Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani: Iranian authorities are narrow-minded

Iran's constitutional watchdog on Tuesday banned former president and opposition-backed Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from running in next month’s elections, a move expected to undermine the credibility of the poll. The Guardian Council, which vets all potential candidates for loyalty to the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the regime, also banned Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei, an ally of President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, from participating in the poll, the Financial Times reported.

Rafsanjani delivered a sharp criticism of the authorities of the country, who, in his opinion, "think narrowly." According to Iranian media, Rafsanjani said that "representatives of the Iranian authorities think narrowly. Those who voted for my disqualification lack knowledge of the current situation in the country, and I do not know what they are driving at with such an approach." The politician believes that the U.S. has plans to cut out the Azerbaijani-Iranian provinces and the province of Sistan and Baluchestan. He also drew attention to the fact that the United States will support Israel in the event of a strike against Iran because of the nuclear dispute. TheUnited States and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing nuclear weapons, which Iran denies.

The Islamic Republic has repeatedly said it is not seeking to develop nuclear weapons and will use nuclear energy for medical research. "The Iranian authorities are not aware of these processes, they are not aware of the situation, which will become even worse," Rafsanjani said, adding that the United Kingdom and the United States are waiting for the results of the elections in Iran. Rafsanjani said that Iran is currently facing a serious economic crisis due to crippling sanctions. The country has a 30% inflation rate, and a 50% fall in the value of the national currency. The list of persons eligible to participate in the upcoming presidential elections in the country was made public on May 21. It includes Ghulam Ali Haddad-Adel Saeed Jalili, Mohsen Rezai, Hassan Rouhani, Mohammad Reza Aref, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Mohammad Garaz and Ali Akbar Velayati.

The election campaign will end on June 12, and the presidential elections will be held on June 14.