AL-Arabia – Concern over the fate of The New York Times bureau chief in Tehran, Thomas Erdbrink, has continued after months of him not contributing to the publication or posting to his Twitter account, with some questioning his safety. Al Arabiya English got in touch with The New York Times enquiring about Erdbrink’s safety, following which the newspaper issued a statement. Erdbrink, a …

VOA – Iran has agreed to hand over a U.S. permanent resident imprisoned for years in Tehran to Lebanese officials, an Iranian judiciary official said Tuesday, providing the first official confirmation that Nizar Zakka would be sent back to his native Lebanon. The comment by Gholamhossein Esmaili comes as a top Lebanese security official is in Tehran to secure Zakka’s …

VOA – Iran has revoked the press accreditation for The New York Times’ correspondent based in Tehran without explanation, the newspaper reported Tuesday. While the newspaper said it remained hopeful Thomas Erdbrink soon would be allowed to work again, the revocation comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran stemming from President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from Tehran’s nuclear deal …

HRANA – The following is an overview of the prosecuted human rights lawyers in Iran in 2018. According to Shirin Ebadi, Iran’s Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights lawyer, lack of judicial immunity, prosecuting defendant lawyers, and absence of union support for lawyers are some of the issues that put pressure on lawyers in Iran. This report focuses on analyzing the …

Al-Monitor – The Israeli military conducted a strike against a Syrian air base in Homs province on June 3, targeting an alleged Iranian “drone facility.” It came less than 24 hours after a separate round of airstrikes against Syrian military positions in the southwestern region of Quneitra, close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israel again claimed its targets included positions and facilities belonging to …

AL-Monitor — When Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe makes a historic visit to Iran this week, he will do so with a rare nod from US President Donald Trump to see if he can facilitate US-Iranian dialogue to ease tensions. But with the Trump administration doubling down on its maximum pressure campaign and Iran insisting on a US return to …

volleyball,world – Iran continued their strong run in the 2019 men’s FIVB Volleyball Nations League with a victory against pool hosts Japan on Sunday. Iran captain Mir Saeid Marouflakrani: “As I expected, it was a tough game with Japan. We managed to stay focused during the game, which was the key to this great victory. It was a good finale of …

Radiofarda – Radicals linked to the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement were found to be stockpiling bomb-making ingredients in London in 2015 in a case that was kept “hidden from the public”, the Daily Telegraph reported on Monday. Following a tip-off from a foreign government, British police and the MI5 intelligence service discovered thousands of disposable ice packs containing three tonnes of …

Radiofarda – Iranian army’s air defense has showcased a new generation of Sayyad-3 missiles said to be twice as much powerful than the previous generation Sayyad-2. The new missile has been delivered to the 15 Khordad air defense missile site on Sunday June 9 with Defense Minister Amir Hatami and army air defence commander Amir Sabahi Fard present at the …

Radiofarda – The U.N. atomic watchdog’s chief said on Monday he was worried about rising tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme and called for de-escalation through dialogue, departing from his usual guarded language on the country. Washington has ratcheted up pressure on Tehran over what it sees as its nefarious role in the region. It has tightened already punishing economic sanctions, …