Rockets Crash Into Iranian Plant During IRGC Exercise

According to a report by the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) on Tuesday, Bakhtiari was also handed a sentence of 74 lashes as a result of a case opened against him during his detention.

The sentencing is the latest in a string of cases which has seen Iranians handed punishments such as finger amputation and lashings, amidst a nationwide crackdown on dissent.

The charges against Bakhtiari include "conspiracy and collusion with the intent to commit crimes against national security," "formation and management of a group in cyberspace with the aim of undermining national security," "spreading lies," "anti-establishment propaganda," and "disturbing public minds."

Bakhtiari’s son, Pouya, aged 27, sustained a gunshot wound to the head in Karaj amid the November 2019 protests. The family attributes his death to security forces and has openly advocated for holding the authorities responsible not only for his son's death but also for the alleged deaths of hundreds of others at the hands of security forces.

The trial for his father's charges took place through a video conference on December 24, reflecting the challenges faced in ensuring a fair legal process.

Earlier this year, Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court in Karaj had imposed an additional sentence of six months in prison on Bakhtiari on the charge of "insulting the leader" based on a separate case.

Bakhtiari was first arrested on April 28, 2021, when security forces used excessive force during the apprehension at his residence in Tehran. Subsequently, the Revolutionary Court convicted him to three years and six months in prison, two years and six months in exile, and a two-year travel ban.

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) stated in an interview with Iran International's Arash Alaei on Tuesday that the Biden administration should convey to Tehran that the US is willing to consider "targets in Iran" as an option if its proxies persist in attacking American troops and international shipping.

Iran's Yemeni proxy, the Houthis, along with other regional militias, have escalated attacks on American and Israeli targets since the October 7 invasion of Israel by Hamas, another Tehran-backed outfit. The attacks resulted in over 1,200 deaths in a single day, predominantly civilians, and the abduction of more than 240 men, women and children from communities on the Gaza border. 

The Houthis' assaults on shipping in the Red Sea have disrupted the free flow of goods, leading the US and its allies to target Houthi boats and missiles aimed at either hijacking or striking commercial vessels. The attacks began after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called for blockading Israel in response to its retaliatory offensive in Gaza to uproot Hamas. The Houthis have vowed to continue attacks until Israel halts its operations in Gaza and warned that it would attack US warships if the militia group itself was targeted.

According to the US military's Central Command, only on Tuesday, US and UK forces shot down 21 drones and missiles fired by Houthis at international shipping in the Red Sea.

Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) told Iran International that he hopes the situation would not escalate and the US would not go to a war with Iran, but the US supports Israel in its war against Hamas, making it a target for Iran's proxies. Answering a question about the European countries’ military support to maintain the maritime security, he said, “Unfortunately, often the United States has to go alone... And it’s the right and thing to do.”

He underlined that as long as Houthis’ threats prevail, “I hope they keep sinking more and more to the bottom of the sea.” Last month, US warships sank three Houthi small boats to protect a commercial vessel from being hijacked. All crew were killed. 

Critics have urged the Biden administration to take a more assertive stance toward the Houthis and Iran to stop the attacks, instead of just defensive measures. The US has formed a more than 20-nation coalition to counter the threats, several countries members anonymously due to the sensitive regional tensions. 

US Deputy Special Envoy to Iran, Abram Paley, told Iran International this week that when it comes to dealing with Iran, “words are not enough” and action has to be taken. However, so far, Washington has not targeted the source of the Houthi attacks in Yemen.

Richard Goldberg, a National Security Council official from the Trump era and a fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, says the increase in Houthi attacks indicate that “Iran just called Biden’s bluff.”

In an article on New York Post, Goldberg argued that with Tehran closer to nukes, Congress must end Biden’s appeasement with Iran before it is too late. “President Biden’s three years of appeasing Iran has brought the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism closer than ever to developing a nuclear weapon.”

