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  Female journalists in Iran have been targeted by security forces since anti-government protests began in September, activist groups say. Figures vary, but at least 17 have been arrested, an international group for press freedom says. Another puts the number about three times that or more. Iran has been gripped by some of the biggest protests it has seen since the Islamic Republic was founded in 1979. Nearly 20,000 people are estimated to have been detained since September. More than 520 protesters have been killed by security forces in that time, according to the Iranian Human Rights Activists' News Agency (Hrana). The most recent arrest of a female journalist was that of Elnaz Mohammadi, who works for the "reformist" newspaper Hammihan. She was released on bail on Sunday. Ms Mohammadi is the twin sister of Elaheh Mohammadi, who works for the same newspaper and was arrested on 29 September last year. She was detained for her reporting on the funeral of Mahsa Amini, the...

  The ongoing  protests against the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran  have also been heard in Krakow, where Iran is taking part in the 2023 World Handball Championship, being hosted by Poland and Sweden.  Even though the event is being held thousands of kilometers beyond Iran's borders, the Iranian regime is doing everything it can to discourage – or even physically stop – any form of protest. Among the members of the Iranian handball delegation for the tournament are so-called "morality guardians" who answer directly to the Islamic Republic's Ministry of Information.   Officially, they are accredited as team supervisors, but their actual work has nothing to do with supporting the players on the court. The morality guardians not only monitor the behavior of the national team players, but they also closely observe their surroundings, particularly the spectators.  One incident during Iran's 34-31 loss to Montenegro showed just how far these moralit...

  The Eiffel Tower in France has lit up with messages of support for protesting women in Iran. The slogan "Femme, Vie, Liberte" was seen on the landmark in Paris, which translates to "Women, Life, Freedom". Mass protests have been continuing since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini four months ago.  The death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after being detained by Iran’s morality police has sparked unprecedented protests across the country. Videos have emerged across social media showing young protesters, often women, demonstrating in defiance and often facing a violent response from the police. The Iranian government says protesters are a dangerous threat, and has blamed the US and Israel for spreading the unrest. The BBC's Rana Rahimpour looks at why this movement is unlike any Iran’s seen before.

  Protests in Iran continue online and via political graffiti as the Islamic Republic is issuing death sentences, long prison terms and floggings to quash voices of dissent.  According to reports, some of the protesters who were injured during the regime’s crackdown refrain from going to hospitals in fear of arrest, leading to deaths in some cases.  The council of the country's student unions cited reports Tuesday that Ghazal Amiri, a student at Shiraz University, was beaten by security forces during the protests on September 10, but was not taken to hospital. The following day, her condition worsened, and she died after finally being transferred to the hospital.  There are many similar deaths that are not revealed to the media because their families are under pressure by intelligence agents. Iran International also obtained information about a young woman who  fell to her death from the fourth-floor window  of her home when security forces came looki...

  Iranian lawyer Saeed Sheikh has been sentenced to three years in prison as the government continues to crack down on lawyers while suppressing nationwide protests that began three months ago. The Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran found Sheikh guilty of "gathering and colluding against the country's security" and "propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran." Two years of the three-year sentence are for the first charge and one year is for the second, the activist HRANA news agency reported on December 29.   Sheikh was arrested on October 12 at a rally in front of the Iran Central Bar Association in the Iranian capital. The rally was held to protest against the violation of protesters' rights and turned violent with the intervention of the security forces. At least three lawyers, including Sheikh, were arrested. Two other stiff sentences have been issued to at least two other Iranian lawyers. Among them is Sina Yousefi, the vice chairman of the Law...

   A hundred days after they began, the longest running anti-government protests in Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution have shaken the regime, but at a heavy cost to the people. More than 500 protesters, including 69 children, have been killed, according to the Human Rights Activists' News Agency (HRANA). Two protesters have been executed and at least 26 others face the same fate, after what Amnesty International calls "sham trials". Although nationwide demonstrations have swept Iran before - once in 2017 lasting until early 2018, and another in November 2019 - the current protests are unique, as they involve people from across society and women are taking a lead role under the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom". Some Iranian celebrities have taken irrevocable steps to support protests, leading to their arrest or exile. Taraneh Alidoosti, a well-known Iranian actress, is being held in the notorious Evin prison after she condemned the execution of a young protest...