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Karmel Melamed

Karmel Melamed is an award-winning journalist and commentator in Southern California covering Iran, Iranian Americans and Middle East affairs.

“We have built rich and full lives here as part of the Los Angeles community, and we are forever grateful to the city and to the United States for opening its arms and welcoming us so warmly,” Sharon Nazarian told JNS.
“Several Jewish friends inside Iran sent me messages on Instagram and WhatsApp saying they were unharmed but very frightened of the regime’s authorities,” the journalist Rosa Parto told JNS.
Many Jews have recently fled Tehran for quieter areas north of the city during the conflict.
“The people of Iran are truly happy and grateful to Israel for taking out the murderous goons of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” an Iranian American activist told JNS.
Jewish in Iran “are honestly furious at their leadership for ignoring Arvin’s case while he was rotting in jail for two years,” the Persian-language journalist who was among those to break the story told JNS.
Many expats favor the former president, saying they see him as harsher on the Islamic regime, while others plan to vote for the current vice president.
“Iranian authorities often subject Jewish citizens to different standards when it comes to determining judgments in cases of this nature,” wrote Deborah Lipstadt, the U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism.
The “eye of the octopus,” the Islamic regime in Iran, must be addressed, Reza Pahlavi told JNS in an exclusive, far-ranging interview.
“He helped keep Iranian culture alive in exile and kept exiled Iranians in love with their country,” said Pooya Dayanim, an Iranian Jewish attorney in Los Angeles and friend of Bibiyan’s.