGA SPEECH. On September 24, Pezeshkian delivered his UNGA speech. Here’s the meat of what he said:

“I embarked on my electoral campaign with a platform focused on ‘reform,’ ‘national empathy,’ ‘constructive engagement with the world,’ and ‘economic development,’ and was honored to gain the trust of my fellow citizens at the ballot box. I aim to lay a strong foundation for my country’s entry into a new era, positioning it to play an effective and constructive role in the evolving global order… We are ready to engage with [Joint Comprensive Plan of Action] JCPOA participants. If JCPOA commitments are implemented fully and in good faith, dialogue on other issues can follow… In order to build a better future world, Iran stands prepared to foster meaningful economic, social, political, and security partnerships with global powers and its neighbors based on equal footing. The appropriate response to this message from Iran is not to impose more sanctions, but to fulfill existing obligations to remove sanctions, benefiting the Iranian people and hence laying the foundations for more constructive agreements.” (un.org)

Other parts of his speech slammed Israel for “atrocities in Gaza” and how Iran sought “lasting peace and security for the people of Ukraine and Russia.”

Watch the full speech.

WHAT ABOUT THE JCPOA? While Pezeshkian has called for a return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the program has become far too advanced to follow the original deal. The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi met with Foreign Minister Araghchi at UNGA (Al-Monitor). Grossi noted, “We see some reluctance on their part to give us answers on things that could have proliferation implications now or in the past… There is a recognition that these things need to be addressed and solved,” referring to the origins of man-made uranium particles at three undeclared nuclear sites.

The IAEA chief intends to visit Tehran next month to discuss these matters, including Iran’s stonewalling of investigators. The latest IAEA report said Iran has 164.7 kilograms of 60 percent enriched uranium, an increase of 22.6 kilograms since May. (The JCPOA only allowed 3.67 percent.) In June, the IAEA Board of Governors passed a censure resolution pushed by the E3 on Tehran’s lack of cooperation with nuclear inspections and over its nuclear program advances.

WHAT TO MAKE OF THE TRIP? Pezeshkian’s comments in New York appeared to waffle between Iran’s commitment to peace and support for its regional proxies. “On one hand, he spoke of disarmament and global engagement at the UN General Assembly, while on the other, he reaffirmed Iran’s backing of Hezbollah and opposition to Israel,” noted IranWire.

Writer Arash Azizi captured Pezeshkian’s New York pitch well:

“The pitch goes something like this: We would like to make amends with the United States and Europe so that we can get the sanctions lifted from our economy. But we will not sacrifice our relations with Russia and China—the partners that have stood by us. Nor will we give up our support for the Axis of Resistance, the collection of Arab anti-Israel militias that plague the West and many regional Arab countries.” (The Atlantic)

WHO ELSE DID PEZESHKIAN MEET? During his visit, Pezeshkian met with a hundred members of the Iranian diaspora, including well-known analysts and journalists who vocally favor engagement with the clerical establishment (IranWire). The Iranian president also attended an interfaith dialogue meeting, which included a US-based Israeli academic that caused controversy in Tehran (Times of Israel). Hardline Kayhan newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Supreme Leader, warned against Pezeshkian meeting with US officials while in New York (Iran International). Reformist-affiliated outlets had reportedly called on him to meet with the two US presidential candidates.

۲/2 Iranian ambassador blinded in one eye

Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged almost daily fire across the Lebanon-Israel border. Last week, two communications attacks, in which Israel planted small amounts of explosives in beepers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members, killed at least 39 and injured 3,000 in Lebanon. Among the wounded was the Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, who reportedly lost one eye with the other severely injured. Iranian officials and his family said the ambassador was in “good and stable condition.” (BBC)

Some Iranians on social media saw the ambassador’s eye injuries as justice for the Women, Life, Freedom protesters, in which security forces systemically blinded at least 500. Ninety-five were transferred from Lebanon to Iran for treatment, including some who were injured in the eye, prompting anger online since protesters were denied emergency care and had to be secretly hospitalized, while others fled Iran. (RFE/RL).

