(Asharq al-Awsat-UK) Amir Taheri - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his patron, former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, built their entire careers on "Death to America" slogans. Rouhani and his "moderate" ministers still have to walk on an American flag as they enter their offices every day. As far as I can gauge public opinion, the majority of Iranians have a good opinion of America and a bad opinion of the "deal." This is, perhaps, why the Rafsanjani faction, of which Rouhani is part, is trying to avoid the issue being debated even in their own ersatz parliament. This is also why Iranian papers critical of the deal are closed down or publicly warned. President Obama should conduct his own enquiries to gauge Iranian public opinion. He might well find out that he is making an alliance with a faction that does not represent majority opinion in Iran. The writer was the executive editor-in-chief of the daily Kayhan in Iran from 1972 to 1979.
2015-08-17 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive