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Iran’s Regime Executed At Least 285 People in October

Mehdi Hosseini
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Iran’s Regime Executed At Least 285 People in October

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), the largest Iranian opposition coalition, announced that amid the continuing broad wave of executions in Iran, at least 285 prisoners were executed in October 2025 — an unprecedented figure in recent decades that makes this one of the most severe waves of executions in the twenty-first century.

This number is about 1.7 times higher than October 2024 (171 executions) and more than three times higher than October 2023 (92 executions); it also far exceeds the figures for October in 2022 and 2021, when roughly 30 executions were reported in each of those months.

Iran’s ‘No To Execution Tuesdays’ Campaign Enters 93rd Week

In the first ten months of 2025, at least 1,471 executions were recorded, more than double the same period last year (703 executions). Among those executed during this period were 45 women, and some executions were carried out publicly and in open spaces.

According to published reports, executions were concentrated in the final days of October and the beginning of November:

  • § On Sunday, November 2, 2025, Ehsan Mahdipur was executed, and the day before (10 Aban — which corresponds to November 1, 2025) Mitra Zamani, a female prisoner, was hanged in Khorramabad.
  • § On Thursday, October 30, Amirhossein Zahedi, age 21, was executed in Mashhad, and Saeed Piri was executed in Kermanshah.
  • § On Wednesday, October 29, sixteen prisoners were executed in various locations including Mashhad, Kerman, Ghezel Hesar, Baft, Taybad, Zanjan, and Gonbad Kavus.
  • § On October 27 and 28, further groups of prisoners were hanged in cities such as Sari, Bojnurd, Gorgan, Ahvaz, Borujerd, Zanjan, Yasuj, Yazd, Nahavand, Qazvin, Semnan, and Malayer.
  • § In the days before that, several other mass executions were reported in Rasht, Isfahan, Dorud, Hamedan, Kashan, and Aligudarz.

Among those executed, there are reported cases of sentences carried out against individuals who are said to have been under eighteen at the time of the alleged offenses, and some executions were described as “public acts.” Human rights activists and international observers have repeatedly warned about the rising trend of executions and the use of the death penalty in an expanding range of cases; this situation raises serious questions about compliance with criminal justice standards, transparency of trials, and the right to independent legal defense.

This wave of executions is not merely a narrow legal issue but part of broader repressive policies that have profound consequences for Iranian society and the country’s human rights standing.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) asserted that dealing, negotiating, or conciliating with the “godfather of executions and terror” amounts to fueling the crime-and-killing machine of the religious fascism ruling Iran. The NCRI said this bloodthirsty regime should be ostracized by the international community and that Ali Khamenei and its other leaders should face justice for forty-six years of crimes against humanity and genocide.

Conflicting Statements by Iranian Regime Officials About Negotiations with the United States

Hoshang Amiri
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Conflicting Statements by Iranian Regime Officials About Negotiations with the United States

Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denied reports of message exchanges from Washington to Tehran through Oman and the beginning of a negotiation process, taking a position completely different from that of the spokesperson for President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government.

On Monday, November 3, Baghaei stated in a press conference that some remarks on the matter were inaccurate and that during the visit of Majid Takht-Ravanchi, the regime’s deputy foreign minister for political affairs, to Muscat, no official message from Washington was delivered to Tehran.

Iranian Regime President Vows To Rebuild Destroyed Nuclear Facilities ‘With Even Greater Power’

He added, “It is common and usual for various intermediaries to continue efforts to bring views closer and exchange messages, but this by no means signifies the beginning of a negotiation process.”

This comes while Fatemeh Mohajerani, the government spokesperson, confirmed on November 2 that messages had been received from the U.S. side—without naming any country—and said she would explain the details “at an appropriate time.”

On October 31, the Baghdad Al-Youm news outlet quoted diplomatic sources in Tehran as saying that U.S. President Donald Trump had expressed, in a message to Oman, his intention to reach a new agreement with Iran’s regime and emphasized his willingness to resume nuclear negotiations.

Earlier this year, Oman mediated five rounds of indirect negotiations between Iran and the United States before the 12-day war.

