Beijing Displays Rare Iranian Artefacts In Cultural Diplomacy Initiative

The spokesman for the Guardian Council, the constitutional body tasked with vetting legislation for compliance with Sharia or the Constitution, announced on Thursday that the Council has once again sent the bill back to the parliament for amendments — marking the fourth time. As in previous instances, Hadi Tahan-Nazif provided scant details regarding the specific changes required by the Council.

The bill generally referred to as the Hijab and Chastity bill, passed the parliament in September. Originally drawn up by the government of President Ebrahim Raisi in July 2023, it has undergone many changes by ultra-hardliner lawmakers who took advantage of the provisions of Article 85 of the Constitution to delegate the power of legislation to the Judicial Committee to avoid debates on the floor.

Analysts suggest that the ultra-hardline Council's reluctance to swiftly approve the legislation, contrary to the expectations of their political allies in the parliament, is not driven by public objections to its provisions. Instead, it likely arises from concerns about the potential political and security ramifications of enacting the legislation, among the highest levels of power.

Hijab enforcers harassing women at a beach in Babolsar, northern Iran

Tahan-Nazif also denied the recent claims by a hardline lawmaker, who said earlier this week that all state bodies involved in the matter of hijab legislation and enforcement, including the Guardian Council, had jointly decided to use cash fines as the primary means of forcing defiant women to comply with compulsory hijab.

The parliamentary committee in charge of the matter is under the sway of the Paydari (Steadfastness) Party. The party has its tentacles in all government institutions including the parliament where their members form an influential minority that often takes a leading role amid the weak presence of established conservative and reformist parties.

The legislation proposes various penalties including heavy cash fines for women who do not abide by the prescribed dress code.

Previously, lawmaker Mojtaba Karbasi had announced that first-time offenders would face a fine of 30 million rials (approximately $50), which would be deducted directly from their bank accounts without requiring their consent. Repeat offenders would face a fine of 240 million rials (around $400).

These are substantial amounts given the fact that ordinary monthly salaries hover around $200-250.

On Thursday the media reported that Seyed Mohammad Sadr, a member of the Expediency Council, has warned about the consequences of enacting the hijab legislation.

Women dancing at the very busy Tajrish Square in northern Tehran on New Year’s day

"The dissatisfaction of the people, especially women who constitute half of our society and the majority of whom adhere to Islam and the Islamic Revolution, will escalate if this bill is implemented. They will turn against the system (regime), leading to serious hazards," warned Sadr, who previously served as an advisor to reformist President Mohammad Khatami.

Sadr also criticized lawmakers’ plans to levy cash fines on women for unveiling or inadequate observance of hijab and to deduct it directly from their bank accounts without requiring their consent.

"This proposal will compel everyone to withdraw their deposits from banks and lose trust in the banking system. It will not only result in cultural harm and erode trust but also cause economic damage and lead to the bankruptcy of banks," he warned, seemingly alluding to social media calls urging people not to trust banks if they allow the government to infringe upon individuals' control over their bank accounts.

Since March 2023, hardliners have attempted to end women's increasing defiance of compulsory hijab and reclaim lost ground through various instructions to government bodies, but their efforts seem to have hugely backfired as the number of women who refuse to abide by the current rules has very noticeably increased since then.

The increase in the number of women appearing in public without veils, compared to the previous practice of partially covering their hair, was evident during this year's New Year (Norouz) holidays.

Celebration of the ancient festival, dancing in public, and unveiling, all despite the fasting month of Ramadan, went hand in hand in many places as a form of civil disobedience this year.

Videos shared on social media depict women in markets, beaches, and streets, including many traditional and conservative areas, with their hair openly displayed. Some videos also capture instances where men and women in black veils, protesting against the defiance of hijab, receive unabashed criticism from passersby and members of the public.

Mahnaz Khazaei, a former political prisoner, denied her death in a video message released on Monday, the 12th of Farvardin.

IranWire had first reported on Saturday, that Khazaei had passed away due to a heart attack after being released from prison.

IranWire wrote that according to information received from Khazaei's relatives, intelligence agents took all of Khazaei's medical records and her family's mobile phones when they went to the hospital.

