Iran Bans Sunni Leader's Travel To Flood-Affected Areas

The judiciary has not disclosed the individual's identity or the precise date and location of the execution.

The Tasnim News Agency, associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported on Sunday that the executed person, on January 28, 2023, "intended to detonate an explosives-laden vehicle at the Defense Ministry complex in Isfahan under the guidance of a Mossad intelligence officer."

On the evening of January 28, 2023, following an explosion at a key munitions production facility in Esfahan (Isfahan), Iran's Ministry of Defense stated that the facility had been the target of an "unsuccessful attack" by drones.

"The attack was carried out using drones, one of which struck an aerial defense system, and two other drones were captured and detonated by defense mechanisms," a statement read.

The attack resulted in no casualties, with only "minor damage" inflicted on the workshop roof, according to official reports.

Following the explosion, The Wall Street Journal, in an exclusive report citing American officials, implicated Israel in the drone attack as the two nations continue their shadow war.

To date, Iran has executed several prisoners on charges of "espionage" and "collaboration" with Mossad, drawing widespread international condemnation and criticism from human rights organizations.

Iran, relative to its population, holds the highest number of executions globally.

"The United States is not in a position to take a stance on and interfere in the elections in Iran," stated Kanaani, adding that US officials should focus on their own electoral system's integrity.

This comes in response to Friday remarks made by US special envoy for Iran, Abram Paley, who labeled the Iranian elections as a "façade of democracy," citing concerns over a lack of genuine choice for Iranian citizens. 

Paley highlighted the crackdown on dissent since the nationwide protests in 2022, emphasizing that thousands of candidates were barred from participating in the elections.

Echoing the sentiments, the US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also criticized Iran's electoral system as "opaque" and "undemocratic," expressing doubt over the fairness of the elections.

The Friday parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections in Iran witnessed a significant issue of low voter turnout, coupled with the disqualification of numerous candidates.

The dual challenge highlighted broader concerns about political participation and representation within the country.

The low turnout suggested a disillusionment or dissatisfaction among Iranian citizens with the electoral process or the available candidates.

Additionally, the disqualification of many candidates raised questions about the inclusivity and fairness of the election process itself.

Like most decisions made by Iranian officials, these decisions were also contradictory and controversial. On the one hand the government is trying to trumpet good mood among Iranians ahead of the 1 March election to lure reluctant voters to the polls, and on the other hand, by shutting down a festival that has been going on for its third year, it proved that it is against culture, and cultural activities if they are not necessarily consistent with the regime's ideology.

Nasrallah Moein, a renowned Esfahani singer residing in the US since the 1979 Islamic revolution, remains banned officially in Iran, yet his music resonates with millions. No wedding ceremony or birthday in Iran is complete without a few songs by Moein and other diaspora singers like him. Some of his songs have even religious motifs, yet the government is against rhythmic dance music.

Last month, Iran's Culture Minister Mohammad Mehdi Esmaili said that Moein can come back to Iran although he should seek permission from the authorities to perform. At the same time, an Iranian lawyer warned that the singer will have to go to jail for at least 28 years before he could even think of singing in public.

However, Hassan Shamaizadeh, another popular Iranian singer in Los Angeles wrote in a social media post that Moein laughed at the news of his return to Iran, knowing what the government would do once they have him in their hands.

The saga hinges on officials' interpretation of a 1980s song by Moein expressing a desire to return to Esfahan.

The Music festival in Bushehr initiated by locals three years ago, attracted thousands annually. It centered on reciting and singing the poems of renowned Iranian poet such as the mystic Omar Khayyam.

For nine nights, the guests and musicians from all over Iran sang Khayyam's song which are invariably about man's life being precious, but otherwise short. Khayyam's teaching about enjoying life while it lasts is in absolute contrast to the regime's fatalistic ideology which is all about death and martyrdom.

On the tenth night, festivities abruptly halted when security forces intervened, disappointing attendees eager for Lorestan's musical performance. Organizers managed a private closing ceremony, lamenting the missed opportunity for public celebration.

According to Khabar Online website in Tehran, the organizers of the festival, however, managed to celebrate the final ceremony with Lorestan's musicians behind closed doors without the public being there to enjoy the music and dance.

Shyly criticizing the security officers, Khabar Online asked: "What do the people in southern Iran have other than their pains and their dances?" Local people and musicians say the reason for the authorities' sensitivity was that visitors from other cities continued singing and dancing in the streets of Bushehr every night until the next morning.”

Even Islamic Republic officials have said at times that Iranians desperately need to enjoy life as they are overwhelmed by all sorts of economic and social pressures. Despite the acknowledgement, in the conflict between their outdated ideology and people's intellectual and emotional needs they always take side with the ideology and that is one of the main issues that separate the Iranian people from their government.

For the first time in his political career, the formerly popular reformist president refrained from voting, despite Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s repeated declarations that voting is a religious duty. Khatami has not made any statements since Friday’s polls regarding his abstention.

