US Imposes New Sanctions on Iran over Its Nuclear Escalations

The last two rounds of presidential election debates, aired on state television on Monday and Tuesday, revealed a consensus among all candidates. They agreed that the nation's most urgent expectation from the government and the new President is to solve the financial problems that have persisted for many years, especially since 2018.

The next most urgent expectation appears to be the lifting of sanctions.

Both of these expectations are fundamentally related to the country's foreign policy crisis, and more accurately regarding Iran's ties with the US.

While broadcasting the monologues that state TV claims are "debates" among the candidates, the broadcaster stated that viewers have indicated the most urgent problems they expect the next president to solve are, in order of significance:

• Economic problems 73.5%
• Improving situation of welfare 26%
• Tackling unemployment 25.7%
• Tackling financial corruption 25.6%
• Improving relations with other countries 19.3%
• Lifting the sanctions 15.7%
• Lifting the filtering [on the Internet] 6.6%
• Negotiating with the United States 6.5%
• Easing dress code enforcement 5.8%
• Reducing cost of medical treatment 5.1%
• Other 4.4%
• No response 3%

Among these expectations, economic and financial demands include solving economic problems, improving welfare, reducing unemployment, addressing financial corruption, and lowering the cost of medical treatment.

On the other hand, the expectations of lifting sanctions and negotiating with the US pertain to foreign policy and relations with the US.

Obviously, the improvement of the financial situation depends on resolving foreign policy issues and maintaining ties with the US. The mention of improving relations with "other countries" is also a euphemism for resuming ties with the US.

Lifting internet filtering and easing the enforcement of the dress code (hijab) are two social issues that highlight the difference between the lifestyle the nation prefers and the one dictated by Islamic ideology.

Nearly all the candidates, even the most anti-US one, Saeed Jalili, agreed in their remarks on state television that negotiations with Washington are necessary, even if former President Donald Trump returns to power.

In the meantime, many were misled to believe that a 2019 video of Trump speaking during a news conference with the Japanese leader indicated a new development, suggesting Trump was eager to maintain ties with the current leadership of the Islamic Republic.

Some netizens went so far as to suggest that the US leadership does not care about Iranians' political demands and is ready to compromise. Iranian leaders seemed pleased with this incorrect conclusion, which was based on fake news.

Some social media users opined, however, that it was most certainly not possible for Khamenei to allow a compromise with Trump, given that he was the man who ordered the killing of former Islamic Revolutionary Guards Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani.

Be that as it may, the call made by all six candidates for negotiating with the US was in sharp contradiction with Supreme Leader Khamenei, who said on Tuesday that candidates should not turn to the United States and should instead do business with Russia and China.

If the candidates are serious about negotiating with the US to improve the populace’s financial situation, they need to think twice if they wish to remain loyal and obedient to Khamenei.

This would also indicate that Iran’s relations with the US are likely to remain a central dilemma for the Islamic Republic's problems for at least another four years.

"Today the Islamic Republic does not just decide the Iranian nation's path... It rather decides the path and fates of regional nations and Resistance," Hassan Nasrallah said in a video message to a ceremony commemorating the 40th day since the death of Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi.

"The future of the region hinges on the developments of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he added, calling on Iranian people to elect "the right president" in the Friday's election.

The "Resistance" refers to the alliance of armed militant groups sponsored by Iran, including Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Houthis in Yemen, and Iraqi Shiite militias.

Established in 1982 by Iran's Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), Hezbollah is the cornerstone of the Tehran-backed alliance hostile to Israel and the United States.

In his Thursday speech, Nasrallah also offered condolences to Raisi's family, praising Tehran's response to the chopper crash that killed him last month.

Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian died in a helicopter crash on May 19. Both Raisi and Amir-Abdollahian were considered the "driving force" behind what proxy leaders describe as "the achievements of the Resistance Front", including the October 7 attack on Israel or the Iraqi militants' attacks on American interests.

However, the Islamic Republic's policy of supporting its regional armed proxies is not controlled by the Executive Branch of the government and is expected to remain unchanged regardless of who becomes the president.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Michèle Taylor condemned attempts to silence journalists “through physical harm, unlawful surveillance, including with commercial spyware, and forced exile.”

The statement addressed the concerns raised by Irene Khan, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression. Khan documented an alarming rise in journalists being forced into exile and facing violence. The trend, she argued, coincides with the worldwide growth of authoritarianism and suppression of media freedoms.

