Rum goings-on in Iran

Some strange things are going on in Iran which are being largely unreported but which you might be interested in reading about [though, as happens in the blogosphere, having just finished lovingly crafting this 'scoop', Sue spotted that Gene at Harry's Place had beaten us to it!]...

The granddaughter of Ayatollah Khomenei, the founder of the Islamic Republic, has posted some quotes on Facebook (fancy that!) from former president Rafsanjani denouncing the Syrian regime for its (alleged) use of chemical weapons:

"A government which bombards its own population with chemical weapons must face the harsh consequences of it, just like Saddam who brought eternal shame upon himself by bombing Halabja and begot a horrific destiny."

Official denials that Rafsanjani had said this were then confounded by Rafsanjani himself, addressing a provincial crowd and saying:

"On the one hand, the people [of Syria] are being bombarded with chemical weapons by their own government, and on the other hand they must await American bombardments."

Former president Rafsanjani is said to be close to the new president, Hassan Rouhani. 

Now President Rouhani himself has gone one better and send jaws dropping around the world by tweeting (yes 'tweeting'!) a 'Happy New Year' to "all Jews" on his official Twitter feed. After the outright anti-Semitism of Ahmadinejad and much official Iranian pronouncement, this is - to say the least - unexpected. 

 Hassan Rouhani‏

 @HassanRouhani As the sun is about to set here in #Tehran I wish all Jews, especially Iranian Jews, a blessed Rosh Hashanah. pic.twitter.com/tmaf84x7UR