Iran says Swiss national charged with spying dies by suicide

"Iran's authorities must halt any plans to carry out her execution and release her immediately," Amnesty said in a post on X Tuesday, adding that Azizi was sentenced in connection with her peaceful humanitarian and human rights work.

Azizi’s lawyer, Amir Raeisian, criticized the judicial process, saying the Supreme Court failed to address critical flaws in her case.

“We filed an appeal, but ... the Supreme Court reviewed the appeal and unfortunately rejected it without addressing the numerous flaws in the case, thereby confirming the death sentence,” Raeisian told Tehran-based newspaper Sharq Daily on Wednesday.

Azizi was arrested at her home in Tehran in August 2023, by state security forces who allegedly held a gun to her head.

She asserts that she was denied legal counsel during detention and was tortured to confess to things she had not done---something rights groups say is a routine tactic used by Iranian authorities against activists.

Azizi was sentence to death in July 2024 for “armed rebellion against the state” and imposed an additional four-year prison sentence for alleged membership in the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), accusations her lawyers have denied.

In a letter from prison right after her sentence, Azizi described instances of torture and harassment, including mock executions.

At least 54 political prisoners including Azizi are currently facing execution across various prisons in Iran, according to US-based rights group HRANA.

Iran has faced mounting international criticism for its use of the death penalty, particularly against political prisoners and activists.

Iran executed 901 people in 2024, including 31 women, marking a rise in capital punishment cases, the United Nations human rights office said on Tuesday.

Takeshi Ebisawa on Wednesday admitted to trafficking nuclear materials from Myanmar, as well as narcotics and arms charges.

US authorities charged Ebisawa in February 2024 with conspiring to supply nuclear materials to Iran for potential use in nuclear weapons development.

"As he admitted in federal court today, Takeshi Ebisawa brazenly trafficked nuclear material, including weapons-grade plutonium, out of Burma (Myanmar)," said Acting US Attorney Edward Kim for the Southern District of New York.

"At the same time, he worked to send massive quantities of heroin and methamphetamine to the United States in exchange for heavy-duty weaponry such as surface-to-air missiles to be used on battlefields in Burma and laundered what he believed to be drug money from New York to Tokyo."

US authorities said the scheme was detected and stopped through international cooperation with Indonesia, Japan and Thailand.

"The problem we are facing is that general practitioners are not interested in pursuing specialization or working in the medical field. This issue cannot be resolved with such extremely low fees," Raiszadeh, who leads the non-governmental licensing and regulatory body for the medical profession, said Thursday.

The same official noted in November that, compared to the salaries of civil servants and the wages of workers, doctors' incomes have experienced minimal growth in recent years. Moreover, due to a persistent inflation rate exceeding 40%, nominal incomes have lost much of their purchasing power since 2019.

The Iranian government strictly regulates medical fees and annually announces chargeable rates for private general practitioners, specialists, and dentists.

In early April, for instance, doctor's fees for general practitioners and specialists were set at 1.26 million rials ($20) and 1.89 million rials ($30), respectively, for the next twelve months. The medical community argues that these tariffs for medical services do not align with inflation and has strongly objected to them.

The drone, with a range of 20 kilometers and an operating time of 20 minutes, is designed for rapid deployment and targeted attacks, particularly in complex terrain, according to the IRGC.

"Our drones carried out several rounds of firing and drone operations, and in our scenario, we successfully destroyed hypothetical enemies and terrorists attacking Iranian bases," said Mohammad Pakpour, the commander of the IRGC Ground Forces, on the sidelines of the exercise in the Azgeleh region in the western Kermanshah province.

The suicide drone is fired from a cylindrical launcher and transmits live video to the operator, allowing for precise target selection and engagement, IRGC media Tasnim reported.

Also on Thursday, the Iranian Army announced that it will incorporate 1,000 new drones into its combat forces in the coming days. These drones were designed and manufactured jointly by the Iranian Army and the Ministry of Defense.

Commander of the the Army's Ground Force Brigadier General Kioumars Heidari said that the new military equipment joining the Army has capabilities like maneuverability, precision, and smartness, but he did not elaborate on details.

Iran has been conducting multiple military exercises in the past few weeks, including air defense drills near nuclear sites like Natanz and a 110,000-strong Basij mobilization in Tehran.

IRGC commander-in-chief Hossein Salami said Thursday that the ongoing military exercises aim to make the enemies refine their assessments of Iran’s defense capabilities and demonstrate that the country’s deterrence is unaffected by external events, a tacit reference to the fall of Tehran’s longtime ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria. 

"The goal of the exercises is to adjust and refine the enemy's calculations regarding Iran's defense power so that they do not make decisions based on incorrect calculations," Salami said. "Foreign developments do not affect our deterrence."

He discussed what he characterized as enemy attempts to depict Iran's defense capabilities as diminished, particularly in the wake of developments in Syria. "The enemy has invested heavily in psychological and media operations, especially after recent events in Syria, to foster the perception that the defensive and deterrent power of the Islamic Republic of Iran has weakened and that Iran has lost its regional deterrent assets," he said.

The Great Prophet 19 exercise is the latest in a series of drills conducted by Iran's military to showcase its capabilities and project a message of strength in the region, following consecutive defeats for its allies since September.

Meloni also addressed the case of Alireza Abedini, an Iranian-Swiss detainee in Italy, noting that the matter remains under active review by the Ministry of Justice. She explained that the evaluation involves both technical and political aspects, conducted in accordance with the treaty between Italy and the United States.

"This matter requires continued discussion with our American friends," Meloni said. "I would have liked to discuss it with President Biden, who had to cancel his trip, and to whom we extend our solidarity."

Abedini, accused of transferring drone technology to Iran, was arrested at Milan Airport on a US warrant. According to Washington, the technology was used in a February attack near the Jordan-Syria border that killed three American soldiers. Iran denies the allegation.

His arrest has been linked to the detention of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was apprehended in Tehran last month while on a standard journalistic visa. Sala was released on Wednesday following diplomatic efforts.