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Iran, One of the Poorest Countries in the World

Pooya Stone
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Iran, One of the Poorest Countries in the World

In recent years, Iranians have experienced increasing poverty. Poverty directly affects the livelihood and food basket of Iranian households.

According to official statistics published by the Research Center of the Parliament of the Government of Iran, between 2011 and 2019, every Iranian has become 36% poorer on average.

The first impact of this poverty is on the household’s livelihoods, and in the shadow of the inability to buy healthy food, people will certainly buy cheap and poor-quality food without nutritional value.

Credit Suisse Bank publishes a report on the per capita wealth of households in different countries of the world every year. In the latest report published by this center, Swiss people with an average wealth of $674,000 per adult are the richest people in the world.

These statistics are based on the amount of financial savings and real estate value of individuals. After Switzerland, the people of the United States and Hong Kong are ranked second and third richest people in the world. In total, we can say that the concentration of wealth is in North America and Europe. The poorest people are also in Africa and Central Asia.

The average wealth per adult in the United States is $505,000, in Hong Kong $503,000, in Australia $483,000, and in Taiwan, which has the twentieth richest persons in the world, the average wealth per adult is $238,860.

Among the countries of the Persian Gulf, statistics show that the situation is not very good in this region. In the region, the people of Qatar, with an average per capita wealth of $146,730, are the richest people in the region, and the people of Iran, with an average per capita wealth of $22,249, have the lowest wealth.

Kuwaitis are the second richest people in the region with an average wealth of $128,990 per adult, $115,476 per adult in the UAE, $ 87,559 in Bahrain, $68,697 in Saudi Arabia, and $39,499 in Oman.

In the Bank of Switzerland classification, countries with an average wealth of more than $100,000 are considered rich, countries with an average wealth of adults between $25,000 and $100 are counted as middle regions, and countries with an average wealth of between $5,000 and $25,000 are considered as the poorest areas.

Accordingly, in the Persian Gulf region, the people of Qatar, Kuwait, and the UAE are among the rich, and the people of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Oman are among the average in terms of wealth, but Iran is among the countries whose people are considered poor.

Countries such as India, Iran, the Philippines, and African countries are considered “poor” in this division and live in more difficult conditions by international standards.

The historical background of North American and Western European countries shows that industrial development in these regions has a longer history, and in this regard, the high level of wealth in these countries is not far from expected, but the economic record of some countries such as South Korea and Singapore is worthwhile. It is important because their industrial history is not comparable to American and European countries but due to prudent policies and accurate recognition of their economic advantages, they have been able to find a good place among countries.

Ease of doing business, focusing on domestic advantages, and extensive connections to foreign markets have led countries such as South Korea and Singapore to gain a foothold in international economies in recent decades with high economic growth.

Having an uncountable number of natural resources but having a corrupt and mafia-led government has made Iran one of the poorest and underdeveloped countries in the world, lacking all the factors mentioned above.

 

When Iran’s COVID-19 Criminals Confess

Esmaeil Mohades
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When Iran’s COVID-19 Criminals Confess

The coronavirus crisis in Iran is accelerating and raging. The death toll is staggering, and the people are left defenseless. Every news about the situation is adding to the disastrous situation.

The oligarchy of the political and economic power of the regime was prioritized to the people’s health, and the regime benefiting from the coronavirus to ensure its existence after the two major protests in 2017 and 2019 has led to the uncontrollable spread of the coronavirus.

Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, the head of Iran’s medical system, announced on August 8: “Those who made a statement to restrict the import of the vaccine should be held accountable for the record of the coronavirus casualties.”

Note this statistic first:

Number of coronavirus deaths in several Asian countries on August 7, 2021 (Source: World Health Organization)

  • Iran 588 people
  • Saudi Arabia 12 people
  • Kuwait 6 people
  • Japan 4 people
  • UAE 3 people
  • South Korea 1 person
  • Bahrain zero
  • Qatar zero
  • Afghanistan zero

Now pay attention to this inevitable confession. On August 11, 2021, Alireza Zali, chief of Iran’s coronavirus task force, stated: “The cost of coronavirus drugs has increased many times over the costs of vaccine import, but they did not allow the vaccine to be bought because they thought it was too expensive.

“When the experts of the World Health Organization came to Iran, instead of consulting with them, we constantly asked them to praise the Iranian health system in the media. We hid the death toll from the World Health Organization.

“We returned international aid and Médecins Sans Frontières from the airport without much knowledge about the virus and did not seek international advice.

“We have much more bitter news for the coming weeks and things will get much worse. Delta lasted three months in India, and they quickly vaccinated everyone. We should not grieve over the price of the vaccine; we should even buy them at twice the price and vaccinate people.

