{"id":347503,"date":"2026-08-23T08:34:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T07:34:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=347503"},"modified":"2026-08-23T08:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T07:34:31","slug":"iran-news-in-brief-august-23-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-news-in-brief-august-23-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran News in Brief \u2013 August 23, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
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On August 21, 2026, NCRI supporters continued their sit-in protest outside the Iranian regime\u2019s embassy in Berlin, Germany<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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

UPDATE: 9:30 AM CEST<\/strong><\/p>\n

Resistance Units in Zahedan Exposes the Regime\u2019s Plunder and Forge Path To A Democratic Republic<\/h3>\n

\"MEK<\/p>\n

On August 21, 2026, PMOI\/MEK Resistance Units in Zahedan, southeast Iran, boldly resumed their weekly anti-regime activities. Rejecting all forms of tyranny, including the mullahs\u2019 religious fascism and the shah\u2019s dictatorship, the brave activists held placards in public locations with messages of resistance.<\/p>\n

Demonstrating that the region of Baluchestan is awake and utterly despises both the current regime and the former monarchical dictatorship, they reiterated a core democratic demand of the Iranian people. Their placards firmly declared, \u201cNo to mullahs, no to shah. Yes to freedom and a democratic republic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Resistance Units laid bare the reality of the regime\u2019s executive branch, holding placards stating: \u201cUnder the clerical dictatorship, the president is merely a logistics clerk for the Supreme Leader\u2014everything else is empty ceremony and theater.\u201d<\/p>\n

The activists also highlighted the devastating economic reality for ordinary Iranians, noting that under this plundering regime, \u201cthe people\u2019s dining table shrinks daily, the number of people below the poverty line and hunger increases, and the line of the unemployed grows longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

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Iran\u2019s Fuel Crisis Deepens as Regime Officials Invoke 2019 Protests<\/h3>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s gasoline crisis is deepening, with motorists reporting long lines and\u00a0difficulties\u00a0<\/a>obtaining fuel while officials inside the ruling establishment increasingly voice concern over the public consequences of changes to gasoline distribution and prices.<\/p>\n

The latest complaints came from\u00a0Kerman on August 19, 2026, adding to reports of fuel problems in other cities. At the same time, three regime MPs\u2014Seyyed Jalil Mirmohammadi Meybodi, Mojtaba Yousefi, and Hossein-Ali Haji Deligani\u2014raised increasingly stark warnings about the impact of gasoline policies on a population already facing severe economic pressure.<\/p>\n

Most notably, Mirmohammadi Meybodi explicitly invoked the\u00a0November 2019 protests, warning that another mishandled gasoline decision could turn into a major security crisis. His remarks were also reported by\u00a0Mehr News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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

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2 Political Prisoners Face Uncertainty and Denial of Furlough in Gorgan and Isfahan<\/h3>\n

\"Ghezel<\/p>\n

Reports indicate continuing judicial and security pressures on two political prisoners, Masoumeh Azhini and Masoumeh Sarbanzadeh, in Gorgan and Dowlatabad Prisons in Isfahan.<\/p>\n

Masoumeh Azhini, a 63-year-old political prisoner and a seeker of justice for the victims of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners, remains in a state of limbo in Gorgan Prison after more than 140 days (4 months) since her arrest.<\/p>\n

Ms. Azhini\u00a0was arrested<\/a>\u00a0on April 4, 2026. She had previously relocated from Tehran to the outskirts of\u00a0Gorgan<\/a>\u00a0due to continuous pressure when she was detained by security forces and transferred to an undisclosed location. Although the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutorial Office of Gorgan set bail for her temporary release and her family provided the required amount, authorities continue to deny her temporary release on bail.<\/p>\n

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

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The Price of Freedom: Stories History Must Never Forget<\/h3>\n

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For decades, the struggle for freedom in Iran has been accompanied by repression, imprisonment, executions, and profound personal sacrifice. While the names of political prisoners and those killed for their opposition are sometimes recorded in history, the stories of the families left behind are far less frequently told.<\/p>\n

Behind every execution was a mother who lost a son, a family whose life was shattered, and relatives who were often subjected to persecution themselves. Many mothers carried their grief for decades while continuing to preserve the memory of their children and the cause for which they had sacrificed their lives.<\/p>\n

Among these stories is that of Eshrat Najibzadeh, known as \u201cMother Dehghan,\u201d the mother of three members of the People\u2019s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) who were killed, and a former political prisoner in Shiraz. Another is that of Robab Barayi, a former political prisoner of Adelabad Prison in Shiraz.<\/p>\n

Their experiences offer a glimpse into the enormous human cost of political repression in Iran and the determination of families who refused to allow those sacrifices to disappear from collective memory.<\/p>\n

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

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The Mirage of a Return to Monarchy: What Iran\u2019s 2026 Crisis Has Revealed<\/h3>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The defining lesson of Iran\u2019s two wars and one major uprising in 2026 is not merely that the ruling regime has entered a deeper crisis. It is that every attempt to revive a failed political order\u2014whether clerical or hereditary\u2014runs against the aspirations of Iranian society.<\/p>\n

