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US Ducks Questions On Reports Pak Consulted Washington Before Striking Back At Iran

By LokMarg 19th January 2024

The US on Thursday (local time) evaded a question on whether Pakistan held prior consultations with Washington before conducting retaliatory air strikes on Iran.

On media reports claiming Pakistan consulted the US before conducting strikes in Iran, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller, during a regular press briefing in Washington, said, “I do not have any private conversations to read out.”

Miller said the US is concerned about the escalating tensions in the region and has urged restraint on all sides.

He said there is no need for escalation in the matter and that the country has noted the Pakistani government’s comments about the importance of “cooperative relations between Pakistan and its neighbours.

In response to a question on how the US administration reads the situation between Iran and Pakistan, Miller said, “We are concerned about escalating tensions in the region. It’s been something we have spoken a number of times, we’ve focused on. We’ve been incredibly concerned about the potential for escalation since October 7.”

“That’s why we have engaged in intense diplomatic efforts to try to prevent escalation. We noted the comments from the government of Pakistan, about the importance of cooperative relations between Pakistan and its neighbours. We thought those were productive useful statements, and certainly, there’s no need for escalation and we would urge restraint on all sides in this case,” he added.

Matthew Miller called Iran a major funder of Hezbollah and a principal supporter of Hamas for years.

In another query about the ongoing tensions between Iran and Pakistan after strikes and counterstrikes, Miller said, “I think I made pretty clear yesterday what we think about Iran’s attacks, not just the strikes that were launched in the past three days against three of its neighbours but its long history of funding terrorism, funding instability and sowing discord in the Middle East. That’s something we have seen contribute to conflict in Gaza.”

Iran’s strikes in Pakistan came after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched missiles into Iraq’s Kurdistan region at what it called an Israeli “spy headquarters” and at alleged ISIS-linked targets in Syria, Al Arabiya News reported.

In response, Pakistan on Thursday launched missile strikes into Iran and codenamed it operation ‘Marg Bar Sarmachar’.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement said it had undertaken a series of “highly coordinated and specifically targeted precision military strikes against terrorist hideouts” in the Siestan-o-Baluchistan province of Iran.

“A number of terrorists were killed during the intelligence-based operation codenamed “Marg Bar Sarmachar,” it said.

Meanwhile, US State Department spokesperson Miller said: “You have seen Iran as the principal supporter of Hamas for years. They are the major funder of Hezbollah. They are one of the major funders of the Houthis. We have seen the consequences of the actions that Iran has taken to add to regional instability and that’s why we continue to take actions to hold Iran accountable and also send clear very messages to Iran that we don’t believe this should escalate in any way, shape or form.”

“Pakistan is a major non-NATO ally of the United States, and that will remain the case, but we would urge restraint in this case. We do not want to see escalation and don’t think there’s a need for escalation,” he added.

US National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the White House, John Kirby, said the US is monitoring the situation regarding Iran and Pakistan “very very closely” and they do not want to see escalation. (ANI)

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Protests Erupt In Iran On Death Anniv On Mahsa Amini

By LokMarg 17th September 2023

Protests broke out across Iran to mark the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who passed away while being held by Iran’s morality police after being detained for allegedly not wearing her headscarf properly in September last year, reported CNN.

Mahsa was imprisoned for allegedly violating Iranian law about headscarves.

According to CNN, the protests took place in a number of Iranian cities, including the capital Tehran, Mashad, Ahvaz, Lahijan, Arak, and the Kurdish city of Senandaj.

Some demonstrators also shouted anti-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s death slogans.

As a show of force, the authorities stationed armed guards in various places, and Lahijan in the north saw images of police pursuing protestors, CNN reported.

Even as Saturday marked the first anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a progressive Iranian woman who stood up against the draconian Hijab rule and whose alleged custodial death sparked furious protests, the Iranian authorities detained her father, CNN reported citing Iranian journalists and rights group.

Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman, died last September after being detained by the regime’s infamous morality police and taken to a “re-education centre,” allegedly for failing to wear her headscarf properly.

According to an Iranian journalist, Amini’s father, Amjad, was regularly summoned by the security officers in recent months following her daughter’s death. “Today he was detained for a few hours,” CNN reported, citing the journalist.

Amini’s family visited her grace in the western Kurdish city of Saqqez on the eve of the one-year anniversary of her death, CNN reported citing IranWire.

However, following that day, Amjad was detained by the authorities for three to four hours with his son.

Moreover, Amjad’s son was warned that he would be banished to a remote village if he encouraged people to attend Amini’s death anniversary ceremonies, the report claimed.

