ANALYSIS: Paris attacks prompt nuanced responses in Iran

TEHRAN - The response in Iran to last Friday's Paris attacks was one of overwhelming, but at times heavily nuanced, condemnation of the carnage.

One immediate consequence of the attack - which was claimed by the Islamic State group and in which 130 people were killed - was the prompt postponement of an unprecedented visit to France by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was due to leave Tehran for Europe the following day.

Instead, after the attack, Rouhani sent his condolences to his French counterpart, President Francois Hollande.

“I, on behalf of the great Iranian nation which has been a victim of the scourge of terrorism, strongly condemn the anti-human crimes and condole the mourning French nation and government.”

The newspaper reaction, however, was mixed.

Conservative newspapers believed France must have seen these attacks coming. According to their line of thought, because France has been a key critic of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and has been seeking his overthrow, it is partially responsible for the creation of the Islamic State, which emerged following the US invasion of Iraq. 

Hardline paper Vatan-e Emrooz ran the headline Dinner Is Ready atop a picture of a sheet-covered body in one of the restaurants that were targeted in the Friday-night attacks. "The West eventually tasted its own cooking in Syria," the paper wrote.

In contrast, reformist and moderate newspapers focused on the reasons and consequences for Europe of such attacks.

The reformist Etemaad newspaper wrote that as a result of the Paris attacks, there may be a change of Western countries’ policies towards the region. “These developments may lead the Western countries to get close to Iran and Russia’s policies on Syria, because the existence of ISIS [Islamic State] is harmful, and this time Europeans will pay the price, not Middle Easterners.”

At the level of public concern, a group of people in Tehran gathered in front of French Embassy to place flowers and candles to pay respect to those who lost their lives in the Paris massacre. They also held pictures and banners in a sign of solidarity with the people of France.

Politicians and prominent figures were among those who took to social media to give their reaction to the attacks. Masoume Ebtekar, head of the Environment Department, wrote on her Instagram page: “[Former president] Mohamad Khatami with the idea of ‘Dialogue among Civilizations’ and Hassan Rouhani with the proposal of  ‘World against Violence and Extremism’ had warned about such attacks, and had proposed solutions to this problem. Now we should be their voice in this path.”

Saeed Jalili, former Iranian chief nuclear negotiator, also took to Instagram to comment. He wrote that Europeans were paying a “heavy price” for the West’s “interference” in Syria.

Iranians also questioned why much of the world, while outspoken in condemnation of the attacks in Paris, paid so little attention to the bombings in Beirut just a day earlier that killed more than 40 people, or the killing of hundreds of people every day across the Middle East.

According to the Iranian Khordad News site, an Iranian user in Facebook under the name of Vahid wrote: “If you are more upset about Paris than Beirut and Yemen, then I think this sorrow doesn’t stem from humanity; that might come from propaganda. As far as I know, humanity doesn’t recognize borders.”

Another Facebook user wrote: “Do you think lives of Europeans are more important than people of Syria? Why do we have discrimination about lives of people? Why [have] some people forgotten that every day lots of people are being slaughtered in the most disgusting way in the Middle East.”

Ali Moradi, editor of Iranian news site Tadbir Omid, told MEE: “I think the world should react fairly to the events. When the Beirut bombing happened, Google didn’t put a black ribbon on its first page or Facebook didn’t offer any condolences, but when it comes to a European country, everyone suddenly becomes concerned.

“I strongly condemn the terrorist attacks in Paris, but what I mean is why [does] nobody care about a lot of innocents who are being killed every day in the Middle East?”

The Paris attacks were also hard to believe for many Iranians who have considered Europe as a safe and secure place to live. Many expressed gratitude for the security and safety they currently have in Iran.

Internal security fears 

However, remarks by Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari that, prior to the Paris attacks, Iraq warned that IS planned to attack Iran, as well as the United States and France, has raised concern.

Iran’s Intelligence Minister Seyyed Mahmoud Alavi said: “The recent bombing and attacks are a warning to us,” adding that one of the most important threats Iran faces is the infiltration of IS forces into the country,

General Ahmad Reza Pourdestan, commander of the Iranian army's ground forces, referring to the presence of IS close to Iran's western and eastern borders, said: “Attacks on Diyala province in Iraq, on Iran’s eastern border, led to the decision that if ISIS forces reach within 25 miles [40km] of Iran’s borders, it will face the destroying response of Tehran.”

Pourdestan added: “In northern Afghanistan, terrorists have joined together to attack Iran, but they are currently unable to do so.”

Intelligence Minister Alavi said 10 terrorist teams had been discovered inside Iran during Muharram, one of four sacred months in the Islamic calendar, which ended a day before the Paris attacks.

Alavi went on: “The unforeseen security of Iran has led to promotion of Iran’s place in the world stage. However, the threats against us are serious.”

Darush Qanbari, a former member of national security committee in Iran’s Parliament, told MEE: “Following the Paris attacks, concerns grew in Iran over the possible terrorist attempts to harm Tehran, however, Iran has the ability to counter ISIS plots, and has been able to foil their attacks.”

“ISIS considers Tehran as a big obstacle in the way of its goals. That is why they are trying to invade Iran, but given the complete readiness of Iran’s military, the terrorists won’t be able to cross the borders. Iran has a good experience regarding fighting terrorism, and played an important role in fighting ISIS in Syria and Iraq. If it wasn’t for Iran, ISIS would have conquered both Iraq and Syria.”

According to Qanbari, “terrorism knows no borders, and the Paris attacks is the proof of that matter. All countries should put aside their differences and start a pervasive campaign against terrorism, because security is a matter that is dependent on the existence of safety in all countries in the world."

General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Qods Force - part of the Revolutionary Guard and which has a presence in Syria -  is now enjoying increased popularity, earning praise on social media for his efforts in combating terrorist groups.

Reza Rashid Pour, a famous talk-show host, wrote on his Instagram page: “I state that I owe the safety of my country to Qassem Soleimani. I have never seen Qassem Soleimani, but I say explicitly that whenever I meet him, I will bow to him to pay respect and kiss his hands.”

Amin Zendegani, a well-known actor, also mentioned Soleimani, writing: “I strongly thank those who are defending our country with their lives, so that Paris and Beirut attacks don’t happen here in our country.”

Amin Hayat Moghaddam, studying archeology at Islamic Azad University, told MEE: “I think Iranians should thank Qassem Soleimani, because if it wasn’t for his plans against ISIS, terrorists would have been here inside our country.”

He went on: “ISIS terrorists hate Iranians and Shias, and if one day, God forbid, they cross our borders [and] they make our country unsecure, hopefully with the help of Iran’s dynamic foreign policy led by Foreign Minister [Javad] Zarif and military strategies of General Soleimani, we will manage to prevent the ISIS terrorists from invading our country.”