For all of the latest Kurdish news, see these sources:
ANF English: https://anfenglishmobile.com/
Hawar News: https://www.hawarnews.com/en/
Rojava Information Center: https://rojavainformationcenter.com
Women Defend Rojava: http://womendefendrojava.net/en/
Rojhelat: http://rojhelat.info/en/
Rojava Centre for Strategic Studies
Komun Academy:
MA NEWS
http://mezopotamyaajansi22.com/en/NEWS
Center for Human Rights in Iran
https://www.iranhumanrights.org/
Iran Human Rights
NEWS
1. Biden win means war with Iran, warns Israeli minister
2. Female Iranian Filmmaker Jailed Since 2018 Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison
3. Iran temporarily frees human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh
4. Trump administration unveils more sanctions tied to Iran
5. Iran frees 157, thousands remain jailed on protest anniversary
6. Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile 12 times limit, says IAEA
7. Israeli agents in Iran kill al-Qaida’s top lieutenant – report
8. Iran’s IRGC launches artillery across northwestern border
9. ‘People’s tribunal’ established to investigate alleged atrocities of Iranian state
10. Iran’s Rouhani announces new nationwide closures
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
1. Iranian influence and presence in Syria
2. Iranian Intelligence Services Abduct Opposition Activists from Abroad
3. Iran claims new ‘kamikaze’ drone, smart bomb, EW capabilities
4. When the Red Flag Flew Over Iran
5. Nagorno-Karabakh: An unexpected conflict that tests and perplexes Iran
6. Iran: November 2019 Uprising and Its Amplifications
7. Iranian hardliners mourning Biden’s victory
8. The Iran Nuclear Deal
9. Kurdistan’s stolen rivers
10. How Iran is destroying its once thriving environmental movement
11. Museum Diplomacy Falters in the Face of Iran Sanctions
12. Who will sell Iran weapons now that the arms embargo is dead?
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NEWS
1. Biden win means war with Iran, warns Israeli minister
05 Nov 2020 | Al Monitor
Israel’s settlements minister is one of the many officials who want Donald Trump to retain the US presidency, in large part because of his Iran policies.
2. Female Iranian Filmmaker Jailed Since 2018 Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison
07 Nov 2020 | Voice of America
An Iranian filmmaker jailed since 2018 for her work and criticism of the government has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after going on a hunger strike and attempting suicide in recent months in response to her predicament, according to a knowledgeable source.
3. Iran temporarily frees human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh
7 Nov 2020 | The Guardian
Iran has temporarily released Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent lawyer who was jailed two years ago on spying and propaganda charges, the judiciary’s news agency reported.
4. Trump administration unveils more sanctions tied to Iran
10 Nov 2020 | Al Monitor
The Trump administration on Tuesday imposed a new round of sanctions targeting Iran, blacklisting six companies and four people accused of facilitating the procurement of sensitive goods for an Iranian military firm.
5. Iran frees 157, thousands remain jailed on protest anniversary
11 Nov 2020 | Al Monitor
Iran’s judiciary has pardoned dozens of prisoners arrested during last year’s deadly anti-government protests, but thousands more are still behind bars, reportedly facing torture and other forms of mistreatment.
6. Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile 12 times limit, says IAEA
11 Nov 2020 | BBC
Iran now has more than 12 times the amount of enriched uranium permitted under a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, a global watchdog says. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran’s stockpile of low-enriched uranium had reached 2,442.9kg (5,385.6lb) this month.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-54912402
7. Israeli agents in Iran kill al-Qaida’s top lieutenant – report
14 Nov 2020 | The Guardian
Al-Qaida’s second-in-command was killed in Iran in August by Israeli operatives acting at the behest of the United States, the New York Times has reported, citing intelligence officials.
8. Iran’s IRGC launches artillery across northwestern border
15 Nov 2020 | Rudaw
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched artillery fire against armed opposition groups operating across the country’s northwestern border on Saturday morning, reported state media on Sunday. The offensive came the morning after three border guards were killed in clashes with an armed group near the Kurdish-majority city of Urmia.
https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iran/151120201
9. ‘People’s tribunal’ established to investigate alleged atrocities of Iranian state
16 Nov 2020 | Irish Legal News
An international “people’s tribunal” is to investigate atrocities that allegedly took place in Iran a year ago. The Aban Tribunal is an initiative of Justice for Iran and Iran Human Rights on behalf of victims’ families and protestors.
