THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 10:30 PM CET
Former Official Acknowledges Public Outrage Against Ruling Clergy
In an article that was later taken down, on May 14, the state-run Eslahat News published an interview with a former state official that reflected the explosive state of Iran’s society and the public hatred toward the ruling dictatorship.
“After last year’s protests, people’s anger toward the clergy became worse,” the website wrote in its intro. “From tossing turbans to running over clerics, this is only a part of these unfortunate events in the country. Because most of the people in society consider the clerics and their interference in all affairs to be the most significant factor in the country’s critical situation.”
Weighing in on this topic, Rasul Montajebnia, a former state official told Eslahat news: “Recently, one gentleman said that the attack on clerics is the result of committing haram [Arabic for forbidden things under Sharia law]; It is unclear how they come to this conclusion. These people are even more law-abiding and better Muslims than you are. They have seen the mistakes of these clerics and this is why they are doing these things. The actions that we are seeing these days are due to the faults of our clergy and we have not been able to maintain our dignity and status in society. Why do clerics interfere in all matters and express their opinions on everything?”
UPDATE: 9:30 PM CET
Iran Protests at a Glance
Based partially on reporting by PMOI (MEK) Network in Iran
Sunday, May 14, 2023 – 8 PM GMT + 1
According to reports by the Iranian opposition People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), people from different walks held protests across Iran on Sunday.
May 11 – Tehran, #Iran
MEK Resistance Units portrayed a large image of Iranian Resistance Leader Massoud Rajavi and Iranian opposition coalition President-elect @Maryam_Rajavi near the capital's Imam Ali Expressway at 10 pm local time.#IranRevolution pic.twitter.com/66TyB5neVl— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 14, 2023
MEK Resistance Units in Tehran portrayed a large image of Iranian Resistance Leader Massoud Rajavi and Iranian opposition coalition President-elect Maryam Rajavi near the capital’s Imam Ali Expressway at 10 pm local time on Thursday night.
Retirees and pensioners of the regime’s Social Security Organization in the cities of Shush, Haft Tappeh, and Karkheh in Khuzestan Province, southwest Iran, held a gathering on Sunday demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions. Similar rallies were reported in Kermanshah, Kerman, Ahvaz, Shiraz, Karaj, Shushtar, and Isfahan.
May 14 – Shush, southwest #iran
Retirees and pensioners of Shush and Haft Tappeh are holding a gathering demanding their rights while protesting their low pensions.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/gkmAGoHGoA— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 14, 2023
On Sunday, regime operatives launched a chemical gas attack targeting the all-girls Alizadeh High School in the Nayser district of Sanandaj, the provincial capital of Kurdistan in western Iran.
May 14 – Sanandaj, western #Iran
Regime operatives launched a chemical gas attack targeting the all-girls Alizadeh High School in the Nayser district. A number of the students were poisoned and transferred to medical centers to receive urgent treatment.#IranChemicalAttacks pic.twitter.com/mamFHLm7EL— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 14, 2023
UPDATE: 1:00 PM CET
Factional Infighting Eyes to Eliminate Current Parliament Speaker, State-affiliated Source Reveals
In an article entitled “The Qalibaf-elimination Project Kickstarted”, the state-run Eqtesad News wrote today: “The horns of infighting among the principalists are blowing. Every time there is a parliamentary election, a presidential election, or even an election on deciding about the parliament’s leadership, the war rises from the bottom of the endless ocean of differences and appears at the surface. This time, the reason for their differences, which is more evident than in the past, is the two upcoming elections, including the election of the Speaker of the Majlis on May 23 and the election of the 12th parliament, which is scheduled to be held on March 1, 2024.”
“In the meantime, it seems that in both their short-term and long-term goals, the Paydari bloc [the faction close to former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad] is pursuing to remove Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf from politics and power. So far, their great rivals among the principalists, such as Nateq Nouri, and Ali Larijani, have been eliminated with different tactics and excuses,” the source added.
UPDATE: 11:30 AM CET
Belgian Aid Worker Olivier Vandecasteele Is a Bargaining Chip Between Iran and Belgium
Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele was arrested on February 24, 2022, in Iran. But was Vandecasteele taken hostage as a token of the implementation of an agreement that Tehran and Brussels had been negotiating for months? In January 2023, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison, a $1 million fine (€910,000) and 74 lashes for espionage.
The hacking of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ computer system on Sunday, May 7, by a group of hackers called Ghyam Sarnegouni (“From Uprising to Overthrow”), close to the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (an exiled movement that’s banned in Iran), is of great interest to Vandecasteele’s family.
