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UPDATE: 4:00 PM CET
Exclusive: Inside Trump’s Iran Fear
Iran’s threat to assassinate Donald Trump during the 2024 campaign was far more serious than publicly known — and led to extraordinary precautions by his team that included using a decoy plane to avert a feared attempt on his life.
Why it matters: My upcoming book, “Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power,” reveals the depth of U.S. authorities’ concerns about an Iranian attack on Trump — and how it impacted him.
- Iran clearly is still on Trump’s mind: Last week, he said he’d given his team instructions to “obliterate” Iran if its operatives were to kill him.
- He later tempered that remark by saying he wanted a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran, which has targeted Trump since 2020, when as president he ordered an airstrike that killed Qassem Soleimani, a top Iranian military leader.
UPDATE: 1:00 PM CET
We Are Witnessing a New Political Era in Iran
On February 10, Iran marks 46 years since its transition from a traditional dictatorship under the Shah to a religious fascist dictatorship under Khomeini. Over the decades, the clerical regime has relentlessly plundered the Iranian people and brutally suppressed anyone courageous enough to resist. Amnesty International has accused the regime of crimes against humanity, while the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, up until July 2024, documented the regime’s acts of genocide targeting the democratic opposition movement, NCRI.
In the past 46 years, 120,000 political prisoners have been executed, often after prolonged periods of torture. Today, we are witnessing a new political era in Iran. Public dissatisfaction has never been higher, as the vast majority of the population struggles below the poverty line—despite Iran’s vast oil wealth.
Regionally, the regime has suffered significant setbacks. Its closest ally, the Assad regime in Syria, has collapsed, marking a severe blow to Tehran’s influence. Additionally, the regime’s regional proxies, such as Hezbollah, have been significantly weakened, further diminishing Iran’s leverage in the region.
UPDATE: 7:00 AM CET
Iranians Send a Strong Message with Grand Rally on Anniversary of 1979 Revolution
The great demonstration of freedom-loving Iranians in Paris on the anniversary of the 1979 anti-monarchic revolution of Iran is an important event that must be examined from various angles. First, this demonstration carried the message of the revolution’s vitality and continuity, as well as the inevitable victory of the Iranian people’s democratic revolution. This comes at a time when fake alternatives are trying to deny the Iranian people’s revolution and sell the narrative that Iran’s people want a return to the Shah dictatorship.
A massive crowd of tightly packed Iranians, who after gathering in the large demonstration at Denfert-Rochereau Square in the heart of Paris, filled the city’s central streets with remarkable order and grace.
The Undying Spirit of Iran’s 1979 Revolution
In the past decades, Iran’s 1979 revolution has been subject to the most scrutiny and criticism. There is no doubt that the destructive, corrupt, and chaotic rule of the clerics who seized power after the 1979 revolution has cast a shadow over the authenticity and reality of that revolution. However, if we cast aside the ambiguity, we witness an undeniable, unique and national movement against dictatorship in Iran.
February 11, 1979, was the peak of demand for national and social prosperity in Iran—whether political, economic, or cultural. In Iran, a country that had long suffered under dictatorship, this prosperity was primarily defined under the banner of “freedom.” However, Khomeini’s political and religious monopoly, combined with his untouchable aura of sanctity at the time, strangled freedom before the revolution’s fledgling hopes could take flight.
The Rise and Evolution of Super-Extremists in Iran
In recent days, the term “super-extremists” has gained traction in Iranian political discourse, sparking widespread discussion and analysis. This phenomenon, unprecedented in the mullahs’ rule, represents a new chapter in the regime’s ongoing strategy of repression.
In the early years of the Islamic Republic, when the regime’s foundations were still fragile, the phenomenon of government thugs emerged as a primary tool of enforcement. Armed with clubs, these enforcers sought to impose the ideology of the ruling clerics on the Iranian people through sheer force.
These thugs operated under the leadership of figures who personified brutality and repression. One such figure was Sadeq Khalkhali, who, without regard for legal norms, ordered the execution and assassination of thousands in the streets. His actions set a precedent for the regime’s systematic use of violence to silence opposition.
