{"id":328864,"date":"2025-02-22T07:11:59","date_gmt":"2025-02-22T06:11:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=328864"},"modified":"2025-02-22T10:45:28","modified_gmt":"2025-02-22T09:45:28","slug":"iran-news-in-brief-february-22-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-news-in-brief-news\/iran-news-in-brief-february-22-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran News in Brief \u2013 February 22, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_328188\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-328188\" style=\"width: 1000px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-328188\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1000\" height=\"566\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025-742x420.jpg 742w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025-150x85.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/sydney-iranian-resistance-activism-31012025-696x394.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-328188\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Supporters of the Iranian Resistance in Sydney, Australia, held a bookstand on January 31, 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;\">UPDATE: 10:30 AM CET<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Reps. Lawler and Cherfilus-Mccormick Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Enhance Sanctions on Iran<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-328870 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/michael-lawler-website-logo-300x158.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"158\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/michael-lawler-website-logo-300x158.png 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/michael-lawler-website-logo-150x79.png 150w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/michael-lawler-website-logo.png 310w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Washington, D.C. &#8211; 2\/21\/2025\u2026\u00a0This week, Rep. Mike Lawler (NY-17), Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee\u2019s Subcommittee on Middle East and North Africa, and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Ranking Member of the same Subcommittee, introduced the Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act. This bipartisan bill aims to strengthen secondary sanctions on foreign entities enabling Iran\u2019s illicit oil trade. The Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act includes the following provisions:<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li>Enacts new secondary sanctions on additional foreign entities that engage in transactions involved in the processing, export, or sale of illicit Iranian oil. Listed entities include banks, other financial institutions, insurance providers, flagging registries, pipeline construction, and operation facilities for liquified natural gas.<\/li>\n<li>Requires the State Department to establish an Interagency Working Group on Iranian Sanctions.<\/li>\n<li>Requires the State Department to establish a multilateral contact group with like-minded nations to coordinate international efforts to enforce sanctions imposed on Iran.<\/li>\n<li>States that it is U.S. policy to fully enforce sanctions against all persons involved in the international logistical chain that provides support to the energy sector of the Islamic Republic of Iran.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/lawler.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3787\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;\">UPDATE: 8:30 AM CET<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Exclusive: U.S. Piles Pressure on Iraq To Resume Kurdish Oil Exports, Sources Say<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">DUBAI\/BAGHDAD\/WASHINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) &#8211; U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration is piling pressure on Iraq to allow Kurdish oil exports to restart or face sanctions alongside Iran, eight sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">An advisor to the Iraqi prime minister denied in a statement there had been a threat of sanctions or pressure on the government during its communications with the U.S. administration.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">A speedy resumption of exports from Iraq&#8217;s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region would help to offset a potential fall in Iranian oil exports, which Washington has pledged to cut to zero as part of Trump&#8217;s &#8220;maximum pressure&#8221; campaign against Tehran.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The U.S. government has said it wants to isolate Iran from the global economy and eliminate its oil export revenues in order to slow Iran&#8217;s development of a nuclear weapon.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/energy\/us-piles-pressure-iraq-resume-kurdish-oil-exports-sources-say-2025-02-21\/\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mike Waltz to CPAC: Trump&#8217;s Max Pressure on Iran to Restore Peace<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-257115 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/newsmax-logo-300x93.png\" alt=\"newsmax-logo\" width=\"300\" height=\"93\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Donald Trump&#8217;s maximum pressure campaign to stop Iran&#8217;s sponsorship of terrorism, as well as preventing the nation from having nuclear weapons, means a return to the policies that worked in the Middle East to achieve peace, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said during a CPAC interview Friday.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">&#8220;You have the axis of terror from Iran all the way to threaten our partners \u2014 Israel \u2014 essentially disrupted, and we need to keep our foot on their neck in that regard,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And then from a maximum pressure campaign, the president just signed that executive order, returning to maximum pressure to start keeping a foot on the neck of the Iranian economy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The key to it all, said Waltz, is ensuring that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsmax.com\/newsmax-tv\/israel-hamas-cpac\/2025\/02\/21\/id\/1199990\/\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;\">UPDATE: 7:00 AM CET<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Khamenei\u2019s Empty Rhetoric About Popular Support Is Reminiscent of The Final Days of The Shah<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-324489 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Khamenei-300x170.