Social and Political

VOA – Moscow has not only received hundreds of Iranian drones but is working with Iran to produce them from inside Russia, according to the White House — a sign of the deepening military partnership between the two countries. “We have information that Russia is receiving materials from Iran needed to build a UAV manufacturing plant inside Russia,” said National …

Iranwire – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he will do “whatever we need to do to defend ourselves” against the Islamic Republic of Iran, amid growing Western concerns about Iran’s missile capabilities and nuclear programs. Speaking to UK broadcaster Sky News on June 9, Netanyahu rejected US attempts to resolve the crisis only through dialogue, saying diplomacy …

gatestoneinstitute.org – Iran’s Supreme Guide, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “used the Islamic concept of ‘Taqiyya’ to describe the regime’s decision to accept the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal with the West. Taqiyya means the permissibility to deny or conceal one’s real beliefs to secure a worthy goal.” — iranintl.com, May 20, 2023. “Khamenei’s emphasis on “expediency” as the third principle in foreign …

Al-Monitor — Senior UK politicians have expressed concern after an expose on Thursday revealed that several British universities are helping Iran’s government develop technology that can be used in its drones and fighter jets.  At least 11 UK universities, including Cambridge University, Imperial College London and aerospace specialist college Cranfield University, worked on Iran-related projects, with staff producing at least 16 studies …

Al-ARABIA – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed concern with Houthi actions that are cutting off Yemenis from “much-needed resources,” the State Department said Thursday. Blinken made his comments during a meeting with Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) President Rashad al-Alimi in Riyadh, according to a readout of the meeting.

RFL/RE – For the second time in just months, Baku has warned its citizens against traveling to Iran in the wake of a deadly attack on the Azerbaijani Embassy in Tehran in January that it blamed on the “unstable situation in the Islamic republic.” In what has become a habit in recent weeks, Iranian officials have been angered over the …

Iranwire – The second “suspicious death” was reported at Tehran’s Amir Kabir University in a week, sparking outrage among students. The university’s student union council reported that Yousef Sweizi, a master’s student in mining engineering, died on June 7 after experiencing a cardiac arrest in his dorm room.  Sweizi was pronounced dead at the scene despite efforts to resuscitate him, …

VOA – Iran has changed government workers’ office hours in the summer to try to reduce energy consumption, but media reports say some employees are unhappy with the early start. The new working hours for the next three months, from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m., came into effect this week. They are intended to address problems the country faces during …

VOA – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is set to take off this weekend for a tour to Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, state media reported Wednesday. Raisi’s tour of “friendly countries” begins Sunday and aims to raise Iran’s “level of economic, political and scientific cooperation” with the three U.S.-sanctioned Latin American nations, the IRNA state news agency said. Iran and Venezuela …

Iranwire – A large crowd of mourners attended the funeral of Mansureh Sagvand, a former member of Iran’s police force who resigned in protest against the suppression of protesters. The ceremony took place on June 6 in the village of Rig Sefid, near the western city of Khorramabad, amid widespread reactions among Iranian social media users regarding her suspicious death. …