Golnaz Esfandiari

2 months ago | rferl.org | Kian Sharifi |Rikard Jozwiak |Golnaz Esfandiari |Mehran Karimi

US lawmakers and experts at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing underscored a rare bipartisan consensus -- preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons as a top priority. However, divisions remain over how far Washington should go in applying pressure versus pursuing diplomacy. Republican lawmakers strongly supported the Donald Trump administration’s decision to reinstate the “maximum pressure” campaign that defined his Iran policy during his first term as US president.

2 months ago | rferl.org | Kian Sharifi |Rikard Jozwiak |Golnaz Esfandiari |Parisa Sohbati

Iran has released video showing a massive underground missile facility filled with a cache of high-powered weaponry. The footage, shared on March 25, showed Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Mohammad Baqeri and Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Aerospace Force commander, showing off what Iranian media said was an "underground missile city."Some of Iran’s most advanced weapons are seen mounted on vehicles in the underground tunnels.

2 months ago | rferl.org | Rikard Jozwiak |Kian Sharifi |Golnaz Esfandiari |Parisa Sohbati

Millions of Afghans in Iran face an uncertain future as Tehran prepares to implement sweeping restrictions that will cut off access to health care, education, housing, and other essential services for undocumented immigrants. The new policy, set to take effect on March 21, has left many Afghans grappling with impossible choices between a hostile host country and an unstable homeland. For Rasheed, an Afghan immigrant living in Iran, the consequences of these policies have already hit home.

2 months ago | rferl.org | Kian Sharifi |Golnaz Esfandiari |Parisa Sohbati |Babak Ghafooriazar

The United States has launched extensive air strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, aiming to curb their threat to shipping while also signaling a warning to Iran. In a statement announcinghis directive on March 15, US President Donald Trump also warned Iran to “immediately” end its support for the Houthis and vowed to hold Tehran “fully accountable” if it threatened Americans or shipping lanes.

2 months ago | rferl.org | Golnaz Esfandiari |Kian Sharifi |Parisa Sohbati |Babak Ghafooriazar

Iran has escalated its crackdown on female singers in an effort to silence them. In past weeks, several women have been detained or summoned by authorities, while their Instagram pages have been shut down. Since the 1979 revolution, women in Iran have been banned from singing solo in public. But despite the restrictions, many female artists have turned to social media to share their voices—often defying both the singing ban and the country’s strict hijab laws.