"iran is in crisis," says rafsanjani. those arrested for protesting about last month's election should be free." >> ( translated ): it's not necessary that, in the current situation, we keep some people under these allegations in jail. let them go and take care of their families. >> reporter: in the front row, leading opposition figures. but the man protesters say won the election, mir hussein mousavi, was almost lost in the crowd and not shown on state television. mr. rafsanjani acknowledged their belief that the elections were rigged. >> ( translated ): doubt has been created in people's mind. we consider doubt to be the worst calamity. >> reporter: the crowd started to shout pro-mousavi slogans. he hushed them, saying he was speaking on their behalf. mr. rafsanjani was directly challenging iran's supreme leader for endorsing what he sees as a flawed election. opposition supporters wearing green wristbands gathered near the mosque and along the streets. normally, the government encourages people to attend friday prayers

inside this ceremony, former president rafsanjani issued a statement. one of the most powerful figures in the islamic republic, he called for the release of political prisoners and an open debate about the disputed election on state tv. >> there are some people, a large number of our people who say they are doubtful about the result of the elections, so we should try to help these doubts go away. back outside, iridium tv showed the police on motorcycles moving in. -- >> iranian tv show the police on motorcycles are moving in. the pictures show what appears to be a peaceful crowd. the opposition has shown in to bring supporters on to the street, whatever the obstacles. one website said there were millions there today, though that is impossible to verify. it is not clear if they have a strategy beyond that. president ahmadinejad it is said to be sworn in on august 2. he has been visiting eastern iran, staying well we from the capital. today has been a reminder of the bitter divisions over the election, going to the heart of the islamic republic, and there

they weren't sure what rafsanjani was going to say. what they'll probably do is take excerpts of tomorrow and televise that. >> and then we had the announcement yesterday of the head of the nuclear program in iran resigning or being replaced. what do we make of that? >> that's very serious because it means there are changes being made in the nuclear program. until now the policy of the republic was that the nuclear program was really directed towards civilian use. that it was not a weaponized use. and i think some of the people like running the program were sincere in that. if ahmadinejad is going to run the nuclear program, we could see the danger that -- a weaponization will become much more important in it. >> ervand abrahamian, thank you. >> thank you. >>> the u.s. military in iraq said today three american soldiers were killed last night in an attack near the southern city of basra. it happened as their base came under mortar or rocket fire. last year iraqi forces with u.s. support drove shiite militias out of the area but the mil

the former iranian presidt rafsanjani has revivedhe debate about the presidential eleion in iran. bomb tacks on to luxur hotels in jakarta were carried out by sicide bombers. at least nineeople were kied. me than 60 othersere injured. people with tism can have real difficulties anincredible gifts. major problem in adultod is finding employment, as it often find it difficult to counicate. some compans ha a fresh outlook. they say if you gi them a chance to perform to their strengths, makes econom sense. our alth corspondent is to conhagen toind out more. >> a focused anpersistence haveade h a champion -- have made him a chamon weight lifter those quities are part of his mi form of autism those qualities ma it difficult fo him to shine at job interviews. unemployment drove him to despair. i could get to the job interviews, but thatas never chos. self confidence got lower and lower, all the time. >> he is now rlaxed in a job that heoves. is detaed work, testing comput software. his boss knows he needa fixed route. >> i have to predict 90% of working day fore i leave in the morning. i

there was great anticipation for rafsanjani's speech.tens of thousands of people gathered in and around tehran university to hear him speak. and our reza sayah is at the iran desk with the latest on this. tell us what happened in these crowds. this is a big deal we haven't seen him for quite some time. >> huge crowds turned up to friday prayers to hear tayatollh rafsanjani. eyewitnesss on the ground telling cnn they're estimating tens of thousands of people showed up there. you see a picture for iran's state-run news agency. many of these people showed up to see rafsanjani to see what he had so say. you also had the first video posted online. if you can take a look at that. according to eyewitnesss on the ground, many of these people were wearing a green wristbands and arm bands, but many of them were dressed very conservatively. they had been worn by opposition organizers not to incite any violence. at times, some members of the crowd did get rowdy, and they were dispersed by security forces before and after the sermon. there were a few

