Two radical Ansar leaders Arrested in Tehran
July 29, Teheran (dpa) - Two leaders of the Iranian radical Islamic
group known as Ansar Hezbollah (followers of the party of God) were arrested
in Teheran, the governmental daily Iran reported Thursday.
Massoud Dehnamaki, known as the leader of the Ansar Hezbollah, and his
close aide, Soheyl Karimi, were arrested at the office of their weekly
magazine Jebheh (War Front), the daily said.
The news of the arrests came hours after President Mohammad Khatami
proclaimed Wednesday that ``special measures'' are to be adopted against
radical Islamists. `
`A special committee has been formed to evaluate and investigate the
recent incidents (which led to the student uprising) and special measures
will be adopted against pressure groups,'' Khatami had said during a trip
to the western city of Hamedan but did not define the term ``special measures''.
The term pressure groups is used in Iran for radical Islamic groups,
namely the Ansar Hezbollah, which try to prevent by force the reform course
initiated by Khatami and followed by his supporters and which consider
the reforms as harmful to the Islamic system.
``Struggling under the name of religion may lead to harming religion,''
Khatami said, addressing the radical Islamists. During student unrest
earlier this month, the radical Islamists, together with some police forces,
attacked the students and reportedly injured some 200 of them.
The attacks against the students were harshly condemned unanimously
by both the conservative and the reformist factions within the Iranian
administration.
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