Iran executes man accused of ISIS membership

The blackouts, often split into two two-hour intervals, have in some cases been officially announced by city councils or municipalities. But many residents say only one outage is listed on the government’s “Bargh-e Man” (“My Electricity”) app, with the second – often in the early evening – occurring without warning.

Reports sent by residents to Iran International and posts on social media also described prolonged water cuts in some areas, compounding the hardship as much of the country swelters in extreme heat.

Authorities in 28 of Iran’s 31 provinces ordered all government offices, banks and public institutions closed on Wednesday due to the soaring temperatures, sparing only the provinces of Ilam, Hamedan and Lorestan.

Industrial groups have warned that rolling blackouts since May could cut annual steel output by 33%, while also hitting cement and petrochemical production.

Motion against energy minister

Lawmakers have blamed years of underinvestment in power plants and refineries for chronic shortages in both electricity and fuel.

Over 100 members of parliament have signed a motion to impeach Energy Minister Abbas Aliabadi.

Critics, including senior members of the energy and infrastructure committees, accused him of making unrealistic promises, such as saying in February that with sufficient fuel he could supply electricity to neighboring states, including Iraq.

“The 20,000-megawatt electricity shortfall and structural problems in the industry will not be solved just by providing more fuel,” said Mohammad Bahrami Seyfabadi, deputy head of parliament’s energy committee.

Mojtaba Yousefi, a member of the construction committee, called the repeated blackouts “theft from people’s pockets,” saying energy shortages have raised production costs and hurt livelihoods.

The energy ministry maintains that planned household outages should not exceed two hours a day and be scheduled outside night-time hours. But residents in parts of Tehran and other cities say the four-hour cuts are now routine, with little or no warning.

Vadi, who held a doctorate in reactor engineering, had co‑authored a 2011 research paper with senior Iranian nuclear experts later killed during the June conflict with Israel, according to his Google Scholar profile.

According to the Telegram channel of Amir Kabir University, Vadi was a doctoral graduate of the university. He co-authored a paper with Abdolhamid Minouhchehr and Ahmad Zolfaghari, two prominent nuclear specialists killed during the 12-day war.

The judiciary said he was convicted of transferring classified information about one of the scientists killed in those attacks to Mossad.

Its official outlet Mizan reported that Vadi “knowingly and deliberately” cooperated with Israel’s intelligence service.

'Paid crypto'

Officials alleged he was recruited online, vetted by a Mossad officer using the alias Alex, and later assigned to a handler known as Kevin.

After his evaluation, Mossad allegedly determined that Vadi’s workplace and level of access made him a high‑value source,according to the judiciary.

He was then introduced to “one of Mossad’s top divisions.” At his request, payments were made monthly via a cryptocurrency wallet rather than a reward‑per‑mission system.

According to the case file, Vadi was instructed to buy a dedicated phone, laptop, and two flash drives to establish secure communications. After receiving technical training, he was tasked with gathering and transmitting sensitive and classified materials.

Widespread crackdown

Iran would “deal decisively and legally with spies,” referring to ongoing investigations following the June conflict with Israel, Judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said on Tuesday during a visit to North Khorasan Province.

Ejei recently said that more than 2,000 people had been arrested during and after the 12-day war, some of whom face the death penalty on charges of “organizational collaboration with the enemy.”

Amnesty International condemned the surge in executions and warned of further imminent deaths.

Iran Human Rights reported that 21 people were executed during the June conflict period, including six men charged with spying for Israel.

Among earlier executions was Mohammad-Amin Mahdavi-Shayesteh, accused of leading a Mossad-linked cyber group.

According to Amnesty, Iran was responsible for 64 percent of all recorded executions worldwide in 2024, and has carried out 612 hangings in the first half of 2025 alone.

Meetings in Vienna

Following initial data transfers, Vadi was reportedly sent to Vienna, where he had previously attended professional training, to meet Mossad officers in person.

On five occasions, he allegedly met them in Austria’s capital under what Iranian authorities described as “high‑level security protocols,” including multiple location changes, vehicle swaps, body searches, and use of “special meeting clothing” before talks began.

During these meetings, Vadi underwent psychological testing and a polygraph exam to assess loyalty and information accuracy. He was then re‑tasked to provide weekly updates on organizational developments and answer technical questions, with payments adjusted accordingly.

The judiciary said Vadi resisted instructions to send large batches of data all at once but ultimately transferred a collection of classified material, including information on the slain nuclear scientist.

Arrest and trial

Iran’s intelligence services said they placed Vadi under surveillance after one of his trips to Vienna. He was eventually arrested in Tehran, and prosecutors charged him with “espionage and intelligence cooperation with the Zionist regime in exchange for a specified payment.”

The court, citing Article 6 of the Law on Combating Hostile Actions of the Zionist Regime Against Peace and Security, along with other articles of the Islamic Penal Code, sentenced him to death for “extensive crimes against domestic and foreign security” and for “causing serious disruption to public order.”

The Supreme Court upheld the verdict, and the sentence was carried out on August 5, 2025.

Shargh newspaper published results of a study on Tuesday, with data collected from different parts in Iran on food intake and access to nutrition.

The daily cited non-governmental organizations and volunteers as having carried out the research, without elaborating.

