THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 9:00 PM CEST
Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar Killed in Gaza by Israeli Forces, Officials Say
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip, Israel Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Thursday.
Sinwar has been credited as the mastermind behind the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that led to the deaths of 1,200 people, the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history.
“The master murderer Yahya Sinwar, who is responsible for the massacre and atrocities of October 7, was killed” by Israel Defense Forces soldiers, Katz said in a statement. “This is a great military and moral achievement for Israel and a victory for the entire free world against the evil axis of extreme Islam led by Iran.”
UPDATE: 7:30 PM CEST
Three New People Sentenced to Death in Iran: Norway Must Break the Silence
This is happening despite Norway’s principles and commitments to human rights, and despite its image as a peaceful nation and home of the Nobel Peace Prize. The news came last week, with just a few days apart: three death sentences were handed down. The three individuals are Behrouz Ehsani, Mehdi Hassani, and Mohammad Javad Vafaï.
No media outlets have reported on this. Have we become desensitized to the atrocities happening around us? Are we indifferent to the fate of others because we are too preoccupied with our own problems?
Last week, during the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Maryam Rajavi, the presidential candidate for the largest Iranian opposition, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), urged the international community to support the resistance’s campaign against executions. She called for diplomatic and trade relations with the clerical regime to be made contingent on an end to executions, terrorism, and hostage-taking in Iran. She also demanded that the regime’s leaders be held accountable for genocide and crimes against humanity.
Iran, Opposition to Ayatollahs’ Regime Parades in Brussels: “EU Recognise Revolutionary Guards as Terrorists”
Brussels – Sanctions, as are critical stances against the ayatollah regime, are good. But the European Union must do more. The demand comes from the Iranian opposition, which took to the streets at the European Council summit to demand “an end to the EU’s appeasement policy” and “insert the Revolutionary Guards on the EU list of terrorist organizations.” Kamran Dalir, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance in Iran (NCRI), explains to Eunews the reason for the mobilisation on the day EU leaders are meeting in Brussels to discuss, among other things, the Middle East.
Iran Protest Calls on EU to Designate Revolutionary Guard A Terrorist Organisation
Supporters of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) will stage a protest outside the EU Summit on Thursday afternoon.
The demonstration denouncing the Iranian regime will take place outside the EU institutions at 13:30 on Thursday. The protestors are calling on the bloc to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist organisation while Iran suffers from regional conflicts, domestic repression and escalated executions.
UPDATE: 5:00 PM CEST
Treasury Sanctions Network for Shipping Oil on Behalf of Iran-Backed Houthi Financier
WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned eighteen companies, individuals, and vessels for their ties to Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF)-backed Houthi financial official Sa’id al-Jamal (al-Jamal) and his network. Included in this action are the captains of vessels transporting illicit oil as well as the companies that managed and operated these ships. The revenue from al-Jamal’s network continues to enable Houthi attacks in the region, including missile and unmanned aerial vehicle attacks on Israel and commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea.
UPDATE: 3:00 PM CEST
US Stealth Bombers Strike Underground Houthi Weapons Sites in Yemen
Oct 16 (Reuters) – The United States said it carried out strikes on Wednesday against five underground weapons storage facilities in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, in a strike that used B-2 stealth bombers against the Iran-aligned group for the first time.
In wording that could also be interpreted as a signal to Iran, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the strike was a unique demonstration of the Pentagon’s ability to strike hard-to-reach facilities, “no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified.”
“The employment of U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers demonstrate U.S. global strike capabilities to take action against these targets when necessary, anytime, anywhere,” Austin said in a statement.
UPDATE: 12:30 PM CEST
Statement by Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III on U.S. Airstrikes in Houthi-Controlled Areas of Yemen
Today, U.S. military forces, including U.S. Air Force B-2 bombers, conducted precision strikes against five hardened underground weapons storage locations in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. U.S. forces targeted several of the Houthis’ underground facilities housing various weapons components of types that the Houthis have used to target civilian and military vessels throughout the region. This was a unique demonstration of the United States’ ability to target facilities that our adversaries seek to keep out of reach, no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified. The employment of U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers demonstrates U.S. global strike capabilities to take action against these targets when necessary, anytime, anywhere.
