News Digest
October 7
Justice/Espionage: Iran said Yulia Yuzik, a Russian journalist detained last week in Tehran, was arrested for a visa violation and not for spying as initially reported. Russia had summoned the Iranian ambassador on October 4 to discuss the case.
Politics: Josep Borrell, the incoming E.U…
October 1
Justice/Politics: Hossein Fereydoun, the brother of President Hassan Rouhani, was sentenced to five years in prison on corruption charges. He had been arrested in 2017 and was the subject of multiple investigations. Fereydoun had long been accused of corruption by hardliners. But Rouhani…
June 24International: Jordanian police discovered and detonated explosives hidden in a commercial warehouse southeast of Amman. Security sources told Reuters that Iran was behind a plot to destabilize the kingdom, a key ally of the United States in the region. On June 22, police had found…
May 22
International: Iran decried the G7 statement, released on May 20, that had criticized Iran’s nuclear advances, human rights violations and regional adventurism. The communique was “selective” and “vague,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani said. Iran’s nuclear program “is solely…
October 17
Domestic: Protests endured for a 31st day following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurd who was detained for “improper” dress. The U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child condemned Iran for “grave violations of children’s rights,” including the killing of at least 23 children…
June 13
Defense: Two men involved in Iran’s aerospace industry were “martyred” in separate incidents while on duty, according to local media. Ali Kamani, a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force, was killed in a “driving accident.” He was stationed in Khomein in…
January 17
Regional: Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who are supported by Iran, launched drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles at targets in the United Arab Emirates, including Abu Dhabi’s airport, Dubai’s airport and an oil refinery. Two Indians and one Pakistani were killed.
U.S. Secretary of…
Saeed Khatibzadeh
November 1
Health: Iranian state television said that Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Adbollahian had tested positive for COVID-19. But his general condition was “good,” and he continued to work while in quarantine, according to the foreign ministry.
Diplomacy: Foreign Ministry…
October 11
Trade: Adani Ports, the largest port operator in India, announced that it would cease - as of November 15 - to handle cargo from Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. It did not provide a reason, but the announcement followed a seizure of heroin from Afghanistan worth some $2.65 billion at a…
Politics: In his first public speech after 10 years under house arrest, opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi urged major reforms to eliminate the “flaws and shortcomings” in the Islamic Republic. Karroubi, a former speaker of parliament who ran for the presidency in 2009, was allowed to give a brief…