Tehran – In the first of what is scheduled to be two published accounts of his recent all-access trip inside Iran, FORWARD reporter Larry Cohler-Esses paints a picture of a progressive Iranian culture, one in which its people freely criticize current policy under the Ayatollah, while offering up less threatening views towards Israel than are often reported in western media.
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In his piece “A Jewish Journalist’s Exclusive Look Inside Iran” at FORWARD.com (http://bit.ly/1IYAo9I), Cohler-Esses explains the two-year process he underwent in securing the first pro-Israel Jewish reporter’s visa granted by the iranian government since 1979, a period, oddly enough, when Cohler-Esses worked as an English teacher in Iran just prior to the overthrow of the Shah.
Contrasting historical treatment of the Jews inside Iran, Cohler-Esses states that today’s members of the Jewish community “are tolerated and protected under Iranian law, but subject to a number of discriminatory laws and practices that limit their opportunities for work in senior government posts and in other ways. But they do not limit their opportunities in business.”
“The Jews, who felt free to complain to me openly about these areas of discrimination, as they do to the government, are basically well-protected second-class citizens — a broadly prosperous, largely middle-class community whose members have no hesitation about walking down the streets of Tehran wearing yarmulkes,” Cohler-Esses writes.
While acknowledging that the “timing” of the Islamic Republic granting him a visa may in fact be a “well-timed move” aimed at influencing the upcoming debate in congress over Obama’s nuclear accord with Iran, Cohler-Esses states that, “If so, the signals to that affect were mixed.”
On being granted access to high ranking senior ayatollahs and other political and government officials, Cohler-Esses states, “it became clear that there is high-placed dissent to the official line against Israel.”
“No one had anything warm to say about the Jewish state. But pressed as to whether it was Israel’s policies or its very existence to which they objected, several were adamant: It’s Israel’s policies,” he writes, while adding, “Ordinary Iranians with whom I spoke have no interest at all in attacking Israel; their concern is with their own sense of isolation and economic struggle.”
With regard to the public’s sentiment towards the nuclear accord, Cohler-Esses wrties, “In Iran today, freedom of the press remains a dream. But freedom of tongue has been set loose. I was repeatedly struck by the willingness of Iranians to offer sharp, even withering criticisms of their government on the record, sometimes even happy to be filmed doing so.”
One such person, butcher Nader Qaderi, beamed as Cohler-Esses filmed him with his phone, “The people of Iran want in some way to show the world that what’s going on in the last years is not the will of the Iranian people but of the Iranian government. We have no hostility towards Israel.”
What would happen to the guys who make guns, bullets, planes, etc if peaceful relations were to break out in the Middle East? If too much of this sort of reporting gets around, people might actually start getting along with each other, Chas V’Shalom. THEN what would happen?
In the 1930’s there were naive jews who said Hitler’s outbursts are just rhetoric.
The Forward is the mouthpiece of Obama and J Street who work tirelessly to appease Iran and eliminate all sanctions, They are not a Jewish newspaper.
yes and his wife is a “rabbi” as well.
The author of this is a fool. Here are some simple observations.
1. When any group is labeled officially as second class citizens, we are dealing with an oppressive regime. I would not bore myself with the details. Today, second class. Tomorrow, just guess.
2. It is not the Iranian population that is relevant here, so the opinions of the “man on the street” are meaningless, and basically cudgel journalism. It is the government, that has a military, that makes and buys weapons, that has sworn to its mission to annihilate Israel that is the central issue. What people say on sidewalk cafes over iced coffee makes no difference.
3. Iran has stated its anti-Jewish mission, and has supported terror against Jews even outside of Israel. When they issue a journalist visa, they do so to someone that will be sympathetic to their evil cause. They never offered one to the Hamodia or Yated. But they issued one to the Forward. Are things gelling clearer?
4. Israel has no anti-Iran policy, and only an imbecile would say it does. But Iran has an official anti-Israel policy. Nothing warm? Blaming on Israel? What have you been drinking or smoking?
