Feb. 18 – Reformist politicians in Iran raised concerns about plans to implement a raft of constitutional changes in the country this week, following an announcement by the regime.
Conservative lawmakers said the proposals were intended to open up Iran’s political system and enable more political parties to form.
However reformist cleric Mohammad Maybodi said the changes would lead to the removal of the presidential office and bring the country closer to a totalitarian state.
Human rights NGO the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC) submitted a request to the International Criminal Court in the Hague to investigate Iran’s role in Syria’s civil war.
In a statement published on Wednesday, the IHRDC said it had asked the court to “examine the role of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the armed groups in Syria it controls, supports and backs in crimes committed during the conflict in Syria.”
The statement added that the NGO had evidence of Syrian victims directly impacted by the actions of the Iranian regime’s armed groups and the Syrian Government.
And civil society activists in Iran have reacted angrily to draft legislation which imposes tighter restrictions on Iran’s internet following the bill’s approval by Iran’s parliament for review by the Guardian Council.
Although the latest version of the bill has not yet been made available to the public, earlier published drafts caused concern among human rights campaigners and international organizations who said the bill would hand over complete control of the internet to authorities in Iran.
Conservative lawmakers have denied that the bill is an effort by the government to place oppressive controls on the internet. Bijan Nobaveh-Vatan, who has represented Tehran in Iran’s parliament said critics of the draft legislation were “supporters of immorality and fornication.”
