Navy Chief Says Iran Needs Presence In Northern Indian Ocean

In the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif, a bomb killed at least 20 worshippers in the Seh Dokan Shiite mosque, in the second major attack on Afghanistan’s Shiite community, mostly Hazara, in a week. The Islamic State group (Isis/Daesh) claimed responsibility. Fifty-eight people were injured, 32 seriously.

Hazaras – who are an ethnic and religious minority making up around 20 percent of Afghanistan’s population – have been frequently targeted by Sunni extremists who regard them as heretics. The Mazar-i-Sharif bombing came two days after blasts tore through a Shiite high school in western Kabul, killing at least six people and wounding 11.

There was some confusion over whether Isis-Daesh claimed responsibility for a second explosion Thursday near a police station in Kunduz that killed four and injured 18.

In a third attack, a Taliban vehicle was hit by a roadside mine in eastern Nangarhar province, killing four Taliban members and wounding a fifth. The fourth explosion, caused by a mine planted in the Niaz Beyk area of Kabul, wounded two children.

Like other Afghan neighbors, Iran has not formally recognized the Taliban authorities that took over when the United States last summer ended its 20-year military presence. Tehran has called for a broad-based government.

According to the UN Human Rights Office, Alena Douhan will visit Iran to assess impact of unilateral sanctions on human rights from May 7 to 18.

The role of this Special Rapporteur was created by a 2014 resolution at the UN Human Rights Council introduced by Iran on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Human rights organizations have criticized the Islamic Republicfor not allowing similar trips to UN Special Rapporteurs focusing on human rights in Iran since 1992.

Lawyer Saeed Dehghan told Iran International, "We face a double standard, both from Iranian authorities and from UN officials", and activist Mehrangiz Kar said that the Iranian government seeks to convince the world that “if there is a violation of human rights in the country, it is due to sanctions."

Douhan’s visit is aimed at examining whether and to what extent the sanctions impedes the full realization of the rights set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments.

During the visit, she will meet with various representatives from the government, the United Nations agencies, as well as non-governmental, business community, and civil society organizations and experts.

The Special Rapporteur – who has asked for input from all stakeholders -- is set to submit her conclusions to the 51st Session of the Human Rights Council in September 2022.

The demonstrators gathered in front of the Education Ministry building in Tehran on Thursday and its offices in various other cities to protest discriminatory regulations on a teacher ranking plan as well as the "continuous and systematic" suppression of union activists.

According to videos uploaded on social media, the security situation around the Ministry building was tense as security forces cordoned off the streets leading to the central building of the ministry and did not allow teachers to pass.

Videos from other cities show protesters shouting slogans against the education ministry and parliament with some demonstrators assailing its speaker, whose family’s recent shopping trip to Turkey has led to widespread condemnations.

The Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations said in its Telegram channel that at least 40 protesters were arrested until noon local time. It recently said in a statement that the teachers' movement "will not be subdued" by security and judicial crackdowns on union activists that have intensified in recent months, including sentencing them to four to 12 years in prison.

Teachers across Iran have staged several nationwide protests and strikes in the past six months and have vowed to continue protests until authorities meet their demands including, the implementation of decade-old legislation that would bring the salaries and pensions of 750,000 teachers in line with other civil servants.

Brig. Gen. Shlomi Binder was quoted by Haaretz on Thursday as saying that constant vigilance is needed at the northern front, as the army cannot just rely on intelligence to know about its opponent’s possible surprise moves.

He said that in recent years, Hezbollah has moved its special forces known as Radwan unit to the Israeli border region and has expanded its firepower, with more ability to conduct large offensive operations. In other words, Hezbollah has become more of an army than a guerilla force. Binder said.

Radwan forces have a long experience fighting in the Syrian civil war and played a major role in capturing Aleppo in 201602017.

Iran’s Fars news website affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard on Thursday picked up on Israeli media’s reporting and splashed a headline that “The Zionists confess they are scared of Rezvan units,” meaning Radwan, as the Persian pronunciation differs from the Arabic version.

General Binder also claimed that Hezbollah faces political pushback in Lebanon as the country enters its third year of a severe economic crisis and widespread poverty. However, he said, Iran continues its financial assistance to the group, whose fighters earn much more than Lebanese army soldiers and officiers.

Iran’s financial support for Hezbollah and other militant group comes despite its own economic crisis partly due to American sanctions.

The statement published late on Wednesday only said these individuals were involved “in the dissemination of classified information and documents", adding they were "arrested by a court order".

The statement didn’t provide any further information about what these individuals did or how they were arrested.

The Islamic Republic periodically announces it has busted “terrorist” or spying networks, but it rarely provides any follow-up news or concrete information and almost never holds public trials. In some cases, individuals convicted of ties with Israel have been executed.

In October, Iran announced that ten people were arrested for “links with intelligence services” of regional “adversaries” without disclosing which intelligence service had established the alleged network inside the country.

The use of the term ‘regional adversary’ could refer to Israel which is suspected of conducting spectacular sabotage acts against Iran’s nuclear, military and strategic economic targets since July 2020, or it could mean Saudi Arabia.

In March, Iran also announced its security forces had dismantled two foreign-backed terrorist teams, alleging plotting to assassinate several foreign nationals working on infrastructure projects in Sistan-Baluchestan province.

Tensions have risen between Israel and Iran as the Biden administration has tried to restore the 2015 nuclear agreement, which Israel considers a dangerous move.