Al-Monitor – Iran is continuing to be hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and officials fear it is only a matter of time before another powerful variant — possibly even a home-grown one — will follow the Delta variant and further devastate the country. “Given the ongoing situation, and the vast spread of the virus, it is not too much to assert that …

RFL/RE – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi says the country is “seriously lagging behind” in certain social and economic areas and the government must act to “improve people’s livelihoods” as the country grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases.Speaking on August 26 at the start of his first cabinet meeting since the government was approved by parliament a day earlier, Raisi acknowledged that …

RFL/RE – U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett are scheduled to meet on August 26 as both leaders seek to reset the tone of U.S.-Israeli relations.It will be the first White House meeting between Biden and Bennett, a far-right politician who became Israel’s prime minister in June, ending Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-year run in the post.Topping the …

Iranwire – Interference in executive-branch affairs has been an obsession for both Supreme Leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran. But Ayatollah Khamenei has pulled off an impressive feat in recent years by effectively formalizing and normalizing this activity, bringing greater parts of the state apparatus under his ultimate control. The confirmation of Ebrahim Raisi’s cabinet has sparked fresh unease in the …

Iranwire – After the Islamic Revolution of 1979 and the establishment of the Islamic Republic, an official campaign of harassment and discrimination of non-Shia Muslims got under way. Article 13 of the Islamic Republic constitution technically safeguarded Christianity as one of three recognized minority religions in Iran. But Muslims who converted to Christianity became targets for sustained ill-treatment by the regime. The government’s position is that …

Iran-HRM – Supreme Court turns down Vahid Afkari’s appeal to re-examine his case. Branch 38 of the clerical regime’s Supreme Court turned down the appeal by Vahid Afkari for re-examination of his case. Political prisoner Vahid Afkari is imprisoned in Adelabad Prison of Shiraz. His lawyer, Saeed Dehghan, posted a notice saying, “It would have sufficed to just glance through …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – Imprisoned lawyer and human rights defender, Mohammad Najafi, suffered a heart attack on August 1 and has so far been denied medical furlough or treatment outside the prison despite official promises. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, Mohammad Najafi, a lawyer and human rights defender suffered a heart attack in Arak Central Prison …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – Pioneering Iranian alternative rock band, Kiosk have released a new musical film and album titled “Sweet Destiny.” Based on a historic 1853 photograph of a public execution by cannon fire in Iran, it is the first professional Farsi language album or film of its kind to be dedicated to the subject of the death penalty. …

Al-Monitor – A hacker group is releasing surveillance footage from the very inside of Iran’s notorious Evin prison in what seems to be an unprecedented cyberattack against the Islamic Republic’s heavily guarded jail system. The group identified as “Ali’s Justice” has been releasing the videos since Sunday, promising to feed the media even more. The videos show moments of extreme abuse, with …

Al-Monitor – Iran’s Judiciary Chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei ordered an investigation into abuses at Evin Prison after leaked videos were published online and in foreign media. His letter to Mohammad Montazeri, the prosecutor general, ordered a report to be presented “without delay about the behaviors of the officers with prisoners.” A hacker group calling itself “Ali’s Justice” claims to have hacked the video cameras inside …