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☆ Iran executes second person after mass protests shook the country. 25 more are said to be next.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Iran executed a second person in connection to the human rights protests sweeping the country. Witnesses told the court that they saw him do it, Mizan reported, but human rights groups have warned that Iran is conducting sham trials of protesters. His death comes after Iran executed Mohsen Shekari last week, in the first known execution connected to the protests. Shekari was accused of blocking a street in Tehran and attacking a member of Iran's security forces with a machete, according to the Associated Press. Doctors and nurses in Iran told The Guardian last week that security forces are targeting women, firing at their faces, breasts and genitals with shotguns.

☆ U.S. Sanctions Turkish Businessman It Says Brokered Oil Sales for Iran’s Military
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Ian Talley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

The Biden administration on Thursday levied sanctions against several Turkish businessmen and more than two dozen Turkish companies that officials said were selling oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars for Iran’s terror-listed military unit. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | Risk and Compliance Journal Our Morning Risk Report features insights and news on governance, risk and compliance. PREVIEW Mr. Ayan owns or controls the sanctioned companies, including the Turkish energy conglomerate ASB Group, which launders proceeds from the oil sales into Europe and Asia under an agreement he allegedly reached in 2017 with Iranian officials, the Treasury said. Neither Mr. Ayan, contacted through ASB Group, nor the firm immediately responded to a request for comment. Daniel Roth, a research director for the advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran, said the Treasury’s action represented a “giant stride” toward thwarting the IRGC’s illicit oil exports.

☆ An Iranian patrol vessel tried to blind the bridges of US Navy ships sailing through the Strait of Hormuz, US military says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

An Iranian vessel tried to blind the bridges of US Navy ships on Monday, CENTCOM said. Two US Navy ships were conducting a routine crossing through the Strait of Hormuz. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy patrol boat crossed within 150 yards of the ships at night. "The Iranian vessel attempted to blind the bridge by shining a spotlight and crossed within 150 yards of the US ships — dangerously close, particularly at night," CENTCOM said, adding that the US Navy ships were conducting a routine crossing in international waters. In late November, the US Navy said an Iranian-made suicide drone was used in an attack on a commercial tanker while it was sailing in the Northern Arabian Sea.

☆ Iran’s Top Paramilitary Commander Warns Protesters in Eastern Province Against Unrest
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Benoit Faucon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Iran’s top paramilitary commander on Sunday visited a restive province in eastern Iran, where the military has attempted to violently suppress a two-month-old protest movement, to warn locals against further unrest. Major General Hossein Salami , the commander in chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, traveled to Sistan-Baluchistan’s capital of Zahedan, where he praised the Baloch minority who live there for their “chivalry, zeal, love, loyalty and sacrifice,” according to the Fars news agency. At the same time, he threatened more crackdowns on protesters he alleged were being manipulated by foreign powers.

☆ Iran's violent crackdown against protesters escalates in parts of the country
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Alex-Smith-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Alexander Smith | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The group, which focuses on human rights in Iranian Kurdistan, said that at least 1,500 people have been injured. Scenes from reported clashes in the northeastern Iranian city of Javanrud, shared by a Kurdish human rights group on Tuesday. The regime-aligned agency blamed the violence on “rioters” and “Kurdish separatists” who infiltrated crowds of protesters and attacked an IRGC base. Some protesters have called for an overthrow of the regime and “death to the dictator” — meaning Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. These have been condemned by Kurdish officials and the Iraqi government, despite the latter being dominated by parties close to Iran.

☆ U.S. sanctions Iranian officials amid Tehran's ongoing crackdown on protests
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Nov 23 (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday targeted three Iranian security officials under human rights-related sanctions, the U.S. Treasury Department said, citing Tehran's ongoing crackdown on protesters in Kurdish-majority areas. The sanctions hit two officials in the Kurdish city of Sanandaj, Governor Hassan Asgari and Alireza Moradi, the commander of the city's law enforcement forces. The Treasury said Asgari and other officials provided a false cause of death for a 16-year-old protester reportedly killed by security forces. Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The sanctions freeze any U.S. assets of those designated and generally bar Americans from dealing with them.

