German politician sponsors Iranian labor activist sentenced to death

Ahadi, who studied medicine at the University of Tabriz alongside her classmate Pezeshkian, told Iran International that after the Islamic Revolution, a radical group declared that women should wear the hijab, and it was Pezeshkian who was responsible for this group.

“It was not an official policy from [Supreme Leader] Khomeini or Tehran,” she recalled.

Ahadi’s first hand experience of Pezeshkian’s alleged misogyny directly challenges the mainstream media’s portrayal of Pezeshkian as a “reformer.”

“At first we did not take them seriously because they were a small group. We organized demonstrations on the streets of Tabriz. I held speeches on the street. We were against the hijab,” she said.

According to her, the Islamists “with beards were aggressive” and were part of Pezeshkian’s pro-Khomeini movement.

“[They] attacked us and said sexual insults. Later these men came with knives," she said.

As violence against women intensified in Tabriz, northwest Iran, Ahadi said protesters were forced to retreat from their street demonstrations.

“During one demonstration, a 16-year-old girl fell. I felt compelled to help her and went back, even though the men were chasing us with knives. It was very dangerous,” said Ahadi.

She also recounted that during her time working at a hospital near the medical school, Pezeshkian insisted that female employees wear a hijab. Some men told Ahadi, “If you want to enter the hospital, you need to wear a hijab.”

Ahadi said one of the Islamists, part of Pezeshkian’s group, enforced the compulsory hijab at the Tabriz hospital with a pistol. She responded, “If you have the courage, shoot.”

The dissident, who at the time was part of the Iranian left in Tabriz, said Khomeini’s “cultural revolution purged all universities” of secular freedoms.

According to her, Pezeshkian boasted that the University of Tabriz was the first Iranian university to undergo a "cultural revolution" orchestrated by the Islamic Republic.

This Islamist-driven purge of Tabriz's academic institutions, Ahadi said, led to her expulsion.

Pezeshkian and his violent Islamist movement in Tabriz were responsible for the murders of three students, according to Ahadi. She posted a picture on X of a student named Massoud, whose eyes were gouged out due to his opposition to the emerging Islamist regime. Two other students were also reportedly executed by the Islamists in Tabriz.

“We brought Massoud to a cemetery, and I delivered a speech. I said that this is a reactionary regime that is beginning to murder people,” she recounted.

The Islamic Republic executed Ahadi's husband in 1980. She was not at home when the regime raided her apartment and seized him.

Ahadi, who served as the spokeswoman for the Anti-Stoning Committee against the Islamic Republic’s medieval practice primarily targeting women, said, “Pezeshkian gave an interview with Iranian TV and said he ordered the hijab at the university before Khomeini started it.”

This week, the Iranian state-controlled outlet Tabnak posted one of Pezeshkian’s previous interviews regarding his role in implementing the forced hijab. Subsequently, the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) publicized and shared the Tabnak report widely.

Ahadi’s account further corroborates Iran International contributor Majid Mohammadi’s piece, which details Pezeshkian’s misogynistic actions.

“He has been a strong advocate of compulsory hijab and cancel culture, even stating that he enforced these policies in a hospital and university under his management right after the 1979 Islamic takeover, before they were mandated,” Mohammadi wrote recently.

According to Ahadi and Mohammadi, Pezeshkian’s revolutionary political Islamism was even more extreme than Khomeini’s, who enforced the compulsory hijab in 1983.

Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the Shah, fervent slogans such as "Wear a veil, or we will punch your head" and "Death to the unveiled" were promulgated.

Ahadi criticized the international media's portrayal of Pezeshkian, a cardiac surgeon, in his role as President.

"The international media reports that because a surgeon is in charge, everything is better. That is not true regarding Pezeshkian…his previous actions tell a different story," she said.

The new sanction package also includes Russian individuals and entities involved in the illegal transfer of weaponry from North Korea to Russia for use in Ukraine.

