Iran News in Brief – December 17, 2021

THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS

UPDATE: 10:45 PM CET

Iran Under the Mullahs’ Regime: Where People Struggle with Poverty

Two heart-wrenching videos circulating on Iran’s social media show the grim face of poverty and misery in Iran under the mullahs’ regime. Iran is a wealthy country but its people have to sell body parts or their children or collect trash to make ends meet.

A video from Iran shows an Iranian Turkmen mother casually saying she wants to sell her son at the bazaar and “that no one was willing to buy him”.

Another video from Dezful shows that how kids in tribal areas are deprived of even the minimum education standards. The voice  of a local teacher can be heard in the video protesting such dire circumstances.

UPDATE: 08:00 PM CET

Qarchak Prison Officials Deprive Political Prisoner of Urgent Medical Care

Qarchak prison officials are preventing political prisoner Zahra Safaei from being sent to the hospital to continue treatment for his heart problems.

UPDATE: 05:30 PM CET

US State Department: Iran’s Regime Continued Terrorist Activities in 2020

In an annual report on terrorism, the U.S. State Department highlighted terrorist threats posed by Iran’s regime “Iran used the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) to provide support to terrorist organizations…” “…provide cover for associated covert operations, and create instability in the region.”

The report highlights the regime’s support for terror groups in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen “Iran has acknowledged the involvement of the IRGC-QF in the Iraq and Syria conflicts, and the IRGC-QF is Iran’s primary mechanism for cultivating and supporting terrorist activity abroad.”

The report also points to the regime’s terror threats against members of the opposition “The Iranian government continued supporting terrorist plots or associated activities targeting Iranian dissidents in Europe”

Round-up of Iran Protests December 17

Reports tallied by the Iranian opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), indicate there have been several protests in Iran on Friday.

On Friday, landowners in Yazd, central Iran, held a protest rally, demanding officials to recognize their rights. Simultaneously, teachers in Yazd also held a demonstration, protesting their low wages and demanding their basic rights.

In addition, locals in Yazd held a rally protesting an initiative intending to launch a mine, saying it will destroy their city.

UPDATE: 08:30 AM CET

State-affiliated Expert: Most of Iran’s Population Under the Poverty Line

In an interview with the state-run Armane-e Meli, Khodaie, one of the regime’s experts, acknowledged that most of the Iranian population is under the poverty line due to the regime’s actions. “The value of our currency has decreased more than four thousand times and most of our population has gone below the poverty line. We have wasted the best era of having the highest young population,” he said.

Iran: Minister of Intelligence Expresses Fear of Growing Protests

Esmail Khatib, head of the Iranian regime’s notorious Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) expressed fear about the expanding protests across Iran.

“The enemy and dissidents are making all possible efforts to create internal crisis and protests and exploit them. We are deemed to be alert about their efforts,” he said, according to the state-run Asr-e Iran website.

Iran: Six Executed in Gohardasht, Qayen, and Ardabil Prisons Yesterday

On Wednesday, December 15, the clerical regime executed six prisoners in Gohardasht (Karaj), Qayen, and Ardabil prisons. Hamed Mousavi, Kourosh Mazaheri, Davood, and another prisoner were hanged in Gohardasht, Mohammad Khodaei in Ardabil, and Ali Nehtani (Nourzehi) in Qayen prisons.

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Rally by Freedom-loving Iranians, MEK Supporters in Stockholm

Thursday, December 16, 2021: The 53rd session of the trial of Hamid Noury, one of the executioners of the 1988 massacre, took place in the Stockholm court.

Iranian Resistance Reveals New Details About Tehran’s Drone Program, Regional Threats

Iran’s regime is using civilian front companies to supply its illicit military drone program, according to a new report by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). The report, compiled in a book titled IRAN: IRGC’s Rising Drone Threat; A Desperate Regime’s Ploy to Project Power, Incite War, was presented at a conference in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, in which politicians and experts weighed in on the threats posed by Iran’s regime.

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Iran: Coronavirus Staggering Death Toll Surpasses 489,100

The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) announced on Thursday, December 16, 2021, that the Coronavirus fatalities in 547 cities across Iran have surpassed 489,100. In Tehran, the death toll has reached 114,540, Khorasan Razavi 39,610, Isfahan 33,650, Fars 18,355, East Azerbaijan 16,853, Lorestan 16,240, Hamedan 9,073, Bushehr 5,449, South Khorasan 4,276.

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Read more: Iran News in Brief – December 16, 2021