☆ Iran Attacks Kurdish Groups in Iraq That It Blames for Unrest
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Benoit Faucon | Ghassan Adnan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The missile strikes are part of Iran’s campaign to retaliate against outside groups and foreign governments that it has blamed for supporting unrest at home. Iran launched drones and missiles against Kurdish groups in northern Iraq on Monday, the second time in a week, as the Islamic Republic intensifies efforts to suppress a two-month-old protest movement inside its bordersIran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, said Monday it targeted Kurdish military bases in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah, alleging factions there are fomenting unrest in Iran.

☆ 2022 World Cup should ban Iran in support of women and protesters
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Sardar Pashaei | Emily Schrader | Sardar Pashaei Is A Former World Wrestling Champion Iran Who Fled In Due To Political Persecution. He Is Now The Executive Manager Of | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

On Saturday, 32 national soccer teams are gathering in Qatar for the start of the FIFA World Cup. That same year, Mahshid Razaghi, who played for the Olympic soccer team, was executed for selling anti-government newspapers. In 1984, Habib Khabiri, a member of the men’s national soccer team, was executed by firing squad for membership in an anti-regime organization. Preventing Iran from participating in the World Cup would send a concrete message that regimes that persecute their own athletes have no place in world sporting organizations. While such a ban would mean Iranian athletes can’t participate in this World Cup, many in Iran believe the team isn’t representative of the people of Iran in the first place but only represents the Islamic regime.

☆ U.S. Imposes New Sanctions Over Iran Drone Sales to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on an Iranian drone maker that officials said supplied Russia with weapons used in Ukraine. One of SAIRC’s drone models has been used in attacks targeting civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Odessa and the Kharkiv region of Ukraine, the Treasury Department said. The department also imposed sanctions on Success Aviation Services FZC and i Jet Global DMCC, two United Arab Emirates-based air transport companies it said worked with an already sanctioned Iranian company to help ship drones, personnel and equipment from Iran to Russia. government provided cooperation, the Treasury Department said. The European Union imposed sanctions on SAIRC last month.

☆ Treasury sanctions firms, individuals involved in the transfer of drones from Iran to Russia in Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Treasury Department announced new sanctions against three firms and two individuals involved in the production and transport of drones from Iran to Russia to aid in Russian President Vladimir Putin's war against Ukraine. The sanctions come as the U.S. and its allies look to punish individuals and organizations supporting Russia's war efforts. In addition, the Treasury issued sanctions against two individuals — Abbas Djuma and Tigran Khristoforovich Srabionov — for facilitating Wagner Group's acquisition of drones. State Department spokesman Ned Price also said Russian officials received training on the UAVs in Iran. The U.S., Britain and France said Iran violated U.N. Security Council resolution 2231 by providing the weapons to Russia.

☆ U.S. targets supply of Iranian drones to Russia in new sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Daphne Psaledakis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The United States is seeking to increase pressure on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, which has reduced cities to rubble and killed or wounded thousands. Russia has procured drones from Iran that have been used to attack cities and power infrastructure in Ukraine. Iranian military entities and industries are already under heavy U.S. sanctions over Tehran's nuclear development program. Iran has acknowledged that it had supplied Moscow with drones but said they were sent before the war in Ukraine. Treasury also targeted Abbas Djuma and Tigran Khristoforovich Srabionov, accusing the two of being involved in the Wagner group's acquisition of Iranian drones to support combat operations in Ukraine.

☆ Iran Attacks Northern Iraq, Targeting Kurdish Groups for Unrest at Home
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( David S. Cloud | Laurence Norman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Iranian missiles and drones struck the headquarters of Kurdish groups near the cities of Erbil and Sulaimaniyah in Iraq on Monday. Iran attacked Kurdish groups in northern Iraq with drones and missiles on Monday after weeks of warnings from Tehran that it would target foreign actors it accuses of orchestrating a two-month-long antigovernment protest movement at home. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, targeted bases of Kurdish groups near the cities of Erbil and Sulaimaniyah, leaving at least two people dead and nine injured, according to Iraqi Kurdistan’s regional government. It was the second major attack in the region since the protests began, though the IRGC has fired artillery at less populated areas on multiple occasions.

