Iran News in Brief – June 25, 2021

Hamideh Taati

3 years ago

THE CONTENT OF THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS

UPDATE: 9:00 PM CEST

Oil Strikes and Protests Continue during Iran’s Weekend

Workers in the oil sector in Tehran’s Oil Refinery Company, Bidboland Gas Refinery Company in Behbohan (SW), Abadan Refinery Company (SW), contract workers of refineries, petrochemical and power plants as well as the Kabgab Petro Refining Company (KPRC) in Bushehr (SW), and Jahan Pars and ICO oil companies in Ilam (W) were reported to have joined the nationwide strike on Friday.

#IranProtests
Tehran—head of public relations of Tehran Oil Refinery Co. confirmed the news about dismissing at least 35 one-month contract workers affiliated with OICO Co.
Authorities in #Iran have resorted to repressive measures rather than meeting workers' demands. pic.twitter.com/t2Ub4rr7RN

— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) June 25, 2021

Jun 25 – Abadan, SW #Iran
Workers of the Abadan Refinery – Phase 2 joined the oil and gas workers' strike today. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/N4KXeTcit9

— Iran News Wire (@IranNW) June 25, 2021

#IranProtests
Bushehr—following the oil workers' nationwide strike across #Iran, contract workers of refineries, petrochemical, and power plants of the Overhall 15 and 16 projects joined the strike.
They demand employers increase their salaries and change vacation turns. pic.twitter.com/2VReDso1vN

— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) June 25, 2021

UPDATE: 9:00 AM CEST

Iran: Coronavirus Death Toll Exceeds 317,000

The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) announced on Thursday, June 24, 2021, that the Coronavirus death toll in 547 cities is more than 317,000. The number of victims in Tehran has reached 74,296, Isfahan 21,360, Khuzestan 20,026, Khorasan Razavi 19,270, Lorestan 12,505, Fars 10,627, Gilan 10,551, Qom 9,820, Sistan and Baluchestan 7,496, Kerman 7,178, Central Province 6,528, Semnan 5,300, Hormozgan 4,530, Ardabil 3,910, Qazvin 3,649, and Zanjan 3,445.

#Iran Coronavirus Update

More than 317,000 people have died of the novel #coronavirus in 547 cities checkered across all of Iran's 31 provinces, according to the Iranian opposition PMOI/MEK.

Full Reporthttps://t.co/vBcE2Ea9Em pic.twitter.com/gbQkZ3Uf6A

— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) June 25, 2021

Iranian Opposition NCRI Conference Discusses Ebrahim Raisi’s Selection as Regime President

In an online conference held on Thursday by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), human rights experts and jurists weighed in on the implications of Ebrahim Raisi becoming the Iranian regime’s president, and the role that the international community must play to hold the regime’s authorities to account for their crimes. The outcome of the June 18 sham presidential election in Iran was the selection of Raisi as the regime’s next president. The international community reacted with outrage, mostly due to Raisi’s direct role in the summer 1988 massacre of over 30,000 political prisoners across the country.

In his daily cabinet meeting on Wednesday, outgoing regime president Hassan Rouhani admitted that the Iranian people largely ignored and boycotted the regime’s presidential election, held on June 18. It’s no secret that the regime’s elections are an engineered masquerade with carefully selected candidates that are fully loyal to the rule of the mullahs the regime’s supreme leader. But the regime needs to put up the election farce for the sake of creating a façade of democracy and using it as a cover to continue the suppression of dissidents and protesters inside Iran and to promote the appeasement policy in its relations with other states.

Video Report: Iran Security Forces Attack Demolition Protesters in Qom

On June 23, municipal agents with the help of the police, demolished the homes of locals in Qaleh-ye Sadri, Qom, south of Tehran. The demolitions were carried out with a warrant from the Prosecutor. Iranian security forces attacked and beat locals who protested the demolitions. Locals fought back, throwing rocks at security forces, and torching two municipality vehicles.

Iran’s Vaccine Mismanagement Forces Elderly To Wait in Hours Long Lines

While many countries have vaccinated over 60% of their population, Iran’s vaccine mismanagement is causing the elderly to wait in long lines for hours in the hot summer weather for their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Many countries started vaccination at the start of the new year. In Iran, state media said in late May that COVID-19 vaccination with the domestic “COVIran Barakat” vaccine will start by the end of June.

Nothing is done right under the Iranian regime.

Elderly Iranians have to wait for hours in long, packed, lines under the hot sun for vaccination.

Don't forget that Khamenei banned credible US/UK vaccines for use in #Iran. pic.twitter.com/wRdArLrEyK

— Iran News Wire (@IranNW) June 24, 2021

Why Raisi’s Victory Won’t Help Khamenei Keep Power

It has long been clear that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei planned to use this month’s presidential elections to consolidate power by ensuring that Judiciary Chief (and mass executioner) Ebrahim Raisi was the victor. He managed it, but the truth is that this will do nothing to fix the fundamental problems plaguing the country, where the majority of Iranians are living in poverty and unable to meet their basic needs because the regime cannot end its systematic and internal corruption without pulling the whole system down.

Jailed Dissidents Who Demanded Khamenei’s Resignation Beaten in Prison

Peaceful prisoners of conscience Mohammad Hossein Sepehri and Kamal Yazdi were beaten on June 20 and 21 by prison authorities. Fatemeh Sepehri, the sister of Mohammad Hossein Sepehri published a video announcing the beating of the activists while they have been on hunger strike since one month ago to protest being denied phone calls.