Iran's economy enters 2013 significantly worse than a year ago, particularly with higher inflation and unemployment than at the beginning of 2012. The past year was probably the most tumultuous economically for Iran since 1994, when an external debt crisis triggered a serious inflationary shock and a recession.
Former Bank Melli Head Mahmoud Reza KhavariThe Islamic Republic will pay a price whatever course the government takes. If the Iranian judiciary actually exposes the full details of high-level corruption, the government stands to lose further legitimacy even among loyal cadres. Yet if the state does nothing, strife among political factions could deepen, undermining attempts to implement policy changes that could address the country's many social and economic ills.
Today, the role of the clerics in parliament from both factions can be described as negligible. There are only a few exceptions to this rule.
Does the trend in parliament reflect clerical influence in other spheres of power?
No. Clerics are still at the crux of all the three branches of government.
In 1984, Rahim-Mashai joined the Intelligence Ministry in Kurdistan, where he met Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, then governor of the northwestern city of Khoy. The two men developed a close friendship that has endured almost three decades.
Sunday, January 6, 2013 at 7:18