amnesty.org – Iranian security forces resorted to unlawful use of force, including birdhsot, and mass arrests to ruthlessly crack down on predominately peaceful protests that have erupted in various locations across Iran in recent weeks, said Amnesty International. Activists, protesters and bystanders swept up in the wave of arrests, including, children have been subjected to enforced disappearance, torture and other …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – An unidentified man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, was executed in Esfarayen. According to the official ISNA News Agency, the Esfarayen Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor, Mr Nadernejad has reported the execution of a man in the city. The identity of the prisoner who was sentenced to qisas for murder has not been reported. He was accused of killing …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – Mohammad Hassani-Kiazehi, a Baluch man sentenced to death on drug-related charges, was executed in Isfahan Central Prison. At least 66 prisoners, including a woman, have been executed on drug-related charges in Iranian prisons in 2021. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a Baluch man was executed on drug-related charges in Isfahan Central Prison …

Al-Monitor – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has tapped conservative diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian as his foreign minister, state media outlets reported on Wednesday. Following his expected approval by parliament, Amir-Abdollahian will replace Mohammad Javad Zarif, the US-educated architect of the nuclear deal who served in the role since 2013.   Reuters reports that Amir-Abdollahian, 56, is a staunch anti-Westerner with ties to Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard …

Al-Monitor – After Iran’s daily death toll from COVID-19 hit record highs for consecutive days, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has done an apparent about-face regarding the acquisition of vaccines. In a televised address, Khamenei said the coronavirus is the most important issue facing the country. He said daily deaths — numbering above 500 — and tens of thousands of infections …

Al-Arabia – Iran’s new president Ebrahim Raisi presented on Wednesday his list of cabinet choices to parliament, the official IRNA news agency reported. Raisi, elected in June, was sworn in last week before parliament as Iran’s eighth president. For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app. The parliament will is required to review and …

RFL/Re – Iran has asked Iraq to expel Iranian rebels from Iraqi Kurdistan or expect Tehran to take “preventative measures,” against the armed groups.“We call on the Iraqi government to take more serious action to expel these groups from Iraqi Kurdistan so that Iran does not have to take preventative measures against…these armed terrorists,” said Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of …

Iranwire – Iranian prosecutors have launched a fresh attack on labor activists across the country, turning their attention to teachers’ unions following their support for protests in Khuzestan and elsewhere.  From Rasht in Gilan province to Bushehr near the Persian Gulf and Iran’s Kurdistan province, at least 11 people with links to teachers’ and other unions have been summoned and arrested in the …

Iranwire – Widespread power outages are back with a vengeance across Iran, with officials of the Islamic Republic blaming the hot weather and people’s over-use of air conditioning for the latest blackouts. In a press conference on Monday, August 9, Mohammad-Hassan Motevalizadeh, managing director of Iran’s Power Generation, Distribution, and Transmission Company, known as Tavanir, said the issue had begun in …

(HRW) – The opening of a landmark trial in Sweden on August 10, 2021 of an Iranian citizen accused of participating in the mass execution of political prisoners is an important moment for victims long denied recognition and justice. On July 27, Swedish prosecutors announced their decision to prosecute an Iranian citizen for “committing grave war crimes and murder in Iran during 1988.” Prosecutors did not reveal the …