UPDATE: 7:30 AM CEST
The Iranian Resistance’s Fight to End Executions in Iran
Iran’s regime holds the highest execution rate per capita in the world. The persistence of executions owes itself to its utility as a tool for both political and religious power. The clerics who seized power in 1979 soon realized that execution could not only instill a continuous state of fear in society but also physically eliminate their political opponents.
Execution is not merely a judicial method; it is the lifeblood of the death-driven regime, a means of survival and sustenance. When it comes to dealing with political opponents and overthrow movements, the ruling system unleashes itself. As the regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has stated, the clerical regime deals with everything regarding supporters and members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) through executions justified by its repressive fatwas and inhumane courts.
The Real Rift in Iran
When the dominance of dictatorship and its evil and ominous consequences govern a society, many analysts believe that the roots of political, social, and economic crises must be examined and understood. From this understanding, they seek to offer solutions for these crises. The success of each analyst or expert is directly related to their level of understanding of the nature of the ruling power. The closer analysts understand the root and nature of the ruling dictator, the easier and more comprehensive the solution will be.
A concrete example of this principle can be seen in the political-religious dictatorship ruling Iran. One could analyze the political, economic, social, labor, and cultural crises caused by this regime individually and offer solutions, or one could trace them all back to their root cause and identify the true source.
Iran’s Cyber Campaign: A Growing Alliance with Criminal Networks
A recent report by Microsoft reveals that the Iranian regime, alongside other states like Russia and China, is increasingly leveraging criminal networks to conduct cyberespionage and hacking operations. These activities are largely aimed at adversaries such as the United States, marking a new phase in digital warfare where the lines between state-sponsored attacks and criminal activities have become increasingly blurred.
The collaboration between Iran’s regime and criminal hackers has raised alarms among national security experts, as it reflects a strategic shift by this authoritarian government. This regime is outsourcing its cyber activities to private, illicit groups, not only to enhance the scope of its operations but also to lower the costs and avoid direct attribution. This growing nexus between state and criminal actors enables regimes like Iran to carry out disruptive activities without the direct involvement of their intelligence agencies.
EU Sanctions on Iran Justified Due to Missile Deliveries to Russia, Says German Politician
German politician Renata Alt has expressed strong support for the European Union’s newly imposed sanctions on Iran, citing Tehran’s delivery of ballistic missiles to Russia. These missiles, used in Russia’s ongoing assault on Ukraine, have contributed to the destruction of civilian infrastructure, an action that Alt described as intolerable.
“The destruction of civilian infrastructure in Ukraine through ballistic missiles must not be tolerated,” Alt emphasized in a statement following the sanctions announcement.
The EU imposed these sanctions in response to Iran’s growing military cooperation with Russia, particularly its involvement in providing ballistic weapons used in the Ukraine conflict. Alt, a member of the German Bundestag, underscored that Iran’s military support for Russia, as well as its backing of terrorist organizations in the Middle East, continues to escalate dangerous conflicts across the globe, posing a significant threat to the security of the EU.
Rent-Seeking and Innovation Suppression: The Challenges of Iran’s Economy
Describing Iran’s economy through conventional economic models, typically applicable to other nations, proves challenging. This complexity arises from the distinctive characteristics of the Velayat-e Faghih system, which fundamentally influences Iran’s economic framework.
Iran’s economy is characterized by a dual structure, with significant portions controlled by both non-elected institutions and the official government. Key non-elected entities, such as the Supreme Leader and associated organizations—like the Execution of Imam Khomeini’s Order, the Mostazafan Foundation, and Astan Quds Razavi—play a dominant role. This creates a unique blend of state and quasi-state monopolistic practices, where power and resources are concentrated among a small elite.
