THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 6:00 PM
Saturday Protests in Iran
Ahvaz, Southwest Iran: The Iran National Steel Industrial Group is witnessing ongoing strikes and protests as workers express dissatisfaction with authorities who have barred 21 workers from entering the premises and neglected their demands.
December 30—Ahvaz, southwest #Iran
Workers of Iran National Steel Industrial Group continue their strikes and protests after authorities banned the entry of 21 workers and ignored their demands.#IranProtestspic.twitter.com/A8sDJXp006— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 30, 2023
Sari, Northern Iran: The gold bazaar in Sari remains at a standstill as merchants stage strikes to protest against the government’s new tax regulations, highlighting the growing discontent among business owners.
December 30—Sari, northern #Iran
Merchants of the gold bazaar continue their strikes, protesting the regime's new tax laws.#IranProtestspic.twitter.com/rAEAjqCvVD— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 30, 2023
Zanjan, Northwest Iran: Home applicants in Zanjan gathered for a protest rally in front of the Justice Ministry’s office. Frustrated by continuous delays in the delivery of their homes, the demonstrators seek attention from officials.
December 30—Zanjan, northwest #Iran
House applicants hold protest rally in front of the justice ministry's office as officials continue to push back the delivery of their homes.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/6Vvrg9ohyE— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 30, 2023
Mahshahr, Southwest Iran: Workers from the Mahshahr Petrochemical Company took to the streets in a protest rally. Their primary grievance revolves around authorities failing to implement job classification rules, prompting the workforce to demand action.
December 30—Mahshahr, southwest #Iran
Workers of Mahshahr petrochemical company hold protest rally as authorities refrain from implementing job classification rules.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/0hd3qXUOoq— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 30, 2023
These protests in various Iranian cities underscore the widespread discontent among different sectors of the population, reflecting concerns about labor rights, taxation policies, and housing issues. The Raisi government faces mounting pressure to address these grievances but has shown no sign of addressing them.
20 Iranian Militiamen Killed and Wounded in US Airstrikes Near the Syrian-Iraqi Border
In the Deir Ezzor Governorate, approximately 20 members of Iranian militias were killed and wounded in a series of nine initial US airstrikes. The strikes targeted military installations and a weapons shipment in and around the city of Albu Kamal, situated near the Syrian-Iraqi border.
Sources from the Syrian Observatory reported that the casualties included individuals of non-Syrian nationalities. The airstrikes specifically aimed at a weapons shipment, vehicles, and an ammunition depot in Albu Kamal and its outskirts.
Earlier on December 27, powerful explosions were reported in the Albu Kamal desert, located in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor. These explosions were caused by an unidentified drone targeting a site near the Marmara oil well. The area falls under the control of regime forces and Iranian militias, hosting a camp for pro-Iranian militias, including heavy tunneling vehicles. Details regarding casualties from this incident remain undisclosed.
Air Raids Over Eastern Syria Near Iraqi Border Kill 6 Iran-Backed Militants
BAGHDAD (AP) — Three overnight airstrikes on eastern Syria near a strategic border crossing with Iraq killed six Iran-backed militants Saturday, two members of Iraqi militia groups told The Associated Press.
The strikes on the border region of Boukamal came hours after an umbrella group of Iran-backed Iraqi militants known as the Islamic Resistance claimed an attack on a U.S. military base in northern Iraq’s city of Irbil.
The group has conducted over a hundred attacks on U.S. positions in Iraq and eastern Syria since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.
UPDATE: 3:00 PM
Iranian Factory Shuts Down and Hundreds of Workers Are Laid off
In the midst of ongoing challenges for workers in Iran, the state-run ILNA News Agency reported the shutdown of the Dibay Shushtar Pulp and Paper Industries factory, resulting in 356 employees losing their jobs due to financial troubles. Simultaneously, Moslem Moradi, the governor of Borujerd in Lorestan province, disclosed on Friday that over 500 workers in the city’s textile industry had been laid off. These worker layoffs coincide with earlier reports this year, suggesting that the Borujerd textile factory expanded its workforce to 2,500 nationwide by introducing a new sewing unit.
It’s worth noting that the management of Borujerd Textile had previously laid off 980 workers in April 2020. Established in 1985 on a 50-hectare land, Borujerd Textile commenced operations in 1988.
UPDATE: 12:00 PM
America Must Put the Houthis Back on the List of Designated Terror Groups
The Houthis kidnap Americans, rape and mutilate women, crack down on interfaith activists, and routinely persecute minorities such as the Baha’i. They starve civilians, hinder humanitarian aid access, and use Iranian funds to acquire weapons and rockets.
It’s time for the U.S. to redesignate the Houthis as a terrorist group. The State Department just designated one person and three entities for facilitating Iranian financial support to the Houthis, but this is an insufficient and belated action, particularly as Iran continues to embolden its proxies to attack Israel and American interests in the region.
Labeling a group as “terrorist” in the U.S. results in consequences like freezing funds and prohibiting individuals from associating with or supporting the group. This designation also has global implications, potentially triggering criminal investigations and prioritizing asset freezes in other countries.
New US Sanctions Aim to Disrupt the Flow of Iranian Funds to Yemen’s Houthi Militia
The U.S. government moved on Thursday to dry up the flow of Iranian funds to the Houthi militia in Yemen, which has been sowing chaos on the Red Sea since the war in Gaza began. The Treasury Department said it had imposed financial sanctions on one person and three organizations that had “facilitated the transfer of millions of dollars” to the Houthis. Iran has long cultivated an alliance with the Houthis, a once-scrappy tribal group that took over much of northern Yemen in the last decade, bringing them into an Iran-backed network of regional militias that Tehran calls “the Axis of Resistance.”
