Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi - March 17, 2003

The Invasion of Iraq Begins with George W. Bush's Speech According to Hashemi
Ali Abdolalizadeh's report on the sale of density in Tehran and other technical consultations
Mohammad Dehestani's meeting and a report on the actions of the Central Iron Ore Company
Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Association of Political Prisoners before the Revolution
The meeting of Sheikh Ghodrat Alikhani
The meeting of the heads of the armed forces with Ayatollah Khamenei and Hashemi's interesting narrative that this meeting was for a media show of unity, and then a one-on-one meeting with the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, consultations on the possibility of war, and the appointment of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Tehran after the restoration of the prosecutor's offices.
Full text of the diary:

At 8:00 p.m. U.S. time and 4:30 a.m. Iran time, George W. Bush delivered his war speech on Iraq, which was very calculated. He gave Saddam [Iraqi President Hussein] and his sons 48 hours to leave Iraq or be ready for war, and asked the Iraqi army and intelligence not to cooperate with Saddam, and threatened them with punishment for war crimes, and asked them not to destroy the oil wells, and promised the Iraqi people freedom. From the axis of opposition to the war, Russia, France, and Germany criticized that they are with the United States in assessing the danger in Iraq, but they do not agree with the United States in taking action, and he reassured the American people not to worry about insecurity, and he escaped from the problems of the disagreement of the Security Council that the United States defends its security!!

Yesterday in the United Kingdom, Robin Cook, the head of the majority faction in the House of Commons and a cabinet minister, gave an important speech and resigned from his position in protest against the US war policy and the subordination of the [Tony] Blair government, and the MPs, contrary to their long-standing tradition, stood up and extended the o'clock. [French President Jacques] Chirac and [German Chancellor] Gerhard Schröder sharply criticized [George] Bush's war policy in separate speeches. The third British cabinet minister also resigned in protest against Blair's cooperation with Bush.
The Arab League called the invasion of Iraq an aggression, and in response to Bush's 48-hour ultimatum for the departure of Saddam and his sons, Naji Sabri said that the solution to the world's problem with Bush's withdrawal from the United States is practical. Saddam announced that he would stay and fight. A member of the French parliament asked the Pope [John Paul II, the leader of the world's Catholics] to go to Iraq as a human shield against the American invasion and thus prevent the war.

Mr. [Ali] Abdolalizadeh, the Minister of Housing [and Urban Development], came and said that the Supreme Council of Urban Development had approved that the sale of density in Tehran should continue to be a little less expensive. He asked the Expediency Council to provide a solution to the problem of the lands that the ministry has acquired and given to the people as a favor, and the previous owners get a restitution order from the court.

[Mr. Mohammad Dehestani], the CEO of the Central Iron Ore Company, came. He is from Baft [Kerman].He gave a report on the progress of the work of the iron ore mines in the region; construction has started in the government. He complained to the president of the Islamic Azad University [Baft], who is also his vice president. 
The members of the Prisoners' Association came before the revolution. Messrs. [Kazem] Akrami, Dr. Ahmad Ali Borhani, [Ali] Salehabadi, [Ahmad] Hatami, [Seyyed Mohammad Milani, Keyvan Samimi], and [Mohammad Reza Ali] Hosseini, the representative of Nahavand, asked me to pay attention to their problems and to hold a banquet for them.

In the evening, Mr. [Qudrat] Alikhani, [the representative of Boyin Zahra] came. He thanked me for my visit to Buin Zahra and said that the people's welcome to you was unique in the history of the region. He criticized the strictness of my bodyguards. He said, "I should help solve the problem that has arisen between the Majlis and the Expediency Council."

We had a meeting with [Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, Mehdi Karroubi, and Seyyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi] with the Heads of the Armed Forces and Mr. [Ahmad] Jannati, [Secretary of the Guardian Council], in order to broadcast the news and show the accompaniment. The budget of the Guardian Council and the Expediency Council's decision were discussed. The Leader asked that the disputes be stopped and that there should be no talk of violating the Assembly's resolution, and that the representatives be justified that the resolution is the same as the demand of the Joint Commission and the experts. It was decided that tomorrow a group of representatives would come to me to explain them.

I had a meeting with the Supreme Leader at night. Most of our talks were about the U.S. military invasion of Iraq and its effects on Iran, and more attention to border security and the possibility of harassment by the hypocrites. He asked me to get more involved in military issues and defense plans. We talked about the Tehran Prosecutor, who is going to be appointed soon.