THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 9:00 AM CEST
G7 Defense Ministers Condemn Iran’s Destabilizing Actions and Growing Alliance with Russia
October 19, 2024 – Naples, Italy – In a strong rebuke to Iran’s regional behavior, the defense ministers of the G7 nations—Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States—issued a joint statement during their meeting in Naples, urging the Iranian regime to cease its destabilizing actions.
The ministers condemned Tehran’s support for regional proxies, declaring, “We call on Iran to refrain from providing support to Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, and other non-state actors, and taking further actions that could destabilize the region and trigger an uncontrolled process of escalation.” The statement underscored the urgent need for the regime to adhere to international law and halt its interference, which threatens regional peace.
The G7 also expressed grave concern over Iran’s deepening military ties with Russia, including the supply of ballistic missiles, UAVs, and sensitive technology, actions that aim to evade sanctions. The ministers noted, “We express our deep concern at the intensification of military cooperation between Iran and Russia,” emphasizing how this alliance undermines international security.
The G7’s message is clear: the regime’s ongoing support for militias and its strategic alliances are fueling instability. The ministers reaffirmed their commitment to countering such actions and preserving the international rules-based order, sending a strong warning to Tehran to change course or face further isolation.
Chairman McCaul Calls on President Biden to Fully Enforce Mandatory 21st Century Peace through Strength Act Sanctions
San Francisco, Calif. — House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul sent a letter to President Biden urging him to implement mandatory sanctions against U.S. adversaries under McCaul’s bipartisan 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act. Despite the grave and growing threat Russia, China, and Iran pose to U.S. national security interests, the Biden-Harris administration has not issued a single sanctions designation under the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act since it was signed into law as part of the national security supplemental in April of 2024.
“I call on you to provide additional resources, including detailed staff, to the Departments of Treasury and State for the specific purpose of immediate and robust implementation of the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act to counter Iran, Russia, and China. The world is on fire; we cannot lose another day to hesitation, appeasement, and weakness.”
UPDATE: 8:00 AM CEST
Iranian Officials Warn about Declining Morale among The Regime’s Loyal Forces
On October 18, during the Friday prayers, Mohammad-Mehdi Hosseini Hamadani, the regime’s prayer leader in Karaj, expressed concerns over “despair, negativity, and the undermining of officials by the system’s own ‘loyal forces.’” He stated, “Some analyses are made by cowardly individuals, influenced by threats and the empty rhetoric of enemies. These lead to conclusions that we should surrender and back down, instilling fear among the people. Such analyses create despair, negativity, and undermine officials, and sometimes even the valued forces fall prey to these perspectives.”
Concerns and declining morale among the regime’s loyal forces are widespread. It appears that during this week’s Friday prayers, the representatives of regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei were instructed to address and restore morale following a common directive.
Escalation of Executions in Iran: A Grim Strategy of Repression Under New Leadership
The alarming increase in political and social executions in Iran following the rise of the new president reflects a deliberate intensification of state repression aimed at quelling internal dissent. The Iranian regime’s notorious machinery of executions and systematic oppression has once again been activated, with chilling regularity. On October 16 and 17, the regime carried out the execution of 15 prisoners. This horrifying statistic underscores the severity of the crackdown and reveals the leadership’s profound fear of potential uprisings.
Of those executed since Masoud Pezeshkian took office, 12 were women—highlighting the regime’s use of execution as a tool not just of punishment, but of political intimidation and control under the leadership of Pezeshkian. This surge in executions is not only a legal punishment but a deeply entrenched strategy to stifle social unrest.
Guardian Council Approves New Hijab Bill, Enforcing Gender Apartheid
On Saturday, October 19, 2024, Hadi Tahan Nazif, spokesperson for the Guardian Council, announced that the council had approved the new Hijab bill, which has now been submitted to parliament for the next steps.