“We have no choice but to make a two-week lockdown, which should start today. We only have the vaccine reserve for five days and we cannot increase the speed. If we had enough vaccines, we would double the centers.”

Then about the regime’s other priorities, he confessed: “Our ambassadors in foreign countries did not seek vaccines, I talked to the Japanese ambassador, and he said that the Iranian ambassador did not seek vaccines at all, what kind of diplomacy is this?” (Iran’s State TV, August 11, 2021)

In such a situation described by this official, it is predictable that the death toll is even much more than the numbers of the WHO. The problem and bitter reality are that in this regime there is no reliable organization to have a firm foothold on it.

As Abas Abdi, one of the regime’s elements, on August 10 said: “The actual number of the daily coronavirus deaths should be close to 1,500 and possibly more.”

Moinuddin Saeedi MP about the dramatic situation on August 11 said: “The numbers we hear today about the victims of the deadly coronavirus disease, Delta, these are not numbers, these are mothers and father, sisters, spouse and a child. The increasing of this statistic is bothering any conscience. I wish instead of protecting cyberspace users (the regime’s new bill about the internet restrictions), we would prioritize protecting people against the coronavirus, protecting people against this unbridled increase in prices and water scarcity.”

Without any analysis, the final words belong to the regime’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei who is the main culprit of this situation.

“The import of US and British coronavirus vaccines into the country is prohibited.” (February 7, 2021)

And now after this massacre which he was running in the country in an inconsistent and strange but not unexpected expression he said:

“Fortunately, the production of vaccines within the country paved the path for the import of foreign shots as well, whereas, before that, foreign suppliers would renege on their promises despite having received the payments.”

And suddenly the coronavirus has become a priority of the country!

“The outbreak of the coronavirus is the first and most urgent issue in the country.” (Khamenei, State-TV, August 11, 2021)

He before this situation on March 3, 2020, about the coronavirus outbreak has said: “In our opinion, this calamity is not such a great calamity, there have been bigger calamities than these calamities, and we have seen cases in the country. It is a temporary issue; It is not an extraordinary thing. These incidents occur in the country, of course, I do not want to minimize this issue, but we should not make it too big. There is something that is happened, a time that God willing, will not be too long, it will exist in the country, then it will leave.”

Ten Executions in Iran Until the Fourth Day of Ebrahim Raisi’s Presidency

Hoshang Amiri
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Ten Executions in Iran Until the Fourth Day of Ebrahim Raisi’s Presidency

On August 8, the human rights center No to Prison – No to Execution reported that authorities in Iran have hanged at least seven inmates in the prisons of Birjand, northeastern the country, and Isfahan, central of the country. They were charged with drug-related offenses.

Furthermore, the Resanak human rights website identified the executed inmates as Zabihollah Hormozi and Majid Galeh-Bacheh in Birjand prison; and A’zam Mohammad Hassani (Kiazehi) and Esmail Kordtamini in Isfahan prison. These victims were all from the Baluch minority.

Human rights activists reported at least five inmates were hanged in Isfahan prison; however, they had yet to identify all the executed prisoners. Later, the No to Prison – No to Execution center identified another victim as Ahmad Hemmat-Abadi, 42, who was also executed for drug-related charges.

These executed were carried on the third day of Ebrahim Raisi’s presidency in Iran. Raisi is infamously known as the “butcher of Tehran” for his leading role in the execution of thousands of political prisoners, mostly affiliated with the opposition Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK/PMOI) in the summer of 1988.

Following his first attempt for office in May 2017, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei appointed Raisi as Judiciary Chief in March 2019. In his period as the Judiciary Chief, Raisi upheld and ordered the implementation of more than 1,000 death sentences.

Raisi also played a leading role in the crackdown on peaceful protesters in November 2019, who came onto the streets to denounce gas price hikes. As the highest judicial authority, Raisi was involved in the suppression of fuel carriers’ protests in cross-boarding the Saravan region in February.

Following his ‘designed victory’ in the June Presidential race, Khamenei replaced Raisi with his first deputy Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i. Eje’i is also a notorious judicial authority, and his name is synonymous with execution and torture.

On the other hand, human rights activists acknowledged that authorities hanged two other Baluch inmates Nabi Nouti-Zahi and Ebrahim Ghanbar-Zehi in the prison of Kerman, southeastern of the country, at down on Monday, August 9. They were from Zahedan city, the capital of Sistan & Baluchistan province.

A day earlier, the victims had been taken to solidary confinement as a procedure of implementing the death sentence. They had allegedly been detained for drug-related charges five years ago while they did not have any kind of narcotics.

