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

RFL/RE – Iran has made it impossible for followers of the Baha’i faith to obtain a new national identification card unless they renounce their religion.Since the smart ID card is required for access to basic government services or to make bank transactions, rights activists maintain that the application process is the latest in a series of discriminatory state policies that …

VOA –  A top U.S. commander said on Monday mortars were used in an attack on the American Embassy in Baghdad that injured one person and caused some material damage the previous night, not katyusha rockets as was initially reported by staffers and a statement from the military. Gen. Frank McKenzie, a top U.S. commander for the Middle East, told …

VOA – A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck Fars province in southern Iran on Monday, Iranian state TV reported. State TV did not report any information on possible damage or casualties from the quake, which hit near the town of Khane Zenian. Assessment teams have been dispatched to the quake site, which is not a very populous area, the head of …

HRW – These are tumultuous times in Tehran. On the evening of Jan. 11,  protests broke out in front of two of the most prominent universities in Tehran, after the head of Iran’s military acknowledged that it accidentally shot down Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752, carrying 176 passengers, including more than a dozen Iranian students living in Canada.  Protesters were furious at the government’s …

gatestoneinstitute.org – Recently, three Republican senators, Ted Cruz (TX), Tom Cotton (AK) and Mike Braun (IN) have called on the U.S. Department of Justice to open an investigation into the National Iranian American Council (NIAC). According to the Iranian American Forum: “Some of these documents are posted here and reveal NIAC’s relation and collaboration with Iranian officials and business interests …