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An Iranian minister allied to Ahmadinejad has been exposed for parading a fake law degree from Oxford University
Telegraph, 13 Aug 2008’The University of Oxford has no record of Mr Ali Kordan receiving an honorary doctorate or any other degree from the university,’ it said in a statement Photo: EPA Ali Kordan, who was only confirmed in the post of interior minister last week after a cabinet reshuffle, had based his academic credentials for the job on an honorary doctorate in law from the famous city of learning. He boasted that the degree had been awarded in 2000 for 'opening a new chapter' in comparative legal studies.But the government’s opponents investigated his claims to erudition and after being presented with a document on Oxford-headed notepaper, checked it out with the university.'The University of Oxford has no record of Mr Ali Kordan receiving an honorary doctorate or any other degree from the university,' it said in a statement.Now the speaker of Iran’s parliament, the Majlis, has ordered an investigation into Mr Kordan - embarrassing the firebrand president and strengthening his parliamentary enemies. To increase Mr Ahamdinejad’s blushes, he had already struggled to see Mr Kordan approved by the Majlis - only succeeding after saying he was personally backed by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.But while the president has lost a small battle, his enemies will also have cause to rue the case of Mr Kordan: the website that revealed the truth of his education background has been blocked by the authorities.
SWAT teams to grow by fifty percent for more control
The National Council of Resistance of Iran said in a statement: Brig. Gen. Ali Asghar Asadi, deputy commander of Public Security of the State Security Forces (SSF) - mullahs’ suppressive police-- announced that 'SSF SWAT' teams will have a fifty percent growth in numbers to combat what he called 'thugs and hooligans,' reported the state-run news agency Fars on Tuesday. 'The SWATs will conduct overt and covert operations round the clock to combat ’thugs’ in compliance with legal mandates,' Asadi said. 'The teams will have 12 operations consist of surveillance, control, and arrests,' He added. 'We will follow soon the same pattern in other provinces throughout the country,' Asadi elaborated. On July 30, Fars had quoted Asadi as saying, 'These teams are capable of carrying out an operation from A to Z.' Separately, Brig. Gen. Hossein Sajedinia, deputy chief of (SSF) in greater Tehran claimed that in less than 24 hours 'the [force under his command] has carried out 700 operations to enhance the ’public security’.' 'In the past, the SSF would conduct its raids only at nights. In accordance with the third phase of ’boosting public security plan,’ it will act round the clock now,' Sajedinia added. The NCRI added the so-called 'boosting public security plan' was first introduced in April 2007 to combat popular uprisings. Mass street arrests of hundreds of thousands of women and youth under the pretext of 'mal-veiling' and cracking down on 'thugs and hooligans' followed. In the same period, more than 300 prisoners were sent to gallows.