However, Iranian authorities denied reports of Amjad’s detention.

IRNA, Iran’s local media outlet, described the reports as “false” in a Telegram post, according to CNN. Earlier, on Tuesday, Amini’s uncle, Sada Aeli, was apprehended by the Iranian authorities, according to a member of her family and reports from the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

Amini’s death triggered the largest protests Iran had witnessed in years, turning into a larger social movement with demonstrators protesting the regime’s treatment of women among other issues as well.

Earlier, on Saturday, over 20 Iranian individuals and entities connected to the harsh repression of protests after Amini’s death a year ago were subjected to penalties by the Joe Biden administration on Friday, reported CNN.

The newest round of sanctions was in retaliation for Tehran’s ruthless crackdown on the demonstrators, who took to the streets after Amini passed away while in the custody of Iran’s morality police. (ANI)

US Imposes More Sanctions On Iran On Mahasa Amini’s Death Anniv

By LokMarg 16th September 2023

More than 20 Iranian individuals and entities connected to the harsh repression of protests after Mahsa Amini’s death one year ago were subject to penalties by the Joe Biden administration on Friday, reported CNN.

The newest round of sanctions is in retaliation for Tehran’s ruthless crackdown on the demonstrators who took to the streets after Amini passed away while in the care of Iran’s purported morality police.

The morality police, against whom the US levied penalties last year was allegedly arrested by the morality police for wearing her hijab ‘improperly’.

The sanctions targeted, “18 key members of the regime’s security forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Law Enforcement Forces (LEF); the head of Iran’s Prisons Organization; three individuals and one company in connection with the regime’s systematic censorship and blocking of access to the internet; and three IRGC and regime-controlled media outlets—-Fars News, Tasnim News and Press TV—-and three senior officials,” a news release from the US Treasury Department said.

According to the Treasury Department, the US sanctions were implemented in collaboration with allies such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed in a separate statement that the US State Department is taking steps “to impose visa restrictions on 13 Iranian officials and other individuals for their involvement in the detention or killing of peaceful protestors or the inhibition of their rights to freedom of expression or assembly,” reported CNN.

“Since Mahsa Amini’s death and the protests that followed, we have pursued visa restrictions on 40 Iranian officials and other individuals for their involvement in these acts targeting peaceful protestors,” CNN quoted Blinken as saying.

Meanwhile, according to CNN, US President Joe Biden said in a statement on Friday that he and First Lady Jill “join people around the world in remembering her—and every brave Iranian citizen who has been killed, wounded or imprisoned by the Iranian regime for peacefully demanding democracy and their basic human dignity.”

“As we have seen over the last year, Mahsa’s story did not end with her brutal death. She inspired a historic movement—Woman, Life, Freedom—that has impacted Iran and influenced people across the globe who are tirelessly advocating for gender equality and respect for their human rights,” US President Joe Biden said.

The US looks to be nearing an agreement with Tehran to secure the release of five Americans who have been classified as being unfairly detained in Iran when the latest round of sanctions was announced on the night of the anniversary of Amini’s death.

Just weeks before the one-year anniversary of the major protests caused by Mahsa Amini’s death, Iranian authorities are prepared a new Bill on hijab-wearing that experts fear would put unprecedentedly harsh punitive measures into law, according to CNN.

The 70-article draft law sets out a range of proposals, including much longer prison terms for women who refuse to wear the veil, stiff new penalties for celebrities and businesses who flout the rules, and the use of artificial intelligence to identify women in breach of the dress code.

Experts said the Bill, which has yet to be passed, was a reminder to Iranians that the regime will not back down from its stance on the hijab despite the country’s enormous protests last year, according to CNN.

Notably, many Iranian women have chosen to start showing their hair since the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022 after being detained by Iran’s morality police for “improperly” wearing her headscarf. Iranian celebrities, athletes and actresses have followed suit in solidarity.

While not officially disbanded, the morality police had largely pulled back following last year’s protests, which have gradually waned.

But earlier this month, police spokesman General Saeed Montazerolmahdi said the morality police would resume notifying and then detaining women who are caught without the Islamic headscarf in public.

The hijab has long been a point of contention in Iran. It was barred in 1936 during leader Reza Shah’s emancipation of women until his successor lifted the ban in 1941. In 1983 the hijab became mandatory after the last shah was overthrown in the Islamic Revolution of 1979, CNN reported.

Iran has traditionally considered Article 368 of its Islamic penal code as the hijab law, which states that those in breach of the dress code face between 10 days to two months in prison, or a fine between 50,000 to 500,000 Iranian rials, what is today between USD 1.18 to USD 11.82.

