Did Ahmadinejad steal Mousavi's victory? Did the conservatives led by Ali Khamenei steal the reformists' victory? Were Mousavi's supporters, who hoped for a better life, punished with “delusional” dreams that resulted in queues, irregularities, and a shortage in ballots so that none of them could vote, lest a velvet revolution takes place? Was the religious reference afraid of a “velvet” reformist revolution opposed to Khomeini's which the army failed to stop? 24 hours before the voting stations opened, the Revolutionary Guard, which supports Ahmadinejad, warned of a “velvet revolution,” making it clear that it will not permit such a revolution, in reference to Mousavi's slogans which call for openness to the West. Here lies the gist of the question! Iranian media showed clear confusion when the results were announced. The electoral “grey image” forced candidates to contest and appeal against the credibility of the results. Mousavi and Karroubi did well when they refused to recognize the results of the elections, clearly rejecting the electoral irregularities. Mousavi said, “We will never get a result so long as the Guardians Council continues to run the country as it sees fit. I'm warning I will not surrender to this dangerous charade.” Meanwhile former Speaker Karroubi described the elections as “rigged.” Mousavi's supporters gathered in front of his headquarters and shouted, “Death to the dictator Ahmadinejad.” They were attacked, beaten with batons and truncheons and kicked. But they stood their ground and kept shouting with one voice, “Mousavi, Mousavi, we will stay here, we will die here.” Iran rebelled. Men, women, and students staged protests. Thousands upon thousands clashed with the security forces in all the cities in protest at the results of the elections, which gave Ahmadinejad a second term in office. Protesters expressed their desire to lift the injustice of having a president like Ahmadinejad who keeps threatening those far away and those close by, harming his country's relations, ignoring the internal problems, and oppressing the minorities. Mousavi won the support of many Iranians who oppose Ahmadinejad. He managed through an evening half-an-hour television ad to express his character and his platform in an elegant and accurate fashion in the context of the strategies permitted during the electoral season. The Iranian audience was waiting for Mir Mousavi's movie. The candidate won over many young men, university students, intellectuals, and middle and upper classes. He has become the main symbol of hope for a new generation, he who returned to politics after a 20-year absence. He will remain their future candidate. Ahmadinejad's most remarkable success over the past period is restricted to his “verbal statements” on attacking Israel and wiping it off the map, following in the footsteps of his diseased neighbor Saddam Hussein. He also stood out with his ability to sow more tension in the region to serve his “Khomeini” policies until he dragged his country's relations with its neighbors and surrounding environment to their lowest ebb. Last Monday, I wrote an article entitled “Farewell to Ahmadinejad” based on reports, news, and unprecedented divisions in the religious establishment over candidates, let alone the quality television debates which exposed Ahmadinejad's weakness, his “reckless” policies and obsessive support for foreign militias and armed movements at the expense of inflation, poverty and unemployment at home. I said before, and still insist, that Ahmadinejad is not a political leader. He knows nothing about international relations. If only he had said goodbye! He is no more than an adventurer with a “loose tongue.” He represents the Velayet-e faqih as he sees it. Let us return to his statements after he first became president of Iran. Back then he said, “Thanks to the blood of the martyrs, a new Islamic revolution has arisen. he wave of the Islamic revolution will soon reach the entire world.” As Ahmadinejad's term will stretch for the next four years, the GCC countries must not remain silent over Iran's occupation of the three United Arab Islands. They must wage a diplomatic battle to wrest an international resolution, now that they have exhausted all the peaceful solutions and diplomatic means which were met by a vicious Iranian rejection. The Arab countries must also stop the Iranian tide and prevent it from interfering in internal Arab affairs. Prepare for new Ahmadinejad adventures. He will start digging and implementing plots at our expense. Ever since he became president of Iran four years ago, he has not stopped threatening and blustering yet he never launched a single missile against Israel. The whole region has seen nothing from him other than conspiracies, adventures, and support for militias in order to extend the horizon of the Khomeini revolution at the expense of regional peace and security. If only he had said goodbye, then I would not have told you to be prepared.