The report said only 1.7% of households reported daily protein consumption while 27% of all households said they do not consume any kind of protein.

Among households with temporary employment, more than 93% consume protein less than once a week or not at all. In unemployed households, this figure rises to 95%.

No dairy

Iranians face ever-rising prices with inflation around 40%, according to officials. The national currency Rial has lost over 90% of its value since US sanctions were reimposed in 2018.

Dairy consumption is also low, posing a serious nutritional crisis for children.

According to the report, only 2% of children consume daily dairy, and 50% receive none at all, even among households with stable jobs.

The study said that among families classed as living in food poverty, 43% endured what it classed as economic hardship, 32% involved earning-age parents experiencing unemployment and 6% were effected by some form of addiction.

Based on the findings, more than 80% of responses directly or indirectly point to the lack of stable income and employment as the major reason for malnutrition.

Disparity in access

Only 1.7% of households consume protein daily, the report added, with 26.9% consuming no protein at all. Among households with temporary jobs, over 93% consume protein less than once a week or not at all.

“Essentials like meat, chicken, milk, and cheese are gone. Some used to buy scraps or expired chicken, but now even those are unaffordable. Fruit and vegetables, too, are out of reach,” Shargh quoted Reyhaneh Shirazi, a social activist in Tehran’s Darvazeh Ghar district, as saying.

“We see more children with serious stomach aches linked directly to poor diets.” Shirazi added. "Once, food aid was for rare cases. Now it’s common, which is shocking."

Access and affordability

“No one buys meat. If they can afford anything, it's chicken. Maybe if someone donates meat. Fruit is a luxury except watermelon, which grows locally," said a teacher near Kerman.

"Vegetables are rarely consumed. Food is mostly lentils and bread. Breakfast is nonexistent. Illnesses tied to nutrition are high, especially in children."

Parisa Ahmadi, a social worker in Shiraz, says iron and vitamin deficiencies are widespread.

“Parents are street vendors, and kids also work. Doctors confirm they suffer from severe malnutrition, iron and vitamin deficiency, which effects physical and cognitive development," she said. "Common meals are eggplant, beans, lentils and pasta. Meat and eggs once a month. Rice is rare.”

Worst malnutrition cases

Child rights advocate and social entrepreneur Faezeh Derakhshani launched a creative program turning surplus fruit into dried fruit for kids, according to the paper. Her team distributed 130 kg (286 pounds) of dried fruit to kindergartens in Sistan and Baluchistan province.

“There’s no detailed report on kids' intake of meat, dairy, and fruits in Iran. Besides protein-energy malnutrition, we have micronutrient malnutrition, which is less visible but has lasting effects. Zinc, iron and vitamin A and D deficiencies lead to weak immunity, poor learning and stunted growth.”

A lawyer representing Hossein Nemati, one of six defendants sentenced to death, said that courts typically respond within two months but after three official inquiries over nine months there had still been no reply.

“On July 30, we went to the relevant branch along with some of the families, but we were told that neither the lawyers nor the families would be allowed in for this case,” Payam Dorfeshan was quoted as saying by Telegram news channel Emtedad.

The so-called Ekbatan case involves multiple defendants, six of whom face execution after being convicted of killing a member of Iran's domestic enforcement militia in Tehran amid nationwide anti-government protests in 2022.

They deny the charges.

“Our clients have now reached the legal limit of two years in pretrial detention. The law clearly states that pretrial detention cannot exceed two years under any circumstances,” Dorfeshan said.

The six detainees facing execution are Milad Armon, Alireza Bormarzpournak, Amir Mohammad Khosheghbal, Alireza Kafaei, Navid Najaran and Hossein Nemati.

On October 26, 2022, during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests, a member of Iran’s Revolutionary Basij militia, Arman Alivardi, was injured in a building complex in Tehran called Shahrak-e Ekbatan and died two days later.

Following Alivardi’s death, security forces conducted mass arrests of more than 50 young residents of the complex and indictments were issued against several of them.

On July 29, Amnesty International warned that Armon, Bormarzpournak, Khosheghbal, Kafaei, Najaran and Nemati are at risk of execution.

Ali Larijani replaces Ali Akbar Ahmadian, who is due to take on an unspecified new role in the administration of President Masoud Pezeshkian, Tasnim added.

Larijani previously served three terms as speaker of parliament, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance and advisor to the Supreme Leader.

His appointment may signal a doubling down on Tehran's traditional confrontational stance with Israel and the United States after a punishing 12-day war with Israel in June capped off by US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

Still, Larijani registered three time to run for president in Iran but was disqualified on two occasions by Iran's hardliner-dominated Guardian Council. His political stances on diplomacy and domestic affairs appear to have softened in recent years.

Larijani ran as a candidate in the ninth presidential election of Iran, held in 2005. He lost the race, finishing sixth out of seven candidates.

The appointment comes with some institutional changes following a 12-day war with Israel in June.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) is due to form a Defense Council to coordinate military planning and strengthen the armed forces, Iranian media reported on Sunday.

President Pezeshkian will chair the council, which will include the heads of the executive, legislative and judiciary branches, as well as top military commanders and key cabinet ministers, the report added.