VOA —A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck a remote, mountainous region in southern Iran on Wednesday, injuring at least 31 people and disrupting power and communication lines, state media reported. It says the temblor rocked the town of Sisakht, some 700 kilometers (430 miles) south of Tehran, causing people to rush out into the streets. The town has a population of …

HRW – The Iranian judiciary’s blocking of the messaging application Telegram is an unjustifiable restriction on freedom of expression and access to information, Human Rights Watch said today. With more than 40 million users, Telegram had become the main social media platform for Iranians. On April 30, 2018, Mizan Online News Agency, the judiciary’s news agency, reported that the prosecutor …

Iran Human rights – A prisoner was executed at Saveh Prison on murder and rape charges.

CHRI – Human Rights Deteriorated in Iran Since Signing of Charter, With Many Abuses by Rouhani’s Own Intelligence Ministry President Hassan Rouhani’s signature domestic initiative—a Citizens’ Rights Charter which lays out in 120 articles the rights and freedoms of Iranian citizens as stated in Iranian law—has no ability to impact the human rights situation in Iran in any meaningful way …

Al-Monitor – On April 10, Iranian authorities announced a policy of unification of exchange rates — a move that has generated confusion, especially among those economic players who relied on the country’s free currency market. The fact is that the newly unified rate of 42,000 rials to the US dollar is not yet widely available. At best, it is only …

Amnesty – Ahead of the scheduled execution on Thursday of Ramin Hossein Panahi, a 22-year-old man from Iran’s Kurdish minority who was sentenced to death in January for “taking up arms against the state” after a grossly unfair trial and amid serious torture allegations, Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:

Iran-HRM – Iran human rights Activists in Iran reported that in the past 12 months, at least 813 workers died as a result of work place accidents due to the lack of safe working environments or work conditions. In addition to 813 deaths, 1,486 work-related injuries were also reported by the media. Despite these significant statistics, it should be noted that due …

Radiofarda – The Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei claimed on Monday, April 30, that USA is responsible for “war, insecurity and bloodshed in the region”, insisting “The one who should leave the region is USA not Iran.”

Radiofarda – Citing an “informed” source, IRGC affiliated Tasnim news agency has denied that Iranian fighters were killed during alleged Israeli missile attacks against several targets in Syria on April 29.

RFL/RE – Iran has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being an “infamous liar” over allegations that Tehran ran a secret nuclear-weapons program.