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Head of new Reformist group in Iran resigns from party

Sadegh Kharazi, who started the Reformist group Neda, resigned from the group.
Seyed Mohammad Sadegh Kharazi, a former Iranian diplomat, advisor to Iran's former president Mohammad Khatami and head of the new reformist party, Nedaye Iranian, attends congress attended by some 200 supporters of the newly formed party in Tehran on February 26, 2015. Nedaye Iranian (The Call of Iranians) was established in December by reformist politicians who support the legacy of Khatami. AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE        (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)
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Seyed Mohammad Sadegh Kharazi, the seasoned Iranian diplomat who started his own Reformist bloc ahead of the 2016 parliamentary elections, has suddenly and dramatically resigned from the party. The resignation comes shortly after Kharazi gave a controversial interview in which he threatened to name Reformist figures under the Mohammad Khatami administration who had a relationship with US officials in New York. That interview, while welcomed by hard-line media, caused an uproar among Reformist circles.

In his resignation letter, Kharazi addressed the members of the Neda Party, and said, “Unfortunately what has happened in the last days was cowardly attacks by friends and opponents who trampled ethics, which is one of the most important pacts of social life, and with accusations and defamation and lies, from clear statements, created [something] unknown.” He added, “All the pressure on Neda, from the first day until now, is a sign of the correct path you all have chosen.” Neda stands for the Persian acronym for Nasl-e Dovome Eslahat, the Second Generation of Reforms.

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