Video: Footage from Iranian television of the victory

Jump to Latest Update

President-elect Hassan Rouhani has hailed Iran’s 1-0 victory over South Korea on Wednesday as an “introduction to bigger victories” for the Islamic Republic.

Rouhani said that the football victory, which qualifies Iran for the 2014 World Cup, heralded the “powerful presence of our nation on all fields”.

The President-elect also praised Iran’s youth for their displays of patriotism after the victory.

Rouhani’s rival, and secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili also tweeted about Iran’s football win, calling it the “second victory in a week”:

Celebrations of the victory took place across Iran, including in the Sunni-majority province of Sistan Baluchistan:

Images from the celebrations in Tehran:

The victory was also front page headlines in Iranian dailies on Wednesday, including the hardline Kayhan newspaper, close to the Supreme Leader’s Office:

Screen Shot 2013-06-19 at 7.07.17 AM

Latest Updates, From Top to Bottom

Rouhani Meets With Sadegh Larijani

Following his meeting on Tuesday with parliament speaker Ali Larijani, President-elect Hassan Rouhani met with another powerful figure on Wednesday — Ali’s brother Sadegh, Iran’s judiciary chief.

Sadegh told reporters at a press conference following the meeting that the judicial branch wished to cooperate with the executive branch of government, while remaining strictly independent.

“I believe the [three] branches of government must cooperate and interact with each other in order to better serve the people of Iran,” Sadegh was quoted as saying.

Rouhani said the meeting was an initial step toward cooperation with the judiciary.

Footage: Celebrations At Azadi Stadium (And Fire!)

Video of Wednesday’s celebrations at Tehran’s Azadi stadium (from which women were excluded — see previous post). The footage shows a fire (speedily extinguished!) on the platform where the ceremony is held (at the 4.50 mark).

Iran’s Football Victory: Women Not Allowed In Azadi Stadium

The Feminist School, an Iranian feminist movement, posted pictures on their Facebook account on Wednesday of women outside of Azadi stadium in Tehran.

Thanks to commenter Vakil-e Roaya for the link, who notes that: Women were not allowed in the stadium to celebrate Iran’s qualification for the World Cup in Brazil in 2014

969719_10151525512085975_1463380576_n

1010953_10151525516730975_1957298294_n

Journalists Released from Prison

Foad Sadeghi and Ali Ghazali, the director and editor of the Baztab-e Emrooz website, were released from prison on Tuesday.

Sadeghi was prominent in efforts to support Hashemi Rafsanjani in the Presidential election before the former President was disqualified. Baztab’s site was suspended last month, as Sadeghi and Ghazali were detained.

Hassan Rohani has urged the public to show patience since such policies require the collaboration of all government branches and are not solely up to the president.

British Courts Strike Down Sanctions on Iran Bank

The British Supreme Court has ruled that the Government was wrong to impose sanctions on an Iran’s Bank Mellat in 2009. .

The ruling — like that in January of the European Union’s General Court — will not overturn subsequent, more extensive US and European sanctions, but a Bank Mellat spokesman told Reuters on Wednesday that it is considering launching a claim against Britain that “could exceed 500 million pounds”.

In a majority judgment, Supreme Court Judge Jonathan Sumption said that the British Government had been “arbitrary”, “irrational” and “disproportionate” to single out Bank Mellat, Iran’s largest private bank, for sanctions.

The sanctions on Bank Mellat prevented the whole of the British financial sector from having any business relationship with the institution. US sanctions imposed on the bank remain in place.

On Slow News Day, Hardline Mashregh Exposes America

Hardline Mashregh News — famous for its reviews of Hollywood movies — brings its readers a lengthy expose of what it says are the worst excesses of American culture throughout history.

Even through the US voted in favor of the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, Mashregh says, the reality is very different. Washington’s human rights violations include excessive surveillance against citizens, Mashregh tells us, with the caption “Everywhere Is Under Surveillance”.

So, not like Iran then.

Mashregh uses this photograph to illustrate what it says is Washington’s policy that all America citizens are terrorists who must be watched:

304701_607

Perhaps the best illustration Mashregh offers of the ills of contemporary US society is this image, which it uses to illustrate its assertion that American children have easy access to both firearms and knives:

304702_428