Akbar Hashemi's Memoirs - November 21, 1999 - Analysis and Arguments of Seyyed Hossein Marashi on Hashemi Entering the Parliamentary Elections

Seyyed Hossein Marashi’s analysis and arguments regarding Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani’s entry into the sixth parliamentary elections are noteworthy.

Ali Aghamohammadi’s meeting and his report on the objectives behind establishing the News Network and the leadership of the Nasr Headquarters, which had been handed over to General Alireza Afshar, were also discussed.

Dr. Iraj Fazel expressed concerns about the country’s situation during his meeting with Hashemi.

Sheikh Ahmad Shafi’i and Amir Tehrani, then-deputy ministers of intelligence, met with Hashemi prior to the Supreme Council meeting to seek his help regarding the interrogation process of suspects involved in the chain murders.

After numerous discussions and subsequent arrests of other officials from the Ministry of Intelligence, along with tensions and disagreements between this ministry and the Tehran military court regarding the method and objectives of interrogations, it was decided during the Supreme Council meeting that the current interrogation team be replaced, the interrogations be reviewed, and that the confessions of the accused not be broadcast on television.

Mr. [Ali] Aghamohammadi from IRIB came. He gave a report on the objectives behind the establishment of the News Network [Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting]. He also explained the leadership of the Nasr Headquarters, which is currently under the command of General [Alireza] Afshar. Mehdi Hashemi, my cousin, came seeking help for his debts; I provided some financial assistance.

Mr. Hossein Marashi, [MP for Kerman], visited and stated that the left-wing faction's concern about your entering the parliamentary elections stems from their fear of facing a strong competitor in the next presidential election. They are also eyeing the parliament’s leadership and believe that you and the Supreme Leader might, through coordination, return the situation to how it was before.

Engineer [Hossein] Hooshyar and his wife came seeking assistance for her pilgrimage to Hajj and expressed frustration over unemployment. Dr. [Iraj] Fazel, [President of the Academy of Medical Sciences], came and said that the country’s situation is not good, and the intellectuals of the country are concerned about the potential state of the next parliament. Your presence, he said, would alleviate concerns and reassure the people, bringing them hope.

In the afternoon, Mr. [Ahmad] Shafi’i and Mr. [Amir] Tehrani, deputy ministers of intelligence, came requesting that the issue of the chain murders in the Intelligence Ministry be addressed in the Supreme Council meeting tonight in the presence of the Supreme Leader.

I had an interview with Mr. [Masoud] Safari, [Editor-in-Chief of Akhbar newspaper]. He is preparing a book on the history and analysis of the revolution, mainly based on interviews with me. We reached the point of discussing the seizure of the U.S. embassy.

In the evening, there was a meeting with [Mr. Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrudi, and Ali Akbar Nategh Nouri], the heads of the branches of government, along with Dr. [Hassan] Rouhani, [Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council], [Ali] Younesi, [Minister of Intelligence], and [Mohammad] Niazi, [Head of the Judiciary Organization of the Armed Forces], at the Supreme Leader’s office.

We discussed how to proceed with the chain murders investigation. There is disagreement between the Intelligence Ministry and the military court. It was decided that a new group, selected by the president and the head of the judiciary and approved by the Supreme Leader, would review the case. Once a satisfactory conclusion is reached, the case would be handed over to the court.

The broadcast of the interview tapes that had been prepared would be postponed until after the new group’s assessment. Mr. Khatami expressed concern about the changes the parliament had made to his government’s proposed budget plan.