Unfortunately, exile does not guarantee journalists' safety. Taylor emphasized the urgent need for more significant support for journalists in exile, highlighting their exposure to grave risks such as assassination attempts, assaults, enforced disappearances, and retaliation against their families. She also underscored the escalating use of digital transnational repression in recent years.

The report comes less than three months after Iran International TV host Pouria Zeraati survived a stabbing outside his London residence as he left for work, sustaining leg injuries. Shortly following the incident, the London Metropolitan Police announced that due to prior threats targeting journalists in Persian-language media, the case was assigned to specialized officers from the Met's counter-terrorism division.

Iran International has faced relentless threats from the Iranian government, with numerous journalists facing grave threats in 2022 and 2023. In March, a leaked document disclosed that Tehran’s Revolutionary Court had convicted 44 foreign-based journalists and media activists in absentia two years earlier on "propaganda against the government," including Aliasghar Ramezanpour, executive editor of Iran International.

In 2022, escalating threats prompted Iran International to relocate its offices temporarily from London to Washington, as domestic security services could no longer guarantee the safety of its staff. Shortly before the incident, Iran's intelligence minister labeled Iran International a terrorist organization, opening the door to further actions against the network and its journalists.

In May, Iran International was honored with the 2024 Geneva Summit Courage Award for its fearless reporting on the daily abuses of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Launched by the unofficial Council for Organizing Oil Contract-Workers' Protests, the strike began on June 19. The workers are demanding the removal of intermediary contractors, wage increases, a 14-days-on, 14-days-off work schedule, improved dormitory conditions, and enhanced safety measures. The Council has warned that the strikes will intensify if these demands are not met.

Last week, the strike included 8,000 oil contract workers from over 60 contracting companies.

With the number of strikers now at 20,000, the protest action is rapidly gaining momentum.

These protests are part of a wave of labor unrest in Iran over delayed wages, low pay, and layoffs that have intermittently disrupted many industrial sectors since 2018.

In the past decade, many components of the oil and gas industry have been farmed out to influential regime insiders as intermediary contractors, who underpay workers and force them to work in difficult conditions. Traditionally, oil workers enjoyed the best salaries and benefits in Iran.

On Thursday, Ghaani said, “While everyone was trying to silence the voice of resistance and the young people of the resistance were defending themselves in the battlefield, someone spoke for them on the international stage. That person was Amir-Abdollahian, the voice of the resistance.”

The Quds Force commander’s comments come amid growing concerns of an all-out Israel-Hezbollah war. Alongside the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah group has been exchanging fire with Israel for over eight months.

The Quds Force is IRGC's extra-territorial wing, which controls all armed groups supported by the Islamic Republic. Its former commander was Qasem Soleimani, a notorious operator who oversaw the expansion of Iran's armed proxy groups in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere. He was targeted in a US airstrike in 2020 in Baghdad.

Ghaani made his remarks during the fortieth-day anniversary of Amir-Abdollahian's death. He was killed alongside former President Ebrahim Raisi, in a freak helicopter crash last month. The incident has triggered a snap election to be held on Friday.

While Iran continues its anti-Western and anti-Israeli policy, Ghaani reiterated the Supreme Leader’s red line about negotiating with the US. “Today, as you prepare to elect a new president, it is crucial to choose someone who will continue the path of martyr Raisi and the heroic figures who stood firm and acted decisively,” he stated.

“These men fought against the US and demonstrated that actions can be taken without relying on the US. Be aware that those advocating for solutions through relations with the US are unwilling to fight bravely if given authority; When you speak from a position of authority and power, even the US will be compelled to yield."

On Tuesday, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei subtly indicated his favored presidential candidate by firmly rejecting negotiations with the US.

He asserted, "Some of our politicians believe they must align themselves with one power or another, or that the path to progress necessarily leads through the US; this is a grave misconception. Those who look beyond our borders fail to recognize and value our inherent capacities; naturally, they lack the vision to utilize them."

It essentially disqualifies three of the four approved presidential candidates; Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, and Masoud Pezeshkian.

Pezeshkian, in particular, is seen as disadvantaged due to his association with former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the architect of the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA), who advocates for dialogue with other countries, including the US, to lift current sanctions.