Baghaei did not deny Larijani’s statement about the regime’s ability to build a nuclear bomb in two weeks

During the same press conference, Baghaei did not deny the remarks made by Mohammad Javad Larijani, head of the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, who had claimed that Iran’s regime could build a nuclear bomb within two weeks.

The foreign ministry spokesperson said that individuals are “free to express opinions,” and that “experts and scholars” may share their interpretations about issues, including the nuclear program, which “in no way reflect the official position of Iran’s regime.”

On November 2, Larijani had said that Iran’s regime had introduced a new theory to the world: that a country capable of having “a nuclear bomb in less than two weeks” is decisively one that “does not want a bomb.”

Earlier, on September 22, seventy members of the regime’s Maljlis (parliament) had written a letter to the heads of the three branches of power and the Supreme National Security Council, calling for a change to regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s previous fatwa and urging the regime to build and maintain a nuclear bomb “for deterrence.”

Since March 2024, statements by Iranian regime officials advocating movement toward developing nuclear weapons have been on the rise.

Western countries, including the United States, have consistently accused Iran’s regime of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), previously warned that Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium could be sufficient to build about ten nuclear bombs.

During the press conference, the regime’s foreign ministry spokesperson said regarding Tehran’s cooperation with the IAEA: “The situation is completely clear; we remain a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and are committed to the safeguards agreement.”

Baghaei added that the agency’s inspections are carried out “based on protocols and legal procedures,” and that inspections at certain nuclear facilities, such as the Bushehr power plant and the Tehran research reactor, are currently underway.

U.S. Federal Court Fines Iran’s Regime $841 Million For Terrorist Attacks in Iraq

Esmaeil Mohades
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U.S. Federal Court Fines Iran’s Regime $841 Million For Terrorist Attacks in Iraq

A U.S. federal court has ordered Iran’s regime to pay $841 million in damages to 36 plaintiffs whose relatives were injured or killed in several terrorist attacks in Iraq.

The U.S. federal court found Iran’s regime responsible for the injuries and deaths resulting from multiple terrorist attacks in Iraq and issued a verdict ordering the payment of $841 million in compensation to 36 plaintiffs whose family members were wounded or killed in those attacks.

In his 12-page ruling issued on October 31, the judge wrote that the court recognizes that no amount of money, no matter how large, can restore what the victims in this case have lost—whether as a result of the heinous actions of Iran’s regime or the terrorist groups it supports.

More Than 20 Deadly Plots by Iran’s Regime Against Dissidents Discovered by MI5

According to the ruling, Iran’s regime provided substantial material support to the Zarqawi network and Ansar al-Islam between 2003 and 2017 to carry out multiple terrorist attacks in Iraq. The court awarded approximately $420.7 million in compensatory damages and $420.7 million in punitive damages to 36 plaintiffs whose family members were injured or killed in Iraq’s western Anbar province.

This is not the first time that U.S. courts have issued verdicts ordering Iran’s regime to pay damages.

In March 2025, a court in Washington, D.C. ordered Iran’s regime and the Syrian government to pay $191 million in compensation to the family of an American citizen killed in Israel.

The court ruled that Iran’s regime and Syria were responsible for the murder of Ari Fuld, an American citizen who was stabbed to death in 2018 by a Hamas member in the West Bank.

In August 2019, a U.S. federal court found Tehran guilty of supporting Yemen’s Houthi militants who were involved in the 2015 abduction of two American citizens, one of whom was later killed.

According to the ruling, since the Houthis could not have carried out the kidnapping without Iran’s support, the plaintiffs were entitled to financial compensation from Iran.

Victims usually rely on the U.S. Victims of State-Sponsored Terrorism Fund (USVSST Fund) to receive compensation, as “obtaining money directly from Iran is nearly impossible.”

Currently, more than 21,000 people are eligible to receive compensation from this fund, including about 13,000 victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks and 8,800 others affected by other international terrorist acts.

Iran’s ‘No To Execution Tuesdays’ Campaign Enters 93rd Week

Hoshang Amiri
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Iran’s ‘No To Execution Tuesdays’ Campaign Enters 93rd Week

The “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign continued today in 54 prisons across Iran in protest against the ongoing wave of executions. Political prisoners on hunger strike, now in their ninety-third week of protest, declared that they would continue their strike and campaign until their demand—the cessation of the regime’s cruel wave of executions—is met.

