Banned periodicals may resume publication

Head of Tehran's Justice Department, Hojjatoleslam Abbas-Ali Alizadeh on Thursday said that periodicals temporarily suspended from publication may resume publication, the official Iranian news agency said.

"The judiciary had found the suspended dailies guilty on the basis of the Constitution and existing laws in this regard and no political partisanship was behind this action," the daily "Ham-Mihan" quoted Alizadeh as saying adding "Managing directors of nine dailies must appear in court and be accountable for their charges," but, he clarified, "the dailies may be closed forever or may be republished."

About participants of a conference entitled "Iran after the elections" held in Berlin and which was also attended by a number of reformist figures, he said: "The participants insulted Islam and the sanctities of the Muslim nation of Iran." Moreover, he clarified: "(Although) These participants did not mean to desecrate Islam, the organizers of the conference had such intent," adding "They will not appear in court unless a full investigation is completed and the court receives enough evidence in the case."