Another section states that in order to enforce the new law, Iranian police must “create and strengthen AI systems to identify perpetrators of illegal behaviour using tools such as fixed and mobile cameras.”

Earlier this year, state media reported that cameras would be installed in public places to identify women who violate the country’s hijab law. (ANI)

Nobel Foundation Withdraws Invitation To Russia, Belarus

By LokMarg 3rd September 2023

After facing widespread criticism, the Nobel Foundation finally withdrew its invitations to three countries: Russia, Iran and Belarus, saying that the invitations had provoked “strong reactions,” CNN reported.

In a press release, the Nobel Foundation on Saturday said that the ambassadors from the three countries (Russia, Belarus and Iran) would not be invited, after initially saying that it wanted to involve even those who did not share the values of the Nobel Prize.

Ukraine had condemned the decision to invite the Russian and Belarusian ambassadors. A Swedish member of the European Parliament called the decision “extremely inappropriate.”

Last year, Russian and Belarusian ambassadors were left out of Stockholm’s Nobel Prize awards ceremony because of the war in Ukraine.

“The decision by the Nobel Foundation to invite all ambassadors to the Nobel Prize award ceremony, in accordance with previous practice, has provoked strong reactions,” the foundation said in its statement on Saturday, adding that the basis for the decision is the belief that “it is important and right to reach out as widely as possible with the values and messages that the Nobel Prize stands for.”

“For example, through last year’s clear political message with the peace prize awarded to human rights fighters from Russia and Belarus as well as to Ukrainians who work with documenting Russian war crimes,” CNN quoted a statement saying.

The foundation further stated that they recognize the strong reactions in Sweden, which completely overshadowed this message. And, therefore, choose to repeat last year’s exception to regular practice – that is, to not invite the ambassadors of Russia, Belarus and Iran to the Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm.

The move on Saturday was welcomed by the Swedish prime minister and Ukrainian officials.

“I welcome the new decision of the board of the Nobel Foundation regarding the Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm,” Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, called the reversal a “restoration of justice” in a post on Facebook, as per CNN.

The Nobel Banquet takes place annually in Stockholm on December 10, where five out of six Nobel Prizes are awarded. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway.

The Russia-Ukraine war that started on February 24, 2022, has taken numerous lives and the war continues to escalate between the two nations even now. (ANI)

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Iran Aims To Expand Its Automobile Sale Internationally, Indian Market On Cards

By LokMarg 13th July 2023

Iran Khodro Industrial Group (IKCO), Iran’s largest automobile manufacturer, is aiming for expansion of its automotive business to additional nations despite the US sanctions, following its successful car exports to Russia and has now set its sights on India.
After having captured the markets of Venezuela and Russia the company, Iranian automaker Khodro, is determined to increase its car production to meet the demands of its partner countries.

Leila Yusufi, the logistics manager at Khodro, expressed confidence in expanding the market to India when questioned about the company’s plans for the Indian market. She stated, “Certainly, if India permits, we will enter the Indian market.”

Yusufi said, “Sure. If India will allow. We will come to India.”

According to Khodro, they have the capacity to produce more than 40 cars per hour.

“We are currently able to producing 43 cars per hour and we are sending our cars to Venezuela and Russia,” Leila told ANI.

Iran is confident to produce more cars to meet the demand of their partner countries.

On being asked if Iran is facing challenges in automobile manufacturing due to US sanctions, logistics manager of IKCO said “We have defeated that. There were many problems but we have been able to overcome the sanction, fortunately.”

“But it was very difficult,” she added.

The US has imposed restrictions on activities with Iran under various legal authorities since 1979, following the seizure of the US Embassy in Tehran.

The Department of State’s Office of Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementation is responsible for enforcing and implementing a number of US sanctions programmes that restrict access to the United States for companies that engage in certain commercial activities in Iran.

IKCO is also planning to take new technologies from other countries, said Leila, noting, “the development of the country is one of our most important plans and we are looking for new technologies from other countries.”

According to IKCO, Iran produces about 85 per cent of automobile parts in the country as Make in Iran products and the remaining 15 per cent in other countries. (ANI)

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Asian Kabaddi C’ship 2023: India Defeat Iran In Final

By LokMarg 30th June 2023

India put up a stunning performance to defeat Iran 42-32 in the final of the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 at the Dong-Eui Institute of Technology Seokdang Cultural Center in Busan, Republic of Korea, on Friday. This was India’s eighth title in nine editions.

