Dreams cut short: the slain children Tehran never mentions

Pezeshkian, who left New York on Saturday empty-handed after failing to secure a deal with European powers, said the United States demanded Iran surrender its stock of highly enriched uranium in exchange for only 90 days of relief from UN sanctions.

“If we are to choose between the unreasonable demands of the Americans and the snapback, our choice is the snapback,” Pezeshkian said, hours before the return of UN sanctions.

Kamran Matin, professor of international relations at the University of Sussex, told Iran International that Iran’s leaders knew negotiations would not succeed because halting enrichment and surrendering the highly enriched uranium stockpiles would have meant “total surrender”—something that would have endangered the Islamic Republic’ cohesion.

US-based commentator Ali Afshari argued that the responsibility went beyond Pezeshkian, stressing that presidents do not determine Iran’s strategic policies.

“Those who peddled illusions in the 2024 presidential ‘quasi-election’ cannot hold only Masoud Pezeshkian responsible for the return of UN sanctions and the war,” he wrote on X, adding that reformists had misled voters by urging participation.

Hardliners claim vindication

The snapback of UN sanctions has emboldened Pezeshkian’s conservative rivals who staunchly opposed the 2015 nuclear deal.

After the UN vote, his hardline election rival Saeed Jalili wrote on X: “In 2015 they said JCPOA would completely lift sanctions but almost nothing (happened). Ten years of a nation’s life was wasted because of this political behavior.”

Ultra-hardline lawmaker Amirhossein Sabeti, a close ally of Jalili, echoed his remarks: the JCPOA “was a colonial and one-sided agreement that wasted ten years of the nation’s life, restricted Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, and ultimately, by proving the wisdom of the revolutionary camp that opposed it from the beginning, exposed the illusions of the pro-West faction.”

On social media, ultra-hardline users demanded prosecutions. One wrote: “The end of the disgraceful JCPOA—the greatest shame in the history of Iran’s politics—congratulations to patriotic compatriots and those who care for Iran, and condolences to reformists, centrists, moderates, and all traitors to the homeland. It is time that those responsible for this disgraceful agreement be put on trial for this unforgivable betrayal.”

Some voices in the reformist camp lamented the collapse. Azar Mansouri, head of the Reform Front, accused conservatives of political score-settling.

“They fought it for years and now celebrate its death. But returning to the pre-JCPOA era means sanctions, isolation, and more pressure on the people. What is there to celebrate?”

Disillusionment with Pezeshkian

Frustration has increasingly turned toward the president. One user recalled his campaign pledge: “Pezeshkian had promised that if he failed to achieve his goals, including lifting sanctions, he would resign. Why didn’t he rely on popular mobilization to achieve his aims? Why doesn’t he resign now?”

Others mocked his unkept promises. “From the beginning, pinning hopes on Pezeshkian to lift sanctions was wishful thinking,” one activist wrote. “Someone who couldn’t deliver on his promise of lifting internet filtering after a year cannot be expected to deliver on lifting sanctions… He had also promised to resign if his pledges were not fulfilled.”

Journalist Mohammad Aghazadeh faulted reformists for urging turnout: “They frightened us by saying if Jalili won, the JCPOA would collapse, and war would break out. Pezeshkian was elected, but sanctions returned, and war came too—and will come again.”

Activist Hossein Razzagh, who boycotted the election, wrote: “The only thing Pezeshkian is not committed to is the votes of those he lured to the ballot box with promises of lifting the shadow of war. The only thing he is committed to is the Leader!”

Journalist Ahmad Zeidabadi urged Pezeshkian to level with voters: “Most of the decisive factors lie beyond his control. But he must frankly explain to the people what his plan is… In fact, he entered the second round of the presidential election with the aim of saving us from Saeed Jalili’s program. Now he is compelled to play Mr. Jalili’s role himself!”

Political activist Motahereh Gounei summed up the wider sense of betrayal: “You celebrated that Jalili didn’t come and Pezeshkian did! The country was ruined, its resources and infrastructure destroyed, we got both war and negotiations!"

"Sanctions returned, the dollar reached 110,000 tomans, and now I, a young Iranian, am awaiting a prison sentence simply for writing about Khamenei’s incompetence in governance and policymaking," the activist said.

“My Swedish colleague sent me the video on Friday. My first reaction was that it was amusing. But I immediately added, 'sad too’,” Valtonen told Helsingin Sanomat, Finland’s largest daily newspaper.

She added that she does not change her clothing based on who she is meeting and avoids events that require covering the face or hair.

Valtonen said she raises women’s rights in every meeting with Iranian officials, including this week’s talks.

Iranian state television blurred Valtonen’s legs in a news broadcast of her meeting with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Sweden’s Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard’s legs were also blurred in the same broadcast. The footage was widely shared on social media, including by Iranian women's rights activist and journalist Masih Alinejad.

Finland’s National Coalition Party, which Valtonen represents, also reacted on Instagram, calling the incident “a sad example of the trampling of women’s rights.”

"This is a reminder of how women around the world are still controlled and erased from visibility. Every woman has the absolute right to be seen, heard, and live freely," the party wrote on a post on Instagram.

