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☆ Iran, Russia link banking systems amid Western sanction
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Iran and Russia have connected their interbank communication and transfer systems to help boost trade and financial transactions, a senior Iranian official said on Monday, as both Tehran and Moscow are chafing under Western sanctions. Similar limitations have been slapped on some Russian banks since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine last year. "Iranian banks no longer need to use SWIFT ... with Russian banks, which can be for the opening of Letters of Credit and transfers or warranties," Deputy Governor of Iran's Central Bank, Mohsen Karimi, told the semi-official Fars news agency. Iran's Central Bank chief Mohammad Farzin welcomed the move. "The financial channel between Iran and the world is being repaired," he tweeted.

☆ Bomb-carrying drones targeted a defense factory in central Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Iran reported a drone attack on a defense facility in the city of Isfaham on Saturday night. The Defense Ministry said it shot down two drones and a third struck the building and caused "minor damage." A Defense Ministry statement said that three drones were launched at the factory. A mobile phone video was aired by state TV, appearing to show the moment the drone struck the building and caused an explosion in the central Iranian city. Reports of the drone strike came as a large fire broke out at an oil refinery near the city of Tabriz on Saturday.

☆ U.K. condemns ‘barbaric’ execution of British-Iranian accused of spying in Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Iran has executed British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari, the judiciary’s Mizan news agency reported on Saturday, after sentencing the former Iranian deputy defense minister to death on charges of spying for Britain. The U.K., which had declared the case against Alireza Akbari as politically motivated and called for his release, condemned the execution. In the video, Akbari did not confess to involvement in the assassination but said a British agent had asked for information about Fakhrizadeh. Iran’s state media often airs purported confessions by suspects in politically charged cases. Iran has issued dozens of death sentences as part of the crackdown on the unrest, executing at least four people.

☆ Factbox: Alireza Akbari: the British-Iranian executed by Tehran
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 14 (Reuters) - Iran has executed British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari, the judiciary's Mizan news agency reported on Saturday, after sentencing the former Iranian deputy defence minister to death on charges of spying for Britain. - According to a caption in a video aired by Iran's state news agency IRNA on Thursday, Akbari moved to Britain after being briefly detained and released on bail in 2008. Reuters could not verify if Akbari had moved to Britain in 2008, or when he returned to Iran. - In the audio recording, Akbari said he had made false confessions as a result of torture. In the video, Akbari did not confess to involvement in the assassination, but said a British agent had asked for information about Fakhrizadeh.

☆ Iran executes British-Iranian national despite UK, U.S. pleas
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Iran has executed British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari, the judiciary's Mizan news agency reported on Saturday, after sentencing the former Iranian deputy defense minister to death on charges of spying for Britain. In the video, Akbari did not confess to involvement in the assassination but said a British agent had asked for information about Fakhrizadeh. Iran's state media often airs purported confessions by suspects in politically charged cases. Reuters could not establish the authenticity of the state media video and audio, or when or where they were recorded. Iran has issued dozens of death sentences as part of the crackdown on the unrest, executing at least four people.

☆ Iran executes British-Iranian national Akbari - Iranian report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Iran has executed British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari, the judiciary's Mizan news agency reported on Saturday, after sentencing him to death on charges of spying for Britain. British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said on Friday that Iran must not follow through with the execution of Akbari, a former Iranian deputy defence minister. In the video, Akbari did not confess to involvement in the assassination but said a British agent had asked for information about Fakhrizadeh. Iran’s state media often airs purported confessions by suspects in politically charged cases. Reuters could not establish the authenticity of the state media video and audio, or when or where they were recorded.

☆ Iran video links detained British-Iranian to death of nuclear scientist
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Iranian state media published a video on Thursday in which British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari, sentenced to death for spying, said he played a role in the 2020 assassination of the country's top nuclear scientist. Iran sentenced the former deputy defence minister, who holds dual Iranian-British citizenship, to death on charges of spying for Britain, Iranian state media reported on Wednesday. British officials did not immediately comment about the video clips aired by Iran's state media. Iran’s state media often airs purported confessions by suspects in politically charged cases. "He was one of the most important agents of the British intelligence service in Iran who had access to some very sensitive centres in the country," Iran's Intelligence Ministry said.

☆ Iran top court accepts protester's appeal against death sentence
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The Supreme Court has accepted the appeal of Sahand Noor Mohammadzadeh, one of the accused in the recent riots. It said 66 members of the security forces had also been killed. Iranian officials have said that up to 300 people, including members of the security forces, have lost their lives. Last week, the Supreme Court accepted the death sentence appeal of rapper Saman Seydi Yasin but confirmed the same sentence against protester Mohammad Qobadloo. Earlier this month it suspended the death sentence of protester Mahan Sadrat, who had been charged with various alleged offences including stabbing a security officer and setting fire to a motorcycle.

