Al-Arabia – Ex-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad submitted his name on Wednesday for registration as a candidate in Iran’s presidential election in May, state media reported. The move by the former hardline president was seen as a challenge to the authority of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had ordered him not to run. Registration for the May 19 election started …

Al-monitor -It was just after sunrise on April 7 when the news of an American missile attack on Syria reached Tehran. At first, information about what precisely transpired was limited, yet the attack was received in the Iranian capital as a message from Washington to all parties fighting along the forces of Syria’s defiant President Bashar al-Assad that the grace period given …

AL-monitor – In Iran, the conservative camp continues to go through a rough patch as its presidential candidates continue to appear unwilling to withdraw in favor of a contender who, according to the camp, has the greatest chance of defeating incumbent moderate President Hassan Rouhani. AUTHOR Rohollah Faghihi Ahead of the May 19 presidential elections, conservatives have tried to put aside their disagreements …

RFL/RE – President Hassan Rohani has defended his policies on the eve of the registration period for candidates in Iran’s presidential election in May, saying his administration has helped boost prosperity and chip away at obstacles to openness in Iranian society. But the 68-year-old cleric and ally of reformers stopped short of announcing a reelection bid at his televised April …

Iranhumanrights.org – The son of late Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, who publicly condemned the mass executions of political prisoners in 1988, has criticized the newly announced presidential candidacy of Ebrahim Raisi. In an interview with the Center for Human Rights in Iran, Ahmed Montazeri noted that Raisi, who was part of the four-man special tribunal that ordered the mass executions, “does not have …

PayvandNews – Iran and Pakistan have experienced many ups and downs in their relationship dating back to the creation of Pakistan in 1947. Despite Iran’s persistent conflict with Pakistan’s closest ally Saudi Arabia and broad economic relationship with Pakistan’s rivals India and Afghanistan, they have managed to maintain a relatively healthy relationship. Will this relationship be now influenced by the …

RFL/RE – Registration for Iranians hoping to run in Iran’s May 19 presidential election opened in Tehran on April 11. The registration process will remain open for five days. Prospective candidates will be vetted by the Guardians Council, a group of powerful conservative clerics that has a record of disqualifying liberal and pro-reform candidates as well as women. Iran’s official …

Radiozamaneh – The plight of Arash Sadeghi, jailed Iranian political activist has further intensified with reports that his medical file inside Evin Prison is missing. Sadeghi has been reportedly told by a visiting doctor that there are no documents of any previous test results in his file. Arash Sadeghi Arash Sadeghi is now suffering from severe asthma, a bleeding stomach …

RFL/RE – Iranian President Hassan Rohani has warned against further military action by the United States against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government, saying that it could be “very dangerous” for the region.

CNN – Washington (CNN)US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said nothing “is off the table” when it comes to imposing tougher sanctions on Russia and Iran in an interview that aired Sunday on CNN. “We’re calling (Russia and Iran) out,” Haley told “State of the Union” anchor Jake Tapper. “But I don’t think anything is off the table …