nassim: September 2017

Friday, September 29, 2017

Signs point to ongoing Iranian nuclear program

SEPTEMBER 28, 2017-- Recently, President Donald Trump stated that he had come to a decision about whether or not to certify to Congress that Iran was complying with the 2015 nuclear agreement, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

UNITED NATIONS, AFP, 28 September 2017-- The United States pressed Thursday for the International Atomic Energy Agency to carry out more nuclear inspections in Iran, warning that failure to do so would make the nuclear deal with Tehran 'an empty promise.'

The mother of political prisoner Atena Daemi, who is detained in Evin Prison, said that her daughter had to undergo gallbladder surgery at the Khomeini Hospital but refused to be hospitalized after the head of prison specified that she had to have handcuffs and shackles the whole time she was in the hospital.
According to Massoumeh Nemati, the prison head has also banned Atena from having a companion in prison or visits.
“I do not understand how a prisoner who has gone to prison for her beliefs could escape from the hospital bed? Where can she escape,” she added.
“Yesterday, Atena’s father went to see Tehran Prosecutor Hajj Moradi, who promised that she would not need to be shackled and that she could receive visits and have a companion. Today, after Atena was returned to the hospital, her father once again went to see the Prosecutor but was told they could not do anything and that the orders of the prison head had to be carried out”, Atena’s mother said.

25% of young people and 42% of women unemployed in Iran

An Iranian demographer said that according to statistics rounded up from 2006 to 2016, around 25% of the youth in Iran were unemployed, the state-run ISNA news agency reported on September 26, 2017.
“The numbers reach 42% when it comes to women,” Mohammad Jalal Abbasi Shawazi said.
He criticized the low level of women’s economic participation saying that only about 15 percent of women participated in economic activities.
“The economic participation of men is about 64 percent,” he said.
“Therefore, one of the important issues in the society that affects the development of the country is the low utilization of the potential of women’s productivity in the country.”

Iran: Six men to be executed in public

Six men were sentenced to death in Mashhad on charges of robbery by the 6th Branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court. according to the state-run Rokna news agency report on September 23, 2017.
The men also received other sentences including flogging and fines for drug related charges. Two of the men have been identified as Meisam, 29, and Hadi, 27.

IAEA CHIEF CALLS FOR CLARITY ON DISPUTED SECTION OF IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL

VIENNA, Reuters, SEPTEMBER 26, 2017 - The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s chief urged major powers on Tuesday to clarify a part of their nuclear deal with Iran dealing with technology that could be used to develop an atom bomb, an area Russia said the agency should leave alone.The 2015 pact between six major powers and Iran restricts its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Struan Stevenson, was a member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Scotland from 1999-2014. During that time, he chaired the Friends of a Free Iran intergroup, which became the centre of pro-democracy campaigns in Europe in support of human rights in Iran. He also chaired European Parliament’s official Delegation for Relations with Iraq. He has written several books on different topics including a book called Self-Sacrifice.

ran’s sports federation has fired Golnar Vakil Gilani, the head of the Polo Federation, over leaked private photos. Gilani told Iranian news agencies that she had not received any letter in this regard but the sports authorities had appointed another woman as temporary president for the federation.Defying the decision, Gilani said she will continue her job as president until the last day.

The German news broadcaster, Deutsche Welle reported on Tuesday, Sept. 26 that more than 100 Baha'i students who had taken up university admission exams and got passing grades earlier in the summer have been prohibited from enrolling in universities at the start of the school year in Iran due to their religious beliefs.

Earlier in September, the UN Secretary General sent the latest report of the Special Rapporteur on Iran’s human rights to the General Assembly for discussion. The August 14 report provides a detailed account of a series of serious abuses that were carried out by the Iranian authorities in the past year

Trump: People of Iran Are the First Victims of Iranian Regime

Iran Focus

London, 22 Sep - On Thursday, H.R. McMaster, President Trump’s National Security Adviser, said that the administration is very concerned about Iran’s destabilising behaviour. He also said that the Iran nuclear deal is “fundamentally flawed” because it is so one-sided. Iran was the one that got all the benefits. Furthermore, the deal did not address fundamental issues leaving the regime free to advance with its nuclear program.

Iran Focus

London, 22 Sep - As US President Trump is known for being an unpredictable political leader, the eyes of the world were on his first speech at the UN General Assembly, especially when he said, “We cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for eventual construction of a nuclear program.”

