THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 4:30 PM CET
UK Parliament Debates Iran’s Destabilizing Role in Middle East and Support for Terror Proxies
In a heated session of the UK House of Commons, British lawmakers turned their attention to the destabilizing role of the Iranian regime in the Middle East, condemning Tehran’s support for terrorist proxies and its involvement in regional conflicts.
Priti Patel, Foreign Secretary in the shadow cabinet, issued a stark warning about the Iranian regime’s malign influence, stating that the clerical regime has left its “fingerprints on much of the inhumane suffering and bloodshed” in the region. She called for decisive action to counter Iran’s agenda, particularly its support for armed groups in the region.
Responding to Patel, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy acknowledged Iran’s “malign effect” and reaffirmed Britain’s commitment to preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. He confirmed ongoing coordination with the United States, France, and Germany on this front, underscoring the UK’s intent to counter the regime’s regional ambitions.
The debate highlighted growing cross-party concern over the regime’s use of proxy warfare, arms transfers, and its role in undermining stability in Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, and beyond. MPs demanded clarity on potential UK responses, including sanctions enforcement, military deterrence, and diplomatic pressure on Iran’s regional enablers.
The session came amid renewed violence in Gaza and escalating threats in the Red Sea, with MPs pressing the government to take a firmer stance against Tehran’s expanding regional footprint.
UPDATE: 12:30 PM CET
U.S. Report: Iran a Global Hub for Money Laundering and Terror Finance
The U.S. State Department’s latest International Narcotics Control Strategy Report has identified Iran as a high-risk center for money laundering and terror financing, highlighting the central role of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in illicit financial activity.
The report states that the IRGC—designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization—controls major sectors of Iran’s underground economy, including black-market oil sales, smuggling, and trade-based money laundering. The regime is also implicated in financing proxy groups such as Hezbollah and the Houthis.
Despite having anti-money laundering laws on paper, enforcement remains weak. The report points to systemic corruption, a lack of transparency, and political interference as key obstacles. Iran’s Financial Intelligence Unit is under-resourced and not a member of international oversight bodies such as the Egmont Group or FATF.
Iran remains on the FATF’s list of high-risk jurisdictions, with the international body urging full countermeasures. U.S. officials warn that the Iranian regime’s financial networks continue to threaten global security by enabling terror financing and sanctions evasion.
UPDATE: 10:30 AM CET
U.S. Airstrikes Hit Strategic Houthi Sites in Yemen, Triggering Heavy Explosions in Hodeidah
U.S. forces launched a series of airstrikes early Friday targeting Houthi military infrastructure in Yemen’s Hodeidah province, in what marks the latest escalation in Washington’s campaign to halt attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea. According to local sources, six American airstrikes struck the strategic coastal area of al-Fazah in Al-Tuhayta district, south of Hodeidah. The area, formerly a base for Yemen’s naval forces prior to the 2014 Houthi coup, has since been used by the Iran-backed group as a missile launch site and weapons storage hub.
Additional strikes were reported in Khokha, al-Durayhimi, and al-Ghuwariq, with U.S. jets targeting rocket platforms and supply depots. The latest round of attacks follows four earlier U.S. airstrikes in the Kathib area of Hodeidah’s port district, as well as strikes in Al-Safra district in Saada province, a known Houthi stronghold.
The Pentagon confirmed these operations are part of a broader response to the Houthis’ intensified campaign against commercial vessels in the Red Sea. Since late 2023, Houthi forces have conducted more than 100 attacks on shipping routes, severely disrupting global trade and prompting repeated U.S. and allied military interventions.
At least 16 senior Houthi figures were reportedly killed in the recent wave of airstrikes, bringing the total death toll from U.S. operations since Saturday to over 30, according to Houthi sources. Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Iran would be held responsible for any future Houthi attacks, pledging severe consequences in response.
The strikes represent the most extensive American military action in the Middle East since Trump’s return to office in January, underscoring rising tensions across the region.
UPDATE: 9:30 AM CET
Linda Chavez Calls for Firm Western Policy on Iran in Interview with Simay Azadi
In an exclusive interview with Simay Azadi TV, Linda Chavez, renowned author, political commentator, and former Director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, addressed the Iranian regime’s continued use of hostage diplomacy and urged Western governments to adopt a firm and principled policy toward Tehran.