Full statement of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign

Continuation of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign in its ninety-third week across fifty-four different prisons

We begin the ninety-third week of our campaign while the execution machine of the regime’s religious fascism continues to move forward recklessly and without brakes.

Unprecedented Execution Record in the Past 30 Years in Iran

Following the one-week hunger strike by prisoners in Ward 2 of Ghezel Hesar Prison, executions—especially in other prisons across the country—have continued at full speed. Between October 23 and November 3 (a period of twelve days), Iran’s regime executed at least 76 prisoners.

Meanwhile, the cry of “No to execution” can be heard from various parts of the country. Last week, retirees in Kermanshah also joined the protests, chanting slogans such as “Carrying out executions is a betrayal of the Quran,” “Iran without executions,” and “Morality patrols and executions must be abolished!”

Last week, the UN Special Rapporteur on Iran, Ms. Mai Sato, and the Chair of the UN International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, Ms. Sara Hossain, addressed the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, highlighting the widespread violations of the right to life in Iran and the regime’s secret executions, of which only 8% are reported by official sources.

The members of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign, active in fifty-four prisons across the country, continue to resist strongly against the executions. They call on all prisoners—especially those sentenced to death—not to remain silent in the face of this injustice. They also urge families and the people of Iran not to allow this killing to continue in silence, but to publish the names of those sentenced to death and raise their voices against executions in every possible way, in the streets and neighborhoods of their cities, to confront this state-sponsored crime.

On Tuesday, November 4, 2025, during the campaign’s ninety-third week, participants in fifty-four prisons across Iran will hold a hunger strike as part of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign.

The Karaj Dam’s Reservoir Can Only Supply Tehran’s Drinking Water for Two Weeks

Jubin Katiraie
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The Karaj Dam’s Reservoir Can Only Supply Tehran’s Drinking Water for Two Weeks

Amid growing warnings about the worsening water crisis and the Iranian regime’s inability to manage its resources, the CEO of Tehran Regional Water Company announced that currently only 14 million cubic meters of water remain stored behind Karaj (Amir Kabir) Dam, which can supply Tehran’s drinking water for just two more weeks.

On Sunday, November 2, Behzad Parsa said that the inflow of water to Tehran’s dams has decreased by 43% compared to the previous water year.

He added that at the same time last year, the Karaj Dam reservoir held around 86 million cubic meters of water, and this unprecedented decline is the result of a 100% decrease in rainfall in Tehran Province compared with the long-term average.

Water Inflow into Dams in 21 Iranian Provinces Down 39% Compared to Last Year

Parsa stressed that five consecutive years of drought have put severe pressure on Tehran Province’s water resources, and if water consumption in the capital is not controlled, serious challenges in providing drinking water will emerge.

This Tehran Regional Water Company official cited public participation in “saving water and modifying consumption patterns” as the only way to overcome the crisis.

In recent months, as the water crisis has worsened, officials of the Iranian regime have repeatedly blamed the public, warning about declining dam reserves and urging citizens to “save water.”

Isa Bozorgzadeh, spokesperson for Iran’s Water Industry, announced on November 2 that a special meeting on managing Tehran’s drinking water crisis was held with the participation of the Minister of Energy and the Tehran governor. He said that, given the “very short endurance time” of the Latyan, Mamloo, Lar, and Amir Kabir dams, special measures have been adopted to reduce the capital’s water consumption.

He added that the planned reduction must be achieved through the joint management of the Energy Ministry and the citizens.

Bozorgzadeh also said on October 31 that a “pessimistic scenario” had been developed for Tehran’s autumn water supply and, given the current situation, the reduction in water pressure would continue until the stability of water resources is restored.

The critical state of Iran’s wetlands

On November 2, the Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported that during the past summer, nine of Iran’s major lakes and wetlands—including Lake Urmia, Bakhtegan, Parishan, Jazmourian, Gavkhouni, Hamun, Maharloo, Tashk, and Houz-e Soltan in Qom—had completely or almost completely dried up.

Tasnim highlighted the critical condition of the country’s wetlands after consecutive droughts, writing that according to estimates by Iran’s Environmental Protection Organization, more than 60% of the nation’s wetlands have either dried up or hold less than half their water capacity.

