Social and Political

RFL/RE – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is headed to Iran, saying he hopes to help ease tensions between Washington and Tehran. Abe is expected to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rohani and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during his trip to Tehran — the first by a sitting Japanese prime minister in more than four decades. Tehran has been …

RFL/RE – Iranian lawmaker Parvaneh Salahshuri, a sociologist, says that when she decided to apply for one of a handful of influential posts in parliament, she realized she didn’t have a chance. The reason, as the 55-year-old reformist sees it, is that she’s a woman.“The lawmakers saw it as a man’s position and they wouldn’t accept the presence of a …

RFL/RE – “The entry of Afghans into this store is forbidden because I do not like them.” That was the sign on the window of a retail store in the Iranian city of Nazarabad, located in the western province of Alborz.Video footage of the racist shop sign first appeared in May, prompting widespread outrage among Afghans and Iranians on social …

Radiozamaneh – The majority of Zamaneh Media Panelists, who mostly live in Iran, think that the way to get out of the current diplomatic crisis is “the negotiations with the United States”, although the country’s leaders have not yet decided to do so. At the same time, more than two thirds of the panelists identify with this political slogan: “No …

Al-Monitor – A new tax in Iran that imposes a 10% levy on concert revenues has raised the ire of artists, concertgoers and even some of the country’s culture bureaucracy. Many musicians in Iran — who face red tape, censorship and poor salaries — believe this new tax is the final nail in the coffin for concerts and other musical events. Parliament passed the …

Al-Monitor – Considered a senior Reformist with a rich portfolio of top executive posts, Mohammad Ali Najafi has never been an ordinary politician in the Islamic Republic. During the years following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the prominent mathematician and MIT graduate moved among the ruling elites, serving in the Cabinets of Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi as well as former Presidents Akbar Hashemi …

Radiofarda – German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas says a treaty on disarmament and nuclear nonproliferation is in crisis. Maas, who is attending a one-day meeting on the subject Tuesday in Stockholm, after a trip to Iran for talks on the country’s nuclear program, says it is important that so many nations are coming together to work on strengthening and preserving the nuclear …

Radiofarda – U.S. State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus has said that the only solution to tensions with Iran is “a new and better deal that addresses the full scope of Iran’s threats.” Speaking at her daily briefing, Ortagus referred to what she said were new threatening remarks by Iran’s Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and she quipped, “We aren’t impressed”. “It …

Radiofarda – Foreign-based Iranian opposition news website Kalemeh reported on Monday June 10 that Iran’s security officials have informed Zahra Rahnavard, a reformist Green Movement leader under house arrest that she may use cell phone and satellite TV at her home if she chooses to do so. IRAN — A new photo of two prominent Iranian opposition figures – Mir …

Radiofarda – A decade has passed since Iran held its most bitterly contested elections ever, the aftermath of which shook the Islamic republic to its core over allegations of mass electoral fraud. Massive demonstrations and counter demonstrations by protesters and state supporters raged across major cities for 19 months, nowhere more so than in the capital Tehran, in what was …