October, 2023

• 4 October

  US Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Ban Entry To Sanctioned Iran Officials

  

  iranintl – US lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill to deny entry to sanctioned individuals attending UN meetings, following the visit of Iran’s president in September. Representatives Joe Wilson and Jared Moskowitz, members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sponsored the bill. If enacted into law, it would prevent Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi from attending the next UN General Assembly …

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• 4 October

  Activist In Iran Denied Court Presence For Refusing To Wear Hijab

  

  iranintl – Anti-hijab ex-detainee Sepideh Rashno was denied presence at her own trial in Tehran after announcing on social media that she would not wear the hijab at the court. In a brief statement, the judiciary said Rashno’s trial was held Monday morning. The statement published by the judiciary’s news agency, said Rashno was “absent” at the trial, so her …

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• 4 October

  NEWS Teenager In Coma: Tehran Hospital under Tight Security

  

  Iranwire – Security forces have tightened security in and around Tehran’s Fajr Air Force Hospital, where 16-year-old Armita Geravand is in a coma after a reported assault on the subway. According to information obtained by IranWire, Armita was admitted to the hospital on October 1 with a “head trauma.” The incident has led to allegations that the teenager was beaten …

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• 4 October

  Iranian Eighth-Grade Girl Ends Life after School Suspension

  

  Iranwire – An Iranian teenager took her own life earlier this week after being suspended from school for three days for not wearing a mandatory headscarf and for having her nails polished, IranWire has learned.  Zahra Hatami, an eighth-grade schoolgirl from the city of Shahriyar, near Tehran, threw herself from a building on October 2 because she feared her father’s …

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• 4 October

  Ten Executions Carried Out In Two Iranian Prisons in One Day

  

  Iranwire – Iranian authorities hanged 10 prisoners in Kerman and Shiraz prisons on October 1, activist groups say, amid a dramatic rise in executions by the Islamic Republic’s judiciary.  In a report published on October 3, Haalvsh news agency said that five prisoners convicted of drug-related crimes were executed in Kerman in the early hours of October 1.  Two of …

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• 4 October

  Iranian Authorities Urged to Let Journalists Cover Teenager’s Assault

  

  Iranwire – The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on the Iranian authorities not to detain and harass journalists covering the brutal physical assault against a 16-year-old girl in a Tehran subway station. Sources told IranWire that Armita Geravand fell into a coma after being reportedly assaulted by hijab enforcement officers on October 1. The teenager was transported to …

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• 4 October

  UK Warns of Iranian Threat after Satellite Launch

  

  Iranwire – The UK government has condemned Iran’s recent launch of a military satellite into space, amid concerns that Tehran’s space technology could be used to develop nuclear weapons. The Islamic Republic announced on September 27 it had used the Qased space launch vehicle to put the Noor-3 imaging satellite in an orbit 450 kilometers above the Earth.  In a …

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• 4 October

  Iranian Political Prisoner Hospitalized with Hands and Feet Tied to Bed

  

  Iranwire – Younes Azadbar, a labor activist incarcerated in the northern city of Rasht, has described his recent hospitalization following an epileptic episode, saying that both his legs and one hand were tied to his bed with “handcuffs and chains.” “I’m Younes Azadbar, a political prisoner in Rasht’s Lakan prison who previously spent 11 years in the prisons of the …

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• 4 October

  Hundreds Of Iranian Protesters Detained After Marking Anniversary Of Bloody Crackdown

  

  RFL/RE – Iranian security forces have detained hundreds of people as protesters in the country’s southeast marked the first anniversary of the killing of scores of demonstrators in the region, according to a human rights group. Haalvsh, a group that monitors rights violations in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan Province, said on October 2 that at least 216 people, including minors, had been arrested across …

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• 4 October

  At Least 5 Men Including 2 Baluch Executed for Drug Charges in Kerman

  

  Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – At least five men including two Baluch minorities, were executed for drug-related charges in Kerman Central Prison. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, five men including two Baluch minorities were executed in Kerman Central Prison on 1 October. The Baluch men’s identities have been established as Avaz Moradi and Ramezan Khorshid who were …