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"170\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Khamenei-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Khamenei-150x85.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Khamenei.jpg 690w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dictators always try to cover up their collapsed image and authority with empty claims and hollow maneuvers at the end of their rule. In past decades, such political games might have briefly reassured the dictator\u2019s courtiers and soldiers, but today, in the age of communication, they quickly become a source of ridicule for others.\u00a0Iranian regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei, whose image has crumbled after failures in his strategic depth\u2014Lebanon\u2014and the downfall of the Assad dictatorship in Syria, is trying to project power through bluffing and empty claims. Meanwhile, various voices express concerns: one states, \u201cBe sure that if you continue on this path, you will lose power\u201d (Jomhouri newspaper, November 26, 2024). Another says, \u201cThe fall of Bashar al-Assad is not just a significant event for Syria but has repercussions across the Middle East. No country feels these consequences as strongly as Iran\u2014it is a strategic and military blow to Iran\u201d (Ham-Mihan newspaper, December 21, 2024).<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/article\/khameneis-empty-rhetoric-about-popular-support-is-reminiscent-of-the-final-days-of-the-shah\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Worsening Conditions of Nurses In Iran<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-323349 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nurses-protests-in-Iran.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nurses-protests-in-Iran.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nurses-protests-in-Iran-150x85.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The exploitation of Iranian nurses, a respected and hardworking sector of society, continues unabated.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The regime keeps nurses\u2019 salaries below the poverty line, while simultaneously increasing their workload by reducing the number of nurses.\u00a0This has led to nurses becoming unemployed, changing careers, or emigrating to other countries in a significant exodus.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to official figures from the Ministry of Health, 1,800 nurses leave their jobs annually. On February 18, 2025, the state-run newspaper Vatan-e Emrooz acknowledged some aspects of the disastrous employment and salary situation of nurses in a report, writing: \u201cIran trains and exports nurses to the world for free!\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/article\/the-worsening-conditions-of-nurses-in-iran\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Zohreh Dadras: Political Prisoner Barred from Ph.D. Exam<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-328865 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Zohreh-Dadras-Iran.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Zohreh-Dadras-Iran.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Zohreh-Dadras-Iran-150x75.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Zohreh Dadras, a women\u2019s rights activist and political prisoner from\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rasht\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rasht<\/a>, was barred from attending the Ph.D. entrance exam for political science, despite having received her exam admission card. This restriction was imposed at the last minute, despite prior approval for her participation. On Thursday, February 20, 2025, Zohreh Dadras, who is currently serving her prison sentence in Lakan Prison, Rasht, was prepared for transfer to the exam center when prison authorities, acting under orders from security agencies, prevented her from leaving.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Her mother wrote on Instagram: \u201cAll the administrative procedures for Zohreh\u2019s participation were completed, and even her exam admission card was issued. Yet, without any explanation, they barred her at the last moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wncri.org\/2025\/02\/21\/zohreh-dadras-barred-ph-d-exam\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">USD Surpasses 940,000 Iranian Rials as Inflation Accelerates<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-240361 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy-300x173.jpg\" alt=\"Hassan Rouhani\u2019s government reaches its final days. despite officials' bogus claims, Iran\u2019s economic situation continues to deteriorate.\" width=\"300\" height=\"173\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy-300x173.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy-768x442.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy-150x86.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy-696x400.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Irandollareconomy.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The exchange rate of the U.S. dollar in Iran\u2019s free market surged by more than 13,500 rials on Thursday, February 20, reaching 941,000 rials. Meanwhile, Iran\u2019s Statistical Center reports that monthly inflation in February has broken a two-year record.\u00a0The value of the U.S. dollar against the Iranian rial has increased by five percent over the past week, more than 15 percent in the past month, and nearly 70 percent in the past year. This trend, coupled with the expansion of liquidity, has led to rampant inflation in the country.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The price of various gold coins also jumped between 1.5 percent and over three percent on Thursday compared to Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/iranfocus.com\/economy\/53495-usd-surpasses-940000-iranian-rials-as-inflation-accelerates\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Grossi: The JCPOA Is an Empty Shell<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-53682 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Rafael_Grossi-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"Rafael_Grossi\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Rafael_Grossi-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Rafael_Grossi-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Rafael_Grossi-696x392.