US strikes Iranian targets in the Strait of Hormuz
By Michelle L. Price, Samy Magdy, and Elena Becatoros November 3, 2026 Credit: Amirhosein Khorgooi / ISNA via AP The United States launched strikes on Iranian targets, a U.S. official said, in what appeared to be a limited operation on the eve of Tuesday’s crucial midterm elections. Iranian state media reported explosions being heard on the islands of Qeshm and Hengam in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, and in the nearby mainland area of Bandar Abbas. Unlike earlier in the war
AP News
3 days ago
Iran Country Report 2026
By Holly Swiglo Genocide Watch Since the 1979 revolution, Iran’s leaders have imposed strict Shia Islamic law across the country. Despite recent shifts in leadership and the new president’s reputation as a reformist, Iran’s political system remains rooted in the principles of the Islamic Republic. In early 2026, Iran experienced the highest levels of repression since 1979, and authorities granted impunity for crimes against humanity. Iranian missiles are displayed next to a b
Genocide Watch
Oct 30
Iranian Athletes Face Execution as Mountaineer Hanged
By Ed Aarons October 27, 2026 Two sportspeople have been executed in the past month and at least six more face the same fate, says activist group Mountaineer Ali-Sina Mostafavi was executed earlier this month for taking part in protests against the Iranian government. Photograph: Ali-Sina Mostafavi/Iran Human Rights Fears are growing for more Iranian athletes facing execution after mountain climber Ali-Sina Mostafavi became the latest in a string to be killed by the regime. M
The Guardian
Oct 26
Iranian Intelligence Department Arrests 39 Protesters
By IranWire October 19, 2026 According to the Tasnim News Agency, citing the General Directorate of Intelligence of Qazvin Province, 39 citizens have been arrested in connection with the January 2026 protests. The identities of those detained, their current locations, and the status of their legal cases remain unknown. In a report that included no names or identifying details, the Qazvin Intelligence Department claimed that the detainees operated across eight separate groups
Iran Escalates Shipping Attacks Ahead of US Vote
By Parisa Hafezi, Jonathan Saul and Phil Stewart October 14, 2026 Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near the beach of Bandar Abbas, Iran, October 13, 2026. Razieh Poudat/ISNA/via WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS Iran is deploying new tactics to target ships sailing through the Strait of Hormuz as it seeks to keep oil prices high and influence the US midterm elections, two senior Iranian officials told Reuters. Tehran has tried to exert control over the Strait of Hormuz
Reuters
Oct 13
Ex-Prisoners Reveal Torture, Scripted TV Confessions of January Protest Detainees in Isfahan
October 9, 2026 by Roghiyeh Rezaei IranWire has obtained accounts detailing severe torture and forced confessions extracted from several January 2026 protesters currently facing execution. Three former inmates of Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan, held between late January and mid-summer 2026, told IranWire that most of the young men executed or facing capital punishment in Dastgerd hail from working-class and marginalized backgrounds, working as laborers or coming from working-clas
IranWire
Oct 9
UN Says Iran Crackdown Amounted To Crimes Against Humanity
By Iran International September 17, 2026 Iranian security forces committed crimes against humanity in their crackdown on nationwide protests, a UN fact-finding mission said on Thursday, citing mass killings, torture and arbitrary detention. A masked protester raises both hands in victory signs as crowds gather on a smoke-filled road during protests in Mashhad, Iran, on January 9, 2026. The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran said its report examined the 202
#a Iran International
Sep 22
Human Rights Watch condemns Iran executions
Iran’s Execution Campaign Against Protesters Human Rights Watch Sep 11, 2026 Day after day, Iranian authorities are sending protesters, including teenagers, who took part in widespread protests from December 2025-January 2026 to the gallows. Between March and August this year, a span of just five months, authorities arbitrarily executed at least 59 men on politically motivated and vague national security charges following grossly unfair trials. Those put to death include at l
Human Rights Watch
Sep 10
US hits civilian infrastructure In Iran
By William Christou Tehran bombs US allies in Middle East after US attacks on bridges, energy facilities and key port A screengrab from social media shows a damaged bridge in Bandar Khamir, Hormozgan province, Iran. Photograph: Social Media/Reuters The US hit bridges, energy facilities and a key Iranian port on Friday, expanding its aerial campaign against Iran, and prompting swift Iranian strikes against US allies in the Middle East. US airstrikes hit bridges in Iran’s south
The Guardian
Jul 20
How Iranians Protest: 2025-2026 Anti-Government Protests
By Michał Jagielski Senior Middle East and Iran Analyst Genocide Watch The protests that took place in late December 2025 through early January 2026 were one of the most significant acts of social opposition to the Iranian religious leadership since the inception of the Islamic Republic in 1979. Their sheer scale, motivations, and, possibly most significantly, the government’s ruthless reaction highlight their importance and potential to drive change. Image: Luis Soto/SOPA Im
Genocide Watch
Jul 20
How Iranians Protest: The Women, Life, Freedom Movement
Genocide Watch The Women, Life, Freedom Movement emerged in Iran in 2022, in response to government crackdown on women refusing to wear a hijab in public. This movement arose largely as a result of the death of Mahsa/Zhina Amini, a Kurdish woman who was arrested and tortured in police custody for refusing to wear a hijab in public. This injustice propelled thousands of men and women alike to protest through the streets against governmental oppression of women. At least 551 pr
Genocide Watch
Jul 10
How Iranians Protest: The 2019 Gasoline Protests
By Michał Jagielski Senior Middle East and Iran Analyst Genocide Watch When the state announced gasoline rationing and increased petrol prices, on Nov. 15, 2019, the Iranian people took to the streets. The protests came to be known as Bloody Aban, or Bloody November, and they were, at the time, the largest and most violent display of opposition to the Islamic Republic. Iranian protesters rally against an increase in petrol prices, in the central city of Isfahan. [AFP] The new
Genocide Watch
Jul 7
