Shabtabnews In this dark night, I have lost my way – Arise from a corner, oh you the star of guidance.

Iranwire – As Iran entered a new year, Iranian authorities intensified their crackdown on the nation’s Baha’i people. Iranian citizens continue to face mounting problems, including economic crisis, political turmoil that is likely to increase as the presidential election draws closer, and nowhere enough coronavirus vaccines to protect its population just as the country is hit by a fourth wave. But instead of taking steps to tackle …

VOA – The Biden administration is considering a near wholesale rollback of some of the most stringent Trump-era sanctions imposed on Iran in a bid to get the Islamic Republic to return to compliance with a landmark 2015 nuclear accord, according to current and former U.S. officials and others familiar with the matter.  As indirect talks continue this week in …

axios.com – Israel and the U.S. want to fence their disagreements over the 2015 nuclear deal off from cooperation on other Iran-related issues, a senior Israeli official told me following talks on Tuesday in Washington between White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart, Meir Ben Shabbat. Why it matters: The Israelis see a U.S. return to the …

Al-Monitor – Iran is nearing completion of a domestically produced vaccine for the coronavirus, according to state-affiliated media. A nationwide vaccine campaign for the public could still be several weeks away, however, as cases continue to rise despite lockdown measures. The COVIran Barekat vaccine entered its third trial phase on April 25. The current phase consists of a human trial involving more than …

Al-Monitor – Traditionally, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei uses his Nowruz speech to produce a slogan for the upcoming year.  In his March 20 speech he presented the following objective for the new Iranian year: “Support production and remove barriers to domestic production.” In line with this objective, the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade conducted a survey of industrialists to identify the …