{"id":348202,"date":"2026-09-22T06:43:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T05:43:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=348202"},"modified":"2026-09-22T06:47:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T05:47:19","slug":"iran-news-in-brief-september-22-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-news-in-brief-september-22-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran News in Brief \u2013 September 22, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
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On September 19, 2026, NCRI held a rally in Gothenburg, Sweden, to mark the fourth anniversary of Iran\u2019s nationwide uprising of September 2022<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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

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

Amnesty Report Exposes the State Machinery Behind Iran\u2019s 2022 Crackdown<\/h3>\n

\"iran-funeral-protest\"<\/p>\n

Four years after Iran\u2019s 2022 nationwide uprising, the regime is still trying to evade accountability for its brutal crimes against humanity. Security forces killed hundreds of protesters, injured thousands, and arrested tens of thousands to suppress demonstrations that spread across the country following the death in custody of Mahsa Zhina Amini.<\/p>\n

A new investigation<\/a> by Amnesty International now provides one of the most detailed reconstructions yet of how that crackdown was organized. Published on September 16, 2026, the more than 1,000-page Architects of Atrocities<\/em> report examines not only what security forces did on the streets, but also the institutions, officials, orders, and command structures behind the repression.<\/p>\n

Amnesty concludes that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity while suppressing the uprising and identifies 87 officials who it says should face criminal investigation. Its findings are based on years of research, including interviews with 270 people, analysis of more than 2,000 videos, leaked official documents, prosecution orders, court verdicts, and forensic records.<\/p>\n

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

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The Bulldozers Can\u2019t Bury the Truth in Iran<\/h3>\n

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When a dictatorship starts demolishing its prisons and bulldozing its mass graves, the world should ask a simple question. What is it frightened of? The Iranian regime has begun demolishing Gohardasht Prison in Karaj, one of the most infamous sites of political repression in the Islamic Republic.<\/p>\n

Iranian state media reported this month that the prison walls would be demolished, and the site prepared for development. But Gohardasht is far more than redundant real estate. It is a crime scene.<\/p>\n

During the summer of 1988, political prisoners were hauled before so-called Death Commissions. Hearings often lasted only minutes. Thousands were subsequently executed in prisons across Iran. The People\u2019s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) estimate that around 30,000 political prisoners were murdered nationwide, the great majority members or supporters of the PMOI and National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).<\/p>\n

Amnesty International has documented the killing of several thousand prisoners and regards the executions and continuing enforced disappearances as crimes against humanity.<\/p>\n

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

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Why Iran\u2019s Regime Fears the Reopening of Schools and Universities<\/h3>\n

\"Ahvaz<\/p>\n

As Iran\u2019s new academic year begins, officials of Iran\u2019s regime are once again warning about the political dangers they see inside schools and universities. The language is striking: Rather than describing educational institutions simply as places of learning, regime officials portray them as strategic spaces that could be \u201cconquered\u201d by an alleged enemy.<\/p>\n

Speaking at Friday prayers in Bojnurd, regime cleric Reza Nouri warned education officials to remain vigilant, saying that the \u201cenemy\u201d was seeking to \u201cconquer\u201d the education system, universities, and other educational centers. He called on teachers, administrators, and officials to work together to \u201csanitize\u201d the educational environment and urged them to enlist students and university students in that effort.<\/p>\n

The warning raises a basic question: Why does the reopening of schools and universities generate such anxiety for Iran\u2019s regime?<\/p>\n

The answer lies in the political significance that educational institutions have acquired over decades of confrontation between Iranian society and the ruling system.<\/p>\n

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

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From \u201cJavid Shah\u201d to the Ballot Box: What Does Reza Pahlavi Mean by a Monarchy Decided by Vote?<\/h3>\n

\"Reza<\/p>\n

Reza Pahlavi\u2019s latest remarks about the slogan \u201cJavid Shah\u201d have triggered renewed debate among Iranians, particularly across the diaspora, over what kind of political future his movement envisions for Iran.<\/p>\n

Speaking at a gathering identified as Cyrus 2, Pahlavi said:<\/p>\n

\u201cJavid Shah is a slogan of support. Let\u2019s make it so that the day the ballot box is established in Tehran, it becomes a vote rather than a slogan.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The statement is significant because it links an explicitly monarchist slogan\u2014\u201cLong Live the Shah\u201d\u2014with the future establishment of a ballot box in Iran.<\/p>\n

The issue is not whether monarchists have the right to advocate their preferred political system. In a genuinely free Iran, they should have that right, just as republicans and other democratic political currents should have the right to organize, campaign, and compete.<\/p>\n

The fundamental question is different: Would the ballot box be genuinely free to reject the monarchy, or is the electoral process being presented as the mechanism for converting an existing monarchist movement into political legitimacy?<\/strong><\/p>\n

That distinction matters.<\/p>\n

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

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Iran: Student Najmeh Amini Sentenced to Death After 8 Months in Limbo, Fair Trial Denied<\/h3>\n

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The issuance of a death sentence against Najmeh Amini, a 23-year-old accounting student detained in the women\u2019s ward of Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, has ignited a new wave of grave concern over the Iranian judiciary\u2019s accelerated deployment of hasty, repressive verdicts against protesters and civil activists.<\/p>\n

Documented information and an audio message transmitted by this political prisoner indicate that the investigation, trial, and issuance of her death sentence were marked by gross violations of fundamental human rights, denial of access to a fair trial, and reliance on vague security accusations.<\/p>\n

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  1. Violent Arrest and Prolonged Arbitrary Detention<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Najmeh Amini was arrested on Saturday, 31 January 2026 (11 Bahman 1404), near Ferdowsi Bazaar in Mashhad, suffering severe physical beatings by state security forces.<\/p>\n

    According to human rights reports:<\/p>\n