Iran forces sexually assault female protesters, videos suggest
Activist arrested after BBC interview now 'accused of 'spying'
Parham Ghobadi
BBC Persian senior reporter
An Iranian activist who was arrested in Tehran after giving an interview to BBC Persian is now accused of “spying” and having “relations with hostile states”, a source close to the family has told BBC Persian.
Iranian security forces raided Samaneh Mousavi’s office on 24 September, but she was not there.
Mousavi told BBC Persian in the interview before her arrest that her friendship with Hossein Ronaghi, a prominent imprisoned political activist, was why “security forces are after her”.
Summary
- The recent protests that have engulfed Iran are continuing and the BBC is running a day of special coverage
- In two recent videos verified by the BBC, security forces who are forcefully trying to arrest female protesters appear to be sexually assaulting them
- The BBC's chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet and BBC Persian reporter Behrang Tajdin have been answering your questions
- The demonstrations erupted nearly a month ago over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody
- Mahsa became a symbol of Iranian repression after her arrest by the morality police, who accused her of wearing her hijab improperly
- At least 201 people have been reportedly killed since then, as the country's security forces clamped down on the unrest
- The movement is now considered the most serious challenge to the Islamic Republic since its inception in 1979
Authorities in Iran forced to remove poster of women in hijabs after PR fiasco
Montage in Tehran taken down within 24 hours after prominent women and relatives denounce use of their photos
The Iranian authorities suffered a PR fiasco after being forced to take down a giant billboard in a central square in Tehran when women in the poster, or their relatives, objected to being depicted as supporters of the government and the compulsory-wearing of the hijab.
The billboard controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps was a montage of about 50 Iranian women wearing the hijab under the slogan “Women of my Land”. It was taken down within 24 hours after at least three of the women pictured said they objected to their image being misused.
Elon Musk suggests he is pulling internet service from Ukraine after ambassador told him to ‘f*** off’
Multi-billionaire Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet will no longer be provided free to Ukrainians, and his SpaceX company has apparently asked the Pentagon to pay for it.
Mr Musk suggested that he was pulling the free service after the Ukrainian ambassador was rude to him. The richest man in the world caused fury among many Ukrainians earlier this month with a proposal to end Russia’s war in their country by calling on Kyiv to cede territory gained by Moscow since its invasion in February.
That prompted Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Andrij Melnyk, to angrily shoot back at Muskby telling him to “f*** off” after his proposal that the Russian invasion of Ukraine could be ended by, among other things, formally allowing Russia to annex Crimea.
China CCP Congress: Here's what to expect
Chinese President Xi Jinping is widely expected to secure a precedent-defying third term at the 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which will kick off on Sunday.
Getting a third term would cement Xi's position as arguably the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong.
Despite a slowing economy and rising geopolitical tensions with the West, there appears no strong discontent over Xi's policies within the party.
Doctor among two Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in Jenin
Israeli forces have shot and killed two Palestinian men, including a physician, during a raid on the city of Jenin in the northern occupied West Bank.
The Palestinian health ministry identified the doctor as Abdullah al-Ahmad, in his 40s, and said he was shot in the head by Israeli forces on Friday morning in front of the Jenin public hospital.
As the US-Saudi oil spat intensifies, what are Biden’s options?
The Saudi-American relationship appears to have hit rock bottom.
After a move by the Saudi-led OPEC+ oil cartel to cut oil production, which could see inflation in the United States soaring just weeks ahead of the midterm elections, President Joe Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper that it’s time for the US to rethink its relationship with Saudi Arabia.
On Wednesday, Saudi hit back, saying a US request to postpone the decision to cut production “for a month” would have had a negative economic impact. The idea of the administration asking the Saudis to delay the cut until after the elections has Biden’s critics seething.
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