5. Timing. Yes. Intentional.
its amazing how history repeats and we dont learn….in 1936 germany during the olympics people said how wonderful its in germany!!!!
It is so sad to see the mis-guided drivel that Cohler-Esses paints. I have known the Jewish Daily Forward (Forvitz) since I was a child, it was a staple in my house no English paper. Naturally, my Father Z”L was an Arbiter Ring activist, who like so many in his day believed in socialism, much like the Obamination does today.(We see what has become of that philosophy) Fortunately for me my Mother was a frum capitalist. While the Forvitz I remember was never close to conservative or religious, it certainly was nowhere close to the toilet paper being produced under the name of the “Jewish Forward”. The current rag is not even fit to wrap a Schmaltz Herring, much like those we used to purchase on the corner of Rivington & Hester Sts. If Iran wants a Jewish reporter why not one from the Jewish Press or Yetid or some other “JEWISH” publication. Mr. Cohler-Esses, stick to writing the garbage that the anti-Semitic apikorsus Forward publishes and stop portraying yourself as the voice of the Jewish People, YOU ARE NOT! You are a puppet of the Ayatollah. Shame on you! By the way, I made a mistake your paper is not even fit for use as toilet paper!
It is said that any non-Jew who is against Israel screaming they are only anti-Zionist and have nothing against Jews in general are antisemitic.Its only a coverup for their antisemitism. So even if in Iran Jews live ok the government is probably antisemitic.
Having said, True torah Jews are anti Israel/Zionism becuase they love Jews.They believe that Zionism stole the term “Am Yisrael”.
In no way do torah observant Jews want be associated with people who call themselves Jews but live like non-Jews.No Shabbos,no Taharas Hamishpacha,a bunch of people calling themselves Jews marching in pride as gays,eating shrimp and Chazer.
It is also no secret that since Zionism was founded their moto was to fuel antisemitism in order for Jews to be forced to go to the holy land.Just read the diaries of Theodor Herzl how he is longing for antisemitism.
So please all you Zionist out there who are so concerned about Iranian Jews this is what your hero Herzl wanted.
Yeah. a history repeat from 1930. “it’s not thaaat bad…” bla bla. up until it’s to late to do anything about it. How naive.
When they do things like burning your flag, they do not mean that they have a political experience that disagrees with your politics or national existence. They are showing the world that the answered “solution” is to KILL the people of the land and democracy they hate and not just to remove the democracy or change the political restitution.
This is very scary because in another direction, they could have discussed opposing Israel in a political fashion and setting up their own state in its place. That will not happen, but their idea is not to set up a new state, its to kill each and every jew and other living in the land of Israel for the “considerate” worth of hate of G-d.
This is criminal.
Iran should be reversed and a new government set up ASAP.
The idea of the Forward going there and reporting is very unfortunate.
They are not honoring the value of their own people.
They should be shunned for cooperating with evil and the executioner of a human experience on living Earth.
Terror.
Never Again.
shameful ‘reporting’. and if the Iranians read otherwise, this self hating jew would be hunted down by the blood thirsty arabs he is kissing up to. who is he kidding??
Obviously the reporter never did much research, or he would learn that the Koran teaches that if one can lie and fool a person to get an advantage, then the liar is considered a wise man. Iran has said many times that they want to wipe Israel out. I choose to believe that they would unlike those in Germany as Hitler ascended power who refused to believe that he would do anything as reprehensible as murdering Jews.
I would rather pay the price of not having a nuclear Iran, than bow down to King Obama and live with nuclear Iran.
No one complained when Chamberlain made a deal with Hitler. Islam (see Koran) believes in lying, Germans and Germany did not. Iran is a worse partner to a deal than Germany.
The author is Obama number 2…both telling us the only Iranians against the deal who shout death to America and to Israel are the FEW EXTREMISTS.