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Khatami: I will not run for president

by rahul | September 17, 2008 at 06:11 pm

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Taking a rather big political step, Ex President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami announced he would not be running as a reformist candidate in the Presidential elections next June. This decision paves the way for other reformist candidates to come forward such as Mohammad Reza Aref, a vice president under Mohammad Khatami, and Mehdi Karroubi, a former speaker of the parliament (Majlis). However, it is expected that Khatami will support Karroubi to confront incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Cleric Mehdi Karroubi (71) is a hardliner turned reformist who served as speaker of parliament from 1989 to 1992, and under Khatami in 2000-2004. He was also a candidate for parliament in 2004 but made an early withdrew losing to Ahmadinejad. Karroubi is close to both Khatami and the Khamenei. He worked under Grand Ayatollah Khomeini too. Current great leader Khamenei appointed him to the Expediency Discernment Council. But Karroubi is opposed to members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:38:43 GMT The former Iranian president, Seyyed Mohammad Khatami, has announced that he will not run for president after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. "I had been advised against going public with my decision, otherwise I would have announced that I am not going to run for president sooner," Khatami said according to Fars News Agency. The report comes as earlier on Sunday, Khatami, who ran on the reformist platform during his presidency, called on the Reformist camp to prepare for a strong reappearance in the country's political arena. "The Reformist camp should reconsider its defensive approach and go on the offensive," Khatami said. The former Iranian president also criticized the administration of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for its 'aggressive policies', saying the current policies only provide grounds for the enemy to justify its acts against the country. "Aggressive and blistering rhetoric plays into the hands of the enemy, harming the country and the system," Kargozaran newspaper quoted Khatami as saying. Khatami, who ran for president from 1997 to 2005, was expected to play a major role in Reformists efforts to recapture the presidency in the 2009 race. Iran's 10th presidential election is scheduled to take place in June 12, 2009. CS/HGH, original source at PressTV.