UK, Canada, Russia-Based Firms Helping Iran Spy On Mobile Phones

Masoud Setayeshi, the Judiciary Spokesman, said the sentence was “fair”, alleging he was "one of the most [dangerous] terrorists and anti-human elements whose hands are stained with the blood of dozens of people". He is one of dozens of dual nationals held hostage in Iran, subjected to unfair trial and paraded on the world stage.

Sharmahd was kidnapped by agents of the Islamic Republic during a trip to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates in August 2019.

He is accused by Tehran of heading a pro-monarchist group blamed by the government for a deadly 2008 bombing and of planning other attacks in the country.

Following last week's announcement of the death sentence, Berlin has since declared two diplomats at the Iranian embassy 'personae non gratae' and ordered them to leave the country. Nasser Kanaani, the Spokesman of Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wednesday announced that Tehran has also expelled two German diplomats.

Kanaani claimed that the German ambassador in Tehran has been summoned to reassure him that "the Islamic Republic will act decisively” on the matter. He also threatened that if Western powers "ignore the fundamental standards and Iran’s national sovereignty", the Islamic Republic will use "alternative options".

According to the secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights, the death sentence issued to Sharmahd "could be appealed".

Protests on Monday afternoon saw male and female students across the campus chanting “in-person education is our absolute right”, in addition to calling on Mohammad Moghimi, the Dean of the university to resign.

The news was announced by Mahmoud Kamarei, the university’s vice President was said that the student accommodation will not be available from March 16 to April 7, with the closures of facilities such as canteens during the same period.

The country’s Student Union Council claims "the authorities are afraid of the presence of students in the university and that the lack of budget is a false excuse for closing the universities in the second semester”.

Iran's universities were one of the main centers of protests during the nationwide uprising against the regime following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody. In order to suppress the protests, the security force of the Islamic Republic repeatedly attacked the universities and arrested over 700 students.

A large number of students have also been banned, expelled and suspended by university administrators.

In the capital Tehran, regime forces attacked the gathering of retirees. In the cities of Yazd, Sanandaj, Shahrekord, Kermanshah, Marivan, Ardebil, Ilam, Arak, Qazvin, Rasht, Esfahan, Tabriz, Kerman and Sari the retirees chanted slogans like "Costs are in dollars, pensions are in rials", "Expenses, inflation are taking people's lives", and "Incompetent government, resign, resign".

The nationwide gatherings were held to protest the poor living conditions and regime’s failure to increase payments for the retirees.

According to trade union organizations, in Tehran, pensioners gathered in front of the parliament, but the security forces dispersed them.

Eyewitnesses say, “the situation was very tense, and the forces physically assaulted the protesters.”

According to the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Associations, the security forces violently arrested several people in front of the parliament.

On Monday, Telecommunications retirees also gathered in Esfahan, Sanandaj, Arak, Bandar Abbas, Kermanshah, and Khorramabad to protest the government’s inattention to their demands as inflation soars and their pensions remain unchanged.

Iran witnessed another wave of daily protests and strikes since Saturday, as its currency sank leaving ordinary people to wonder how they can afford minimum necessities.

He arrived in the Belgian capital Brussels on Tuesday and was welcomed by the Swedish Member of the European Parliament Charlie Weimers, one of his hosts in a Wednesday event, titled “A secular, democratic Iran: implications for Europe's economy and security.”

The former Crown Prince held meetings with Belgian lawmakers from different parties at the country’s parliament later in the day. 

According to Iran International’s correspondent in Brussels, Bardia Afshin, Pahlavi was asked to talk about his cooperation with other prominent dissident figures and his negotiations with diplomats and officials of other countries meant to garner support for the current protests in Iran, which have been going on for over six months and have been described as the boldest challenge the Islamic regime has faced so far. 

During the event at the Belgian parliament, Pahlavi said that the global society should feel comfortable with the alternative to the Islamic Republic, noting that the sooner the transition happens, the sooner the sanctions can be removed and Iran can have foreign investment. He also briefed the lawmakers of the opposition’s ideas for the interim government, which will have specialized committees for different tasks that should be performed during the transition period until a referendum is held in the country.

Pahlavi spoke about the charter of solidarity and freedom of Iran, reiterating that it creates the basis of cooperation among opposition forces to oust the Islamic Republic. "Iran's Charter of Solidarity and Freedom", which is being finalized, includes the minimum principles of agreement for the majority of secular democratic forces. The exiled prince also said that the content of the charter is coordinated with the activists and protesters inside the country to reflect their views and visions for the future of Iran. He said the charter is composed of voices coming from inside the country.

Pahlavi also mentioned jailed lawyer and activist Nasrin Sotoudeh and civil and human rights activist Narges Mohammadi, as well as Fatemeh Sepehri, another activist opposed to the Islamic Republic, as being among the people whose ideas were considered in the charter. 

In their historic joint event in Washington on February 10, eight prominent opposition figures held a joint forum, signaling the emergence of a leadership council in the diaspora to campaign for international support in favor of Iran’s protest movement. They also called for support from democratic countries to change the regime in Iran and establish democracy.

On Wednesday, Weimers and Czech MEP Tomáš Zdechovský will host Pahlavi at the European Parliament for the first time where he is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech. His visit to Belgium is the latest leg of his European tour packed with meetings aimed at strengthening support for the newly formed Iranian democratic opposition in EU institutions and pushing for sanctions against the Revolutionary Guards – the IRGC.

Earlier in the month, more than 20,000 Iranians held a protest rally outside the European Council in the Belgian capital, to call on the European Union countries to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization. Thousands of Iranians from all over Europe held a massive rally in Strasbourg in January to pressure the European countries to list the IRGC.

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Before Brussels, he was in London, where he attended events at the Oxford Union and the Henry Jackson Society as well as the House of Commons. Hundreds of Iranians had come from across the UK packing the streets of Oxford on Monday, February 27, to catch a glimpse of the son of Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran. Amid a low police presence, there was a carnival-like atmosphere, with people holding red roses as a sign of respect for the prince. His supporters hope one day he will be the King in a constitutional monarchy.

Before the Iranian Revolution in 1979, he was the heir apparent to Iran’s 2,500-year-old throne, but he has repeatedly announced that he is not seeking the throne and people should vote if they want a Republic or a monarchy. 

The statement was deliveredby Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica, Christian Guillermet at the 52nd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva Tuesday.

“We are deeply concerned by the use of the death penalty in Iran. Several hundred people were reportedly executed in Iran between 2022 and 2023, including juvenile offenders,” he stated.

In recent months, Iran has handed down or sought to impose death sentences against dozens of individuals arrested in connection with their participation in protests following the death in custody of Mahsa Amini.

Iran has executed hundreds of prisoners since 2021 and in December hanged four protesters after sham trials.

“We are concerned by the nature of the offences for which the death penalty was applied the speed of the trials, lack of transparency, and credible reports that defendants did not have proper access to lawyers of their choosing and were subject to torture or other inhumane treatment,” read the statement.

The signatories called on Iran to respect the lives and voices of its people, to impose an immediate moratorium on the death penalty and to halt all executions, urging Iran to cooperate with all UN human rights mechanisms, including the Council’s Fact-Finding Mission.

Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the UK, and the USA are among the countries that co-sponsored the joint statement.