Tehran - An Iranian weekly carrying articles critical of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's policies has been shut down for violating press law, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Monday.
Shahrvand-e Emrouz (Today's Citizen), a reformist news magazine, had its licence revoked once before, in 2008. It later reopened under its current name.
“Based on a decision by the press supervisory board, Shahrvand-e Emrouz has been banned for violating the press law,” Fars reported, without giving details.
The weekly's closure comes ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for March. Analysts say the move could be aimed at silencing critics and avoiding the revival of street protests which broke out after the contested re-election of Ahmadinejad in 2009.
Since 2000, Iran has closed more than 100 publications, accusing many of being “pawns of the West”. Many subsequently reopened under different names.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said last week the vote in March posed a potential risk to the country's security and called for national unity.
The Islamic Republic's ruling elite is keen for the voting to pass off without similar unrest or, as seems more likely, a low turnout from disaffected voters. - Reuters