Furthermore, the authorities hanged the tenth inmate within a ten-day period in the prison of Kermanshah. He was identified as Afshar Minaee from the city of Paveh. He had been kept five years behind the bars and finally was executed Dizel-Abad Prison for a murder charge. He was the father of two minor girls and boys. State-run media has yet to report this execution as of this report.

According to reports tallied by human rights centers and activists, Iranian authorities have executed at least 204 inmates in 2021. This is while they implement more than 72 percent of executions in secret, according to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

Arbitrary Murders

Also, on Sunday, August 8, border guards in cross-boarding Baneh district, Kurdistan province, deliberately targeted a porter [Koulbar] and gunned down him. He was identified as Omid Khezri, 47, and the son of Omar. He was from Mahabad city and resided in the Sardasht district. He was married and the father of two children.

On the same day, a man drove over two women on the ambiguous accusation of ‘Bad-Hijab’ [refusing to obey restricted hijab rules] in Urmia city, the capital of the northwestern province of West Azarbaijan. He committed this crime under the excuse of ‘Inciting people to goodness.’ One of the injured women has reportedly lost her life in a hospital, and another one is in critical condition.

As observers had previously noticed that the presidency of Ebrahim Raisi led the Iranian government to more human rights violations. In such circumstances, the international community should take a firm and powerful approach toward the religious tyranny in Iran, and condition any relations to an improvement of the human rights situation.

Raisi the Ace or the Iranian Supreme Leader’s Last Card?

Pooya Stone
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Raisi the Ace or the Iranian Supreme Leader’s Last Card?

With Ebrahim Raisi occupying the post of Iran’s presidency, the supreme leader’s dream has become a reality, and the regime is now contracted. There is no more so-called reformist faction in the main positions of the government, therefore Ali Khamenei has lost his card of having an opposition inside the country and announcing them as the main culprit of all the people’s miserable situation to covering him and his corrupted institutions.

From now on the huge waves of the people’s protests will directly hit Khamenei’s palace.

Raisi complained about the coronavirus during the inauguration ceremony, not because it is taking between 700-800 honorable lives from the Iranian people every day, because he failed to kiss Khamenei’s hand.

With this eloquence, he showed that he had come for being loyal to the regime’s supreme leader and that he had no further mission than to spread repression and respond to discontent with bullets and tear gas, torture, and imprisonment.

But the truth is that Raisi is not an opportunity, he is an anti-opportunity. He is the latest card that Khamenei put on the table. According to Fereydoun Majlesi, a former diplomat of the regime, the government cannot afford to make the slightest mistake. He said this before Raisi took the power.

“The synergy of internal crises has given the government the warning that society has no patience to endure this situation and the threshold of people’s patience has reached its most fragile state. Therefore, there is no more chance and opportunity for adventure. This view of the thirteenth government will certainly be dictated.

Because the thirteenth government, even if given over to people like Seyyed Ibrahim Raisi, no longer has the chance and opportunity to make any mistake.” (Diplomacy Irani, May 22, 2021)

So Raisi is not a lifeline after all; he is just a version between the bad and the worst. By boycotting the election show and a series of uprisings, the society has shown that it is not looking for a solution within the government while having experienced it many times and failed.

Raising “strong skyscraping fists” and showing teeth and unveiling models of missiles and UAVs is no longer authoritative and is just reflecting fundamental weaknesses. This has also been understood by the elements of this regime.

“We cannot solely rely on Putin’s military capabilities and unrealistic incentives and Xi Jinping genius and test the social scene by pseudo-security plans and narrow the country’s connection to the world every day.” (State-run daily Hamdeli, August 7, 2021)

The result of Raisi’s power taking is that the foundations of this regime are wretched in all the fields. The regime now has no authority or power, neither militarily, nor ideologically, nor economically, nor politically. This is a reality that they self are speaking about it:

“With two conventional actions of approval and inauguration, the presidency of Ibrahim Raisi was recognized. He is in a position where according to Michael Mann four sources of power, Military, ideological, economic, and political power are each in a special position.

Military power is under the magnifier of foreign opposition, and they are trying to limit it, and ideological power has lost its former influence in the public arena, and oil-dependent economic power has not good conditions and is dependent on the JCPOA and the political power has lost its hegemony.” (State-run daily Shargh, August 7, 2021)

Retreat and weakness are spreading like a virus among the regime’s officials and elements. This was obvious in the speeches of some of them in Raisi’s inauguration. Which has become a disaster for the regime.

