Al-monitor – Fatima Navab Safavi is the daughter of Mojtaba Navab Safavi (1924-1955), an Iranian cleric and one of the first to mobilize Iranian masses against Israel back in the early 1950s. Donning the traditional black chador, Safavi told Al-Monitor in an interview, “Years before the [1979] Islamic Revolution, my father was able to get thousands of young men ready at …
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Iran will be one of the most powerful economies in the world by 2050
PayvandNews- By 2050, the world is likely to have changed drastically from what we know now, and the planet’s economic and financial landscape will be no exception, Business Insider reported. Read full report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) A report from professional services giant PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) looks at which economies around the world will be the biggest and most powerful in 33 years time. …
Read More »Syrian Opposition Leader Labels Iran ‘Main Obstacle’ To Peace Deal
RFL/RE – The lead negotiator for the Syrian opposition at peace talks in Geneva has singled out Iran as the biggest obstacle to settling the conflict in Syria. “Iran is the main obstacle to any kind of political deal,” Hariri said, but Russia — which is also Syria’s ally — shares the blame. “Russia failed to control the regime and …
Read More »Four Azeri Rights Activists Sentenced to More Than 10 Years in Prison for Peaceful Activism
Iranhumanrighst.org – Four Iranian ethnic Azerbaijanis have been issued long prison sentences for peacefully defending their rights, the Campaign for Human Rights in Iran has learned. One defendant, Alireza Farshi, told the Campaign that Branch 1 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court had sentenced him to 15 years in prison and two years in exile while three of his colleagues—Akbar Azad, …
Read More »Arrest of Cleric Imprisoned for Highlighting 1988 Political Prisoners Massacre “Like a Kidnapping”
Iranhumanrights.org – The wife of Ahmad Montazeri, sentenced to six years in prison for publishing an incriminating audio file on the Islamic Republic’s mass execution of thousands of prisoners in 1988, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that her husband’s arrest was “more like a kidnapping.” Twenty-four hours after Montazeri was taken to Evin Prison on February …
Read More »Largest Trade Union Body Asks Iran’s Leader to End Persecution of Prominent Activist
Iranhumanrights.org – The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has written to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei calling for an end to the persecution of Reza Shahabi, a prominent labor activist who has refused to comply with a summons to return to prison. “A return to detention of Reza Shahabi, unjustly convicted for his trade union activity, would be only a …
Read More »Will this woman become Iran’s first female president?
Al-monitor – Iran may see its first female presidential candidate in the May 19 elections. After a period of silence, Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, the Islamic Republic’s first and only female minister, has in recent days and weeks made headlines once again. Dastjerdi headed the Ministry of Health and Medical Education between 2009 and 2012 after being one of three women …
Read More »Iranian Sunni Leader Worried By Alleged ‘Secret Order’ To Quickly Execute Prisoners
RFL/RE – The spiritual leader of Iran’s Sunnis has written to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to express concern over “rumors” of a secret order for the speedy execution of Sunni prisoners convicted of drug trafficking. Molavi Abdolhamid calls in his letter for “wise and fatherly” intervention Molavi Abdolhamid, the Friday Prayers leader of the southeastern city of Zahedan …
Read More »Beaten and Harassed, Dual National Serving 18-Year Prison Sentence in Iran on Hunger Strike
Iranhumanrights.org – Iranian-American dual citizen Reza (Robin) Shahini, currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in Gorgan Prison (about 190 miles east of Tehran), has gone on hunger strike to protest his unjust sentence. Reza (Robin) Shahini An informed source also told the Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that Shahini, who is currently being held in solitary confinement, has been …
Read More »Rohani Visits Ahvaz Following Days Of Protest
RFL/RE – Iran’s President Hassan Rohani says his government has taken measures to prevent further water-supply problems in the southwestern city of Ahvaz. Rohani made the announcement on February 23 during a one-day visit to the city that comes after days of protests over power cuts, dust pollution, and government mismanagement. “There have also been many efforts to resolve the …
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