By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi / Abubakar Siddique | – ( RFE/RL ) – Fahima witnessed many of her rights and freedoms disappear in 2022 as the Taliban imposed sweeping restrictions on Afghan women. An aid worker in Afghanistan’s southern province of Uruzgan, Fahima was employed in one of the few fields that the militant group […]
Two Iranian Teens Reportedly Sentenced To Death Over Protests
By Ardeshir Tayebi | – Iran has reportedly sentenced two teenagers to death for “corruption on Earth” and “waging war against God” among other charges often used by the judiciary to help the government quell nationwide unrest sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police custody. The U.S.-based activist group HRANA quoted […]
Clampdown Reported In Iranian Kurdistan After Slain Protesters Mourned
By Ardeshir Tayebi | – ( RFE/RL) – Demonstrators in the western Iranian city of Javanrud were set on by security forces and have reportedly faced a martial-style clampdown since gathering in a local cemetery on December 31 to mark the end of the 40-day mourning period for seven protesters killed by security forces in […]
U.S.-Trained Afghan Soldiers Angry Over Their Plight Are Ready To Join Russia’s War Against Ukraine
By Michael Scollon ( RFE/RL ) – Lost status and a desperate existence in Iran are driving thousands of former Afghan troops — many of them elite commandos trained by the United States — to consider fighting as mercenaries in Ukraine and other battlefields. Many ex-Afghan security personnel accuse the United States of abandoning them […]
Taliban’s University Ban Signals Return To Past Repression Of Women
I’m Mustafa Sarwar, a senior news editor at RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi. Here’s what I’ve been tracking and what I’m keeping an eye on in the days ahead. (RFE/RL ) – The Taliban banned women from attending universities in Afghanistan on December 20. In a statement, the Taliban’s Higher Education Ministry said the decision was effective […]
Families Of Slain Iranian Protesters Mark End Of Mourning Period With Defiance
By Ardeshir Tayebi/ Radio Farda | – ( RFE/RL ) – The families of the victims of the recent nationwide protests in Iran have staged protests amid ceremonies marking the 40th day since the death of 10 protesters across the country. With police standing nearby in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz on December 22, […]
Iran’s Executions Of Protesters Triggers Public Outrage, Draws Criticism From Clerics
By Hannah Kaviani I’m Hannah Kaviani, a senior broadcaster and editor at RFE/RL’s Radio Farda. Here’s what I’ve been following and what I’m watching out for in the days ahead. ( RFE/ RL ) – Iran has publicly executed two young men over their involvement in the ongoing antiestablishment protests that have rocked the country […]
Family Says Son Died After Torture By Iranian Security Agents
By RFE/RL’s Radio Farda Shadman Ahmadi died in police custody in Kurdistan. The family of a 22-year-old Iranian protester says their son has died in a detention center after being tortured for hours following his arrest during a protest in the western Iranian city of Dehgolan. The France-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network quoted Shadman Ahmadi’s […]
Protesting Rapper’s Video Foretelling Iranian Regime’s Future Leads To Arrest As Fans Fear For His Life
( RFE?RL ) – Toomaj Salehi’s lyrical support for protesters in Iran has landed him behind bars before, but this time the popular rapper’s fortune-telling has fans and family members fearing for his life. Just days before his September 30 arrest, the 32-year-old Salehi released his latest music video, in which he makes foreboding predictions […]