Connect with us

RSS

Media Fawns Over Ayatollah Khamenei’s ‘Gardening’ Skills; Forgets the Executions

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 20, 2025. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Since the start of Israel’s war with Iran, the media have been preoccupied with a question on many people’s minds: who would take over if Ayatollah Ali Khamenei were killed or deposed?

The result has been a trickle of “explainers” and backgrounders about the aging Supreme Leader — pieces that, predictably, can’t resist the urge to “humanize” one of the world’s most repressive autocrats.

Not content to describe Khamenei as the brutal theocrat he is, several outlets have instead presented a portrait of a soft-spoken, book-loving, poetry-reciting underdog who just happens to run the globe’s most prolific state sponsor of terrorism.

We’ve seen this troubling trend before. After Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was eliminated last year, media profiles described him as “charismatic,” “revered,” and portrayed him as a kind of grandfatherly figure.

The Economist led the way this time, with a piece published on June 21, just hours before the United States formally entered Israel’s war against Iran by striking the regime’s nuclear sites.

Titled “Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Great Survivor,” the article describes him as “an underdog from the start,” one of eight children born to a “poor religious scholar from the north-east of Iran.” We’re told he studied the Koran, “listened to music, recited poetry and read novels such as Les Misérables and The Grapes of Wrath” — books that, The Economist implies, resonated with Khamenei because they “depict secular struggles against oppression.”

It’s all very literary. The Ayatollah, we’re to understand, is not just the man behind a brutal theocracy; he’s also a fan of Steinbeck, a name familiar to every American high schooler.

The profile continues with an overview of Khamenei’s political scheming and rise to power, along with a surprisingly admiring assessment of his “astute business mind.” The tone is often reverent, at times barely concealing its awe.

By contrast, Khamenei’s less impressive traits — his penchant for executing political opponents, crushing dissent, and sponsoring global terrorism — are buried deep in the article and softened when they finally appear. There is no mention of his role in turning Iran into the world’s foremost state sponsor of terror, funding groups like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis.

Instead, we’re told that Iran’s transformation “from hybrid-democracy into dictatorship” merely “stirred dissent.” Women, we’re informed, have simply “resented” being forced into black manteaux and headscarves. And the regime’s violent suppression of protests? That’s summed up as “beating, shooting, jailing and kangaroo courts.” Polite euphemisms for what has, in fact, been mass repression and execution.

It’s worth noting that 2024 was reportedly a record year for executions in Iran, with at least 1,000 carried out across 86 prisons. Among the victims were 34 women, seven juvenile offenders, and four people publicly hanged.

The Economist closes with an ominous warning to Israel and the West: Khamenei: “should not be underestimated.” The tone borders on admiring, as if the anonymous writer is almost rooting for the Ayatollah to make a defiant comeback.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by HonestReporting (@honestreporting)

And The Economist wasn’t alone.

An essay in The Conversation titled “Who is Iran’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei?” manages to explore that very question without a single mention of Iranian terror proxies or the regime’s execution record. But it does find space to note Khamenei’s “rare” literary interests and “his interest in gardening.” Yes, gardening — a charming detail about a man whose government regularly hangs dissidents from cranes.

Meanwhile, an almost identically titled explainer in The New York Times breezes past Khamenei’s transformation of Iran into a regional menace.

We’re told that after Ayatollah Khomeini’s death in 1989, Khamenei simply “set about consolidating control of the country’s political, military and security apparatus, and cracking down on dissent to shore up his position.” A tidy summary for what has, in reality, been decades of authoritarian rule and bloodshed.

To be fair, not all media outlets have followed suit.

Some have provided more balanced coverage, reminding readers of events that made global headlines just a few years ago — like the widespread protests sparked by the murder of Mahsa Amini, the young Kurdish woman beaten to death by Iran’s morality police for wearing her headscarf “improperly.” The regime’s response to those protests was swift and brutal: hundreds killed, thousands jailed, and countless lives destroyed.

These are the facts about Khamenei that readers deserve to be reminded of. Not his supposed sensitivity to Western novels, or his affection for flowers.

Because the truth is, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei doesn’t just oversee a regime that terrorizes its own people. He presides over one that seeks to export that terror to the rest of the world.

That’s who he really is.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.

The post Media Fawns Over Ayatollah Khamenei’s ‘Gardening’ Skills; Forgets the Executions first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Post Views: 42
Related Topics:
Continue Reading

RSS

Brooklyn Nets Select Israeli Basketball Players Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf in NBA Draft

The opening tip between the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards, at Barclays Center, in Brooklyn, New York, Dec. 13, 2020. Photo: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

In a landmark night for Israeli basketball, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf were selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft by the Brooklyn Nets, marking the first time two Israeli players have been drafted in the same year.

Saraf, a 19-year-old guard known for his explosive athleticism and creative playmaking, was taken with the 26th pick. A standout with Maccabi Rishon LeZion and a rising star on Israel’s youth national teams, Saraf gained international attention with his electrifying scoring and commanding court presence.