Former television host and actor Ehsan Karami wrote on X:

“Why should the people of Iran bear the cost...? Rubber bullets and eye removal are reserved for Iranian youth, while exclusive flights and special treatment in Tehran are reserved for Hezbollah’s freeloaders.”

Journalist and women’s rights activist Masih Alinejad said on X:

“The hypocrisy is glaring: the same regime that intentionally blinded peaceful ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ protesters in Iran is now offering medical care to Hezbollah operatives who lost their eyesight to pager explosions…”

State media didn’t show the ambassador on camera during a hospital visit by the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Major General Hossein Salami, suggesting his injuries were likely much more serious. As Al-Monitor points out, “Any public acknowledgement on the part of Iranian officials about the possible severity of the ambassador's injury, observes say, could leave Tehran compelled to retaliate, further escalating tensions with Israel.”

On September 25, the ambassador posted on X but didn’t elaborate on health. Amani said he was proud that his “blood has been mixed with that of the honorable Lebanese people… as a result of the horrific terrorist crime.”

Two senior Iranian security officials said the IRGC had ordered all its members to stop using any communication devices after the twin attacks (Reuters). A large-scale operation is reportedly underway to inspect all devices. On September 22, the IRGC arrested twelve on allegations of collaborating with Israel and planning acts against Iran’s security (Reuters).

HOW WILL IRAN RESPOND? On September 19, IRGC Commander Salami in an open letter to Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah condemned the attacks and blamed Israel and pledged an “overwhelming response” from the Resistance Axis (Al-Monitor). He argued that the tactic was to cover up Israel’s “embarrassing defeats” in Gaza.

Two Israeli officials and one Western diplomat reportedly said that Hezbollah urged Tehran to attack Israel, but their Iranian counterparts said the “timing isn’t right” for an attack because Pezeshkian was in New York for UNGA (Axios). A senior Iranian official denied the reports as “fake news.” (X) The Financial Times reported that “Tehran has had to dispatch envoys to Beirut to scotch fears that it had deserted Hezbollah, according to people familiar with the matter.”

On September 23, independent Lebanese MP Mark Daou posted on X that “they negotiate over our corpses,” referring to Iran, after the Iranian foreign minister said Tehran was ready to negotiate over its nuclear program (X)

On September 25, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that killing Hezbollah commanders “was not the sort of damage that could bring the group to its knees.” (Al Jazeera). “The organizational strength and human resources of Hezbollah is very strong and will not be critically hit by the killing of a senior commander, even if that is clearly a loss,” he added.

۳/3 Coal mine blast kills 49, many blame corruption and mismanagement

۵/5 ODNI briefs Trump campaign on Iranian threats against Republican nominee

On September 25, while speaking at an event, former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, said:

“If I were the president, I would inform the threatening country—in this case, Iran—that if you do anything to harm this person, we are going to blow your largest cities and the country itself to smithereens. We are going to blow it to smithereens… As you know, there have been two assassination attempts on my life that we know of, and they may or may not involve, but possibly do, Iran, but I don’t really know… Meanwhile, we have the president of Iran in our country this week, we have large security forces guarding him, and yet they’re threatening our former president and the leading candidate to become the next president of the United States.” (The Hill)

Other items to read:

US offers $20m bounty for Iranian accused of plans to kill Trump aide (BBC)

The FBI says Iran tried to send hacked files to Democrats. It’s another sign of foreign meddling (AP)

Independent journalist publishes Trump campaign document hacked by Iran despite election interference concerns (NBC News)

Russia, Iran use AI to boost anti-US influence campaigns, officials say (Washington Post)

۶/6 Activist collective 1500Tasvir shuts down

On September 24, activist collective @1500Tasvir (1500 Images)—whose name comes from the 1,500 killed by security forces during the bloody 2019 protests—shut down. The group, comprised of activists inside and outside of Iran, played an integral role in reporting and documenting the human rights situation in Iran over the years through its Instagram and now deactivated X accounts. 1500 Tasvir has also helped with Western reporting, including an important CNN report on 16-year-old protester Nika Shakarami, who was killed during the 2022 uprising.

