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Demonstrators rally in support of Iranian antigovernment protests in Stockholm, Sweden, over the weekend.
Demonstrators rally in support of Iranian antigovernment protests in Stockholm, Sweden, over the weekend.

Iran Live Blog: Foreign Minister Warns Foreigners Not To Foment Protests

Final Summary

-- A top Iranian judiciary official has said antigovernment protest leaders should be handed the harshest possible sentences, while President Hassan Rohani suggested demonstrations were driven by opposition to his ultraconservative rivals in the ruling elite.

-- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has also weighed in on the matter, warning other countries not to foment insecurity in his country, echoing the official position of the Iranian government that the protests were fomented by the intelligence services of foreign states-- including the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.

-- The United States has rejected Iran’s claims that Washington was behind the protests, which have led to the deaths of 22 people and the arrest of more than 1,700 others.

-- German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said the European Union will invite Zarif for talks about the widespread antigovernment protests that have roiled the country since December 2

-- Lawmaker Tayebeh Siavashi told the semiofficial ILNA news agency on January 8 that a 22-year-old man who was arrested by the police had died in prison. He said that he was informed by authorities that the detainee "committed suicide in jail."

-- Various Iranian officials have said that hundreds of detainees have been released, some after agreeing to sign a pledge not to "reoffend," the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.

-- In other news, a senior Iranian education official says Iran intends to ban English-language classes from primary schools amid warnings from Islamic leaders that the language has led to a "cultural invasion" from the West.

Live blog by Golnaz Esfandiari with Farangis Najibullah and Frud Bezhan

*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Tehran (GMT +3.5)

Iranian lawmaker Parvaneh Salahshouri says about 90 students have been arrested in the past few days:

(AP) Britain's media regulator says it is considering an official letter received from Iran's embassy in London complaining about media coverage of the protests.

The regulator, known as Ofcom, said Friday the letter is being carefully evaluated.

Iranian state media say the government is complaining about what it calls a propaganda campaign orchestrated by U.K.-based Persian-language broadcasters.

The letter asserts that the media outlets violated U.K. and international media regulations and tried to incite protesters into using violent tactics.

Ofcom has a broad regulatory role in Britain, overseeing television, radio, high-speed internet and other sectors. One of its roles is to protect British consumers from harmful content.

Report Says Cyberweapons Now Central Part Of Iranian Authorities' Offensive Capabilities

By RFE/RL

WASHINGTON -- A new report by the Carnegie Endowment says Iran’s cyberoperations have become increasingly sophisticated and damaging to its adversaries, and are now a prime policy tool for its security agencies.

The report, released on January 4, said Tehran has used offensive cyberoperations to influence regional affairs, thwart opponents and rivals like Saudi Arabia and the United States, and conduct espionage.

“Iran has demonstrated how militarily weaker countries can use [cybertools] to contend with more advanced adversaries,” the report said.

Much of Iran’s cybercapability is homegrown, the report said, and is frequently guided by the country’s main security organizations -- the Ministry of Intelligence and the hard-line Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

“Tehran has become increasingly adept at conducting cyber espionage and disruptive attacks against opponents at home and abroad, ranging from Iranian civil society organizations to governmental and commercial institutions in Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United States,” the report said.

http://carnegieendowment.org/2018/01/04/iran-s-cyber-threat-espionage-sabotage-and-revenge-pub-75134

Over the past decade, offensive cyberoperations have become a core tool of Iranian statecraft, for the purposes of "espionage, signaling, and coercion,” it said.

statecraft/28957033.html


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