At least three conservative dailies, "Resalat", "Khorasan" and "Abrar" announced Monday that Hojjatoleslam Khatami, after months of hesitation, has bowed to "intense pressures" calling for the resignation of Mr. Mohajerani, the "bete noire" of hard liners, particularly the lamed leader of the regime himself, Ayatollah Ali Khameneh’i.

Though there has been no reaction from the Minister himself, but some papers quoted sources close to Mr. Mohajerani as confirming the news.

According to Mr. Ahmad Burqani, a former Guidance Minister Deputy now a reformist MP from Tehran, the news would be officially announced after the present meeting of Islamic nations Tourism ministers that is chaired by Mr. Mohajerani.

Other papers speculated that he could be replaced by either Mr. Mohammad Masjed Jame’i or Mrs. Zahra Rahnavard, (the wife of former Prime Minister Mir Hosein Musavi) both his deputies, himself being appointed as Vice-President while leading the Reconstruction Party, a member of the pro-Khatami Second Khordad Coalition (SKC) and close to former President Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the man said to be behind the current repression against the reformists.

After harsh criticism from the leader, the last Majles (parliament)) that was dominated by conservatives impeached Mr. Mohajerani, but he managed to save his skin, ridiculing badly on the occasion his opponents.

But Mr. Khameneh'i took his revenge latter when, after the humiliating defeat of the conservatives in legislative elections of past February, he ordered the Judiciary he personally controls to shut down all reformist press, in all 25 daily, weekly and monthly titles and send to prison most of prominent and popular journalists under "package charges" of questioning basic principles of Islam, insulting the leader, spreading rumours, defamation, confusing public opinion and propaganda against the regime.

To prove that the "intense pressures" the conservative papers relates comes from the leader himself, observers noted that about ten days ago, the "Voice and Visage" (Radio and Television) of the Islamic Republic that is directly controlled by Mr. Khameneh'i had broadcast in it’s Arabic service that Mr. Mohajerani had resigned and his decision had been accepted by the president.

Mr. Issa Saharkhiz, Editor of the banned "Akhbar Eqtesadi" (Economic News) not only thinks that the resignation of Mr. Mohajerani would change "nothing" in the present conditions, but the "upgrading" of the controversial Minister to the position of Vice-president, "nearer to the President" would both "normalise" the situation in the Ministry while strengthening the hand of Mr. Khatami.

However, if officially confirmed, the news would nevertheless constitute another severe blow to the prestige and popularity of the embattled President, as Mr. Mohajerani is probably the most popular of his ministers, especially with journalists, the intellectual community and students as well, most Iranian commentators say.

"If Mr. Khatami accepts to remove Mr. Mohajerani, it would be seen as he has entered yet another compromise with the leader", observed Mr. Sadeq Saba, the BBC’s senior commentator on Iranian affairs.

In fact, with the removal of Mr. Mohajerani, the conservatives would kill two birds with one stone: in the one hand, they finally get rid of a man they hated from the outset and on the other, they increase Mr. Khatami’s isolation, separating him further from his supporters, namely the students, the young, the women and the intellectuals, proving, months before the crucial presidential elections, that like his predecessor, he too, does not hesitate to sacrifice unscrupulously his closest allies to save his own position. ENDS MOHAJERANI RESIGNATION 31000