they take the do we take the money and invest in real things, the position of rafsanjani? in reality, it is none of those things. you can see why unemployment is so high. if you look at the growth of the population, women are not having that many kids. you need have about 2.05 to keep the population in tact. it used to be around 2.7. right now, women are having less than that. . you are seeing a drop in the age group between five and nine. i compared yemen, the u.s., and iran. you can see that is where they have to find jobs for people. 30% unemployment is unbelievable. in the fourth development plan they are hoping they will produce 700,000 jobs a year. that is an optimistic situation. that means 300,000 people still per year will not get a job. they need roughly a million jobs a year. year. year. inflation, some people say it's because oil prices went up. " prices went up for saudi arabia as well. they had a lot more oil. their inflation did not do anything. they're spending money like crazy rather than investing. they're importing everything. the stock market has done m

so they were rebuilding that relationship in the 1990's with r rafsanjani and katami. but then they realized something in 2002, that iran had pushed ahead with its nuclear program and the good face of iran, katami, for example, was hiding a more determined security policy, still very aggressive. that iran was really after a nuclear option at the time that they were trying to rebuild confidence between the two shores of the gulf. and this still has an impact of how the gulf looks at iran to y today. another reason why, i think, many in the arab world are happy that ahmadinejad, or relieved that ahmadinejad won, is that a mousavi presidency would have had an impact on the, probably in their view, a positive impact on the u.s.-iran relationship and this is a thing that some are concerned that iran's interest and washington's interest or heart are closer to iran than the arab capitals. and you can argue this is an irrational fear but when you look at the history and the close relationship between the u.s. and iran during the shah time, not completely misplaced. so, little

the former president, rafsanjani, ahead of a constitutional body, called for the release of all those in prison for a political reasons. that would include the friend of this program, the respected news week reporter maz ya ba harry in jail. khatami, another two-term president, calls for a referendum on the country's leader. the supreme leader, khomeini and ahmadinejad are battling over an appointment. finally, mousavi you the candidate who might have won the june presidential elections is going to create a large-scale social movement to oppose the government. what does all this mean? very hard to say from the outside but clearly there is a bitter contestation for power taking place in tehran. the stakes are very high. it does not appear the regime has lost any of its grip on the repressive backbone of its power, the military, revolutionary guard and the paramilitary, the basij but the facade is clearly cracking that is why ahmadinejad can dare defy the supreme leader. a leading iranian paper allied with the opposition now refer tosco mainny as merely the leader of iran, having droppe

rafsanjani is treading a fine line.lled for the political prisoners to be released and he criticized the government saying the crisis is far from over and they need to pay more attention to the wishes of their people. but he stopped short of coming down on the side of the protesters themselves. but that did nothing to stop the spirit of the tens of thousands who yet again took to the streets of tehran. harris: we have been telling but president obama's growing team of czars this week. 30 of them named so far. recognize anybody? most of these people marchedly are household -- hardly are household names but they are tackling big problems. are they up to the job? and does this new system mean government as we know it is outdated? with us is our point person on all things czar, wendell goler. >> i'm watching you on the monitor but i cannot hear a word you say. you may want to tell engineering that. i presume we are talk become the recipe for a successful czar, which experts say is to be held accountable for accomplishing a

and former presidents rafsanjani has called for the release of the protestors and jailed after the electionsnother soldier was killed in afghanistan, the 16th british soldier died in july. helmand province has seen some of the worst violence anywhere in afghanistan. in other parts of the country, more progress is being made. >> how would you feel that you came home to find a house full of soldiers? this home is in the middle of a war zone and she has no idea when they will leave. when u.k. troops conduct major operations in helmand, most civilians flee. but her family has no choice. even with four children to protect, they are too poor to get out. her father tells us that element is being destroyed. he believes people year only under -- the people here only understand violence. there are a nation of total despair. 400 miles away, it could not be more different. in central afghanistan, there is peace in spite of the traumatic past. under the taliban, this was a place where massacres were meted out, women were shattered and fields were raised. but since the fall of the taliban, this area has b

