Social and Political

Iranwire – The Economist has published a chart showing that in February, Iran’s currency had lost 94 percent of its value against the US dollar over the past decade. The rial plummeted to an all-time low of around 580,000 to the dollar that month, leaving it 55 percent weaker than a year before, the British weekly newspaper said in an Instagram …

Iranwire – The recent publication by six exiled Iranian opposition figures of a joint “Charter of Solidarity and Alliance for Freedom” has led to a major negative reaction from the main Kurdish parties opposed to the Islamic Republic. The document, dubbed the “Mahsa Charter,” sets out proposals for the establishment of a “free and democratic Iran” after the Islamic Republic …

VOA – The International Court of Justice is due to rule Thursday in a dispute between Iran and the United States about nearly $2 billion in frozen assets. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2016 that the assets seized by U.S. courts should be turned over to victims of a 1983 bombing at a U.S. Marine Corps barracks in Beirut and other …

Al-Monitor — The Pentagon’s top general publicly advocated a more forceful US response targeting the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps after a spate of attacks on US bases in Syria last week. US Army Gen. Mark Milley told members of Congress on Tuesday that the US should target the Quds Force “harshly” in order to deter future rocket and …

RFL/RE – A high-ranking commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has warned protesters in the southeastern Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchistan against crossing the regime’s “red lines” in anti-government rallies that have been taking place weekly after Friday Prayers. According to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the IRGC, Mohammad Pakpor, the commander of the …

RFL/RE – Prominent activist Masih Alinejad says the West’s continued support for Iranians is vital both for achieving regime change in Iran and reaching the goals Western nations have in their relationship with Tehran. Speaking in an interview with RFE/RL’s Radio Farda, Alinejad said she has tried to persuade leaders such as Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte that the months of unrest …

Iranwire – Iranian teachers held protest rallies in several cities on March 28 to draw attention to their low salaries and poor livelihood conditions. Teachers took to the streets of Tabriz, Bojnord, Zanjan, Malayer, Ardabil, Kermanshah and Hamadan as schools remained closed during the holiday period marking Nowruz, the Persian New Year. There were conflicting reports on whether teachers had …

Iranwire – Azerbaijan’s State Security Service (DTX) says that it is investigating a “terrorist attack” after a member of parliament with strong anti-Iranian views was wounded in a gun attack. Lawmaker Fazil Mustafa was hospitalized with gunshot wounds to his shoulder and thigh after being shot with a Kalashnikov assault rifle late on March 28, DTX said in a statement. It …

Iranwire – Greek authorities say they have arrested two men accused of planning an attack on a Jewish restaurant in Athens, a case which Israel said was orchestrated from Iran. Greece’s anti-terrorist agency launched the operation that led to the arrests on information gathered by the country’s intelligence service, police said on March 28. The statement said the arrests had …

Iranwire – Egyptian officials say Iranians travelling with tour groups will soon be allowed to obtain visas on arrival in the south of Sinai Peninsula, home to the secured resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, as Egypt, Iran and other Middle Eastern countries are taking steps to ease tensions. “We will evaluate the experience of their arrival in South Sinai as a …