Week 14 - 2012

News of the Prisoners

B- Arrests/Incarcerations

• Blogger Ahmad Reza Ahmadpour is back in Ahvaz prison after a short time out on furlough for Norooz.
• Civil activist Morteza Avazpour has been arrested in Tabriz .
• Journalist Mehran Faraji reported to Evin today to start serving his 6 months sentence.
• Milad Karimi member of Kurdish Democratic Students League reported to Sanandaj prison to start serving his 6 months sentence.
• Journalist Mehdi Mahmoudian is back in prison after 6 days out on furlough.
• Ahmad Miri back in Babol prison after a short furlough for Norooz holidays.
• Baha'i Eighan Shahidi currently out on bail has been summoned to Evin to start serving his 5 years sentence.
• Alireza Shahiri back in Babol prison after a short furlough for Norooz holidays.
• Furlough extension for journalist Ahmad Zeydabadi was denied, he is back in Evin.
• Iran arrest of dozens of young boys and girls who participated in a mixed party organized via Facebook -near Noshahr.
• Government forces have reportedly arrested 50 farmers in the Arab regions of Iran protesting land grab.
• Iran's Revolutionary Guard arrests 40 Kurdish residents of a village outside of Khoy.

C-Liberations 

• Popular singer Arya Aramnejad's furlough has been converted to permanent release from prison by a judicial order.
• Peyman Aref has been released from prison.
• Baha'i Erfan Shojaei has been released on bail after 1 month detention in Kerman prison.
• Khamenei pardons 1002 prisoners.

D-Other News 

• Journalist Ehsan Houshmand beaten during interrogation.
• Kurdish death row prisoner Shirkoo Moarefi is on hunger strike in Saghez prison. He has been moved to solitary.
• Fahkrolsadat Mohtashami Pour, wife of political prisoner Mostafa Tajzadeh, writes of husband’s hardship to Grand Ayatollah Vahid Khorasani. 

News of injustice in Iran

• Human Rights activist, member of Mourning Mothers Mansoureh Behkish sentenced to 4,5 years in prison.
• Azari civil activist Naser Derazshamshir has been sentenced to 3 1/2 years.
• Mohammad Hardani, from Iran’s Arab minority, was sentenced to 10 years in prison because of his cultural activities.
• Iranian journalist working for Shargh newspaper, Reyhaneh Tabatabaei, sentenced to one year jail.

University  - Culture

• Pursuing an Islamization program, Iran to ban dancing and singing in preschools.
• New satellite raid reported in Tehran, Ekbatan.
• Iran to cut off access to world wide web internet by August.
• Iran’s international English Channel, Press TV removed from SES Astra.

Protests

• On Thursday, March 15th around 80 former prisoners of war gathered in front of the northern gate of parliament to protest a lack of aid.
• A number of farmers in the cities of Malasani and Veys gathered to protest new regulations by the Power and Water Organization about irrigation on their lands.
• Medical students protest in front of health ministry and parliament.

Economy in Iran

• VAT increased in Persian New Year from 4% to 5%, will continue growing 1% per year per quinquennial plan.
• 1$ = 1903 Tomans / 1€ = 2550 Tomans.
• Iran Central Bank withdraws money from Iran's banks again.
• Oil negotiations between Tehran and Pretoria hit a dead end and exports to South Africa stop. 
• Uruguay’s Agriculture Minister: We are willing to barter oil for rice.
• IranAir intends to purchase three Boeing 747-300s through the Emirates. The airplanes that been provided to IranAir were actually sold to an unnamed Gambian company. The Al-Sayegh (Kyrgyzstan based) company currently has two other Boeing 747-300s in its fleet, and both are in storage. They are scheduled to be sold to Iran in May. These two airplanes have been registered in Burkina Faso and were in operation until late 2010 by Centrafrique Air Express.
• Greece refiner Hellenic Petroleum stops Iran oil buys, banking a problem.
• The Hyundai Motor Company, South Korean conglomerate, quietly ended its business dealings with Iran.
• 650 of 'Shahab Automobile' workers were fired for their demands in last year. 
• 200 of Steel Company workers, were fired.
• Emergency meeting of Majlis Economic Committee to submit plan regarding government violation of law in implementation of second stage of subsidy reform law.
• Domestically grown apples and oranges in Iran rotting in storage because of fruit imports.

Iran  abroad

• Germany stops shipment of 2.5 kilograms of execution drug sodium thiopental to Iran.
• Khamenei: “Iran opposes any foreign intervention in Syria”.
• 12 Iranian citizens, including five Iranian engineers, who were abducted by Syrian opposition forces in Syria, were released.
• Iran summons Turkey ambassador.
• Main insurance firms in China refuse to insure oil tankers from Iran.
• Lebanon: Iranian traces in attempted assassination of Christian leader.
• Former Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama heads to Iran.
• Iran promotes ally to replace aging spiritual leader of Iraq’s Shiites.

Politics in Iran

• Ahmadinejad met with Assad's special envoy, strongly backed the Syrian regime.
• Erdogan meetings in Tehran were a disaster, Shargh reports. Major divergence on Syria.
• Minister of Labor and Social Security has been summoned to Parliament; he may be impeached.
• Fars News Agency sharply attacks Rafsanjani statements calling for talks with the US.
• Iran purchases high tech surveillance equipment and Internet filters from China.
• 1,200 new employees to be recruited for the Foreign Ministry.
• In 2 regions, Ramsar and Damavand, parliamentary elections for 9th Majlis were voided without an explanation.
• Second round of SMS asking people to "voluntarily" give up their subsidies.

Miscellaneous 

• Threat of losing fertile land because of unprecedented increase in Karun River salinity in Khouzestan province.
• 200 tons of corrupted meat discovered in Tehran province.
• IRGC's dam breaks in rural area, government denies damage.
• Iranian Navy said they captured 13 pirates in the Indian Ocean after they tried to seize cargo ship heading for Iran.
• Afghans living in Iran were banned from a public park; Iranians take to Facebook to condemn racism.
• Concerns rise again: water level of Lake Urmia dropped by about five centimetres.
• Hossein Vafaei (17 years old) will make history as the first professional snooker player from Iran.
• 210% increase in the number of unhealthy days in the Capital of Iran, Tehran.
• Historic Christian cemetery in Kerman, more than 200 years old,  destroyed by local authorities and Cultural Heritage Foundation.