we're talking about rafsanjani. were they coming out to see him? >> the former president, political nemesis of mahmoud ahmadinejad, many call him a game changer, a key figure for the opposition and there you e see, he was one of the opposition leaders that showed up, but many were eager to see what rafsanjani would say. would he support the regime or the opposition? he did deliver criticism to the leadership. it wasn't searing criticism, but criticism nonetheless describing the aftermath of the elections as a disease. he called it leprosy. take a listen. >> translator: doubt has been created in people's minds. we consider doubt to be the worse calamity. this doubt has attacked our nation like help raeps. there are two currents, though. one doesn't have any doubt and moving ahead with their job and a large portion of the people who say they have doubt. >> so, it was comments like that that really got the crowd going, especially the tens of thousands of people outside tehran university who couldn't get in really gave a very loud response and he also

there, you see him inside the sermon, listening to ayatollah rafsanjani.eager to hear what he would say. would he support the opposition or the regime. indeed, he delivered some criticism to the regime saying the aftermath of the elections has left a bitter taste in the nation. here is some of what he had to say. >> translator: doubt has been created in people's mind. we consider that to be col amity. one doesn't have any doubt and is moving ahead with their large and a large portion of the people who think they have doubt. >> aft one-hour sermon, there were more protests outside tehran university. there you see thousands of people outside the gates. in a few seconds, you will see security forces coming out on motorcycles and there you see the opposition supporters scattered. very interesting, inside tehran university. usually, during friday, people are urged to say, death to the usa, death to america, death to israel. today, when they were urged, instead of saying that, they kept saying, god is great. an apparent show of defines to the organizers of frida

khatami and rafsanjani all the nuclear program took off on them. were in favor of cooperation and dialogue. ahmadinejad said the nuke program is train without brakes. there is no stopping it. he is not the most powerful person in iran. the most powerful person is the assume reed leader. iran has two systems of government. there is appointed government composed of supreme leader but also the guardian council which vets candidates for elections. then there is elected government which is made up of the presidency and parliament. that doesn't mean ahmadinejad doesn't have any power because gets to appoint cabinet ministers. he sets up economic policy. but the supreme leader's constitutionally the most powerful person in iran. he controls the armed forces and he appoints senior figures in the guardian council and other government agencies. but even khomeni can't make choice by himself. he has to preside over factions within iran. practicing maists moderates under khatami. the radicalists under ahmadinejad. so important decisions in iran are made by a fo

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cal thomas also praised former president rafsanjani who said it was duty to address people's doubts about the results -- mr. khatami. two people killed in western iraq. also wounded eight others. it is the second attacked bear in a week. 56 people including generals, journalists, academics on trial in turkey accused of plotting against the government. accused of organizing an arms terror group with the intention of overthrowing a party that has its roots -- roads and political islam. full market and financial analysis and 25 minutes. some interesting news out of the state about a bank that really did look like it was in trouble. >> cit, relatively small banking compared to the majors, but it has been really on the brink of bankruptcy. it did in december received just over $2 billion in the bailout, but it had been hanging in. late last month it reached an agreement with bondholders 4 $3 billion rescue plan basically, so it can use its money to restructure. the problem is cit has a lot of debt payments due. first quarter next year, almost $7.5 billion. interesting story about this is that

but today, the former president, ali akbar rafsanjani issued a defiant statement saying he knows no fear. and in tehran today hundreds of antigovernment protesters took to the streets, once a >>> secretary of state hillary clinton's continuing her tour of asia. today she's in thailand and expressed concern that north korea may be exporting its nuclear technology to the military regime in myanmar. that, she said, would destabilize the region. >>> of course, are there continuing tensions between north korea and south korea. and there's also concerns that north korean spies continue to cross the border and infiltrate the south. now as steve chaof al jazeera english reports the government in seoul is taking some extraordinary steps to alert its young people about the problem. >> reporter: south korea is a nation obsessed with gaming. 17 million, the majority young men, packed internet dens like these nightly. and so it's here, country's intelligence agency has come recruiting. this is a government gape encouraging people to route out -- >> the game is important. >> reporter: with south korea