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Rafael_Grossi.jpg 998w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Statements by the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding the ineffectiveness of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in imposing restrictions on Iran\u2019s nuclear program have prompted a reaction from the Iranian regime.\u00a0On Thursday, February 20, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) called Grossi\u2019s remarks \u201cbiased,\u201d while Kazem Gharibabadi, Deputy Legal and International Affairs Minister of the Iranian regime\u2019s Foreign Ministry, described them as \u201cpolitical and unprofessional\u201d in a post on X (formerly Twitter).<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Thursday, during a press conference in Tokyo, Grossi stated that the JCPOA is obsolete in relation to Iran\u2019s nuclear program and that seeking a new framework for an agreement with Iran is necessary.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/iranfocus.com\/nuclear\/53491-grossi-the-jcpoa-is-an-empty-shell\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Freedom-Loving Iranians to Gather in Washington, DC, for a Free Iran on March 8, 2025<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-pm-slice=\"1 1 []\"><strong>Washington, DC \u2013 February 21, 2025<\/strong>: In a powerful demonstration of solidarity and resistance, Iranian Resistance supporters, human rights activists, and Iranian American communities will gather in Washington, DC, on\u00a0<em>Saturday, March 8, 2025<\/em>, to demand justice, democracy, and an end to oppression in Iran.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Freedom-Loving Iranians to Gather in <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WashingtonDC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WashingtonDC<\/a>, for a Free <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Iran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Iran<\/a> on March 8, 2025 <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WomenResistanceFreedom?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WomenResistanceFreedom<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/2025RallyForAFreeIran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#2025RallyForAFreeIran<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/FreeIran2025?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#FreeIran2025<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IWD2025?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IWD2025<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8hh6RV8kWu\">https:\/\/t.co\/8hh6RV8kWu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Iran Freedom (@4FreedominIran) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/4FreedominIran\/status\/1892856274032734464?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 21, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/iranfreedom.org\/en\/iranian-assemblies\/2025\/02\/freedom-loving-iranians-to-gather-in-washington-dc-for-a-free-iran-on-march-8-2025\/70908\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: justify;\">International Women\u2019s Day Conference in Paris: Honoring the Struggle of Iranian Women for Freedom and Equality<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"95\" data-end=\"495\">The website of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wncri.org\/womens-committee-of-iran-ncri\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NCRI Women\u2019s Committee<\/a>\u00a0has recently highlighted the upcoming International Women\u2019s Day Conference, organized by the Women\u2019s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/about-ncri\/ncri\/alternative\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NCRI<\/a>). The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 22, 2025, in Paris, France, bringing together distinguished women leaders, former presidents, parliamentarians, and activists from around the world.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">International Women\u2019s Day Conference in Paris: Honoring the Struggle of Iranian <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Women?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Women<\/a> for Freedom and Equality <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WomenForce4Change?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WomenForce4Change<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IWD2025?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IWD2025<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/67TUGVNYiU\">https:\/\/t.co\/67TUGVNYiU<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Iran Freedom (@4FreedominIran) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/4FreedominIran\/status\/1892855969295523992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 21, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/iranfreedom.org\/en\/news\/2025\/02\/international-womens-day-conference-in-paris-honoring-the-struggle-of-iranian-women-for-freedom-and-equality\/70904\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-news-in-brief-news\/iran-news-in-brief-february-21-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Also, read Iran News in Brief \u2013 February 21<\/strong><strong>, 2025<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS UPDATE: 10:30 AM CET Reps. Lawler and Cherfilus-Mccormick Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Enhance Sanctions on Iran Washington, D.C. &ndash; 2\/21\/2025&hellip;&nbsp;This week, [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":328188,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,234],"tags":[277],"class_list":{"0":"post-328864","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"category-iran-news-in-brief-news","9":"tag-iran-news"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Iran News in Brief \u2013 February 22, 2025 - NCRI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS UPDATE: 10:30 AM CET Reps. 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