But there might be more behind the concerns of the ultra conservative faction than Ahmadinejad's ambitions to become the sole party ‘in proximity’ to Khamenei—they are also likely worried over recent signs of stress between the president and his messianic mentor, Yazdi.
These strains were on display last week when Mohammad Nasser Saghaie Biriya, a close associate of Yazdi and Ahmadinejad's religious affairs advisor, handed in his resignation to the president. According to sources of Tehran-based Khabar online, Biriya resigned over differences between himself and Ahmadinejad over the issue of new government approved codes of clothing and hairstyles for men and women.
What’s particularly interesting is that Biriya handed in his resignation to Ahmadinejad after he had had a meeting with Mesbah Yazdi, suggesting that Yazdi backed his decision to distance himself from the president.
And the discord between Ahmadinejad and his former allies is bound to get worse. Esmail Rahim Mashai, Ahmadinejad's closest ally, recently warned that ‘we will be reaching a stage where, within a year, the supporters of Hezbollah will excommunicate Ahmadinejad’ (the remark prompted Keyhan’s Mohammadi to ask what the president might be planning to do that would lead to his excommunication from Hezbollah).
Meanwhile, it’s difficult to imagine that Khamenei isn’t worried about the recent disputes amongst his most loyal supporters. After all, it doesn't bode well for his authority to have his president lock horns with former supporters and to be given notice that he could be excommunicated from the faction to which Khamenei's loyal Revolutionary Guard Corps Basij members belong.
It’s likely that these growing concerns prompted Khamenei to take the unprecedented step of issuing a new fatwa in which he described himself as the representative of the Hidden Imam (Mahdi), and which ranked his rulings alongside those issued by the Prophet Mohammed. Khamenei has been Supreme Leader for more than two decades, but until now he hasn’t needed to stamp his authority in such a public way as there was never any doubt who was in charge.
But just as Ahmadinejad has come under fire, so questions are now being raised about Khamenei’s position. As Morteza Nabavi, a former minister and a current member of the cultural commission of the conservative Osulgarayan (principalist) movement warned in an interview in May this year with online publication Javan: ‘There are a limited number of people on the political scene who are defending the position of the Supreme Leader.’
So, was Khamenei's decision to issue a new fatwa a sign of desperation? Either way he had little choice but to do so. The fighting within the regime is growing increasingly intense—so intense that perhaps even his ‘supreme’ voice and authority now lies at risk of becoming lost in the chaos.
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Mickie Wupdajock
Regime change in Iran is a “dream” in some circles in the West. However, is the above what Iran or the West really want?
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been accused as being a lot of things by the West. In reality, he is nothing more than another moderate, reformist wannabe who wants to stamp his own personality on the presidency and wants to try to encourage social freedoms. When the hardliners and religious nuts began to see this, they turned on him. Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi is a very dangerous individual and so are militant groups like Hezbollah. If these got into power in Iran, all social changes maintained in Iran would be gone. Iran would be isolated by a government who wouldn’t out of religious duties sell oil to non-”Muslims”. “Islamic Voodooism” would prevail and ALL the things the West says Ahmadinejad is but isn’t would become a reality – only with Ahmadinejad not being the perpetrator. Ahmadinejad would be one more green movement opposition figure (joining former enemis Mousavi, Karroubi and Rafsanjani, just like Rafsanjani joined his former enemy Khatami).
Iran is not perfect as it is and needs a lot of democracy and needs more social freedoms. Khamenei may be corrupt, Ahmadinejad may be somewhat idealistic. BUT both are far preferable to an Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi-led kingdom in Iran.
Muhammad Talut
No need of those comments/rights that are only to create chaos and conflicts in human society. Reformations are OK but they never should cross the limit of decency and courtesy of Mankind. Iran is still a peaceful country and satisfied with its own systems. They are harming none. Why the westerns are so crazy to see the Iranians girls naked like they do to their own mothers and sisters?
Michael
And this has WHAT to do with the contents of the article?
Jonathan
I think the issue at hand is not whether or not Iranian systems are a bad thing, but rather that the people should be given more say in what they want in their political system.