overturned and hoped for a clear message of support from one of iran's most powerful clerics, hashemi rafsanjani. at a packed friday prayer service, he described the current political instability as a crisis and demanded the release of hundreds of protestors who have been arrested. to iran's hard-line conservatives, this will sound like an attack on the government. but it wasn't enough for the crowd outside. "traitor" they shouted and "death to the dictator." in a sign that the radical phase of this protest may be over, though, their champion, mousavi, was inside listening, leading to speculation that he will join a new, more moderate opposition. >> i don't think it's the style of any of the opposition leaders of the present crisis to come out confrontationally. i think they would tend to go slowly but surely. >> reporter: that will be disappointing news to the young protestors who still want bigger faster changes in iran than any candidate can deliver. elizabeth palmer, cbs news, london. >> couric: and still ahead here on the "cbs evening news," as the parents of those 17 children-- 13 with spe

many in the establishment, the hardline clerics, wants rafsanjani to go there and shut the door on theopposition movement. tell everyone to move along. he didn't do that. he was very critical of the leadership there in iran and that gave a boost to the movement. commit looks like the opposition is using any opportunity to come back out in the streets. >> yes. >> there's lots of anniversaries and big dates on the calendar. this was another one, the anniversary of a demonstration back in 1952. they tried to use it again to come out. so far it looks like security forces have shut the door on them today. but, clearly, things are not over. and as you said -- >> absolutely. >> -- a lot of things bubbling in iran right now. >> okay, our reza sayah for it. appreciate it. thanks for keeping us on the mark on this story. >>> still to come in the "newsroom" -- billions are at stake over the fight of the future of a fighter jet. why is there such disagreement over whether the f-22 is needed? so what do you think? i think i'll go with the basic package. good choice. only meineke lets you choose the

rafsanjani made his talked said a few weeks ago talking about annuling the election of holding freshlections. that issue is gone -- double what is the other side of the deal? putting pressure on mr. ahmadinejad? >> it is putting pressure on mr. ahmadinejad and trying to force mr. ahmadinejad out in a different way. it there are constitutional issues regarding his next cabinet, whether he is able to master the right kind of support and essentially putting the supreme leader in it a dead alumna on what to do with him. but in the place of mr. mousavi and kharobi not protesting the election anymore, which was the initial issue, they are sort of being re-validated in the constituencies. in other words, they have been allowed to come back into the fold after having crossed the red line. and all the friends and colleagues that were arrested will of mentally be released and they will have another chance to exhibit differences in a different way in trying to promote the agenda. >> thank you very much indeed for joining us. the unrest in afghanistan may have spilled over into another one of it

the catalyst was a sermon, given at friday morning prayers by former president rafsanjani. he criticized the government for not listening to complaints eltiecon. outcome of the recent and that sparked the largest demonstration there in weeks. here's our senior foreign correspondent jim sciutto. >> reporter: speaking on iran's most important public stage, friday prayers at tehran university, the opposition's most important backer bluntly criticized the leadership for losing the people's trust, and demanded the release of political prisoners. "our goal is to regain the people's confidence," said the former president. "the situation today is bitter." on the streets, hundreds of thousands of protesters, some witnesses said more than a million, mounted the largest demonstrations in tehran in weeks. chanting "freedom" and "death to the dictator." the government's response was familiar. violence. security forces used the same old brutality, one protester told us by telephone. i was beaten. my mother was beaten. state television did not broadcast the speech live, but portraying pro

former iranian president fsraja rafsanjani, a supporter of mousavi, blasted the government's handling of recent protests. his word spurred thousands of demonstrators into the streets and new clashes with police then followed. >>> in italy, pope benedict has suffered a fall. he's now out of the hospital after surgery to repair a broken wrist. the 82-year-old pope fell at his vacation he, but aides said he was feeling well enough to celebrate mass before heading on to the hospital. doctors say the pope's right arm will be in a cast for about a month. >>> in pensacola, florida, today, funeral services for byrd and melanie billings who were shot to death in their home last week in an elaborate robbery. the billingses were parents to a total of 13 adopted children with special needs. four children from previous marriages. they were a beloved couple in their community. six men and a teenager have been charged with the couple's murder. >>> we turn to wall street here in new york now where it's been an important week in corporate earnings news, particularly for the big banks that have been pr

