The Real Deal Behind the U.S.–Iran Prisoner Swap
Donald Trump celebrated a surprise prisoner exchange with Iran in a tweet on Saturday, just hours after a Princeton graduate student and an Iranian scientist were traded on the tarmac of Zurich’s international airport. “Thank you to Iran on a very fair negotiation. See, we can make a deal together!” he wrote. The swap was a rare moment of détente following months of escalating hostilities, which came within minutes of a military confrontation in June, after Iran shot down a sophisticated U.S. drone. ...
The Commissioner For Human Rights addresses rights violations in Iran
As more information gradually filters out of Iran in the wake of the recent protests, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Friday expressed alarm at the continuing lack of transparency about casualties and the treatment of thousands of detainees, as well as continuing arrests reported to be taking place across the country. ...
Iran’s Protests Are Not Just About Gas Prices
A wave of protest swept across Iran last week. The government had abruptly hiked gas prices in order to offset its budget deficit at a time of high inflation and negative economic growth. Angry protesters clashed with security forces, set government buildings and banks on fire, and blocked roads. The government responded with an iron fist, killing more than 200 protesters, arresting thousands, and shutting down the Internet across the country for about a week. ...
UN Must Investigate the Killing of Protesters in Iran
A group of prominent Iranians have appealed to the United Nations to take immediate action on Iran and appoint a commission to investigate the human rights violations in the country during the recent nationwide protests. ...
Meeting Sweden’s Foreign Ministry regarding recent protests in Iran
On Wednesday, November 27, Mehrdad Darvishpour and Amir Nilou from the "Solidarity Committee for the Iranian people" met with Daniel Patterson from the Middle East and North Africa Division of the Swedish Foreign Ministry. ...
Why Iran May Be Locked Into a Future of More Protest
At midnight on Nov. 15, Iran’s government announced a precipitous 300 percent hike in fuel prices. Immediate public outcries quickly escalated into nationwide protests that spread to more than 100 cities and gripped the country for 6 straight days, before the authorities effectively crushed them. ...
DID AN AMERICAN BILLIONAIRE PHILANTHROPIST PLAY A ROLE IN THE IMPRISONMENT OF IRANIAN ENVIRONMENTALISTS?
IN SEPTEMBER 2017, a group of Iranian environmentalists working on Asiatic cheetah preservation with the Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation felt a pang of alarm. Thomas S. Kaplan, a billionaire precious metals investor then best known for his fine art collection, had just made a surprise public appearance in New York at the annual conference of United Against Nuclear Iran. The Iranian environmentalists were concerned because their group had gotten aid from one of Kaplan’s nonpolitical charities. Now, he was speaking before a group that was extremely hostile to their country. ...
Iran Pulls a “North Korea” by Cutting off Internet in Response to Protests
On Saturday, November 16, in response to growing popular unrest and protests over the tripling of gas prices, the Iranian government pulled a “North Korea,” cutting internet access to deny protesters the ability to communicate with each other and as an attempt to prevent news from getting out of Iran. ...
Why Iran wants the Lebanon and Iraq uprisings to fade
When the 2011 Arab Spring swept across the Middle East, Iran’s leadership embraced the revolutions as an Islamic Awakening, with the notable exception of Syria where Tehran saw the demonstrations as a grave threat to its security and relationship with its sole regional ally. ...
Iran’s revolutionary bluster masks its role as oppressor in the Middle East
For more than forty years Iran has billed itself as a revolutionary, radical force, vowing to upend the staid and corrupt order of the Middle East. Its pillars—including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei—adopted not only the rhetoric of political Islam, but also the slogans of the leftist liberation movements that were fervent in the 1970s, railing against conservative fatcats. ...
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