IranHRM – Death row prisoner Valliollah Taghizadeh, who has been detained for the past 12 years in the Central Tabriz Prison, has been on hunger strike since February 14 in protest to a violation of his rights.

Iran-HRM – According to reports, interrogators of the Ministry of Intelligence have intensified the abuse of political prisoner Alireza Varasteh, in addition to denying him medical treatment.

Iran-HRM -Ghasem Savari, 50, an inmate of Shiban Prison of Ahwaz, south west of Iran, was killed under torture, reports indicate.

Al-Arabia – The Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs, Adel al-Jubeir, said on Tuesday that the Saudi Arabia has the right to respond to the Iranian threat.

Amnesty – Prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Abdolfattah Soltani went on hunger strike on 21 March, after the authorities denied his request for judicial review and blocked his leave for the Iranian New Year holidays. On 26 March he temporarily halted the strike but expressed his intent to resume it on 20 April. He has a number of health conditions, …

CHRI – A lawyer representing the family of an Iranian Canadian academic who recently died in an Iranian prison has joined the growing list of attorneys in Iran who have criticized the judiciary’s decision to force citizens held on politically motivated charges to pick their lawyer from a list.

CHRI – A former public defender that worked in Iran on cases involving human rights violations has spoken out against the Iranian supreme leader’s claim that citizens are free to criticize state policies.

Al-Monitor – Successive Iranian governments have underlined for decades that Iran’s top foreign policy priority is to have close relations with all immediate neighbors. However, in the past few years, deteriorating relations with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been a major impediment to a more constructive set of regional relations. From a trade and investment point of …

Al-Monitor – In keeping with the tradition of declaring an annual motto at the beginning of each Iranian year, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has named the current year that began March 21 “Support for Iranian Products.” Many observers say the motto is a continuation of last year’s, “Economy of Resistance: Action and Deeds,” and is a clear sign that Iran is continuing to focus on the …

Bloomberg – A growing number of prominent Shiite clerics are questioning whether the supreme leader can claim divine authority.