Radiozamaneh – The Iran internet shutdown, which has left most Iranians without access to telecommunications, has left many people inside the country feeling “suffocated”, “imprisoned” and “depressed”. Zamaneh Opinion Panelists share personal accounts of living under the most severe internet shutdown the Islamic Republic has ever imposed on its citizens. “I’m suffocating. It feels like the government has put its …

HRW – Iranian authorities are deliberately covering up the scale of the mass crackdown against protesters, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should immediately announce the number of deaths, arrests, and detentions from the recent protests and permit an independent inquiry into alleged abuses. Human rights groups estimate that more than 140 people were killed and that security forces arrested up to 7,000 people in …

CHRI – Campaign of Intimidation Against Families of Journalists Intensifies in Wake of Protests Intelligence Agents Tell Families Reporters Will Be “Hurt” If They Do Not Stop Their Work Iranian intelligence agents have been issuing direct threats to the families of journalists working abroad, warning the family members that the journalists will be hurt if they continue their reporting for …

CHRI – Parisa Rafiei Loses Her Last Legal Challenge to Seven-Year Sentence for Peaceful Protest Parisa Rafiei, the young student activist who recently lost her last chance to have her seven-year prison sentence reviewed by Iran’s Supreme Court, was convicted based on reports that her own university submitted, a source with detailed knowledge of the case revealed to the Center for …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – Two prisoners were executed at the central prison of the southern Iranian city of Bandar Abbas on November 12. According to Iran Human Rights sources, prisoners Jassem Heidari, 29, and Jamshid Torkashvand were executed for murder charges on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, at Bandar Abbas Central Prison. “Jassem and Jamshid were in prison for three …

gatestoneinstitute.org – In what could prove to be a serious challenge to the long-standing hegemony Washington has enjoyed in the region, Beijing is seeking to deepen its commercial ties in the Arab world, thereby encouraging Arab states to look to China to safeguard their future security needs rather than maintaining their traditional reliance on the US. Beijing is particularly keen …

Al-Monitor – The Iranian administration’s controversial decision Nov. 15 to triple gasoline prices sparked protests across the country. Although the Iranian government has managed to contain the protests, discussions over various aspects of the recent events are still ongoing. However, much of the international attention has been so far directed toward domestic causes and consequences of the protests, while their possible …

Al-Monitor – Days could be numbered for President Hassan Rouhani’s ministers of oil, interior and education as he faces one tough challenge after another in the remaining half of his term in office.  Despite being dominated by pro-Reform camps largely aligned with the president’s policies, the Iranian Parliament seems to be gearing up for a fresh battle against the Rouhani government, launching attacks …

atlanticcouncil.org – On November 16, 2019, the Iranian government shut down the Internet throughout the country following a decision to triple the price of fuel overnight. The abrupt price hike, coming at a time when Iranians are already dealing with 40 percent inflation in part because of US sanctions, plunged the country into upheaval as people took to streets and …

Beyond the shadow of a doubt, the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei bears the highest responsibility, followed by President Hassan Rouhani, for the order to use deadly force against people who poured into the streets to protest an unexpected overnight three-fold increase in gasoline prices on November 15. Based on the Islamic Republic Constitution, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council …