Rising Poverty in Iran: Economic Policies and the Struggle for Survival
A recent report by the Statistical Center of Iran, published on January 7, 2025, reveals a stark reality: 27% of Iranian citizens survive on a daily income of just two dollars. This alarming statistic underscores the growing economic hardship faced by millions, as soaring inflation and currency depreciation continue to erode purchasing power. The depreciation of the Iranian rial has played a significant role in exacerbating poverty. The exchange rate, which stood at 79,500 tomans per U.S. dollar when the Statistical Center’s report was published, has since surged to 85,000 tomans. This rapid devaluation has further diminished the real income of the 27% living below the two-dollar threshold.
Iran: Mahtab Qazizadeh, a 47-Year-Old Mother, Executed in Sari Prison
On the morning of Thursday, February 6, 2025, a woman named Mahtab Qazizadeh was hanged in Sari Central Prison. Mahtab Qazizadeh, a 47-year-old mother of two from Sari, the capital of Mazandaran Province, had been arrested four years ago on charges of murdering her husband and was sentenced to death. As of this report’s publication, Iranian state media have not announced her execution.
Qazizadeh is the second woman executed in Iran in 2025. Before her, Maryam Kaviani was hanged on February 1 in Parsilon Prison in Khorramabad.
Life in Iran on a Daily Income of Two Dollars
The Iranian regime’s Statistics Center states that 27% of Iranians live on a daily income of two dollars, meaning that one-third of the country’s population cannot afford the basic necessities of life. Additionally, the Global Hunger Index (GHI) indicates that 6.5% of Iran’s population suffers from malnutrition. Meanwhile, Iranian citizens report that as the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar has surged to nearly 900,000 rials, the prices of essential goods have multiplied, forcing them to eliminate many other items from their household budgets.
The Statistics Center’s report pertains to January when the exchange rate was around 795,000 rials per dollar. Given the current exchange rate, the real income of the same 27% of Iranians has now fallen below two dollars per day.
At Least “Twofold” Price Difference of Fruits Between Markets and Shops in Iran
As the Iranian New Year (Nowruz) approaches on March 21, the price gap between fruits and vegetables sold in municipal fruit and vegetable markets and those in retail shops across cities has significantly widened.
While these products are offered at more affordable rates in municipal markets, they are sometimes priced up to twice as much in retail shops.
The state-affiliated Borna news agency, reporting on price conditions, states that greenhouse cucumbers are sold at 430,000 rials per kilogram in municipal markets, whereas in city shops, the same quality and weight are priced at 750,000 rials. The exchange rate of the U.S. dollar is currently around 890,000 rials.
Iran’s Supreme Court Rejects Retrial Request for Political Prisoner Pakhshan Azizi
The Supreme Court of Iran has rejected the retrial request for Pakhshan Azizi, a political prisoner currently held in Evin Prison, raising serious concerns about the imminent execution of her death sentence.
Amir Raeesian, Azizi’s lawyer, announced the decision in an interview with the Shargh news agency on February 6, 2025. He stated that Branch 9 of the Supreme Court issued the ruling on January 25, 2025, and formally communicated it to the defense team on February 6, 2025. Raeesian emphasized the urgency of filing another retrial request, warning that the case has been referred to the Execution of Sentences Office, making the enforcement of the death penalty imminent.
Iranian Political Prisoner Motaleb Ahmadian Appeals for Urgent Medical Care
Motaleb Ahmadian, a Kurdish political prisoner who has spent 15 years in prison without a single day of furlough, has sent a message from prison detailing his deteriorating health and the conditions of his detention. Addressing the “honorable and resistant people of Iran and Kurdistan,” Ahmadian describes his suffering and calls for immediate intervention to save his life.
Motaleb Ahmadian, a 41-year-old Kurdish prisoner from Baneh, was arrested in 2010 at the age of 25. He was sentenced to 32 years in prison on charges of “enmity against God” (moharebeh) due to alleged membership in opposition groups. Now in his 15th year of imprisonment, he remains behind bars under dire conditions without ever being granted temporary release.