On January 25, about seven Iranian political prisoners began a hunger strike to protest their government's abuses, including its crackdown on journalists and political activists, and its incarceration of dissidents with ordinary, often dangerous, criminals.

* On January 25, about seven Iranian political prisoners began a hunger strike to protest their government's abuses, including its crackdown on journalists and political activists, and its incarceration of dissidents with ordinary, often dangerous, criminals. These prisoners are remarkably courageous souls: Arrested for "crimes" like demonstrating for human rights or asking the United Nations to help beleaguered Iranian oppositionists, they endure grim conditions inside prison. Their strike is a plea for international attention and condemnation of Iran's corrupt clerical regime. One hopes it will be heard not only in the United States but around the world, and especially in France and Germany, where economic interests have so far trumped any genuine concern for the political and human rights of the Iranian people.