"The National Coalition Party stands firmly for women’s rights — both in Finland and globally," it added.

Mai Sato, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, wrote that the situation is “deeply troubling” and “profoundly affected by the devastating military escalation and its aftermath” in the first half of 2025.

“While the military escalation between States ceased on 24 June, its end has not brought relief to the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who continue to face systematic repression,” according to the report.

The attacks, which targeted nuclear facilities, residential areas and Evin prison, killed more than 1,100 people and injured over 5,600, with between 40 and 60 per cent of deaths estimated to be civilian, the report said.

The strikes also killed 14 Iranian nuclear scientists and destroyed medical centers, worsening shortages and leaving vulnerable populations without care, according to the report.

The response of Iranian authorities was also criticized. Tehran’s actions included “scapegoating of ethnic and religious minorities, the mass deportations of vulnerable Afghan nationals and the introduction of draconian legislation that further criminalizes legitimate civil rights activities,” the report added.

On women’s rights, the report pointed to systemic impunity in cases of gender-based killings, noting that at least 108 femicides were documented.

“The legal framework of the Islamic Republic of Iran violates the right to life by providing protections for perpetrators of gender-based killings through discriminatory provisions.”

Executions also continued at what the report called an “alarming pace,” with more than 700 people put to death between January and July, including 98 Baloch, 42 Kurds and 45 Afghans.

Sato urged Iran to “establish a moratorium on the death penalty with a view to its complete abolition” and to end corporal punishments including amputation and flogging. She also recommended international support for exiled activists and Afghan refugees.

“We’re not afraid of war. We do not seek war,” he told NBC’s Tom Llamas. “President Trump has said that his administration has come to create peace, but the path that they have embarked upon will set fire to the entire region.”

Iran would never initiate a conflict but would give “the strongest answer” to any attack, Pezeshkian said.

Tehran continues to build its defense capabilities to deter adversaries, he added.

On nuclear issues, he rejected suggestions that Iran is developing weapons, pointing to the Supreme Leader’s fatwa against weapons of mass destruction.

He said inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency were welcome to visit sites in Iran, dismissing reliance on satellite images as insufficient.

Iran has resumed construction at an underground mountain site following US and Israeli strikes on its nuclear facilities, with satellite imagery and analysts indicating the work may reflect efforts to rebuild its damaged nuclear program.

The president also commented on domestic unrest, saying Iranians “have a right to choose” in response to questions about the enforcement of hijab laws. He acknowledged mishandling of Mahsa Amini’s case but accused outside observers of exaggerating Iran’s record while ignoring civilian deaths in Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, and Syria.

Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has ruled out direct talks with the US on missiles and uranium enrichment.

The president also referred to an injury he sustained during Israeli strikes in June’s 12-day war, saying doctors drained fluid from his knee and that the wound was minor.

Several Iranian economists say the downturn is already entrenched and that officials are underestimating the severity of the crisis.

Tehran University professor Albert Boghozian argued last week that Iran now shows the classic symptoms of stagflation—negative growth, high inflation, and rising unemployment.

“Officials must not ignore the danger of deepening stagflation, which is likely to intensify if the snapback proposed by the UK, France, and Germany is implemented,” he cautioned.

The Statistical Center of Iran reported that GDP shrank by 0.1% in the spring.

Excluding the petroleum sector, the contraction deepened to -0.4%. Agriculture was the hardest hit, with output falling 2.7%. This downturn marks the first time since 2021 that Iran’s economy has posted negative quarterly growth.

'Worse to come’

The reversal is striking given the 3.0% expansion recorded in the last full calendar year ending March 2025. That period, supported by high oil revenues and relative stability, allowed for modest but steady growth.

Ali Ghanbari, a macroeconomist and former deputy agriculture minister, predicted conditions will deteriorate further in the coming months.

“Iran is heading toward a more difficult economic period in the second half of the Iranian year (September 2025 to March 2026),” he told reporters in Tehran.

He forecast a contraction of 1–2% by March 2026 and inflation climbing above 54%.

“The downturn had been anticipated due to sanctions and political tensions,” he added, “but the scale of inflation will place even greater strain on household budgets.”

Such levels of inflation would erode real incomes and fuel social discontent — a sensitive issue for the government as it braces for renewed sanctions.

‘Sanctions hinder development’

The Majles Research Center has argued that renewed UN sanctions would be less damaging than existing US restrictions, which already limit Iran’s access to global markets and financial channels.

But economists such as Boghozian believe Tehran has few tools left to cushion the blow.

“The Iranian government cannot do much about the UN sanctions,”he warned. “Continued stubbornness will only deepen the suffering.”

Sweeping UN sanctions are set to be reimposed on September 27 following the end of the 30-day snapback period.

Boghozian warned that their return could have consequences far beyond economic hardship, setting the scene for more confrontation with Iran’s foes.

“With the threat of war, Iran cannot realistically pursue development,” he said. “War and sanctions will rob the country of opportunities. If we fail to take initiative, the other side will dictate the terms.”