“The speeches of the esteemed Speakers of the Parliament and the Judiciary at the inauguration ceremony and in the presence of representatives of more than seventy countries were weak. It was not in the dignity of the revolution and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The focus of their speeches were issues such as corruption and dense livelihood problems and unemployment and the impact of sanctions and the like.” (Tazeh News, August 6, 2021)

The result for the regime is the constant warnings about being overthrown:

“Worrying economic pressures, along with high mortality due to disease outbreaks and the inefficiency of decision-making institutions, eventually bring distressed people to a point where they will have nothing to lose. And this is a dangerous process that has been warned by sympathizers repeatedly despite all the audits. (Mostaghel, August 7, 2021)

Iran’s Government Warned Political Prisoners It Would Repeat the 1988 Massacre

Jubin Katiraie
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Iran’s Government Warned Political Prisoners It Would Repeat the 1988 Massacre

Despite the Iranian regime’s struggle to bury the history of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners and even not possible to minimize this event which is one of the worst human rights violation cases after World War Two but its henchmen in the regime’s prison are warning the political prisoners that they would repeat such an action if they support the protests, write a letter to the outside world or issue statements about the regime’s actions in the prison and the country.

The interesting part is that with the start of the government of Ebrahim Raisi, who is one of the main actors in the 1988 massacre, there is a clear sign of the supreme leader’s decision to increase the pressure in the country like their latest decision in the parliament to restrict and country’s internet cut the country from the outside world under the pretext of a plan named ‘protection of social media users.

But this is just the beginning and from now on the world will face more violations by this regime in any possible field.

Reports from Qarchak prison in Varamin indicate that four women political prisoners in support of the Iranian opposition were threatened and re-interrogated on 4 August. Political prisoners Zahra Safaei, Forough Taghipour, Parasto Moeini, and Marzieh Farsi were each interrogated and threatened separately on Monday.

These threats and interrogation were implemented after these political prisoners have issued a statement about the regime’s presidential election and condemned the presidency of the ‘Tehran’s Butcher’ Ebrahim Raisi, who is one of the main perpetrators of the 1988 massacre.

One of these threatened women is the 20-year-old Parsto Moeini. The interrogator warned her that the “conditions of 1988 may be repeated.”

“Even if we do not execute you, we will do something that you beg to be executed,” he said in another part of his threat.

Reports indicate that in addition to interrogation and threats, special restrictions have been imposed on these women prisoners by order of the head of the prison. Other women are prevented from entering the rooms of these 4 women prisoners. These women are prevented from going to other parts of the prison, such as the library and the prayer hall.

The lives of these women political prisoners are in danger in Qarchak prison, and before that, agents of the regime in this prison by the direct order of the head of this prison tried to kill them by attacking them and pouring boiling water over them.

Zahra Safaei and her daughter Parasto Moeini, along with Forough Taghipour (25) and her mother Nasim Jabbari (58), were arrested by security forces in Tehran on February 24, 2020, and transferred to the Ministry of Intelligence Detention Center, Ward 209 of Evin Prison.

Zahra Safaei, Parasto Moeini, and Forough Taghipour were deported from Evin Prison to Qarchak Prison in Varamin in late April 2020.

Parasto Moeini was infected with the coronavirus in Qarchak Prison in Varamin on July 10, 2020, but was transferred from ward 5 of Qarchak prison in Varamin to a room on the upper floor of the prison’s medical building without medical treatment.

Simply Said, Iran’s Environment Is Dead

Hoshang Amiri
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Simply Said, Iran’s Environment Is Dead

Iran’s environment is in bad condition. That is something that these days the government is no longer able to deny.

The situation becomes worse when we know that the government is not caring about this issue, and in the past year, the country’s environmental situation has worsened.

All four indicators that reflect the state of Iran’s environment have a worrying outlook: soil, water, air, and biodiversity. In all four components, Iran’s situation is becoming more fragile. Iran has almost the highest rate of soil erosion in the world (relative to its share of the Earth’s landmass).

The issue becomes even more worrying when we know that for one centimeter of soil to form in Iran, it takes an average of 800 years, while the average figure for soil formation on Earth is 400 years. Therefore, the deterioration of the situation in Iran is 16 times the global average.

The rate of soil formation in Iran is between one-sixth and one-seventh of soil displacement, and the valuable resources of Iran’s soil, which is the most important source and reason for the people’s food security, are constantly declining.

If Iran does not have fertile soil, there is no hope to produce the people’s needed food. While the IRGC is exporting Iran’s soil, almost no country in the world exports its soil because the process of soil production is very time-consuming. While some countries export water because water is easier to obtain anyway.

Even in some cases, water can be desalinated and obtained from the oceans and seas, but this is practically impossible in the case of soil.

The level of Iran’s aquifers decreases by an average of 2 meters per year. This has led to the phenomenon of land subsidence. In this phenomenon, thanks to the government’s negligence they broke the world record twice in the 21st century. Once in 2010 in the south of Tehran, the Geological Survey announced subsidence of 36 cm, which was 4 cm more than Mexico City, the capital of Mexico. 36 cm is 90 times the critical level in the European Union which is there just 4 mm.