☆ Iran Supreme Court accepts appeals of two protesters sentenced to death
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 24 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Court has accepted the appeals of two protesters sentenced to death due to flaws in investigating their cases, the country's judiciary said on Saturday. "The Supreme Court accepted the appeals of Mohammad Qobadloo and Saman Saidi Yasin, accused of the recent riots," the judiciary's Mizan news agency reported. "Due to research deficiencies, the Supreme Court has referred them to the same courts for re-examination." Yasin, a Kurd who raps about inequality, oppression and unemployment, was accused of attempting to kill security forces and singing revolutionary songs. A top state security body said early this month that 200 people, including members of security forces, had lost their lives in the unrest.

LONDON — Iran’s government has spent months violently cracking down on protests gripping the country. The first known executions of people arrested over the monthslong protests prompted an outcry from Western governments and human rights activists, but they came as little surprise to those involved in the demonstrations or carefully watching them from afar. Human rights groups and Western governments say Iran’s judicial system is based on sham trials behind closed doors. A week earlier, Iran executed another man, Mohsen Shekari, for allegedly blocking a road in Tehran and stabbing a pro-government militia member who required stitches. Around a dozen others have been sentenced to death, according to human rights groups.

☆ Iran authorities arrest Taraneh Alidoosti, actress of Oscar-winning movie 'The Salesman'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

CAIRO — Iranian authorities arrested one of the country’s most famous actresses on charges of spreading falsehoods about nationwide protests that grip the country, state media said Saturday. The report by IRNA said Taraneh Alidoosti, star of the Oscar-winning movie “The Salesman,” was detained a week after she made a post on Instagram expressing solidarity with the first man recently executed for crimes committed during the nationwide protests. Iran has been rocked by protests since the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died after being detained by the morality police. Hengameh Ghaziani and Katayoun Riahi, two other famous actresses in Iran, were arrested by authorities for expressing solidarity with protesters on social media. Over 18,200 people have been detained by authorities.

☆ Iran carries out second execution linked to anti-government protests
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DUBAI, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The Islamic Republic hanged a man in public on Monday who had been convicted of killing two members of security forces, the judiciary's Mizan news agency reported, the second execution linked to anti-government protests in less than a week. "Majid Reza Rahnavard was hanged in public in (the holy Shi'ite city of) Mashahd this morning ... he was sentenced to death for 'waging war against God' after stabbing to death two members of security forces," Mizan said. Rights groups have said Shekari was tortured and forced to confess. Nationwide protests that erupted after the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini on Sept. 16 represent one of the biggest challenges to the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979. Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ 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.

He was convicted of “waging war against God” for reportedly killing two members of the Basij paramilitary force, and injuring four others on November 17, the outlet said. The charge of “waging war against God” carries the death penalty under the theocracy of the Islamic Republic since 1979. Rahnavard was hanged in a public execution in the northeastern city of Mashhad early Monday morning, it said. He is the second known person to be executed in connection to the 2022 protests. His death comes less than a week after Mohsen Shekari – the first known protester to be executed – who was hanged last Thursday.

☆ UN agency says Israel is delaying new visas for its staff
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Hadas Gold | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Jerusalem CNN —A United Nations agency that operates in the West Bank and Gaza says Israel is not processing visas for its newly recruited staff, while Israeli officials accuse the agency of “ignoring Israeli victims of terror” in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank, a charge the agency denies. The UN considers East Jerusalem and the West Bank to be occupied territory, and Israelis living there to be living in illegal settlements. Erdan said when OCHA is asked why they don’t count Israeli victims, they are told the agency does not have reliable data. “Of course you don’t, you don’t employ Hebrew speakers, and the senior manager of the agency is Palestinian,” Erdan said. OCHA’s latest report does record some instances of Israelis being injured by stones thrown at civilian vehicles traveling in the West Bank.

☆ Female protesters are being shot in the face, breasts, and genitals by Iranian security forces, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Iran's security forces are shooting women's faces, breasts, and genitals, medics say, per The Guardian. One doctor told the paper that security forces "wanted to destroy the beauty of these women." Several doctors treating protesters in secret to avoid arrest told The Guardian they observed female protesters had different wounds to male patients. Another doctor from Karaj, a city close to Tehran, accused Iranian security forces of shooting at the private body parts and faces of female protesters because of "an inferiority complex," The Guardian reported. According to the human rights group HRANA, as many as 469 protesters may have been killed in violent clashes with security forces, per Reuters.

☆ Iran's Raisi promises to pursue crackdown on protesters; cleric critical of execution
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Molavi Abdolhamid, a Sunni cleric in the Shi'ite-ruled Islamic Republic, criticized the death sentence, according to his website. Human rights groups said Shekari was tortured and forced to confess. In Geneva, U.N. Human Rights High Commissioner Volker Turk called the execution “very troubling and clearly designed to send a chilling effect to the rest of the protesters." Britain announced sanctions on Friday against 30 people worldwide, including officials from Russia, Iran and Myanmar it deems responsible for human rights abuses or corruption. Molavi Abdolhamid made his critical comments from Zahedan, the capital of restive Sistan-Baluchistan province, home to Iran's Baluch minority who have faced discrimination and repression for decades, according to human rights groups.

