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Summary

Shopkeepers in Lalehzar, a central Tehran commercial district known for lighting and electrical goods, have called for a strike on Monday to protest the rial’s fall and what they described as economic injustice and mismanagement by authorities

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Tehran shopkeepers protest as rial falls to historic low

Summary

Tehran shopkeepers protest currency plunge as rial hits all-time low

Protests broke out among shopkeepers in central Tehran on Sunday after a sharp slide in the rial, with videos sent to Iran International showing crowds chanting antigovernment slogans.

Iran economy contracts despite modest oil growth as inflation and rial slide

Iran’s economy slipped back into contraction in the first half of the current year as inflation accelerated and the rial sank to record lows, compounding the pressure on President Masoud Pezeshkian as his government seeks approval for a tight budget starting on March 21.

Iran president says budget cannot match wages to inflation

ANALYSIS

Iranian workers and consumers to bear cost of budget deficit, experts warn

Iran launches three satellites from Russia in joint Soyuz mission

Iran on Sunday launched three domestically built satellites into low Earth orbit aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket, deepening space cooperation between Tehran and Moscow in a program Western governments say draws on technologies applicable to long-range missiles.

Iraq says trying to arrange Iran-US bilateral talks in Baghdad

Iraq is seeking to broker a face-to-face meeting between Iranian and US officials in Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said on Saturday, more than six months after Israeli and US attacks on Iran put bilateral talks on hold.

Iran says it is in full-scale war with US, Israel and Europe

Khamenei says West opposes Iran over Islamic order, not nuclear issue

Iraq says trying to arrange Iran-US bilateral talks in Baghdad

Restoring Iran’s Zagros soils needs half of annual oil income, official warns

Iran is losing soil faster than any other country, and restoring fertility in its vast Zagros mountain range would require diverting roughly half of annual oil revenues each year, a senior forestry expert said.

Gorgan Gulf remains at risk as Caspian levels fall

Iranian officials warned that the Gulf of Gorgan, the largest bay of the Caspian Sea, remains at risk of a “silent crisis,” saying dredging alone will not be enough to secure its long-term survival as water levels continue to fall.

Air pollution worsens across Iran, reaching unhealthy for all levels

Air quality across wide parts of Iran deteriorated sharply on Saturday, with official data showing pollution reaching “unhealthy for all” levels in large areas of Tehran, Khuzestan and Isfahan provinces.

Iran joins Islamic countries in condemning Israel's recognition of Somaliland

Twenty-one Arab and Islamic countries including Iran issued a joint statement on Saturday denouncing Israel's move to recognize the self-declared Republic of Somaliland, describing it as a threat to regional peace, according to Iran's foreign ministry.

Iran says ready to protect Iraq’s political system from collapse if asked

Iran joins Islamic countries in condemning Israel's recognition of Somaliland

Legendary Iranian playwright and filmmaker Bahram Beyzaie dies at 87

Bahram Beyzaie, one of the most influential figures in modern Iranian theater, cinema and literature, has died on his 87th birthday, according to a statement by the Stanford Iranian Studies Program, where he served as a visiting professor for the past 15 years.

Iran-linked hacking group claims access to phone of Netanyahu aide

An Iranian-linked hacking group on Sunday said it had gained access to the mobile phone of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman, and threatened to publish material it said would link him to a political scandal.

Israel says it killed senior IRGC Quds Force commander in Lebanon

Israel arrests man accused of spying for Iran, photographing ex-PM’s home

Iran-linked hacking group claims access to phone of Netanyahu aide

Iran jails eight Baha’i women on charges of promoting their beliefs

Eight Baha’i women were arrested on Saturday morning after reporting to the Isfahan Office for the Enforcement of Sentences and were transferred to a local prison to begin serving their prison terms, Iran International has learned.

Iran blocks families of 1980s execution victims from memorial gathering

Iranian security and law enforcement forces prevented families of political prisoners executed in the 1980s, including during the mass killings of summer 1988, from entering Tehran’s Khavaran cemetery on Friday to commemorate their relatives, according to activists and witnesses.

Executions in Iran doubled in 2025, rights group says

Jailed Iranian doctor starts hunger strike to protest ‘inhumane’ treatment

Iran’s handwoven carpet industry hits record low under sanctions – FT

Iran’s handwoven carpet industry has fallen to its lowest level on record, hit by US sanctions, restrictive foreign-currency rules and regional instability that have driven exports close to collapse, the Financial Times reported on Friday.

Afghans face killings, torture after return from Iran, investigation finds

Afghan refugees deported from Iran have faced arbitrary detention, torture and extrajudicial killings after returning to Afghanistan, according to an investigation by Afghanistan International.

Second anti-Taliban commander killed in Iran in under four months

Afghans face killings, torture after return from Iran, investigation finds

INSIGHT

Iran’s hardliners take aim at booming café culture

Cafés—and the social life that has grown around them—have become the latest battleground for Iran’s hardliners, who increasingly see their control over everyday behavior slipping out of reach.

Iran psychiatrists warn of surge in drug-induced psychosis among teens

Iran’s hardliners take aim at booming café culture

Mysterious tunnels beneath Tehran’s Grand Bazaar raise eyebrows

A network of tunnels formed by illegal underground excavations beneath Tehran’s Grand Bazaar has triggered official warnings over serious safety risks, while raising questions about their purpose and those behind the digging.

Iran Revolutionary Guards plan military drill in Tehran province

Mysterious tunnels beneath Tehran’s Grand Bazaar raise eyebrows

Sweden probes suspected plot to take sensitive medical technology to Iran

Sweden is investigating suspected aggravated corporate espionage at a sensitive healthcare-related company involving two brothers of Iranian origin, with TV4 reporting police are examining whether unique medical technology was intended to be taken to Iran.

Iranian man says he was forced into fighting for Russia in Ukraine - report

An Iranian photographer who travelled to Russia in search of work says he was coerced into joining the Russian army and sent to fight in Ukraine, pro-Kyiv media outlet UNITED24 Media reported, citing an interview with the 34-year-old man.