MEPs Criticize Borrell Over EU’s Refusal To List IRGC As Terrorist

Mohammed Hasan Ravanji, a professor at Tehran-based Sharif University of Technology (SUT), collaborated on this research project, which received funding from the US Department of Energy's Solar Energy Technologies Office.

Late March, UANI, a US non-profit opposing Iran's nuclear program, raised concerns over this collaboration with the Iranian university, which faces sanctions over its links to Iran's nuclear and military activities.

In a letter addressed to several US government officials, including Jennifer Granholm, Secretary of Energy, UANI highlighted a co-authored paper resulting from the collaboration between a researcher from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Sharif University's Ravanji.

The Iranian university, close to the regime, faces multiple sanctions by the US and other Western nations – including financial sanctions imposed by the EU and UK for helping Tehran develop ballistic missile technology.

The letter by UANI also says that SUT and its affiliates are subject to what’s known as "secondary sanctions" – which target third-party entities that engage with them, including international partners.

Iran International has not independently seen evidence that the research project contravenes any US sanctions or breaks any laws.

“We are sure that you agree that a national laboratory of the US Department of Energy should not be cooperating with such entities or their researchers/employees—under any circumstances,” UANI CEO and former US Ambassador Mark Wallace wrote in the letter.

Andrea Stricker, Deputy Director of the FDD’s Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program, who researched Sharif University's role in illicit procurement for nuclear programs, expressed her concern about the US government funding institutions of a key adversary.

“While recognizing the benefits of scientific collaboration, it is crucial for DOE and Congress to evaluate whether these efforts could potentially compromise bilateral security realities,” Stricker told Iran International.

Adding to concerns over the collaboration, was Republican Senator Joni Ernst, who questioned Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm at a Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing last week.

Ernst highlighted her concern and questioned whether US taxpayer dollars were used for the research project.

Under questioning, Granholm stated, "I'm not familiar with this grant," and separately stated that US taxpayer funds generally should not be directed towards sanctioned countries or entities.

Earlier this year, the Guardian reported on academics in the UK, Australia and the US collaborating on research related to drone technology with the same Iranian university.

“The collaborative research was described by one security expert as having direct military applications, while another called it potentially ‘very dangerous’,” the report read.

Separately, the Iranian diaspora has long called for Western universities to stop accommodating academics and scientists who they say have served and continue to normalize Iran’s dictatorship.

One such case is that of Iranian academic Hossein Mousavian, who is currently a Middle East Security and Nuclear Policy Specialist at Princeton's Program on Science and Global Security at Princeton University.

Mousavian, a former spokesman for the Iranian nuclear negotiating team and a former senior staffer for the regime’s Supreme National Security Council, is subject of an inquiry by the US House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce who suspect him of advancing Iranian interests.

Led by Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), a group of 12 Republican committee members authored a letter to Princeton University, expressing concerns about Mousavian's influence on campus. They highlighted his attendance at Qassem Soleimani's funeral and his appearance on Iranian state TV as reasons for their apprehension.

Last month, the National Association of Scholars (NAS) in the US also echoed the calls for Princeton University to discharge the services of the former Iranian government official.

Mousavian has repeatedly denied the allegations made against him.

The report, published Wednesday, highlights the Iranian authorities’ intensified suppression of freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly, particularly targeting women and girls defying compulsory hijab laws.

According to the report, security forces employed unlawful force and mass arrests to quell protests.

“Thousands were subjected to interrogation, arbitrary detention, unjust prosecution, and imprisonment for peacefully exercising their human rights.

“Enforced disappearances, and torture and other ill-treatment were widespread and systematic. Women and girls, LGBTI people, and ethnic and religious minorities were subjected to systemic discrimination and violence,” read the report.

It also criticized the continued use of cruel and inhuman punishments including flogging and an increase in executions, which were described as a tool of political repression.

The Iranian government also censored media, jammed satellite channels, and blocked or filtered numerous mobile apps and social media platforms, significantly restricting freedom of information.

Moreover, the authorities continue to ban independent political parties, civil society organizations, and trade unions, and have retaliated against workers and labor rights activists for participating in peaceful gatherings.

The judiciary played a pivotal role in entrenching impunity for torture, enforced disappearances, and other human rights violations.

Amnesty's report sheds light on the severe conditions and abuses faced by detainees, including denial of adequate healthcare, suspicious deaths in custody, and the implementation of torturous legal punishments such as flogging, amputation, and blinding.

