۱/1 Biden administration fumbles messaging twice in a week
On March 24, the Persian language State Department Instagram account (@USABehFarsi) posted a controversial post as part of its Women’s History Month series. The post in question was of Faezeh Hashemi, the firebrand daughter of the late former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, noting she was “defending women across Iran.” (Instagram) Hashemi is a former member of parliament turned activist who has been imprisoned since September 2022 for her support of the Women, Life, Freedom uprising and served several months in prison in 2012. She has been vocal against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has criticized the Islamic Republic, and also supports women’s rights. However, many Iranians refer to Hashemi as an aghazadeh, “children of the elite,” and note that despite being critical of the clerical establishment, she has not condemned her late father and remained loyal to him.
The Instagram post evoked outrage online from members of the diaspora and many inside Iran, with more than 1,500 comments reportedly made (Iran International).
Iran-based activist collective @1500tasvir (1500 images) and @shahrak_ekbatan, an account affiliated with the Ekbatan highrise community in Tehran and known for its residents’ public dissent, condemned the Instagram post.
Some Iranian social media users accused the “Iran lobby”—a group of individuals they purport to be supporters of the Islamic Republic—of being behind the post without any evidence. It’s likely that the State Department was not aware of the controversy it would cause posting a dissident closely tied to the clerical establishment—one whose late father was a key decisionmaker and in the upper echelons of the Islamic Republic.
Another mishap: Just days prior, on March 19, President Joe Biden issued a statement wishing millions a happy Nowruz and spoke of the United States’ continued support for “the courageous women of Iran, who are fighting for their freedoms.” But what caught the attention of many Iranians was what was nestled in the third paragraph of the statement:
“The war in Gaza has also inflicted terrible suffering on the Palestinian people, and we will continue to lead international efforts to get more humanitarian assistance to them—including urgently needed food, water, medicine and shelter.” (whitehouse.gov)
Many Iranians pointed out that Palestinians don’t celebrate Nowruz and that it was a pre-Islamic holiday. Additionally, it’s worth noting that Iranians disapprove that the Islamic Republic spends its funds on its proxies, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, rather than its people, as evident by the famous protest chant, “No to Gaza, no to Lebanon, our lives for Iran.”
۲/2 Iranian rial hits 613,500 to the US dollar this week—a historic low
۳/3 US resident ‘Prince’ Sereen arrested in Iran
On March 25, a US resident was arrested in Iran a week upon arrival (Iran International). California-based Sereen “Curtis” Badiei, 51, is a gay social media influencer who has been posting content for well over a decade and has been critical of the Islamic Republic and Islam. Badiei, who refers to himself as “Prince Sereen” and alleges to be a descendant of one of the royal families of Iran, has also starred in adult films. Over the years, Badiei has posted videos that Iranian authorities can easily use as “evidence of crimes” punishable by death. A US government source told me that Badiei doesn’t hold US citizenship.
In an Instagram live before his Iran visit, Badiei says:
“Khamenei can kill me... I don’t want to live in this world... I’m tired of filthy America as well as filthy Iran. I will come this very Nowruz... Even if Khamenei executes me, the whole world will know my story…”
On March 19, Badiei posted a video of himself standing near the iconic Azadi Tower in the capital, Tehran, calling on Iranians to take control of their destiny against the “criminal Islamic Republic and overthrow it.” (X) In another video, Badiei is seen celebrating Chahar Shanbeh Soori, the festival of fire, with youth in the streets. In a separate video, he is recognized by two young female fans (X). Badiei’s presence in Iran became an online conversation with many Iranians surprised at his ability to travel to Iran with ease and post online about it—until security forces arrested him in Karaj, a satellite city outside of Tehran in Alborz province.
Badiei’s Instagram account (@order_of_the_crown_iran) was promptly taken down by Meta to protect his safety, a source told me. A Change.org petition was started but has only gathered 124 signatures so far.
According to Mizan News Agency, an outlet affiliated with the judiciary, he was detained on charges of “insulting sanctities.” (X)
One report has also alleged that Badiei is the son of Colonel Jalal Badiei, the head of the Shah-era SAVAK security service in Qom, who was executed after the 1979 revolution (Rokna.net).
Badiei has such a strong fan base that a man named Behdad Ferdous self-published a book, Heartfelt Cries (Dedicated to Prince Sereen), in 2017 and is selling it on Amazon.