According to a statement by the New Zealand Foreign Ministry, these sanctions target seven individuals and 12 entities providing military support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Iranian individuals are Mohsen Vahabzadeh Moghadam, Abbas Abdi Asjerd, and Ehsan Varnosfaderani. The list also includes entities such as Bonyan Danesh Shargh, Alvand Motorbuilding Industries Company, Pishro Sanat Aseman Sharif Company, and Saad Sazeh Faraz Sharif Company.

“New Zealand condemns all those who provide military support to Russia in its war of aggression against Ukraine. The supply of Iranian drones and North Korean weapons to Russia constitutes a threat to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement on Thursday.

In May last year, New Zealand sanctioned 11 Iranian people and seven entities for supplying drones to Russia.

Since March 2022, New Zealand has imposed sanctions on more than 1,700 individuals and entities, along with a range of trade measures.

The charges include 'spreading falsehoods' and 'spreading propaganda against the regime,' according to Negin Niknaam, an Iranian activist and Salehi's friend.

"I think they couldn't execute him because he's now famous. They're afraid of him. So one thing that the regime always does with famous people or artists in Iran is they try to isolate them or keep them in prison. I'm really worried about him," said Niknaam.

The new charges against Salehi could potentially be a crime punishable by death, said human rights lawyer Kaveh Shahrooz.

"Part of the problem with the usual charges they level against dissidents -- moharebeh (waging war on God) & endangering the regime -- is that they're incredibly vague and broad. So one is never really sure what is and is not a crime," said Shahrooz.

Salehi has been detained since October 31, 2022 in solitary confinement in Isfahan's Dastgerd Prison, which is a in a high-security ward controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) intelligence organization.

He rapped about political and social issues exposing the Islamic Republic's abuses through his lyrics. The rapper grew to international fame during the 2022 nationwide Woman- Life- Freedom moment, where he not only used his platform to echo the voice of protestors, but joined them in the streets.

In May, more than 100 music, culture and human rights icons, including Coldplay and Sting, signed a statement demanding Salehi's immediate release.

After international outcry and pressure, Salehi's death sentence was overturned by Iran's Supreme Court in June and less than two weeks after his release on bail, he was rearrested.

The hope of another bail release seems unlikely now, said Niknaam.

"I'm really depressed because we were excited. We were really excited that we heard that he may come out soon," she said.

German Member of Parliament (MP) YeOne Rhie, Salehi’s political sponsor, believes the Iranian government is plotting to keep the critic behind bars.

"I am asking myself why are they doing that? And I think the only reason is because they are so afraid of him that they don't want him out and freedom," said Rhie.

Toomaj is not the first famous activist to have his prison term extended.

Jailed Noble peace prize winner Narges Mohammadi is serving multiple sentences, which amounts to more than 13 years of imprisonment for her human rights activism. Her sentence was extended in January with an additional 15-months in for new charges concerning “spreading propaganda against the state."

Niknaam said she doesn't understand the rationale for the new charges.

"How can someone in prison spread lies or spread propaganda against the regime?...he's in prison, and he's only allowed to call his father and no one else," she added.

Rhie said Iran's new president elect, Masoud Pezeshkian, who was supported by Iran's Reform Front and is portrayed as a reformer, should take action.

"If the new president wants the Western world to believe that he has a reform and he wants to bring more freedom and democracy to the country, he should start right now and he should start with releasing all the innocent people."

Rhie said it would be symbolic for Pezeshkian to order the release of a figure like Salehi, who is often described as the "voice of the people of Iran" and the "son of Iran" but that still wouldn't be enough.

"Because we all know that there are over 20,000 other political prisoners," said Rhie.

Earlier in the day, Iran's acting foreign minister Ali Bagheri Kani said nuclear talks with the US are ongoing through indirect negotiations mediated by Oman.

However, White House national security communications advisor John Kirby categorically denied Bagheri's remarks and said, "No active negotiations are going on right now with respect to Iran's nuclear ambitions."

