For the next ten weeks, we'll be running the largest Iranian-American voter outreach & turnout EVER, with the goal of electing a record number of Iranian Americans into office and pro-Iranian American majorities in the House and Senate, all as we defeat Donald Trump!
An email from NIAC

 Building Political Power 


It's Time to #BeshkantheVote!

Just in case you missed our email yesterday, we're thrilled to have launched #BeshkanTheVote 2020! For the next ten weeks, we'll be running the largest Iranian-American voter outreach & turnout EVER, with the goal of electing a record number of Iranian Americans into office and pro-Iranian American majorities in the House and Senate--all as we defeat Donald Trump!

So will you to take the first step in helping us achieve these goals by pledging to vote this November? It might seem simple, but pledging to vote results in much higher voter turnout rates, especially among new voters. It also lets us know where we need to focus to drive voter turnout, while ensuring you have everything you need to build your vote plan. 

📌 Take the pledge here> 

Want to learn more about the election and just what's at stake? Interested in understanding why this election is important for everyone, in particular for Gens X and Z and Millennials? Then make sure to tune-in to hear NIAC President Jamal Abdi on August 31st at 7pm ET as he joins Ploughshares Fund for a virtual event entitled "Unmute Yourself: Your Security, Your Vote."

🎟 RSVP for the panel here >
 

 Advancing Peace & Diplomacy 


 
Trump's Max Pressure Campaign Fails… Again

In the Trump administration's latest move to kill the Iran nuclear deal and double down on its failed maximum pressure campaign, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week submitted a complaint to the UN Security Council urging it to "snapback" sanctions on Iran. Unsurprisingly, the bid was rejected by Russia, China, and American allies in Europe. France, Germany, and the UK also submitted a joint letter to the Security Council President noting that they “do not consider that the United States is a JCPOA participant state… and therefore do not consider that the United States’ notification is effective.” 

This latest failure comes on the heels of another embarrassing setback for Pompeo, after he submitted a resolution to the Security Council to indefinitely extend the UN Arms Embargo on Iran. The resolution was shot down, with only the Dominacan Republic lodging support for the U.S. effort. Ultimately, the fate of the Iran deal will depend on the November elections, and the speed with which a potential Biden administration moves to reverse the Trump administration's failed Iran policies by returning to the nuclear deal.

Read more

📌 Round-Up: US Tries to Trigger Snapback Sanctions
📌 Statement on US Decision to Seek “Snapback” of Iran Sanctions
📌 Statement on Rejection of Trump Administration's UN Resolution

 


 Spotlighting Human Rights in Iran 

 
 

Though Iranian women have added their voices to the #MeToo movement in recent years, there has been an extraordinary outpouring of Iranian women using social media platforms to tell their stories of sexual harassment, abuse, and even rape in recent days. Like the steady deluge of #MeToo stories we have seen explode worldwide, in Iran many women were emboldened to share their stories because of the courage of others who blazed the trail. Read more >
 

Iranian-Canadian Targeted by IRGC: The Case of Behdad Esfahbod

Esfahbod was held in solitary confinement for 7 days with hours of daily questioning, psychological torture, and had all of his private data and information taken by IRGC intelligence officials. Under duress, Esfahbod agreed to a cooperation deal to give information on his networks in exchange for his freedom. This, and the fact that IRGC officials were most concerned about Esfahbod’s family informing the media, suggests the IRGC used stress tactics to pressure Esfahbod to provide them with intelligence. Read more >
 

 

 Protecting Civil Rights 


 
 
On June 4th, 2020, Peyman Bahadoran, a 55 year old Iranian-American man with bipolar disorder, was experiencing a mental health crisis when he walked into the Healthy Green Gourmet Deli with his dog. Videos depict a tense interaction with the police. Frightened and in a manic state, Bahadoran pulled out a knife in the store in front of the officers. When asked, he placed the knife on the store counter and walked outside leaving the knife behind. After police pursued Bahadoran outside the store, now unarmed, they surrounded him with guns drawn. 

While Bahadoran’s erratic behavior and combative demeanor warranted intervention, his mental health state should have signaled the officers to deescalate the situation. Instead, officers on the scene defaulted to violent escalation that has become all too commonplace. This tragedy illustrates yet another case in which police violently escalated events rather than diffusing a crisis, resulting tragically in Bahadoran’s permanent paralysis. 

Read more about Peyman's case and learn how you can support his recovery efforts here >

 

 Community & Culture 


 

 
Desert One: Rent the Film & Join a Special Panel Discussion!
 
