TEHRAN I still abide by my recent remarks on the spate of killings and defend them with logic, Ruhollah Hosseinian, a controversial figure whose statements on the last year's spate of murders have drawn various reactions told the TEHRAN TIMES Tuesday. In a speech in Mashhad, Hosseinian said July 14 that some pro-Khatami figures were behind the last year's serial murders and claimed that the Head of Military Judicial Complex Mohamad Niyazi failed to convince him that Saeed Emami the mastermind behind the serial murders had committed suicide.

He implied that he was killed by pro-Khatami forces. He also said that the main objective of the murders was to create a rift between the Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Mohammad Khatami. A number of dissident politicians and intellectuals including Dariush and Parvaneh Foruhar were killed under dubious circumstance last year. Few Information Ministry rogue staff were arrested for committing the crime.

One who is engaged in political activity should not complain, Hosseinian said, the session in which I delivered the speech was July 14 in Mashhad where I presented my viewpoints and still abide by them. Referring to the political atmosphere created against his speech by some newspapers, Hosseinian told the TEHRAN TIMES that those who are after creating tension in society try to disrespect me by their authoritative treatment.

He added that despotic methods adopted by some newspapers in dealing with views opposed to them aim to drive the rival out of the scene. "I believe that in a civil society, freedom should prevail and groups and individuals should be able to present their views," Hosseinian said and added that such despotic behaviors should be ended. Head of the Islamic Revolution's Documents Center Ruhollah Hosseinian and Akbar Ganji were summoned to the court Tuesday, a statement published by the Judicial Organization of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic announced yesterday.

The statement added that Hosseinian was summoned to the Tehran Military Court for the charges he has levelled against officials and he must answer to them. The statement on Monday rejected Hosseinian's allegations as "false". "Most of what he attributed to the head of the Judicial Organization of the Armed Forces is incorrect and false," read the statement. The statement added that Hosseinian did not have access to the files related to the serial killings nor any other file under investigation at the organization and "any claim in this respect is a sheer lie." "Since Hosseinian's statements include slander, insult and publication of false reports to spark the concern of the public opinion about the serial killings as well as the officials in charge of investigating the case, therefore a complaint has been filed against him and will be followed up through the Special Cleric Court," said the statement.

It said also that Akbar Ganji who has made some remarks in this respect in response to Hosseinian, has been summoned to offer some explanations. Meanwhile, Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Aminzadeh rejected Hosseinian's claims against him on Sunday adding that Hosseinian is responsible to answer for all the charges he has leveled against officials. Also the Head of the President Office in a statement yesterday denied Hosseinian's statements.

Last year also some secret bulletins attributed similar statements to me. I wrote a letter to the Information Ministry to find the writers but no action was taken. He denied some charges made against him by Hosseinian. The situation is not like that of Imam's era and Khatami's personality is different from that of Bani Sadr, Abtahi said, referring to Hosseinian's claims that he had contrasted the situation to the time of Imam Khomeini and Bani Sadr. Given the Leader's intimate relations with the president, past experiences will be never repeated, he said.

Talking to the TEHRAN TIMES on the Hosseinian's statements, the Editor-in-chief of weekly Arzeshha Masood Rezaei said the sensitivity arose regarding the speech made by Rohullah Hosseinian in Mashhad is because he openly attributes the spate of murders to a special political faction. Hosseinian addressed the religious students of Haqani Seminary in Mashhad which has given rise to many comments. Rezaei said attribution of the murders to a special political wing causes a reaction on the part of the other side and this will create tension in society.

He added that from the beginning, two political wings attempted to attribute the murders to each other, but after the setting up of the Investigation Committee as an impartial body, the case is being followed beyond factional inclinations. He said if the committee had acted with more speed in order to clarify the questions, such issues would have not emerged. The editor said if official authorities assigned to follow up the case had clarified the issues, grounds for such speeches would not be prepared.

He added that the concerned officials and the prosecutor of the Military Tribunal should provide sufficient information to the people and thus prevent emergence of such events. He said if anyone was aware of the secret information regarding this case, he should have given them to the officials in accordance with the interests of the society and system, thus preventing eruption of tension in the society.

"Now that contrary to the interests of the society and system such remarks have been made, the Military Tribunal should not hesitate to investigate the truth or falseness of such remarks and bring the result to the notice of the pubic. Also editor of political desk of daily Khordad Morteza Kazemian told the TEHRAN TIMES that after the chain murders, Hosseinian defended Saeed Emami and called the murdered ones apostate and provided theoretical justification for the murders without any basis.

Kazemian added that by announcing some information which are said to be more than what appeared in the dossier about the case, Hosseinian has triggered tension in the society which stands in need of peace. He said Hosseinian's words are not relevant and need not to be taken seriously, adding that the Military Tribunal should investigate into the speech made by Hosseinian and clarify whether his remarks are true or false and bring the result to the notice of the people.

He said that former information minister Ali Fallahian should provide response to many questions in this respect so that different angles of the event would be clarified and the concern of the public opinion is ended.