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More outreach efforts in Canada by the Islamic Republic of Iran

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad this week hosted a conference in Tehran for ‘elite’ Iranians abroad, selected by Iranian embassies in foreign countries, including Canada.

Iranian pro-democracy activist and blogger Potkin Azarmehr describes the conference as a propaganda event designed to “demoralize the population inside Iran by pretending the government enjoys widespread support outside Iran.”

All invitees had their expenses covered by the Iranian government. Guests included non-Iranians, such as Harvard professor Richard Frye, who, according to Azarmehr, was given a house in the Iranian city of Isfahan, and former British MP George Galloway, who was last year barred from entering Canada.

According to Iranian politician and friend of Ahmadinejad, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, 49 of the participants were Canadian. I’ll post their names if I get them.

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