Chavez voiced strong support for the Ten-Point Plan proposed by Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), which envisions a secular, democratic republic in Iran based on gender equality, freedom of expression, and the separation of religion and state.
In an exclusive with Simay Azadi, @chavezlinda
addresses Iran’s hostage diplomacy, calls for a firm Western policy toward Tehran, and supports Mrs. @Maryam_Rajavi 10-point plan for Iran’s future. #FreeIran2025In a part of this interview she said:
The fact that the resistance… pic.twitter.com/7reluTNnT5— SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) March 21, 2025
Speaking about Rajavi’s leadership, Chavez emphasized its symbolic power: “The fact that the resistance to the Iranian regime is led by Madame Maryam Rajavi to me is very symbolic. It flies in the face of what the regime has done.” She highlighted that despite nearly five decades of oppressive rule, resistance has endured—both inside the country and among the Iranian diaspora.
Chavez praised Rajavi’s role in unifying the opposition and noted that her leadership stands as a powerful symbol of what women can accomplish in the fight for freedom and justice.
The interview is part of Simay Azadi’s ongoing international coverage of voices supporting a free and democratic future for Iran.
Iran’s Regime Enters Persian Year 1404 in A Storm of Crises
In her Nowruz (Persian New Year) speech, delivered on March 18, 2025, Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said: “The year 1404 [2025–2026] heralds a new era in Iranian society, history, and the destiny of Iran and Iranians. It is a time of change. The year 1403 [2024–2025] was marked with blows and defeats for the Velayat-e Faqih regime. May 1404 be a year of progress and victory for the people of Iran. Yes, the time for a great housecleaning in Iran has come. The turbaned tyrant and the entirety of his regime, with 1,142 recorded executions this year, represent the gloom and antiquity of winter. Instead, a blessed era is dawning—the era of the people’s sovereignty, a flourishing garden of freedom and justice, the spring of silenced talents, and a season where a hundred flowers, and a thousand flowers, will bloom in defiance.”
Protests Against Death Sentences for Political Prisoners in Rasht and Sonqor
On Tuesday, March 18, 2025, on the eve of the Persian New Year, families of political prisoners sentenced to death, along with labor and civil activists, held simultaneous protests in two locations: outside the Lakan Prison in Rasht and in the city of Sonqor, in Kermanshah Province, western Iran. These demonstrations coincided with the 60th week of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign and aimed to oppose the imminent execution of several political prisoners.
In Rasht, protesters gathered outside Lakan Prison, setting up a Haft-Sin table—a traditional symbol of the Persian New Year—and holding up photos of Sharifeh Mohammadi and Manouchehr Fallah, two political prisoners facing execution.
Sanctioning Additional Entities That Have Traded in Iran’s Petroleum
The Iranian regime continues to fuel conflict in the Middle East, pursue its nuclear program, and support its terrorist proxies. Iran’s oil exports are enabled by a network of illicit shipping facilitators in multiple jurisdictions who, through obfuscation and deception, load and transport Iranian oil for sale to buyers in Asia.
Today, the United States is taking action under National Security Presidential Memorandum/NSPM-2, President Trump’s maximum pressure campaign on Iran. This action marks the fourth round of sanctions targeting Iranian oil sales to stop the flow of revenue the regime uses to fund its destabilizing activities. The Department of State is imposing sanctions on one entity engaged in the acquisition of Iranian petroleum. This target is being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13846, which authorizes and reimposes certain sanctions with respect to Iran. In a separate action, the Department of the Treasury is imposing sanctions on 19 entities and vessels pursuant to E.O. 13902, which targets Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical sectors.
Iran’s Regime Refuses to Publish Budget Tables in Unprecedented Move
According to the state-affiliated news outlet Etemad Online, on March 19, legal expert Kambiz Norouzi strongly criticized the Planning and Budget Organization’s refusal to publish the 2025 budget tables, calling it a sign of deliberate secrecy.
In a harsh statement directed at the government, he said: “It is astonishing that the Planning and Budget Organization or the Presidential Office refuses to publish the budget tables. Secrecy is usually not unrelated to wrongdoing. Those who are confident in the correctness of their actions never resort to concealment.”
Norouzi stressed that the budget law, unlike military or security information, is not classified and that there is no justification for hiding it.