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

RFL/RE – Iranian lawmakers passed a bill on September 20 to toughen penalties for women who flout the Islamic dress code, with jail terms of up to 10 years, state media reported. The assembly approved “the ‘Support for the Culture of Hijab and Chastity’ bill for a trial period of three years,” IRNA reported. The bill requires Guardians Council approval. …

Iranwire – Mohsen Qeysari, a 32-year-old ethnic Kurd, returned to the western Iranian city of Ilam from Germany early last year to support his elderly parents and ensure they were not alone in their twilight years.  Qeysari was killed seven months later, on September 21, 2022, when he was hit by dozens of pellets shot by riot police while helping …

Iranwire – Security forces in the northwestern Iranian city of Zanjan have arrested Farhad Hosseini, an ethnic Turk student and civil rights activist. Agents from the Zanjan Intelligence Department apprehended Hosseini on September 19 without showing a legal warrant.  The activist, who is pursuing a master’s degree in management at the city’s Azad University, has not had any contact with …

Iranwire – The United States has announced sanctions on seven individuals and four companies in China, Russia and Türkiye alleged to be connected with Iran’s drone program. Kyiv and its Western backers accuse the Islamic Republic of supplying Russia with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) used to bomb military and civilian targets in Ukraine.  Tehran has acknowledged sending drones to Moscow, …

Iranwire – Two independent Iranian film associations have condemned the arrest of artists in Iran amid a broadening crackdown on critics of the Islamic Republic. The Independent Filmmakers Association (IIFMA) issued a statement demanding the unconditional release of all filmmakers, artists, and political prisoners incarcerated in the country. “Out of a fear that the women’s movement calling for freedom and …