Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi - April 8, 2002

Mr. Khorram, the Minister of Roads, came and gave explanations about the major projects of roads, railways and air fleets, mainly projects that have started during the construction period

Iraq announced that it would cut off oil exports as of today in protest against Israel's aggression, and Libya announced that it would agree to the use of oil weapons.

Full text of the diary:

[Mr. Salah Zawawi], the Palestinian ambassador, came and said that Israel and the United States agreed to remove [Yasser] Arafat, to form a weak Palestinian puppet government like [Hamed] Karzai, and to deport the refugees from the West Bank and Gaza to Jordan, which constitute 40 percent and 60 percent of the population, respectively. The supporters of Greater Israel think so, and the supporters of Greater Israel, who are more moderate, do not agree with this scenario. He asked Iran to do more. I said that with the great pressure that is being exerted by the people of the world and European countries against Israel and the United States, it is unlikely that Israel will be able to continue the occupation.

Israel has made it clear that it will not back down, despite the express wishes of the United States. There are signs that they agree with the United States behind the scenes, and the United States makes such requests in order to save the people of the Islamic world.

 The slaughter continued today. On the Lebanese border, there are daily exchanges of fire with Hezbollah and the Palestinians. Iraq announced that it would cut off oil exports as of today in protest against Israel's aggression, and Libya announced that it agreed to use oil weapons, which caused the price of oil to increase by one dollar. Several Arab countries have also objected, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Mr. [Mohammadreza] Mokhber [Dezfuli, a member of the Expediency Council's Supervisory Commission] came. They discussed how the Assembly supervises the implementation of general policies. Mr. [Ahmad] Khorram, the Minister of Roads [and Transportation], came and gave explanations about the major projects of roads, railways, and air fleets, which are mainly projects that have started during the construction period.  

In the evening, Messrs. [Seyyed Hashem Hosseini] Bushehri, [Seyyed Mohammad] Hosseini Shahroudi, and [Seyyed Ali] Tekiyei came from Qom to follow up on the establishment of the Jameh University in Qom that I have mentioned, and said that they would demolish the half-finished building of the Great Square of Qom on the orders of Mr. [Seyyed Mohammad] Khatami and at the request of Messrs. [Ebrahim] Amini and [Mohaqiq] Damad, which would cause inconvenience to the people.

In the United States, a female nurse infected 1,100 people with HIV. In Jalalabad, Afghanistan, the life of [Defense Minister] General [Mohammad Qasim] Fahim was attempted but was not injured. Political parties and Islamic groups in Pakistan have opposed Musharraf's referendum to extend the presidential term.