Indian captain Pawan Sehrawat led from the front with a super 10.
In the opening five minutes of the match, the Indian men’s kabaddi team was down to Iran. However, in the 10th minute of play, Iran was forced to go all-out after a few tackle points by the defence and successful raids by Pawan Sehrawat and Aslam Inamdar.

As they gained momentum, the Indian kabaddi team swiftly increased their advantage while putting up an outstanding all-around performance. Iran received a few easy bonus points against India, the reigning champions, but in the 19th minute India inflicted a second all-out on Iran.

India held a 23-11 advantage going into the second half. However, Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh, the captain of Iran, assisted in inflicting the first all-out on India in the 29th minute with a two-point raid and a super raid.

With two minutes remaining, Iran cut the lead to 38-31, causing the game to get tense, but India held on to scrape out a 42-32 victory.

Earlier in the day, India had beaten Hong Kong 64-20 to end the league stage of the tournament undefeated. (ANI)

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Iran Holds 2nd Public Execution Amid Anti-Govt Protests

By LokMarg 12th December 2022

Iran on Monday carried out a public execution, the second in less than one week, related to anti-government protests in the country, The Jerusalem Post reported.

According to Iranian state television, protester Majidreza Rahnavard convicted for stabbing and killing two security agents was hanged to death in public this morning in the city of Mashhad.

Rahnavard was allegedly denied access to a counsel and tortured before arriving in court with injuries, Jerusalem Post reported citing Iranian state media. According to Iranian official media, Rahnavard admitted to the charges.

Rahnavard who was publically executed today was convicted for stabbing and killing two members of the Iranian security forces and injuring four others during the ongoing protests sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16. Amini died in the custody of the state’s morality police who had detained her reportedly for not properly donning her headscarf.

On Thursday, Iran carried out its first execution related to the protests. It was the first such event that was made public.

The hanged person Mohsen Shekari, was found guilty of using a machete to injure a security official and for blocking a street in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

The security officer who was a member of the Basij paramilitary force — a wing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard – was injured by Shekari with a knife at a protest in Tehran on September 23.

Shekari was sentenced to death on October 23, CNN reported citing Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s judiciary.

Several Iranians have received death-by-execution sentences during the nationwide demonstrations after the death of Mahsa Amini. According to Amnesty International, as of November, Iranian authorities are seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in connection with the protests.

Last year, in Iran, at least 333 people were executed, according to the Iran Human Rights. The report further revealed that 55 executions, which contribute 16.5 percent, were announced by official sources.

As many as 83.5 percent of all executions included in the 2021 report (278 executions in total) were not announced by the authorities. At least 183 executions (55 percent of all executions) were for murder charges, according to the report.

Iran has suspended its so-called morality police, which penalized women for not adhering to a stringent dress code, the Iranian prosecutor general said after the anti-hijab protest continued into the third month, triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini.

Iran’s Attorney General Mohammad Javad Montazeri said the morality police “was abolished by the same authorities who installed it”, The New York Times reported.

He made this statement during the meeting where officials were discussing the unrest ignited by Amini’s death in the custody of the morality police.

The unrest has amounted to one of the biggest challenges in decades to Iran’s system of authoritarian clerical rule. (ANI)

US Places China, Pak On List Of Religious Freedom Violators

By LokMarg 3rd December 2022

The Biden administration has placed China, Pakistan, and 10 others on a list of countries that “engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom” during 2022.

“Today, I am announcing designations against Burma, the People’s Republic of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, the DPRK, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 for having engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
“I am also placing Algeria, the Central African Republic, Comoros, and Vietnam on the Special Watch List for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom,” he added.

The United States has also designated nine groups including the Taliban, and the Russian paramilitary organization Wagner Group, as “Entities of Particular Concern.”

“I am designating al-Shabab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS-Greater Sahara, ISIS-West Africa, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, the Taliban, and the Wagner Group based on its actions in the Central African Republic as Entities of Particular Concern,” he said.

Noting that governments and non-state actors harass and kill individuals on account of their beliefs, Blinken said the United States will not stand by in the face of these abuses.

“In some instances, they stifle individuals’ freedom of religion or belief to exploit opportunities for political gain. These actions sow division, undermine economic security, and threaten political stability and peace,” he said.

The US Secretary of State said the announcement of these designations is in keeping with US values and interests to protect national security and to advance human rights around the globe.

He said that the United States will continue to carefully monitor the status of freedom of religion or belief in every country around the world and advocate for those facing religious persecution or discrimination.

