Iran Digest Week of January 27- February 3
/AIC’s Iran digest project covers the latest developments and news stories published in Iranian and international media outlets. This weekly digest is compiled by associate Samuel Howell. Please note that the news and views expressed in the articles below do not necessarily reflect those of AIC.
Nuclear Accord
Iran's nuclear programme at a 'dangerous point', Macron says after talks with Netanyahu
French President Emmanuel Macron denounced on Thursday the "headlong rush" of Iran's nuclear programme after talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was in Paris to seek a stronger European stance against Tehran.
In a statement released after a dinner meeting in the Elysee Palace, Macron warned that Tehran continuing with the atomic project "would inevitably have consequences".
Israel has long accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, while Tehran insists its nuclear programme is aimed solely at generating energy.
Women of Iran
“She Suffered Beyond Belief:” 20-Year-Old Armita, A Symbol Of Iranian Resistance
Armita Abbasi, a 20-year-old woman from Karaj, near Tehran, went on trial on January 29 after being tortured and sexually assaulted in detention, triggering a Twitter storm from her supporters.
Armita had multi-colored dyed hair and an eyebrow piercing. She wrote about her life, cats and dreams on Instagram until she was arrested in October 2022 for joining the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protest movement triggered by the September death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of morality police.
How did Armita become a symbol of resistance of the Iranian people in the face the Islamic Republic’s fierce crackdown on more than four months of demonstrations demanding more freedoms and women’s rights? What do we know about her ordeal during the nearly four months she has spent behind bars?
Economy
Exclusive: IRGC Runs Iran’s Money Laundering Network In Iraq
Iran International has obtained information that unravels some details about the inner workings of a Revolutionary Guard’s Quds force unit tasked with smuggling money from Iraq to Iran.
According to the information, the Islamic Republic’s embassy in Iraq is also involved in the money laundering operations that aim to funnel the regime’s revenues from oil and gas exports to Iran. As per a repeatedly extended sanctions’ waiver by Washington, Tehran is only allowed to import medicine and some essential goods in exchange for its export to its neighboring country.
Iran International television revealed that Mohammad Tajan-Jari, the financial manager of the 400th unit of IRGC’s Quds Force, was in charge of transferring the funds to the unit’s account in a branch of Ansar Bank in the capital Tehran. The bank had been founded by the IRGC in 2010 and was officially merged into the IRGC’s official Bank Sepah. The IRGC had established several banks and credit institutions to help it in its money laundering operations and circumvent US sanctions but after they served their purpose and their affiliations were disclosed, all of them, including Ansar Bank, Mehr Eghtesad Bank, Hekmat Iranian Bank, Ghavamin Bank and Kowsar Credit Institution, were merged into Bank Sepah from 2018 to 2020.
Inside Iran
Iran imprisons couple shown dancing at Tehran's Freedom Tower in viral video
A young couple who posted a video of themselves dancing romantically in the streets of Tehran have been sentenced to several years in prison, according to human rights activists and Iranian authorities.
Instagram influencers Astiyazh Haghighi, 21, and her fiancé, Amir Mohammad Ahmadi, 22, were jailed amid the regime's crackdown in a bid to quell anti-government protests that have swept the country.
The couple, popular figures on social media, with a combined following of almost 2 million, have regularly posted videos together.
(NBC)
Ripping apart art: Iran’s cultural world strained by protest and politics
Like all gallery owners, Orkideh Daroodi closed the doors of her Tehran venue in October to show her support for the pro-democracy demonstrations that were escalating.
Her decision to reopen six weeks later for an exhibition by three female artists triggered an immediate backlash, with red paint doused on the front of the gallery.
“I was accused of normalising” the situation in Iran, said Daroodi, 40, who owns O Gallery, one of the country’s leading visual art venues. “But our lives have not become normal and none of us are the same as we were before,” she continued. “How can anyone help the protest movement by not working? If we choose to close our doors in the private sector, and stay in our homes and studios, we only become more isolated.”
An Anti-Hijab Prisoner In Iran Seriously Ill After Hunger Strike
The health of long-time Iranian political prisoner, Farhad Meysami, who has lost a lot of weight due to his hunger strike, has deteriorated.
A photo of Meysami along with a letter from Rajaei-Shahr prison in Karaj were published on social media Thursday, showing him in a horrible condition after losing weight.
However, the political activist wrote in the letter to prison officials that “I will still insist on my three demands of stopping the execution of protesters, releasing six political prisoners, and stopping mandatory hijab.”
Regional Politics
Why Iran’s Missile Program Alarms Its Rivals
A drone attack on an Iranian military facility over the weekend brought renewed attention to Iran’s development of sophisticated missiles, a program that deeply worries its regional rivals.
The strike on Saturday, which set off a large explosion in the city of Isfahan, was the work of the Mossad, Israel’s premier intelligence agency, according to senior intelligence officials who were familiar with the dialogue between Israel and the United States regarding the attack.
The purpose of the targeted facility was not immediately clear. But Isfahan, in central Iran, is a hub for Iran’s production, research and development of missiles, including the assembly of Shahab medium-range ballistic missiles, which can reach Israel and beyond.
Saudi Arabia, Iraq To Boost Ties To Counter Iran’s Influence
Regional and Western countries are moving to build closer cooperation with Iraq as a measure to curb the influence of the Islamic Republic in economy and politics of its neighboring country.
On Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan al Saud, visited Iraq, affirming that economic relations with Iraq were developing significantly. Bin Farhan made the statement during a joint press conference held in Iraq with the country’s Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.
Hussein said, "security cooperation continues with Saudi Arabia" and added they were “working to reduce tensions in the region,” highlighting the depth of relations with Iraq, which he stated had "witnessed great momentum recently.”
Global Relations
Western allies seize Iran arms shipment bound for Yemen's rebels
An operation by Western allies reportedly led by France seized a boatload of weapons and ammunition allegedly being sent to Yemen from Iran last month, the US military said.
More than 3,000 assault rifles, 578,000 rounds of ammunition and 23 anti-tank guided missiles were recovered in the January 15 operation in the Gulf of Oman, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Wednesday.
CENTCOM, which oversees American military operations across the Middle East, said the US supported the interdiction operation, while not specifying which partner led it.
Analysis
The Long Twilight of the Islamic Republic
By: Ali Vaez
For most Iranian Americans, the past four months have been unspeakably harrowing. Since the tragic death of Mahsa Amini at the brutal hands of Tehran’s “morality police” in September, we have watched thousands of videos of young protesters, armed with nothing but their bravery, standing up to a regime bereft of mercy. We have shuddered in horror at the killing of nearly 500 people—including more than 60 children—with live ammunition, the blinding of hundreds of protesters with rubber bullets and metal pellets, and the execution of four protesters after tortured confessions and sham trials. We have cried as so many loving young men and women have had their lives cut short to prolong an oppressive gerontocracy. We have been awed by the grit of schoolgirls who are burning their mandatory headscarves, and we have had our hearts broken as we watched these girls sob on their loved ones’ graves. We fear the worst for the thousands who have been arrested, and we have been relieved about the ones who have been freed. And given that all of the past protest movements against the so-called Islamic Republic have ended in grief, we dread that this could become another turning point in Iranian history where history fails to turn.
(Read More Here)
