Bad news

A Kurdish political prisoner, Shirkuh (Bahman) Moa’refi, was transferred to solitary confinement yesterday afternoon ahead of his execution, according to his lawyer, Dr. Khalil Bahramian. Shirkuh (also spelled Sherko or Shirko) was held by the Saqqez Intelligence office and now transferred to the solitary confinement cells in Saqqez Central Prison. This move by Iranian authorities [...]

According to several reports from Iran, Ehsan Fattahian was executed early this morning in Sanandaj Central Prison.
The mobilization of people to this effort has been amazing. Within a couple of days, over 10,000 people signed an online petition calling to stop the execution. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and several Iranian human rights organizations [...]

Ehsan Fattahian’s lawyer, Nassrollah Nasri, was notified on November 6 that his client will be executed on Wednesday morning, November 11, 2009, Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI) reported today. Ehsan, 27, was arrested in July 2008 and first sentenced to 10 years in exile by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court in Sanandaj. During [...]

الذين اذا أصابتهم مصيبة قالوا انا لله وانا أليه راجعون
who say, when afflicted with calamity: “to allah we belong, and to him is our return” (2:156)
In memory of 168 victims of tragic Tehran-Yerevan plane crash including members of Iran’s national junior Judo team..
My condolence to all felllow Iranians and those who lost their family [...]

I really liked him and still like him. He was an amazing entertainer which changed many standards in music. The group dancing which he established hasn’t been taken place in our world. Also his singing style was unique. Michael Jackson’s dance changed many standards in the world of music. You can’t see a video clip [...]

Protests of Mousavi supporters broke out again today in Tehran (and reportedly in Shiraz, Mashad, Isfahan and Avhaz as well). Following the stern warning in Ayatollah Khamenai’s speech this Friday, that the leaders of the protesters (Mousavi/Karroubi) will be responsible for the bloodshed, riot-police and Baseej forces spread out across Tehran.
Starting at 16:00 violent clashes [...]

Yesterday, Iran announced that it will be trying 7 leaders of the Baha’i community, 6 of whom were arrested in May last year, under charges of “espionage for Israel”.
The arrested 7 are in fact members of “the Friends”, an informal society that oversaw the needs of the Baha’i community in Iran. The group is described [...]

An interview with Hannah Mermelstein, the American peace activist and journalist discussing the civil catastrophe of Gaza

Interview by Kourosh Ziabari, Tehran Times
Zionist Regime is tightening its grip over the innocent people of Gaza, selecting its victims eminently from infant children, women and the youth.
The casualty rate of civilians is swelling unyieldingly and the global public opinions are astounded by the intolerable, tormenting silence of UN which turned itself into the docile [...]

Esra’a, the Director of MidEastYouth recently brought to my attention an article in the Wall Street Journal written by Gunnar Heinsohn who heads the Raphael Lemkin Institute at the University of Bremen, Europe’s first institute devoted to comparative genocide research.
I found the article to be deeply problematic and have written a detailed response and [...]