A Bloggers Murder In Iran Is Stirring A 'Political Hornet's Nest'

Iranian blogger Sattar Beheshti pictured with his mother before his death in custody. The Guardian

Blogger's Death Stirs Political Hornet's Nest In Iran -- Reuters

(Reuters) - There was little about Sattar Beheshti that made him stand out in a working-class suburb south of Tehran called Robat Karim.

Like many of his peers, the 35-year-old laborer was devout and lived at home with his mother. But his life changed when he started a blog called "My Life for Iran" last year.

His entries often focused on the struggles of the working class as well as the political restrictions in Iran, sometimes mixed with personal anecdotes from Beheshti's daily life.

As months passed, the tone on the blog became sharper and more political, with unveiled criticism of the establishment and even the Supreme Leader, a red line in the Islamic Republic.

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My Comment: This case illustrates the power of social media and the web as well as revealing why the Iranian theocracy is afraid of it. The web may not change the government in Iran, but it is revealing its crimes that future generations will be able to look at and make a judgement on .... a prospect that Iranian government officials (for their own reasons) do not want to see happen.

How The Iranian Regime Destroyed It's Economy

How Politics Nuked Iran’s Economy -- Meir Javedanfar, The Diplomat

Iran is facing a threat even more severe than the Stuxnet computer virus, a sophisticated line of code which was reportedly sponsored by the U.S. and Israel, and which destroyed some of Iran’s uranium centrifuges in 2010. In Persian, this affliction is called Siyasat Bazee – in English, playing politics.

The precipitous fall of the Iranian rial against the U.S. Dollar, which has depreciated by more than 40% in the past week and by 75% since the end of last year, points to the perils of Iran’s leaders using economic policy to suit their own political interests. The collapse of the currency ignited protests on the streets of Tehran on Wednesday and some pundits are wondering whether inflation will spell the end of the regime.

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My Comment: When a currency depreciates by almost 75% .... that is when you know that you have a problem. For many Iranians .... that is a realization that is hitting home now.

Iran's Currency Crisis

Iran's Currency: Why Did The Rial Tumble So Precipitously? -- Roshanak Taghavi, Christian Science Monitor

US sanctions played a role. However, Iranians aren't blaming the US, they're blaming their own government.

The value of Iran’s national currency, the rial, plunged to its lowest against the dollar in more than two decades this week, plummeting by an estimated 40 percent in the past four days. And while the precipitous drop has been brought on by US sanctions, Iranians are in large part blaming the government's massive economic mismanagement.

The rial has declined roughly 80 percent in the past year, and the street rate is now around 37,000 rials to the dollar. But economists and oil officials in Tehran say they were less surprised by the breadth of the currency’s depreciation than by the rapid speed at which it fell. Indeed, many have predicted the rial’s continued, albeit gradual, decline for more than a year.

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More News On Iran's Currency Crisis

Iran arrests 16 'main players' in currency crisis -- CNN
Iranian police on watch after currency plunge prompts protests -- FOX News/AP
Merchants Reopen in Tehran, With Police Watching for More Protests -- New York Times
Iranian police patrol tense Tehran bazaar in wake of protests -- L.A. Times
Iranian Police Clash With Protesters After Currency Plunges -- Voice of America
Iran traders stay shut in rial protest -- Financial Times
U.S. official says Iran currency to face more pressure -- Reuters
Protests in Tehran: Will Pain of Sanctions Change Iran’s Nuclear Calculus? -- Tony Karon, Time
Iran in economic meltdown -- Rick Moran, American Thinker
ENDGAME: How Iran's Hyperinflationary Currency Collapse Could Lead To Revolution -- Matthew Boesler, Business Insider
Is Iran's currency crisis evidence that sanctions are working? -- Michael Singh, Shadow Government/Foreign Policy

Iran's Currency Crisis Results In Tehran Street Clashes

Iran Currency Crisis Sparks Tehran Street Clashes -- The Guardian

Police use teargas and batons on demonstrators and Tehran bazaar closes as value of rial plunges.

