The Tehran Power-Struggle.

The rivalry between the supremacists and conservative pragmatists in Iran took a serious turn during the presidential elections on June 24, 2005, which were won by IRGC-backed Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad. His sudden appearance on the political scene and stunning victory was, in effect, a coup d'etat by the supremacists whose spiritual mentors include Grand Ayatollah (Iranian spelling for what Arab Shi'ites call Ayatullah) Mohammad-Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi - the patron of Ahmadi-Nejad as well as the "Marja'" (source of emulation) for the top commanders of IRGC's radical faction which controls Iran's nuclear development programme and huge military/business institutions, including Hizbollahi and the Basijis.

The IRGC has grown into a state within the state in Iran - far more so than in the case of Hizbullah in Lebanon which is seen as a state more powerful than the Lebanese state. But in Iran, the power-struggle between the supremacists and conservatives is turning into a war; and this is reflected in intra-Shi'ite wars in Iraq and elsewhere in the Muslim world where the Ja'fari Shi'ite communities are large (see sbme5-IraqUS-IranRegionalMay7-07).

Former President Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani is most prominent among conservative pragmatists. Former President Mohammad Khatami is prominent among the reformists and is an ally of Rafsanjani. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stands in the middle between the supremacists and pragmatists. As a result, Rafsanjani wants Khatami to become the next supreme leader (see background in news26IranRafDec25-31-06 and news5-IranAhmadi-N'sDeclineJan29-07). Khatami is being promoted worldwide as the most preferred partner of the Christian world and the Sunni world. Khatami on May 4 met with Pope Benedict XVI. Earlier, in Rome, he had spoken about "very deep" wounds between Muslims and Christians caused by extremists on both sides. A meeting between the two last autumn was cancelled after the Pope gave a speech in Germany which offended Muslims.

On May 4 at a Rome meeting on inter-cultural dialogue, Khatami was asked whether tensions raised after that speech had healed. Khatami said: "Unfortunately, the wounds of this world are too deep and cannot be closed easily, and maybe only one meeting is not enough... But there is a common effort to try to close them".

After a 30-minute meeting, a Vatican statement said the two "paused to reflect on the importance of a serene dialogue among cultures, intending to overcome the grave tensions that mark our times". In his speech in Regensburg, Pope Benedict had quoted a medieval Byzantine emperor referring to Islam as "evil and inhuman". The Pope later said he did not intend to offend Islam and apologised as Muslims reacted angrily to his remarks.