their top clerical balker akbar rafsanjani delivered the sermon. >>> several people who lost loved ones in the september 11th attacks say time for justice is now. they say president obama's order to close guantanamo bay and suspend terror trials will only prolong their suffering. the group of victims' families visited the detention center in cuba this week. secretary of state hillary clinton said the obama administration is committed to carrying out justice. >>> an update now on a story we brought to you yesterday. a second person has died after a stage roof being built for a madonna concert collapsed. a french hospital said the british worker died today. a french worker was killed immediately when the roof fell apart yesterday. eight others were injured. it's not known what caused the collapse yet, but police say a faulty power wrench may be to blame. madonna canceled her scheduled sunday concert after the accident. >>> it could be two more weeks before we see the full autopsy report on michael jackson. the autopsy report was due this week at the earliest, but the l.a. county coroner's

a huge crowd turning up to friday prayers in tehran to listen to ayatollah rafsanjani.figure for the opposition and, of course, political nemesis the current president mahmoud ahmadinejad. what would he do? would he side with the regime or the opposition? what he did was kind of walk a tightrope on one hand. he said the nation should move forward in accordance with the law. on the other hand, he really delivered some criticism against iran's leadership and gave some support to the opposition. he said iran is facing a crisis, the aftermath of the elections has left a bitter taste in the nation's mouth and he also called for all the detainees and the protests to be freed. he also said the media should be free as well. a lot of buzz today that making an appearance would be opposition leader mir hossein mousa mousavi. and according to this picture on mousavi's website, he did show up. also showing up was another opposition leader with didn't fair to well. a lot of reports that he was attacked by members of the iran's basij. he looks disoriented there and his turbin is off.

the top cleric, akbar hashemi rafsanjani delivered the sermon. >>> you might notice pope benedict wearingis arm for the next month. apparently, he fell and broke his right wrist. the vatican says the 82-year-old pope was on vacation in the italian alps when the accident happened, but he celebrated mass and had breakfast before heading to the hospital to have that bone reset. >>> president obama helped mark the naacp's 100th anniversary, telling the group's members last night in new york that a lot of progress certainly has been made toward racial equal, but, quote, the pain of discrimination is still felt in america. she challenged african-american youth to find role models beyond rappers and athletes. >> we've got to say to our children, yes, if you're african-american, the odds of growing up amid crime and gangs are higher. yes, if you live in a poor neighborhood, you will face challenges that somebody in a wealthy suburb does not have to face. but that's not a reason to get bad grades. that's not a reason to cut class. that's not a reason to give up on your education and drop out of sc

so when you put all of these together and when you remember that rafsanjani yesterday met with families of those arrested by this regime and suggesteded that the situation is untenable, all of this put together is, i think, creating the historic challenge to the regime and khomeini's leadership. >> they have to know how powerful it is of them speaking out, why when the election two was weeks ago, why has it taken so long to respond? >> some of them for -- responded earli earlier they are cautious and wait with enormous cautione eca. they waited and waited used back doors to try to get the opposition to back downment. and when this he realized they were sticking with ahmadinejad, they decided to go public but used everything they had in their power to convince the regime that the path they are on is an unten aable path. >> and perhaps this statement from this clergy group will serve as a catalyst for other voices to speak up, perhaps even lead to a nullification of the election. dr. abbas milani, director of iranian studies at stanford university, thank you for joining us. >> thank you.

former president rafsanjani has also expressed doubt over the legitimacy of the vote. earlier tonight i spoke about the rising dissention with abbas milsani. the clerics are even coming out. what does this mean at this point? >> i think it means there's a major risk within the iranian political and religious elite, and it means that some of the spiritual pillars of shiism based in the city have recognized that the status quo is untenable and that the anger that people have shown must be either responded to or it will bring more and more serious threats to their faith and to the regime in the long run. >> doesn't this just embolden the reform and it threatens -- it does threaten ahmadinejad, does it not? >> i think it's very much a threat to mr. ahmadinejad, and it is clear that ahmadinejad feels the threat. they have canceled several of his trips, including one that was scheduled to go to libya. clearly, they feel under the gun. they realize that they have made a mistake that might mean the end of the regime, and the harsh rhetoric of the past few days has only strengt

