UN Chief, Taliban Condemn Attack On Iran’s ‘Diplomatic Premise’

Pouria Zeraati was seriously injured in an attack as he left his home on March 29 in south London by what is suspected to have been covert Iranian security agents, coming on the back of long standing threats faced by Iran International from the Iranian government, with other journalists at the network also enduring imminent threats of violence since 2022. 

Although the police have yet to identify the assailants, Iran's government has a history of conducting numerous attacks against dissidents and journalists outside the country over the past 45 years.

Expressing solidarity with Zeraati and his family, the IFJ stressed, "Targeting journalists for simply doing their job must stop now!"

Previously, the National Union of Journalists in the UK (NUJ) condemned the attack on Zeraati, with General Secretary Michelle Stanistreet calling the incident a "cowardly attack" and "deeply shocking."

Stanistreet emphasized the need for the international community to pressure Iran and hold it accountable for its actions, stating, "The systematic targeting of journalists – simply for doing their jobs – has to stop."

The NUJ also extended its collective well-wishes to Zeraati for a swift recovery and pledges to collaborate with law enforcement and relevant bodies to combat the harassment and targeting of journalists.

The Iranian authorities’ actions come as the Islamic month of Ramadan and the death anniversary of the first Imam coincided with the Persian New Year celebration of Sizdah Be-dar.

After contradictory statements from the government ahead of the holiday, authorities blocked access to parks and roads to recreational spots around rivers and lakes and forests, using concrete blocks and heaps of earth – common picnic locations where Iranians usually gather on this day.

In some places police also actively interfered with those who had ventured out to picnic despite the warnings and even clashed with them. A video posted on social media shows the police using tear gas to disperse the picnickers in Masouleh. Infuriated Iranians in the touristic town in northern Iran eventually drove them out by booing and shouting “scoundrels” at them.

Police are booed after firing tear gas at picnickers in Masouleh.

Although the Sizdah Be-dar picnic is traditionally celebrated during daytime, Iranians in some areas waited until the evening to get out, as authorities had announced that parks and public gardens would be open after iftar – the evening time of breaking the fast.

At Tehran’s Gheytarieh Park the police assaulted street musicians who were playing music and took them away while angry people booed them.

Police forcefully remove street musicians from Gheytarieh Park in Tehran.

In many areas the Basij paramilitary and vigilantes patrolled the picnic spots in vehicles, playing loud mourning songs on megaphones to intimidate and threaten the picnickers to leave the area. A video posted on social media shows them threatening picnickers at a beach in Langaroud in northern Iran with one of them shouting “This is the city of Imam Hussain, pick up your stuff and leave” into a megaphone.

Paramilitary Basijis threatening picnickers in Langaroud in northern Iran

The 13th and final day of the Persian New Years holidays is called Sizdah Be-dar and is always celebrated with a picnic. Sizdah Be-dar is often thought to mean “casting off [the inauspiciousness] of thirteen]” but can also mean “spending the thirteenth in the valleys”.

Video sent to Iran International shows a police car blocking the road to a picnic spot.

Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the regime has reluctantly tolerated the country’s ancient New Year (Norouz) festival which is celebrated on the day of the Spring Equinox. But the religious establishment has been against the celebration of others such as Charshanbeh Souri bonfire night on the last Tuesday of the old year and Sizdah Be-dar. Authorities, accordingly, have often tried to prevent these festivities, both of which are celebrated outdoors joyfully by Iranians.

Islamists play loud mourning songs on a road in the northern province of Gilan.

To the regime, Chaharshanbeh Suri is viewed as a pagan relic because of its association with fire and Sizdah Be-dar, which was renamed as Nature Day after the Islamic Revolution of 1979, promotes superstition.

Be that as it may, the celebration of Sizdah Be-dar is so popular that it has remained a public holiday in the official calendar as most Iranians, even many religious families, have not forsaken their beloved ancient and pre-Islamic festivals and continue to celebrate them, sometimes even alongside religious occasions.