"I won't speak or can't speak to channels of communication with Iran one way or the other, but there are no active negotiations going on to restore the nuclear deal," Kirby told Iran International's Samira Gharaei on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s summit in Washington DC.

Kirby said "the reason for that is because Iran was killing its own people in protests activity. Iran was continuing to spin centrifuges. Iran was continuing to support terrorist groups. And in the early stages of the negotiations, Iran was making unnecessary demands that made it impossible for us to do that. They weren't negotiating in good faith."

The White House national security spokesman reiterated the US president's commitment to making sure Tehran would never develop nuclear weapons, and said, "We'd love to be able to do that through diplomacy. But right now, there's not a path, a diplomatic path ahead of us."

Earlier in the day, US Senator James Lankford (R-OK) told Iran International's Arash Alaei that Washington had not engaged in direct negotiations with Tehran for a long time for a “good reason," pointing out to the oppressive nature of the Iranian government.

He referred to reports by the UN’s nuclear watchdog on Iran’s nuclear activities, saying, “The administration told us they are not engaged in (talks with) them. But obviously the IAEA has told us there is a lot of nuclear development that’s happening there and a lot of things they’re not able to see but what they are able to see and detect has pretty dramatic increases.”

The US senator's comments came after Bagheri Kani said on state TV that details of ongoing negotiations might be kept secret due to their sensitive nature.

“Given the confidential nature of these negotiations, the specific components may not be fully disclosed. However, I can emphasize that the trajectory of lifting sanctions is decidedly progressive,” Bagheri Kani said during a special news program.

The current administration is trying to "achieve significant progress before the incoming government takes office,” Bagheri Kani added, referring to the new president, Masoud Pezeshkian.

Kirby had stated on Monday that the US is not willing to resume nuclear talks with the new Iranian president, citing Tehran's policy of supporting terrorism as a significant obstacle.

Asked whether the election will change the US negotiating position, Kirby simply answered, "no".

According to Bagheri Kani, negotiations with the West have been "intensive" over the past three years, with a notable "pause" in February 2022 which he attributed to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Since then, Iran has exceeded uranium enrichment limits and is now "weeks not months" away from a nuclear weapon, according to the UN's nuclear chief.

During his election campaign, Iran's next president spoke of promoting constructive talks with Western powers to revive the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) and to lift the sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy since the withdrawal of the US from the agreement in 2018.

However, with Iran's Supreme Leader holding the keys to the country's foreign policy, it is unlikely the new figurehead will be able to truly change course while Iran's proxies wreaking havoc across the Middle East.

During the meeting which took place in Washington DC on the sidelines of the NATO Summit Yellen "outlined Treasury actions to disrupt Iran and its proxies including Hezbollah and Hamas," said a readout from the US Treasury Department.

Yellen further emphasized the importance of information sharing between the US and Israel to counter Iran's influence.

"Secretary Yellen welcomed additional information sharing with Israel and noted that ongoing collaboration to combat terrorist financing has yielded fruitful results with respect to countering Iranian financial and military support to Hamas, Hezbollah, and its other regional partners and proxies," the readout added.

In a post on social media platform X, Israel Katz stated that during the meeting he expressed gratitude for US support while urging for increased US sanctions against Iran in cooperation with Europe.

"I thanked her for the American support for Israel and reviewed Iran's activities as the leader of the axis of evil against Israel, the US, and the entire free world. I emphasized that now is the time to impose severe sanctions on Iran, led by the US and in cooperation with European countries, to stop its nuclear and missile activities and support for terrorist organizations..."

This meeting follows a contentious debate on Tuesday where Congressman Mike Lawler accused Yellen of lax enforcement of sanctions aimed at curtailing Iran's oil trade with China.

In late June, diplomats quoted by the German Press Agency (DPA) indicated that several EU countries, including Germany, are advocating for the designation of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) IRGC as a terrorist organization based on a ruling by the High Court in Düsseldorf linking a 2022 synagogue attack in Bochum to Iranian state authorities.