Just minutes before the deadline on March 11 to register as a presidential candidate, Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani made it official that he wants to be the next Iranian president. Meanwhile, Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s top aide, also entered the race during the final minutes of the registration period. Today, numerous well known figures […]
Category: Sufi news
Strong Earthquake Hits Iran’s South
Iran’s Red Crescent says an earthquake in southern Iran has caused extensive damage and several injuries. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake’s epicenter was 85 kilometers southeast of the town of Minab. The U.S. center also registered a series of aftershocks in the same area. The Red Crescent told state media that at […]
Censorship, Self-Censorship, Crossing Redlines and Fearing Tomorrow
On the eve of the presidential election in Iran, media is struggling find out where it is standing, under a security observation or temporary open atmosphere? Can journalists cover criticisms against the government or should they still consider the truth about the ruling party a crime? Journalists Worry about Arrest A journalist, who writes […]
Why Have My Rights Been Trampled? An Open Letter from a Lawyer
Massoud Shafiee, the lawyer who represented the three American hikers in Iran, shared an open letter to the Iranian authorities with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. In the letter, he calls out the Iranian authorities for confiscating of his passport, monitoring all his communications, and preventing him from continuing his professional […]
‘Iran’s Lech Walesa’ Says He Left Country After Death Threats
Prominent Iranian leader Mansur Osanlu, who recently fled that country, has told RFE/RL that death threats from inside government security circles drove him out of Iran.Osanlu, who is described by some as “Iran’s Lech Walesa” after the labor leader who helped bring free trade s and, ultimately, democracy to Poland, was speaking by phone […]
Book about sidelined politician pulled from exhibition
Serahatnameh, a book of interviews with Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani, the head of the Expediency Council, has been pulled from Tehran’s 26th book exhibition. ISNA reports that Ali Esmaili, the head of the exhibition, explained the action was needed to “corroborate certain information with relevant officials.” There are certain quotes in the book from a […]
Another Gonabadi Dervish Arrested in Kavar
Gonabadi dervish, Sayed Ebrahim Bahrami resident of Kavar town in Fars Province arrested.According to Majzooban Noor, Sayed Ebrahim Bahrami was arrested without a valid warrant by security forces and plain-clothes at his work place (Shahreza ORE workshop) on Monday night, 16th Ordibehesht 1392 (May 6 2013).Sayed Ebrahim Bahrami was taken to Shiraz’s intelligence office […]
Prisoners moved from solitary, end hunger strike
The 10 Iranian political prisoners who were moved to solitary confinement and began a hunger strike to protest that move, have ended their strike after being returned to the general ward of the prison. The Kaleme website reported on Wednesday May 8 that the prisoners are now in the general ward of the prison […]
Stephen Hawking joins academic boycott of Israel
A statement published with Stephen Hawking’s approval said his withdrawal was based on advice from academic contacts in Palestine. Photograph:Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPA Physicist pulls out of conference hosted by president Shimon Peres in protest at treatment of PalestiniansProfessor Stephen Hawking is backing the academic boycott of Israel by pulling out of a conference hosted by […]
“My Sattar Died for Iran”: An Interview with Sattar Beheshti’s Mother
More than six months after the prison death of Sattar Beheshti, a laborer and blogger from Robat Karim (17 miles outside Tehran) who was arrested on November 3, 2012, and died the next day, his mother and sister have not been able to face in court the men who murdered the 35-year-old man under torture […]