Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – July 3, 2003

At home and at the Kushk office, I was working. Effat went to Rafsanjan. I am alone.

The Israel-Palestine agreements are shaky. Israel has fulfilled a small part of its commitments and has not accepted the conditions of the Mujahideen, and several people on both sides were killed and wounded in yesterday's clashes. Israel has begun new settlements around Jerusalem, and several groups of Jews have secretly gone to Jerusalem, which has aroused the anger of Muslims. Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, in a meeting with Ariel Sharon in Jerusalem, said that Iran tends to carry out terrorist acts, and Israel and Bush have asked Abu Mazen to disband the Palestinian Mujahideen groups.

At the European Parliament session, a severe confrontation occurred between Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister and rotating EU president. The German representative bitterly accused Berlusconi of corruption and bribery, and he retorted that his tone and posture were reminiscent of Nazi concentration camp guards. This response drew protests from most European countries, who demanded an apology, but he only expressed regret. Analysts view this incident as a major problem in Italy's management of the EU. Many around the world, including Berlusconi himself, have said they will gather in a square in Rome on July 9 to show support for the struggles of Iranian students; this is a brazen interference.

The French Court of Appeal, under pressure, released Maryam Rajavi and her ten companions on bail of $90,000, which is considered a setback in France's approach. Colin Powell, the U.S. Secretary of State, has explicitly stated that the U.S. does not intervene in Iran's internal affairs, which is interpreted as a failure in the policy of supporting rioters in Iran and was a fiasco for the U.S. The moderation in Powell's tone towards Iran, the rejection of the hostage families' request by the appeals court, and the U.S. government's opposition to seizing damages from Iran's frozen accounts have been interpreted as a shift in U.S. policy towards Iran.

The U.S. has threatened to cut aid to 35 countries that have refused to sign the treaty on the non-extradition of Americans accused of war crimes to the International Criminal Court, a move that has been criticized by several international bodies, including the European Commission.

In Algeria, Abbas Madani, the leader of the Islamic Salvation Front, and his deputy, Ali Belhadj, were released yesterday after 12 years of imprisonment. Belhadj declared after his release that the future of Algeria lies with the Islamic Salvation Front.