Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – April 15, 1999

I studied at home until eleven in the morning, then went to the Koushk Office. Effat came there at noon as well. She was upset about the issue concerning Faezeh and cried. I attended to my work until four in the afternoon. Mr. [Gholamhossein] Mohammadi-Golpaygani, from the Leader’s Office, called to request an appointment. I told him I would not come downstairs. He consulted me about Mr. [Seyyed Hassan] Taheri-Khorramabadi leading the Friday prayers. I told him that Mr. Taheri had raised the matter at the meeting of the Presiding Board of the [Assembly of] Experts the day before yesterday, and we had all approved it.

In the afternoon, I returned home and spent the rest of the day studying. In international affairs, attention was focused on the NATO forces’ mistaken attack on a convoy of refugees in Kosovo, which killed more than 60 innocent people. At first, they tried to blame the Serbian regime, but were unable to do so and eventually admitted the mistake and accepted responsibility. It will prove costly. Germany’s plan for resolving the Kosovo issue is being discussed, but it is unlikely that Yugoslavia will accept it. The limited Serbian incursion into Albanian territory is another warning sign.

At night, Mohammad-Taqi, our worker in Noq, came with his son. I asked about the situation in Noq, the people and relatives there, the farms, the residence, and the councils. He had brought some qashq, taʿf [= qarāqorut], pistachio kernels, meat, butter, and yogurt as gifts from home.

Six of the seven candidates in Algeria’s presidential election have resigned, citing fraud in the election, leaving only Mr. [Abdelaziz] Bouteflika. [Bill Clinton], the President of the United States, has made important remarks about Iran in a gathering of American experts and policymakers. He acknowledged that the West had wronged Iran over the past two centuries and that, because of its important strategic position, Iran had been coveted by Western powers and subjected to violations of its rights and acts of aggression. He said that this should now be remedied in some way, and that Iranians should not regard the West as infidel, but should work to ease relations through negotiations.