With the 27th pick, the Nets selected 7-foot center Danny Wolf out of the University of Michigan. Wolf, who holds dual US-Israeli citizenship and represented Israel at the U-20 level, brings a versatile skill set, including sharp passing, perimeter shooting, and a strong feel for the game. After his name was called, Wolf grew emotional in an on-air interview, crediting his family for helping him reach the moment.

“I have the two greatest brothers in the world; I have an unbelievable sister who I love,” Wolf said. “They all helped me get to where I am today, and they’re going to help me get to where I am going to go in this league.”

The historic double-pick adds to the growing wave of Israeli presence on the NBA stage, led by Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, who just completed a breakout 2024–25 season. After being traded to Portland last summer, Avdija thrived as a starter, averaging 16.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.8 assists. In March alone, he posted 23.4 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game, including two triple-doubles.

“I don’t think I’ve played like this before … I knew I had it in me. But I’m not really thinking about it. I’m just playing. I’m just free,” Avdija told reporters in March

With Saraf and Wolf joining Avdija, Israel’s basketball pipeline has reached unprecedented visibility. Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the moment “a national celebration for sports and youth,” and Israeli sports commentators widely hailed the night as “historic.”

Both Saraf and Wolf are expected to suit up for the Nets’ Summer League team in July. As the two rookies begin their NBA journey, they join a growing generation of Israeli athletes proving that their game belongs on basketball’s biggest stage.

The post Brooklyn Nets Select Israeli Basketball Players Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf in NBA Draft first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Post Views: 8
Continue Reading

RSS

Iran Denies Any Meeting With US Next Week, Foreign Minister Says

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attends a press conference following a meeting with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, April 18, 2025. Photo: Tatyana Makeyeva/Pool via REUTERS

Iran currently has no plan to meet with the United States, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Thursday in an interview on state TV, contradicting US President Donald Trump’s statement that Washington planned to have talks with Iran next week.

The Iranian foreign minister said Tehran was assessing whether talks with the US were in its interest, following five previous rounds of negotiations that were cut short by Israel and the US attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities.

The US and Israel said the strikes were meant to curb Iran’s ability to create nuclear weapons, while Iran says its nuclear program is solely geared toward civilian use.

Araqchi said the damages to nuclear sites “were not little” and that relevant authorities were figuring out the new realities of Iran’s nuclear program, which he said would inform Iran’s future diplomatic stance.

The post Iran Denies Any Meeting With US Next Week, Foreign Minister Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Post Views: 20
Continue Reading

RSS

Ireland Becomes First European Nation to Advance Ban on Trade With Israeli Settlements

A pro-Hamas demonstration in Ireland led by nationalist party Sinn Fein. Photo: Reuters/Clodagh Kilcoyne

Ireland has become the first European nation to push forward legislation banning trade with Israeli communities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — an effort officials say is meant “to address the horrifying situation” in the Gaza Strip.

On Wednesday, Irish Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Simon Harris announced that the legislation has already been approved by the government and will now move to the parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade for pre-legislative scrutiny.

“Ireland is speaking up and speaking out against the genocidal activity in Gaza,” Harris said during a press conference.

The Irish diplomat also told reporters he hopes the “real benefit” of the legislation will be to encourage other countries to follow suit, “because it is important that every country uses every lever at its disposal.”

Joining a growing number of EU member states aiming to curb Israel’s defensive campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, Ireland’s decision comes after a 2024 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared Israel’s presence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal.

The ICJ ruled that third countries must avoid trade or investment that supports “the illegal situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

Once implemented, the law will criminalize the importation of goods from Israeli settlements into Ireland, empowering customs officials to inspect, seize, and confiscate any such shipments.

“The situation in Palestine remains a matter of deep public concern,” Harris said. “I have made it consistently clear that this government will use all levers at its disposal to address the horrifying situation on the ground and to contribute to long-term efforts to achieve a sustainable peace on the basis of the two-state solution.”

“Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are illegal and threaten the viability of the two-state solution,” the Irish diplomat continued. “This is the longstanding position of the European Union and our international partners. Furthermore, this is the clear position under international law.”

Harris also urged the EU to comply with the ICJ’s ruling by taking a more decisive and “adequate response” regarding imports from Israeli settlements.

“This is an issue that I will continue to press at EU level, and I reiterated my call for concrete proposals from the European Commission at the Foreign Affairs Council this week,” he said.

Last week, Ireland and eight other EU member states — Finland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden — called on the European Commission to draft proposals for how EU countries can halt trade and imports with Israeli settlements, in line with obligations set out by the ICJ.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the latest move by European countries, calling it “shameful” and a misguided attempt to undermine Israel while it faces “existential” threats from Iran and its proxies, including Hamas.

“It is regrettable that even when Israel is fighting an existential threat which is in Europe’s vital interest — there are those who can’t resist their anti-Israeli obsession,” the top Israeli diplomat said in a post on X.

The post Ireland Becomes First European Nation to Advance Ban on Trade With Israeli Settlements first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Post Views: 23
Continue Reading

Copyright © 2017 - 2023 Jewish Post & News