Iran Government Makes Rare Concession To Parliament Under Pressure

Following the collapse of the alliance between the Organization of the Toilers of Kurdistan and the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan, an armed conflict occurred between their Peshmerga forces on Thursday morning, reported Hengaw Human Rights Organization.

The Komala Party announced on Wednesday that the efforts for an alliance have failed, and they will continue their activities independently.

Sources told Iran International the security forces of the Iraqi Kurdistan region entered their camps and ended the conflict.

In a tweet, Hengaw called on the two parties to "stop the military conflict and plan for an immediate mechanism to hold negotiations and end the disputes."

The human rights organization also expressed readiness "for any mediation to resolve disputes peacefully."

Rudaw Kurdish news agency reported the conflict took place in the Zargawez in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

The Islamic Republic had previously called for the implementation of the security agreement with Iraq to prevent the activities of Iranian Kurdish parties in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Komala has been engaged in guerrilla warfare against the Iranian government, notably during the 1979 Kurdish rebellion and the Iran–Iraq War.

The Organization of the Toilers of Kurdistan, also known as the Komala Reform Faction, is an armed communist and separatist ethnic party of Kurds in Iran based in northern Iraq. It split from the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan in October 2007 over internal disagreements but reunited with them in November 2022.

“Those who seek to overthrow the Islamic Republic must be disappointed. Europeans behave differently when they see they cannot overthrow the Islamic Republic,” Hassan Khomeini claimed on Thursday.

Speaking at the mausoleum of his grandfather, Khomeini added that the decision of the judiciary chief and the proposal for the amnesty of prisoners last year was very helpful in “disappointing the enemies”.

Using the term “Enemies” is a favorite of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to refer to the United States, Israel, US allies in the region and in Europe.

“Anything that can be used to overcome internal conflicts… creates hope and guarantees the survival of the Islamic Republic.”

In February, Khamenei agreed to pardon some prisoners and reduce sentences for those arrested during anti-government protests in recent months.

In a letter judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei sent to Khamenei young protesters were highlighted, with the caveat that they “were deceived by enemy propaganda,” and since then have expressed remorse.

However, human rights activists including Narges Mohammadi, slammed the Supreme Leader’s amnesty as a sham to feign compassion to the Western world.

In a letter written to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva from inside Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison, she said the announcement reflects a “politics of the Islamic Republic [which] is based on lies”.

The joint meeting of the Ministry of Intelligence and the Intelligence Organization of the IRGC was held June 16 in the religious city of Mashhad.

The session was opened with the message of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei who urged for more mutual understanding and synergy.

“Intelligence is one of the most important issues of the country, and one of our weaknesses in relation to intelligence systems is the lack of coordination,” read Khamenei’s message.

The meeting comes as a lack of coordination between the intelligence organizations has led to major cyber attacks from regime opposition groups. Repeated acts of sabotage attributed to Israel have also plagued the Iranian regime since July 2020.

Most recently, a hacktivist group broke into servers of the Iranian president’s office in late May and leaked troves of sensitive data, proving corruption, conflicts, and an ongoing nuclear expansion.

Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib and the IRGC Commander Hossein Salami were among the speakers of Thursday's meeting, both underlining the necessity of better coordination.

The Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Akbar Ahmadian and the Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi also called for a joint strategy.

It seems that there are deep rifts between the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence and Khamenei continues to heal the rifts but with over a dozen bodies involved in the country’s security, none of them want to lose its dominance.

However, multiple intelligence services were created during Khamenei's 34-year-old rule.

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian presented bin Zayed with the invitation on behalf of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Thursday.

The Iranian top diplomat arrived in Abu Dhabi on the fourth and final leg of his regional tour.

Among the topics discussed were consular, cultural, economic, and political relations between Iran and the UAE.

Amir-Abdollahian visited Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait before traveling to the UAE.

Meanwhile, his deputy for political issues met with Legal Advisor to Qatari Foreign Minister, Mohammad AlKhulaifi in Doha Wednesday night.

Ali Bagheri-Kani called lasting peace and stability dependent on development and progress in the countries of the region.

“The peace and stability that does not lead to development and progress is temporary, unstable,” he noted.

Referring to the progressing relations between the two countries, AlKhulaifi said “Iran and Qatar are always partners in bringing peace and stability to the region.”

Recent restoration of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran signaled a new policy by the Persian Gulf Sunni Arab states for closer regional ties.

A deal brokered by China in March ended a diplomatic rift between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and re-established relations following years of hostility.

In 2016, protesters attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran in retaliation for Riyadh's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, which led to Riyadh severing its ties with Tehran.

The UAE and Bahrain quickly followed Saudi Arabia in severing diplomatic relations with Iran.

Lotfollah Siahkali said: “The real price of a Chinese car is 6,000 dollars, but we sell for 60,000. Which governance rule does this follow? People are aware of the difference in car prices inside Iran and abroad. Why are we like this?"

This is not the first time the issue of importing cars or car parts from China has drawn criticism.

Last year, Mehdi Dadfar, the Secretary of the Car Importers Association, criticized the ban on car imports and market saturation by Chinese cars and parts.

“They did their best to prevent the import of famous brands and turned the country into one of the provinces of China,” he said.

It seems that China does not want to manufacture cars in Iran and prefers to export cars or parts.

For years critics and politicians have criticized the government-controlled auto industry and have referred to a “mafia” running the money-losing and inefficient sector.

Iran’s two main carmakers – Saipa and Iran Khodro – can only produce 1,400,000 units of light and heavy vehicles, mostly sub-standard older foreign models.

China has been the world’s largest car maker since 2008, with its output since 2009 higher than the US, European Union, and Japan combined. But the quality of Chinese cars is considered poor, with focus on low prices and high production numbers.