{"id":338385,"date":"2025-10-20T07:00:28","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T06:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=338385"},"modified":"2025-10-20T21:36:22","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T20:36:22","slug":"iran-news-in-brief-october-19-2025-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-news-in-brief-news\/iran-news-in-brief-october-19-2025-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran News in Brief \u2013 October 20, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Supporters
Supporters of the Iranian Resistance held a bookstand in Heidelberg, Germany, on October 18, 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS<\/h3>\n

UPDATE: 7:30 AM CEST<\/strong><\/p>\n

With Lips Sewn Shut, Iran\u2019s Death Row Inmates Enter 6th Day of Hunger Strike Against Regime\u2019s Execution Spree<\/h3>\n

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On October 18, a powerful act of defiance entered its sixth day inside the notorious Ghezel Hesar prison, as over 1,500 death row inmates in Unit 2 continued their\u00a0mass hunger strike<\/a>\u00a0against the Iranian regime\u2019s escalating campaign of executions. In a harrowing display of their resolve, some prisoners have sewn their lips shut. Smuggled video footage reveals their gaunt bodies and hand-written placards bearing a simple, urgent message: \u201cNo to execution.\u201d<\/p>\n

This life-or-death protest is not a plea for mercy but a firm demand for justice. The prisoners have vowed to continue their strike until their death sentences are overturned or commuted to imprisonment. Their courageous stand from within one of the regime\u2019s main killing centers exposes the brutal reality of the clerical dictatorship and serves as a rallying cry for all who stand for human rights.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Iran: Families of Death Row Prisoners Beaten and Arrested During Peaceful Protest in Tehran<\/h3>\n

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A peaceful protest by families of death row prisoners outside the Iranian regime\u2019s parliament on Sunday, October 19, turned violent after security forces attacked the demonstrators. Witnesses reported beatings, arrests, and public outrage at the authorities\u2019 brutal response.\u00a0According to local sources, families of prisoners on death row in Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj gathered in Tehran\u2019s Baharestan Square to demand an end to the wave of executions sweeping the country. Chanting \u201cNo to execution\u201d and \u201cStop the killings,\u201d the protesters called for the revocation of their relatives\u2019 death sentences.<\/p>\n

Moments after the rally began, security and police forces of the regime violently dispersed the crowd. Eyewitnesses said that the agents beat protesters with batons, injuring several, including women.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Political Prisoner Hoda Mehreganfar\u2019s Life in Danger at Adelabad Prison<\/h3>\n

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Hoda Mehreganfar, a 38-year-old\u00a0electronics engineer<\/a> and political prisoner, is facing a critical health crisis in Adelabad Prison, Shiraz. Despite her deteriorating condition, security agencies continue to block her transfer to a hospital. This deliberate disregard for medical warnings has placed her life in grave danger.\u00a0According to informed sources, Hoda Mehreganfar\u2019s\u00a0endometrioma cyst<\/em>\u00a0has recurred, posing a serious risk of rupture and internal infection. The prison doctor had previously emphasized the urgent need for hospitalization, but authorities have refused to comply, citing \u201cdirect orders from security agencies.\u201d<\/p>\n

She is reportedly suffering from chronic pain, high fever, and severe weakness, and has been denied even the prescribed medications to manage her illness. Family sources say, \u201cHoda is being held in conditions where she can neither rest nor receive proper nutrition. Her physical state worsens by the day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Shiva Esmaeli: Deliberate Denial of Medical Care for Female Political Prisoners<\/h3>\n

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Shiva Esmaeli,\u00a0a political prisoner held in Evin Prison<\/a>, is suffering from a severe spinal condition that has left her in excruciating pain. Despite her critical condition, prison authorities have deliberately obstructed her transfer to a hospital and denied her access to specialized medical care.\u00a0The pain has reportedly become so intense that Esmaeli struggles to breathe and is now nearly incapacitated.<\/p>\n

After weeks of suffering and neglect, authorities finally approved her transfer to a hospital. However, during the process, guards discovered that her bank card had no remaining balance. Despite her insistence that she could contact her family to cover the medical costs; prison officials intentionally\u00a0prevented her<\/a>\u00a0from making the call.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Iran\u2019s Economic Collapse Deepens as Regime Policies Drive Negative Growth<\/h3>\n