This follows an announcement a month earlier, on September 17, 2024, by Mousa Ghazanfari Abadi, who had also confirmed the Guardian Council’s approval of the bill. Later, on September 25, 2024, the spokesperson for the regime’s Parliamentary Cultural Commission said, “The issue has been communicated to parliament, and the speaker of the parliament will soon notify the government about this law.” (Javanonline.ir, September 25, 2024)
Two Prisoners, Including A Woman, Executed in The Central Prison of Tabriz
Two prisoners, including a woman, were executed in the Central Prison of Tabriz. The identities of the two prisoners executed in Tabriz have not yet been established, however, the state-run Rokna.net said their first names were Nastaran and Mohammad. The two prisoners were arrested in early June 2024 on charges of murder in a joint case. The Penal Court No. 1 of East Azerbaijan Province subsequently condemned them to death.
The Iranian regime is the world’s top record holder of executions of women. According to the data recorded by the NCRI Women’s Committee, at least 253 women have been executed in Iran since 2007. The number of women executed in Iran has sharply increased over the past year, with 33 executions of women recorded between October 2023 and October 2024.
Nearly All of Iran Affected by Land Subsidence
Ali Beitollahi, member of the scientific council of the Road, Housing, and Urban Development Research Center of Iran, warned that, with the exception of Gilan Province, land subsidence has occurred in all provinces of the country. He noted that the rate of subsidence is expanding daily, yet policymakers, despite clear evidence, have not fully grasped the scale of the disaster. Beitollahi highlighted cities with the highest levels of subsidence in Iran, adding: “In areas with high population density, the rate of subsidence is very high, including Mashhad, Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz, Kerman, and other major cities.”
Only $1.5 Million Paid Out of $70 Million in Taxes Owed by Luxury Homeowners in Iran
According to the Iranian regime’s Tax Authority, 135,509 luxury residential units and garden villas have been subjected to taxes amounting to 44.63 trillion rials (approximately $69.8 million), of which only 940 billion rials (approximately $1.471 million) have been collected. According to the organization, the threshold for luxury home tax in 2024, based on the budget law, is set at 350 billion rials (approximately $547,730). All residential units and garden villas valued above this amount must pay taxes on the excess.
Failure to pay taxes by luxury homeowners comes at a time when reports show that tax evasion by the wealthy has become commonplace. According to the Tax Authority, in the spring of 2024, government revenues from income and salary taxes grew by 15%, revenues from goods and services taxes grew by 36.5%, and wealth tax revenues dropped by 28.5%.
Iranian Cleric’s Statements on War and Religious Goals Raise Concerns
In a recent interview, Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri, a member of Iran’s “Assembly of Experts,” made remarks that have generated significant reactions on social media and among political commentators. Mirbagheri, who also heads the “Islamic Academy of Qom,” discussed the inevitability of a future conflict between believers and non-believers, predicting an escalation in hostilities. His statements have sparked both criticism and discussion across various circles.
In the interview, Mirbagheri responded to a question about the killing of 42,000 individuals in Gaza by stating that “achieving closeness to God is worth the cost, even if it results in the deaths of half the world’s population.” He further elaborated that the loss of 42,000 lives in Gaza should be seen in the context of a larger, divine goal, and therefore, did not hold significant weight. He also referenced the speeches of Iran’s first Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, asserting that “if the superpowers were to hang the Basijis of the Islamic world and capture our women, it would be worth it to reach that goal.”
Amsterdam, October 19, 2024: MEK Supporters Host Book Exhibition to Stand Against the Crimes of the Mullahs’ Regime in Iran
The Netherlands—October 19, 2024: In Amsterdam, supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized a book table to express solidarity with political prisoners in Iran. This initiative highlights their ongoing commitment to human rights and awareness-raising efforts regarding the situation in Iranian prisons. The book table coincides with the “No to Executions Tuesdays” campaign, which has been active for 38 weeks. Every Tuesday, political prisoners in Iran participate in hunger strikes to protest against the regime’s escalating use of the death penalty.
This campaign aims to shed light on the severe human rights violations occurring within Iranian prisons and calls for international attention to the plight of those facing execution.
Bucharest, Romania – October 19, 2024: MEK Supporters Exhibition to Condemn the Mullahs’ Regime Crimes in Iran
Bucharest, Romania – October 19, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized an exhibition to express solidarity with the Iranian Revolution. The exhibition also protests the rising wave of executions carried out by the Iranian regime and calls for the immediate release of all political prisoners held in the regime’s prisons in Iran.
