Fewer raids, more bans: Iran exerts control quietly

Tehran's crackdowns on media persist despite the state’s mounting political and economic troubles, with bans of various forms imposed on those who drifts beyond acceptable bounds.

The restrictive measures extend beyond censorship and judicial action to include barriers to income, careers, and public influence. Social media accounts may be deactivated, and work removed from distribution.

The latest example is Reza Rashidpour, a well-known former Iranian television presenter and talk-show host whose programs were taken off the air without explanation, allegedly due to his contributions to former President Hassan Rouhani’s 2017 campaign.

In a post on X addressed to President Masoud Pezeshkian, he claimed he has now been barred from using any platform to publish his work.

“They told me that I am banned from (any artistic) activity,” he wrote. “Five years have passed. The remaining will pass too. In a corner of my home, my homeland, I will sit and watch.”

Rashidpour is by no means an outsider. Securing a major show on the state broadcaster requires extensive vetting, loyalty checks, and alignment with institutional red lines. But falling out of favor can be just as swift.

‘Failed policy’

Yet few rush to defend figures like him—or many others who once thrived within the establishment but later became expendable. The public often sees them as insiders who benefited from the system until the system abruptly turned against them.

This pattern has long applied to artists, athletes, and even politicians; former President Mohammad Khatami’s years of deplatforming and enforced invisibility is a good example.

“Why does a policy that has been applied for decades in culture, media, and politics—and has repeatedly failed—continue to be used as a tool of control?” a commentary on moderate daily Rouydad 24 asked this week.

“Few actions draw more attention to a voice than the attempt to silence it,” the piece added.

Such bans are often unofficial but powerful. Over the years, many artists and athletes who supported popular protests or criticized the state have faced similar restrictions.

Actor, vocalist, footballer

Renowned actress Fatemeh Motamed-Aria was banned from working in the film industry after criticizing government policies and appearing without a headscarf at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, leading to previously completed films being blocked from release.

Classical music maestro Mohammad-Reza Shajarian was similarly sidelined after expressing sympathy with demonstrators in 2009—releasing the song Put Down Your Rifle, an apparent address to Iran’s security forces.

Legendary footballer Ali Daei faced restrictions after expressing support for popular protests in 2022. Authorities confiscated the passports of Daei and his family, and his jewelry shop and restaurant in Tehran were sealed.

Such restrictions could last for weeks or years, and are often lifted as opaquely as they were imposed, with no official charge of explanation.

Quiet crackdowns

Recent months have seen individuals abruptly cut off from their mobile phone numbers and pressured to shut down widely followed social-media accounts.

In August, media reports said authorities blocked the SIM card of journalist Saeedeh Shafiei, forcing her to deactivate her social-media accounts and sign a pledge to publish pro-government content in exchange for restoring service.

Battered by the June war and mounting economic and environmental crises, Tehran appears to be pulling back from some of its bluntest tools—only to replace them with quieter, more insidious methods of repression.

Pezeshkian’s top team unravels under growing pressure

Nov 25, 2025, 05:58 PM

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Behrouz Turani

Mounting pressure on President Masoud Pezeshkian’s administration from hardline opponents and an ailing economy appears to be cutting deep into his inner circle, triggering resignations, public spats and mistrust.

Recent departures and high-profile clashes demonstrate that misgivings within the 18-month-old administration have spilled into public view.

Fayyaz Zahed, a senior adviser, publicly quit last week.

In a sharply worded letter, Zahed denounced several recent appointments as “embarrassing” and reflective of “bad taste,” singling out the choice of Sagheb Esfahani—a hardliner with no experience in the energy sector—to head Iran’s energy optimization body.

Zahed’s colleague Mohammad Mohajeri later quoted him as telling Pezeshkian: “If you want a silent apologist as your adviser, please be advised that genuine opinion cannot be bought with orders and directives.”

Jafar the kingmaker

Much of the internal disarray is now being linked to the expanding influence of Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah—an old friend, wartime companion and arguably the president’s closest confidant.

Reports from Khabar Online and outlets aligned with Majles Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accuse Ghaempanah of driving a series of controversial appointments and sidelining more experienced advisers.

Hardline media have seized on the moment, describing the resignations—grudgingly accepted by Pezeshkian—as evidence of a broader administrative failure, one that neither the president nor his deputies can reverse.

These departures land at a time when Iran’s economy is dragging under renewed sanctions, high inflation, frustrated expectations from the post-election period and a sense that Pezeshkian has struggled to articulate a coherent economic direction.

Hardline outlets including Javan, Kayhan and Sobh-e No have amplified that narrative, arguing that the president’s inability to rein in his inner circle has compounded the economic drift.

The line of attack is clear: factional meddling and poor personnel decisions are not just political missteps—they are undermining governance at a moment of national fragility.

VP Aref next?

Against this backdrop, pro-Ghalibaf media such as Sobh-e No and Khorassan now claim that First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref has submitted his resignation.

The government has not confirmed the reports. Some accounts suggest the trigger is Aref’s escalating clashes with Ghaempanah and Chief of Staff Mohen Hajimirzai. Others say Aref grew frustrated with the “limited scope” of his role.

Aref himself has been criticized by both conservatives and moderates for taking on more responsibilities than his capacity allowed.

If Pezeshkian accepts Aref’s resignation, Ghaempanah would become the president’s last remaining senior vice president, consolidating his position as the most influential figure in the administration’s inner ring.

One anecdote from a recent provincial visit has circulated widely: after one too many sycophantic compliments from Ghaempanah, Pezeshkian reportedly snapped, “Come off it!”

Sasan Karimi, an aide to former foreign minister Javad Zarif, later quipped on social media: “The country would have been better off if Jafar (Ghaempanah) really did come off it. Sometimes the biggest obstacles lie within the innermost circles.”

Together, the confirmed exit of Zahed, the deepening feud around Ghaempanah, the economic malaise, and the swirl of unverified but persistent reports surrounding Aref paint a picture of an administration under severe strain and struggling to hold itself up.