THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 9:00 PM
FBI Probes Whether Iran Envoy Malley Committed Crimes In Handling Of Classified Info
The FBI is investigating whether the Biden administration’s Iran envoy, Rob Malley, moved classified information onto his personal email, where it may have fallen into the hands of a foreign actor, according to a person briefed on the case and a letter from Republican lawmakers.
Investigators are trying to determine if any crimes were committed, according to the person briefed on the case and another person familiar with the matter. But it is not yet clear if the Department of Justice will bring any charges against Malley or what the scope of any charges might be. The people were granted anonymity to discuss a highly sensitive issue.
Malley, who declined to comment, has denied any wrongdoing. The insights from the letter and from the people with whom POLITICO spoke — including that a criminal inquiry is underway — add new details to prior reports that Malley’s handling of classified information was at issue.
UPDATE: 3:00 PM
Canadian Intelligence Report Highlights Increased Foreign Interference, Highlights Tehran’s Bolder External Operations
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) has released its annual report detailing foreign interventions in Canada for the year 2023, noting heightened activities from various states including the clerical regime in Iran.
Published on Thursday, May 9, the report outlines, “Iran’s external operations in Western countries have been increasingly aggressive and expansive in recent years, resulting in numerous disruptions of lethal plots by security and law enforcement services in the US, the United Kingdom and in several European countries. Iran and its intelligence services are interested in influencing and clandestinely collecting information on the Iranian community, including anti-regime activists and political dissidents; human, women’s and minority rights activists; and fugitives wanted by the regime.”
UPDATE: 2:00 PM
MPs Vote Unanimously in Support of Designating Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps A Terrorist Group
The House of Commons has voted unanimously in support of a motion to add Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps to an official list of terrorist organizations.
The motion came from a House justice committee report that, among other things, called on the government to designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity in Canada. MPs voted 327 to 0 to accept the report on Wednesday. The government has been facing mounting pressure to declare the IRGC a terrorist group under the Criminal Code.
UPDATE: 8:30 AM
Addressing A Conference at The Parliament of Italy
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi’s speech: “I appreciate your efforts in organizing this conference and commend the valuable initiative of the majority of Italian representatives for presenting the statement “supporting freedom and resistance in Iran for world peace and security.”
At a time when Ali Khamenei, the mullahs’ supreme leader, has intensified brutal executions, suppression of oppressed nationalities, and confronting Iranian women to impose the mandatory hijab, the majority of Italian representatives have stood in solidarity with the Iranian people through this statement.
“This represents a profound understanding of the current international crisis. The Italian parliament has recognized the clerical regime, the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and their proxy groups as the primary obstacles to peace in the region and the world. They have demanded recognition of the Iranian people’s right to rise up and the right of Resistance Units to confront the IRGC.”
Iran’s Record-High Money Printing and Government Embezzlement
On May 3, the state-run Bahar News website wrote, “The right to life and survival is the most important demand of Iranian workers.”
Some regime-affiliated media outlets, as a means of settling scores, interpret the regime’s claim of “approaching the peak” of economic productivity and regime president Ebrahim Raisi’s repetition of it as a return to the era of slavery in the 21st century. However, they do not explain why and how they have brought the people to this point of poverty and misery.
On May 4, Khabarfoori website quoted Abdolnaser Hemmati, the former head of the Central Bank, as saying, “Since August 2021, money printing has grown by 115 percent. From the time of the Achaemenid dynasty until August 2021, the entire printed money was 5.19 quadrillion rials.
Inside Tabriz Central Prison: Overcrowding and Sexual Abuse of Women
Nestled along 29 Bahman Boulevard in the East Azarbaijan Province of Iran stands Tabriz Central Prison, a facility originally designed to accommodate 1800 inmates. However, a stark contrast emerges as this once-intended capacity has nearly doubled, with over 4000 individuals confined within its walls. The overcrowding paints a grim picture of a system straining under immense pressure, where 14 wards meant for 300 each now hold approximately 800 prisoners, many forced to sleep on the floor due to lack of space.
Beyond the sheer volume of bodies, the prison grapples with a myriad of issues, from inadequate infrastructure to blatant human rights violations. Amidst the dilapidated conditions and overcrowded cells, basic amenities like bathrooms are scarce, with only five serving 800 prisoners and a mere two hours of hot water available. Medical care is substandard, and hygiene is often compromised, posing serious health risks to the incarcerated population.
Iran’s Stalled Economy: A Struggle for Sustainability
For decades, Iran’s economic performance has been far from satisfactory. While headline figures like average economic growth rate might have looked acceptable between 1989 and 2017, a closer look reveals a troubling reality – a lack of productivity improvement. This fundamental weakness has severe consequences, turning economic underperformance into a ticking time bomb. Iran’s economic growth has been heavily reliant on capital account inflows. Periods with strong capital inflows saw sluggish growth, highlighting an unsustainable dependence on external factors. This vulnerability is particularly concerning considering Iran’s vast natural resources, talented population, and strategic geographical location. These advantages haven’t translated into stable, long-term growth. Instead, as capital inflows waned, Iran’s fragile growth sputtered and went into freefall.
Iran’s Shadowy Web: Funding Terror across the Middle East
In the ever-shifting sands of the Middle East, a constant threat lurks at the financing of terrorist organizations. A recent advisory by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) sheds light on the Iranian regime’s role in fueling these groups, jeopardizing regional security, and posing a challenge to global financial stability. This report delves into the methods Iran employs to bankroll terrorism, the specific organizations it supports, and the red flags financial institutions can utilize to identify and disrupt these illicit activities.
Iran’s motivations for supporting terrorist groups are rooted in its desire to project power and influence throughout the Middle East. It achieves this by financing a network of armed groups, some designated by the U.S. Treasury as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) or Specially Designated Global Terrorist Organizations (SDGTs). These organizations act as proxies for Iran, furthering its political objectives through violence and intimidation.
Iran’s Medical Society is in Crisis
Iraj Fazel, the head of the Surgeons Society and former Minister of Health of the Iranian regime, has warned about the shortage of specialist doctors in the country, stating that if this situation continues, we will inevitably have to import mushroom doctors.
Fazel, referring to the economic problems of students and the educational policies of the Iranian regime, said that the effects of these problems and policies are manifested in the form of a “shortage of doctors and vacancies in medical specialties,” indicating that medicine in Iran has “declined.”
He stated, “Today, there is a serious problem with the acceptance of medical courses in the entrance exam or continuing education in medical specialties to the extent that in recent exams, we did not even have one volunteer for vascular surgery, and likewise, some other specialties remain vacant.”
Canadian Parliament Approves Proposal to Proscribe Iran’s IRGC
On Wednesday, May 8, members of the Canadian House of Commons unanimously voted to add the IRGC to the official list of foreign terrorist organizations in Canada.
According to Canadian media reports, the proposal, presented to the House by the Judiciary Committee, was approved with 327 in favor and no opposing votes.
The decision of the Canadian House of Commons urges the government of Canada to identify the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a foreign terrorist organization in its entirety. Canadian lawmakers had also approved recognizing the IRGC as a terrorist organization in 2020, but Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did not implement it.
Paris—May 8, 2024: MEK Supporters Exhibition in Solidarity With the Iranian Revolution
Paris, France—May 8, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized an exhibition and book display in solidarity with the Iranian Revolution, while also protesting against the increasing wave of executions by the Iranian regime.