PRESS RELEASE: 31st January 2010, Unjust hangings in Iran condemned
The Committee for the Defence of the Iranian People's Rights (CODIR) has condemned the execution of two men who were hanged on Thursday after being convicted in unfair trials of “enmity against God” and being members of Anjoman-e Padeshahi-e Iran (API), a banned group which advocates the restoration of an Iranian monarchy. ...more
Saeed Montazeri on Protests in Iran
Saeed Montazeri, son of the leading Iranian dissident cleric Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, talks to SPIEGEL about who is responsible for his father's recent death, reformists' chances of success and why Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is not suited to be president.I am in my house in Qom, which is next to my father's house. Officially, my movements are not restricted. But the windowpanes occasionally rattle. It is apparently regime thugs who want to provoke me. My father's office is being tightly controlled by security agents. His hosseiniyeh (religious institute) was closed 12 years ago and occupied by the thugs. ...more
PRESS RELEASE: 15th January 2010, Urgent action required to free political prisoners
Human rights organisations around the world are combining to call for the release of hundreds of people believed to be held incommunicado following mass arrests in Iran on 27th and 28th December 2009. The arrests followed protests against the regime which took place on the Shi'a Muslim festival of Ashura which took place on the 27th December. ...more
Ahmadinejad, Phoney Champion of People
The Iranian people are paying a heavy price for daring to resist the outcome of the rigged election of Ahmadinejad in June 2009. In the months since the fateful election, the theocratic regime has been quickly moving towards a full- blown military dictatorship. It is threatening further oppression through mass arrests and summary executions aimed at creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation, while demanding allegiance to the spiritual leader (Velayte-Faghi). ...more
Regime seeks to choke off information flow
Iran's leaders have announced measures to tighten their grip on the control of information in the country and extend the climate of fear through mass arrests. Jane Green continues her assessment of the rapidly unfolding events in the Islamic Republic. The leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran has this week reinforced its two pronged strategy of attempting to choke off information and arresting key activists in an attempt to gain control of the situation in the country. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) this week (5th Jan) issued a press statement condemning the recent arrests of journalists and media union leaders following recent demonstrations at the end of December. ...more
URGENT ACTION - THREE IRANIAN JOURNALISTS SENTENCED
Bahman Ahmadi Amou'i and Saeed Laylaz have been sentenced to prison terms, Bahman Ahmadi Amou'i also to flogging. Keyvan Samimi Behbehani remains in solitary confinement. All three men are prisoners of conscience. ...more
PRESS RELEASE - Urgent appeal to prevent further human rights abuses in Iran
Human rights organisations are calling on governments across the globe to demand an immediate end to the flagrant violations of human rights being perpetrated by the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Following demonstrations on the 27th December 2009 over 2,000 people have been arrested by the Iranian authorities. Those arrested were engaged in legitimate protest to the regime's failure to acknowledge the defeat of Ahmadinejad, its preferred candidate, in the 12th June 2009 presidential election in Iran.
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Arrests continue as regime's legitimacy crumbles
As the number of arrests in Iran following the security force inspired violence of 27th December continues to rise, Jane Green considers the tactics of intimidation now being employed by the regime and the crisis of legitimacy facing the Islamic Republic. ...more
Mood in Iran ominous after latest violence
The fightback by the Iranian government and its supporters creates a deep sense of foreboding as to what might happen in the country
BLOODIED FACES on burning streets. Crowds fleeing tear gas and baton charges. Hands raised in defiant fists and V signs. Mass arrests, followed by thunderous denunciations of opposition leaders as mohareb, or enemies of God.
The reports from Tehran and other Iranian cities over the past week cannot but stir memories of the violent upheaval that followed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's bitterly disputed re-election in June. They also raise questions about where this, the most serious bout of unrest since the summer, may ultimately lead.
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PRESS RELEASE - For immediate use
Ibrahim Yazdi, the leader of the nationalist Iran's Freedom Movement, and the first Foreign Minister after the 1979 revolution, was arrested early this morning. The arrest follows on from those of Mehdi Arabshahi, a leader of the Tahkim Vahdat, the powerful national student movement, and Mohammad Moein, the son of Mostafa Moein, a former minister of higher education and reformist candidate at the 2005 presidential election. Many others have also been arrested. The authorities have confirmed the arrests of 300 opposition activists yesterday. ...more
Regime change by the people, for the people!
Recent events in Iran have further exposed the divisions within the ruling clergy and the desire of the Iranian people for change. Jane Green continues her series of articles on post election Iran with an assessment of recent events and the prospects for 2010. The death of reformist cleric Ayotollah Hosaein Ali Montazeri on 19th December has sparked a run of protests in Iran which have both caught the authorities off guard and surprised the opposition by their scale. Official reports suggest that the turnout at Montazeri's funeral on 21st December was up to 500,000 people. Opposition sources claim that the numbers were nearer to one million. Either way, this convergence upon Qom, a city with a population of only 700,000 is significant. ...more
Interviewing a former Iranian Basij militia
For months now, we’ve heard horrific stories of rape and abuse from Iran’s gaols.Since the election last June, hundreds, maybe thousands, of opposition protestors have been beaten and gaoled. Human rights groups have documented persistent reports of rape within the police stations and gaols.Now, for the first time, we’ve spoken to a member of the Basij militia – the group said to be responsible for many of the abuses.
He was a broken man, seeking refuge in Britain, and from his own conscience. ...more
Exclusive Interview with Ervand Abarahamian, History Professor at Baruch College, on the developments in Iran since June 2009
Ervand Abrahamian, acclaimed Professor of History at Baruch College, discusses the Green Movement as it relates to the nation's other historical civil movements, as well as analyzing the internal a...
Iran's Supreme Leader ordered intensification of Suppressions
Jaras (Green Way Movement network): Right at six months after the presidential elections, Ayatollah Khamenei, with a nervous and worried tone, promised destruction to those who oppose the regime and he threatened them with more severe punishments.
His speech was accompanied with slogans from dozens of his supporters but concurrently many supporters of the green movement have deemed the threats of the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader ineffective in their media outlets. They have also stressed the continuation of protest actions and being smart in the face of government measures.
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Iran one year on: Osanloo still jailed, workers still oppressed
A year to the day since his violent arrest the ITF, International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and Amnesty International are calling on the world not to forget jailed Iranian trade unionist Mansour Osanloo. Through their publications, websites and memberships the three organisations are once again pledging that Osanloo will not be forgotten and demanding his release. Their call comes as a year elapses since he was snatched off a bus in Tehran on 10 July 2007 in an arrest the authorities initially denied had even taken place - and as a currently unconfirmed report says that yesterday instead of being escorted to a hospital appointment he was instead taken for arraignment at the Intelligence Court. ...more
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