Social and Political

The appointment of Ebrahim Raisi, who participated in “death commissions” that ordered the extrajudicial executions of thousands of prisoners in Iran in 1988, as Iran’s next head of the judiciary, represents a complete repudiation of the rule of law and a reward for those involved in crimes against humanity. The Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) forcefully condemns his …

Radiofarda – Iran’s former moderate president, Mohammad Khatami has warned that in the absence of reforms, convincing people to go to vote in the next elections will be a tough undertaking. Khatami, who served as president for eight years (1997-2005), was speaking to the reformist faction of Majles (Iranian parliament) on Wednesday, March 6. In remarks reflected on a Telegram …

Radiofarda – India wants to keep buying Iranian oil at its current level of about 300,000 barrels per day (bpd), as it negotiates with Washington about extending a sanctions waiver past early May, two sources in India with knowledge of the matter said. India has reduced its purchases of Iranian oil but has been in talks on extending its sanctions …

Radiofarda – The head of Iran’s Geological Agency says that in 300 plains in Iran the earth is sinking and huge sinkholes are appearing. A sinkhole in Iran. Undated Alireza Shahidi says that the capital city Tehran is sinking 35 centimeters (more than a foot) a year, ISNA reports. Shahidi compared Iran with the European Union and says that a …

Radiofarda – Israel’s navy could take action against Iranian oil smuggling, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, urging world powers to foil any effort by Tehran to evade U.S. sanctions. The Israeli leader told naval officers that Iran was still resorting to clandestine measures to ship fuel that it first used prior to a 2015 nuclear deal easing Western …

Radiofarda – In a strange twist some Iranian reformists have welcomed the likely appointment of hardliner cleric Ebrahim Raeesi as Iran’s next Judiciary chief. This comes less than one week after Abdolkarim Soroush, a prominent reform figure characterized Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, as one of the most knowledgeable men in Iran’s history. Even some conservatives …

Radiofarda – The deep entanglement of Iran’s military apparatus in the country’s politics, economy, and society is a well-known fact. Its interventionist role must be curbed to avoid catastrophe. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a force of roughly 125,000 personnel officially tasked with protecting the Islamic ruling system, also has its fingers in almost every sector of the economy, …

Al-Arabia – Iranian hackers working to penetrate systems, businesses and governments around the world have caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damages, a report said Wednesday. Researchers for tech giant Microsoft said the attackers stole secrets and wiped data from computer networks after targeting thousands of people at some 200 companies over the past two years, according to The Wall …

VOA — Microsoft has detected cyberattacks linked to Iranian hackers that targeted thousands of people at more than 200 companies over the past two years. That’s according to a Wall Street Journal report Wednesday that the hacking campaign stole corporate secrets and wiped data from computers. Microsoft told the Journal the cyberattacks affected oil-and-gas companies and makers of heavy machinery in several countries, including …

Al-Monitor – Iran’s state broadcaster is currently airing “Last Station of Lies,” a controversial documentary series that claims to reveal the truth about outside forces seeking to overthrow the Islamic Republic. Part two of the series focuses on Amad News. Founded in 2015 by Ruhollah Zam, an exiled journalist based in Paris, Amad News has long been demonized by the Islamic Republic, cast as a news source that incites …