Iran teachers' union rues student suicide 'tsunami'

"Our services are working side by side to face what is undoubtedly one of the threats, if not to say the most critical threat, in the coming months - the possible atomic proliferation in Iran," Nicolas Lerner, who heads France’s DGSE, said at the British embassy in Paris alongside his British counterpart Richard Moore.

“The intelligence will be crucial to enable our authorities to make the right decisions and define the right strategies,” Lerner said in rare public comments.

The head of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service known as MI6, echoed those comments. "The regime's nuclear ambitions continue to threaten all of us, especially friends of France and the UK in the Gulf region," Moore said.

“Iran’s allied militias across the Middle East have suffered serious blows,” he added. “But the regime’s nuclear ambitions continue to threaten all of us.”

The comments by the intelligence chiefs and Iran’s meeting with the United Kingdom, France and Germany came after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors passed a resolution, proposed by the UK, France, and Germany, criticizing Tehran's lack of cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.

The resolution emphasized the urgent need for Tehran to cooperate with the IAEA and called on IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi to prepare a comprehensive report on the status of Iran's nuclear program.

The censure resolution has set the stage for a new phase in the dispute over Iran's activities which could lead toward more sanctions through the activation of so-called "snapback mechanism".

The purpose of the Geneva meeting, the first such talks since Trump's election victory, was to assess the feasibility of engaging in serious negotiations before the official inauguration of the new US president on January 20, Reuters reported. The United States had previously announced it would not participate in the Geneva meeting.

The film, called “Ahmad” is scheduled to play November 30 at the Muslim International Film Festival (MIFF) in Toronto.

The Canadian government listed the IRGC as a terrorist entity in July. The listing means police can charge anyone who financially or materially supports the IRGC and banks can freeze its assets.

“I think it's absolutely abhorrent,” Toronto Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Kevin Vuong told Iran International.

Vuong said he was looking into what avenues were available to address this issue including bringing this up in the House of Commons.

“For us to have worked so hard for the Iranian diaspora to have demanded for so many years to finally see the IRGC designated as a terrorist that they are. And now, for their permission of a video that glorifies a IRGC leader. It makes no sense,” he told Iran International over zoom.

The film festival website described the main movie character Ahmad Kazemi as a hero and a martyr who mobilized the IRGC Air Force (AF) to save lives after the devastating 2003 Bam earthquakes in southeastern Iran.

Kazemi was appointed as to the IRGC AF in 2003, and as Commander of the Ground Forces of the IRGC in 2005 by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to the Tehran Times. He was killed in a plane crash that year.

He also had close ties to Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani who was killed by a US airstrike at Baghdad airport in 2020.

“"How is it possible that IRGC is designated as a terrorist organization in Canada? But now a movie that's praising one of the is former generals will be on this screens in Canada. This is shocking for me,” Mehdi Moradi, a human rights advocate in Ontario told Iran International.

Moradi is one of dozens of activists in the community who helped push the Canadian government to list the IRGC as a terrorist entity.

Representatives for MIFF responded to Iran International's inquires saying they have received messages from the Iranian diaspora expressing concern and are currently evaluating their next steps.

The Canadian government, Public Safety Canada, and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Iran International's request for comment.

"Baran Arjmand, a 15-year-old member of Iran's youth national team who participated in the World Championships in Sweden, left the delegation after the competition concluded," the Iranian Table Tennis Federation said Friday.

"This young athlete, without notifying or coordinating with the federation, introduced herself to police in Copenhagen while the team was returning to Iran," the statement added, without describing her potential motivations.

Many Iranian athletes have sought refuge while abroad in international sporting competitions in recent years.

Forty percent of the 36 athletes selected for the 2024 Refugee Olympic Team hailed from Iran.

The considerable presence of Iranian refugees on the team followed a surge in the emigration of athletes, artists, and skilled workers from Iran, driven by increasing economic pressure and anti-government sentiment.

Despite having received her boarding pass for her flight home, Arjmand refused to return to Iran, a report by the Tasnim News agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said.

Arjmand asked for the Danish police's help to prevent her return to Iran, it added. Neither Arjmand nor her family has issued a statement regarding her decision.

Many Iranian athletes who remain abroad have cited political pressures, social restrictions, or personal reasons for their actions. In January 2023, Iranian alpine skier Atefeh Ahmadi applied for asylum in Germany after traveling to Europe for training.

In December 2021, Shaghayegh Bapiri, a member of the Iranian women’s handball team, refused to return to Iran after a tournament in Spain, citing the country’s mandatory hijab rules and other restrictions she faced.

Similarly, in 2019, judoka Saeid Mollaei sought asylum in Germany after alleging pressure from Iranian authorities to withdraw from competitions to avoid facing Israeli opponents.

A fresh ceasefire in neighboring Lebanon between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel could make Syria, Tehran's main ally in the Arab world, a more important theater in the Islamic Republic's long confrontation with the Jewish state.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in a phone call with his Syrian counterpart Bassam Sabbagh, reaffirmed Tehran’s backing for the Syrian government, saying it stands by the country in combating what he called terrorism, according to a statement from Iran’s foreign ministry on Friday.