The lack of water inflow, excessive water extraction, and the drop in groundwater levels have been cited as the main causes of this situation.

The state-run ILNA news agency reported on October 24 that the volume of water entering the country’s dams between September 23, and October 18 was 780 million cubic meters, a 39% decrease compared with 1.29 billion cubic meters during the same period last year.

The current water crisis is not the result of a single year of drought but the product of decades of mismanagement, excessive dam construction, and the lack of an adaptation plan for water scarcity.

Experts warn that calls for “saving water” without reforming water governance, increasing data transparency, restoring aquifers, controlling illegal water withdrawals, and reducing costly agricultural consumption will merely postpone the crisis to the next season.

Mashhad Residents Burying Their Deceased in Villages Due to High Price of Graves

Sia Rajabi
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Mashhad Residents Burying Their Deceased in Villages Due to High Price of Graves

The state-run newspaper Shargh published a report on the sharp rise in grave prices in Mashhad, writing that residents of the city are burying their deceased in nearby villages because they cannot afford the soaring costs.

In its report titled “Class-based Death,” published on Sunday, November 2, the Tehran-based daily wrote that the price of graves inside the shrine of the eighth Shiite Imam—administered by Astan Quds Razavi, one of the richest religious and economic institutions in Iran—is “in the billions of rials,” while in the “Behesht Reza” cemetery, managed by Mashhad Municipality, prices are “skyrocketing.”

Inflation Rate in Iran to Exceed 60% By the End of the Year

Shargh added: “These astronomical figures, along with the poor economic situation, have forced many people to turn to village cemeteries to bury their loved ones so they would not have to pay exorbitant sums.”

According to the newspaper’s investigation, grave prices in cemeteries managed by Mashhad Municipality range from 60 million to 18 billion rials (approximately $52 to $15,652).

The monthly salary of a worker with two children is about $130.

Graves in cemeteries managed by Astan Quds Razavi are even more expensive, ranging from 1 billion to 12 billion rials (approximately $870 to $10,435).

Shargh quoted a resident of a nearby village as saying that the influx of Mashhad residents burying their dead in rural cemeteries has caused a shortage of burial space for local villagers themselves.

Hassan, another resident of a village near Mashhad, confirmed these remarks and described the “migration of the dead to village cemeteries,” saying: “Our village is very small and has a local cemetery. Recently, outsiders have been bringing their deceased here at night to bury them. We fenced off the cemetery, but it kept happening. Together with the village head, we decided to stop this at any cost and are following up on the matter.”

The expanding cemetery crisis in Iran

In recent years, numerous reports have emerged about the shortage and rising cost of graves across Iran.

In May 2025, Mehdi Pirhadi, head of the Urban Services Commission of Tehran’s City Council, warned that due to delays in constructing a new cemetery and the nearing full capacity of Behesht Zahra—the capital’s largest cemetery—there would be no burial space left in Tehran starting in October 2025.

Pirhadi stated that if the decision on the construction of a new cemetery in Tehran was not finalized by the end of that month, there would be no burial space available from the beginning of autumn, as only a few limited plots remain in Behesht Zahra.

According to him, in 2024, members of Tehran’s City Council had designated five potential sites for a new cemetery, and construction in southern Tehran was scheduled to begin in March 2025.

Based on a May 2024 resolution of Tehran’s City Council, the price of a “reserved grave” in Behesht Zahra for families with a deceased member increased from 39 million rials in 2023 to 150 million rials in 2024.

Iranian Regime President Vows To Rebuild Destroyed Nuclear Facilities ‘With Even Greater Power’

Jubin Katiraie
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Iranian Regime President Vows To Rebuild Destroyed Nuclear Facilities ‘With Even Greater Power’

A few months after the unprecedented U.S. attacks on the Iranian regime’s nuclear facilities, Massoud Pezeshkian, the regime’s president, announced that Tehran will rebuild the destroyed sites “with even greater power.”

Pezeshkian made these remarks on Sunday, November 2, during a visit to an exhibition organized by Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization.