Iran Focus

London, 23 Sep - When President Obama was negotiating the nuclear deal with Iran and other world powers, he assured critics that it was the only way to curb the nuclear threat from Iran. He said it was the only way to prevent Iran from pursuing its nuclear program.

He gave the Iranian regime numerous concessions and failed to address some peripheral issues such as the oppression of people at home and its spread of terrorism across the Middle East.

Mullah Kazem Sediqi once again acknowledged the widespread export of terrorism to the Middle East and Africa at the Friday prayer on September 22in Tehran. He said, 'We conducted a revolution in Iran, but today we are defending in Syria; today our reputation is heard all over Africa, an altar is set up in Nigeria

Istanbul, Reuters, September 24, 2017 - Iranian forces have launched war games in an area near the border with Iraq’s Kurdistan region, Iran’s state media reported on Sunday, a day before a Kurdish independence referendum in the region.

By Andrew Hammond

EDITORIAL, September 24, 2017-- On Friday, Iran test-fired a new medium-range missile, carrying details of the launch along with video footage from a camera located in the nose cone of the rocket on state television. The Khorramshahr rocket is capable of being fitted with multiple warheads and has an estimated range of 2,000 kilometres. While the rocket launch was a success, the timing of the test is certainly no coincidence, with the government in Tehran being singled out, along with the regimes of Venezuela and North Korea, for words of condemnation at the United Nations General Assembly in New York by United States President Donald Trump.

president Donald Trump has sensibly insisted that the Iran nuclear deal—formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—has to be revised. The reaction in some quarters, mainly among many of the former Obama administration officials who negotiated this bad deal, has been horror. Unfortunately, the media have uncritically swallowed many of the false assumptions and naive arguments of the deal’s supporters, and the elite consensus is that the agreement must be preserved lest the White House bumble us into a crisis—or worse, another war in the Middle East.

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Eleven years ago, Henry Kissinger famously said that Iran’s rulers must “decide whether they are representing a cause or a nation.” If the latter, Iranian and American interests would be “compatible.” As for the former: “If Tehran insists on combining the Persian imperial tradition with contemporary Islamic fervor, then a collision with America is unavoidable.”

Masoud Dalvand –TDO-(AMERICA) NCRI - A huge crowd of human rights activists, politicians, and people from the Iranian diaspora gathered outside the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Wednesday September 20, to protest Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s speech.

By NASSER SHARIF | Orange County Register

PUBLISHED: September 18, 2017 at 8:51 am | UPDATED: September 19, 2017 at 12:34 pm

Amidst talk of Iran’s violations of the nuclear deal, a resolution was introduced in the U.S. Congress, censuring the Tehran regime for the mass murder of thousands of dissidents in 1988. The massacre claimed the lives of an estimated 30,000 prisoners of conscience, mostly activists of the leading Iranian opposition movement, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran.

بالأرقام.. أمراض العصر تفتك بشعب إيران

@Rania416Fahmy -رانيا علي فهمي

في الوقت الذي تعيث فيه حكومة إيران في الأرض فسادا، بدعوى الحفاظ على مصالح شعبها، تجدها أنفقت أموال نفس الشعب على دعم الإرهاب والطائفية في عدة دول، ليوقع 265 عضوًا في البرلمان الأوروبيّ مؤخرا على بيان إدانة، أعربوا فيه عن قلقهم إزاء وضع حقوق الإنسان في إيران، نظرًا إلى دعمها للإرهاب، مع تقديم الوثائق الدالة على انتهاك حقوق النساء والأقلِّيَّات في إيران، ورصد الإعدامات التي جرت خلال الفترة الأولى من رئاسة حسن روحاني، إضافة إلى إعدامات عام 1988م، وطلب الموقعون على البيان من الدول الأوروبيَّة إعادة النظر في العلاقات مع دولة الإرهاب والطائفية.

CNRI Femmes - Un groupe d’étudiants, filles et garçons, en anesthésiologie et des anesthésistes adjoints de la faculté de médecine de Chiraz en Iran, se sont rassemblés devant leur fac le 12 septembre pour protester contre la réduction des tarifs d'anesthésie.

Selon les étudiants, les tarifs annoncés cette année ont été approuvés par le ministère et sont réduit de 25% donc autant de leurs salaires actuels ou futurs.