Reformist parties and groups such as the Etehad-e Mellat (Nation’s Unity) party, who were denied having any candidates, did not outrightly boycott the elections, but declined endorsement of any candidates .

In a tweet after the closure of the polls, the leader of the Reforms Front, Azar Mansouri, confirmed that Khatami had not voted and said this was in accordance with the Reformist’s previously announced strategy.

Ali Nazari, editor of Mostaghel (Independent) newspaper, tweeted that not voting caused “Khatami’s voice to be heard,” adding that a year ago, the reformist leader had issued a statement about the crisis in the country and written a comprehensive letter to Khamenei, to which he never received a response.

Former Reformist lawmaker Mahmoud Sadeghi said that Khatami's abstention was in accordance with a 15-point statement he issued last year during popular protests, and called it “a source of grand transformations for the Reformists.”

“The winner of Friday’s elections was Mohammad Khatami, who returned to the people's arms,” a Khatami supporter tweeted.

Some other social media users, however, allege that Khatami’s political act was masterminded by the regime to mislead the people and preserve clerical rule with “turban-wearing opposition”.

“Khatami did not vote to look like one of us, so that in 1404 (2025) he has the legitimacy to invite people to participate in the presidential elections ... For whatever reason he didn't vote, his intention was to hurt us,” another tweet said.

“Reformists have a very small window to return to the fold of the people … They will never have a chance in Iran's future if this is only a warning to the government [after which] they will return to their factory setting [position],” another tweet said.

Khatami issued the statement referred to by Sadeghi on February 19, 2023, in the wake of the regime’s brutal crackdown on Woman, Life, Freedom protesters. Some reformist figures such as Behzad Nabavi, then a member of the presiding board of the Reform Front, said later that they considered the statement as “the manifesto of reformism”.

In the statement Khatami had stressed that people had the right to be disillusioned with Reformists just as they are with the ruling system but suggested non-violence and civil methods as the only way forward.

The system’s attempts to “satisfy a small part of the society that it considers loyal to itself” at the cost of dissatisfaction of the “majority of the society who … have lost hope in a better future” was “a big mistake” that the ruling system was making, he said in the statement.

“System” and “ruling system” are often used by politicians in Iran and the media to refer to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his loyalists in power.

While stressing that “physical overthrow” of the powerful government by the ordinary people was not plausible, Khatami urged the “ruling system” in his statement to “reform itself” and called for fair, free, and competitive elections, freedom of all political prisoners, freedom of the media, and the rule of law.

More significantly, he advocated for the reform of several critical state institutions, including the Guardian Council and Expediency Council, both of which are appointed by Khamenei. Additionally, he urged for the cessation of the Khamenei-controlled military's interference in politics and a shift in foreign policy direction, moving from isolationism to engagement with the global community.

He emphasized that the Assembly of Experts should fulfill its responsibility of overseeing the performance of the Supreme Leader and entities under his authority. Furthermore, he advocated for the cessation of the Guardian Council's "arbitrary supervision," which has enabled it to eliminate all political rivals in elections, according to Khatami's statement.

In February Khatami had asserted that the March 1 elections were far from being free, fair, and competitive and had spoken of widespread dissatisfaction among educated youth, elites, as well as “over 50 percent of the population who abstained from voting in the 2020 and 2021 elections” and “the millions who had cast blank votes in the past few elections” including the presidential elections of 2021.

Elections of the parliament and Assembly of Experts Friday had the lowest turnout in the four-decade history of the Islamic Republic despite Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s repeated pleas to the people to vote.

In some constituencies the number of blank and invalid votes is higher than the constituency’s top elected representative. These votes are usually cast by those who may have been rounded up and forced to vote against their wish such as government employees, soldiers, and athletes. The high volume of blank votes has gradually turned into a characteristic of every election in the past decade.

The plan, announced by the head of the Legal Medicine Organization of Iran, Abbas Masjedi, would involve collecting genetic samples from firefighters, flight crews, armed forces, forest rangers, mine workers, and journalists.

Masjedi said that the plan is intended to help identify victims of accidents and disasters, but critics say it could also be used to track and identify individuals who are critical of the government.

The plan can be seen as an attempt to intimidate and silence journalists because the regime can easily use of possible DNA evidence to target its critics.

The plan has also drawn comparisons to China's DNA database, which has been used to track and monitor Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang province.

The Chinese government has shown how DNA databases can be used to suppress dissent, said Maya Wang, a senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch, suggesting that the Iranian government is taking a page out of China's playbook.

“Human Rights Watch has documented that mass collection and cataloging of people’s DNA form a part of the Chinese police’s countrywide mass surveillance systems, which involves the use of facial and voice recognition technology, big data platforms, among other technologies," she said, adding, “These technologies have empowered the Chinese government to maintain a vice-like grip on a complex society, from cities to its most remote borderlands, hunting down dissidents and neutralizing protests.”