The Iranian regime has repeatedly claimed that its nuclear activities are purely peaceful, but Western countries and Israel, citing certain activities and undeclared enriched uranium in Iran, accuse the regime of seeking to build a nuclear bomb.

IAEA: Iran Has Enough Material for 10 Nuclear Bombs

Pezeshkian said: “The [nuclear] knowledge is in the minds of our scientists, and destroying the buildings and factories will not cause any problem; we will rebuild again, and with greater power.”

He referred to the fatwa (religious decree) issued by Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of the Iranian regime, which declares nuclear weapons “forbidden,” and said Tehran will not pursue such weapons based on that decree.

The United States has previously stated that it has never accepted Khamenei’s fatwa against nuclear weapons as a basis for trust.

Pezeshkian’s remarks about rebuilding Iran’s nuclear facilities come as U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier warned that if the Iranian regime seeks to resume its nuclear program, the United States will once again take action against it.

In recent months, Trump has repeatedly stated that Iran’s nuclear sites were destroyed during U.S. strikes.

He also described the bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities by B-2 bombers as one of the most beautiful military operations in history, saying that the destruction of Iran’s nuclear capabilities ensured the regime would no longer be the bully of the Middle East.

The U.S. president has said that if America had not attacked the Iranian regime’s nuclear facilities, a dark cloud would have hung over the agreement to end the Gaza war.

Pezeshkian’s contradictory remarks about rebuilding nuclear facilities

In recent months, Pezeshkian has made contradictory statements about rebuilding the Iranian regime’s nuclear facilities.

Before the 12-day war with Israel, he had said that if Iran’s nuclear facilities were targeted, “we will rebuild them again.”

But after the Israeli and U.S. attacks on these facilities, he said during a cabinet meeting: “Well, they came and hit it; if we rebuild it again, they’ll come and hit it again.”

On October 31, Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), emphasized that the Iranian regime’s centrifuges were completely damaged and stated that the U.S. attacks had significantly halted Iran’s nuclear activity.

Grossi told Al Arabiya television that Iran’s centrifuges were completely damaged but the capacities still exist.

Inflation Rate in Iran to Exceed 60% By the End of the Year

Mehdi Hosseini
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Inflation Rate in Iran to Exceed 60% By the End of the Year

Statistics indicate that Iran’s year-on-year inflation rate is approaching 50%. An economist warned that if Masoud Pezeshkian’s government fails to control economic tensions, Iran will face a “major stagflation,” predicting that inflation may surpass 60% by the end of the year (March 21, 2026).

The state-run Khabar Online website reported on Saturday, November 1, that official data indicate a “deteriorating situation” in Iran, noting that inflation in essential consumer goods such as food and beverages is far higher than general inflation in other goods and services.

The report emphasized the “expanding scope of poverty,” stating that while the regime’s parliamentary research center had previously reported that 30% of the population lived in poverty, new estimates show that the number of people living below the poverty line has risen to 36%.

Iran’s Regime on The Brink of Economic Collapse as Oil Sanctions Close In

In this context, Rahmatollah Norouzi, a member of parliament representing Aliabad-e-Katul, said on Saturday: “Today, if a worker or an employee living in a rented house earns 45 million tomans (450 million rials / about 392 dollars), it means they are living below the poverty line.”

Earlier, some official labor unions had estimated the cost of living in Iran at about 50 million tomans (500 million rials / around 435 dollars).

Fatemeh Mohajerani, the spokesperson for Pezeshkian’s government, said on October 21 that the poverty line in 2024 was estimated at 6,128,739 tomans (61,287,390 rials / about 54 dollars) per person. Her remarks sparked widespread criticism, especially since Mohammad Reza Tajik, a member of the regime’s Supreme Labor Council, had told the state-run Tasnim News Agency on February 19, 2025, that the council’s wage committee had set the workers’ monthly living basket at 23.4 million tomans (234 million rials / about 204 dollars).

Currently, the base monthly wage for workers covered by the labor law is less than 11 million tomans (110 million rials / about 96 dollars), and with benefits included, around 15 million tomans (150 million rials / about 130 dollars).

Khabar Online also referred to the ongoing “hunger crisis,” adding that given the current high inflation, “both the severity of hunger and the number of hungry people are likely to increase in the coming years.”