The Houthis have seized on the conflict in Gaza to expand their footprint, shooting missiles at Israel and harrying ships transiting the Red Sea. The maritime attacks have threatened the global economy, prompting some major shippers and oil companies to reroute cargo away from the Suez Canal.
UPDATE: 8:00 AM
Khamenei’s Concerns About His Regime’s Upcoming Parliamentary Elections
While Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran’s regime, tries to claim victory for the ongoing war in Gaza, he is extremely worried about the internal conditions of Iran and his own regime’s hold on power.
These worries are growing as the regime nears its sham parliamentary elections, scheduled to be held in 2024.
In a recent speech Khamenei emphasized the significance of the election process as a vital security matter and said, “Some people criticize the necessity of elections without realizing that if there are no elections in the country, it will either turn into a dictatorship or chaos and turmoil. Elections prevent the emergence of dictatorship in the country, and they also prevent chaos, disturbance, and insecurity.”
The Contradictory Statistics of Iran’s Economy
Statistics reflect the measurement of economic and social transformations and changes in a striving society. Statistics enable governments, people, and experts to identify the trends of societal developments and shape their own future path. In the Iranian regime, the responsibility of providing key and important economic statistics has been entrusted to two institutions, namely the Statistical Center and the Central Bank. However, these two institutions consistently provide different statistics on economic variables, citing various reasons and excuses. This has led the Iranian regime to rely on these differences as justifications for its failures and prolonged bankruptcies, misleading the audience to the extent that they eventually refrain from auditing and clarifying the failed performance of the ruling regime in Iran and ultimately rely on foreign statistical centers. Interestingly, Mohammad Reza Farzin, the head of the Central Bank, considers the discrepancy between the statistics of these two institutions as a natural phenomenon with a historical background.
Raisi Sets New Record: Four Women Executed in Iran Over Three Days
The clerical regime is continuing with its spree of executions. At least four women have been executed in Iran over a span of three days.
Eight prisoners, including three women, were executed in the Prison of Birjand, in South Khorasan Province (eastern Iran), at dawn on Wednesday, December 27, 2023. Another four prisoners, including one woman, were hanged in the Central Prison of Urmia, in the northwestern province of West Azerbaijan, on Friday morning, December 29, 2023.
These executions bring the number of women executed in Iran to 25 in the year 2023.
Iran’s Literacy Rate A Tale of Disparity
According to recent statistics, Iran has an estimated 12% illiteracy rate, meaning that 12 out of every 100 Iranians are unable to read or write.
The database EcoIran, which provides information and analysis on various topics, has reported that there is a negative correlation between income level and illiteracy rate in the country’s provinces. In other words, areas with higher incomes tend to have lower illiteracy rates.
The report by EcoIran, titled “Empty pockets do not know literacy,” reveals a significant gap in literacy rates between different provinces. For instance, the illiteracy rate in Kurdistan province is about three times higher than in Tehran province.
Moreover, the report indicates that there is a difference of around 90 million tomans in income between the highest-income province and the lowest-income province in Iran.
500 Textile Workers in Iran’s Borujerd Dismissed in Past 9 Months
Reports from Iran indicate that 500 textile workers in Borujerd (western Iran) have been dismissed since the beginning of the current Persian calendar year (beginning from March 21). In the meantime, Moslem Moradi, the governor of Borujerd, has called for a “comprehensive inspection of the company” by the provincial auditors.
The dismissal of 500 workers from the textile industry in Borujerd comes as, according to reports, workers in some industrial units have faced actions such as dismissal or wage deductions after protesting against wage conditions or demanding the implementation of job classification plans.
The state-run ILNA news agency has written about whether blocking workers’ entry cards, as happened in the recent case of protesting workers at the National Steel Company in Ahvaz, is legal or not.
Iranian Families Incur More Costs As Prices of Basic Goods Continue to Increase
According to the latest report on inflation and price trends by the Iranian regime’s Statistical Center, the consumer price index (CPI) for households reached 217.0 in December 2023, representing a 2.9% increase compared to the previous month and a 44.4% increase compared to the same period last year.
Based on this report, the year-on-year inflation rate for households in December exceeded 40%, meaning that on average, families have spent 40.2% more than in December of the previous year on purchasing an “identical basket of goods and services.”
Consequently, the month-over-month inflation rate in December 2021 also increased by one percentage point compared to the previous month.
Paris, December 29, 2023: MEK Supporters Organize an Exhibition for the Fourth Day to Express Solidarity With the Iran Revolution
Paris, France—December 29, 2023: On Friday, the exhibition and book table in solidarity with the Iranian Revolution, organized by supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and freedom-loving Iranians, continued for the fourth consecutive day.
Heidelberg, Germany—December 28, 2023: Iranian Community Invites Compatriots to Participate in the 28th #FreeIranTelethon in Support of Simay-e-Azadi (INTV)
Heidelberg, Germany—December 28, 2023: The Iranian community and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) invite all freedom-loving Iranians to participate in the 28th #FreeIranTelethon in support of Simay-e-Azadi (INTV)
Also, read Iran News in Brief – December 29, 2023
