March 26, 2025
Iran
Iran Israel Middle East North America Politics

The protests of Azerbaijani Turks in Urmia: The Underlying Causes and Associated Processes

by Rustam Taghizade. 1. The context of ethnic tensions in Iran: Iran is a multinational state, where Persians constitute approximately 60% of the population, alongside significant minority groups, including Azerbaijani Turks (16-24%), Kurds (7-10%), Baloch, Arabs and others. These ethnic minorities have historically faced systematic discrimination, including restrictions on cultural and linguistic rights, economic marginalization […]

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The Italy/Islamists files. File 4: Mohammad Hannoun and the Hamas money-collecting network

By Giovanni Giacalone On October 7th, 2024, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated three individuals and one sham charity that are prominent international financial supporters of Hamas, as well as one Hamas-controlled financial institution in Gaza. Among the sanctioned individuals is Hannoun, who has been indicated by Washington […]

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Europe Iran MENA News Middle East Opinion Politics

The Italy/Islamists files: File 2. The Sala/Abedini exchange and the relations between Italy and the Iranian regime – December 2024/January 2025

by Giovanni Giacalone Mohamad Abedini Najafabadi’s arrest On December 16th 2024, Iranian citizen Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi was arrested by the Italian authorities on US request after landing at Milan’s Malpensa airport. As indicated in the press release of the DOJ, Abedini and his colleague Mahdi Mohammad Sadeghi (who was arrested in Massachusetts) have been charged […]

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The Italy/Islamists files: File 1. Najeem Almasri and the GNA connection – January 2025

by Giovanni Giacalone On January 19th, 2025, Libyan police chief and director of Tripoli’s infamous Mitiga detention center, Najeem Almasri, was arrested by Italian authorities on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Libya from February 2015 onwards. On January 21st, three judges of […]

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Asia China Iran Russia Southeast Asia

Strategic Realignment: Trump’s Administration and the CRINK Strategy in Central Asia

by Talgat Kabdygali The administration approach taken by Trump towards foreign policy has increasingly focused on addressing what it perceives as strategic threats posed by four nations: China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, collectively dubbed “CRINK.” This policy shift, aimed at countering the global influence of CRINK has extended to the vital region of Central […]

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Europe Iran News North America Opinion Politics

Everything you need to know about the Abedini/Sala deal

by Giovanni Giacalone The Sala-Abedini negotiation fiasco, certainly not a “diplomatic success” for Italy Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi (38), the Iranian engineer arrested on December 16th in Milan on US request was released shortly after 9 am on Sunday January 12th, 2025, at the request of the Italian Minister of Justice, Caro Nordio. The judges of […]

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Iran

The Release of Cecilia Sala: When Antisemitism Creeps In

By Elisa Garfagna Yesterday, Italy celebrated with relief and joy the news of journalist and podcaster Cecilia Sala’s release. Detained unjustly by the Iranian regime in Tehran, her liberation marked a victory for press freedom and human rights. However, this triumph was overshadowed by a wave of antisemitic comments on social media, particularly on the […]

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The Abedini/Sala negotiations. Italy’s hash that could harm relations with the United States

by Giovanni Giacalone On January 3rd, 2025, Cecilia Sala’s family requested media silence regarding the case because the current stage is sensitive and the public debate on what should be done (or not) could extend the time and make a solution more complicated and distant. The 29-years-old Italian reporter Cecilia Sala was kidnapped by the […]

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Italian journalist apprehended in retaliation for Abedini’s arrest. Italy must not negotiate with a terrorist regime.

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  • December 28, 2024

by Giovanni Giacalone On December 19th, 2024, at around noon, Italian journalist and reporter, Cecilia Sala was apprehended from her hotel in Teheran and placed under arrest, without any clear reason, by the Iranian authorities. Sala left Rome for Iran on December 12th, with a regular visa, to conduct interviews and record some episodes for […]

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The Collapse of the Assad Regime and the Future of Syria

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  • December 12, 2024

by Rustam Taghizade The collapse of the Assad regime would represent a profound transformation in Syrian politics, marking the end of over half a century of centralized Alawite dominance. Nevertheless, this transition would probably result in the country entering a new period of uncertainty and challenges, with implications for governance, sectarian dynamics, Kurdish aspirations, and […]

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