Ahvaz, Iran
The Iranian government closed local offices of Al-Jazeera this week, saying the Arabic-language satellite station was encouraging violent protests among the Arab minority in Iran. Some 200 Arab-Iranians were arrested during a weekend of rioting sparked by a false report that Iran was considering relocating ethnic Arabs, most of whom live in the oil-rich region near the Iraqi border. Iran’s government officially controls all TV and radio, but many Iranians have illegal satellite dishes to receive news from abroad. Only about 3 percent of Iranians are Arabs; most are Persians or Azeris.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Film reviews: The Phoenician Scheme, Bring Her Back, and Jane Austen Wrecked My LifeFeature A despised mogul seeks a fresh triumph, orphaned siblings land with a nightmare foster mother, and a Jane fan finds herself in a love triangle
-
Music reviews: Tune-Yards and PinkPantheressFeature "Better Dreaming" and "Fancy That"
-
Withdrawing 529 plan funds for college? Here's what to know.the explainer Maximize the amount you have stashed away for your education
