Iranian Ayatollah Issues Fatwa Against Nukes

The New Republic:

There has been much debate about where Iran's democratic protesters stand on the country's nuclear program. In the past weeks, there have been many new indications that the green movement rejects the Islamic Republic's pursuit of a nuclear bomb. The following fatwa by the Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri is another significant piece of evidence suggesting the movement's repudiation.

Read the whole story: The New Republic

Comments

[eileenflemingWAWA]

Iran has not launched an aggressive war in modern history (unlike the US or Israel), and its leaders have a doctrine of "no first strike." This is true of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, as well as of Revolutionary Guards commanders.

No Iranian leader in the executive has threatened an aggressive act of war on Israel, but Ahmadinejad did quote Ayatollah Khomeini to the effect that "this Occupation regime over Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time."

This was not a pledge to launch missiles, but an expression of a hope that the occupation of Palestine will collapse, just as the Soviet Union did.

The 2007 National Intelligence Estimate by 16 US intelligence agencies, including the CIA and the Defense Intelligence Agency, assessed that Iran has no nuclear weapons research program. This assessment was based on debriefings of defecting nuclear scientists, as well as on the documents they brought out, in addition to US signals intelligence from Iran.

Germany, Israel and UK intelligence are more suspicious of Iranian intentions, and all of them were very wrong about Iraq's alleged Weapons of Mass Destruction.

[FrankCornish]

God Bless Grand Ayatollah Montazeri, once again a voice of reason and religious scholarship.

In addition, a Grand Ayatollah's fatwa cannot be ignored, even though many in the Revolutionary Guard may wish to do so.

[MajorKong]

No! No! No!

We're only supposed to believe them when they say something that gives us an excuse to attack them.

[Newthron]

That's good news.

[argentino]

these people are still living in the 15th century - why we allow these grubs to terrorize the earth is beyond comprehension...

[wereeverywhere]

What the US/UK did in 1953, coup the Iranian govt. to preclude nationalization of oil to install the Shah, didn't help matters. The 1979 revolution established a wretched theocracy that replaced the wretched monarchy. Perhaps the current government can be uprooted by he reform movement; if it succeeds it will be despite, not because, of US legacy. Pardon me if I'm generalizing a bit and please note that it's hardly all America's fault. Still the US only made things worse.

[Newthron]

Do you wanna go there to kick some infidel's @$$?

[OxamsRazor]

How exactly do they terrorize the Earth?

Iran is as dangerous as your imagination. They are no threat to anyone or anything. Only themselves.

[argentino]

talking about muslims - just ask the armenians...

[Gayrove]

While Ayatollah Khamenei is higher in the government of the Islamic Republic, Montazeri is high, high above him in seniority, and as a GRAND Ayatollah whose teaching authority exceeds PER SE that of any mere ayatollah.

[alysheba 3]

The problem is other Iranian mullahs have done the same. Israel and the US just don't want to believe them, so they won't. They want an excuse to attack, and since Iran cannot prove a negative (that Iran does not have and is not developing nukes) I'm sure one of them will be stupid enough to start another war in the ME soon.

[cardineau]

Absolutely correct ... all of the powerful clerics in Iran have declared nuclear bombs against Islam. But only the cleric who was with the election protesters will be heard by the west. The western propagandists are so predictable.