Baku, Azerbaijan, June 13
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iranian president Hassan Rouhani, who also heads the country's Supreme National Security Council rejected claims that the media ban on covering news of the ex-president, Mohammad Khatami was set by the council.
No decision was made in the council on the issue and if anybody claims that, he can be legally pursued, Rouhani said, Iran's State IRINN TV reported June 13.
Last February, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesman for Iran's judiciary, said the Iranian media remain banned from mentioning the former reformist president, Mohammad Khatami and publishing his comments, statements and pictures.
Mohseni Ejei said that this was part of the laws against "leaders of sedition", set out by the Supreme National Security Council and the judiciary.
Early in April, first vice-president, Eshaq Jahangiri said that the administration is engaged in talks with the judiciary in order to lift the ban.
Iran's judiciary blocked access to reformist Jamaran and Bahar News websites in late February due to their making some reports about Khatami, however the media were unbanned later after removing the former president's pictures.
Rouhani's administration has been unsuccessful in ending the house arrest of the opposition leader, Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Moussavi, despite promises made during the presidency campaign.
The success of administration efforts for lifting media ban on Khatami also remains under serious doubts.
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