Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Thursday, April 28, 2011

And the "supreme leader" said...

There may or may not be political friction between the Russian president and the premier, but there is obviously friction among the political elite in Iran. This is a good case study of the complexity of politics and the difficulties caused by oversimplification.

Iranian leader rebuffs Ahmadinejad over official’s dismissal

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad received a public rebuff Wednesday when Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, confirmed that the intelligence minister, whom Ahmadinejad had dismissed Sunday, is to keep his job.

In a letter carried by all Iranian news agencies, Khamenei told Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi and his officials to “continue their work,” effectively ending three days of uncertainty over Moslehi’s fate and the reasons for his apparently forced resignation.

It is rare for Khamenei, who generally supports the government’s policies, to step in and modify the president’s decisions…

The controversy over the key ministry post has flared against a backdrop of public tension about what high-ranked officials described as the growing influence of Ahmadinejad’s closest aide, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, in the country’s affairs…

Mashaei’s promotion of Iranian culture over Islamic culture has angered hard-line Shiite clerics, who say they would prefer to see him leave. But analysts say the aide still wields considerable influence on the president, whose son is married to Mashaei’s daughter…

Iran sacking row hints at Ahmadinejad power struggle

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has come under pressure to reinstate intelligence minister Heidar Moslehi in an apparent internal power struggle.

Mr Ahmadinejad accepted Mr Moslehi's resignation on Sunday, but Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei quickly ordered that he stay on in the job.

Over two-thirds of Iran's 290 lawmakers signed a statement on Wednesday warning Mr Ahmadinejad to obey the order.

Analysts say Iran's clerics view Mr Ahmadinejad as grabbing too much power…

Although no official reason was given, correspondents say Mr Moslehi appears to have been sacked after he dismissed an official with close ties to Mr Ahmadinejad's confidant, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei…

The current tensions show a potentially widening gap between Mr Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Khamenei, who has shown displeasure with the president's overreaching ambitions in the past.

But the Iranian president still has highly influential backers, including the Revolutionary Guard, which has sway over crucial areas such as Iran's nuclear programme and oil industry.

A bit of analysis by the BBC's James Reynolds accompanies the news story.

Analysis

Iran's supreme leader is meant to spend his life at an Olympian altitude far above the scrubland of day-to-day politics. Ayatollah Khamenei rarely gets involved in the firing and re-hiring of ministers. So when he does, the country's politicians take notice.

Analysts see it as a sign that he is trying to curb the power of President Ahmadinejad. Since Mr Ahmadinejad's re-election in 2009 following the disputed presidential vote, the president has fought his rivals in the conservative movement for power. He wants more of it. They want him to share it with parliament…

Iranian president abstains from Cabinet meeting in growing rift with top cleric

Iran’s president on Wednesday shunned a Cabinet meeting for the second consecutive time this week, apparently showing his discontent over a recent government appointment by the country’s supreme leader…

Ahmadinejad’s gamble appears to be aimed at setting up a confidant to become the next president, analysts say. He needs to control the Intelligence Ministry in order to influence the next parliament as well as who becomes the next president, they say.

Khamenei is believed to be intent on helping shape a new political team, absent of Ahmadinejad loyalists, to lead the next government.

Without meaningful political parties in Iran, unpredictable political factions and groups have emerged before elections. Khamenei, analysts say, feels threatened by a single political faction remaining in office for more than eight years.

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Labels: Iran, leadership, politics