Iran seeks to silence critical press

The Iranian government is clamping down on press criticism. It has urged the public prosecutor to take action against newspapers that spread "lies." Government spokesman Gholamhossein Elham said there was no question of censoring the media, but "those who spread lies should give their documents (to prove their case) to the judiciary and the judiciary should decisively follow the case". An opposition politician, Valiollah Shojapourian, claimed the move showed that the government "prefers the year-long silence of its opponents to continue so that its failures are not revealed to the people." (Via Asharq Alawsat)