Some Iranian social media users believe Badiei is a ploy to distract from pressing domestic issues like the dire state of the economy or the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran or, perhaps, to disparage the defunct opposition coalition (he has repeatedly chastised the former crown prince Reza Pahlavi for not traveling to Iran). Others speculate Badiei has mental health issues. Regardless, there is widespread concern that Badiei may become another US hostage used as a bargaining chip in Tehran’s dealings with the West.
Another social media tragedy: In 2018, I wrote about another Iranian oddity: Nasime Sabz, a social media influencer who shot three at the YouTube headquarters in California and then killed herself (IranWire). Badiei had given her condolences.
۴/4 Hamas political chief visits Iran for second time since Gaza war began
۵/5 Iranian defense industry’s latest drone shown at Qatar expo
۶/6 Quds Force members killed in Israeli airstrikes on Syria
On March 26, the Israeli Air Force carried out airstrikes in Syria's Deir Ezzor governorate, killing at least fifteen, according to the Times of Israel.
Israeli defense sources told the Times of Israel that:
“The strikes targeted assets belonging to Iran’s Unit 4000, the Special Operations Division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’[IRGC] Intelligence Organization, and the special operations unit of the IRGC’s Quds Force in Syria, known as Unit 18840…”
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that an IRGC “adviser, his two Iranian security escorts,” four Syrian and nine Iraqi fighters were killed (AFP). Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) said that one of those killed was Behrouz Vahedi, a member of the IRGC Quds Force (RFE/RL). The World Health Organization also said that one of its staff, Emad Shehab, was also killed in the airstrike.
Syrian and Iranian state media had intially accused the United States of the bombing in eastern Syria. However, the Pentagon spokesperson denied the allegations (Iran International).
Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes on Iranian proxies backing Bashar al-Assad in Syria since the country’s civil war began in 2011. Interestingly, the strikes happened just hours before Hamas’ political chief, Ismail Hanieh, arrived in Tehran for meetings.
۷/7 US sanctions networks supporting Iran’s ballistic missile, defense, and nuclear programs
OTHER اخبار/NEWS THAT MADE HEADLINES:
Human rights
۰ Iranian forces fatally shoot another kolbar amid rising violence (IranWire)
۰ Deadly toll rises for kolbars in western border regions (Iran International)
۰ Bail denied to rapper who supported 2022 protests (IranWire)
۰ Baha’i minority faces persecution even after death (AFP)
۰ Investigation to examine suicides among young doctors (Iran International)
Domestic affairs
۰ Iran’s young ‘super-revolutionaries’ lay claim to legacy of Islamic revolt (Financial Times)
۰ Whistle-blower uncovers cash sale of seminary land by cleric (Iran International)
۰ Iranian government to prioritize food security amid currency depreciation (Iran International)
۰ Iran among countries facing high water scarcity (VOA)
۰ Iran enforces new restrictions as Ramadan overlaps with Nowruz (IranWire)
۰ Nowruz road accidents have so far claimed 469 lives in Iran (Iran Front Page)
۰ Iran considering sending humans to space, minister says (Jerusalem Post)
۰ Cyber attack on Iran's railway network (Iran International)
Foreign policy + security
۰ Iranian and Chinese hackers carry out disruptive attacks on water systems (Reuters)
۰ US says it doesn't support Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline project going forward (Reuters)
۰ Iran alerted US before Soleimani revenge strike, Zarif affirms (Iran International)
۰ Iranian government unaware of IRGC retaliatory attack, ex-minister reveals (IranWire)
۰ Iranian media hail UN resolution on Gaza ceasefire (Iran International)
۰ Palestinian flag placed on Mordechai’s tomb as Jews celebrate Purim (Jerusalem Post)
۰ Sudan denies receiving military aid from Iran (Sudan Tribune)
۰ More attacks in Iran and Pakistan’s Baluchistan regions following border dustup (Al-Monitor)
۰ Philippines says Iran frees 18 Filipino crew of seized oil tanker (AFP)
Iran deal + sanctions
۰ Cleric calls for nuclear arms (Iran International)
۰ Iran official says security of nuclear facilities in focus (Iran International)
۰ Twenty-year fugitive sentenced to federal prison for conspiring to export defense articles (Justice.gov)
۰ US sanctions shipping firm accused of links to Iran, Yemen’s Houthis (Al Jazeera)
۰ Iran suffers from lack of airliners due to sanctions (Iran International)
Arts + culture
۰ A second act for ballet in Iran? (New York Times)