Iranian Women Band Together, Caution Against Broad Sanctions
March 8th, International Women’s Day, was celebrated with even more passion this year in Tehran. Zahra Rahnavard – the outspoken wife of the presidential election challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi – issued a statement at a meeting with members of the women’s rights movement in Iran praising all the brave women of the Green Movement for […]
“My Upbringing Taught Me to Have My Own Opinion.”
Narges Kalhor, an outspoken and eloquent Iranian film maker who also happens to be the daughter of a top adviser to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, made headlines last October by attending a human-rights film festival in Germany. Following Iran’s controversial presidential election, many Iranian artists and film makers expressed support for the opposition “Green Movement,” and Kalhor […]
Secretary Clinton on Internet Freedom and Iran
In what was touted as a major policy speech announcing the State Department’s new Internet freedom initiative, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton today committed the US to a broad new effort to advance and protect the right of all people to access the Internet freely. In her speech, Clinton highlighted the important role that cyber […]
Letter from a Tehran Jail
In the New York Times today, Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett–both of whom I deeply respect–argue that the protesters in Iran make up a small, demographically isolated minority of Iranian society, and their activities therefore have very little chance of enacting real, substantive change in Iran’s political system. For evidence of the protest movement’s weakness, […]
The Latest Tool for Iran’s Opposition: iPhone Apps
Cross-posted from the Huffington Post Iranians will soon have a new tool at their disposal to broadcast their protests and their government’s repression to the outside world. Voice of America announced last week that it will unveil a new application for iPhone and Android mobile devices that will enable Iranians to upload videos, photos and […]
Trita Parsi on CNN: Why the US should care
Trita went on CNN yesterday to discuss why Americans should care about the roiling demonstrations in Iran. He was also asked about the IRGC’s role in an increasingly militarized Iran, and what that might mean for the days and weeks to come. [vodpod id=Groupvideo.4301404&w=425&h=350&fv=] more about “Trita Parsi on CNN: Why the US should…“, posted […]
The Basiji Road
“Now that I look back on it, I feel those men deserve pity,” says Ebrahim Mehtari. He is responding to an Al Jazeera English interview question, asking “If you could face your torturers again, what would you say to them?” “It’s a difficult question, but I feel they are more tortured than me…[They] need help. […]
“It’s not easy being Green”
(h/t Andrew Sullivan) In honor of the Iranian protesters, Minnesota Public Radio and Kermit the Frog update a classic Muppets song: [youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_Iwq7HPLfM”]
Violence Spills into Day 2
Payvand via Radio Zamaneh is reporting that members of the Basij and Revolutionary Guard (Sepah; IRGC; Pasdaran) have stormed Tehran University and Shahid Beheshti University. According to Amir Kabir Newsletter, Revolutionary Guards and Basij forces have entered the campuses… and engaged in beating the students with the assistance of university security. Amir Kabir reports that […]
Turning Iran’s paper money green
Via Payvand, an ingenious new strategy from the Iranian protesters: scribbling opposition messages on bank notes. Anti-government activists are not allowed to express themselves in Iranian media, so theses activists have taken their expressions to another high circulation mass-medium, banknotes. The Central Bank of Iran has tried to take these banknotes out of circulation, but […]
Thousands Return to Streets Across Iran
The New York Times has more coverage of today’s protests, and emphasizes that rallies took place in cities across Iran: Thousands of student protesters gathered at universities in Tehran and other cities across Iran on Monday, chanting antigovernment slogans and fighting with security forces in what appeared to be the most violent street protests since […]
“A Death in Tehran”
Frontline’s “A Death in Tehran” has long been billed as a documentary re-visiting the June 20, 2009 murder of Neda Agha Soltan. However, the segment focuses more on those who are still alive, and who carry the emotional scars of those who have both lost a loved one and had their government turned against them. […]