THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 11:00 PM CEST
Prior to Teachers’ Protest on Thursday, Security Forces Arrest Dozens of Activists
On Wednesday evening, prior to the nationwide rally that is supposed to be held on Thursday, June 16, the clerical regime in Iran arrested more than 20 teachers and union activists in the cities of Sanandaj, Divandere, and Saqez in the western part of the country.
Eighteen teachers and members of the Kurdistan Teachers’ Union have been arrested after being summoned to the Saqez Intelligence Office. So far, the identities of five of them, namely Khalid Abdullahi, Mohammad Fattahi, Soleiman Abdi, Aziz Marzi, and Salahi Sorkhi, have been verified while the others remain unknown.
UPDATE: 8:00 PM CEST
Former MOIS Interrogator Threatens Iranian Artists for Speaking Out Against Crackdown on Protestors
In an interview with the state-run Cinema Press, Mohammad-Sadegh Kushki, a former intelligence ministry official who was in charge of interrogating prisoners who were affiliated with the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MEK/PMOI) threatened Iranian artists to face punishment.
“Those involved in the film industry who signed the statement and addressed the armed forces have taken a step in the direction of the triangle of Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the hypocrites (the regime’s description to defame the MEK),” Kushki said today. “This statement is officially considered a great crime because it somehow calls for regime change, and this line comes from Tirana, the main center of the hypocrites’ activities.”
In early June, expressing solidarity with the uprising in Abadan, more than 70 Iranian filmmakers and actors signed a letter, named the “Put down Your Gun” statement, calling on the regime’s armed forces to refrain from violence against protesters.
Kushki added in his interview: “The crime of signing this text is the same crime as (calling for) regime change. It is a call for a coup and rebellion against the government, and if we look at it from a legal perspective, whether it was out of ignorance or intentional, the signatory is guilty and must be dealt with.”
Kushki went on with his threats: “Inviting the armed forces to drop their guns is an example of an attempt to overthrow the state. In many countries of the world, this statement is considered a betrayal of the country, and the signatories of such a statement are severely punished. The mercy of the Islamic Republic should not be a reason for these people to think that they can continue their anti-patriotic path. An artist who has no clue and commits such acts with awareness and knowledge leads the society to devastation and must be dealt with so that they do not take another unjust step in this direction.”
UPDATE: 3:00 PM CEST
State-run Website Acknowledges Systemic Corruption in Reas Estate Market
Following the collapse of the Abadan Metropol Complex, the corrupt construction and real estate industry which enjoys a great deal of impunity because of its affiliation with powerful institutions has become a hot topic.
In an article that was published today, the state-run Aftab-e-Yazd website acknowledged how construction companies and real estate brokers are robbing people’s money while building unsafe houses and offices.
“Violations conducted by companies are obvious and they justify their wrongdoing. Fulfilling obligations makes no sense either. So what is the responsibility of these business centers that receive large sums of people’s money and who is supposed to supervise?” asks the Aftab-e-Yazd author.
The state-run website added: “For how long are these companies and brokers, who play a decisive role in the pricing and the quality of these houses, going to play with people’s lives? While we are dealing with these soaring prices, is anyone able to talk about regulatory and legal units, especially in the real estate sector?”
UPDATE: 11:30 AM CEST
Amid Serious Power Shortages and Soaring Fuel Prices in Iran, Raisi Vows to Export Gas and Electricity to Pakistan
State media reported a meeting between the regime’s president Ebrahim Raisi and the Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday evening.
“We are ready to enhance comprehensive cooperation with Pakistan, and the Islamic Republic of Iran has the necessary capacity to meet Pakistan’s needs in various fields, including oil, gas, and electricity,” Ebrahim Raisi said.
According to the regime’s presidential office website, the Pakistani Foreign Minister thanked the regime in Iran for the export of electricity to Pakistan.
Official Admits to Dangerous State of Iran’s Buildings
At a meeting called ‘Isfahan Builders and Designers’, the Iranian regime’s Deputy Minister of the Organization of Municipalities and Rural Affairs acknowledged how neglected the construction industry in Iran has become.
According to the state-run Tasnim news agency, Ali Zeynivand said: “Paying attention to the safety of our cities means that we must design our buildings for at least a century. But the useful life of our buildings is not even 20 years. These become worn structures that are even dangerous for being destructed. In the architecture of different cities, we have designed a volume of chaotic and uncoordinated issues, and if we do not correct them, future generations will not forgive us.”
UPDATE: 8:30 AM CEST
Iran: Why the Regime’s “Ambiguity Tactic” Will Backfire
Iran’s society is in turmoil and can be described as a powder keg. Protests, demonstrations, and rallies have become a daily matter with people taking to the streets in cities across the country on a regular basis. Regime officials are seeking a new method of de-escalation while continuing to plunder the Iranian people.
From Monday, June 13, the situation on the ground in Iran entered a new phase. For the seventh consecutive day, retirees and pensioners across Iran continued their protests, rallying in 22 cities and chanting against the regime’s disastrous plundering policies.
Execution of 24 Prisoners in 4 Days, an Increasing Trend of Executions in Iran
The anti-monarchical revolution in 1979 raised the hope for freedom and the establishment of human rights principles in a country that, after several decades of the dictatorship of the Pahlavi dynasty, did not care about the rights of its people.
In the first two years after the overthrow of the Shah’s dictatorship, the Iranian people witnessed limited freedom. Soon after, the policies and behavior of the new clerical regime, introduced by its founder Ruhollah Khomeini, began to change at a fast pace. These policies and behaviors were different in style and rhetoric than had previously been seen during the Shah’s dictatorial reign.
Human Rights Defender Maryam Karimbeigi Arrested in Tehran
Human rights defender Maryam Karimbeigi was arrested today by the state security forces after raiding and ransacking her mother’s home. Shahnaz Akmali, Karimbeigi’s mother said in a video today that her daughter was arrested.
She said that the state security forces raided and ransacked her home. She has not yet been notified of the charges against her daughter. Shahnaz Akmali’s son, Mostafa Karim Beigi, was shot and killed in Tehran during a 2009 protest.
Freedom-loving Iranians, MEK Supporters in Vienna, Called For Referral of the Mullahs’ Regime Nuclear Case to the UN Security Council – June 12, 2022
June 12, 2022—Vienna, Austria: Freedom-loving Iranians, supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), demonstrated against the nuclear program of the mullahs’ regime. They called on the EU and the US to refer the Iranian regime’s nuclear case to the UN Security Council.
Read more: Iran News in Brief – June 14, 2022
