Middle East

By Nilofar Sakhi | – The death of Mahsa Amini, who was detained and beaten by Iranian morality police due to a violation of “Iran’s dress code or mandatory hijab rules” has caused unprecedented nationwide protests against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Her death is a blatant sign of Iran’s ongoing oppression and violence against […]

Authoritarianism

Iran: Massive Baluch Protest in Zahedan; in NW, Security Forces attack School, Injuring and Disappearing Girls

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Because of internet blackouts, news of Iran’s ongoing protests only leaks out in dribbles and drabs, sometimes a couple of days later. Reports did circulate on Friday of a large demonstration in Zahedan after people left Friday prayers to gather in the city center. Police allegedly used live fire to […]

Authoritarianism

Not ‘powerless Victims’: how young Iranian Women have long led a quiet Revolution

The Conversation

By Nasim Salehi, Southern Cross University | – The “Women, Life, Freedom” movement that has taken hold in Iran in recent weeks is not new. Young Iranian women have been involved in small but consistent evolutionary actions during the entire 44 years of the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly in the past two decades. The […]

Feminism

Marriage laws in Mideast put Women at increased risk of Child Marriage and Domestic Violence

Middle East Monitor

By Amelia Smith | – ( Middle East Monitor) – A new policy briefing by the NGO, Equality Now, on how marriage laws in the MENA region and around the world discriminate against women and girls reveals how failure to reform means they are at increased risk of human rights violations, such as child marriage […]

Authoritarianism

This time, Iranian Women’s Demands are being Seen as the Nation’s Demands

The Conversation

By Homa Hoodfar, Concordia University and Mona Tajali, Agnes Scott College | – (The Conversation) – The world has been transfixed by images of Iranian women shouting “women, life, liberty,” leading protest rallies, dancing in the streets and burning their headscarves while facing armed soldiers. The displays of courage by Iranian women are not unlike […]

Authoritarianism

Iran Accused Of Using armed Minors To Suppress Anti-Government Protests

Golnaz Esfandiari

( RFE/RL) — As Iranian authorities crack down on nationwide anti-government protests, photos have appeared on social media that purportedly show children and adolescent boys wearing unforms and holding batons. They appear to be wearing the uniforms of the Basij paramilitary forces, a branch of Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The photos have […]

Feminism

Women-led Protests in Iran gather Momentum – but will They be enough to bring about Change?

The Conversation

By Tony Walker, La Trobe University | – As protests in Iran drag on into their fourth week over the violent death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman, there are two central questions. The first is whether these protests involving women and girls across Iran are different from upheavals in the past, […]

Eritrea

Why does the Ukraine War overshadow the Middle Eastern Wars?

John Feffer

( Foreign Policy in Focus ) – The war in Ukraine has dominated the headlines in U.S. and European newspapers, not to mention outlets in other parts of the world. The explosion this weekend that destroyed part of the bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland, along with Russia’s retaliatory missile attacks on Ukrainian cities […]

Featured

To Deal with Saudi Arabia, Biden should Fast-Track both Iran Deal and the Greening of Transportation

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Reuters reports that the Biden White House is upset with Saudi Arabia over the recent OPEC+ decision to cut the output of the 21 nations grouped in the bloc by 2 million barrels a day. President Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper in an interview Tuesday, “there will be consequences” for […]