Iran said Thursday it had executed a person arrested over the monthslong protests gripping the country, the first known death penalty carried out related to the unrest. At least 475 people have been killed and 18,000 others arrested, according to the watchdog Human Rights Activists in Iran, which is based just outside Washington. It "must be met with STRONG reactions otherwise we will be facing daily executions of protesters," Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of the Oslo-based activist group Iran Human Rights, said in a tweet. The news agency alleged that Shekari was offered money to wield the machete and take part in the protests. Iran executed 314 people last year, the most in the world after China, according to data compiled by Amnesty.

CNN —Iran has executed a man for injuring a paramilitary officer in the first known execution linked to protests that have swept the country since September, state media reported Thursday. Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s judiciary, and the semi-official Tasmin news agency both named the protester as Mohsen Shekari. It is the first execution connected to the protests to be publicly reported by state media. At least 458 people have been killed in the unrest since September, according to Norway-based Iran Human Rights on Wednesday. In late November, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said Iran was in a “full-fledged human rights crisis,” and called for an independent investigation into violations of human rights in the country.

☆ Iran executes protester for injuring guard with knife - Tasnim
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Iran executed a protester on Thursday who was convicted of injuring a security guard with a knife and closing off a street in the capital, Tehran, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, part of a clampdown on nationwide unrest. The Tasnim news agency identified the person who was executed as Mohsen Shekari but gave no more details. Amnesty International has said the Iranian authorities are seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in what it called "sham trials designed to intimidate those participating in the popular uprising that has rocked Iran". Iran has blamed the unrest on its foreign foes including the United States. Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Michael GeorgyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

It fell as far as $73.60 earlier, its lowest since Dec. 22, 2021. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, will meet on Dec. 4. read moreInvestors also focused on Western plans for a price cap on Russian oil. On Thursday, EU governments were split on the level at which to cap Russian oil prices. The price cap is due to come into effect on Dec. 5 when an EU ban on Russian crude also takes effect.

☆ Oil falls over $2 a barrel as China's Covid protests fuel demand fears
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Oil futures fell more than $2 a barrel on Monday, with WTI hitting an 11-month low, as protests in top importer China over strict Covid-19 curbs fueled demand concerns. WTI's trading range is expected to fall to $70-$75, he said, adding the market could stay volatile depending on the outcome of the OPEC+ meeting and the price cap on Russian oil. Investors also focused on Western plans for a price cap on Russian oil. On Thursday, EU governments were split on the level at which to cap Russian oil prices. The price cap is due to come into effect on Dec. 5 when an EU ban on Russian crude kicks off.

WTI's trading range is expected to fall to $70-$75, he said, adding the market could stay volatile depending on the outcome of the OPEC+ meeting and the price cap on Russian oil. read moreInvestors also focused on Western plans for a price cap on Russian oil. Group of Seven(G7) and European Union diplomats have been discussing a price cap on Russian oil of between $65 and $70 a barrel, with the aim of limiting revenue to fund Moscow's military offensive in Ukraine without disrupting global oil markets. On Thursday, EU governments were split on the level at which to cap Russian oil prices. The price cap is due to come into effect on Dec. 5 when an EU ban on Russian crude kicks off.

☆ OPEC+ meeting to take into account market conditions – Iraqi official
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Oil Marketing Company FollowCAIRO, Nov 26 (Reuters) - The OPEC+ meeting in December will take into account the condition and balance of the market, Iraq's state news agency quoted Saadoun Mohsen, a senior official at the country's state oil marketer SOMO, as saying on Saturday. OPEC+'s October decision to reduce production by two million barrels per day (bpd) had played an important role in stabilising global markets, Saadoun, who serves as Iraq's delegate to OPEC, said. OPEC+, which includes members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies led by Russia, will hold its next meeting in Vienna on Dec. 4. Oil markets are witnessing "severe fluctuations" due to the repercussions of the pandemic, a slowing global economy and the war in Ukraine, the Iraqi official said, making it harder to ensure price stability. Reporting By Ahmed Tobla; Writing by Moaz Abd-AlazizOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Analysis: Iran's unrest sounds death knell for once vibrant reformists
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

It highlighted the main problem facing reformists in a system where Khamenei, 83 and in power since 1989, wields ultimate power. "People feel reformists helped hardliners by promising reforms that were impossible with hardliners in power," a former official who served in the Khatami administration told Reuters. The reform movement is dead." That view has been echoed in the streets where protesters have grouped reformists with hardliners as part of the problem. The fact is that the reform movement is dead, its has been dead for some time," he said.

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