Even worse a region between Fasa and Jahron has reached the number of 54 cm per year which is 140 times more than the critical level. 35,000 villages have been abandoned because soil fertility has decreased. Air pollution is still a serious and breathtaking crisis. At least one of Iran’s cities is always one of the 10 most polluted cities in the world.

The $ 8 billion in air pollution damage is breathtaking. The government’s official statistics claim that just 35,000 people are killed by air pollution, but the fact is that when it is announced that 400,000 people have been killed by air pollution in the European Union and 50,000 by the United Kingdom, it is doubtful, for a government that is doing nothing about this situation.

In the field of biodiversity, the situation is worse than the other three areas and less attention has been paid to it. Compared to 47 years ago, it has decreased by 90%. This is a terrible number, and it is considered a collapse.

But that’s not all. Iran is losing all its water resources. Most of its rivers are dried up. The Chalous River has dried up for the first time in its history due to rent-seeking permits. It is said that the age of this river is the age of the northern forests. A river that originates from Kandovan in Mazandaran and flows into the Caspian Sea after flowing 85 km.

The IRGC-controlled private sector has built a 110-kilometer tunnel since 1995 to divert the river to eastern Mazandaran and Amol for agricultural purposes. 500 million cubic meters per year and harvest of 300 to 400 million cubic meters.

Iran’s Environment Agency, the Forests and Natural Resources Organization have become licensing bodies and have lost their essence of environmental protection.

The extent of deforestation in the north of the country and its natural resources is unbelievable, and now, with the onslaught of the “private sector”, deforestation, river dryness, and water transfer projects have doubled in intensity.

But that is not the end of this sad story here is another example. The infiltration of Ilam Petrochemical effluent into the Chavar River has been a serious alarm for many years; Ilam Petrochemical Plant produces significant amounts of solid waste and sludge every year, some of which can endanger rivers, countless fishes, and even the surrounding environment due to the presence of toxic material.

Governments in other parts of the world are doing their best for the aquatic animals to preserve these species and use them in the sustainable tourism industry, but in Iran’s geography, they are doomed to extinction.

Now the question is why Ilam Petrochemical, which has a daily income of billions of Tomans, cannot treat its effluent? Why is this large industrial unit unable to build a refinery? Questions like this and many more are questions that the government must respond to, but, according to Iran watchers, this is a hopeless demand from this regime.

Iran People’s Dinner Tables Are Deprived of Even Bread

Pooya Stone
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Iran People’s Dinner Tables Are Deprived of Even Bread

Iran’s economy has not reached the end of the year (Persian calendar 1399) when the official economists warned and sounded the alarms bells and showed the ruling system a dark vision.

Mahmoud Jamsaz, one of these experts, believed that “Iran’s economy in 2021 (1400), according to the current characteristics and variables of the economy will be accompanied by intensifying inflation and a further decline in GDP.” (Entekhab, March 9, 2021)

His argument like many other economists was that in the past three years constantly the country’s economy is facing a rapid decline in growth. The value of the national currency has fallen from 3000 tomans to 25000 each US dollar, which is an eight times fall.

Therefore, the public income is decreased too, and the poverty and social gap have been intensified so that more than 60 percent of the population are now living under the poverty line. A poverty line that according to the officials is now 10 million tomans and most incomes even do not reach this border a are just 2.8 million tomans. That’s meaning that these people are just struggling to survive, and a proper living has become a dream.

And that just in a situation when these people can find a job to gain this little income, and there is no discussion about white contracts which do not promise anything to the workers and the employer can cut off their loan and dismiss them.

These forecasts are more realistic about the country’s economy than the promises of the new president Ebrahim Raisi. These economists said the rampant and chronic inflation has become one of the main pillars of the country’s economy and the others are: “Liquidity that has reached more than 3705 trillion tomans today and is going to break the record of 4000 trillion tomans.” (Eghtesad Online, August 4, 2021)

The next pillar is the continuous increase of the government budget deficit, which is the source of funds of the regime’s corrupted factions who are stealing officially from the people in their favor, and the parliament also seals its approval.

“Rouhani took over the government from Ahmadinejad with a budget deficit of 53,000 billion Tomans, he will now hand over the government to a president with a budget deficit of 350,000 billion Tomans in 2021.” (state-run website Quds, August 3, 2021)

Now there is significant liquidity in the country, it is predicted that by the end of this year, the liquidity will reach approximately 4.600 billion tomans. The next challenge is the issue of inflation, which has made the Gini coefficient significant and has widened the class gap between the deciles. The next issue is the budget deficit.