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• 4 October

  Hamidreza Khodabandeh and 4 Unidentified Men Executed in Shiraz

  

  Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – Hamidreza Khodabandeh who was sentenced to death for security-related charges and four unidentified men were executed in Shiraz Central Prison. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, five men were executed in Shiraz Central Prison (Adel Abad) on 1 October. One of the men has been identified as Hamidreza Khodabandeh Farsimdan Qashqai who was …

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• 4 October

  Jafar Ghaed Executed for Murder in Ahar

  

  Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – Jafar Ghaed, a man on death row for murder, was executed in Ahar Prison in East Azerbaijan province. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Ahar Prison on 27 September. His identity has been established as Jafar Ghaed, a 35-year-old man sentenced to qisas(retribution-in-kind) for murder. An informed source told …

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• 3 October

  DA Says Rushdie’s Attacker Could Stand Trial In Early 2024

  

  iranintl – Hadi Matar, the man who almost killed Salman Rushdie in New York State last year, might appear in court in early 2024, Iran International has learned. Jason Schmidt, the district attorney overseeing the case, told Iran International that a “very important hearing” has been completed in favor of the prosecutor. The defense wanted to “suppress certain statements that …

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• 3 October

  Armita, 16, in Coma after Tehran Subway Assault by Hijab Authorities

  

  Iranwire – The 16-year-old Iranian girl who fell into a coma after being pushed by hijab enforcement officers in a Tehran subway station for not wearing a headscarf has been identified as Armita Geravand. The Norway-based Hengaw group, which monitors rights violations in Iran’s Kurdish regions, reported on October 3 that Armita, from western Kermanshah province, is under stringent security …

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• 3 October

  Iran Baha’i Crackdown: Four More Detained in Yazd

  

  Iranwire – Iranian authorities have arrested four members of the Baha’i religious minority in central Yazd and transferred them to an undisclosed location. The detainees are Mojgan Basiri, Shokofeh Basiri, Vida Ehrari, and Jamal Qadirzadeh. Security forces raided Mojgan Basiri’s house on Sunday evening and arrested her along with three guests who were at the house.  The agents searched the …

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• 3 October

  Iranian Students Undergo Face Scanning at Universities

  

  Iranwire – A week after the reopening of Iranian universities, reports from independent student sources indicate a trend of increasing security pressures and the widening scope of repression in universities.  A report published on the Amirkabir Newsletter Telegram channel, which covers news related to this university, said that one day after the professors of the Sharif University Professors Union were …

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• 3 October

  Workers in Iran Sentenced for Demanding their Rights Be Respected

  

  Iranwire – It has been reported that an Iranian court sentenced 17 workers to fines and flogging for protesting last year the management practices of their employer, the state-owned Iran National Steel Industrial Group, and their employment status. According to the semi-official Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA), the Revolutionary Court of the southern city of Ahvaz ordered the workers to …

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• 3 October

  Shargh Reporter Arrested in Tehran

  

  Iranwire – Iran’s Shargh newspaper says security forces arrested one of its reporters on October 2.  It said that Maryam Lotfi was taken into custody after visiting Fajr Air Force Hospital to report on the situation of a girl who had lost consciousness in the Tehran subway.  According to some reports, a high school girl was sent to the hospital …

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• 3 October

  Iran Says It Opposes ‘Geopolitical Changes’ in Caucasus

  

  VOA – Iran said Monday it opposes any “geopolitical changes” in the Caucasus, where it has long been angered over Azerbaijan’s desire to set up a transport link along the Armenian-Iranian border. Foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani, while voicing support for Azerbaijan’s reclamation of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region last month, said Tehran is “against making geopolitical changes in the region …

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• 3 October

  Saudi-Iran soccer match canceled over Qasem Soleimani statue row

  

  Al-Monitor – A Saudi soccer team refused to play an Iranian squad on Monday, reportedly due to a statue on the sidelines depicting slain Iranian commander Gen. Qasem Soleimani, an indication of the continued complexities of Iran-Saudi relations. What happened: The Saudi soccer team Al-Ittihad was in the Iranian city of Isfahan for a match against the Iranian club Sepahan at Naghsh-e …

