Iran Regime's Factional Feuding Escalates During Rafsanjani's Funeral
- Thursday, 12 January 2017 02:11
NCRI - The burial ceremony of Hashemi Rafsanjani became a prelude for the divide and factional feuding among Iran regime different bands. Some state-run media put finger on issues like Khamenei performing prayer and requiem for the deceased (Rafsanjani) during which he removed phrases of good deeds attributed to the deceased substituting them with phrases used to ask forgiveness for him.
In his condolence message issued on the occasion of Rafsanjani’s death, the Iranian regime’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, spoke of his differences and disagreements with him, especially in recent years. Khamenei, in his message, used a lower ranking epithet of “Hojatoleslam”, contrary to what is known, and refused to use the higher rank title of “Ayatollah” to refer to Rafsanjani.
Changing the phrases of requiem and prayers by Khamenei during Rafsanjani’s burial and referring to him in his message contemptuously as “Sheikh Ali Akbar” and “Hojatoleslam” were extensively reflected by some media and sources affiliated to Rafsanjani-Rouhani faction.
Changing the phrases of requiem and prayers by Khamenei during Rafsanjani’s burial and referring to him in his message contemptuously as “Sheikh Ali Akbar” and “Hojatoleslam” were extensively reflected by some media and sources affiliated to Rafsanjani-Rouhani faction.
Despite the regime's efforts to display the so-called unity and cohesion during Rafsanjani’s funeral, and despite government’s planned censorship of television and radio, some peripheral issues surrounding the ceremony and conflicts among the ruling factions were released whether unwantedly via direct TV broadcast or knowingly through the internet and social networking.
During the funeral ceremony, when the participants saw the head of the regime’s Radio and Television (IRIB, affiliated to Khamenei’s band) on his route, they chanted the slogan “Our IRIB is our shame, our shame.”
Moreover, while Khamenei’s band chanted the slogan “All these people (army) have come for the love of Rahbar (i.e. Leader meaning Khamenei),” supporters of Rafsanjani chanted the slogan “All these people have come for the love of Akbar (i.e. Rafsanjani).”
Reports indicate that a number of people who chanted slogans against the regime were arrested by the security forces.
Earlier, Mehdi Hashemi, Rafsanjani’s son, did not allow the head of the regime’s IRIB to go under Rafsanjani’s coffin and hold it up, as close people usually do during the funeral before placing the coffin into the grave, and rejected him.