Iran-backed Hamas from Gaza invaded Israel on October 7, sparking the bloodiest Gaza war since Hamas took over the strip in 2007. Most recently, according to the Israel Defense Forces, a drone believed to be launched from Iraq hit a hangar in a naval base in Eilat early Monday morning.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, representing various IRGC-backed factions, claimed responsibility for the attack, describing it as targeting a "vital target" in Israel.

The city of Eilat has been subjected to attacks by other Iran-backed groups amidst the conflict in the Gaza Strip, including Yemen’s Houthis and a Syria-based group linked to Lebanon’s Hezbollah. Last month, a missile from Yemen breached Israel's Iron Dome air defense system, landing near Eilat.

In response, sources suggest that Israel was behind the attack on the Islamic Republic's consulate building in Damascus on Monday, resulting in the deaths of senior commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi and other IRGC officials.

While Israel never comments on such allegations, Iran's state media reported that the operation in Damascus also claimed the lives of six Syrian citizens in addition to seven IRGC members.

According to the report, at least 13 people lost their lives in Israel's strike on the Islamic Republic's consulate building in Damascus.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel’s goal is to “act everywhere, every day to prevent the force build-up of our enemies.”

“We are in a multi-front war, in offense and defense. We see evidence of this every day, including in recent days,” he said at a meeting of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

Gallant said Israel is also working “to make it clear to everyone who acts against us, all over the Middle East, that the price for acting against Israel will be a heavy price.”

Abram Paley commenced his journey in Armenia where talks focused on border security, sanctions enforcement, human rights, and US concerns about Iran's military support to Russia.

“Productive meetings in Tbilisi with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, the National Bank of Georgia, and the private sector on Iran, human rights, and the importance of continued sanctions enforcement,” Paley wrote in a post of X of his trip to Georgia.

The tour concluded with a final stop in Baku, Azerbaijan, where the focus remained on Iran's aggression. Just last year, an Iran-backed plot was foiled to attack Israel's embassy in Baku.

Hours before Paley's visit, Azerbaijani law enforcement and border guard agencies announced significant seizures of smuggled drugs from Iran, with operations ongoing since the beginning of the Iranian New Year. Several individuals, including an Iranian citizen, have been detained in connection with the operations.

Relations between Iran and Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan are complex and influenced by various factors including historical, cultural, and geopolitical dynamics. Iran enjoys relatively stable relations with Armenia, with economic cooperation and cultural ties being prominent features. Similarly, with Georgia, Iran maintains cordial relations, focusing on economic cooperation, energy transit, and cultural exchanges.

However, Iran's relations with Azerbaijan have been strained due to issues such as border disputes, security concerns, and differing geopolitical alignments. Since Azerbaijan opened its embassy in Tel Aviv last year, tensions have risen. Border closures and occasional tensions have occurred between Iran and Azerbaijan, particularly concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and Azerbaijan's relations with Iran's regional rivals.

A report published by the Vokalapress website, a specialized news platform focusing on the legal profession of judicial lawyers in Iran, disclosed a list of lawyers who encountered summonses, arrests, criminal convictions, or prolonged imprisonment over the past year (ending in March).

Notable among the lawyers listed are Nasrin Sotoudeh and Saleh Nikbakht.

Nasrin Sotoudeh, a renowned human rights lawyer in Iran, has represented various opposition activists, politicians, and women arrested for violating Iran's mandatory hijab law.

In 2021, she was recognized as one of Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World. Despite her contributions to human rights advocacy, Sotoudeh has faced harassment and was released on a medical furlough in July 2021.

Saleh Nikbakht, known as the family attorney of Mahsa Amini, received a severe sentence from an Iranian court for allegedly engaging in “propaganda against the regime.”

Amini's case garnered attention after she died from severe head injuries sustained while in detention for a hijab defiance. Nikbakht's summons came six months after Amini's death.

The report emphasizes the precarious position of lawyers, who encounter various risks and dangers, including prosecution, arrest, psychological and physical violence, harassment, and threats against their families.

The government's crackdown on civil, political, and protest activists has intensified following nationwide protests against the regime in September 2022, highlighting the broader context of repression faced by those advocating for human rights and justice in Iran.