Hundreds of demonstrators in the Iranian capital, Tehran, have clashed with riot police, who used batons and teargas to disperse the crowd, which had gathered in protest against the crisis raging over the country's national currency.

The Grand Bazaar, the heartbeat of Tehran's economy, went on strike on Wednesday, with various businesses shutting down and owners gathering in scattered groups chanting anti-government slogans in reaction to the plummeting value of the rial, which has hit all-time lows this week.

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More News On Iran's Currency Crisis

Iranian police clash with protesters over currency plunge -- Reuters
Riot police surround Tehran bazaar after Ahmadinejad talks sanctions -- CNN
Iran police clash with protesters over currency crisis -- BBC
Iran closes Tehran bazaar as protesters angry over currency's collapse clash with police -- CBS/AP
Iran tightens measures to stem currency fall -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Iran’s President Ties Recent Drop in Currency to U.S.-Led Sanctions -- New York Times
Tehran Hit by Protests Over Currency Crisis -- Wall Street Journal
Iranian Police Clash with Protesters After Currency Plunge -- Voice of America
And Here's A Chart Of The Iranian Currency Collapse That's Causing Protests On The Streets Of Tehran -- Business Insider

Iran's Young Face A Difficult Future

Ali Mesgaran and a friend at the sandwich shop he opened this year in Tehran. He said his shop was one place where he controlled his destiny. Newsha Tavakolian for The New York Times

Pinched Aspirations Of Iran’s Young Multitudes -- New York Times

TEHRAN — About two months ago, when many Iranian families were stocking up on rice and meat to prepare for seemingly inevitable military conflict with the West over Iran’s nuclear program, Ali Mesgaran, 35, decided to open a sandwich shop.

Iran’s national currency, the rial, had just lost nearly half of its value amid new international sanctions, and banks and exchange offices were spilling over with orders for gold and foreign currency from people hoping to protect family savings from soaring inflation.

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My Comment: Iran is not the only country experiencing tough times for it's young.

I Guess Sanctions Are Having An Impact In Iran

'We're Starving!' Furious Iranians Jump On To Ahmadinejad’s Open-Topped Car In Extraordinary Display Of Civil Disobedience -- Daily Mail

* A pensioner and a young woman both scream at the president in rare footage from the country

The political situation in Iran and the plight of its people is commonly kept away from the outside world by its repressive regime.

But new and extraordinary footage released today shows screaming protesters climbing on president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's car during an open-topped tour of the southern city of Bandar-Abbas.

A rare YouTube clip from the country first shows a furious elderly man shouting 'I'm a pensioner', while gesticulating at the controversial politician.

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Update: Iranians surround Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's car in poverty protest -- The Telegraph

My Comment: This confrontation was spontaneous .... involving both the young and old .... and it appears to have been a surprise to everyone that was involved. But when you are desperate .... and hungry .... consequences be damned as evident by those who took the chance and opportunity to confront Ahmadinejad.

Iran's Gas Pipelines Targeted By Opponents

Explosion Rocks Iranian Gas Line To Turkey -- UPI

TEHRAN, July 29 (UPI) -- Natural gas supplies from Iran to Turkey were disrupted when an explosion struck a natural gas pipeline connecting the countries, Iranian officials said.

A blast early Friday struck a natural gas pipeline near Maku, which is near the Iranian-Turkish border, cutting gas supplies, unnamed officials told Iran's semiofficial Mehr news agency.

The report indicated that responders were able to get the blaze under control and extract excess gas from a broken pipeline section.

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More News On Iran's Gas Pipelines Being Targeted

Iran resumes gas exports to Turkey after pipeline blast -- Reuters
Gas Pipeline Explodes Near Iran-Turkey Border -- Eurasia Review
‘US, Israeli mercenaries’ blow up Iran-Turkey gas line -- DAWN
'US, Israeli mercenaries' blow up Iran-Turkey gas line - -AFP

My Comment: The list of possible suspects is long, and I would not put Israel or the US at the top of that list.