Esteghlal and Malavan football teams booked their place in the 2024/25 Iran’s Hazfi Cup semifinals on Saturday.

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here. I'm Abubakar Siddique, senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi.

Iran has become the latest team to book their place at the 2026 World Cup. The country secured qualification despite a 2-2 home draw with Uzbekistan at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on Tuesday.

as they chanted Zan Zendegi Azadi or Jin Jîyan Azadî, meaning Woman Life Freedom in Persian and Kurdish respectively. Edited by Malu Halasa, a writer and editor specialising in Middle Eastern art and ...