Iran

By SCOTT MACLEOD/PARIS

Initial indications are that the decision by the Iranian government to disown the death sentence that was issued against novelist SALMAN RUSHDIE in 1989 is backed by both the competing moderate and hard-line factions in Iran. The first suggestion that this chapter was closing came last week in New York City, when Iran's moderate President Mohammed Khatami told reporters that the Rushdie affair was "completely finished." On Thursday, Iranian TV, which is controlled by Supreme Leader Ayatullah Ali Khamenei, reported on the news from New York City factually and without editorial comment, signaling its acquiescence to the decision. The next day, national prayers, which are broadcast countrywide, were led by Ayatullah Mohammed Yazdi, the judiciary head who is close to Khamenei. He referred to Khatami's visit to the U.N. and to other issues, but said nothing about the Rushdie affair, which Iranian analysts interpreted as lending tacit support. The decision is a victory for Khatami. He and the hard-liners will next square off in October when Iranians elect a new Assembly of Experts, a body that has the right to select the next Supreme Leader.

--By Scott MacLeod/Paris