The notion that Iran can return to a monarchist system under the Pahlavi family is, at best, a political mirage. Iran\u2019s history has known many dynasties, most of which established themselves through military conquest and the exercise of power. The Pahlavi dynasty, however, emerged in the aftermath of the 1921 coup and the subsequent political transformation of the country under Reza Shah. Its restoration would therefore not represent a return to some natural historical order. It would amount to reviving a system that large sections of Iranian society rejected decades ago.<\/p>\n

Yet Reza Pahlavi continues to promote the idea that he can play a central role in Iran\u2019s political future. The question is not simply whether he personally seeks such a role. The more consequential question is whether the political project associated with him can offer anything beyond another form of concentrated and hereditary power.<\/p>\n

The answer increasingly appears to be no.<\/p>\n

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

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Europe Must Cut the Regime Off Financially and Politically and Recognize Iran\u2019s Democratic Resistance<\/h3>\n

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For decades, Western governments have pursued a policy of engagement and appeasement toward Iran\u2019s ruling regime. Negotiations, dialogue, and diplomatic concessions have repeatedly failed to change its behavior, while repression at home and destabilizing activities abroad have continued.<\/p>\n

According to Alejo Vidal-Quadras, former Vice President of the European Parliament and President of the International Committee in Search of Justice, the failure of this approach has become undeniable. In an interview with Simay-e Azadi, he argued that neither appeasement nor military action provides a sustainable solution. Instead, he called for a strategy based on maximum political, financial, and diplomatic pressure on the regime, combined with full political support for the Iranian people and the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).<\/p>\n

Vidal-Quadras has been involved with the Iranian resistance for more than two decades. He said his commitment began after meeting Maryam Rajavi approximately 25 years ago and has continued despite the assassination attempt against him that nearly cost him his life.<\/p>\n

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

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Iran\u2019s Regime Lays Groundwork for Raising Gasoline Prices<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

As economic and financial pressure on the Iranian regime intensifies, Iranian regime president Masoud Pezeshkian has once again laid the groundwork for higher fuel prices by highlighting the wide gap between gasoline purchase and sale prices. Meanwhile, the suspension of the UAE\u2019s financial and commercial transactions with Iran has heightened concerns that the Iranian regime\u2019s assets and Iranian banks\u2019 funds in the country could be blocked.<\/p>\n

Speaking on Friday, August 21, Pezeshkian said about gasoline prices: \u201cWho said the government should buy gasoline for 1.3 million rials and then sell it for 15,000 rials?\u201d He claimed that continuing this situation would reduce the government\u2019s ability to cover costs such as food voucher programs, payments owed to wheat farmers, insurance, and the livelihoods of workers, retirees, and government employees.<\/p>\n

These remarks come as Pezeshkian\u2019s government is pursuing the so-called \u201cfourth gasoline quota\u201d plan at market prices, a proposal that has faced opposition even within the regime. On August 17, Iranian regime parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said raising gasoline prices was not \u201ca calculated measure.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

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Iranian Regime Parliament Speaker: If People Are Hungry, We Will Not Survive<\/h3>\n

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Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Iranian regime\u2019s Majlis (parliament), warned about the consequences of the economic crisis and the intensification of U.S. sanctions. He said that even with military power, if people are hungry and the country\u2019s economy lacks financial circulation, economic growth, and national production, the Iranian regime will not survive.<\/p>\n

During a visit to Iraq on Friday, August 21, Ghalibaf met with people introduced as \u201cIran-Iraq economic activists,\u201d described the new U.S. sanctions as \u201coppressive,\u201d and said planning was needed to counter them.<\/p>\n

He emphasized expanding trade with Iraq based on the two countries\u2019 national currencies and said that using this method would allow them to \u201cstrike a blow against the American currency.\u201d<\/p>\n

These remarks came after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced one day earlier that Washington was implementing a plan to sharply intensify economic sanctions against the Iranian regime with the goal of its \u201coverthrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bessent described the plan as the largest coordinated economic isolation campaign in world history and said details of the new sanctions would be announced on Monday, August 24.<\/p>\n

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

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Stop the Gradual State Murder of Prisoners in Iran<\/h3>\n

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Reports received from Evin, Greater Tehran (Fashafuyeh), Qezel Hesar, Dastgerd (Isfahan), Karaj Central, Malayer, and Gonbad-e Kavus prisons demonstrate a severe deterioration of living standards, medical neglect, and non-compliance with prisoner detention regulations. Collectively, these conditions jeopardize the health and lives of prisoners and may constitute\u00a0\u201cgradual state murder\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0and the\u00a0gradual deprivation of the right to life<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Evin Prison: Temperatures Exceeding 40\u00b0C, Bedbug Infestation, and Viral Outbreak<\/strong><\/h4>\n