Ahmadinejad request to visit prison refused

Published on 23/10/2012 02:14

Iran’s judiciary has blocked a request by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to visit Tehran’s Evin prison, where a top presidential aide is being held, the latest sign that his influence is waning in his last year in office.

Ali Akbar Javanfekr, Mr Ahmadinejad’s press adviser and head of the state news agency IRNA, was sent to Evin in September to serve a six-month sentence for publishing an article deemed offensive to public decency.

He was also convicted of insulting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on his personal website, though it is unclear how or when this happened.

Mr Ahmadinejad’s request to visit Evin, made public this month, was seen by commentators as linked to Javanfekr’s detention, although there has been no official confirmation that this was the case.

The judiciary rejected the request on Sunday, saying it was not in Iran’s best interests as it faces an economic crisis.