The story: Iran’s supreme leader has appointed veteran law enforcement official Ahmad Reza Radan as new national police chief. Radan is known for his strict enforcement of the mandatory hijab during his previous tenures as deputy commander of the national police and Tehran police chief. He has also been sanctioned by western governments for his role in suppressing protests following the disputed 2009 presidential elections—credentials that have made his appointment a welcome development among hardliners, but a curious one for Reformists.

The coverage: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Jan. 7 appointed Radan as the new chief of Iran's Law Enforcement Force. Radan had been heading the Center for Strategic Studies of the Law Enforcement Force in recent years.

• Khamenei, who acts as commander-in-chief of all armed and security forces, tasked Radan with "satisfying people" by "protecting public security and comfort."
  
  
• The supreme leader noted in his statement that Hossein Ashtari's term as police chief had come to an end after eight years...