VOA – Iran has resumed enriching uranium at a similar rate as at the start of the year, the IAEA said Tuesday, as the country accelerates its nuclear program while denying it is developing a bomb. Iran has “increased its production of highly enriched uranium, reversing a previous output reduction from mid-2023,” the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a …

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – The death sentences against Reza Rasayi and Mojahed Kourkour, two “Woman, Life, Freedom” protesters, have been reportedly upheld by the Supreme Court. At the same time, at least three other protesters also remain at risk.  Iran Human Rights once again warns of the exponential rise in executions in Iran and calls on the international community …

france24 – Washington has repeatedly targeted sites used by Iran and its proxy forces in Iraq and Syria in response to dozens of attacks on American and allied forces in the region since the October 7 outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. “US military forces conducted necessary and proportionate strikes on three facilities used by Kataeb Hezbollah and affiliated groups in Iraq,” Austin said in a statement. “These precision …

Al-Arabia – Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant hinted on Tuesday that the country had retaliated in Iraq, Yemen and Iran for attacks carried out against it as the war with Hamas-led Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip widens to other areas of the region. “We are in a multi-front war and are coming under attack from seven theaters: Gaza, Lebanon, …

iranintl – As conservatives are expected to dominate in the March parliamentary elections in Iran, smaller hardline groups are emerging in the run to secure seats in the Majles. With the absence of reformist and moderate groups from the electoral competition due to disqualifications by the Interior Ministry and anticipated vetting by the Guardian Council, the conservative factions are seemingly …

iranintl – Internet companies in Iran have petitioned the government to increase their broadband and mobile tariffs by 100%, according to Faraz Daily, a pro-reform website. This request comes at a time when users are experiencing low-quality connections and are forced to pay for expensive Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and anti-filtering software to avoid the censorship imposed by the government. …

RFL/RE – An Israeli air strike in Syria killed a top commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), prompting Tehran to threaten that Israeli will “certainly pay” for its actions. Iranian state media on December 25 identified the commander as Razi Mousavi, a senior adviser of the IRGC Quds Force, saying he had been killed in an air strike near the …

VOA – Members of the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) have signed a fully-fledged free trade agreement with Iran, Russia’s economy ministry and the EEU said Monday. The agreement will become permanent and replace a similar temporary pact in force since 2019. The previous deal facilitated mutual trade with Iran and increased it to $6.2 billion in 2022 from $2.4 …

iranintl – Reactions in Tehran to Moscow’s support for Arab claims over three Iranian islands continue, with a lawmaker suggesting that Russia prefers Iran to remain isolated in the world. Referring to the islands of Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu Musa in the Persian Gulf, MP Ahmad Avaei, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said President Ebrahim Raisi’s …

RFL/RE – Iran said on December 25 that it would continue efforts to gain the release of a former Iranian official sentenced in Sweden to life in prison for his part in a mass execution of political prisoners in Iran. “This unjust and outrageous ruling does not end Iran’s diplomatic efforts to repatriate and free this Iranian citizen, and we …