If you haven’t watched it yet, don’t miss the opportunity to rent a compelling new documentary, Desert One, which tells the story of Operation Eagle Claw—a covert operation ordered by Jimmy Carter to rescue 52 Americans held after the U.S. embassy seizure in 1979. The film provides crucial historical context on what led to that fateful day. And for a limited time only, a portion of the proceeds from rentals will go to NIAC! 

🎥 Rent 'Desert One' here > 

We'll also be hosting a special panel discussion on August 31st at 4pm EST with Desert One director Barbara Kopple, Ambassador John Limbert, and Captain Ishimoto who served as an intelligence officer for Operation Eagle Claw. Make sure to RSVP today!

🎟️ RSVP for the the panel here >


 From Our Staff  
 

The Trump Administration is Hungry for War with Iran
Assal Rad and Negar Mortazavi for The Independent 

“As the world battles a deadly pandemic and the global community calls for worldwide cooperation and ceasefires, Donald Trump’s hawkish policy on Iran has not changed. The international consensus on Iran has been centred around diplomacy and the survival of the nuclear deal...Iran hawks see this time of global crisis as an opportune moment to go after a country of over 80m people, in a region already beleaguered by decades of conflict and US militarism.” Read more >

U.S. pressure keeps elite infighting in Iran in check
Sina Toossi for Al Jazeera English 

“Many in Washington eagerly watch for signs of increased discord inside Iran. However, while the country is in trying times, it does not appear to be in a state that would augur its collapse or surrender to far-reaching US demands. The Iranian people are suffering, while the elite has homogenised in a rightward direction and more moderate voices are increasingly sidelined. US pressure is in many ways cementing the system at the expense of the livelihoods of Iranians.” Read more>

Snapback: The last gasp of Trump's failed Iran strategy
Ryan Costello for Responsible Statecraft

"Fresh off a stunning, if predictable, defeat in seeking to extend the United Nations arms embargo on Iran in violation of the Iran nuclear deal, the U.S. is expected to try to trigger snapback of all U.N. sanctions on Iran in a bid to tear down the nuclear accord... While it can do substantial damage to American credibility and potentially provoke Iran to lash out, it looks increasingly like the last gasp of a failed 'maximum pressure' Iran approach that is likely to be reversed after the U.S. presidential election on November 3." Read more >

The U.S. helped create the UN precisely to block antics like Pompeo’s obsession with Iran
Assal Rad for Responsible Statecraft

"In a world facing a rise in authoritarianism, pandemic, the dangers of nuclear proliferation, and the existential threat of climate change, the significance of the UN and its origins are more relevant than ever. Most recently, the United Nations and the international community held the United States accountable... by rejecting the absurd U.S. claims that it is a 'participant' in the Iran nuclear deal." Read more>

Are the U.S. and Iran talking behind the scenes?
Sina Toossi for the Atlantic Council

“If there is an ongoing US-Iran backchannel, it may be similar to the one Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama conducted via Oman late in the term of former hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Those talks laid the groundwork for rapid diplomatic progress after Rouhani was inaugurated in 2013. Trump has said four times in the past week that he could reach a deal with Iran weeks after winning reelection. He could be hoping for similar results.” Read more>

🎧 NIACast - A Conversation with Ambassador John Limbert 

In the latest episode of NIACast, Assal and Mana sat down with Ambassador John Limbert to discuss his new novel with co-author Ambassador Marc Grossman, Believers: Love and Death in Tehran. Though a tale of fiction, Limbert incorporates into the story his knowledge of Iran’s history, language, and culture, as well as his own experience as one of 52 American hostages held by Iranian students in 1979. Listen here >

If you're not subscribed to NIACast, make sure to check us out on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to hear discussions from past NIAC events, conversations with special guests, and group chats with the NIAC staff! 
 

Weekly Round-Up: 13 of 15 UNSC Members Reject US Snapback Attempt & Iran-IAEA Finalize Agreement on Inspections 

This week, the U.S. asserts that all UN sanctions on Iran will be reimposed on September 20th, despite virtually all UN Security Council members rebuking and disputing the Trump administration’s unilateral claim. Also, Iran and the IAEA struck an agreement for inspections of two nuclear-related sites. 

📖 Read the full Round-Up here >
 

Iran Unfiltered: Iran Dismisses U.S. Move to Reimpose U.S. Sanctions

Check out Iran Unfiltered to read about Zarif's rejection of the U.S. attempt to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran, developments around new missiles unveiled by Iran's defense ministry, and about Iran's denials of giving arms to the Taliban.

📖 Read the latest Iran Unfiltered >

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