The Feminization of Poverty in Iran: Female Heads of Household and Their Untold Struggles
In this article, we commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty by exploring the plight of female heads of households in Iran and the additional pressures they face. When discussing female heads of household, several key groups come to mind: widows, divorcees, the wives of addicted men, the spouses of incarcerated individuals, the wives of migrant workers, single self-sustaining women, and the wives of disabled or incapacitated men. All these women are compelled to support and manage their families. Meanwhile, the laws of the clerical regime in Iran officially categorize them as second-class citizens, existing solely to serve men. As a result, experts have long been highlighting the feminization of poverty in Iran.
How Iran’s Regime Fans the Flames of Civil War in Sudan
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, October 15, that weapons secretly supplied by foreign countries to both sides of the conflict in Sudan—including ammunition and drones sent by the Iranian regime and the United Arab Emirates—are fueling Sudan’s devastating civil war. In the section concerning Iran, the report, based on classified assessments, a report funded by the U.S. State Department, and evidence collected from weapons seized in Sudan, revealed that the Sudanese army has been using foreign-armed drones, particularly those covertly supplied by the Iranian regime, since late last year.
Developments in Iran’s Nuclear Program
Recent reports indicate that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has issued directives to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to accelerate the completion of the country’s nuclear weapons project. This comes amid the appointment of Masoud Pezeshkian and coincides with increased government activity aimed at furthering Iran’s nuclear capabilities. Various actions in Iran’s parliament, Friday sermons, and public statements from officials suggest coordinated efforts to support the weapon programs project.
The origins of this effort can be traced back to 1990, a year after the death of Ayatollah Khomeini, marking the beginning of Iran’s secret weapon programs. According to a classified IRGC report addressed to nuclear project officials, Khamenei’s vision for the project was outlined in detail. Iran’s missile capabilities, which are viewed as a crucial component of its national defense, are being integrated into these efforts. The IRGC report indicates that a higher level of deterrence is necessary due to ongoing regional conflicts and the possibility of their expansion.
Amsterdam, the Netherlands—October 12, 2024: MEK Supporters Rally in Support of the ‘No to Executions’ Campaign Against Iran’s Regime
Amsterdam, the Netherlands—October 12, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians, and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), organized a rally and exhibition in Dam Square in Support of the “No to Executions” campaign against the mullahs’ regime. They protested against the ongoing brutal executions across Iran. The participants urged support for the Iranian people and their resistance in the struggle to establish freedom, democracy, human rights, and justice in Iran.
Lyon, France—October 12, 2024: MEK Supporters Exhibition in Support of the ‘No to Executions’ Campaign Against Iran’s Regime
Lyon, France—October 12, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians, and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), organized an exhibition in Support of the “No to Executions” campaign against the mullahs’ regime. They protested against the ongoing brutal executions across Iran. The participants urged support for the Iranian people and their resistance in the struggle to establish freedom, democracy, human rights, and justice in Iran.
Paris, France—October 13, 2024: MEK Supporters Held a Rally and Exhibition in Support of the ‘No to Executions’ Campaign Against Iran’s Regime
Paris, France—October 13, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians, and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), organized a rally and exhibition in Support of the “No to Executions” campaign against the mullahs’ regime. They protested against the ongoing brutal executions across Iran. The participants urged support for the Iranian people and their resistance in the struggle to establish freedom, democracy, human rights, and justice in Iran.
Sweden, October 11-13, 2024: MEK Supporters Rally in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö in Support of the ‘No to Executions’ Campaign Against Iran’s Regime
Sweden, October 11-13, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized rallies and an exhibition in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö in support of the ‘No to Executions” campaign against the mullahs’ regime. They protested the ongoing brutal executions across Iran, urging support for the Iranian people and their resistance in the struggle to establish freedom, democracy, human rights, and justice in Iran
