Iranwire – Iranian authorities have arrested Masoud Shekari, the father of a young protester executed in connection with the 2022 uprising.  The Shekari family reportedly said that Shekari “suffers from a mental illness” that has worsened since the execution of his son, Mohsen Shekari, leading to his hospitalization. Journalist Amirhossein Miresmaeili, citing a family member, said that Masoud Shekari was …

Al-Arabia – Operatives from Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah are on the ground in Yemen helping with Houthi attacks, a senior US diplomat said on Tuesday. “Credible public reports suggest a significant number of Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah operatives are supporting Houthi attacks from inside Yemen,” US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking told lawmakers. The Iran-backed Houthis have targeted commercial and international …

iranintl – One of the oddities in Iranian elections over the years is the dwindling presence of clerics in parliament, while the regime shifts towards greater ideological rigidity and less tolerance. When questioned about the absence of clerics on his candidate list for Tehran, Ali Motahhari, a former deputy speaker of the Majles (parliament) and current candidate, responded candidly. He explained, …

iranintl – Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s chief of staff requested a higher budget for organizations affiliated with his office and religious institutions in 2023, according to a leaked letter. The confidential correspondence from Mohammad Mohammadi-Golpaygani, Khamenei’s chief of staff, to Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, dated January 31, 2023, reveals dissatisfaction with the stagnant budget allocation for Khamenei’s affiliated entities and …

iranintl – Iran continues to allow al-Qaeda to facilitate its terrorist activities, a key communication channel to transfer funds and fighters to South Asia, Syria, and elsewhere, the US State Department told Iran International.  The State Department said that “Iran continues to deny al-Qaeda’s presence in the country, despite their knowledge of al-Qaeda leadership figures’ activities there,” the relationship dating back to …

iranintl – The March 1 parliamentary election in Iran has effectively ended as two leading ultraconservative groups reached an agreement to share the list of 30 candidates for Tehran. The hardliner Paydari party, currently the strongest in parliament (Majles) and the Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf concluded the deal on Sunday, after most Reformists and moderates were banned from running in …

Iranwire – Iranian voters will head to the polls on March 1 to elect representatives for the 12th parliament since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.  It will be the first polls since the country was rocked by months of nationwide protests against the Islamic Republic’s political system.  The Woman, Life, Freedom movement protest movement was met with a bloody crackdown that …

Iranwire -Iranian authorities say one person was killed in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchistan as he and an accomplice attempted to plant a roadside bomb near a police station. Provincial prosecutor Mehdi Shamsabadi said that the act of “terrorism” occurred in the city of Bampur on February 28. According to IranWire sources, the target was the office of a …

Iranwire – Iran is facing record-breaking gas consumption, as a new cold wave sweeps across the country.  Snow, rain and freezing temperatures have forced school closures in several provinces.  While officials cite the cold weather as the reason for the closures, media outlets suggest they are due to gas shortages impacting heating systems.  On February 28, schools in Markazi, South …

Iranwire – An Iranian inmate has taken his own life in a prison near Tehran, a human rights group reported.  A source close to Hossein Jalali’s family said that he had been incarcerated in Ghezelhesar prison, according to the HRANA human rights news agency.  Approximately seven months ago, Jalali began serving a 25-year sentence on drug-related charges.  At least 32 …