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• 2 October

  Iranian Hardliners Dismiss Rising Concerns Over Afghan Immigration

  

  Iranwire – Hardliners have labeled concerns about rising Afghan immigration as “Afghan-Phobia,” defending the government’s perceived “open borders” policy, despite public outcry. The fast-growing Afghan population in Iran has given rise to protests on social media and even debates in Iran’s government-controlled media, with many claiming that the government has a hidden agenda in letting thousands of Afghans enter the …

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• 2 October

  Iranian Official Hints At Accession To FATF Financial Rules

  

  iranintl – The chairman of Iran’s chamber of commerce says he has heard rumors that the government intends to meet the standards of FATF, the global money-laundering watchdog.  Hossein Selahvarzi, the chairman of Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture said Sunday that there is “unofficial news about the accession to the money-laundering watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the possibility of more serious economic negotiations.”  Iran’s previous …

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• 2 October

  Poisonings at Iranian University amid Clampdown on Students, Professors

  

  Iranwire – The repression against professors and university students deemed as critical to the Islamic Republic continues unabated in Iran. During the first week of the new academic year, at least nine male students and three female students were barred from entering Tehran’s Amirkabir University of Technology, according to Amirkabir News Telegram Channel. A number of these students had previously …

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• 2 October

  UK Lawmakers Call for Revolutionary Guards’ Designation as Terror Group

  

  Iranwire – Dozens of UK lawmakers have urged the government to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, citing the force’s “inhumane and unlawful actions” both in Iran and Britain. The death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini a year ago sparked months of anti-establishment protests that were brutally quashed by security forces, with hundreds …

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• 2 October

  The Suspicious Deaths of IRGC Commanders

  

  Iranwire – Bestowing the title of “Martyr” to Brigadier-General Rostam Ghasemi, the former economic affairs director of the Quds Force, the expeditionary branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who was the minister of Roads and Urban Development in the administration of President Ebrahim Raisi, has once again brought up the issue of suspicious deaths of a number of …

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• 2 October

  Iran Slams Normalization With Israel as ‘Reactionary’

  

  VOA – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi denounced Sunday any attempts by regional countries to normalize relations with its arch-enemy Israel as “reactionary and regressive.” The remarks came amid ongoing U.S.-brokered negotiations between Israel and Saudi Arabia to establish formal ties, with the United States saying Friday that the two countries are moving toward the outline of a deal. “Normalizing relations …

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• 2 October

  IOPHR Statement on the First Anniversary of the Bloody Massacre and Tragedy in Zahedan

  

  Shabtabnews – On the anniversary of Bloody Massacre and Tragedy in Zahedan IOPHR issued a statement. In the statement IOPHR stated “One year has elapsed since Zahedan’s Bloody Friday. On the 30th of September last year, a horrifying act of violence occurred in Zahedan, Iran, an incident that continues to haunt every advocate of freedom. Unarmed Iranian worshipers, returning from …

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• 1 October

  Iranian Regime Shutting Down Cafes To Protect ‘Islamic Culture’

  

  iranintl – Iranian authorities have been shutting down cafes around Tehran University campus in the past eighteen months to “protect the wholesome Islamic-Iranian culture.” Closing cafes and coffee shops, which are very popular with students and other young people, is apparently part of the larger plans of the ruling hardliners to shut down all such establishments as symbols of “corruptive …

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• 1 October

  From Oligarchs to Plutocrats

  

  gatestoneinstitute.org – The disastrous consequences of oligarchs meddling in politics are too well known to need more attention here. But what about the plutocrats’ record? The question merits attention, because right now two American plutocrats are engaged in erratic attempts at solving two of the hottest international problems. Elon Musk, the owner of X (Twitter), Tesla and SpaceX, and reputed …

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• 1 October

  Zahedan’s Bloody Friday Must be Investigated as Crimes Against Humanity

  

  Iran Human Rights – A year has passed since Zahedan’s Bloody Friday when at least 104 people including 14 children and 4 women were gunned down with assault rifles and machine guns within hours after worshippers gathered to protest after Friday Prayer. Some of those killed were bystanders. Yet, the perpetrators of this heinous crime have not been held accountable. …

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