the top clerical backer, akbar hashemi rafsanjani delivered a sermon. >>> talk about pulling the trigger on a major purchase. by a pickup truck and a missouri car dealer is going to give you an ak-47. >>> look at this. jumbo flying squid have invaded the shallow waters off san diego. what would you do if that thing was coming at you. they can be five feet long and way 100 pounds. scientists aren't sure why they're there, but swarms of them apparently have roughed up unsuspecting divers pulling at their masks and gears. swimmers and surfers are okay because the squid are too deep. so if you're going, just something to think about. >>> once you virtually dominated the computer world with your software, what do you do for an encore? "usa today" founder bill gates says microsoft is tackling hurricanes. they are filing for pat tents for a process that would throw cold water on storms. hurricanes get their strength from warm surface waters. the inventors say it would take a lot of barges obviously and some scientists are skeptical, but thinking about it anyway. talking about it. >>> dallas mav

at times they were so loud, rafsanjani who was speaking at friday prayers, he had to quiet them down. when he was able to speak, he leveled criticism at the government. let's listen to part of what he had to say. >> translator: our important objective here today is to retrieve the people's great confidence which brought a huge number of them to the scene. now it's been a bit damaged. this should be our sacred objective. >> so, it was comments like that that really drew a loud response from the tens of thousands of people gathered outside tehran university. but he did call for unity. he said, we should move according to the law. but he certainly did the -- leave the door open for this opposition movement to keep moving forward. >> you know, after the elections, obviously, we were covering this story day in and day out, all through the night. you weren't getting any sleep. wru in tehran. you were hassled by the government. you had to come back. and then we saw a lull for a little while. we're obviously talking about it today. is it because things did calm dawn for a while, or has that n

former president rafsanjani has also expressed doubt over the legitimacy of the vote. earlier tonight i spoke about the rising dissention with abbas milsani. he's director of iranian studies at stanford university. take a listen to our conversation. the clerics are even coming out. in some ways against this disputed election. what does that mean at this point? >> i think it means there's a major risk within the iranian political and religious elite, and it means that some of the spiritual pillars of shiaism based in the city have recognized that the status quo is untenable and that the anger that people have shown must be either responded to or it will bring more and more serious threats to their faith and to the regime in the long run. >> that's what i was going to ask you. doesn't this just embolden the reform and it threatens -- it does threaten ahmadinejad, does it not? >> i think it's very much a threat to mr. ahmadinejad, and it is clear that ahmadinejad feels the threat. they have canceled several of his trips, including one that was scheduled to go to libya. cl

point or going to fall, the regime, but you are seeing miniclerics in the forms of khatami and rafsanjanithe violence. khomeini is feeling pressure. they are call nothing question his legit miss say at this point. i don't know whether they are going to succeed in unseating him but by the day, unless he is able to resolve this, we are getting closer to that. >> what kind of time line is there? is thistle kind of thing we with saw with the students when they were protesting and then there is a crackdown and then they disappear for years at a time or is this going to continue, do you think to bubble under the surface? >> oh, i think it is going to continue what is interesting, tree, people are up on the roofs yelling allah akbar, same thing in 1979, almost as if the iran rannians are trying to reproduce the '79 revolution, the spirit of it. >> turn it against their own leaders? >> khomeini in particular. >> exactly. >> at this stage is there anything productive the united states can do? in talking to people, the concern here officially is that anything that the united states says to encourag

demonstrations, biggest in weeks sparked by a sermon by the most important clerical backer, auk bar rafsanjani. protesters filled the streets after rauf san johnny criticized the comments. the government responded to protesters with violence. >>> unemployment in june topped 10% in 15 states, the grim headline out of the department of labor's report. hardest hit, michigan, which became the first state in 25 years to see unemployment rise above is a%. >>> the influential travel website, trip adviser, waging a quiet battle against fake reviews. hotels post the bogus raves to boost ratings. they involve a small fraction obvious the 400,000 reviews they post. john? >> randi, thank you very much. walter cronkite died tonight at home in thork. he was 92. he had been ill for a long time. bernie shaw new walter cronkite as a cbs news colleague. bernie shaw knew walter cronkite as a cbs news colleague. he joins us, so does brian williams, anchor of "nbc nightly news." bernie, let me start with you, my friend. take me inside cbs news in your heydays of one of the colleagues of this great man. >> john, i'

