Pressure by Iranian authorities on women footballers has intensified following resignations from the national team in protest at the quashing of nationwide protests with deadly force, people familiar with the matter told Iran International.
Iran stands at a pivotal moment. If political change brings institutional reform, the country could break decades of stagnation and return to sustained growth. But without credible governance, any transition risks replacing one failed equilibrium with another.
Iran is entering a phase of persistent unrest, driven by decentralized “minor triggers” and deepening economic and legitimacy pressures that repression alone may no longer contain, senior analysts said at Iran International's townhall in Washington DC.
Iranian courts sentenced Christians to more than 280 years in prison in 2025, according to a joint report by four rights groups, in what advocates describe as a widening use of national security laws to suppress religious dissent.
Escalating tensions between the United States and Iran sent oil prices sharply higher and kept gold near record levels on Thursday, as investors weighed the risk of a prolonged conflict in the Middle East and its impact on global markets.
A British couple detained in Iran have been sentenced to 10 years in prison on espionage charges, their family said on Thursday, prompting renewed calls on London to secure their release.
Satellite images published by Reuters on Wednesday show Iran repairing and reinforcing key military and nuclear‑linked sites amid stalled nuclear negotiations with the United States and an expanding US military presence in the region.
Student walkouts at schools across Iran this week underscored the continuing political presence of a younger generation that has remained deeply engaged despite months of arrests and repression.
The second round of Iran–US nuclear talks was met with a muted and often critical reaction in Tehran, where official outlets questioned Washington’s commitment after American negotiators left Geneva within hours despite Iran’s offer to continue discussions.
Capital flight from Iran is accelerating just as oil revenues decline, according to new data from the Central Bank of Iran—a convergence that helps explain the sharp fall of the national currency in recent months.
Forty days after more than 36,500 protesters were killed in a two-day crackdown in January, Iranians are marking the traditional chehelom not only in cemeteries but also in the streets and hospitals where the dead fell – a scale of loss that is reshaping how the country mourns.
A man who says he was deployed during Tehran’s January crackdown describes watching protesters shot and helping load bodies into refrigerated trucks, including a little girl whose earrings had been taken before her body was thrown inside.
The latest round of Iran-US talks in Geneva on Tuesday would likely not have taken place without sustained pressure from regional powers that leveraged their close relations with Washington to help avert a wider war.
Iranians and the government held rival ceremonies Tuesday marking the 40th day after the January 8–9 protest killings, with families staging independent memorials as officials organized a state event critics called an attempt to “appropriate” the victims.
Forty days after Iran’s deadly January crackdown, senior officials repeated claims of foreign influence while some insiders—even from the hardline camp—offered sharply different explanations.
Memorial ceremonies marking 40 days since the killing of protesters were held across Iran this week despite a heavy security presence, with mourners gathering at gravesides, performing traditional rituals and often chanting against the country’s rulers.
Tehran's decision to form a committee to investigate violence during January protests has been met with widespread skepticism, including from some moderate voice inside Iran who say only an independent investigation can establish credibility.
Iran, the United States and their Omani mediators struck cautiously optimistic notes on Tuesday after a second round of nuclear talks in Geneva, with officials on all sides pointing to progress while emphasizing that significant hurdles remain.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards carried out naval drills in and around the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday and said parts of the strategic waterway were closed for several hours, as Iran and the United States held indirect nuclear talks in Geneva.
Widespread rallies by Iranians abroad, held in response to a call by exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi, drew an outpouring of support from inside Iran, with many describing the gatherings as a renewed source of hope and unity.