THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 8:30 PM CEST
Iranian Dissident Group Reveals Secret ‘Rainbow’ Nuclear Site Built to Boost Missile Reach
Iran is developing “boosted” nuclear warheads at a secret military site disguised as a chemical plant, according to intelligence presented by Iranian dissident group NCRI, which accuses Tehran of expanding its nuclear arsenal with hydrogen bomb capability.
On Thursday, senior officials with the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) held a press conference exposing a clandestine Iranian nuclear weapons facility — known internally as the “Rainbow Site” — allegedly aimed at manufacturing enhanced nuclear warheads and hydrogen bombs.
According to NCRI disclosures, the site — officially masked as a chemical plant operated by Diba Energy Sina — spans nearly 2,500 acres in the Eyvanaki region southeast of Tehran. The base, the group claims, is part of a larger secret program run by Iran’s Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), which operates under the authority of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
U.S. Congressman Warns Against Iran’s Expanding Drone Threat in Capitol Hill Event
At an event hosted by United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) on Capitol Hill, U.S. Representative Mike Lawler raised alarm over the growing threat posed by the Iranian regime’s expanding drone program and its regional network of proxy forces. For the first time, a Shahed-136 Iranian drone was publicly displayed inside Congress, symbolizing the regime’s increasingly aggressive military footprint beyond its borders.
Lawler emphasized the strategic danger posed by Iran’s drone technology, which has been used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its proxies in attacks against U.S. forces and allies across the Middle East and in Ukraine. He stressed the importance of vigilance and unity in confronting the IRGC and its affiliated militias.
I spoke at an important event hosted by @UANI on the growing threat of Iranian drone proliferation. With Iran’s drones like this Shahed-136 aiding Russia’s assault on Ukraine, we must remain vigilant and united in confronting the IRGC and its terror proxies. pic.twitter.com/DrVNNvvFq5
— Congressman Mike Lawler (@RepMikeLawler) May 9, 2025
The IRGC’s Quds Force continues to arm and train proxy groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Shia militias in Iraq and Syria, using drone warfare as a central pillar of its asymmetric operations. Iran’s UAV proliferation has become a key tool in destabilizing the region and projecting influence far beyond its borders.
Lawmakers, including Lawler, have called for strengthening U.S. defense cooperation with regional partners, increasing funding to counter these threats, and maintaining targeted sanctions on IRGC commanders and the financial entities enabling their operations.
UPDATE: 9:00 AM CEST
Denied Treatment: The Silent Torture of Political Prisoners in Iran
The Iranian regime continues to deny sick political prisoners proper medical care, refusing both hospital transfers and medical leave, deliberately. This slow and systematic torture has become a recognized tactic of the regime.
The NCRI Women’s Committee calls on the UN Human Rights Council, the High Commissioner, the Special Rapporteur, and other human rights bodies—including the European Union and its member states to take urgent action to release ailing political prisoners immediately.
Maryam Akbari Monfared, currently imprisoned in Qarchak, has finished serving 15 years without a single day of medical leave and suffers from severe spinal and disc damage. She faces the threat of paralysis and urgently needs specialized treatment. Her “crime”? Seeking justice for her sister and three brothers, all executed in the 1980s and during the 1988 massacre.
The Gendered Face of Poverty in Iran: How Women Bear the Heaviest Burden
The Gendered Face of Poverty in Iran – In recent years, the economic crisis in Iran has deepened, with poverty now affecting over 30% of the population by the end of the Persian year 1403 (March 2025), according to official figures.
However, according to unofficial estimates, around 80% of the population in Iran lives below the poverty line and cannot consume 2,100 calories a day; this means over 72 million people are living in poverty in Iran.
Yet behind this general statistic lies a harsher, more invisible truth: women in Iran are disproportionately impacted by poverty, both economically and socially, due to structural inequalities, legal discrimination, and systemic exclusion from the labor market.
Over 500,000 Iranian Construction Workers Deprived of Insurance, Labor Activist Warns
Labor activist Davoud Keshvari has raised alarm over the lack of insurance coverage for more than 500,000 construction workers in Iran, calling the situation a “social disaster.”
In an interview with ILNA news agency on Friday, May 9, Keshvari said that while Iranian law mandates the allocation of insurance funds for construction workers—drawn from building permit fees and coefficients in construction contracts—these resources are not being used for their intended purpose.
Keshvari, who also heads the Plasterers’ Association of Qom Province, stated that fewer than three percent of construction workers in Iran are currently insured. “The conditions facing these workers remain unchanged, and there is no clear plan for resolving the issue,” he said. “So far, we have seen no willingness to enforce the law or uphold justice.”
Rising Unemployment Rate in Iran in Winter 2025
The Iranian regime’s Statistical Center reported a rise in the unemployment rate in winter 2025 compared to autumn 2024. Critics, however, argue that due to flaws in the data collection methodology, the actual unemployment rate is significantly higher than the figures published by regime-affiliated data centers.
According to the regime-affiliated ISNA news agency and based on the report from the Statistical Center, by the end of winter 2025, the unemployment rate among individuals aged 15 and older reached 7.8%, reflecting a 0.6% increase compared to the previous season.
According to the published data, the unemployment rate rose in both male and female demographics. Among men, it increased from 5.9% in autumn 2024 to 6.5% in the past winter. Among women, it rose from 13.7% to 14.2% by the end of winter 2025.
Mandatory Power Outages in Iran’s Government Offices
According to Fatemeh Mohajerani, spokesperson for the government of Iran’s regime, the decision to shut down cooling systems in government offices has been made in order to “reduce electricity consumption” and “save energy.”
The government spokesperson announced a new directive requiring all cooling systems in government offices and public institutions to be turned off after office hours (1:00 PM).
Mohajerani stated on Saturday, May 10, that the decision to shut off cooling systems in government offices was made to “reduce electricity consumption” and “conserve energy.”
Security and Judicial Authorities Prevent Scheduled Release of Political Prisoner Mohammad Ashtiani
Despite an official notification stating that political prisoner Mohammad Ashtiani Araki was due to be released on January 4, 2025, Iranian security and judicial authorities have blocked his release.
According to informed sources, the judge of Branch 2 of the Sentence Enforcement Office at the District 12 Prosecutor’s Office in Tehran issued a letter stating that Ashtiani’s case has not yet been forwarded to the court for “clarification regarding his sentences,” and as a result, his release has been halted.
A source close to the prisoner reported that Mohammad Ashtiani has been incarcerated for over seven years—since 2018—in Karaj Central Prison and Tehran’s Great Prison, without being granted a single day of furlough.
Political Prisoner Salar Sedighi Hamedani Sentenced to an Additional Seven Years After Unfair Trial in Iran
In a continuation of systematic pressure on political prisoners in Iran, political prisoner Salar Sedighi Hamedani has been sentenced to an additional seven years in prison following a brief and reportedly unfair trial. This new sentence comes despite the fact that he had already been serving a 19-year prison term, seven years of which he has spent under inhumane conditions.
According to reports, the recent trial, presided over by Judge Sajad Dousti, lasted only a few minutes. Sedighi Hamedani was denied the right to choose his legal counsel. The new charges against him include alleged “membership in the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK),” “propaganda against the state,” and “disrupting prison security”.
Protest in Bern Calls for Abolition of Death Sentences and Freedom for Iran’s Political Prisoners
Bern, Switzerland – May 8, 2025 – Supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized an exhibition in Bern to protest the Iranian regime’s harsh repression, particularly the death sentences issued for political prisoners Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani, who reportedly face imminent execution.