THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 9:30 PM CET
Iran Protests at a Glance
Based partially on reporting by PMOI (MEK) Network in Iran
Sunday, May 21, 2023 – 8 PM GMT + 1
The mullahs’ regime in Iran has sent at least 122 inmates to the gallows since April 21, tallying one execution every six hours during this period. The Iranian people have been responding with an escalating wave of anti-regime protests, especially at night rallies in Tehran and other cities.
May 20 – Isfahan, central #Iran
Brave youth attacked a base of the regime's IRGC paramilitary Basij early Saturday morning in response to the mullahs' execution of three protesters on Friday.#StopExecutionsInIran #قیام_جواب_اعدام pic.twitter.com/zhqbAGZ48O— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 20, 2023
Brave youth in Isfahan, central Iran, attacked a base of the regime’s IRGC paramilitary Basij early Saturday morning in response to the mullahs’ execution of three protesters on Friday.
Members of the Resistance Units, affiliated with Iranian opposition Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), portrayed a large image of Iranian Resistance Leader Massoud Rajavi and Iranian opposition coalition NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi on Municipality Avenue of Rezvanshahr in Gilan Province, northern Iran, at 10:30 pm local time.
May 20 – Rezvanshahr, Gilan Province, northern #Iran
MEK Resistance Units portrayed a large image of Iranian Resistance Leader Massoud Rajavi and Iranian opposition coalition President-elect @Maryam_Rajavi on the city's Municipality Avenue at 10:30 pm local time.#IranRevolution pic.twitter.com/KTjTBbRHoE— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 21, 2023
People in various districts of Tehran, including Sattarkhan, and Tehranpars, took to the streets on Saturday evening local time in anti-regime protests responding to the mullahs’ execution of three protesters on Friday. They chanted various slogans, including:
“Down with Khamenei!”
May 20 – Tehran, #Iran
Locals in the capital's Sattarkhan district are chanting anti-regime slogans, including:
"For each person killed a thousand others will rise!"#StopExecutionsInIran #قیام_جواب_اعدام pic.twitter.com/CW7Mqlx9TW— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 20, 2023
Retirees and pensioners of the regime’s Social Security Organization in Shush of Khuzestan Province, southwest Iran, Kermanshah in western Iran, and Rasht in northern Iran held a gathering on Sunday demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions. Retirees and pensioners were also protesting in the cities of Ahvaz, Isfahan, Arak, and Shushtar.
May 21 – Shushtar, southwest #Iran
Retirees and pensioners of the regime's Social Security Organization are holding a gathering demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/5fRA7mHWql— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 21, 2023
May 21 – Arak, central #Iran
Retirees and pensioners of the regime's Social Security Organization are holding a gathering demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/nKAAygWaUq— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 21, 2023
May 21 – Isfahan, central #Iran
Retirees and pensioners of the regime's Social Security Organization are holding a gathering demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/wx9MLseZFA— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 21, 2023
Special educators and employees of the Municipality University in Ahvaz also rallied outside the governor’s office on Sunday demanding their rights be respected and paychecks increased.
UPDATE: 9:30 AM CET
Maryam Rajavi Addresses a Hearing at the U.S. Congress Sponsored by the Iranian Women Congressional Caucus and the Human Rights and Democracy in Iran Caucus
Thursday, May 18, 2023 – At the invitation of the Iranian Women Congressional Caucus and the Human Rights and Democracy in Iran Caucus, a hearing was held at the U.S. House of Representatives. Congresswomen Sheila Jackson Lee and Nancy Mace, the co-chairs of the Iranian Women Congressional Caucus, and House Representatives Tom McClintock, the co-chair of the Human Rights and Democracy in Iran Caucus, Steve Cohen, Danny Davis, Lance Gooden, Randy Weber, and Ruben Gallego attended the hearing. The U.S. House Representatives expressed their support for the Iranian people’s uprising and Resistance in remarks made at the hearing. Maryam Rajavi participated in the hearing via a video link and delivered a speech. Following are excerpts of her remarks:
Iran’s Cities Erupt in New Protests as Regime Continues Its Horrific Executions Surge
Iran’s nationwide uprising is witnessing its 247th day on Saturday as the regime is accelerating its brutal surge in executions across the country. Several cities were scenes of massive anti-regime protests on Friday following the early morning hangings of three protesters in Isfahan, followed by the execution of at least four other inmates in the city’s Dastgerd Prison on the same day. The mullahs’ regime has sent at least 122 inmates to the gallows since April 21, tallying one execution every six hours during this period while the international community remains silent in the face of the brutalities of Iran’s ruling dictatorship. The West’s appeasement continues to further embolden Tehran in its bellicosities and the Iranian people are the main victims. Despite all these obstacles, the Iranian people are continuing their anti-regime protests and nationwide uprising against the mullahs’ regime.
Iran Regime’s Uses “Former Members” to Smear MEK, Leaked Docs Show
Iran’s regime is employing former members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) to demonize the Iranian resistance, according to documents revealed by the dissident group Ghiam ta Sarnegouni. These documents were among a vast trove obtained by Ghiam ta Sarnegouni after it seized control of 210 websites, apps, servers, and databases owned by Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Confidential documents leaked from Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs have exposed a startling revelation regarding a self-proclaimed “ex-MEK member” interviewed by Lusia Hommerich, a reporter working for the German publication Spiegel.
The Protest Gathering by Families of Death Row Prisoners Violently Suppressed
The protest gathering of the families of death row prisoners in Qezel Hesar Prison turned into violence with the intervention of plainclothes agents and special police guards.
The families of death row prisoners in Qezel Hesar Prison gathered on Friday, May 18, 2023, outside this prison in Karaj. With chants of “Do not execute,” they urged the authorities to refrain from executing their loved ones. Several women in this protest were brutalized. The security forces used tear gas to disperse the crowd. They also used pellet guns and fired at the protesters, a few of whom were wounded.
How Inflation Makes Lives Harder for Iranians – Part 1
Due to the surging prices of food items, 70% of the Iranian household’s food basket has been depleted, making it a luxury to purchase clothes or even have a basic shelter.
Inflation is one of Iran’s major economic crises, plunging tens of millions of people below the poverty line and wreaking havoc on their lives. The primary factors contributing to inflation in Iran include the government’s budget deficit and the printing of banknotes. In contrast, regime President Ebrahim Raisi claims to have neither borrowed nor printed any banknotes since assuming office, although state media contradict this assertion.
May 19, 2023: MEK Supporters Rallied in European Countries and Condemned the Execution of Three Protesters in Iran
May 19, 2023: Supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and freedom-loving Iranians held protest rallies in London, Cologne, The Hague, Aarhus, Vienna, Stockholm, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Geneva. They condemned the Execution of three protesters (Saleh Mirhashemi, Saeed Yaghoubi, and Majid Kazemi) in Isfahan by the mullahs’ regime. They also express their solidarity with the ongoing Iranian Revolution.
Also, read Iran News in Brief – May 20, 2023
