عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Rafsanjani's Daughter Accused of Propaganda Against Iranian Regime

Faezeh Rafsanjani, 2016 (File photo: AFP)
Faezeh Rafsanjani, 2016 (File photo: AFP)
TT
TT

Rafsanjani's Daughter Accused of Propaganda Against Iranian Regime

Faezeh Rafsanjani, 2016 (File photo: AFP)
Faezeh Rafsanjani, 2016 (File photo: AFP)

An Iranian court has charged the daughter of the former Iranian president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, with carrying out propaganda against the regime and blasphemy in social media posts, the Iranian judiciary announced Sunday.

Tehran's Public Prosecutor, Ali Salehi, said that the indictment was issued and referred to the court on charges of "propaganda activity against the system of Iran and blasphemy," according to the judiciary's website Mizan.

The charges relate to supposed comments made by Faezeh Rafsanjani, who is a former lawmaker and women's rights activist, during a radio debate on a social media forum last April.

Local media quoted Faezeh Rafsanjani as saying that Iran's request to remove the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from the US list of foreign terrorist organizations is harmful to "national interests."

The official Iranian news agency IRNA later reported that Rafsanjani's daughter had apologized on April 23, saying she was "joking without intending to insult."

Faezeh, 59, is the daughter of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president who advocated rapprochement with the West and the US.

The former MP was arrested and sentenced to six months in prison at the end of 2012 on charges of "propaganda against the Republic."

The removal of the Revolutionary Guards from the list of terrorism is one of the tricky demands in the negotiations to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement.

Informed sources had recently stated that it is likely that European-mediated efforts to revive the 2015 Iranian nuclear agreement will be resumed following the visit of US President Joe Biden to the Middle East this month.

According to Bloomberg, a recent round of talks in Qatar failed to overcome the differences within the framework of the negotiations.

Two European diplomats with direct knowledge of the Doha negotiations said the talks had not made progress, but efforts to restore the deal are expected to continue beyond the July deadline suggested by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Most Viewed

 
 
World

‘Bomb Cyclone' Knocks Out Power to Over 600,000 Across Northwest US, Killing 1

A low pressure storm system known as a "bomb cyclone" forms off the coast of the US Pacific Northwest and western Canada in a composite satellite image November 19, 2024. CIRA/NOAA/Handout via REUTERS
A low pressure storm system known as a "bomb cyclone" forms off the coast of the US Pacific Northwest and western Canada in a composite satellite image November 19, 2024. CIRA/NOAA/Handout via REUTERS
TT
TT

‘Bomb Cyclone' Knocks Out Power to Over 600,000 Across Northwest US, Killing 1

A low pressure storm system known as a "bomb cyclone" forms off the coast of the US Pacific Northwest and western Canada in a composite satellite image November 19, 2024. CIRA/NOAA/Handout via REUTERS
A low pressure storm system known as a "bomb cyclone" forms off the coast of the US Pacific Northwest and western Canada in a composite satellite image November 19, 2024. CIRA/NOAA/Handout via REUTERS

A major storm swept across the northwest US Tuesday evening, battering the region with strong winds and rain and causing widespread power outages and downed trees that killed at least one person, The Associated Press reported.

The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect as the strongest atmospheric river — a large plume of moisture — that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season overwhelms the region. The storm system is considered a “bomb cyclone,” which occurs when a cyclone intensifies rapidly.

Downed trees struck homes and littered roads across northwest Washington. In Lynnwood, Washington, a woman died Tuesday night when a large tree fell on a homeless encampment, South County Fire said in a statement on X. In Seattle, a tree fell onto a vehicle, temporarily trapping a person inside, the Seattle Fire Department reported. The agency later said the individual was in stable condition.
“Trees are coming down all over the city & falling onto homes,” the fire department in Bellevue, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) east of Seattle, posted on the social platform X. "If you can, go to the lowest floor and stay away from windows. Do not go outside if you can avoid it."
Early Wednesday, over 600,000 houses in Washington State were reported to be without power on poweroutage.us. But the number of outage reports fluctuated wildly throughout the evening likely due in part to several weather and utility agencies struggling to report information on the storm because of internet outages and other technical problems. It wasn’t clear if that figure was accurate. More than 15,000 had lost power in Oregon and nearly 19,000 in California.
As of 8 p.m., the peak wind speed was in Canadian waters, where gusts of 101 mph (163 kph) were reported off the coast of Vancouver Island, according to the National Weather Service in Seattle. Along the Oregon coast, there were wind gusts as high at 79 mph (127 kph) Tuesday evening, according to the National Weather Service in Medford, Oregon, while wind speed of 77 mph (124 kph) was recorded at Mount Rainier in Washington.
Winds were expected to increase in western Washington throughout the evening, the weather service said.
The national Weather Service warned people on the West Coast about the danger of trees during high winds, posting on X, “Stay safe by avoiding exterior rooms and windows and by using caution when driving.”
In northern California, flood and high wind watches were in effect, with up to 8 inches (20 centimeters) of rain predicted for parts of the San Francisco Bay Area, North Coast and Sacramento Valley. Dangerous flash flooding, rock slides and debris flows were expected, according to the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center.
A winter storm watch was issued for the northern Sierra Nevada above 3,500 feet (1,066 meters), where 15 inches (28 centimeters) of snow was possible over two days. Wind gusts could top 75 mph (120 kph) in mountain areas, forecasters said.
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for parts of southwestern Oregon through Friday evening, while rough winds and seas halted a ferry route in northwestern Washington between Port Townsend and Coupeville.
A blizzard warning was issued for the majority of the Cascades in Washington, including Mount Rainier National Park, starting Tuesday afternoon, with up to a foot of snow and wind gusts up to 60 mph (97 kph), according to the weather service in Seattle. Travel across passes could be difficult if not impossible.