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Iran Election: Five Things To Know

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(FILES) (COMBO) This combination created on June 18, 2024 of handout pictures provided by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) shows Presidential candidates (clockwise) Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Alireza Zakani, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, Masoud Pezeshkian, Saeed Jalili, and Amirhossein Ghazizadeh-Hashemi during a debate at the Iran State television studio in Tehran on June 17, 2024. - Iran on June 9 announced the six candidates, mostly conservatives, approved for the June 28 election to replace president Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed in a helicopter crash. (Photo by MORTEZA FAKHRINEJAD / IRIB / AFP)

Middle East powerhouse Iran votes on Friday in a snap election to replace President Ebrahim Raisi following his death in a helicopter crash last month.

Here are five facts about the Shiite Muslim country of 85 million people known as the Islamic Republic of Iran.

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From Shah to mullahs

Formerly the ancient empire of Persia, Iran was dominated during part of the 20th century by the Pahlavi dynasty.

Shah Mohammad Reza, accused of authoritarianism and criticised for his modernist reforms, fled in 1979 after months of protests.

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His main opponent, Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, returned from exile and immediately established an Islamic republic, one of the few that exist in the world.

The authority lies with its supreme leader, who since 1989 has been Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, successor to Khomeini.

The supreme leader’s power is greater than that of the president, who is elected by universal suffrage.

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The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was set up as the ideological defenders of the Islamic Republic after the 1979 revolution.

READ ALSO: Nigerian Army Deploys 177 Personnel To Guinea-Bissau For Peacekeeping

Veil of contention

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Since 1979, Tehran has imposed a strict Islamic code on women, officially to protect them. In public, they are obliged to wear loose clothing and a hijab — a veil covering their hair and neck.

Respect for the veil is required of all Iranians and foreigners, while morality police patrol the streets to ensure compliance.

In September 2022, massive protests broke out across the country after Masha Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, died following her arrest by the morality police in Tehran for allegedly breaching the strict dress code.

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Hundreds of people were killed and thousands were arrested in the protests.

Iran, which topped the table for the most recorded death penalties in 2023, has executed nine men in cases related to the protests, according to Amnesty International.

READ ALSO: Iran President Had ‘Lot Of Blood On His Hands’ – White House

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Iran and Israel: arch-enemies

Under Raisi, Iran sought improved relations with China and Russia while mending ties with Arab neighbours, mainly its major regional rival Saudi Arabia, to avert deeper isolation.

But its relations with Israel remain particularly fraught and have only grown more tense since Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas launched the October 7 attack on Israel that started the bloodiest-ever Gaza war.

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Iran is officially committed to the destruction of what it calls the “Zionist entity”, and in April for the first time launched a direct attack against Israel involving hundreds of missiles and drones, most of which were intercepted.

Nuclear fallout

In 2015, Iran reached a landmark agreement with major powers to accept limits on its nuclear programme in exchange for easing sanctions.

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But the United States, under then-president Donald Trump, withdrew from the hard-won deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions.

READ ALSO: Iran Gets Interim President After Raisi’s Death

Iran responded by rolling back most of its commitments.

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According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state to enrich uranium to the high level of 60 per cent — just short of weapons-grade — while it keeps accumulating large uranium stockpiles.

The IAEA has said that Tehran now has enough material to build several atomic bombs.

Filmmakers: prized and jailed

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Iran’s cinema is unparalleled in the region, with modern masters including the late Abbas Kiarostami and Asghar Farhadi, a two-time Oscar winner.

But working in film in Iran today can be risky for those who speak out against the authorities.

Several prominent directors have been arrested or jailed, including Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof, who was in the spotlight at this year’s Cannes festival after he fled Iran to escape a jail sentence.

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He is now living in exile in Europe.

AFP

 

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‘They Checked My Instagram’ – Nigerian Lady Breaks Down After Landing In U.S, Denied Entry

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A Nigerian businesswoman has taken to social media to share her frustration and heartbreak after being denied entry into the United States, despite holding a valid visa.

In a video recorded on her return flight to Nigeria, the visibly distraught woman revealed that she was travelling to Texas for a trade fair.

