The third episode of ECFR’s WOMENP mini-series looks at domestic dynamics and the human rights situation in Iran a year after nationwide protests erupted following the death of a young woman, Mahsa Jina Amini, in police custody. The podcast unpacks how power dynamics between state and society have shifted since, and its implications on the country’s leadership. How have Iranians continued with acts of resistance and civil disobedience despite the large scale crackdown by authorities? How has the West responded, and what more can European countries do to tangibly support activists and human rights defenders inside Iran?

In this episode, ECFR’s Ellie Geranmayeh speaks to Tara Sepehri Far, Iran and Kuwait researcher, Middle East and North Africa division, Human Rights Watch; Sussan Tahmasebi, executive director, FEMENA; and Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme, Chatham House.

This podcast was recorded on 30 August 2023.

Suggested reading by experts:

The Protests Inside Iran’s Girls’ Schools by Azadeh Moaveni

Iran’s Hijab-Industrial Complex by Kourosh Ziabari

We-change.org, by multiple authors

The Uncaged Sky by Kylie Moore-Gilbert

Bureaucraft: Statemakers in Amman and Baghdad by José Ciro Martínez, Omar Sirri

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Cover image:

People demonstrate against the death of Iranian protester and prisoner, Javad Rouhi, outside the Interests Section of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the official diplomatic presence of Iran in the US

Image by picture alliance / NurPhoto | Allison Bailey

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