Radiofarda – The police commander in Iran’s oil-rich Khuzestan Province says that in the last 12 months the government confiscated more than 6,000 illegal weapons. The police chief Haydar Abbasszadeh added that “an abundance of weapons” is one of the serious threats in the province, the official news agency IRNA reported on Friday, April 17. Khuzestan has a substantial Arab-speaking …

Radiofarda – In its efforts to prevent the spread of coronavirus, the religious dictatorship in Tehran has been consistently negligent. Yet the regime has been remarkably eager to claim that it deserves immediate relief from sanctions so that it can fight the virus more effectively. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo underscored this contradiction in late March by releasing footage of President …

Al-Arabia – The Iranian armed forces have acquired three bomb-carrying drones with a range of 1,500 kilometers (932 miles), Defense Minister Amir Hatami said on state television on Saturday.The drones could monitor “enemy movements from a considerable distance” and were capable of combat missions, he said at the delivery ceremony in Tehran broadcast on TV.The aircraft were equipped with bombs …

Iran-HRM – Human rights sources have identified more prisoners killed by security forces in Ahvaz prison riots over fears of contracting the coronavirus. The state security forces responded to the coronavirus-related rioting late March by firing live ammunition and tear gas. According to prisoners’ relatives, dozens of prisoners were suffocated with teargas, burned to death during a prison riot over conditions, amid …

RFL/RE – The global death toll from the coronavirus is more than 154,000 with over 2.25 million infections confirmed, causing mass disruptions as governments continue to try to slow the spread of the new respiratory illness. Here’s a roundup of COVID-19 developments in RFE/RL’s broadcast regions. Iran Iran is allowing some businesses in Tehran and nearby towns to reopen on …

Al-Monitor – In response to Iran’s coronavirus outbreak in late February, one of the government’s first actions was to close schools and universities on March 5, leaving the education of millions of students in limbo. The prolonged shutdown has led to major challenges for students, parents and teachers. Mahta is a fifth-grade student in Tehran who is trying to continue her education despite …

CHRI – UN human rights experts* today called on Iran to expand its temporary release of thousands of detainees to include prisoners of conscience and dual and foreign nationals still being held despite serious risk of COVID-19 infection. The country has been hit hard by COVID-19, with Health Ministry officials reporting one person dies every 10 minutes from the virus. …

AP — The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus pandemic is likely nearly double the officially reported figures, due to undercounting and because not everyone with breathing problems has been tested for the virus, a parliament report said. Iranian health officials offered no comment on the report, which represents the highest-level charge yet from within the Islamic Republic’s government …

Radiofarda – The Free Trade Union of Workers in Iran has reported that a member of its board of directors, Ms. Nahid Khodajo, was summoned to Tehran’s Evin Prison, to serve her sentence amid the coronavirus crisis. Deploring the decision, the April 16 statement says the Evin Court of Appeals has given Ms. Khodajoo five days to surrender herself to …

Radiofarda – Referring to concerns over the novel coronavirus outbreak in the Islamic Republic prisons, a lawyer defending political prisoners says fear is dominating Qarchak detention center and calls for urgent action. Qarchak Prison, located in a remote desert, 39 kilometers (about 24 miles) east of Tehran, is known as the most dangerous and worst prison in Iran for its …