INTV, 6 Oct 2013 – While Khamenei, after the shoe-throwing and the rhetoric of his representatives and elements against Rouhani, personally came to the scene and commented on Rouhani’s telephone conversation with Obama, calling it an improper act, Rafsanjani published a piece in his website in favor of Rouhani. Rafsanjani, under the title “Imam’s complete support of Hashemi’s diplomacy”, used one of Khomeini’s 1987 speeches regarding the trip of McFarlane to Tehran to justify and back Rouhani’s telephone conversation with Obama.

 
Shariatmadari, Khamenei’s man in Iran’s Keyhan Daily, wrote in an editorial titled “U-turn not allowed!”: After the trip of our respected president to New York and his telephone conversation with the US president, which was one of the series of improper acts during his trip and at the expense of the Islamic republic’s honor, Hashemi Rafsanjani’s website wrote “Imam (Khomeini) agreed with eliminating the ‘death to America’ slogan”.
There is no doubt that Hashemi Rafsnajani has distorted the clear and official announcements of Imam. However, the simultaneity of distorting Imam’s words with Rouhani’s telephone conversation with the US president clearly shows that Hashemi and his friends, knowing that this improper and damaging measure isn’t consistent with any scientific, political and religious logic; in order to justify it, have resorted to the unforgivable sin of distorting the beliefs of Imam.

 
Simultaneously, Mullah Shojouni, from Khamenei’s faction, called for the expulsion of Rafsanjani from the regime’s Expediency Council and said: “Hashemi Rafsanjani is loosening himself up for the Americans and is acting contrary to the announcements of Imam and the commands of the leader (Khamenei) and is aiding the enemy.”

 
In a statement read out in the Majlis session, parliament speaker Larijani called on Rouhani to obey Khamenei’s orders. In a part of his statement, Larijani stated: “Yesterday’s speech of Supreme Leader Khamenei about the diplomatic activities of our country is important from many aspects. First, he sought necessary and supported the principle of diplomatic activities in country’s current situation, and support of the activists of this arena is very valuable. At the same time, he expressed some reservations and it is necessary that during the continuation of the path, they be fully paid attention to and the next steps be taken in the context of what the supreme leader intends.”