ayatollah in iran today, pushing back very hard, so the leaders in iran pushing back hard against rafsanjanind the other protesters from the friday prayers. . >> hi, andrea. i think we have to assume on iran that in the short-term, the more repressed elements of the state will prevail. ahmadinejad, ayatollah khamene. as you say, they're already pushing back against protesters and cut back the street protests to a very small size. even if those protests continue, they are not at the tens of thousands of size we saw initially. so in the short-term, the hardliners will win, but there is enough ferment in iran to give some longer-term hope, unfortunately, not soon enough to address the nuclear crisis where iran could have a bomb, but over the longer term, somewhat hopeful. >> hillary clinton is in new delhi today, wrapping up a three-day trip to india. interestingly, she did not couple this trip to india with a trip to pakistan, which used to be absolutely required to twin those two. she seems to be trying to build up a status of the indian relationship with the united states and in fact proffer

former president rafsanjani is speaking out about the country's unrest.iday prayers to thousands of reform supporters rafsanjani called on the country's clerical leadership to release opposition protesters arrested in the post election crackdown. meanwhile, witnesses in iran say police have detained at least 15 people during a new flare-up of unrest outside tehran university. we have cell phone video showing that just in to msnbc. pope benedict xvi is recovering from a fractured wrist after slipping and falling this morning. the fall happened during the pontiff's vacation in the alps. according to the vatican, there is no cause for concern about the 82-year-old's health. judge sonia sotomayor appears to be a lock for the supreme court after withstanding days of grilling with no major gaffes. on thursday the senate panel heard from two new haven firefighters whose reverse discrimination lawsuit became central to the hearings. >> do you have any reason to think that judge sotomayor acted in anything other than good faith in trying to reach a fair decision i

you had for instance the daughter of the former president, rafsanjani being put in jail. it's very difficult for them to hold individuals like that for a long period of time. >> lehrer: what do you make finally of what we saw in the setup, kwame's setup what president obama said on tuesday, that this week, let's let the dust settle as both of you referred to before we decide whether to make any more moves in any kind of official relationship with iran. >> that's absolutely right. i've always said that i defer to the leaders of the opposition themselves as to what is best for them. and now i see leaders of the opposition saying that the europeans, the united states should not recognize this government yet. despite --. >> lehrer: not recognize ahmadinejad. >> exactly, not recognize the results of this election. so i think despite this isn't over there is still plenty of fight in the opposition and just as we, the united states, didn't want to tip the balance in favor of those in the government of repressing people by coming out in favor of the opposition, the opposite is tr

host: from "the financial times" this morning, rafsanjani's speech set to energize reformers. former president rafsanjani, supporter of mousavi, is expected to use the same platform at tehran university to express sympathy for those who say the election was fraudulent. many believe his appearance offers a chance for a mass show of opposition strength on the streets of tehran. it according to " the associated press," he has made this week. the opposition packed the prayer hall -- with budget which broadcast live on radio and one of iran's most the poor and symbolic political platforms. from "the new york times" this morning, you may recall harry and louise from the health-care debate in the 1990's. they are back. this time the i standing here with some democrats, the same actors who played harry and louise in the 1990's are back and now in a new campaign, this time to support a government overhaul of the medical system promoted by a democratic president. the ad sponsors come a trade group representing drugmakers and families usa, a nonprofit group advocating affordable medical

former iranian president, ayatollah rafsanjani said the country's presidential election followed a tangled mess. he's been pretty quiet up until now. he chairs the assembly responsible for appointing or perhaps removing the supreme leader. he's a supporter of opposition leader, mir hossein mousavi. >> this is happening in honduras. the ousted president of honduras, president zelaya scheduled to return between 1:00 and 2:00 this afternoon. however the congressional leader who was sworn in as president after mr. zelaya was removed has vowed to have the former president arrested when he comes back. the association of american states voted to suspend honduras. president obama is preparing to head overseas in this morning and his first stop is moscow to meet with president medvedev. then he'll go on to italy for a g-8 summit and a meet with the pope and in ghana in africa. >> reporter: the president leaves sunday for his fifth foreign trip. the first stop in moscow is warming up the u.s./russian relationship. it got down chilly under the bush administration. president obama said he wants to res

