Radiofarda – The Islamic Republic’s Foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has implicitly dismissed a recent comment made by his American counterpart, Mike Pompeo, as “Iranophobia” and a “distortion” of Torah, Iran’s official news agency, IRNA, reported on Saturday, March 23. Earlier in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network, CBN, Pompeo had said it is possible that perhaps God has …

Radiofarda – The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has extended the mandate of its special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran for another year. During a session on March 22, the representatives of 22 governments voted for and seven (Afghanistan, China, Cuba, Eritrea, India, Iraq, and Pakistan) voted against a resolution for the extension of Javaid Rehman’s …

Radiofarda – While Iran’s foreign ministry has denied reports about hacking the telephones of Israeli politicians, a conservative ayatollah has claimed Iran has hacked the telephones of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “family”. Iran — Ahmad Alamolhoda, Iranian Imam and a Shia figure. He is the prayer of Jumu’ah in Mashhad Ahmad Alamolhoda, the custodian of the holy shrine in Mashhad …

Radiofarda – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the ultraconservative former President of Iran, has traditionally been dismissive of domestic media, so the three interviews he gave to reformist newspapers in March came as a surprise. Explaining his aversion to Iran’s press, Ahmadinejad told the pro-reform daily Arman March 19 “you make every discussion superficial, with no link to the people’s demands, so this …

Radiofarda – U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday urged Lebanon to pick a side as he visited the country on a regional tour to build a united front against Iran. He especially expressed concern over the role of Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shiite movement that is targeted by U.S. sanctions but holds three cabinet posts in Lebanon. Pompeo flew …

Radiofarda – Finland has topped an index of the happiest nations for the second year in a row, while Iran ranked 117th out of 156 countries. The report is based on economic wealth, life expectancy, social support, freedom to make life choices and levels of government corruption. Denmark, Norway, Iceland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, New Zealand, Canada, and Austria followed the …

Iran-HRM – As people across Iran are celebrating the Persian New Year, Nowruz, heavy rains and flooding have been pounding Golestan province in northern Iran since Sunday, uprooting trees and causing serious damage to the province’s facilities and power lines. Heavy floods hit vast regions of Golestan province, northern Iran. Locals providing help for each other when Iranian officials refuse …

RFL/RE – The United States has hit Tehran with new sanctions, targeting 31 Iranian scientists, technicians, and companies it says have been involved in the country’s nuclear and missile research and development programs. In a statement on March 22, the U.S. State Department said the 14 individuals and 17 entities targeted were affiliated with Iran’s Organization for Defense Innovation and …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – A part of the 11th Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran, by IHR, deals with drug-related executions in the country. READ THE FULL REPORT HERE (pdf)  According to reports gathered by IHR, at least 24 people were executed for drug offences in 2018. This represents a 90% reduction compared to 2017, and is …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – A prisoner was hanged for murder charges at the Iranian city of Zanjan’s Central Prison last Wednesday. According to IHR sources, a 34-year old man from Tabriz city of Iran was hanged on the morning of Wednesday, March 20, 2019. The prisoner, identified as Reza Akbari, was in prison for six years and was transferred …