Human rights

Radiofarda – The Police Commander of Ahwaz, the capital of oil-rich Khuzestan Province, on Wednesday denied reports and evidence that security forces had fired non-lethal pellets at protesting villagers and used tear gas in a deprived village. According to Ahwaz Human Rights Organization the villagers wounded by the security forces were protesting the destruction of their homes and confiscation of …

BBC – Iranian musician Mehdi Rajabian says he is facing trial for working with female singers and dancers. The 30-year-old, who has already been imprisoned twice on charges relating to his music, says he was arrested two weeks ago over his latest project. The album, which is not yet complete, is due to include female vocalists – who are effectively …

thediplomat.com – While the United States has imposed sanctions on Chinese officials and companies complicit in the abuse of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, Beijing makes use of its deep pockets to buy the silence of majority Muslim countries around the world. The most shocking among these is Turkey, which shares not only religious but also ethnic affinity with China’s more than 12 million …

Radiofarda – Dozens of lawmakers in Iran have signed a motion to replace foreign messaging apps with domestically produced ones. The proposal titled as the motion for “Organizing Social Media Messaging,” was presented to the parliament’s presidium on Monday, August 24. Signed by forty MPs, the motion has set fines and prison sentences for anyone who offers social media messaging …

Radiofarda – The lawyers of jailed British citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe are alleging that the UK government has stalled payment of a £400 million debt to Iran, which could secure her freedom, for fear of offending the Trump administration. In a letter to UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s lawyers say postponing the next court hearing on the dispute over the …

Radiofarda – A member of the Tehran City Council said on Sunday that Tehran’s COVID-19 death toll has risen to 10,200 residents since the outbreak began in February, with the Health Ministry’s official death toll for the country reaching 20,643. Addressing a council meeting, Counselor Nahid Khodakarami also warned about the impact of the current month-long mourning ceremonies and the …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – In recent weeks, a prisoner in Dehdasht Prison and another in Yasuj Central Prison have been executed on murder charges. Iran media had previously reported the execution of another prisoner accused of murder in Yasuj. According to the HRANA news agency, on August 19, a man was executed in Dehdasht prison. The prisoner who was …

deadline.com – Here’s the promising first trailer for Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi’s Venice competition drama Sun Children, which we’ve heard good things about going into the festival. The film tells the story of 12-year-old Ali and his three friends. Together, they work hard to survive and support their families, doing small jobs in a garage and committing petty crimes to make …

Shabtabnews – In a new statement the International Organisation to Preserve Human Rights  (IOPHR) expressed support for striking workers  of employees of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Cultivation Industrial Company, who are simply striking to get paid their overdue wages. The statement also invited “all human rights activists around the world, especially Iranians living abroad, to contact the labour organizations of their place …

Radiofarda – Hashtags related to sexual violence against women have been trending on Persian Twitter after users spoke about their own experiences and named celebrities whom they claimed raped or molested them. Currently on Persian Twitter, #rape is among the top ten most used hashtags following those related to the current religious ceremonies and those in criticism of the Iranian …