The government’s debt to the Central Bank, and borrowing from the bank’s printing house, is an astronomical figure, which, of course, the new President Ebrahim Raisi has no choice but to continue this path, that is, printing worthless money. The central bank released a report on a 24 percent increase in government debt to the central bank last year. Government debt to the Central Bank has increased by more than 70% compared to June last year.

And the effect on the people is that for example, the purchase of bread by the people has decreased by 30%. The people of Iran have given up buying meat, fruit, rice, and other necessities a long time ago, but can they stop purchasing bread?

It is said that the cost of the simplest foodstuffs per month is more than half of the minimum wage of an Iranian household.

“If one eats only bread and tomato omelet every day and every night. According to market prices, he must set aside about 100,000 tomans for two 30-ounce eggs (2 eggs per serving).

“The average price of a loaf of bread after announcing the new rate is 3,000 Tomans. Therefore, for 30 days, he must set aside about 100,000 tomans to buy bread. Assume that 3 to 4 tomatoes are used at a time in these repetitive omelet meals.

“In this case, he needs to buy about 3 to 4 kilos of tomatoes per month, the approximate price of this purchase is 30,000 tomans. By adding the price of frying oil to the cost of eating 2 omelets a day, the cost of this ‘suicide’ reaches about 300,000 tomans per month. Not including public transportation, water, electricity, and gas, rent, etc.

“It seems that even this impossible assumption monthly salary is not enough for the cost of a month of simple living in Tehran.” (Hamshari, 31 July 2021)

Dual Nationals Among Those Likely To Suffer Under Iran’s New Administration

Jubin Katiraie
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Dual Nationals Among Those Likely To Suffer Under Iran’s New Administration

On Tuesday, Iran’s Nour News Agency, an entity close to the country’s Supreme National Security Council, quoted an unnamed government official as saying that Tehran was dropping plans for prisoner swaps with the United States. The statement is a probable sign of the regime hardening its approach to foreign and dual nationals as it makes the transition from the administration of pragmatist President Hassan Rouhani to avowed hardliner Ebrahim Raisi.

Raisi was formally recognized as the next president by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a ceremony on Tuesday, setting the stage for his formal inauguration on Thursday. Tuesday’s event also coincided with the brief seizure of a tanker ship near the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. Last week, two crew members on another vessel were killed by what was believed to be an explosives-laden drone belonging to the Islamic Republic.

Many observers interpreted the attacks as a preview of further escalation after Raisi takes over the presidency. Many of the same observers expect an even greater escalation in the Iranian regime’s attacks on dissident activists and other perceived domestic threats to the theocratic system. The planned retention of American citizens in Iranian prisons demonstrates the potential connections between these two categories of issues, and Iran’s Resistance movement is sure to highlight those connections in the interest of convincing Western policymakers that assertive dealings with the Raisi administration would be in their own nations’ interests as well as in the interest of the Iranian people.

At least 16 dual nationals are currently detained in the Islamic Republic, with two having been sentenced on Wednesday, the day after Raisi’s induction ceremony. Mehran Raoof and Nahid Taghavi were both sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of affiliation with a banned group and “propaganda against the state.” Raoof and Taghavi hold citizenship in Britain and Germany, respectively, and are both in their mid-60s. These details, together with their history of social activism, make them especially vulnerable both to the inherently harsh conditions of Iran’s political wards and to targeted harassment by prison officials and security forces.

These dangers are greatly amplified by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which has had a much more devastating effect on the Islamic Republic than on any other country in the region. Iran set a record for new cases on Monday, at 37,189. The Health Ministry also recorded 411 deaths, pushing the official total beyond 91,000. But the National Council of Resistance of Iran insists that the real situation is even worse than regime authorities are letting on. Gleaning information from various institutional records and eyewitness statements, the NCRI has determined that the true death toll is fast approaching 350,000.

The pace of these deaths and the extent of the cover-up have a common source in that many outbreaks have occurred in prison facilities where inmates are routinely denied basic medical care. Early in the pandemic, regime authorities claimed to have released thousands of prisoners on furlough to reduce the risk of transmission, but these reports could never be fully verified and in any event, the relevant statements tended to specify that political prisoners, or persons accused of “national security” crimes, were to be excluded from furlough arrangements.

This restriction implies that authorities were knowingly weaponizing the novel coronavirus – a conclusion that was supported by various reports of new inmates being integrated into crowded prison populations without virus screening and often without separating prisoners according to the nature of their crimes as required under Iranian law. Raoof and Taghavi were initially detained in Evin Prison during a time when furloughs were supposedly still in effect but political detainees were being added to the prison population on a regular basis. They have remained there for roughly the past 10 months, during which time Taghavi spend 194 days in solitary confinement and was subjected to 1,000 hours of interrogation.