In her message to refute her death, Khazaei said that her mobile phone had been stolen in the past few days, and she did not know who had spread this news.

The Iranian regime denies any involvement, but I, along with millions of Iranians, hold the clerical regime squarely responsible. Ali Khamenei and his Revolutionary Guards bear full responsibility for this crime.

This attack on Zeraati was a sinister message from the Islamic Republic: If you are a dissident, then you are not safe, no matter how far from Iran's borders you may be. It was a blatant attempt to silence those who dare to expose the regime's atrocities, corruption, economic incompetence, and nefarious activities abroad.

The Islamic Republic's strategy is clear: to terrorize activists and journalists, eroding their sense of security and forcing them into isolation. But such terrorism goes beyond physical harm; it aims to sow fear and disrupt their activism, compelling survivors to retreat from public life. This will lead to self censorship.

Another tactic is to sow fear among organizations keen to learn more from Iranian dissidents. I speak from experience, having been the target of an assassination plot by the Islamic Republic. I have remained resolute in continuing my fight but, I've noticed a chilling effect: some NGOs are hesitant to engage with me, fearing for the safety of their events.

In Europe, despite the greater levels of Islamic Republic terrorism, it is difficult for law enforcement agencies to take the threats seriously. Zeraati, for example, had informed the London Metropolitan Police of the threats against him, including some that contained photos of his home. There was no mistaking the message: the harassers knew where he lived.

It is shocking that the Met didn't take the warnings seriously, especially after last November's revelations by ITV news that two other Iran International journalists, Sima Sabet and Fardad Farahzad were targeted for assassination by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC). Sabet and Farahzad learned of plots against them not from UK's law enforcement officials but from the ITV broadcast. It is as if the Met has buried its head in the sand, hoping that Islamic Republic terrorism will go away. Their negligence is alarming and contrasts starkly with the protection I receive in the US, where threats are taken with utmost seriousness.

The attack in London must serve as a wake-up call to the international community. The Islamic Republic is not bluffing when it threatens dissidents abroad. It is concerning that Islamic Republic can send agents to the West and recruit criminals to do its dirty deeds with relative ease.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan arranged urgent meetings with me right after the kidnapping plot against me was discovered. UK top officials should urgently meet with Pouria and other targets to send a clear signal to the Islamic Republic’s officials that such aggression is not tolerated.

Of course, the Islamic Republic has denied any involvement in terror attacks beyond its borders. That denial should be taken with a huge grain of salt. The regime has often boasted of its capabilities to capture and eliminate dissidents, gloating over the kidnapping of journalist Ruhollah Zam, who was executed in December 2020, and the abduction of Iranian-German dual national Jamshid Sharmahd from Dubai. Another dissident, Habib Chaab was lured to Turkey from Sweden and then abducted to Tehran where he was executed in May 2023. According to the Boroumand Foundation, a human rights organization, more than 500 dissidents have been killed abroad.

For now, the identity of Pouria's attackers remains unknown, but it's crucial to recognize that the Islamic Republic has a history of employing international criminal gangs for such operations. In my case, they hired hitmen from Azerbaijan. In another famous case, Islamic Republic agents recruited a Mexican drug gang in a failed plot in 2011 to kill the Saudi Arabian ambassador Adel Al-Jubeir.

I am convinced that these terrorist operations are orchestrated by organs of the shadow government that report directly to Ali Khamenei and are overseen by the IRGC.

This brazen defiance challenges Western governments on their own turf. Eliminating troublesome journalists, human rights activists or journalists is all part of the same playbook employed by autocrats in Russia, China, and even Venezuela. Totalitarian regimes are employing the same tactics to silence dissent beyond their borders. It's sad to say but the UK government and its law enforcement agencies have not been up to the task of stopping Russian or Islamic Republic agents from operating freely on the streets of London or in fact any city in the UK.

Transnational repression threatens the very foundations of democracy and free speech. We need to be resolute and confront such terrorism. The first step involves capturing the perpetrators of the heinous attack on Pouria Zeraati. But we should not limit ourselves to taking actions against mere henchmen. We should make the paymasters of terror to pay for their crimes.

Opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily the views of Iran International

This follows a knife attack on Pouria Zeraati, another host at the network, outside his home in Wimbledon, south London.

Zeraati, a prominent journalist, survived the assault and is reportedly in stable condition. However, the incident underscores threats faced by Iran International, known for its independent coverage of Iran. The London-based broadcaster has been a target of Tehran's hostility, and the Friday attack on Zeraati could be a troubling escalation.

Sabet took to social media to express her concerns, revealing previous attempts on her life and her former colleague Fardad Farahzad.

“However, I must emphatically mention that the British government has not taken sufficient, meaningful, decisive, and effective political action against the terrorism of the Iranian government,” she added.

She emphasized the need for a safe environment for journalists and opponents of the Islamic Republic in Britain and other Western countries.

“As a journalist and a British citizen, I cannot hide my criticism and concern over this political and diplomatic negligence. Many of my journalist friends agree with this assessment. London is our home. Britain must be a safe place for journalists across all media, and unsafe for extremists and terrorists receiving orders from Tehran. Our voice will not be silenced by threat and terrorism. Journalism is not a crime; state terrorism is. Stop it.”

As investigations into the attack on Zeraati continue, concerns linger over the broader implications for journalists critical of authoritarian regimes.

Hossein Marashi, the secretary general of centrist Executives of Construction Party remarked: "If the decision was already made to have Ebrahim Raisi and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as the heads of two of the three powers of the government, I wonder why they did not assign the right roles; Ghalibaf as the President and Raisi as the Speaker of the parliament?"

Raisi is seen by most pundits and even regime politicians as a bad manager, who only makes promises, and is not able to run an effective and efficient administration. Ghalibaf, on the other hand, was mayor of Tehran for 12 years and has more managerial experience.

Marashi also argued that "Ghalibaf can manage the parliament better than hardliners such as newly elected MPs Mahmoud Nabavian and Hamid Rasaei,” but the problem is that the hardliners will not allow him to play a part in decision-making at the Majles. He noted Ghalibaf’s ongoing disagreements with the President over various bills.

When asked if he was surprised that seasoned politicians like Mohammad Javad Bahonar did not win enough votes to enter the parliament while low-key politicians such as Nabavian and Rasaei did, he said: "No, I was not surprised. Those gentlemen won the votes in the absence of the people in the election." He lamented that “It is a shame this election has deprived the nation of the services of good conservative politicians like Bahonar.”

The Guardian Council, which has the right to vet candidates, disqualified hundreds of individuals in the run-up to the March 1 elections, paving the way for hardliners to win a sizeable majority in the parliament (Majles). Nearly 60 percent of eligible voters stayed away from the polls, which further helped the ultraconservatives.

Marashi revealed that he had once conveyed to President Raisi that pro-reform politicians have never been his political rivals, emphasizing that the real challenge lies in addressing the people's disenchantment with elections.

Meanwhile, Jalal Rashidi Koochi, an current lawmaker who was not allowed to run for re-election told reporters with a high degree of certainty that "Ghalibaf is not going to be the speaker of the next parliament." 

He attributed Ghalibaf's downfall to his alliance with ultraconservative Paydari Party members, warning of increased regional and international tensions with radicals in the Majles and a potential Trump victory in the US elections.

Gholamreza Tajgardoon, a winner in the recent election despite previous disqualification, asserted that the new parliament won't have a figurehead.

Tajgardoon predicted that the new Iranian year, which started in on March 20, will be a difficult year for everyone including President Raisi. However, he added that even a reshuffling of his cabinet is not going to help Raisi.

He added that one of the difficulties of the government is that it gets a partial three-month budget at the beginning the year. Tajgardoon said: "Money is the government's biggest problem. It was not difficult to run the country if we had the money."

There are several politicians in the newly elected parliament who wish to run for president in the 2025 elections. They will certainly do their best to further weaken Raisi's position.

Looking ahead, Tajgardoon noted the ambitions of several politicians in the next Majles to run for president in 2025, aiming to weaken Raisi's standing. However, he cautioned against excessive infighting damaging the Majles' reputation, advocating instead for addressing the needs of the majority of voters who abstained from the recent elections.