Word: bazargan
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President was grim-faced when he arrived at the White House at 8:15 Monday morning; he promised newsmen a statement, but then decided to wait for further developments. Meanwhile, the National Security Council went into almost continuous session. Initially, Washington had been relieved to receive Prime Minister Bazargan's promise that he was ready to help. But Bazargan's position was weak?much weaker, perhaps, than Washington had realized...
...September, Bazargan told a television audience, "The government has been a knife with no blade." In an interview with Italian Journalist Oriana Fallaci, he said: "Khomeini has never been a real politician. He's never had the training needed to face the administrative responsibilities that he now finds on his shoulders. In fact, he doesn't understand government, he doesn't know the techniques for administering a country." On Tuesday, realizing that Khomeini and his advisers were supporting the embassy siege, Bazargan at last resigned. He had been particularly stung when the students charged him with "treason" for having talked...
Although he dutifully supported the Ayatullah, Bazargan was strongly devoted to human rights, democracy and moderation. His resignation will reinforce the power of the ruling clergy, many of whom do not share his concern. The Bazargan government will be replaced by the Revolutionary Council, the quasi-legislative body of 15 members that Khomeini appointed while in exile in France last November. During the revolution the council quickly took over the levers of power ?the network of komitehs, the revolutionary tribunals that have since ordered the execution of more than 600 people, and the Islamic guards. Now it will take...
...lives. The government realized last month that a continuing guerrilla war in Kurdistan would be disastrously expensive for Tehran and agreed to send four Cabinet ministers to negotiate with the Kurdish rebels. Khomeini said last week that he wanted the mission to continue. But the danger is that, with Bazargan gone, hard liners on the Revolutionary Council might be tempted to try for a quick military solution, thereby inflaming the Kurds once more. That in turn could lead to interference by neighboring Iraq, which has a substantial and equally restless Kurdish population...
...After Bazargan's government fell, the Administration's next step was to select Clark and Miller to fly to Tehran and negotiate with the Ayatullah. Clark had been an early U.S. supporter of Khomeini and had visited him last January in France; Miller was a former Foreign Service officer in Iran who had opposed Administration policy toward the Shah. The two men had already left for Iran when Khomeini announced that he would not meet with them. The White House told them to remain in Istanbul until the situation became clearer...