Their sentencing on Wednesday coincided with the sentencing of three other activists who hold only Iranian citizenship. Although charged with similar political offenses, their sentences range from two years and eight months to six years and eight months. The harsher sentences for Raoof and Taghavi were possibly influenced by a long history of paranoia and harassment directed at dual nationals, who are routinely accused of espionage or collaboration with “hostile” foreign states on the basis of the flimsiest evidence, such as casual communication with friends who live abroad.

But this is not to say that other categories of political prisoners can expect better treatment during the Raisi era. Their prosecution, sentencing, and extrajudicial punishment are likely to accelerate also, in keeping with the new president’s long history of human rights abuses involving critics of the Iranian regime. During the summer of 1988, he played a key role in the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners, and beginning in November 2019, as head of the judiciary, he oversaw elements of the regime’s crackdown on political activism following that month’s nationwide anti-government uprising.

Approximately 1,500 peaceful protesters were killed in the initial clashes that resulted from that uprising, and at least 12,000 individuals were arrested. Raisi’s judiciary oversaw a campaign of systematic torture for months afterward, in an apparent effort to elicit forced confessions and set the stage for aggressive prosecution of activists, including prosecution on charges that carry the death penalty.

At least 48 death sentences were carried out in Iran during the month of July alone. There is no question that the Islamic Republic will retain its title as the country with the highest rate of executions per capita, and there is ample reason to believe that that rate will climb even higher as Raisi promotes crackdowns in his role as president, and leaves the implementation of those crackdowns to his former deputy, now the new judiciary chief, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei.

July also saw the issuance of prison sentences for at least three Iranian human rights lawyers – a sign that the judiciary intends not only to crack down on dissent but also to further criminalize the act of providing dissenters with a legal defense. This presents a particular danger to Iran’s civilian population if unrest continues to expand, as it is widely expected to.

In June, the vast majority of Iran’s eligible voters boycotted the tightly-controlled election which brought Raisi to power, and the day after his “victory” was confirmed protests began to break out in various localities, over various issues. In mid-July, water shortages in Khuzestan Province inspired massive protests first in that region and later across much of the country. As the movement spread, it also took on an anti-government message reminiscent of that which defined the November 2019 uprising and a prior uprising in January 2018.

At least 12 individuals have already been killed in the latest round of protests, but Resistance activists anticipate that more casualties will be confirmed as activists work to convey information in spite of the regime’s efforts to block the internet and social media. Mass arrests have also been reported, and concern is growing that these could set the stage for systematic killings which would compound the new president’s legacy of participation in crimes against humanity.

Whatever crackdowns are visited upon the Iranian people in the coming days, they are sure to have knock-on effects upon existing political prisoners and upon political prisoners who are also dual nationals. In the face of large-scale unrest, Tehran invariably attempts to diminish popular sentiment by blaming it upon foreign infiltration, and this is all but certain to provide the Raisi administration with greater incentives to issue punishments for the crime of having lived outside the Islamic Republic.

Raisi’s Government Is a Defeated Government

Pooya Stone
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Raisi’s Government Is a Defeated Government

On August 3, 2021, the new president of Iran Ebrahim Raisi was approved by the supreme leader Ali Khamenei. During the regime’s sham election in June, the supreme leader created a scene for Raisi to become the next president, to have someone who will only follow the orders of the supreme leader without questioning them.

Years before Khamenei decided to create a young, efficient, and revolutionary government, following the example of someone like former Revolutionary Guards Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, who was fully obedient to the supreme leader.

But this is just a whole imagination that Raisi’s government could be effective and problem-solving. Because experienced showed that all the recent officials are corrupt people and just thinking about their benefits and the of their families.

Raisi will not appoint any person outside the current corrupt political body. But regardless of the greedy nature of the elements of this government, how is it possible that those who have caused all these crises and unimaginable problems can be the solution?

The first problem is the illegitimacy of this system, which these days we can see in the people’s slogans when they chant ‘death to Khamenei’ and ‘death to the principle of Velayat-e Faqih’ and of course ‘death to Raisi’ on the streets across Iran.

At the same time, the boycott by the election by the people indicates that the people are not compatible with this cruel and brutal regime and its government.

Regardless of this fact, the challenges facing the country and the people are far greater than the stature of this government, as the expertise of its head was and is the repression and the execution of the people over the past four decades.

In this regard, Abbas Abdi from the so-called reformist faction, while pointing out that the people have absolutely no hope that the situation will get better with the arrival of Raisi, but their opinion is that the situation will get worse, warns the president and the elements that are entering his government and said:

“The situation is not favorable at all to start work. Of course, your self have chosen this and you have made promises that cannot be fulfilled, and this society will understand, but the situation has worsened in several ways since June 18, when you have been elected.