On September 23, the group announced in an Instagram story that they were permanently closing its accounts and to download videos and photos before then for documentation.

In a separate story, 1500Tasvir listed several reasons for shutting down, including a lack of financial support for maintaining their activities as well as a lack of support and distrust of foreign-based opposition figures. They vowed that “until our last breath, we will have no mission but fighting for the desolation of the Islamic Republic” but in other forms and capacities other than the 1500 Tasvir activist collective.

Thankfully, there’s an international archival coalition led by the Atlantic Council’s Strategic Litigation Project (SLP) and Mnemonic as well as other organizations, called Iran Digital Archive Coalition. Mnemonic, as the custodian of the Iranian Archive, has secured over 2 million pieces of digital artifacts, including videos and photos of state violence that contributed to the FFMI’s report, and will continue to play a role in documenting the repression on the ground.

Khosro Kalbasi Isfahani, SLP’s lead open-source researcher, told me:

“Despite efforts for preserving the material shared by 1500 Tasvir, the account’s suspension was a severe blow to documentation and accountability efforts. Let this wound be a reminder of how important are sustainable capacity building and countering the Islamic Republic's smear and pressure campaigns.”

۷/7 Rob Malley investigation report published

State Department Inspector General’s office report says State Department officials have also “failed to follow standard procedures when suspending” Malley’s security clearance (Politico).

OTHER اخبار/NEWS THAT MADE HEADLINES:

Human rights

۰ Political prisoner attempts suicide after denied medical care (IranWire)

۰ Iran sentences two political prisoners to death (IranWire)

۰ Political prisoner in Evin Prison denied treatment amid health crisis (IranWire)

۰ Slain blogger’s mother faces surveillance after protest threat (IranWire)

۰ Actress faces unofficial ban for supporting 2022 protests (IranWire)

۰ Retrial of 15 Baha’i women on charges of educational and promotional activities against islamic law (HRANA)

۰ Political activist trapped in legal limbo (IranWire)

۰ Women’s rights activist Pakhshan Azizi returned to Evin Prison after hospital visit (IranWire)

۰ Iran pardons Grammy Award winner whose song became an anthem to the 2022 protests (CNN)

۰ Exclusive: American held for 8 years in notorious Iranian prison tells of ordeal (CNN)

Domestic issues

۰ Parliament blocks Abdul Karim Hosseinzadeh’s resignation (IranWire)

۰ 790,000 students not yet enrolled in schools (Iran Focus)

۰ Dilapidated schools threaten three million students (IranWire)

۰ Border guards shoot, wound two kolbars (IranWire)

Foreign policy + security

۰ Hackers behind attack urging revenge for Koran burnings, Sweden says (RFE/RL)

۰ Iran’s exiled prince urges Israelis to act on regime change, clarifies stance on funding Iran protests (VOA)

۰ Iran brokering talks to send advanced Russian missiles to Yemen’s Houthis, sources say (Reuters)

۰ Iran, Hezbollah enabled Houthis’ rise, says UN report (Reuters)

۰ Iran unveils new ballistic missile, upgraded attack drone (VOA)

۰ Exclusive: Iran gave Russia missiles but no launchers, sources say (Reuters)

۰ Is China-Russia-Iran axis illusion as differences surface in Middle East? (Al-Monitor)

۰ After attack on Hazara community, fault lines reemerge in Iran-Taliban ties (Al-Monitor)

Iran deal + sanctions

۰ US issues sanctions over shipment of Iranian oil to Syria, East Asia (Reuters)

Sports

۰ Weightlifter vanishes in Spain ahead of world youth championships (IranWire)