Let's talk Iran - March 6, 2021
NUCLEAR
TERRORISM
Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Iran
    The actions and policies of the Government of Iran — including its proliferation and development of missiles and other asymmetric and conventional weapons capabilities, its network and campaign of regional aggression, its support for terrorist groups, and the malign activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its surrogates — continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States. LINK
Defense secretary says US still assessing who carried out Iraq rocket attack
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the U.S. is still assessing who was responsible for the recent rocket attack on a base in Iraq that houses U.S. forces. Austin said that if the U.S. decides to respond to the attack it will be "at a time and place of our own choosing." LINK
Iran: If Not Concurrent With Strong Condemnation of Rights Violations and Terrorism, Irish Foreign Minister’s Visit To Tehran Will Be Construed by the Mullahs as a Green Light To Continue Their Crimes
The scheduled visit to Iran by the Irish Foreign Minister happens at a time when more than 70 prisoners, including three women, have been executed since the beginning of this year, at least 40 Baloch protesters were killed by Revolutionary Guards, and over 100 wounded, and many more arrested. Last month, a Belgian court sentenced a regime’s diplomat-terrorist to 20 years in prison, and his three accomplices were sentenced from 15 to 18 years for plotting to bomb a large Iranian gathering in Paris in June 2018. LINK
HUMAN RIGHTS
Jailed Iranian activist transferred to psychiatric hospital in Tehran
Ali Nouri, a civil activist held in Evin Prison was transferred to Aminabad Psychiatric Hospital on Wednesday, instead of being taken to a hospital.
Prison authorities had promised to take him to a regular hospital to receive treatment following his health condition over the last week, but they instead transferred him to Aminabad psychiatric hospital.
Sending political prisoners to psychiatric hospitals is a common method of repressing both political prisoners and their family members. LINK
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe: 'Anxious' husband and daughter don't know if Briton detained in Iran will be freed when sentence ends
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's family are anxiously trying to confirm whether Iranian authorities will finally grant her freedom. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was sentenced to five years in 2016 over allegations of plotting to overthrow the Iranian government - which she denies. A dual Iran-UK citizen, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was released to her parents' home last March due to the coronavirus threat in prison. She wears a tracker tag and can't go more than 300m from their home.
The 43-year-old was arrested at Tehran airport while taking her young daughter, Gabriella, to see her parents in April 2016. LINK
Summary of Repression and Human Rights Violations in Iran – February 2021
The following is a roundup of the human rights situation in Iran for the month of February 2021, based on information from activists and state media, collected by Iran News Update. LINK
OTHER
February Iran Protests Report: 271 protests in 67 cities
According to collected reports by sources affiliated with the Iranian opposition in February, there were at least 271 recorded protests in 67 cities across Iran, 24 of which took place in Saravan in southeast Iran. LINK
Restart Iran Policy by Stopping Tehran’s Influence Operations
Iran's influence operations are a serious obstacle to formulating an effective US policy toward Tehran. As long as the regime’s agents are allowed to exploit America’s public sphere, cultivate important relationships, infiltrate the media and think tanks, and influence serious policy deliberations in Washington through a flood of falsehoods, America will be at a substantial disadvantage. LINK
Iran: Officials admit the regime manipulates currency exchange rates
“Rising dollar prices and artificially keeping the dollar’s price high is an accepted reality in Iran. Therefore, we must accept the bitter fact that domestic policies have been the main culprit of rising prices, economic challenges, and the shrinking of the people's tablecloths," the state-run Jahan-e Sanat daily wrote on Feb 27.
For Iran’s strictly controlled media, this is a rare confession to the regime’s years of hiding the fact that it has deliberately increased the currency exchange rate to compensate for the budget deficit, the astronomical salaries of its officials and agents, and other expenses that result from tampering with the government’s financial records. LINK
Iran: Government’s $12-Billion Debt to Social Security Organization
In Iran, more than 40 million people are covered by insurance provided by the Social Security Organization. In low-cost medical cases, these insurances aid the people. According to Iranian media, President Hassan Rouhani’s government has a three-quadrillion-rial [$12 billion] debt to this organization, severely affecting the life and livelihood of over a half of Iran’s population. LINK