The Washington Post
Iranian officials have cancelled or downgraded major Shiite religious events during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, fearing the opposition might use them to stage protests.
A typically massive evening celebration at the South Tehran mausoleum of Islamic republic founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini scheduled for next weekend was cancelled "due to problems," the site's public relations department said in a statement. A traditional speech by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei marking the end of Ramadan, meanwhile, was changed from a large venue to one that is much smaller, the Ettemaad newspaper, which is critical of the government, reported on Sunday. And in Qum, the nation's center for religious education, several famous clerics who silently support the opposition were told they had been barred from speaking on Wednesday at an event in the city's most important shrine, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported.
Even though there haven't been any mass demonstrations since July, the cancellations and venue changes show that Iranian leaders are still worried about protests by followers of the defeated presidential candidates Mir Hussein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi. The candidates and their supporters say President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's June 12 landslide victory was rigged, which the government denies. Protests in June and July badly shook the government, but a massive crackdown has kept streets relatively quiet for over a month. In a statement released Saturday, Mousavi urged his followers to take on the "cheaters," while Karoubi has called for Iranians to protest on Sept. 18, when official demonstrations against Israel are planned. (Read more...)
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