He highlighted that “nothing has been able to disabuse Biden of his almost-religious commitment to appeasement as the only viable path to containing Iran’s myriad threats... Not even assassination plots targeting former US officials, attempts to kidnap Iranian Americans from US soil, Iran-directed attacks on US troops in Iraq and Syria, injuring dozens of servicemembers — one critically — or the suicide-drone attacks on US destroyers in the Red Sea.”

The economically challenged province adjacent to Afghanistan and Pakistan is home to a substantial Sunni community belonging to the Baluch ethnic group.

The population has faced ongoing persecution under the rule of Iran's Shiite clerics. The region has consistently witnessed confrontations between security forces and Sunni militants.

Jaish al-Adl, a militant group advocating for enhanced rights and improved living conditions for the Baluchi ethnic minority, has claimed responsibility for the attack. Over the past few years, the group has carried out multiple assaults on Iranian security forces in the province.

IRNA and Tasnim news agencies reported on Wednesday that members of a "terrorist group" launched an assault on the Jangal base in the Rask County at midnight.

According to Tasnim, “the confrontation between the attackers and the forces began at 1am, and after three hours without successfully infiltrating, the attackers withdrew.”

Salim Kadkhoda, the governor of Rask, also informed IRNA that during the conflict, Amir-Hossein Hosseinabadi, a commander from the law enforcement forces, was killed.

However, Jaish al-Adl in a message on its Telegram channel asserted that it has caused "significant damages and human casualties."

The Halvash website that covers developments in Sistan-Baluchestan Province in the southeast had earlier reported explosions and heavy gunfire exchanges around the base in Rask.

Halvash also mentioned that the attackers had previously blocked the routes leading to the confrontation site.

Further details about the incident have not yet been disclosed.

The attack on the base comes in the wake of a previous assault on December 15, where Jaish al-Adl militants targeted a police station in Rask. During that attack, 12 police officers were killed, and eight others were injured.

The verdict has sparked outcry as it was delivered in his absence, with allegations of his refusal to wear prison uniform.

Reza, Younesi's son, took to Twitter on Tuesday to express his frustration, revealing that his father was denied the right to be present in court. The court session proceeded despite objections from his lawyers regarding the "lack of presentation of any evidence by the ministry of intelligence," which were reportedly disregarded.

Younesi was detained on December 28, 2022, in Shahroud, with the ministry of intelligence accusing him of "financial ties with the exiled opposition group Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK)."

His family has vehemently contested the charges, asserting that Younesi is an employee engaged in legitimate commercial transactions. The case is purportedly centered around a payment of 130 million rials.

Reza further alleged that the intelligence authorities were well aware of his father's lack of connection to the case's narrative but implicated him as an act of revenge.

Another son, Ali Younesi, a gold medalist from the International Astronomy Olympiad, was arrested in 2020 alongside Amir-Hossein Moradi. Both were subsequently sentenced to 16 years in prison on charges including "corruption on earth," "propaganda against the system," and "conspiracy and collusion with the aim of acting against national security."

A statement said, “Eighteen OWA [one way attack] UAVs, two anti-ship cruise missiles, and one anti-ship ballistic missile were shot down by a combined effort of F/A-18s from USS Dwight D. Eisenhower,” and air defense fire from supporting warships, including the UK’s HMS Diamond.

US Central Command said there were no injuries or damage reported, adding that this was the 26th Houthi attack on commercial shipping lanes in the Red Sea since November 19.

Iranian-backed Houthi militants have stepped up attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea in protest against Israel's war in Gaza. The attacks began after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called for blockading Israel.

Various shipping lines have suspended operations, instead taking the longer journey around Africa.

The Houthis have vowed to continue attacks until Israel halts the conflict in Gaza and warned that it would attack US warships if the militia group itself was targeted.

Critics have urged the Biden administration to take a more assertive stance toward the Houthis and Iran to stop the attacks, instead of just defensive measures.

US Deputy Special Envoy to Iran, Abram Paley, told Iran International recently that when it comes to dealing with Iran, “words are not enough” and action has to be taken. However, so far, Washington has not targeted the source of the Houthi attacks in Yemen.