A grandson of Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who is currently in Iraq has denounced the religious "dictatorship" ruling Iran, an Arabic newspaper reported Monday.
Iran "needs a democratic regime which does not use religion as a means to oppress people and stifle society", Asharq Al-Awsat daily quoted Hussein Khomeini, 46, as saying.
The grandson of called for "separating religion from the state and ending the despotic religious regime reminiscent of the rule of the Church during the Dark Ages in Europe", the newspaper reported.
"All those who came to power after (the 1989 death of) my grandfather exploited his name and that of Islam to continue their unfair rule," the younger Khomeini said, describing the Islamic republic's theocracy as "the worst dictatorship in the world."
Khomeini junior hailed the student-led protest movement in his country, predicting it would snowball into a "popular revolution" in the not too distant future and lead to "the momentous event" -- the overthrow of the regime.
He also appeared not to rule out US assistance in toppling the regime, although he said the Iranians were capable of effecting change themselves. "Freedom comes before bread, and if the Americans will bring it, let them come. Having said that, the Iranian people are capable of determining the fate of the ruling regime. What we need is the world's sympathy and understanding of our legitimate demands," Hussein Khomeini was quoted as saying.
The Tehran office of the late Ayatollah Khomeini Monday strongly denied the press reports, saying that Hussein Khomeini must have been misquoted.
Meanwhile, the newspaper said a special unit from Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard, or Pasdaran, entered last week the Iraqi territory in search of Hussein Khomeini. The Revolutionary Guard's deputy commander, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, was quoted as saying that Hussein Khomeini should be eliminated. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
