September 7, 2009
Iran announces plan to purge universities of Western influences
by Borzou Daragahi
Los Angeles Times
Reporting from Beirut - A hard-line deputy of Iran's supreme leader announced steps Sunday to purge Iranian universities of Western influences even as the government faced accusations of "fascism and totalitarianism" leveled by the country's former president.
Hamid Reza Ayatollahi, head of a government body that oversees universities, announced a plan to revise humanities curricula to bring them more in line with Islamic principles.
"Many of the syllabuses taught to students majoring in humanities are not in line with Iranian and Islamic culture and therefore their revision is a must," Ayatollahi said in a statement published by Iranian news agencies.
A committee has been established to "eliminate certain curricula and replace them with Islamic materials," he said.
Read the complete story (Some news sites require registration)
Related Headlines
Increasing numbers of radical Islamic Web sites are spreading al-Qaida's message in English
Philippine gay rights group wages battle to run in 2010 congressional elections
Muslim countries seek UN treaty to protect religion from blasphemy