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She said she possessed a B1/B2 visa, which allows travel for both tourism and business meetings.

READ ALSO:‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’

However, upon arrival in the U.S., things took a turn.

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“I was denied entrance into the US and that is because my visa [is] a B1–B2 visa which is [for] tourism/business meetings,” she explained tearfully.

When I landed, I was detained for 24 hours and I was questioned. I told them I was going to exhibit but I did not know any better because the US has your data and your Instagram page.”

READ ALSO:Middle East Crisis Dominates EU Foreign Ministers’ Brussels Meeting

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According to her, immigration officials scrutinised her social media activity and private messages, using them to challenge her stated purpose of visit.

Apparently, my Instagram says different. They even checked all my messages with my customers. The customers I have been telling that we are coming, they can pick up and all of that,” she said through tears.

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Uganda: After 39 Years In Power, 80-year-old Yoweri Museveni To Seek Re-election

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Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, has announced his intention to run in the country’s next presidential election, extending a rule that began nearly four decades ago.

In a post on the X platform late Saturday, Museveni said he had “expressed my interest in running for… the position of presidential flag bearer,” for his ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.

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The 80-year-old leader has governed Uganda since 1986 after seizing power following a five-year guerrilla war. Under his leadership, the ruling NRM has twice amended the constitution, allowing him to remain in office beyond term and age limits.

READ ALSO:Ugandan President Ignores S’Court Ruling, Approves Law To Try Civilians In Military Courts

According to Reuters, right groups have long accused Museveni of deploying security forces and leveraging patronage to hold onto power, an allegation he denies.

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Explaining his decision to seek reelection, Museveni said he aims to grow Uganda’s economy to a ”$500 billion economy in the next five years.” According to the finance ministry, the country’s GDP currently stands at about $66 billion.

Uganda is set to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January next year. Museveni’s main challenger is expected to be opposition figure and pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, who came second in the 2021 election and has declared his intention to contest again in 2026.

Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, rejected the 2021 results, alleging his victory had been stolen through “ballot stuffing, intimidation by security forces and other irregularities.”

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‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’

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Naftali Bennett, Israel’s former Prime Minister, stated in a televised interview that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must leave office.

Bennett refrained from saying whether he plans to challenge the longest-serving leader in the country in an upcoming election.

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In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 that aired on Saturday, Bennett commented, “Netanyahu has been in power for 20 years… that’s too much; it’s not healthy.”

He called attention to Netanyahu’s “heavy responsibility for the divisions in Israeli society,” highlighting the growing rifts that have emerged under Netanyahu’s leadership, especially regarding his handling of the Gaza war since October 2023.

READ ALSO:Israel’s Netanyahu Says Iran Will ‘Pay Heavy Price’ After Hospital Hit

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Bennett, a right-wing leader who joined forces with Netanyahu’s critics to form a coalition that ousted him from office after 12 consecutive years, insisted that “Netanyahu must go.”

However, the fragile coalition government Bennett led, along with current opposition leader Yair Lapid, collapsed after about a year. This led to snap elections, resulting in Netanyahu regaining the premiership with support from far-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties.

Although Bennett has taken time away from politics, there are rumors of a potential comeback, with public opinion polls indicating he may have enough support to defeat Netanyahu again. Currently, no elections are scheduled before late 2026, but early elections are common in Israel.

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In his Saturday interview, Bennett claimed credit for laying the groundwork for Israel’s bombardment campaign earlier this month against Iranian nuclear and military sites.

READ ALSO:Netanyahu Vows To Thwart ‘Any Attempt’ By Iran To Rebuild Nuclear Programme

The decision to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic “was very good” and “needed,” said Bennett, claiming that the offensive would not have been possible without the work of his short-lived government.

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In Gaza, where Israel has waged war since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Bennett said the military has displayed “exceptional” performance, but “the political management of the country” was “a catastrophe, a disaster”.

Criticising the Netanyahu government’s “inability to decide,” the former prime minister called for an immediate “comprehensive” agreement that would see all remaining hostages freed from Gaza.

“Leave the task of eliminating Hamas to a future government,” said Bennett, who also evaded several questions about whether he intends to run for office.

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