CHRI – From right to left: Amin Ahmadian, Bahareh Hedayat, Mostafa Tajzadeh and Fakhrolsadat Mohtashamipour at the Rajaei Medical Center in Tehran. With roses in hand, a group of prominent former political prisoners and civil rights activists defied a state ban on visiting Iran’s detained opposition leaders when they attempted to visit Mehdi Karroubi in the hospital on July 31, 2017. …

CHRI – Nizar Zakka “Under Intense Torture and Pressure” A Lebanese-born US permanent resident who was sentenced in September 2016 to 10 years imprisonment in Iran ended his hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin Prison on July 27, 2017 after pleas from his family and a call by US Congress for his immediate release. “At the request of my sons, and because …

CHRI – Imprisoned for refusing to spy for Iran’s Intelligence Ministry, Hamid Babaei has been denied visitation rights at Rajaee Shahr Prison in Karaj, west of Tehran. “Today [July 26], like every other Wednesday, I went to [Rajaee Shahr] prison to visit my husband and was informed that he has been banned from receiving visits,” said his wife Kobra Parsajou in …

CHRI – Editor’s Note: On July 5, 2017, dozens of foreign diplomats based in Iran went on a staged tour of Evin Prison designed to prevent any contact between the diplomats and political prisoners and inmates with legitimate grievances about the prison’s conditions. The following letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), was written …

PayvandNews – The European External Action Service (EEAS) has officially announced that the EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Federica Mogherini will attend the inauguration ceremony of the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on August 5. by Eldar Mamedov (source: LobeLog) EU’s High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Federica Mogherini: “We will stay with JCPOA” (source: Iranian daily Jahan Sanat) According to …

PayvandNews – Iranian teams managed to scoop 16 titles in the biggest and most reputable robotic competitions in the world held this year in Japan’s Nagoya from 27 to 31 July.  After four days of intense competitions, Iranian robotic teams managed to win 16 titles in Japan’s RoboCup 2017 in the two junior and adult categories. Adult category In Rescue Simulation …

PAyavdnNews – Russia’s Gazprom has signed a cooperation agreement with an Iranian company over the development of two major oil fields in western Iran.  The agreement was signed with the Oil Industries’ Engineering and Construction (OIEC), Iran’s IRNA news agency reported. The target oil fields would be Azar and Changuleh, Iran’s most recent discoveries located in the western province of Lorestan. …

RFL/RE – Iranian opposition figure Mehdi Karrubi has been hospitalized for a second time in a week due to a heart condition, his wife said. Karrubi’s wife, Fatemeh Karrubi, told the semiofficial ILNA news agency on July 31 that her husband had been transferred to the coronary unit of a Tehran hospital after having tests done. She said doctors don’t think …

CHRI – Eight workers at one of Iran’s largest and oldest agricultural companies remain detained without bail after being arrested for demanding unpaid wages and benefits. At least 13 workers who had been protesting since mid-July 2017 after not being paid their salaries and insurance allowances by the Haft Tappeh sugarcane company near Shush in Khuzestan Province were detained on July …

Al-monitor – The economy dominated Iran’s recent presidential election. Hassan Rouhani, the incumbent, argued that integration into the global economy is the only path to prosperity and job creation, while his rivals accused his administration of having ignored the poor. Rouhani’s opponents also promised to create millions of jobs,double the size of the economy and triple monthly cash payments to low-income families. In the end, most Iranian voters preferred Rouhani’s path. Whether President …