The systemic discrimination and violence extended to women and girls, with the authorities intensifying the crackdown on those who defy the compulsory hijab laws. Punitive policies severely violated their social, economic, cultural, civil, and political rights, restricting their freedom of movement.

The US State Department on Monday also released its annual report on Iran's human rights situation, stressing that the country's "already severe restrictions on human rights worsened in a number of areas" during 2023.

The revival of Hajj comes after nearly a decade, following a bilateral agreement mediated over a year ago, which led to the reopening of embassies and the exchange of ambassadors.

On Monday the first group of Iranian Umrah pilgrims departed from Tehran’s main airport, attended by dignitaries from both nations.

The breakdown in relations reached a nadir in 2016 when Saudi Arabia cut ties following the storming of its embassy in Tehran. The tensions escalated with Iran-backed Houthi militia's missile and drone attacks on Saudi oil assets and shipping in the Persian Gulf.

The current détente has facilitated the operation of two daily flights, as per the Iranian regime, each carrying 260 passengers, from various Iranian cities, continuing until May 12. A total of 44 round trips are scheduled to transport 5,610 Iranian pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for the Umrah, an Islamic pilgrimage that can be undertaken at any time of the year, unlike the Hajj which is held annually as per the Islamic lunar calendar.

Despite attempts to mend their relationship, including high-level meetings and agreements on diplomatic and security cooperation, Saudi Arabia and Iran have not yet achieved significant breakthroughs in their dealings.

Although there have been talks about potential cooperation areas, such as Saudi investments in Iran's economy, significant disagreements on regional issues remain unresolved. It is compounded by Iran's ongoing nuclear enrichment and support for terror proxies such as Yemen's Houthi militia which Saudi has been at war with for a decade as the oil-rich nation continues to lead a coalition in Yemen's civil war.

Fatemeh Mohammad Beigi, a medical doctor by training, belongs to the hardliner faction of the outgoing parliament and has been re-elected for the next four years.

“Undoubtedly, the significant feat by the Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace force against Israel has brought people's hearts closer together. In the light of this solidarity, other challenging issues in the country…can also be resolved,” Beigi told a local website. As one of the challenges, she mentioned the declining legitimacy of the Islamic government.

However, her reference to a potential increase in foreign investment contradicts recent decisions by the United States and Europe to expand sanctions on individuals and entities helping the Islamic Republic in its weapons proliferation activities and support for militant networks.

Also, contrary to her claim about stronger solidarity among the people, Many Iranians criticized the attack against Israel. Even some regime insiders and commentators warned of dire economic and security consequences.

Beigi is known for odd statements and actions. In February, during the electoral campaign for parliamentary elections she wrote a letter to the governor in her local constituency, reminding him that she is known by nice different names, and this should be considered during the counting of write-in ballots.

She provided a list of these nine names to the governor in a letter. One of these names was “Ms. Doctor”. Beigi said that if a voter simply writes “Ms. Doctor”, that would be a vote for her.

Eyewitnesses reported to BBC Persian that the incident began when metro security personnel stopped the woman for not adhering to the hijab law. Despite her refusal to comply with the officers' orders, a growing protest from bystanders after she was taken to a nearby room pressured the officers to release her within twenty minutes.

Political activist Mahdieh Golroo shared footage of the incident on her X account, stating that the woman was "confined in a room at the station until the public's protest led to her release."

The event comes amid renewed governmental efforts to enforce hijab regulations more strictly. On April 13, the Iranian government announced the reactivation of morality police, alongside the implementation of the Plan Noor, aimed at curbing what it deems "immodesty."

The renewed enforcement drive follows directives from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who recently emphasized the necessity of adhering to "religious decrees" concerning the hijab, labeling non-compliance as "religious norm-breaking" activities.

The intensification of hijab enforcement in the wake of the death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody for the inappropriate wearing of her hijab, has been met with further rebellion across society. Increased confrontations and heightened tensions across various Iranian cities have followed the uprising as the government fails to quash the nationwide refusal to be subjected to religious doctrine.

Amini's death ignited a widespread movement against the regime, marking one of the most significant challenges to the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979. Ongoing laws to oppress women's right to choose what to wear have been dubbed 'gender apartheid by the UN'.

The government crackdown on the uprising which followed Amini's death resulted in the deaths of at least 500 civilians and the arrest of thousands, as reported by human rights organizations. Since then, record numbers of Iranians have been executed as the regime cracks down on dissent.