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Shirin Ebadi: Interrogators Make Decisions for the Judges Amid the ongoing wave of life-threatening hunger strikes by political prisoners in Iran, Iranian Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi has called on the chief of the country’s Judiciary, Sadegh Larijani, to resign. “The system is broken and the final responsibility rests with its head,” Ebadi, who was Iran’s first female judge before …

Al-monitor – US President-elect Donald Trump’s foreign policy approach remains a big question mark. With his nomination of a secretary of state, many were hoping that wild speculation would subside, but it is still difficult to form a clear picture of what US diplomacy will look like in the Trump era. Many in the Middle East are especially curious about what lies …

Al-monitor – A group of Iranian members of parliament has asked for the younger brother of moderate President Hassan Rouhani to be put on trial, a move interpreted by Reformists as politically motivated. AUTHOR Rohollah Faghihi On Jan. 4, 46 lawmakers demanded “punishment” and an “investigation” into charges of economic corruption against Hossein Fereydoun. (The surname of the president at birth was …

PayvandNews – The world’s largest independent oil trader Vitol has signed a deal to provide Iran with a major loan worth $1 billion – a landmark move that can help expedite the country’s crucial plans to boost its production of crude oil. Reuters in a report quoted several informed sources as confirming that the pre-finance deal had been sealed between Vitol and the National …

PayvandNews – A top Iranian official says Japan’s top energy developer Inpex is a strong candidate for winning a contract for the development of Azadegan oil field. Azadegan oil field Japan’s largest oil and gas exploration and production company is reportedly trying to win a contract over the development of a major oil project in Iran that it abandoned in …