(Agence SSN.ir - 12 septembre 2017)

Iran: Women members of City Council not invited to stadium’s opening ceremony

Officials’ failure to invite the two women members of the City Council of Mashhad to the opening ceremony of the new stadium in this second largest city of Iran, made headlines and served as bitter reminder of the unjust ban on women’s entry to sports stadiums in Iran.

by:Ken Blackwell

|Commendably, the Trump administration is set to initiate a new Iran policy, which will be announced in October. Such change is imperative.The flawed nuclear agreement in 2015, provided too many concessions, including tens of billions of dollars to the Iranian regime, following decades of deceit and lying in pursuit of the nuclear bomb.Tehran’s nuclear program continues, and its military sites remain off limits to inspectors.

NCRI - A former Yemeni presidential guard officer loyal to deposed president Ali Abdullah Saleh revealed that women from Iran's regime train Houthi women and prepare them for using different types of weapons.The former officer said the Houthi militia run a massive covert curriculum to train women using various weapons and boost their ability. He added that the task of providing these military training to Houthi women is coached by the regime of Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria.

By :Shahin Gobadi

Al Arabiya, 17 September 2017 - In a conference held at the United Nations' Geneva headquarters this week, European politicians, prominent jurists and human rights defenders urged the UN to immediately set up an independent commission to investigate Iran’s 1988 massacre of political prisoners and to bring the officials who were responsible for this crime to justice.

Commendably, the Trump administration is set to initiate a new Iran policy, which will be announced in October. Such change is imperative.

The flawed nuclear agreement in 2015, provided too many concessions, including tens of billions of dollars to the Iranian regime, following decades of deceit and lying in pursuit of the nuclear bomb.

Since taking office, President Trump has announced on two occasions that Iran is in compliance with its 2015 nuclear agreement terms. These assessments seemingly conflict with his campaign-trail fervor over the “worst deal ever negotiated,” but his foreign policy team has reportedly pressed that maintaining the status quo better suits our allies. Regardless, following the most recent certification in July, the White House announced plans for a comprehensive review of Iran policy. Now, this review nears completion with miraculously impactful timing.

North Korea's most recent hydrogen bomb test is another reminder of the consequences of not making the right decision at the right time. The international community's failure to stop and dismantle North Korea's nuclear program has enabled the regime to obtain weapons of mass destruction.

دعوة أوروبية للتحقيق في مجزرة 1988 بإيران

حث السياسيون الأوروبيون، ورجال القانون البارزون، والمدافعون عن حقوق الإنسان الأمم المتحدة في مؤتمر عقد

By Shahin GobadiSpecial to Al Arabiya EnglishSunday, 17 September 2017In a conference held at the United Nations' Geneva headquarters this week, European politicians, prominent jurists and human rights defenders urged the UN to immediately set up an independent commission to investigate Iran’s 1988 massacre of political prisoners and to bring the officials who were responsible for this crime to justice.

Iran Focus

London, 17 Sep - On the 52nd anniversary of its foundation on September 6, 2017, the Iranian Resistance’s central force, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) elected a new Secretary General.

The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) is a robust movement, which its central council consists of thousands of women. In Iran, Albania, France, Germany, London and Sweden.

With her penetrating gaze, she looks around. After hearing the questions, she reflects for a moment and begins replying with a sweet smile. The passage of time and life’s adversities have not affected her cheerfulness nor her expressive words, perhaps because she made her decision years ago and pledged to fight as long as it may take.

By INU Staff

INU - On the 29th anniversary of the massacre of political prisoners in Iran, and the first anniversary of the Movement Calling for Justice for the Victims of the 1988 Massacre, a ceremony was held at one of the PMOI/MEK headquarters in Tirana, capital of Albania, on Saturday, August 19, 2017.

By Jazeh Miller

While hundreds of international figures and lawyers have called for a trial of the regime's leaders and the perpetrators of the massacre of members and sympathizers of PMOI/MEK in 1988, the Iran regime is trying to destroy the graves of MEK martyrs killed in this crime.

When this year’s United Nations General Assembly convenes this week, it is safe to assume that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will not address domestic human rights abuses.

By Heshmat AlaviSpecial to Al Arabiya EnglishMonday, 18 September 2017There is a new understanding in Washington over how US President Donald Trump, set to deliver his first United Nations General Assembly speech tomorrow, can tackle the Iran challenge.

On Wednesday September 6, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, (PMOI/MEK) held its annual Congress. The Congress elected Ms. Zahra Merrikhi, 58, as its new Secretary General.

