RFL/RE – Tehran Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf has withdrawn from Iran’s presidential race to back hard-line cleric Ebrahim Raisi. In a May 15 statement published by Iranian media, Qalibaf said the decision was vital for the “preservation of the interests of the people, the revolution, and the country.” Qalibaf called on his supporters to vote for Raisi on May 19. …

VOA – Ankara’s apparent intention to build a wall along its border with Iran is being met with skepticism by some regional experts who question its practicality and whether it will curb cross-border terrorism as Turkey intends. A report last week in the Hurriyet Daily News, written by a reporter close to the Turkish government, quoted unnamed Turkish authorities as saying …

VOA – Former president Mohammad Khatami, considered the spiritual leader of Iran’s reformists, urged voters on Sunday to re-elect President Hassan Rouhani and support his policy of seeking to end Iran’s isolation from the rest of the world. Iran’s hardline security and judicial powers, which operate separately to the presidency and are close to Iran’s ultimate authority — Supreme Leader …

VOA – A 5.7-magnitude earthquake has hit the Iranian city of Pishqaleh in North Khorasan province, killing two people and injuring at least 225 more, according to IRNA, Iran’s official news agency. The Red Crescent Society said 37 search and rescue teams were sent to the quake-hit region Saturday, immediately after the earthquake struck. Eighty percent of the injured and …

Iran Human Rights – A prisoner identified as Koroush Langroudi was reportedly hanged at Bandar Abbas Central & Tabriz Prisons on murder charges. According to close sources, the execution was carried out on Tuesday May 9 and the prisoner was 36 years old at the time of his death. Iranian official sources, including the Judiciary and the media, have not …

CHRI – Esmail Abdi, the imprisoned former leader of Iran’s largest teachers’ union, is suffering from a severe drop in blood pressure and vertigo after nearly two weeks on hunger strike in Evin Prison. “If something happens to my client, I will hold the judiciary chief, the Supreme Court, the prosecutor general, the Tehran prosecutor, the head of the Prisons …

RFL/RE – Iranian President Hassan Rohani has hit out at his two main conservative challengers, who accuse him of mismanagement, corruption, and failing to improve the economy following a landmark 2015 nuclear accord with world powers. The attacks and tit-for-tat accusations came during the third and final presidential debate aired live on Iran’s state-controlled television on May 12 ahead of …

PayvandNews –  On May 19, the Islamic Republic of Iran holds presidential elections, the first following the landmark 2015 nuclear agreement. Incumbent President Hassan Rouhani is running against five other candidates, approved by Iran’s Guardian Council to compete in the election. The race has centred heavily on economic policies for tackling high unemployment and growing inequality, together with how to reintegrate the …

CHRI – Ahead of Iran’s elections on May 19 for president and local councils, 29 members of the European Parliament have written a letter to Federica Mogherini, the representative of the European Union for foreign affairs and security policy and vice-president of the European Commission, urging the EU to call on the Iranian government to stop the pre-election intimidation campaign against journalists and activists and ensure a …

CHRI – A number of prominent reformist politicians have been disqualified from running in Tehran’s City Council election despite being previously approved by the election monitoring committee. The list of candidates who were not included on the committee’s official list, issued on May 10—nine days before the vote—include Abdollah Momeni, Ali Tajernia, and Nasrin Vaziri, who was imprisoned for supporting …