March
8, 2023
Leading
media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Wednesday urged Iran to
release a journalist arrested after closely covering a spate of mystery
poisonings of schoolgirls, saying the detention appeared to be an attempt to
silence him.
The
spate of poisonings has affected over 5,000 pupils, mainly girls, since
November, according to the authorities.
Rights
groups based outside Iran have accused the authorities of failing to do enough
to protect women's education and there were protests across Iran outside
education authorities on Monday and Tuesday, according to monitors.
But
supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called Monday for the perpetrators of the
"unforgivable crime" to be tracked down "without mercy".
Paris-based
RSF said Ali Pourtabatabaei began covering the story for the Qom News website
and on Twitter as soon as the first cases of poisoning were reported in the
holy city of Qom at the end of November, and he was still covering the story
when he was arrested on March 5.
It
said he managed to phone his sister to tell her he had been arrested but it was
not clear where he was being held.
Pourtabatabaei
had criticised the lack of any reaction from the authorities in Qom to the
first reported cases of poisoning, it added.
The
mystery poisonings have intensified tensions in Iran almost six months into the
protest movement sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini who had been arrested for
allegedly violating the mandatory dress code for women.
Since
the early days of the protest movement, Iran has held the two Iranian female
journalists, Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, who helped expose the Amini story.
"As
they already did with the journalists who revealed what happened to Mahsa
Amini, the Iranian authorities are trying to silence those who dare to
investigate and report other stories that are embarrassing for the
government," said Jonathan Dagher, the head of RSF’s Middle East desk.
He
said some 30 journalists and media workers were currently held by Iran. Most
were arrested in the crackdown on the protest movement.
"Ali
Pourtabatabaei must be released unconditionally... The systematic persecution
of journalists who still dare to do their job must end," he said.
The
interior ministry said in a statement on Tuesday "a number of people"
suspected of manufacturing hazardous substances had been arrested in six
provinces, including a pupil's parent.
With
public anger rising, protests took place this week over the authorities'
response in several cities including Tehran, Mashhad and Shiraz, Norway-based
NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR) said.
It
said authorities fired on protesters and arrested teachers to disperse a
protest in the city of Sanandaj in western Iran.
U.S. and Israel looking at Iran from "much closer point of view"
March
8, 2023
The
U.S.-Israel talks on Iran this week were positive and showed that the two
countries are looking at the issue from a "much closer point of
view," a senior Israeli official told Axios.
Why
it matters: The talks at the White House, which were the first of their kind
since the new right-wing Israeli government assumed office, took place amid
growing concerns over the unprecedented advancement of Iran's nuclear program.
- · The discovery by UN inspectors of uranium enriched to 84% — nearly the level needed for nuclear weapons — at Iran's underground nuclear facility Fordow caused even more alarm.
- · Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have stressed in recent weeks the need for a credible military threat against Iran.
Driving
the news: The Israeli delegation, led by Minister for Strategic Affairs
Ron Dermer and national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi included senior
officials from the Israeli Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Defense and the
intelligence community who deal with Iran.
- · The U.S. team, led by national security adviser Jake Sullivan, and the Israeli delegation “reviewed with significant concern advances in Iran’s nuclear program," the White House said in a statement.
- · The White House added that the two teams discussed the enhancement of the security partnership between Israel and the U.S. and pledged to strengthen coordination on measures to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and to "further deter Iran’s hostile regional activities."
- · The officials also discussed the recent joint Israeli-U.S. military exercises, which Israeli officials said were focused on training for a possible military strike against the Iranian nuclear program.
What
they're saying: "The talks on Iran were really good. The discussions were
on a very high level of openness," a senior Israeli official who attended
the talks said.
- · A second Israeli official with direct knowledge of the meeting said the talks reflected the fact that Israel and the U.S. are much more aligned on Iran than before.
- · “A nuclear deal is not on the agenda, and the Iranians are helping Russia in Ukraine. We are in a new world and a different environment, and we are looking at this issue from a much closer point of view," the Israeli official said.
- · The official added that the talks were serious. “It was a real discussion on Iran and not just a meeting to check the box. There was a lot of openness on the U.S. side," the official said.
Yes,
but: The Israeli government was disappointed that the U.S. didn’t
support the proposal by the E3 — France, Germany and the U.K. — to push for a
censure resolution against Iran during the International Atomic Energy Agency
board meeting earlier this week, Israeli officials said.
- · U.S. Iran envoy Rob Malley said at an event hosted by U.S. liberal advocacy group J Street last week that the Biden administration wanted to see whether IAEA director general Rafael Grossi could get an agreement with the Iranians on inspections.
- · Grossi met with Iran’s president and with its atomic energy chief this weekend, and the officials agreed on a road map for increasing IAEA inspections in Iran’s nuclear facilities.
- · State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Tuesday the U.S. will judge Iran on its actions. "We expect Iran to follow through with the commitments that it made," he said.
- · Senior White House officials declined to comment.
No comments:
Post a Comment