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Monday, May 20, 2013

Latest Iran News

Iran Frees Azerbaijani Scholar

Azerbaijani scholar Khalida Khalid and her driver have been released following weeks in Iranian custody after their detention at the home of an ethnic Azeri activist. More

Iran Hangs Alleged Spies For U.S., Israel

ISNA news agency quoted a statement by the Tehran prosecutor's office saying that the two, Mohammad Heydari and Kourosh Ahmadi, had gathered classified information and sold it to Israeli and U.S. intelligence agencies. More

Cleric Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, a member of the Guardian Council, said Iranian law prohibits women from being president.

Iran Hints At Gender Ban For President

The Guardian Council approves all candidates for Iran’s presidency and parliament. More

Farhadi Premieres Latest Film In Cannes

Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has premiered his latest movie at the world's biggest film festival in the French Riviera. More

Iran's top nuclear negotiator Said Jalili (right) with European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Istanbul on May 15.

Iran: Nuclear Talks To Continue

Iran's chief negotiator in nuclear talks with major world powers says both sides have decided the talks will continue. More

More Iran News

Latest Blog Posts

Smarter to walk? The head of the powerful Guardians Council, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati (pictured), launched a broadside on ex-President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani

Lawmaker Fires Back In 'Car Wars' Ahead Of Iranian Presidential Vote

Conservative lawmaker Ali Motahari has criticized recent comments by hard-line cleric Ahmad Jannati suggesting what kind of car Iran's next president should -- or shouldn't -- drive. More

Ex-President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani (second from right) at a meeting in 2011 with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (right) and members of Iran

Iran's Chief Vetter Says Mercedes A No-No For Iran's Next President

On May 17, hard-line cleric Ahmad Jannati, the chairman of the powerful Guardians Council that vets all election candidates, said without naming Rafsanjani that the country's next president should lead a simple life. He added that such a man (for female candidates appear to be excluded) shouldn't ride around in a Mercedes. More

Blog Archive

Features & Commentary

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf waves after registering his candidacy for the June presidential election.

Iranian Candidate Appears To Offer Starkly Contrasting Accounts Of Crackdown

Two starkly different accounts by one of Iran’s leading presidential hopefuls of his role in state crackdowns have emerged online. So is Tehran Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf a hard-liner or a moderate?

Sharif Seen As Trying To Reorient Pakistan's Foreign Policy

Pakistan's neighbors and global powers have welcomed Nawaz Sharif's victory in the country's May 11 general elections, in the hope that he will stabilize the country and change its external outlook. RFE/RL looks at Sharif's potential foreign policy moves.

Analysts say the candidacy of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani creates problems for the plan to have a peaceful vote that would elect a president obedient to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (above).

Surprise Candidacy Challenges Plans Of Iranian Establishment

Former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has entered the race for the country’s presidency. The move challenges plans by the Iranian establishment to ensure a loyalist wins next month's polls.

Former Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani among supporters in Tehran

Rafsanjani Candidacy Draws Fire From Iran's Hard-Liners

Former Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has come under attack by the country’s hard-liners after his surprise filing to run in the country’s June presidential election.

Mansur Osanlu in a courtesy photo provided by the International Transport Workers

'Iran's Lech Walesa' Says He Left Country After Death Threats

Prominent Iranian union leader Mansur Osanlu, who recently fled that country, has told RFE/RL that death threats from inside government security circles drove him out of Iran.

Who Will Be Iran's Supreme Presidential Candidate?

The registration period for potential candidates for Iran's June 14 presidential vote is under way in Iran. As the nominations are entered, Iran observers will be trying to determine who might be suitable for the country's supreme leader, who has the last say in all state affairs in the Islamic republic.

Changing Americans' Perception Of U.S. Adversaries, One Dish At A Time

A restaurant in Pittsburgh is serving up dishes from places like Iran and Cuba as a way to give Americans a new way to think about countries they might fear or distrust.

Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad (right) and adviser Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, tipped by Iran

Media War Heats Up Ahead Of Iran Vote

As Iran's presidential election campaign officially kicks off, the country's already factionalized media is becoming increasingly polarized. RFE/RL looks at the escalating media war in the Islamic republic.

Two Iranian women cast ballots at a polling station in Tehran in Iran

Iran's Presidential Election Poses Dilemma For Voters

Ahead of Iran's presidential vote, some dissatisfied Iranians are grappling with whether to participate in the election or stay away from the ballot boxes.

Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who was president from 1989-97, currently heads Iran

Rafsanjani Gets More Vocal On Iran's Policies, Presidential Run

As Iran readies for a presidential campaign, one former president has become more vocal. Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has not closed the door on a possible run for office, and has called for normalization in ties with the West and political reform at home.

RFE/RL's Radio Farda is one of the few remaining sources of uncensored news and information for people in Iran. Despite severe censorship, Radio Farda's website receives 10 million page views every month.