10. Iran’s Rouhani announces new nationwide closures
16 Nov 2020 | Al Monitor
With coronavirus cases and deaths rising again, Iran has announced new closures.
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
1. Iranian influence and presence in Syria
05 Nov 2020 | Atlantic Council
Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Iran has found different approaches to increase its military and security influence in Syria. The first approach was by directly working with foreign militias and recruiting local militias. The second approach was created from the core of the first one.
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/factbox-iranian-influence-and-presence-in-syria/
2. Iranian Intelligence Services Abduct Opposition Activists from Abroad
05 Nov 2020 | Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Iran’s security and intelligence services have renewed their active espionage and intelligence operations abroad, targeting opposition activists worldwide, especially in Europe. Iran’s primary modus operandi is to lure them to various countries in the region – Turkey or the United Arab Emirates – to abduct them and transfer them for investigation and trial in Iran. Sometimes Iranian agents assassinate them on European soil.
https://jcpa.org/iranian-intelligence-services-abduct-opposition-activists-from-abroad/
3. Iran claims new ‘kamikaze’ drone, smart bomb, EW capabilities
07 Nov 2020 | Jerusalem Post
Iran’s Tasnim says the country closely watched the success of Azerbaijan’s drones in the recent conflict to learn from the experience.
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-claims-new-kamikaze-drone-smart-bomb-ew-capabilities-648318
4. When the Red Flag Flew Over Iran
09 Nov 2020 | Jacobin Magazine
In 1920, a Soviet Socialist Republic was established in Iran’s Gilan province. A century later, the short-lived state stands as a powerful reminder of the long-running struggles in the Middle East to defeat both foreign imperialism and domestic oppressors.
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/11/soviet-socialist-republic-iran-gilan-history-imperialism
5. Nagorno-Karabakh: An unexpected conflict that tests and perplexes Iran
09 Nov 2020 | Atlantic Council
When the mandarins of Iran’s national security establishment conferred after the Iranian New Year in March, they must have had at least half a dozen issues on their minds, including US sanctions, an apparent sabotage campaign, and the threat of coronavirus-inspired political arrest.
6. Iran: November 2019 Uprising and Its Amplifications
09 Nov 2020 | National Council of Resistance of Iran
On the night of Friday, November 15, 2019, a massive uprising broke out in various Iranian cities after regime authorities announced plans to triple the price of gasoline. The protests lasted for about a week and spread to over 190 cities in all 31 provinces of Iran.
https://www.ncr-iran.org/en/news/iran-protests/iran-november-2019-uprising-and-its-amplifications/
7. Iranian hardliners mourning Biden’s victory
09 Nov 2020 | Asia Times
Re-engagement with the US would be a blow to Iran’s ultra-conservatives.
https://asiatimes.com/2020/11/iranian-hardliners-mourning-bidens-victory/
8. The Iran Nuclear Deal
10 Nov 2020 | The Washington Post
Iran’s nuclear capabilities have been the subject of global hand-wringing for more than two decades. While Iran’s leaders long insisted the country was not building nuclear weapons, its enrichment of uranium and history of deception created deep mistrust.
9. Kurdistan’s stolen rivers
11 Nov 2020 | Rudaw
“Don’t go down to the river.” The warning came from a young man who chased us halfway through a village built into the steep hillside where the Lesser Zab River forms the border with Iran, about 50 kilometres north of Sulaimani city. On a late summer morning, the river was little more than a small stream under the close gaze of Iranian border posts. The night before, border guards opened fire on a group by the river, including the man who came to warn us.
https://www.rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/11112020
10. How Iran is destroying its once thriving environmental movement
12 Nov 2020 | National Geographic
Iran once boasted one of the greenest governments. But persecution, paranoia, and war have sunk the Middle East’s most vital conservation programs.
11. Museum Diplomacy Falters in the Face of Iran Sanctions
12 Nov 2020 | Bourse & Bazar
In 1926, Alexander Upham Pope, an art historian, collector, and dealer who specialized in Iranian art, was contracted by the Iranian government to design the Persian Pavilion at the Sesquicentennial International Exposition in Philadelphia.
12. Who will sell Iran weapons now that the arms embargo is dead?
16 Nov 2020 | Defense News
With an international arms embargo lifted, Iran is likely to start buying armed drones, air defense systems, fighter jets and tanks, according to one expert, with another analyst linking the passage of Chinese defense export legislation on Oct. 28 with the embargo’s expiration.
Peace in Kurdistan
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