“First, in terms of the suspension of the JCPOA negotiations and the closure of the short-term perspective in resolving the issue of sanctions.

“Second, increasing regional tensions that, even if they do not continue, have adverse daily effects on society and the economy.

“Third, the situation in the region and the arrival of the Taliban.

“Fourth, the situation of the coronavirus, which is in the worst condition of the last 18 months, especially since the issue of vaccination has become a complex and difficult issue.

“Fifth, the issue of despair and public protests, from Khuzestan to the issue of cyberspace and the promises that were made during the elections and must be fulfilled, all made the people more pessimistic, more confident and more protesting.” (State-run daily Etemad, August 3, 2021)

The fact is that these problems and crises did not arise overnight to be solved quickly and overnight, these problems are the result of 4 decades of the infamous rule of this regime. Crises that have deeply penetrated the body and soul of society.

It is not without reason that the Jahan-e-Sanat newspaper wrote, citing the statements and comments by Raisi’s relatives:

“The worrying news is that the relatives of Ibrahim Raisi emphasize the critical situation in the country and sometimes say that miracles should not be expected from Raisi and his future government. This position probably means retreating from the promises and visions that Ibrahim Raisi and his like-minded people have already presented to the people. Because the situation has not changed significantly since the last months when those visions and promises were expressed.

“If the members of the 13th government want to hide their inability and justify their inefficiency, then they must work to show the country more devastated.” (Jahan-e-Sanat, August 3, 2021)

The Mostaghel newspaper also predicts that the government of Raisi will be an inefficient and crippled government from now on. This newspaper listed crises, including “increasing sanctions, new coronavirus peaks, water and electricity crises, environmental disasters, and, most importantly, popular protests,” which “all can oust Raisi from the beginning. Especially the new strains of the coronavirus that researchers have predicted will kill one-third of patients.

External problems which the new government will face such as, “severe economic sanctions” while “the way to sell oil and receive revenue is completely closed and the future government budget is in a state of ambiguity.”

It predicts that Raisi’s government has no mechanism and chance to solve all these problems, and “sooner or later we will see strong waves of protests by the people, especially the vulnerable sections of society, against the economic performance of the 13th government.” (Mostaghel, August 3, 2021)

The truth is that the patience and endurance of the people have a ceiling, and soon this regime must face the consequences of the people’s hatred.

Iran’s Society Will Not Tolerate New Crises

Hoshang Amiri
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Iran’s Society Will Not Tolerate New Crises

The accumulation of problems in Iran’s society has strengthened the protest spirit in the people. They are angry with the current situation and each time they want to return to a normal life, a new crisis created by their rulers is imposed on their lives.

Observe the sequence and form of crises in the last year and then see which nation in the world must withstand so many crises without any protest. The government’s officials instead to find out a solution for all these crises are increasing the protest spirit of the people because the problems are the solution for the government to control and people.

Making wrong decisions and vice versa the people priorities, for the regime’s official it is enough to just walk around the city for a day and talk to people in shopping malls, fruit and vegetable markets, subways, buses, vaccine queues, and deprived provinces, then they will realize the main priorities of Iranian society and instead of making decisions that conflict with people’s lives.

But their interests are groups like Hezbollah and other proxy groups and nuclear and regional terror activities. Therefore, for the regime’s officials, it is necessary to answer which crisis the people must cope with and join them in cooperation and empathy and not protest?

Inability to prevent the creation of new coronavirus waves. High costs and rampant inflation. Rising housing prices. Lack of medicine in the capital. Lack of hospital equipment in border cities. Dehydration in a province with several large rivers. Lack of electricity in the summer heat. Or this last decision to block the means of mass communication on the internet and restrict freedom of expression.

The latest plan has angered people the most, as from a 7-year-old child to a 90-year-old man, their lives and leisure time are tied to cyberspace. The question for all people is that if your plan is defensible and has no objections, why do you consider us unreliable and examine it in a closed session? But there is no wonder because all critical decisions which are tied with the continuation of this regime are handled behind closed doors.

Worse, are the people asking, why did they refer the bill to a special commission to oust most of them from any responsibility if there is nothing bad in this decision and will not destroy the people’s lives and restrict their freedom of speech? Why not explain to people that in these economic and social conditions, the plan to limit cyberspace has become their priority, if there is nothing to hide?

Isn’t it true that the lives of many Iranians today are tied to Internet businesses, and that they make a living in this way? Iran society has become an erupting society and any wrong speech or decision by the regime will raise the people’s protests which in this situation is a security issue for the regime, because Iran’s society has become a crisis-stricken society and cannot withstand a new crisis. Finally, the regime is forced to face the people soon, which will be a landmark of Iran and the people’s fate.

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