Iran Propaganda 101: Nanodiamonds, Nukes, "Western Officials", and The Washington Post

A discussion, including David Albright and Karim Sadjadpour, on a Sunday talk show about the IAEA report and Iran's nuclear programme

See also Iran Feature: Did Unnamed Officials Use the Media to Turn Nanodiamonds into Nuclear Bombs?

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A classic case study in how information/propaganda --- choose the word according to your perspective --- circulates between Western governments, supportive media, and "think tanks"....

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Iran Feature: Did Someone Murder the Son of 2009 Presidential Candidate Rezaei?

Ahmae RezaeiAt this point, there is no clarity on the death of Ahmad Rezaei, only speculation. Is that speculation, however, a marker of the uncertainty of an Iranian regime which is unsure about the reality of the foreign threat it perpetually claims? Is it a signal that someone within that regime may have removed the son of one of the Iranian elite? Or is just the noise around the tragedy of an unhappy man who took his own life?

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The Latest from Iran (13 November): An Explosion at a Military Base

2045 GMT: The Explosion. With the Revolutionary Guards "correcting" news about the blast at its Malard base twice within 24 hrs, Asr-e Iran has jabbed at the censorship and "informational shame".

2030 GMT: Corruption Watch. Iran's Inspector General Mostafa Pourmohammadi has said that the effects of financial corruption are worse than sanctions.

Hossein Fadayi of Parliament's Article 90 Commission offers a far different message: combating corruption is proceeding reasonably, and the Supreme Leader and his children are "the cleanest people".

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Bahrain Video Diary, Part 1: The Freedom Torch Marches Across the Country

The father of the martyr Ali Alshaikh holds the “Freedom Torch” and leads the march in Markuban, 27 October

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An EA correspondent has been following the opposition's Freedom Torch as it moves across Bahrain, culminating in a ceremony on 22 November in Sanabis, near Pearl Roundabout, the symbolic centre of the protests that began 14 February:

26 October: Mehaza, Sitra

The lighting of the Freedom Torch in Mehaza village on Sitra Island --- for more than one reason, this is a great victory for the 14 February Coalition. Most importantly, it shows the ability of the group to organise and encourage people to take part of their festivals.

After the festival ended, a rider on horseback took the flame and vanished into the dark.

27 October: Markuban, Sitra

During a Shia ritual, commemorating the death of Imam Al Hassan in the village of Markuban a youth showed up holding the “Freedom Torch” and chanting “Down with [King] Hamad”. People responded with a march through the village until police answered with tear gas.

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US Politics Opinion: Republican Candidate Muddle Their Way Through Foreign Policy

Let's be blunt: if you are inclined to look for disappointments in your life, Saturday night’s Republican debate, held in Spartanburg, South Carolina, met expectations.

The problem was not preparation --- unlike previous encounters, no candidate had failed to set up their position. Each held/his ground vigorously. The problem was that those territories were indistinguishable from one another.  In a debate that was a showcase to make a move on front-runner Mitt Romney, that was good news for the former Governor of Massachusetts, but it did not do much for anyone else.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: More Die as Embassies Are Stormed

Police clash with protesters after breaking up a march in Nabeeh Saleh in Bahrain on Friday night

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1955 GMT: One protester was killed and 12 others injured on Sunday when Egyptian security forces clashed with protesters staging a sit-in for the sixth day against the expansion of the MAPCO-Agrium fertilizer plant in Damietta.

Confrontations began on Saturday night and continued into early Sunday morning, with security forces using tear gas bombs to disperse protesters.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Another Day of the "New Normal"

See also Bahrain 1st-Hand: Friday's "Festival of Loyalty" Opposition Rally
Arab Spring/Iran Special: Is This a Music-Driven Revolution?
Friday's Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Spread of the Deaths

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2125 GMT: Unconfirmed reports have come in that security forces have fired tonight on a protest in the Marjeh section of Aleppo --- footage of the crowd before the alleged incident:

Elsewhere in Aleppo, Syria's second-largest city and thought throughout this crisis to be behind Assad:

In Deir Ez Zor in the northeast:

And in Saramein in the northwest:

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Bahrain 1st-Hand: Friday's "Festival of Loyalty" Opposition Rally

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The weekly opposition gatherings have resumed after stopping for one week due to the death of Ali Hassan Aldaihi, the elderly man who allegedly died after a police beating last week. Friday's gathering was hosted by five opposition parties --- Alwefaq, Waad, Alekha, Amal, and Altajamoa --- in the village of Ain-Athari and labelled as a festival of "loyalty to the martyrs, wounded, detained, and dismissed".

The festival, attended by 35,000 to 40,000 people, was distinctive from previous rallies for two reasons. The introductory speech was not given by a politician but by a journalist, Batool Alsayed, and another address cited the the human rights violations of the regime.

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The Latest from Iran (12 November): The Rise of the "Cotton Hero"

The Revolutionary Guard base, west of Tehran, struck by an explosion today (see 1515 GMT)

See also Bahrain 1st-Hand: Friday's "Festival of Loyalty" Opposition Rally
Arab Spring/Iran Special: Is This a Music-Driven Revolution?
The Latest from Iran (11 November): Chest-Thumping

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2135 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. Influential MP Ahmad Tavakoli, a prominent critic of the President, has denied that he asked Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to stand for election in 2005. He says instead that he stepped aside in favour of a candidacy by Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf, now Mayor of Tehran.

Ahmadinejad claimed in a speech last week that a number of important conservative and principlist figures implored him to run for President.

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Iran Feature: The Coffee Shops --- A Safe Space for Men and Women? (Erdbrink)

Hidden in a corner of the atrium of the tiny Feresteh shopping center, right behind Tehran’s only Victoria’s Secret and a traditional pastry seller, the high-end Lime coffee shop is only for those who know where to find it.

The music of pop singer Ricky Martin filled the air as customers ordered $4 shots of espresso and connected to the shop’s wireless Internet with their cellphones. Girls with long hair spilling out from under their obligatory Islamic head scarves giggled shyly as they held hands with their boyfriends.

“People should feel at ease here in Lime,” said the cafe’s owner, Joobin Gharaei. “We want to create a private atmosphere.”

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