Human rights

iranintl – Tehran is doubling down on its rejection of a UN report that found the regime committed crimes against humanity during its crackdown on nationwide protests. The Secretary of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights, Kazem Gharibabadi, accused Western countries of influencing the decisions of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council – and reiterated that the Council does not …

Iranwire – Iranian border guards have shot and injured four more Kurdish kolbars in separate incidents along the country’s western border with Iraq as violence against the transborder porters continues to escalate.  Alan Mohammadi, from Marivan, along with Kousar and Kayhan Ahmadi, both from Sanandaj, and Saadi Hosseini from Baneh, were injured by direct gunfire from the Iranian border guards …

Iranwire – Iranian families honored the memory of those lost in recent protests by visiting their graves on the last Thursday of the Persian year. In a longstanding tradition, Iranians pay respects to departed loved ones on the final Thursday of the Persian calendar year. On March 14, numerous people and families mourning those lost in recent protests gathered at …

Iranwire – The Islamic Republic’s authorities have not allowed incarcerated journalist Mehdi Afsharnik, lodged in Tehran’s Evin prison, to meet with his lawyer or family. The Defending the Free Flow of Information organization, citing a reliable source, reported, “Despite the journalist’s wife and lawyer making repeated visits to the Evin Prosecutor Office, judicial authorities have refused to provide a clear explanation …

Iranwire – The Islamic Republic’s judiciary has executed another prisoner amid a significant rise in death penalties in the country. According to Norway-based Iran Human Rights Organization, 42-year-old Behzad Bidrang, a father of two from Ajab Shir in East Azerbaijan province, was executed in Qazvin Central Prison on March 14. Bidrang was arrested for drug-related charges two years ago and …

iranintl – Once again, the hardline chancellor of Tehran University has denied allegations of purging academics based on their political beliefs, instead accusing those dismissed of “moral issues.” In an interview with the semi-official Mehr News Agency on Tuesday, Mohammad Moghimi asserted that not a single academic has been dismissed from Iran’s top state university on political grounds. “The ethical …

Iranwire – Iranian authorities have arrested five Azeri activists amid a growing crackdown on ethnic minority rights.  Siamak Seifi, Milad Zeinolabedini, Samad Heydari, Amin Taghizadeh, and Amir Taghizadeh were arrested by security forces in northwestern Tabriz on March 13, according to the HRANA human rights activist news agency. They were detained upon leaving a football stadium, and the charges against …

Iranwire – A 21-year-old woman, Negar Karimian, was killed on March 9 after the Islamic Republic’s police forces opened fire on a civilian vehicle in western Lorestan province.  The incident occurred at approximately 1:00 am at an intersection in the Aligudarz district. Karimian, a resident of Isfahan, was returning home with her family from a funeral when their Peugeot 405 …

Iranwire – The wife of Mashallah Karami, imprisoned father of Mohammad Mehdi, a young protester executed in 2023, is suffering from significant mental and emotional distress, a lawyer said. According to Ali Ardakani, Karami’s representatives have requested Alborz province’s judicial officials to release their client on bail. Ardakani, along with his colleague Shahla Owji, said in an interview with the Emtedad news …

Iranwire – The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Organization has prevented a woman referee from officiating a football match for the first time, IranWire reports.  Mahsa Ghorbani, an Iranian international football referee, was scheduled to serve as an assistant video referee (VAR) during the Tehran Derby on March 13.  However, just two days before the match, officials informed the Football Federation …