Akbar Hashemi's Memoirs - December 3, 1999 - Nationwide Support of Friday Prayer Imams for the Conviction of Sheikh Abdullah Nouri by Judge Mohammad Salimi, Head of the Second Branch of the Special Clerical Court

News from Sayyed Mostafa Khamenei, the eldest son of Ayatollah Khamenei, about his father’s illness, and an invitation to Hashemi for the wedding of Sayyed Masoud Khamenei, Ayatollah Khamenei’s third son, to the daughter of Ayatollah Seyyed Mohsen Kharazi.

As in previous weeks, Friday Prayer Imams nationwide continued to defend the conviction of Sheikh Abdullah Nouri by Judge Mohammad Salimi, head of the Second Branch of the Special Clerical Court.

I spent the day at home, studying, improving my English, and exercising with the machine. At noon, several of the family were present. Saeed [Lahouti] and Sara [Faezeh's daughter] explained the details of the car accident, how Saeed’s colleagues arrived at the Akhtar Hospital and transferred the injured to Tehran. They faced delays due to traffic while keeping in touch with Faezeh, Mehdi, and the doctors. Faezeh was unconscious and in shock from the road ordeal, which caused her not to feel the pain immediately. Saeed himself has torn a tendon between his thumb and index finger, which has been cast.

In global reports, the capture of the city of Argun near Grozny by the Russian army, scattered clashes with Chechen guerrillas, the number of refugees reaching 300,000, and their suffering from snow and cold are being highlighted. The West seems to be using this new quagmire to weaken Russia.

The disagreements between the U.S. and Europe over the Europeans' decision to establish a military branch within NATO due to their reliance on the U.S. in major global crises, the lack of success between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in resolving disputes over the withdrawal of 5% of land, and the recent rude comments from [Madeleine Albright], U.S. Secretary of State, calling Iran "rogue," are key political issues at the moment.

Sayyed Mostafa, Ayatollah Khamenei’s son, called to inform me of his father's severe cold and fever and invited me to the wedding of his brother Masoud with the daughter of Mr. Seyyed Mohsen Kharazi.

Most Friday Prayer Imams today defended the Special Clerical Court and rejected the leftist media’s remarks regarding Mr. [Abdullah] Nouri.