The Persecution of Teacher Activists in Iran: A Report on Sacking and Disciplinary Actions, Including the Forced Exile of Esmail Abdi

A recent report by prominent labour union the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations (CCITTA) has drawn attention to the continuing disturbing, indeed escalating, trend of teachers and education workers being targeted for persecution by the authorities in Iran […]

Fire at Rajaee Quay; Completely Charred Bodies Retrieved

CODIR: Thousands of port workers were victims of a catastrophe waiting to happen… Last week, CODIR published a detailed account of the catastrophe that hit Rajaee Quay, the Iran’s principal national seaport for international trade in the vicinity of Bandar […]

Labour activists have been arrested! Prison is Not a Place for Labour Activists!

CODIR has received verified reports and information from inside Iran that May Day and events to mark International Workers’ Day have yet again served as the precursor to the arrest of scores of labour activists and a wider clampdown by […]

CODIR demands justice for Iranian workers following the deadly blast at Bandar Abbas!

On this International Workers’ Memorial Day, Iran is reeling in the immediate aftermath of the latest in an all too long line of disasters to have befallen its long-beleaguered working people. Over the weekend just passed, international news outlets have […]

CODIR welcomes initial signals from US/Iran talks

23rd April 2025 Press release The Committee for the Defence of Iranian People’s Rights (CODIR) has welcomed the progress made so far in talks between the United States and Iran as a step towards limiting the possibility of a military […]

 

Sanctions Against Iran Have Made the Country’s Rich Richer and Its Poor Poorer

BYESFANDYAR BATMANGHELIDJ ZEP KALB Iran has been subjected to extensive sanctions for the better part of the last decade. The sanctions were meant to target the country’s elite; instead, they have hurt the poor most and enabled the richest households to […]

Regime ups stakes in repressive measures

A year ago 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was murdered by Iran’s security services while in their custody. STEVE BISHOP assesses the build up to the anniversary and possible outcomes N September 16 2022 Mahsa Amini was detained by the Iranian regime’s […]

Iranian authorities have launched a new repressive onslaught on women rights defenders in the country

Iran: Mass Arrests of Women’s Rights Defenders At Least a Dozen Arrested Ahead of Protests’ Anniversary (Beirut) – Iranian authorities have arrested at least a dozen activists and increased pressure on a wide range of peaceful dissidents ahead of the anniversary of […]

Britain should apologise for its role in the 1953 coup d’état that subverted democracy in Iran!

Today, 19 August, marks the 70th anniversary of the 1953 coup d’état in Iran which brought down the government of democratically elected Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh.  STEVE BISHOP explores Britain’s role in the coup and why demands for an apology continue to be […]

Iran arrests 12 female activists in crackdown ahead of protest anniversary

Iran on Wednesday detained at least 12 female activists in what rights groups say is an escalating campaign to deter protests to mark the anniversary of the “woman, life, freedom” uprising that swept the country last year. The protest movement […]

Iran Launches New Crackdown, Targeting E-commerce Giant for Photos of Female Employees Without Headscarves

A week after authorities in Iran threatened to renew a crackdown on women not wearing the hijab, the country’s morality police has shut down an office of the country’s largest e-commerce company and initiated judicial proceedings against it. The action came after […]

Iran protests, death of Mahsa Amini: NZ MPs confront Iranian ambassador Reza Nazar Ahari in fiery meeting

Iranian-born MP Golriz Ghahraman confronted the Iranian ambassador with images of Mahsa Amini and protesters killed since her death in an at times heated meeting at Parliament about the Islamic Republic’s response to the protests and executions that have drawn […]

Iran proposes new hijab law ahead of Mahsa Amini protests anniversary

Draft law sets out range of proposals such as longer prison terms, AI surveillance and crackdown for hijab violation Authorities in Iran are considering a new harsh law forcing hijab-wearing, which experts fear would enshrine unprecedentedly extreme punitive measures into […]

Iran: International community must stand with women and girls suffering intensifying oppression

The Iranian authorities are doubling down on their oppressive methods of policing and severely oppressing Iranian women and girls for defying degrading compulsory veiling laws, Amnesty International said today. In a detailed analysis published today, the organization exposes the authorities’ intensified nationwide crackdown on women and girls who choose not to wear headscarves in public. In the latest escalation on 16 July, the spokesperson of Iran’s police, Saeed Montazer-Almahdi, announced the return of police […]

Pensioners gathered this week to protest in several cities across Iran.

Iranian pensioners have resumed their protests in towns and cities across Iran, once more resounding their calls for human and democratic rights, as well as social justice – against the fraught backdrop following the months-long popular uprising in the country […]