violence breaks out in the streets of rafsanjani, stirred .on't think they have this thing tamped down. >> i think ahmadinejad will not finish his second term. crossed wire wires with the ayatollah and a lot of protesters in prison were beaten to death and people are enraged by it. i think ahmadinejad is in real trouble. wouldn't surprise me if they dumped him. >> his whole theocracy i think is in trouble. >> great news for america. >> great news for america, and this is a civilization thousands of years old. a lot of people have been greatly offended by what elements have taken up in that country since '79. i think the uprising continues. coming up, a first look at business and also the mustering opinion pages, straight ahead on "morning joe." and added a little fiber? sweet! sweet! sweet! (announcer)splenda no calorie sweetener with fiber. now for the first time, a gram of healthy fiber in every packet. sweet! (announcer) splenda no calorie sweetener, starts with sugar. tastes like sugar. but it's not sugar. no calories and a little fiber. h

obviously human rights aside,at the stalemate tre that rafsanjanis in.ternal cold war stalematehere and selfishly for as aricans, not s bad. >> it still remains to seen where this igoing to go. a majonewspaper in iran, very close to the supreme leer sa he is esstially an american agent. th're trying all sorts of things to squash this movent. will see how much leg it's got. >> i wnt to play a sound bite and get pat buchanan in onhis as well. joe biden talkingo george stephanopolous saying whatever israel wants to do her that's thr call. wenot going to g involved. listen to this exchange. >> israel can determine for itse as a sovereig nation what's in their ierests and what they dece to do relat to iranor anyone else. >> whether we agree or not. >> whether wgree or not. they're entitled to do at. any vereign nation is entd to do at. ifhe netanyahu gernment decides to take a cose of tion different than the one beg pursued n, that is thr sovereign righto do that. that is tour choice. >> pat buchanan, are you surprised by those comments? >> i'm astonhed. i ju

it follows a cry from a former president rafsanjani to release students arrested in the uprising. while they try to silence the opposition they cannot quiet viz bond border. what happened in new york city may be proof. here this morning to tell us about it, good morning. >> every since 1979 revolution in iran there's been a large iranian group who left the country because they didn't like social freedom, wanted more political freedom. many over the past month have been looking at the protest, crackdown by the government, they have been yearning to go back. a group of musicians in new york, that has not been possible so they have decided to get a little creative. in a lounge in manhattan's lower east side, a group of young musicians take another step toward tar dom. their thoughts are half a world away, they say, in the islamic republic of iran. >> since events started unfolding in iran, it's all i've been consumed with. i haven't really been thinking about anything else. >> johnny b doesn't fit the common stereotypes but he's iranian. for the past month lead leader of electric bla

ayatollah rafsanjani was actually a key figure in many of these rifts. he is a very, very clever back-room operator. he tends to lose elections. he did win for president in '89 and then again in '93, but that was after khomeini died and, you know, the people were looking to regime stalwarts for continuity. he did win as president but after he left office as president in '97, he's consistently lost. and, of course, he lost to ahmadinejad in 2005, so he is not popular. he is a back-room operator almost pleadly. completely. all of these senior figures in the regime the reason why i think they're going to contain these rifts and heal these rifts is because they fear that if it completely gets out of control and complete chaos reigns, some outside group will emerge and take power. could be reformists from, you know, out of the turmoil, could be somebody in the rev guard, could be somebody from outside. conceivably an opening -- i don't think so -- but potentially an opening for, you know, the young shah who's here in great falls and tends to appear on televis

rafsanjani made the, t. >>> pope benedict xvi has been hospitalized after a fall while vacationing in northern italy. the 82-year-old pope reportedly fractured his wrist and is having it surgery repaired. >>> president obama made a rousing speech last night before the naacp. the group celebrating its 100th anniversary. the challenge the president handhand ed down and reaction from the experts, next. >>> a historic event in new york. the civil rights organization welcoming the nation's first african-american president to mark its 100th anniversary. president obama had been criticized during the campaign for his tough talk about black men living up to their family responsibilities and he certainly didn't pull any punches on that front last night, but he did offer plenty of optimism about the state of race relations in america. >> i understand there may be a temptation among some to think that discrimination is no longer a problem in 2009. and i believe that overall there probably is never been discrimination in america like there is today. >> where is our nation 100 years after the crea