Famous Iranian human rights lawyer detained, her daughter says
A famous Iranian human rights lawyer has been detained by authorities without any explanation, her daughter said Thursday.
Nasrin Sotoudeh was detained in Iran Wednesday night, her daughter Mehraveh Khandan wrote on Instagram. She said authorities also seized electronic devices in their raid.
Sotoudeh received the prestigious Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Union in 2012. Her previous clients include Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi.
Senate majority leader casts doubt on Trump threats to exit NATO
Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO and again raised the idea of leaving the alliance during a private lunch Wednesday. But any withdrawal would require congressional approval — a prospect Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday would be difficult.
“We got an awful lot of people who think that NATO is a very critical, incredibly successful post-World War II alliance,” Thune said of past conversations among Republicans about the move.
“I think in the world today, you need allies,” he added.
Iran’s parliament speaker claims 7 million ready to fight US
Iran’s parliament speaker claimed Thursday that 7 million Iranians stood ready to fight any U.S. ground invasion of the Islamic Republic.
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who has been discussed as a possible negotiating partner with the U.S., has offered a series of online posts challenging America since the war’s start.
“Right now, in less than a week, a powerful national campaign sweeping the country has brought forward around 7 million Iranians who have already stepped up and declared they’re ready to pick up arms and stand in defense of our nation,” he wrote on X.
This claim has been circulating on social media accounts for days. Qalibaf is the first high-ranking official to mention it in Iran, a nation home to some 90 million people.
It is unclear where this figure comes from, but state media and text message campaigns have urged people to volunteer. The government has also called on retired soldiers to express their interest in fighting, while the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s all-volunteer Basij force has begun accepting children as young as 12 into its ranks.
Source: AP news