“We will also regularly engage countries about our concerns regarding limitations on freedom of religion or belief, regardless of whether those countries have been designated,” he added. (ANI)

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President Peyman Jebelli about iranian players

Refusal To Sing National Anthem Not A Sign Of Anti-Hijab: IRIB Prez

By LokMarg 29th November 2022

Iranian players’ refusal to sing the national anthem was not a sign of the anti-government or anti-hijab protests which started after Mahsa Amini’s death, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) President Peyman Jebelli said.

In an interview with ANI, Jebelli said, “All Iranians are free to express their opinions about different events in Iran or outside Iran but I don’t think that Iranian players refusing to sing the national anthem was a sign of supporting the anti-hijab protest.”
Earlier, on November 21, Iranian football team players refused to sing their national anthem before their opening match against England at the shopping mode FIFA World Cup in Qatar, in apparent solidarity with protesters back home.

As Iran’s national anthem played at Khalifa International Stadium, television cameras showed the starting players standing stoically, but not singing. Iran lost the match to England, 6-2. After players refused, several reports came which stated that the national team showed support for the anti-government protests which started after Mahsa Amini’s death.

While talking with ANI, IRIB President over Iranian players’ refusal to sing the national anthem, said, “Iran has no problem with our football team players refusing to sing the national anthem during a FIFA match in Doha. We don’t have certain rules in Iran. People show respect by standing only during the national anthem.”

He accused the Western media of wasting their time and being much interested in doing anti-Iran stories.

“On the national anthem issues, Western and mainstream media has much interest to do anti stories against Iran and to use against the Iranian people,” he said.

Reacting to Indians supporting the anti-hijab protest, Jebelli said that everyone has different ideas and opinions about hijab and they are free to do so.

Iran has headed into the tournament amid a backdrop of mass protests against the regime, following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody in September.

The unrest in Iran began in September when a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, died while in the custody of the morality police. Protests have since spread across the nation, challenging the authority of the government even as security forces have cracked down. Hundreds of people have died in the violence, reported Al Jazeera.

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Iranian Football Team Players Refused To Sing Their National Anthem At FIFA

By LokMarg 22nd November 2022

The Iranian football team players on Monday refused to sing their national anthem before their opening match against England on Monday at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, in apparent solidarity with protesters back home.

The national team shows support for the anti-government protests taking place after Mahsa Amini’s death, reported Al Jazeera.
As Iran’s national anthem played at Khalifa International Stadium, television cameras showed the starting players standing stoically, but not singing. Iran lost the match to England, 6-2.

Iran has headed into the tournament amid a backdrop of mass protests against the regime, following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody in September.

The decision not to sing the national anthem isn’t the first time the Iranian team has shown support for the protesters. In late September, the team opted to wear black jackets to cover the country’s colours in their friendly against Senegal.

Before flying out to Doha for the World Cup, the team met with President Ebrahim Raisi. The meeting didn’t go down well with protesters, and banners of the team were burned on the eve of the tournament.

Masih Alinejad, a New York-based activist from Iran, went further in her condemnation of the team, reported CBS News.

“Iran is the only country in the World Cup that its people want their national football team to lose since the team doesn’t represent the people but the regime,” she wrote.

Iran’s beach football, water polo, and basketball teams have also recently refused to sing the national anthem. At a news conference on Wednesday, the captain of Iran’s football team, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, refused to confirm if his team would sing the anthem.

“That’s something that also has to be decided about in the team, which we already talked about, and obviously everybody’s talking about,” he said.

Ahead of Monday’s game, some Iran fans in Qatar also signaled support for the protesters back home. They wore T-shirts saying, “Women, life, freedom”, which is the popular chant of the movement that has arisen since Amini’s death, reported Al Jazeera.

The decision by the football team to remain silent during the anthem on the sport’s biggest stage represents the boldest move so far from the country’s athletic stars. It is unclear whether players will face any consequences.

On Sunday, defender Ehsan Hajsafi became the first Iranian player at the World Cup to publicly speak out in support of the protests, reported Al Jazeera.

“They should know that we are with them and we support them and we sympathise with them regarding the conditions,” he said.

England also made a strong political gesture before kickoff by taking a knee in protest of racism and inequality. While they didn’t take a knee in their September friendlies, they’ve decided to do so ahead of every game they will play at the World Cup.

“We think it is a strong statement to go around the world for young people, in particular, to see that inclusivity is very important,” England manager Gareth Southgate said on Sunday.

At least 419 protesters have been killed since September, including 60 children, and more than 17,000 people have been arrested, according to the Iranian Human Rights Activists News Agency’s latest statistics. The protests have rocked Iran since the killing in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16.

Initially led by women, the protests have grown into the most significant anti-government demonstrations the regime has faced since it came to power in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. (ANI)

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