Human rights

Iranwire – Iranian economic reporter Mehdi Afsharnik has remained unaccounted for since last week, when he was arrested by security forces. The details surrounding his arrest are unclear, fueling concerns about his fate. It remains unclear when exactly Afsharnik was apprehended, which security institution conducted the arrest and what he is accused of. According to IranWire sources, Afsharnik had a …

Iranwire – Iranian security forces have arrested civil activist and former political prisoner Murteza Parvin-Joda in the northwestern city of Ardabil.  According to information received by IranWire, four security vehicles arrived at the house of Parvin-Joda’s father on the morning of February 6 and detained the activist.  During the raid, the security agents reportedly searched the house and confiscated Parvin-Joda’s …

Iranwire – Family members of journalists and other staff from the Iranian financial news website Farda-e-Eghtesad gathered outside the outlet’s offices in Tehran on the evening of February 5, following reports their relatives were being detained and locked down in the building. Earlier in the day, journalists Maryam Shokrani and Zeinab Rahimi announced on social media that staff and reporters …

Iranwire – Dayeh Sharifeh had six sons and two daughters. Her youngest son has been executed, while the oldest has been killed in suspicious circumstances.  Despite her frail health, the Kurdish septuagenarian stands as an unrelentless opponent to the use of the death penalty in Iran.  In the aftermath of the recent execution of four Kurdish political prisoners near Tehran, …

iranintl – Iran’s modern public education system, established in the 1930s as one of the first in the Middle East, is increasingly falling under clerical control while suffering from a lack of investments. Over the past decade, several concerning issues have plagued Iran’s public education system, attracting significant attention. Mass recruitment of clerics in public schools, significant dropouts even in …

Iranwire – Since 2022, when the Woman, Life, Freedom protests against the Islamic Republic’s leadership erupted across Iran, the authorities have dramatically intensified their clampdown on members of the Baha’is faith. Many Baha’is have been arrested, prosecuted and handed stiff sentences, with multiple observers drawing parallels with the persecution they endured in the 1980s. Baha’i women have borne a disproportionate …

Iranwire – In a recent interview, Iranian football legend Ali Daei said he had been prohibited from engaging in any business activities in the country for the past year and a half.  Daei, a former German Bundesliga striker whose 109 goals at international level were long unsurpassed until Cristiano Ronaldo overtook him, has been a vocal supporter of the 2022-23 …

VOA – Iranian civil society organizations and professionals say suicide rates have reached crisis levels among school students and recent medical school graduates in the past month, with no sign of solutions from the government. Iranian state news agency IRNA acknowledged the worsening of the Islamic republic’s suicide problem generally in a January 6 article. It cited Hamid Parvih, the vice …

RFL/RE – A coalition of rights activists and writers have penned an open letter to Nada Al-Nashif, the UN deputy high commissioner for human rights, urging her to reconsider her planned visit to Iran saying the government will not allow her to see the “truth” about the situation in the country. Al-Nashif is scheduled to visit Iran from February 2 to February …

Iran Human Rights – February 3, 2024: Protesters Abbas Deris and Reza Rasayi are at imminent risk of execution after their death sentences were upheld by the Supreme Court. Mojahed Kourkour’s death sentence confirmation was previously reported. Condemning the use of the death penalty against protesters, Iran Human Rights calls for the international community’s special attention to death row protesters. …