The Latest from Iran (9 June): Devaluing

2055 GMT: Diversion Watch. Back from a conference break to find that Iranian authorities, the press, and State broadcasting have teamed up --- well, sort of --- to offer a spy story as an alternative to real-life political tension.

Both State broadcaster IRNA and Fars have claimed that the Ministry of Intelligence has foiled a US plan to form a "government in exile" for Iran.

The scheme, which included scholars Gene Sharp and Joseph Nye and the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, was headed by former Repvolutionary Guard commander Mohammad Reza Madhi. The American organisers arranged for Madhi to travel to Washington, where he met with Vice President Joe Biden, who promised full support.

Meanwhile, Dennis Ross of the National Security Council tried to establish the government in exile. Candidates included Amir Hossein Jahanshahi, a businessman with dual French-Israeli citizenship who is close to Ashraf Pahlavi, the twin sister of the late Shah; Abdollah Mohtadi, leader of Kurdish dissident organisation Komala; Hassan Sharafi; Alireza Nourizadeh, a London-based political analyst; Reza Hosseinbor, the leader of a secessionist group; and filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf, all of whom participated in a conference at the Atlantic Hotel in Paris.

The US provided $7 billion for the effort, but it fell apart when the identity of Ahmad Maleki, a diplomat in the Iranian embassy in Italy and a nephew of Mehdi Karroubi, was revealed.

A grand story, although there have been glitches. For Fars claimed that Madhi, working for the Ministry of Intelligence, had penetrated the "counterrevolutionaries", while IRNA and Kayhan referred to him as a "CIA spy".

1635 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Around 350 Iranian civil activists have written an open letter about the plight of the children of political prisoners.

The letter is addressed to Iran's head of judiciary Sadegh Larijani, the offices of the United Nations Children's Fund in Tehran and Jordan, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch. It describes prisoners' children as "forgotten victims" and says jailing a parent does not justify punishing his/her child as well.

1505 GMT: Sanctions Watch. The Obama Administration has announced a new round of sanctions upon Tehran, including measures against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Basij militia, and other security forces.

Iran Police Commander Esmail Ahmadi Moghaddam was specifically named as a target.

"While Iran's leaders hypocritically applaud protesters abroad calling for self-determination, many of Iran's own citizens --- including founding members of the revolution --- are being held as political prisoners merely for holding views contrary to Iran's leaders," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said. "Iranians are being executed for crimes based on dubious charges and without the due process guaranteed under Iran's constitution."

Clinton continued that the "United States stands with all Iranians who wish for a government that respects their human rights, their dignity and their freedom....We call on the Iranian government to end its systematic human rights abuses and political hypocrisy."

1430 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Azerbaijan poet Saeed Moghanli has been arrested.

Journalist Masoud Bastani, who reportedly was beaten by prison guards in front of his visiting family last month, has been transferred to solitary confinement.

Those people arrested during the mourning ceremony for football legend Nasser Hejazi have reportedly been transferred to Ward 350 and the Women’s Ward of Evin Prison.

1340 GMT: Foreign Affairs (Syria-UK Front). The Iranian Foreign Ministry has summoned the charge d'affaires Jane Marriott to declare, “The remarks of Britain's Foreign Secretary [William Hague] are completely unfounded and based on a series of lies. Britain's government is not qualified to make such comments about other countries because of [its] interfering measures and destructive role in the region's developments.”

Iranian media explains that the criticism was prompted by Hague's remarks about British interference in Syria.

In another story, Press TV proclaims, "West's anti-Syrian bid foiled at UNSC": "Western powers have failed in their attempts to push through a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution against Syria over an alleged crackdown on its opposition."

The website also turns the story of refugees fleeing the fighting in northwest Syria into a narrative of terrorists running away from the Assad regime.

The terrorist groups behind days of deadly clashes in a northwestern Syrian town have escaped to Turkey, reports say.

Hundreds of Syrian civilians have also crossed the northern border into Turkey to escape violence in the town of Jisr al-Shughour after Ankara announced that its doors are open to those seeking refuge.

1330 GMT: A Death at the Funeral. The family of Haleh Sahabi, who died last week after a clash with security forces at her father's funeral, has said her death was not from natural causes.

Amnesty International has called for an investigation, and the case has been presented at the United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva.

1320 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. Hojatoleslam Hossein Ebrahimi, a member of Parliament's National Security Committee has said that next week the body will discuss the plan to question Ahmadinejad.

