Spring of freedom

Archive photo: Struan Stevenson, former MEP, and coordinator of the Campaign for Iran Change (CiC), speaking at the Geneva Conference on the situation of human rights in Iran The former member of the European Parliament Struan Stevenson published an  op-ed for UPI  on Thursday, April 25. He used the opportunity to urge the US government to maintain its application of financial pressure on the Iranian regime and end its reign of violence and tyranny. Stevenson called President Trump’s decision to end waivers for Turkey, Iraq, India, Japan, and China that permitted them to continue purchasing Iranian oil “the final nail” in “the mullahs’ coffin.” For Stevenson, this was a necessary move to slash Iranian oil exports closer to “zero” goal. STRUAN @STRUANSTEVENSON My article in @ UPI Decision to cancel the temporary waivers that had enabled some countries to continue purchasing # Iran 's oil has hammered the final nail into the mullahs' coffin # MEK @ Se...

For the regime ruling Iran, there’s no escaping from the FATF crisis  The bills related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) are still under review in Iran’s Expediency Discernment Council and proponents from both factions, as much as the opponents, are dragging the council to abide by their political position. Amid this fiasco, most evident is the fact that the Iranian regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei lacks both the power and authority to make a decision and accept the consequences and responsibility that come with it. On April 23, Keyhan newspaper, known as Khamenei’s semi-official mouthpiece, published an article titled, “The Expediency Discernment Council’s procrastination in disapproving the  FATF  is not expedient,” accusing the council members of leaving the Palermo and CFT bills in limbo. “After the FATF, in its recent statement, suspended Iran again from its blacklist for a period of four months, proponents of the FATF asked for this bills to be...

By Mohammad Sadat Khansari The Iranian Regime has  threatened  to close the world’s busiest shipping lane in response to the US decision to remove the sanctions waivers on the country from May 2. On Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vowed that the US would not extend sanctions waivers on eight countries – China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Greece, Italy, and Turkey – who had been allowed to keep buying Iranian oil after the sanctions snapped back last November. The sanctions came into force after the US withdrew from the nuclear deal, citing Iran’s violation of the UN resolution surrounding the deal. What did Iran Regime do? Alireza Tangsiri, a commander in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which was recently designated a terrorist organisation by the US, vowed that they would block off the Strait of Hormuz, severely impacting the flow of goods, especially oil. This would make shipments more dangerous and more expensive. Tangsir...

By Mahmoud Hakamian The horrific floods that have plagued Iran for the past month, and the Regime’s lacklustre response to them, have only increased the growing hatred of the Regime by the Iranian people, mostly because the disaster has mainly affected the poorer, more rural communities that make up the mullahs’ base. The disparate factions of the Regime have blamed each other for the crisis, fearing a popular uprising, but this has done nothing to help the Iranian people. Abbas Abdi, a member of the faction supporting President Hassan Rouhani, has said that the protests are the result of “accumulated demands” by the population, which is in essence correct. For over a year now, the vast majority of the Iranian people have been demanding that the mullahs be removed from power. He also warned that it was important to help the flood victims because in terms of regime change, “there is no better opportunity than flood or similar events” and it could lead to the people prefer...

Afghan militants, linked to the IRGC, stationing in the flood-hit city of Poledokhtar Fearing an outburst of anger and subsequent unrest in flood-stricken regions, the clerical regime ruling Iran has dispatched hundreds of its extraterritorial elements affiliated to the terrorist-designated Revolutionary Guards ( IRGC ) from Iraq and Afghanistan to the provinces of Lorestan and Khuzestan, in the west and southwest regions of the country, respectively. Under the pretext of assisting relief distribution efforts to the flood-hit areas or preventing floods from entering towns and villages, the IRGC uses these proxy units to, in fact, create a climate of fear and suppress any potential unrest. Following the dispatch of Hashd al-Shaabi militants (Popular Mobilization Forces/Popular Mobilization Units) from Iraq to Ahvaz earlier in the week, the IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency reported that another group of these vicious elements, called “al-Nojaba,” affiliated to the terrorist IRGC...

Meeting between Iran FM Zarif and senior IRGC commanders  Mohammad Javad Zarif, Foreign Minister of the regime ruling Iran, staged a propaganda meeting with members of the Revolutionary Guards ( IRGC ) senior command, including IRGC chief Mohammad Ali Jafari and Quds Force chief Qasem Soleimani. “The Foreign Minister and a number of his deputies met with the senior IRGC command. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has played a major role in maintaining the country’s security, Zarif said,” according to a report aired by the regime’s state TV. In this meeting, Jafari resorted to remarks aimed at saving face. “U.S. forces in the region cannot carry out any military actions against [Iran]. However, if they do take measures, they will face an immediate, serious and firm response from our side,” he said. On the other hand, the  IRGC blacklisting  as a “Foreign Terrorist Organization” has resulted in disagreements and feuds among the regime’s various factions. ...

Maryam Rajavi calls on all Iranians and particularly the youth to rush to the aid of the victims of the flash floods With more  rain forecast , the situation for many Iranian struggling in the wake of the country’s devastating flooding last month is showing no signs of improvement. The provinces of Khuzestan, Lorestan, and Ilam were among the worst affected, with cities and villages succumbing to the rising floodwaters. Despite  more than 200 Iranians  perishing in the disaster, the clerical regime has done little to offer support to the victims. There were no temporary shelters for those forced to flee their homes, no food and water delivered to washed out areas, and no rescue efforts to find survivors or retrieve the bodies of victims. Maryam Rajavi ✔ @Maryam_Rajavi  ·  Apr 2, 2019 The devastating flash floods and its victims and extensive damages constitute a national disaster whose culprit is the anti-human clerical regime. ...