And there are also voices expressing grave concerns about Iran’s intentions being far more dangerous than North Korea's and considering Tehran having a nuclear bomb being gravely more lethal than Pyongyang.
Why is Iran’s nuclear program more dangerous than North Korea?
Nuclear weapons for Iran and North Korea are tantamount to means of maintaining their regime in power. However, the two states have adopted different strategies in seeking the bomb.
Pyongyang’s posture is of defensive nature to keep its rule intact. Tehran, on the other hand, has a strategy of aggressiveness. Iran has relied on exporting its “revolution” and meddling in other countries, in order to safeguard its regime back home.
Therefore, Tehran needs this ultimate weapon to continue its expansion and warmongering, whereas North Korea’s witter | AmericanThinker on Facebook

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Darker and more dangerous: High Commissioner updates the Human Rights Council on human rights issues

11 September 2017 - Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights addressed the human rights council giving a report of on the human rights issues in 40 countries.
In his statement regarding Iran, the high commissioner told the president and the audience that

A number of contract teachers of the north Iranian province of Mazandaran staged a protest gathering in front of the Governor’s Office in Sari to protest their undetermined employment status.

The gathering by some 100 women was held on September 10, 2017. They demand improvement of their working conditions.

The protesters said the Education Department of Mazandaran was supposed to resolve the status of contract teachers two years ago, after a directive issued to the provinces. However, the directive has not been implemented after two years and the Education Department recruits retired teachers instead of the teachers working on temporary contracts who must be officially employed on a permanent basis by the department.

Iran: Raheleh Rahemipour arrested at home

Raheleh Rahemipour was arrested at her residence in Tehran, Iran.

Ms. Rahemipour is a plaintiff for the 1960s executions in Iran. She has been demanding the regime to account for her missing brother, Hossein Rahemipour, a dentist, and niece, Golrou Rahemipour, was born in prison in 1984.

She was arrested Sunday night, September 10, 2017, by a woman and two men who identified themselves as intelligence ministry officers who thoroughly searched the house and subsequently took her away.

There has been no explanation on the sudden nightly arrest of this human rights activist.

Amnesty International has issued a statement demanding urgent release of Ms. Rahemipour.

Iran: Women mountain climbers express solidarity with porters

A number of Iranian women climbed the Damavand mountain, north of Tehran, to commemorate the defenseless porters arbitrarily killed by the State Security forces on the western border of Iran.

In recent days, mass protests have been held in the city of Baneh (Iranian Kurdistan Province) in protest to the systematic and arbitrary killings of porters who earn a living by carrying heavy weights. They are shot and killed indiscriminately by the SSF.

Iran: Women partake in Tehran’s sit-in protest

Iranian women cheated by the Caspian Financial Institution, participated in a sit-in protest staged across from the executive office of the judiciary in Tehran on September 11, 2017.

The women whose deposits have been plundered by the government-back agency announced that they would continue their protest until their money is refunded.

One of the protesting women called on others who have suffered similar losses, “Friends, come to the sit-in. The only way is to participate in this sit in!”

Another woman said, “It has been ten months since the authorities have plundered our and our children’s property; it has been ten months since they have destroyed our lives; let’s come together to cry out for the last time.”

The protesters have announced that they will continue their sit-in round the clock until they reach their demands.

Trump Considers More Aggressive Approach to Iran

Iran Focus

London, 12 Sep - Donald Trump is currently considering a more aggressive US policy towards Iran and its proxies groups across the Middle East, according to six current and former US officials.

This policy suggestion was proposed to Trump by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, national security adviser H.R. McMaster and other top officials at a National Security Council meeting on Friday.

Iran Focus

London, 12 Sep - Amnesty International has issued a statement calling for the immediate and unconditional release of an Iranian human rights activist who was arrested on Sunday September 10.

Three officials, who did not identify themselves but are believed to be from the Ministry of Intelligence, arrested Raheleh Rahemipour without charges and took her in for interrogation at the notorious Evin prison in Tehran.

Dr. Majid Rafizadeh

When the nuclear agreement was reached in 2015 between the six world powers and Iran, I pointed out that the major mistake of Western governments was to believe that Tehran viewed the deal in the same way that they did.For the West, the deal was going to be transformational — moderating the Iranian government’s foreign policy and halting its nuclear ambitions. But from the viewpoint of Iranian leaders, the nuclear accord was a transitory and fleeting deal.

By Heshmat AlaviSpecial to Al Arabiya EnglishMonday, 11 September 201716 years have passed since that tragic day, September 11, 2001, when over 3,000 innocent people lost their lives in the “the largest mass casualty terrorist attack in US history.” The course of modern history changed as we know it.

Friday, September 29, 2017

Monday, September 25, 2017

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Monday, September 18, 2017

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

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