Aftabhelpfully suggests the questions that could be put to the President.

1315 GMT: The Battle Within. The political conflict has taken another nasty turn, as Hafte Sobh, the website linked to the President's right-hand man Esfandiar Rahim-Mashai, has launched an unprecedented attack on Ayatoalloah Mesbah Yazdi.

Hafte Sobhsatirically titles Mesbah Yazdi, formerly seen as a close advisor of President Ahmadinejad, "Haj Agha" and calls his followers "prejudiced and dumb hardliners".

The website then takes on Mesbah Yazdi's dramatic reference this week that Satan, with 1000s of years of experience, is behind the "deviant current" --- a reference featuring Rahim-Mashai --- around Ahmadinejad. It asks Mesbah Yazdi how he got the details from Satan's planning center, and if he has any influence upon it.

1310 GMT: Economy Watch. Peyke Iran, quoting Ayande News, says the head of the Tehran bakers' union has resigned in protest over unfulfilled government promises to pay subsidy refunds.

The baker complained that while flour has become 50 times more expensive and energy costs have soared, bread prices have only quadrupled at because of government restrictions.

1305 GMT: Economy Watch. Possibly reflecting a shifting focus from the opposition towards the economy, Kalemeh posts an analysis of the relationship between oil income and the economic markers of growth rates, employment, and people's wealth.

1255 GMT: Currency Watch. Concern across the political spectrum over the Central Bank's re-setting of the "official" rate for the Iranian toman and the general situation....

Jahane San'at devotes Page 1 to its worries, while Ebtekar proclaims, "Shock in Bazaar, Silence from Government". Iran's leading economic newspaper, Donya-ye Eghtesad, ponders the "unexpected decision" to devalue the toman 11% against the US dollar.

1245 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. Back from an academic break to find an EA reader pointing us to Khabar Online, where Fazel Mousavi, chairman of Parliament's Article 90 Committee, has issued the latest "yellow card" warning to President Ahmadinejad.

Mousavi said Parliament had given Ahmadinejad his first yellow card for attempting to appoint himself caretaker Minister of Oil. The second yellow card could the 50 Government violations of law cited by the Article 90 Committee.

In football/soccer, two yellow cards equals a red card and dismissal from the game. In Iranian politics, it means impeachment.

0430 GMT: Fashion Watch. Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Mohammad Hosseini has announced that a foundation for the design, production and distribution of appropriate clothing will be established.

Hosseini also said that he had emphasized all films, plays, and visual arts books should not promote improper attiire. He encouraged authors and artists to "spread the culture of hijab and chastity".

0420 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Reporters Without Borders has called for the release of all bloggers detained in Iran.

On Wednesday, an appeals court upheld a 19 1/2-year sentence for the "Blogfather", Iranian-Canadian national Hossein Derakhshan.

0415 GMT: The Battle Within. Sadr Hosseini, a member of Parliament's Energy Commission, has warned that oil revenues might be used for election campaigning by "suspicious groups".

Iran has a Parliamentary vote in 2012 and a Presidential campaign in 2013.

The camp of Presidential Ahmadinejad has been accused by a range of conservative critics in recent weeks of seeking Government funds to manipulate the forthcoming elections.

0400 GMT: We open on the economic front today, noting the Central Bank has announced an official change in the rate of the Iranian toman, setting it at 1175 to the US dollar. That is an 11% devaluation from the old rate of 10,570 rials per US dollar.

The Associated Press writes a generous account, based on Iranian media, of the shift. For example, while it notes the dollar "sold for 12,250 rials (1225 tomans) in the open market" on Wednesday, it does not report that the toman had slipped to the rate before the Central Bank's announcement --- Iranian authorities were merely making an official admission of the toman's slide.

Instead, the AP reports, "Wednesday’s devaluation by the Central Bank was aimed at introducing a single exchange rate, rather than one official rate and one open market rate". In fact, the Bank has tried to maintain a single rate but found it increasingly difficult to do so in Iran's economic situation --- it will be to see if the rates soon diverge again.

The AP also quote, via State news agency IRNA, an Iranian economist who said the rate change would help spur domestic production. That should be true, given that Iranian exports will be less expensive for buyer and --- relative to foreign goods --- for Iranians.

However, the economist also puts out the misleading statement, "Iran has been inundated with imported goods because of lower costs". That is true to the extent that Iranian production of goods from milk to Iranian flags has slipped against rivals from overseas, for example, China. At the same time, however, imports of other essential products have been more difficult to obtain amidst sanctions.