\"Protest<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s economy has officially entered recession, according to a mid-year report by the regime\u2019s own parliamentary research center, which recorded a negative 0.3 percent growth in the first half of 2025 (Iranian year 1404). The figure marks a sharp decline from the 3.1 percent growth reported last year, exposing the severity of the country\u2019s structural crisis.\u00a0While last year\u2019s limited growth came mainly from oil exports, the current downturn reflects the collapse of nearly every non-oil sector. Chronic energy imbalances, international sanctions, capital flight, inflation exceeding 40 percent, and the regime\u2019s policy of price controls have collectively pushed the economy into a deep and widespread recession.<\/p>\n

The report\u2019s findings also align with earlier projections from the International Monetary Fund, which predicted a continuing decline in Iran\u2019s economic performance through 2029. However, the actual figures suggest the downturn has accelerated faster than expected.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Thousands of Iranian Nurses Quit or Leave the Country Amid Low Pay and Harsh Conditions<\/h3>\n

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Iran\u2019s healthcare system faces a deepening crisis as thousands of trained nurses refuse to return to work or seek employment abroad, citing unbearable working conditions and wages that barely cover basic living costs.<\/p>\n

Mohammad Sharifi-Moghaddam, secretary-general of the Iranian Nurses\u2019 House, said on October 18 that\u00a0\u201caround 60,000 to 70,000 nurses are unemployed but unwilling to return to their jobs.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Speaking to\u00a0Ham-Mihan<\/em>\u00a0newspaper, he explained that\u00a0\u201ca salary under 20 million tomans for a woman with two children barely covers daycare costs, and she also has to bear the emotional cost of being away from her children. In such a situation, staying home costs less.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Sharifi-Moghaddam criticized regime health officials for their detachment from the realities of ordinary staff, saying they cannot understand the hardship of low wages since\u00a0\u201ctheir own salaries amount to hundreds of millions.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Iran\u2019s Regime Quietly Rebuilding Hezbollah\u2019s Power Structure Behind the Scenes<\/h3>\n

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A recent report by the French daily\u00a0Le Figaro<\/em>\u00a0suggests that Hezbollah, deeply dependent on the Iranian regime, is covertly rebuilding its military and organizational structure with Tehran\u2019s direct assistance. While the group has nominally agreed to disarm in southern Lebanon, it reportedly continues to maintain weapons elsewhere, quietly restructuring its network under Iranian supervision and through extensive internal reforms.<\/p>\n

According to\u00a0Le Figaro<\/em>, the assassination of Hezbollah\u2019s long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah initially left the organization paralyzed for several days, with communications disrupted and operations limited mainly to southern units following pre-established emergency protocols.<\/p>\n

The report states that roughly two weeks after the assassination, operatives from the Iranian regime \u2014 led by Esmail Qaani, commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) \u2014 intervened to help reconstruct Hezbollah\u2019s military apparatus. This process reportedly took around ten days, though the group\u2019s political leadership remains vacant.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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Retired Oil Industry and Social Security Workers Hold Protest Gatherings in Several Iranian Cities<\/h3>\n

\"Oil<\/p>\n

As the Iranian regime continues to fail in addressing retirees\u2019 demands, a group of retired oil industry workers held a protest in front of the Ministry of Oil building in Tehran. At the same time, groups of retired steel industry workers in Isfahan and Social Security retirees in several other cities also staged demonstrations.\u00a0On Sunday, October 19, oil industry retirees gathered to protest the incomplete implementation of the pension equalization plan, the failure to fully pay retirement bonuses, and the privatization of health and medical services.<\/p>\n

The retirees addressed Mohsen Paknejad, the Iranian regime\u2019s oil minister, chanting slogans such as \u201cIncompetent minister \/ resign, resign,\u201d demanding his resignation.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

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MEK Supporters Exhibition in Uppsala: Defiant Stand for Qezel Hesar\u2019s Striking Prisoners<\/h3>\n
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MEK Supporters Exhibition in Uppsala: Defiant Stand for Qezel Hesar's Striking Prisoners\u2013October 18<\/div><\/div>
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