Putin, Iran's Raisi Hold Phone Discussion Over Nuclear Issue

Following reports that the social media giant might be aiding the Iranian government amid a wave of protests, three Republican lawmakers on the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees have launched a probe into the matter, a copy of which was published by the Washington Free Beacon on Tuesday.

Representatives Jim Banks (Ind.), Claudia Tenney (N.Y.), and Joe Wilson (S.C.) want information about what steps Meta has "taken to confront infiltration by proponents of the Islamic Republic of Iran" that resulted in deleting and censoring accounts tied to anti-regime activists.

They also urged Meta to investigate claims that Instagram, the video sharing app owned by the company, has "been infiltrated by those sympathetic to the Islamic Republic in Iran."

The probe comes following reports alleging that Instagram content moderators are deleting and censoring accounts that have documented the regime’s human rights abuses during the latest wave of protests, including content showing Iranian security forces beating protesters and firing tear gas into crowds.

The lawmakers say Meta helping the Iranian government censor such content represents "an unacceptable threat to their privacy, liberty, and our national security."

BBC’s sources alleged that pro-regime employees of the German branch of Telus International, a Canadian contractor which provides content moderation to Instagram with over 400 Iranian employees for reviewing Persian-language content, are responsible for restricting anti-government content of Iranian users.

The head of the country’s emergency services said 15 injured passengers are in critical condition in hospitals in southern Khorassan province, according to ISNA. Other officials have put the number at around five people.

The train with 430 passengers and crew travelling to the city of Yazd collided at 5:30 am local time with an excavator before going off the rails 50 km (30 miles) from the city of Tabas, where it began its journey, a railway official told state news agency IRNA.

"Ten ambulances are at the accident scene and another 12 are on their way," the crisis management chief of the province of South Khorasan told the agency.

One reporter from Tehran tweeted that Iran has invested very little in maintaining and modernizing its rail system in the past 15 years.

Mehrabian made the remarks from the Qatari capital Doha on Monday, adding that the Iran Trade Center will be launched in a prestigious building in one of Doha’s top neighborhoods.

“The permit for this center was issued today and one of the best buildings in central Doha, in a very good location, was allocated to the center,” he said. 

An Iranian delegation headed by Mehrabian attended the eighth meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation between Iran and Qatar in Doha on Monday, where the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding to increase bilateral economic and trade cooperation. 

The document was signed by Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim Al Thani, the chairman of Qatar’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and his Iranian counterpart Gholam Hossein Shafeie. 

Head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization Alireza Peyman-Pak said during a meeting with Iranian businessmen in Doha on Tuesday that an exhibition will also be held in Iran to showcase Qatar's trade capabilities. 

In May, The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, expressed hope that an agreement between the United States and Iran could be achieved, saying Doha is ready to help resolve the conflict.

Qatar’s ruler visited Tehran a week earlier and held meetings with President Ebrahim Raisi and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

According to a number of groups that monitor the human rights violations of ethnic minorities in Iran, all of the executed people were Baluchi, a minority people living in Iran’s south-east bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. 

Sistan-Baluchestan is the country’s second largest but least developed province. Sunni Muslim Baluchis, who make up the majority of the province’s population, allege discrimination, especially in government employment.

Late in May, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) said Iran’s judiciary has hanged at least 26 prisoners in various cities in 10 days amid a wave of popular protests across the country. 

Calling for the abolition of the death penalty, Iran Human Rights Director, Mahmoud Amiri-Moghaddam said, “While most of those executed were charged with crimes such as murder and drug offences, the authorities use the death penalty as a political tool. The executions are carried out with the aim of suppressing dissent.”

Earlier in the month, Amnesty International’s annual report on worldwide use of the death penalty showed Iran as a country with a “disturbing spike” in executions.

The 66-page report found Iran executed at least 314 people in 2021, a 28 percent jump from at least 246 in 2020 and the highest figure since 2017. Amnesty said that in Iran “death sentences were disproportionately used against members of ethnic minorities.”

Mehdi Chamran made the remarks on Tuesday in reference to the Thursday attack that deactivated over 5,000 surveillance cameras and 150 websites and online services of Tehran Municipality. An Iranian hacktivist group named ‘Uprising till Overthrow' took responsibilty.

“Detailed planning was carried out by the Mossad and the “hypocrites” and the cooperation of the two with all the counterrevolutionaries and those who oppose the Islamic Republic,” he said. Iranian officials always refer to the exiled MEK as 'hypocrites'.

His comments came as most of the services are still offline and the authorities have warned all municipal employees against turning on their systems, suggesting that the municipality has not yet figured out how their systems were breached. 

During the same session, Asghar Ghaemi, a member of the Council, said, "We should apologize to the people of Tehran for this cyberattack,” expressing hope that the damages to the municipality will be compensated and services will be back online. 

The hacktivist group, reportedly affiliated with the MEK, put photos of the leaders of the group Massoud and Maryam Rajavi as well as insults at Khomeini, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and President Ebrahim Raisi on the websites of Tehran Municipality. The MEK released a video clip showing the websites defaced with a graphic with an image of Khamenei with a red 'X' over his face, while calling for an “uprising until overthrow.”