In a detailed interview with the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet on Tuesday, Ahmad Masoumifar elaborateی on the recent unrest in Iran which was sparked by the death of the 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in police custody.
Here is an excerpt from the interview:
Q: As the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Sweden, what’s your reaction to the recent political unrest in your country?
A: That a young woman [Mahsa Amini] died when she was in the police's custody is bitter and painful news for us Iranians. Many – including the country's president – demanded a special investigation into the death. The incident was exploited by various actors from other states, to turn peaceful protests into insurgent violence, with the aim of destabilizing Iran.
I'm sure I don't need to remind a professional journalist about the difference between civil protests and organized terrorism or any other form of unsanctioned violence that targets innocent civilians and public property. You have to be familiar with the long history, where this has been conflated many times to justify foreign aggression against peoples in our region or anti-imperialist nations in general in the Global South.
Every major medical organization in Iran has participated in the effort to produce an autopsy report regarding the death of Mahsa Amini. And the conclusion, based on Mahsa Amini's medical history and the examinations, would clearly indicate that the young woman died of hypoxia and subsequent brain failure.
In this particular case, the report has been made public and is open to medical expert review. This finding strongly contradicts the narrative spread by the Western media, which claims that Amini was "severely beaten" by Iranian police before she fell into a coma.
Q: The political leadership in Iran has accused the country's enemies, particularly the United States and Israel, of initiating these protests. Why haven't you presented any concrete evidence of this?
A: I am referring to the study done by the Stanford Internet Observatory which describes the disinformation and psychological warfare methods of the US military Central Command (Centcom). There is an ongoing review of all Pentagon psychological operation efforts, in part because of that report. Unsurprisingly, a significant portion of the unit's efforts turned out to be directed at Iran.
A key strategy has been to create fake media that published content in Farsi for Iranian readers. There was a particular focus among a group of internet bots and trolls to spread material about women's rights.
Dozens of posts compared Iranian women's opportunities abroad to those in Iran. Allegations of government corruption and rising costs of living were also constantly highlighted. Women's rights, corruption, and the high cost of living, the latter of which is a direct result of suffocating US sanctions, are all clearly stated motivations for the protesters.
Despite abundant and clear evidence of foreign direction and sponsorship, Western journalists and so-called experts have dismissed any suggestion that the recent unrest in Iran is something other than grassroots protests as conspiracy theories.
Q: Do you share the view that these protests are seriously undermining the Iranian government?
A: The intention behind the imperialist sponsorship and management of the protests has been to undermine our government. But I also see a sense of desperation in the tactics used to push these agendas.
This desperation is consistent with the general strategic direction of global and regional trends that have not been in favor of hegemons. The maximum pressure policy has failed and Iran continues to expand its economic relations, and the general direction of global trends is increasingly having a deteriorating effect on the hegemony of the West, and Iran's influence inside and outside the region continues to be strong. As a last resort, they have adopted these blunt tactics.
The fact that the Western world's attack on Iran has gone from overt attempts for a military occupation to covert operations that seek to develop social discontent is in itself a positive sign of Iran's national strength.
Q: Protesters in Iran have been met with massive violence. What is the reason for this brutality?
A: Brutality can never be justified. The question itself contains a judgment. Civil protests in Iran are legal and protected under the law, but vandalism, unsanctioned violence against civilians and authorities, murder, and widespread terrorism are not.
Recent attacks by Jaish ul-Adl, a militant Salafist jihadist group operating mainly in southeastern Iran, have left 19 dead and more than 20 injured, including civilians. I wouldn't describe this as "protests."
Q: Women in Iran tear off their veils and burn them. How do you react to this?
A: Iranian society is not monolithic. We are talking about a nation of 85 million. Using the term "Iranian women" is a gross generalization. A few weeks ago, millions of women also demonstrated in favor of the hijab. You may be less familiar with this. It has unfortunately become far too common in the West to rely on stereotypes and anecdotes to portray a universal and timeless metaphysical conflict between religious fanaticism and liberal tolerance rather than a careful analysis of particular circumstances. Iran is a country that makes legislative decisions through directly elected representatives. If the people's voice changes, so will laws and regulations.
Q: What is the reason for the state to decide how women should dress?
A: Iran is a country with a Muslim majority. This policy was put to a vote and the people's representatives voted for it. There is, however, a national dialogue about the policy. Both sides have their arguments, and you should refer to this extensive discussion to find each side's recurring arguments.
But for a foreign readership, I would say that Iran's internal affairs are for Iranians to discuss and engage themselves in. Any foreign interference or active participation in Iran's social and domestic affairs constitutes examples of cultural imperialism that I do not want to perpetuate.
Q: Do you yourself support the idea of morality police who stop women in the street for not wearing the right kind of clothes?
A: I am speaking to you here as an ambassador, my personal opinions are not relevant. But even if my views on Iran's domestic politics were critical, as a patriot I would not express them to anyone but my fellow Iranians. I can say that the law's methods of enforcement are constantly evolving and changing.
Q: Could tougher sanctions, as some EU ministers have suggested, affect future talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal?
A: Of course, they would. They would very clearly communicate a lack of commitment and seriousness about the negotiations.
Q: What development do you personally hope to see in Iran in the short and long term?
A: In the multifaceted war against Iran, both inhuman economic sanctions and every form of aggression have been used. This has created challenges for Iran in the short term. However, Iran's economy has proven to have the resilience to prove that sanctions as a foreign policy tool are unsustainable and ineffective. Economic indicators are rising steadily towards previous levels and the economic capacity for domestic production and regional trade has strengthened and expanded even more.
Iran's foreign policy doctrine of resistance against imperialism and foreign aggression in our region has proven to resonate strongly among the people in our neighborhood and further afield and we continue to strive for stronger ties and relations with countries that do not require Iran to surrender its national sovereignty.
In the long term, I believe Iran has made a very wise strategic decision not to rely on Western powers for its stability and political credibility, earlier than others have. It will give our country strategic competitive advantages during the transition period in a global power dynamic.
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