UPDATE: 9:30 AM CET
Anti-Regime Protests Continue as Iran’s Regime Escalates Crackdown
The brave people of Zahedan, the provincial capital of Sistan & Baluchestan in southeast Iran, took to the streets on Friday to remind the mullahs’ regime of the Iranian people’s utter hatred of their dictatorship. They chanted slogans against the regime in its entirety and voiced their wishes to live in a democracy while rejecting any and all forms of dictatorships, be it the already eliminated monarchy and the current theocratic despotism. People throughout Iran continue to specifically hold the mullahs’ Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei responsible for their miseries, while also condemning the oppressive Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and paramilitary Basij units, alongside other security units that are on the ground suppressing the peaceful demonstrators.
Inside the Hostage-Taking Tactics of Iran’s Regime to Release It Terrorist-Diplomat
“While Olivier Vandecasteele is still detained in Iran, new information about the case has leaked,” wrote the Belgian DH newspaper on May 8, referring to a Belgian aid worker held hostage by Iran’s regime since 2022. The obtained documents reveal the backdrop of the Assadi affair; Olivier Vandcastel has been used as a “bargaining chip.” The documents confirm the role played by the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and describe how Brussels and Tehran negotiated their prisoner swap treaty before Olivier Vandesteel was taken hostage in Iran. The career diplomat Asadollah Asadi, the third-highest-ranking official at the regime’s embassy in Vienna, was convicted of a state terrorist act as he tried to bomb a gathering of the Iranian Resistance in France in 2018.
the Presidency of Iran Over the Social Council of Human Rights Is a Mockery of Humanity in 2023!
The appointment of Ali Bahreini, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations Office in Geneva, as the president of the Social Council of the Human Rights, is a blatant mockery of humanity. On Thursday, May 11, 2023, Ali Bahreini, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations Office in Geneva, was appointed as the president of the Social Council of the Human Rights of this organization. The publication of this news has sparked widespread negative reactions both in the international community and among Iranian citizens. While the Iranian government is considered one of the major violators of human rights in the world and has the highest number of resolutions against violations of the people in the Third Committee and the General Assembly of the United Nations, this appointment is seen as a mockery of modern human values.
Unjust Expulsions and Arrests: Teachers’ Struggle Amidst Clerical Regime’s Crackdown
The clerical regime puts more pressure on teachers through arrests, summonses, and expulsions. The Security Department and the Administrative Violations Board of the Ministry of Education have practically turned into the arms of security forces over the past year. They have concentrated all their efforts on baseless file-making for activist teachers to suppress their protests. The Coordinating Council of Teachers’ Associations announced that the Violations Board of the Department of Education of Gilan Province had expelled Ms. Fariba Anami, a brave and well-respected teacher in Anzali, upon an unjust and oppressive order. Fariba Anami has been teaching in high schools in Gilan and Anzali for over 25 years. She is one of the hundreds of activist teachers who have solely pursued the realization of their professional rights.
Beyond the Veil: Iranian Women’s Uprising Against a Religious Dictatorship
In an interview with Elaheh Azimfar, the representative of the Iranian Resistance in international organizations, Grand-Lebanon examined the ongoing popular uprising in Iran sparked by the brutal killing of Mahsa Amini. The interview highlights the uprising’s underlying causes, extending beyond the mandatory hijab, and emphasizes the Iranian people’s discontent with the religious dictatorship ruling Iran. Azimfar advocates for women’s freedom to choose their attire, arguing against the mandatory hijab, and discusses the broader aspirations of the revolution, including women’s equality, freedom of speech, and the establishment of a democratic republic.
Aarhus, Denmark—May 11, 2023: MEK Supporters Rally to Support the Iran Revolution
Aarhus, Denmark—May 11, 2023: Supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and freedom-loving Iranians gathered to show their solidarity with the ongoing Iranian Revolution. Supporters of the Iranian Resistance strongly condemned the recent executions by the religious dictatorship regime of the mullahs in Iran, especially the execution of Baloch compatriots. They called for urgent action by the international community to stop the executions in Iran.
Italy, Cuneo: The Support of the Governor and 22 Mayors of Piedmont Province to Mrs. Maryam Rajavi and Her Ten-Point Plan for Future Iran
Italy, Piedmont, Cuneo – May 6, 2023: The governor and 22 mayors of Italy’s Piedmont region gathered in Cuneo, Ashraf‘s sister city, supporting the Iranian people’s uprising and the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). They declared their full support of the NCRI’s President-elect, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, and her ten-point plan for the future of Iran.
Also, read Iran News in Brief – May 13, 2023