English

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-03 October 2025-No32 At a gathering titled “Movement for Justice-Oriented Development in Education” in Hormozgan province, Masoud Pezeshkian declared: “The one who has sanctioned us is ourselves. How do other countries, without fuel, oil and gas, survive merely by buying them? We have it all, and yet we are hungry.” First, this servant of Khamenei must be told: you are not hungry. All the wealth of society is in your possession. The clergy, …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-03 October 2025-No32 On Monday, 29 September 2025, the Islamic Republic announced that Bahman Choubi Asl, a database specialist at a knowledge-based company, had been executed for allegedly spying for Israel. Little is known about how the trial unfolded. Such is the fate of political prisoners in Iran. There is no requirement for detainees to have independent lawyers. No expectation of fair hearings for the accused. Defendants are not given the chance to …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-27 September 2025-No31 When the United States refused to issue a visa for Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority president, to attend the annual UN General Assembly, the organisation allowed him to deliver his speech remotely, by video. In his address, Abbas pressed for a two-state solution for Palestine and Israel while condemning Hamas’s terrorism and its attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. He stressed that Hamas would have no place in a …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-27 September 2025-No31 Somayeh Rashidi, a 42-year-old political prisoner, died on Thursday. She lost her life because she was denied medical care in Qarchak prison. Rashidi, one of those detained during the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising, threw herself back into activism against the Islamic Republic after her release, only to be arrested again for writing slogans against the regime. She suffered from epilepsy, yet her illness did not deter her to fight against …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-27 September 2025-No31 These days we hear much about the “snapback” mechanism. Will the three European governments pull the trigger? Will the Islamic Republic bow to their demands and those of the US, and raise the white flag? If Khamenei insists on continuing uranium enrichment, how far will the economic devastation inside Iran go? And if a deal is struck, what benefit will it bring to ordinary Iranians? Undoubtedly, any retreat by the …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-27 September 2025-No31 On Wednesday, 25 September, defence lawyer Ramin Safarnia wrote on X that the death sentence against Mr Farahavar had been upheld by Branch 39 of the Supreme Court after his appeal was rejected, and that a petition for retrial would be submitted. According to the human rights news agency HRANA, Peyman Farahavar was arrested in September 2024 and charged with baghi (armed rebellion) and moharebeh (waging war against God). A …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-6  September 2025-No30 According to a new report released on 2 September by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, since 13 June  more than 20,000 people have been arrested in Iran: political dissidents, human rights defenders, journalists, social media users, families of protest victims, foreign nationals, Afghans, members of ethnic minorities such as Baluch and Kurds, as well as followers of the Baháʼí, Christian and Jewish faiths. On 25 June, state media reported …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-6  September 2025-No30 For the second time, Swedish humanist activist Greta Thunberg is setting sail with ships carrying humanitarian aid bound for Gaza, to break the siege of the territory. The organisers of the voyage say: “When the world is silent, we set sail.” In this savage world of parasitic capitalists who massacre people for profit, starve them and plunge them into poverty—while propping up dictators—the sight of young humanists like Greta brings …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-6  September 2025-No30 As of Monday 1 September, more than 800 people have been reported dead in a magnitude six earthquake in eastern Kunar province. More than 2,500 have been injured. The epicentre was in a remote mountainous region, making relief operations difficult. In this quake—which, it must be noted, was not particularly strong—the widespread poverty and weak, substandard housing led to entire villages being destroyed, while others suffered heavy damage. Given the …

English Journal is published on Fridays PDF-English Journal-6 September 2025-No30 In recent days, a Bosnia-Herzegovinan gymnast and influencer’s pole dance on a pole that was flying the Turkish flag provoked outrage from authorities. Turkish officials called it an “insult to the flag” and moved to arrest the performer. Why should a piece of cloth be imbued with such sanctity that an artistic performance becomes a crime? Interestingly, the performer said in her defence: “Every Turk who was present that day …