The The Canadian Press agency reports that Iranian legislators are denying the allegations that a new bill would require Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians in Iran to wear special insignia:
Iranian politicians -- including [Morris Motamed,] a Jewish legislator in Tehran -- were infuriated by the Post report, which they called false.
"Such a plan has never been proposed or discussed in parliament," Motamed told the Associated Press.
"Such news, which appeared abroad, is an insult to religious minorities here."
Another Iranian legislator said the newspaper has distorted a bill that he presented to parliament, which calls for more conservative clothing for Muslims.
"It's a sheer lie. The rumours about this are worthless," Emad Afroogh said.
Afroogh's bill seeks to make women dress more traditionally and avoid Western fashions. Minority religious labels have nothing to do with it, he said.
"The bill is not related to minorities. It is only about clothing," he said....
Non-Muslims in Afghanistan were required to wear arm bands under the former Taliban regime.
The practice is a throwback to centuries-old rules imposed on non-Muslims living in Islamic states. Under Dhimmi law, non-Muslims were guaranteed security in exchange for paying a tax and wearing special labels on their clothing.
Meantime, the National Post -- the original source of the story -- is reporting on the claims that the story was mistaken, and also writing:
Ali Reza Nourizadeh, an Iranian commentator on political affairs in London, suggested that the requirements for badges or insignia for religious minorities was part of a “secondary motion” introduced in parliament, addressing the changes specific to the attire of people of various religious backgrounds.
Mr. Nourizadeh said that motion was very minor and was far from being passed into law.
That account could not be confirmed.
Meir Javdanfar, an Israeli expert on Iran and the Middle East who was born and raised in Tehran, said yesterday that he was unable to find any evidence that such a law had been passed.
“None of my sources in Iran have heard of this,” he said. “I don’t know where this comes from.” ...
Thanks to reader Victor Steinbok for the pointer.
How will they know who they can abuse without the special insignia? The Iranians might make a mistake and beat up some Sunnis or Sufis or Wahhabis.
RBT
*****
Update III:
Kenneth Timmerman just posted these updates to his original post:
UPI reported from Tehran that the Majles passed the law this week."This law recalls the Holocaust immediately to mind when Jews were forced to wear distinctive yellow Stars of David on their clothes," said American Jewish Congress Executive Director Neil Goldstein.
[...]
Sam Kermanian, of the Iranian Jewish Federation in Los Angeles, urged Jewish activists to caution in a mass email today. "So far the two reports we managed to obtain from our own independent sources from inside the country suggest that the original reports are false," he wrote. "Both Mr. Morris Motamed the Jewish member of the Iranian Parliament and Mr Parviz Yeshaya the former head of the community have strongly denied the reports."
Stay tuned....
Note: Mr. Kermanian has acknowledged to FDI that he currently does business in Tehran, but says that he has received a "waiver" from the Treasury Department to sanction his commercial activities.
www.iran.org
*****
Dr. Zin is on this story and will updating shortly
RBT just got off the phone with Dr. Zin of Regime Change Iran who was about to board a plane to return home from DC. He said he will be posting further on this story when he gets back home.
Dr. Zin said he first learned of this in 2004. Dr. Zin' sources have said until recently this has been in the context of a discussion on an Islamic appropriate dress code. The last he heard was it was't in writing but was making it's way through the lower levels of what serves as the Irainian legislative process. [ed note: A stacked deck :--)]
Dr. Zin said the President Ahmadinejad is in support of this dress code. Dr. Zin doesn't know if there is enough agreement to pass and implement it.
Stay tuned as Kenneth Timmerman said . . .
RBT
Update IV:
The Great One Allahpundit himself is on this over at Hotair.com and is posting regular updates as they come in.
[...]
Read More
Now, obviously, the Iranian president is doing some of that all on his own, by his comments on the Holocast. And, I suspect that if it is true, it is primarily to press this hot botton with the Western World.
We shall see.
Starting?
Uh....isn't it obvious by now? i.e. that the story is not true.
Many people appear to desire it to be true -- given their enthusiastic acceptance of it --and perhaps to give cover to an invasion.
That doesn't make it true.
You've been Chalabi'd.
One would think that by now people would be at least a little skeptical when listening to exiles. Especially when considering Iran's very large jewish population. As opposed to say, Saudi Arabia's non existant jewish population.
that funny also.
Frank,
Haven't you heard?
Those Iranian tailors aren't swamped in work after all.
The "wear a yellow badge" rumor was recycled from the Holocast and run with. No truth today, and unfortunately it is too late to correct the (mis)actions of the past. Fighting the wrong war, the wrong enemy...
"They say that what you mock, will surely overtake you.
So you become a monster, so the monster will not break you..."
publishes photos of executions of various criminals, usually by hanging,(not the humane american style with a platform and a trap door but by suspending the condemned with a crane)and sometimes by being stabbed by a family member of the victim after recieving a prescribed number of lashings. I admit, most of the executees deserved their punishment, but I don't feel too happy about them
getting a hydrogen bomb.
That's why we invaded Iraq right? To protect the rights of women and homosexuals, worldwide.
"I don't feel too happy about them getting a hydrogen bomb."
Can't blame ya there. Piss off a lot of people with your version of justice and innaccurate technology; god forbid others do the same
Eugene, the scope of a discussion is significant, as is its frame. The journalist's (blogger's) task is to help improve the accuracy of the reader's mental map of reality the better to decide what to do.
Accordingly, it is important to understand that that specific report was in error, and equally important to understand that while non-Muslims will not be labelled, unacceptable oppression continues.