List of 62 International Subversive Organizations

After Iran’s minister of interior declared last week the end of the period of “patience” with the country’s protestors, the ministry of intelligence published a list of 62 international organizations declaring that, “Any contact, agreements or communications by Iranian individuals or legal entities with these organizations and soft-war foundations were illegal and banned.”

Iran’s minister of interior, Guards general Mostafa Mohammad Najjar announced on Sunday, “We have instructed the police not to be lenient with rioters from now on and to immediately arrest anyone who appears in demonstrations with the intent of cooperating with the rioters.” He further warned, “These individuals are considered Mohareb and their punishment is very clear.” Mohareb in Islam means someone who is at war with God and he is punished by death.

These remarks by the minister came after Ismail Ahmadi Moghadam, the chief commander of Iran’s police had announced, “The period of leniency with the rioters has ended and the police would harshly confront them from now on.”

All Contacts Are Illegal

Following the remarks and threats by the minister of the interior, the foreign deputy at the ministry of intelligence of Ahmadinejad’s administration on Monday made his threatening remarks by asserting that, “The goals and plans of the enemies of the Islamic revolution and their domestic and foreign leaders have been identified.”

These remarks were published by all the official domestic news agencies, without naming the official, who also said that, “News networks, and satellite stations and Internet websites that oppose the Islamic republic of Iran such as the BBC, VOA, Zamane Radio, Farda Radio, Radio Israel, and counter revolutionary satellite stations and Internet websites and those that are inline with the plotters shall be construed to be organizations intending to overthrow the regime.” This unnamed security official continued: “Any contact, agreement, or acquisition of resources by individuals or legal entities with these organizations is illegal and banned. Furthermore, the receipt of any monetary or non-monetary assistance from outside the country for movements, political parties or groups is illegal.”

The published list includes the names of some non-government organization, universities, and international organization including Human Rights Watch. Yale University, a leading US institution of higher education is also on the list of organizations to be in a “soft war” against the Islamic republic. Other organizations such as the Open Society Institute, Woodrow Wilson Center, Freedom House, and Hifus Institute which have in recent years been repeatedly accused by the Islamic republic are also on the list.

These remarks and the list are published after the director of the cyber crimes unit of the Islamic Revolution Passdaran Guards (IRGC) Sadeghi, who is also very close to the IRGC’s intelligence deputy, had in a written piece labeled the massive public protests to the electoral coup as a “deep plot” and a “media war” were guided from outside the country by such networks as the BBC, the VOA, Radio Azadi, Radio Farda which questioned the elections and repeated the big lie of fraud in the elections also using  domestic and foreign Internet sites, which also presented a fabricated coverage of the riots and the invited illegal gatherings, made insults. The Internet sites mentioned in this presentation are Gooya News, the BBC, Rooz Online, uTube, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Ministry of Islamic Guidance Jumps on the Bandwagon Too

In addition to statements and claims made by officials from the ministry of the interior and the ministry of intelligence, Mohammad Ali Ramin, the press deputy at the ministry of Islamic guidance also joined the other government officials and called the few remaining non-government media to be “corrupt and polluted.”

As a close associate of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Ramin tried to explain the reasons for the rise in the suspension of newspapers in the country and warned some specific newspapers that are critical of the administration. “Newspapers that receive warnings or are banned are like corrupt and infected elements which disrupt the whole media atmosphere. Our closure of these media is our effort to improve the chaotic atmosphere.”

It should be noted that after the elections, many newspapers and magazines such as Etemad Melli, Ghalame Sabz, Sedaye Edalat, Sarmaye, Tahlile Rooz, and Hayate No were banned while many news agencies and Internet sites too have been blocked by the government and their employees arrested.

According to published statistics, since the new administration came to office, more than 100 journalists and reporters have been arrested and a large number of them have been charged with such issues as acting against national security, or participating in riots.