☆ Iran's drones are unlikely to help Russia win in Ukraine — and could backfire for Tehran
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Ukraine has blamed Iran for providing Russia with drones, which have been used to attack Kyiv in recent days. They transferred dozens just this summer & have military personnel in occupied Ukraine helping Russia use them against Ukrainian civilians." Amirabdollahian said that "if it is proven to us that Russia has used Iranian drones in the Ukraine war, we won't be indifferent to it." They've also come in handy for Moscow as Russia's military runs low on more advanced weaponry like guided missiles. "Such systems could become a big headache for the Russians and could make Iran's drones and missiles look ineffective while teaching Western militaries how better to counter them," he said.

TEHRAN–Iran said Thursday it has built a hypersonic missile capable of penetrating any air-defense system, as the United Nations atomic agency reported that Tehran continues to stonewall its investigation into Iranian nuclear activities. As senior officials lashed out at Tehran’s neighbors and other foreign foes they accuse of fomenting protests sweeping across the country, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’s Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh said the new missile could maneuver both inside and outside the atmosphere, according to state media. He provided no evidence to support the claims.

☆ Sister of executed Iranian wrestler arrested and identified by state news as ‘agent’
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Celine Alkhaldi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Iranian officials said they have identified the “Iran International agent” arrested Thursday as Elham Afkari, the sister of famous Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari, who was executed two years ago, according to state news agency IRNA. Wrestler Navid Afkari was executed by the Iranian government on September 12, 2020. “It should be noted that she [Elham Afkari] is the sister of Navid Afkari, the killer of martyr Torkman, an employee of the regional water company of Fars province,” IRNA reported. Saeed Afkari, Elham and Navid’s brother, confirmed his sister’s arrest on Twitter on Thursday, saying that Elham’s three-year-old daughter was also missing. Since Navid Afkari was executed, his family has faced many court cases over involvement in the demonstrations in 2018.

☆ Israel Hits Suspected Iran Weapons Convoy in Syria With Airstrikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( David S. Cloud | Benoit Faucon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Israel carried out airstrikes in eastern Syria targeting a convoy of vehicles suspected of smuggling Iranian weapons after it crossed the border from Iraq, people familiar with the attack said Wednesday. The attack late Tuesday near Abu Kamal—a border town often used as a transshipment point by militant groups with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps—destroyed several vehicles and killed at least 10 people, including an unknown number of Iranians, according to the people and Iraqi militia members.

CNN —Two British-Iranian journalists working in the United Kingdom have been warned by police of a “credible” plot by Iran to kill them, according to their employer, London-based news channel Iran International. The Iranian government has labeled Iran International as a “terrorist organization,” Iran’s state-aligned news agency ISNA reported Tuesday, citing the country’s information ministry. CNN reached out to Iran International for comment. Iran International’s protest coverageFounded in 2017, Iran International has been at the forefront of covering the recent demonstrations with exclusive footage of events on the ground. The sanctioned entities included what Tehran referred to as “anti-Iranian TV channels” such as Iran International, Tasnim reported.

Almost all the funds, some $7.8 billion, flowed between Binance and Iran's largest crypto exchange, Nobitex, according to a review of data from leading U.S. blockchain researcher Chainalysis. The scale of Binance's Iranian crypto flows – and the fact that they are continuing – has not been previously reported. The total volume of Iranian transactions flowing through Binance is far greater than through any other exchange, the data show. The vast majority of the $8 billion in Iranian crypto transactions identified by Reuters involved the main Binance exchange. This October, the Treasury fined Seattle-based crypto exchange Bittrex $24 million for violating sanctions on Iran and other countries by processing crypto transactions worth over $260 million.

☆ Threat of Iran Attack Has Eased, U.S. and Persian Gulf Officials Say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Dion Nissenbaum | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Saudi officials had said Iran might stage an attack to deflect attention from a protest movement. The threat of an Iranian attack on Saudi Arabia or other Middle East neighbors has eased but not passed, Persian Gulf and U.S. officials said, days after Riyadh and Washington shared intelligence indicating an imminent strike. U.S., Saudi and other military forces had been on heightened alert for an attack from Iran, as tensions between Riyadh and Tehran reached their highest point in years. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had threatened Saudi Arabia over the coverage of Iranian protests by a Saudi-backed Farsi-language television station, Iran International.

