Cracks in Iranian Leadership Showing

(CBS)  Hoping to lift the curtain on a new political chapter, Iran's supreme leader today endorsed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's second presidential term - but cracks in the leadership are showing, reports CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer.

Several prominent clergy boycotted the ceremony and the supreme leader avoided Ahmadinejad's move to kiss his hand, as is customary - leading to an awkward peck on the shoulder instead.

Over the weekend the regime staged another unconvincing show - a mass trial of about 100 prominent reformists, arrested after the disputed election in June - including Mohammed Ali Abtahi, a cleric and former vice president whom CBS News first spoke to in 2005 about his liberal blogging.

On Saturday, Abtahi appeared gaunt and agitated after six weeks in jail. He's just one of thousands arrested during post-election riots and protests - including students, lawyers and peaceful demonstrators.

Human rights groups agree more than 300 remain in detention. At least 30 are dead - like 19-year-old student protestor Sohrab Aarabi.

The fate of an American scholar Kian Tajbaksh - and many others - remains unknown.

"My heart goes out to everybody," said Princeton academic Haleh Esfandiari.

Esfandiari - who spent three months in a Tehran jail in 2007 - knows what those detained are facing.

"I was alone in the cell 24 hours a day by myself - lights on all the time," Esfandiari said. "I was allowed out one or two hours a day."

But all the repression and arrests haven't crushed Iran's reform movement, which is planning more protests in the days to come - aiming to weaken an already nervous and divided regime.

[mrjustice1]

The following is an example of
THE DANGEROUS, DELUSIONAL MINDSET CREATED BY 'GODLY' RELIGIOUS THINKING

by edfane July 23, 2009 1:29 AM EDT
Ahmadinejad does not want to enhance Iranian power or influence, he wants to start WWIII because he believes it will cause the return of the Mahdi. This probably sounds ridiculous to most readers but he has stated that Allah has spoken to him and assigned him the task of ushering in the return of the Mahdi. Mainstream media will not comment on this because it sounds so absurd, but this man really does believe that he can influence the return of the Mahdi and then Jesus(yes muslims believe in the return of Jesus) by creating the scenario described in Revelations as well as Muslim prophecy.

[wingedrat]

Hey everybody, lets all hop in a handbasket and take a ride to Hell.

[mrjustice1]

IRANIAN ATTACK ON ISRAEL WILL UNITE THE MASSES BY
NATIONALLY-TAUGHT, ISLAMOFASCIST RELIGIOUS HATE

"Hey - lemmee try some o' dat!" ,

said the head Ayatolla.
Prez Ach-I'm-a-Nut-Job and the other Ayatolla's agreed.

"Dat'll take da pressures off from our failures and our warped ideas of running thingz. "

said the supreme, high, exalted, mystic, Holy, Godly, vomitous ruler.

[thoughtxchange2]

Hopefully the people of Iran will continue to protest and stand up against these ridiculous people "running" their country. We're almost at the year 2010- it's time for a true democracy in Iran. The US does not need another war- the people of Iran need to stand up and overthrow these so called leaders for all the reasons that the US would be willing to go to war against Iran for. I was suprised to see the protests initially- thought everyone there kind of thought the same. It's good to see that the people of Iran can think for themselves and are standing up to a system that is not giving them what they need, continues to hold them down and is truly leading them down a path of destruction...

[brianp55]

These guys make George Bush look like Abraham Lincoln.

[johnhouse]

Thanks. I appreciated the effort that went into this story and the viewpoints it presented. Every phrase was full of meaning.

[swin5]

Is it just me or does Ahmadinejad look like he could play the lead role in the movie on the life of Sonny
Bono? Who could play Cher?

[klunder3]

Michelle Bachman, the wacko Congresswoman from, if I remember right, Minnesota, who a while back called for ALL members of Congress to be investigated for whether or not they were loyal Americans. Who could possibly be a better mate for a flaming nut job like Ahmadinejad than some over-caffeinated insaniac who apparently lost her signed copy of the autobiography of Senator Joseph McCarthy? (another like-minded nut job from an adjoining state).

Maybe it's the real cold weather up there that makes those northerner hardcore right-wingers even more batsh*t crazy than their counterparts farther south . . .

[zonkzilla]

"This is the kind of ruthless, corrupt, insane government you get when you join church and state"

Yea unlike the atheist regimes of the USSR, China, Cambodia, North Vietnam, and others where religion is forbidden.
Great point, and proved by facts too!
LOL

[BeckieBest]

Look at history.

Read a book sometime.

The combination of church and has always corrupted both.

[mick7744]

Throughout history, religion has always eventually wound up being subverted and used as a means of maintaining social order.

In Iran, anti-government activitists can be charged with, 'Warring against God.'

[zonkzilla]

"Cracks in Iranian Leadership Showing"

Well I saw them on the news and I didn't see any cracks showing, none in their faces, hands, whatever. I guess the person who wrote the article saw something in private.

[BeckieBest]

Take a good look.

This is the kind of ruthless, corrupt, insane government you get when you join church and state.

[melchg07]

No doubt.