PayvandNews – Separate teams of Italian and Spanish experts will join hands with Iranian counterparts to cope with spreading lichens in Persepolis, a World Heritage site in southern Iran.

PayvandNews – It’s the pot calling the kettle black. As Saudi Arabia accuses Iran of seeking to encircle it with its support for Houthi rebels in Yemen as well as Qatar, the kingdom and the Islamic republic are extending their bitter rivalry beyond the Middle East into the Caucasus.

RFL/RE – Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds (Qods)Force, has called for the “eradication” of Israel in retaliation for the killing of a Hezbollah commander ten years ago. Speaking in Tehran at a ceremony commemorating the 39th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution February 14, Soleimani said “The eradication of Israel would be the best …

RFL/RE – A woman has been arrested in Iran after peacefully protesting against compulsory veiling, the latest such incident in recent months. Video uploaded to YouTube on February 15 shows a woman standing on a concrete block above a crowd on Tehran’s Enghelab (Revolution) street, waving her headscarf in protest. Police then arrive on the scene and the woman appears …

RFL/RE – President Hassan Rouhani has appointed a committee to investigate recent “regrettable incidents” at detention centers in Iran, according to an announcement on his official website.

Iran-HRM – Concerns are growing about the fate of human rights activist, Behnam Musivand, who was arrested at his house on February 1, 2018.

Iran-HRM – Authorities in Sanandaj Prison murdered an inmate by the name of Hossein Gholizadeh on Feb 13, reports indicate. His body was found in the jail’s bathroom. Prison authorities said he committed suicide, a claim rejected by his cell-mates. Hossein Gholizadeh is the fourth inmate who has been murdered in this facility in recent month. Sarou Ghahremani, Kianoush Zandi …

Iran-HRM – Thirteen protesters who were arrested in recent nationwide protests by the security forces were summoned to a Tonekabon court. They were charged with “participating in illegal gatherings,” “insulting the Supreme Leader,” “disrupting public opinion,” and “acting against national security.” The detainees were transferred to Shahsavar Prison after the end of their interrogations. According to an informed source, the …

RFL/RE – The U.S. State Department late on February 15 called on Iran to release three opposition leaders who have been under house arrest for seven years. The statement came on the seventh anniversary of the detention of 2009 Iranian presidential candidates Mehdi Karrubi and Mir Hossein Musavi, as well as Musavi’s wife and women’s rights advocate Zahra Rahnavard. Karrubi, …

RFL/RE – U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley says it is “time for the Security Council to act” following the release of a UN report finding that Iran violated a UN arms embargo on Yemen’s Huthi rebels. “This report highlights what we’ve been saying for months: Iran has been illegally transferring weapons in violation of multiple Security Council …