The Iranian Regime’s Mafia, Khamenei’s Wealth, and the IRGC’s Smuggling Operations

In this regard, Morteza Afghah, an economist and a faculty member at Ahvaz University, expressed concern over the current situation, telling Khabar Online that he considers this crisis “the result of right-wing economic policies” that some continue to recommend to the government.

According to him, the result of these policies and “this black hole of poverty” is that hundreds of thousands of people do not have enough income to afford even the basic food they need.

Afghah warned that unless the government eliminates unnecessary expenditures and reforms the tax system “so that the wealthy shoulder the tax burden,” and instead continues “to prey upon people’s livelihoods,” the situation will become even worse.

According to estimates by Iran’s Ministry of Health, at least 10,000 people die annually due to omega-3 fatty acid deficiency, another 10,000 from inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption, and about 25,000 more due to a lack of whole grains and bread in their diets.

Between 50% and 70% of Iran’s population also suffers from vitamin D deficiency — a crisis that directly results in weakened immune systems and an increase in bone-related diseases.

As a result of the Iranian regime’s failed economic, domestic, and foreign policies over recent decades, skyrocketing inflation has severely affected the lives of citizens, especially low-income groups, and the prices of essential goods have risen to unprecedented levels.

Iranian Political Prisoner Suffering from Worsening Cancer and Heart Disease

Hoshang Amiri
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Iranian Political Prisoner Suffering from Worsening Cancer and Heart Disease

Recent reports from Evin Prison indicate that political prisoner Marzieh Farsi is in a concerning condition and has been denied essential medical treatment for her severe illnesses.

According to sources close to her family, Ms. Farsi, who has a history of cancer and heart disease, has recently suffered from severe dizziness, chronic headaches, and general weakness. Despite repeated recommendations from prison doctors for her immediate transfer to a specialized medical facility, Evin authorities have refused to issue the transfer permit and have left her in the women’s ward without medical care.

According to human rights activists, this negligence is a clear example of “white torture,” a method in which political prisoners are tormented without physical violence through psychological pressure, denial of medical care, or being kept uninformed about their health condition.

Iran’s Regime Raises Pressure on Families of Political Prisoners

Informed sources said that Marzieh Farsi’s physician had previously prescribed medication to control her cancer symptoms and prevent the disease from progressing. However, prison officials have blocked the entry of these medications under various pretexts. As a result, her physical condition has worsened, and there is now a risk of a full relapse.

One of her relatives told human rights media:
“Marzieh has to wait weeks even for the simplest medical need. A hospital transfer requires approval from several authorities, and in the end, it either goes unanswered or gets canceled at the last minute. Her family fears these delays may permanently destroy her health.”

According to the same source, she has suffered several episodes of heart palpitations and severe dizziness in recent months, but no adequate medical attention has been provided.

Marzieh Farsi, born in 1967 and a mother of several children, was first arrested in February 2020 in the city of Rey. After months of interrogation and torture, she was sentenced to five years in prison. Having served three years, she was released in March 2023, but only a few months later, on August 21, 2023—coinciding with the anniversary of nationwide protests—she was re-arrested and transferred to Ward 209 of Evin Prison.

The Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, sentenced her to 15 years in prison on charges of “rebellion” and “connection with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).” The sentence was later reduced to five years upon appeal. Nevertheless, since her second arrest, Ms. Farsi has been in poor physical condition with no effective access to medical care.

Human rights activists state that this pattern is part of the regime’s systematic repression of women dissidents—those arrested for civic activism, journalism, or political protest—who now face deliberate medical neglect in prison.

According to a prisoners’ rights advocate, “Female political prisoners in Evin are not only deprived of proper medical facilities but even visits to the infirmary have become a tool of political pressure. Prison guards selectively grant medical transfers, and any protest can lead to solitary confinement as punishment.”

Concern of Activists and Calls for Urgent Action

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have repeatedly stressed that denying prisoners access to medical care and medication is a clear violation of Article 10 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the ruling dictatorship is a signatory.

Finally, Marzieh Farsi’s family expressed deep concern about her health and called on international bodies and the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran to intervene for her immediate transfer to a specialized hospital and to end the practice of white torture in Evin Prison.