☆ Iranian Protesters Defy Military Calls to Stay Home
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( David S. Cloud | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Demonstrations in Iran began as a defiant call for women’s rights and have transformed into an antigovernment movementIranian student protesters defied a call to halt demonstrations from one of the country’s top military commanders, facing down security forces at universities and on the streets in multiple cities on Monday. Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami , the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, directed his warning to young protesters on Saturday, saying that they had been fooled by Iran’s foreign adversaries and that they were risking their future.

☆ U.S. slaps sanctions on Iranian officials over protest crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERSWASHINGTON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on Iran, targeting Iranian officials and entities over internet censorship and a crackdown on protesters following the death of a young woman in the custody of the morality police. The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said it imposed sanctions on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officials, provincial and Iranian prison officials, as well as two entities accused of "efforts to disrupt digital freedom" in Iran. Seyyed Heshmatollah Hayat Al-Ghaib, the director-general of Tehran Province Prisons - which the Treasury said gave him oversight of Evin - was also named. The commander of the IRGC intelligence organization, Mohammad Kazemi, and Abbas Nilforushan, the deputy commander for IRGC operations, as well as other officials were also named. Those that engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions.

☆ U.S. issues fresh sanctions against Iranian officials for 'brutal' crackdown on peaceful protestors following Mahsa Amini's death continue
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The U.S. Treasury announced a fresh round of sanctions Wednesday against Iranian officials for brutal violence against peaceful demonstrators as protests following the death of Iranian woman Mahsa Amini continue. The new sanctions come 40 days after the 22-year-old Amini's death in the custody of Iran's morality police. Iranian officials have continued their crackdown on protesters while limiting access to internet services. "The United States is imposing new sanctions on Iranian officials overseeing organizations involved in violent crackdowns and killings, including of children, as part of our commitment to hold all levels of the Iranian government accountable for its repression." Treasury designated 10 Iranian officials, two Iranian intelligence actors and two Iranian entities involved in the Iranian government's efforts to interfere with internet access:Mohammad Kazemi: Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Intelligence Organization.

☆ A feared Iranian militia is leading the crackdown on protesters. Who are the Basij?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Hyder Abbasi | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Dressed in black, the group of chanting schoolgirls in the Iranian city of Shiraz appeared determined to make themselves heard. Several videos posted to social media since her death have featured demonstrators shouting angry chants against the Basij. The Basij gave them access to higher education, subsidized consumer goods, free health care and job security, he added. Suppression methodsThere are three primary methods the Basij use to suppress anti-government protests, Golkar said. In 2009, rights groups including Amnesty International, said the group had used excessive force during peaceful anti-government protests triggered by a disputed presidential election.

☆ Iran sends drone trainers to Crimea in latest sign of deepening relations between the country and Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Iran sent personnel to Russia train Russian soldiers in flying Iranian drones, according to US officials. Russia in recent days has used the Iranian drones in a series of attacks throughout Ukraine. "The presence of Iranian trainers on the ground in Russian-occupied Ukraine would further implicate Iran in assisting Russia's unprovoked and brutal war, including attacks on Ukrainian civilians." Russia in recent days has relied on Iranian drones in a series of attacks targeting civilian and electrical infrastructure. Russia initially sent its operatives to Iran to remedy the errors, but Iran in recent weeks has opted instead to send its trainers into Crimea, according to reports.

☆ Canada imposes new sanctions over human rights violations in Iran
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 19 (Reuters) - Canada imposed sanctions on six individuals and four entities on Wednesday that it said were among the worst offenders that have participated in or enabled "gross human rights violations" in Iran. "Canada will continue to support them by using all tools at our disposal to respond to the Iranian regime's violations of human rights and its threats to regional peace and security," Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement. The sanctions list includes Mohammad Karami of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, a hardline watchdog body called the Guardian Council and the Assembly of Experts, which responsible for selecting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's successor. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Ismail Shakil in OttawaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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