Araghchi described the resurgence of Syrian rebels’ activities in the country as part of a US-Zionist scheme while Sabbagh said Syria was determined to “thwart the sinister plans of terrorists and their supporters”.

Iran's ambassador to Damascus Mojtaba Amani also said Friday that Tehran has a military presence in Syria and, along with Russia and the "Resistance" groups, will continue to support the Assad government against armed opposition groups.

The Syrian army is engaged in clashes with armed groups opposing Assad and has been able to contain them "to some extent", said Amani.

In a separate statement, Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the Islamic Republic and its allied groups in the region will continue to stand with the Syrian government.

"After defeating the Zionist regime, [we] will continue to stand, as always, with the Syrian government," he said in a post on X, adding that the new movements of Syrian rebels are part of the designs of the United States and Israel.

Iran has played a major role in the Syrian civil war, aligning itself with President Bashar al-Assad's government against various opposition groups since the conflict began in 2011.

Tehran provided substantial military support, including advisors, ground troops, and militia fighters from across the region, helping Assad win back much of the territory his forces had lost.

On Wednesday, Syria’s armed opposition factions, including the Islamist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - designated a terrorist organization by the United States - launched an incursion on Wednesday into a dozen towns and villages in the northwest Aleppo province against forces backed by Bashar al-Assad and allies.

The rebel forces pierced the outskirts of Aleppo, HTS declared in a statement and anti-government monitors said.

On Friday, Russian and Syrian air forces carried out 23 airstrikes on the Idlib region, targeting armed groups opposing Bashar al-Assad, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Earlier on Thursday, Reuters reported, citing sources from both the Syrian military and rebel groups, that Russian and Syrian warplanes targeted rebel-controlled areas near the Turkish border in an effort to push back insurgents.

27 civilians, including eight children, have been killed in the fighting since the rebels incursion into northwest Syria, Reuters reported Friday quoting United Nation’s Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis, David Carden.

At a recent consultation in Germany, attendees shared testimonies and called for international support to address human rights violations and crimes against humanity committed during and after the protests.

“I don’t want to imagine a future where we see the perpetrators of these crimes posting on Instagram. Perpetrators need to be held accountable,” said one of the survivors whose identity was withheld for safety concerns.

While some survivors demanded justice for crimes committed, many called for systemic reform. “The law is being used as a weapon against us,” said another participant, emphasizing the need for legal reform to eliminate discrimination against women and minorities.

Participants also highlighted the courage of those inside Iran who supported protesters, including medical professionals and lawyers, often at great personal risk.

The UN Fact Finding Mission on Iran was established by the UN Human Rights Council in November 2022 to investigate abuses in Iran following the death of Jina Mahsa Amini in custody for violating the country’s mandatory hijab rules.

The nationwide protests sparked by her death were met with a crackdown that left countless victims of arbitrary detention, torture, and gender-based violence, including children and those blinded or severely injured by security forces.

Participants at the consultation included Iranians who had fled persecution and sought protection in Germany. Parents who lost loved ones in the protests described enduring repression, including denial of the right to mourn. They shared accounts of pervasive surveillance and judicial harassment in Iran that frustrate efforts for accountability.

“In this hearing, survivors - including children, and young women and men - spoke of their priorities for truth, justice, accountability and reparations,” said Sara Hossain, Chair of the Fact-Finding Mission in a press release on Wednesday.

The survivors welcomed the Fact-Finding Mission’s ongoing efforts but voiced disappointment at the lack of international action to pressure Iran into complying with its human rights obligations.

The Mission, which has gathered thousands of pieces of evidence, is preparing a roadmap for truth, justice, and reparations to present to the UN Human Rights Council in 2025. Viviana Krsticevic, a member of the Mission, highlighted plans for actionable recommendations, including measures for victim rehabilitation and accountability.

Shaheen Sardar Ali, another Mission member, emphasized the courage of the survivors and those who supported them inside Iran, such as medical professionals and lawyers, despite significant risks. “Their voices remind us of the continued need for solidarity and support,” Ali said.

Escalating repression and global condemnation

Amid these efforts, Iran’s human rights record continues to draw global criticism. A joint statement from 18 human rights organizations condemned the recent death sentences handed down to Kurdish political prisoner Varisheh Moradi and humanitarian worker Pakhshan Azizi.

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The organizations accused Iran of violating their rights to fair trials and extracting forced confessions under torture.

“These women, with their determination and courage, have initiated a new chapter in the struggle for freedom and equality,” the statement read, warning that their executions would further galvanize resistance against the Iranian government.

The organizations also noted that since the start of the protests, the Iranian government has escalated executions to instill fear, targeting women and Kurdish communities disproportionately. This systemic repression, the statement argued, underscores the urgent need for international action to hold Iran accountable for its human rights abuses.

The statement has been signed by organizations and individuals including PEN America, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, the Ahwaz Human Rights Organization, the Baluch Activists Campaign, the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran, United4Iran, and Iran Prison Atlas.

Iran has experienced a significant surge in executions in 2024, with at least 711 individuals executed by mid-November, marking a substantial increase from previous years. This escalation has drawn widespread condemnation from international organizations.

These actions have intensified calls from the international community for Iran to impose a moratorium on the death penalty and adhere to its human rights obligations.