The Iranian Regime’s Mafia, Khamenei’s Wealth, and the IRGC’s Smuggling Operations

Esmaeil Mohades
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The Iranian Regime’s Mafia, Khamenei’s Wealth, and the IRGC’s Smuggling Operations

Jonathan W. Hackett, a former U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer, said that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) controls the entire black market—from iPhone and car smuggling to luxury imports—making it its primary source of income. This shadow economy has not only boosted the financial empire of regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the IRGC but has also placed additional pressure on the Iranian people.

Hackett, who has worked with the National Security Agency (NSA), Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), and U.S. Special Operations Command, said in a podcast by the Baykam Institute that the U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) and the reimposition of sanctions concentrated financial resources in the IRGC’s hands. He noted that Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran’s regime, is now among the wealthiest individuals in the world.

A look into the background of Ali Shademani, commander of the IRGC Central Headquarters

According to Hackett, the sanctions, contrary to their intended purpose, strengthened the mafia-like structure of the IRGC and the supreme leader’s office. The Iranian people are the main victims of this corrupt and sanctions-ridden system.

Hackett added that the IRGC plays a central role not only in military affairs but also in macroeconomics, foreign trade, infrastructure, and even national financial policymaking.

He stated that Iran’s regime has designed its economic system to exploit the sanctions, maximizing profits while transferring the financial burden to the population.

He added that the IRGC benefits from sanctions rather than suffering from them, calling the system deeply corrupt and driven by favoritism.

Hackett said that officials such as Qassem Soleimani and Esmail Qaani held two and three black diplomatic passports, respectively, allowing them to travel freely across countries. Many other IRGC commanders also use fake identities but official documents to conduct intelligence and financial operations under diplomatic cover.

Hackett added that high-ranking officials, including the governor of Iran’s Central Bank, travel to Western countries such as the United States using diplomatic passports to maintain their financial networks under the guise of diplomacy.

He said that in visa-free countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, and Ecuador, Iranian intelligence operatives easily meet with their operational units to maintain informal connections.

According to this former intelligence officer, a number of Iranian agents operate in European countries including Sweden, Denmark, the United Kingdom, and others. He claimed that until a few years ago, France and Germany had secret agreements with Tehran allowing it to carry out operations on their soil, provided that such actions did not target French or German citizens.

Hackett stated that the IRGC, through its intelligence operatives, has established a network of front companies across the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, South America, and Africa.

He added that these companies serve as tools for money laundering, capital transfer, smuggling, and tax evasion, operating under a legal façade while serving the IRGC’s intelligence and economic activities.

The former intelligence officer emphasized that the patronage-based structure dominating Iran’s economy has effectively destroyed many independent private companies.

World Bank: Iran’s Economy Continues to Shrink

According to Hackett, companies operating under the IRGC’s umbrella neither pay taxes nor undergo audits, yet they control billion-rial contracts, import monopolies, and major infrastructure projects. Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters is only one of the IRGC’s economic arms, active in the oil, construction, infrastructure, and petrochemical sectors.

In another part of his interview with the Baykam Institute, Hackett pointed out that many Iranian “diplomats” sent abroad are actually trained intelligence operatives tasked with conducting covert missions, coordinating with proxy militias, and transferring weapons and cash. These agents exploit diplomatic immunity to freely carry out their illicit operations.

He stated that since the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the Quds Force has increasingly focused on cyber and espionage operations targeting regime opponents in Europe and the United States. “There is evidence that some abduction or assassination plots against dissidents in Western countries have been coordinated through embassies and using these diplomatic passports.”

Hackett further discussed the profit cycle of the black market, saying that much of Iran’s illegal imports—from iPhones to Audi and Mercedes vehicles—are conducted through underground networks linked to the IRGC. Car parts are imported separately and assembled inside Iran to bypass import restrictions.

Hackett said that sanctions alone are insufficient to confront this complex system. The supply chains and financial networks must be identified and exposed, front companies revealed, and regional links severed. Effective pressure will only occur when both the IRGC’s internal structure and its external networks are simultaneously weakened.

He concluded by emphasizing that Iran’s regime is no longer merely a government, but a multilayered structure built on military, intelligence, and economic institutions, led by the IRGC and the office of the supreme leader.

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