TOP STORIES
US Stages Retaliatory Airstrikes Against Iran-Backed Militias In Iraq, Officials Say | ABC News
The U.S. on Tuesday staged airstrikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq in retaliation for ballistic missiles fired Sunday against Al-Assad airbase that left four U.S. personnel with traumatic brain injuries, two U.S. officials said. "Today, at President Biden’s direction, U.S. military forces conducted necessary and proportionate strikes on three facilities used by the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia group and other Iran-affiliated groups in Iraq. These precision strikes are in direct response to a series of escalatory attacks against U.S. and Coalition personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-sponsored militias," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement.
Iran: 2 Detainees Executed, 11 Await Imminent Execution | Human Rights Watch
Iranian authorities have recently escalated executions at an alarming rate, including those of Farhad Salimi and Mohammed Ghobadlou on January 23, with at least 11 people at imminent risk, many of them from minority communities, Human Rights Watch said today. At least 11 prisoners face the death penalty on political or security-related charges that under international law should never result in the death penalty, a grave violation of the right to life. Prisoners at imminent risk were often convicted on vague charges, including moharebeh, or “enmity against God,” and “corruption on earth.” Other countries should put pressure on Iran to end the use of the death penalty for such charges. “Iranian authorities are notorious for wielding the death penalty against people after unfair trials to instill fear into a population that has mobilized nationwide protests calling for fundamental reforms,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch.
Hezbollah Hits IDF Airbase In Northern Israel For Second Time In Two Weeks | Haaretz
Hezbollah says it launched the missiles in response to Israeli assassinations of Hezbollah and Quds Force commanders and after detecting a 'vulnerability' at the Israeli airbase; IDF reports 'slight damage'. Hezbollah said Tuesday that it had conducted the second missile attack in two weeks on an Israel Defense Forces airbase in northern Israel, after detecting a vulnerability in the facility.
UANI IN THE NEWS
An Islamic charity in Britain is under investigation after videos emerged of Iranian generals delivering antisemitic speeches to audiences at its premises in west London. The videos were unearthed by United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a US-based research and advocacy group, and shared with the BBC, which verified their authenticity. According to the BBC’s reporting, one video described an “apocalyptic war on Jews” while a second contained Holocaust denial. The footage – which also includes a denial of the Holocaust – adds to growing concerns from some parliamentarians that the Iranian regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is attempting to radicalize UK Muslims, the BBC report noted.
Pressure Rises In UK For IRGC Terror Status After Videos Of Student Event Leaked | The National
In other footage from January 2021, the IRGC's Gen Saeed Ghasemi compared Maj Gen Suleimani's death to the Hollywood film Terminator 2, saying that after the he was attacked, the broken pieces would come back together, stronger than before. In his talk, Gen Ghasemi also falsely claimed the Holocaust was “a lie and a fake” and said British students could “bring an end to the life of the oppressors and occupiers, Zionists and Jews across the world”. The video was shared with the BBC by US-based campaign group United Against Nuclear Iran. Kanoon Towhid is owned by the Al-Tawheed (TUCF) Charitable Trust, which was already under investigation by the Charity Commission after earlier reports of the event honouring Maj Gen Suleimani. “We can confirm that we have an ongoing compliance case into the Al-Tawheed (TUCF) Charitable Trust and are continuing to engage with its trustees,” a representative told The National.
Iran’s Rouhani “Barred” From Seeking Reelection To Assembly Of Experts | Iran Wire
"... There was no reason given for the Guardian Council's decision," a source close to Rouhani told Reuters news agency, adding that Rouhani has three days to appeal. "Rouhani has been a member of the assembly since 1999 for three terms...it will be interesting to see what the reason for his disqualification was," the source said. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the last say on almost every decision in Iran, “has humilitated (sic) every president who served under him – [Akbar Hashemi] Rafsanjani to Rouhani,” said Jason Brodsky, policy director at the US non-profit advocacy organization United Against Nuclear Iran. “Also this is a signal that Khamenei doesn't want Rouhani even near a key institution as succession looms large. A further consolidation, purification, and purge,” he wrote on the social media platform X.
NUCLEAR DEAL & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
‘This Is Outrageous!’ United Nations Selects Iran To Lead Conference On Disarmament | Biz Pac Review
The United Nations selected Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terror, to lead the U.N. Conference on Disarmament, drawing into question even more the use of the body. The conference will take place from March 18-29 and from May 13-24, and it’s charged with “negotiating nuclear disarmament treaties and a slew of other weapons agreements,” according to the Daily Wire. Keep in mind that Iran is on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon, with the U.N.’s top nuclear official, Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warning last summer that the Persian Gulf country has enough highly enriched uranium to build “several” nuclear weapons if it wants to. “Though it may be drowned out due to all the other bad news out of the Middle East involving Iran, the regime is getting closer and closer to establishing itself as a threshold nuclear state,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, in an interview with Fox News.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Swedish Police Say 5 People Illegally Entered Iran Embassy Site In Stockholm | Fox News
Five people on Tuesday illegally entered the premises of Iran's embassy on the outskirts of Stockholm during a protest, Swedish police said in a statement. The people were later removed from the area. It was not immediately clear whether any of the five had entered the embassy building itself, a police spokesperson told news agency TT. Stockholm and Tehran are involved in a growing diplomatic row over several Swedish citizens held in custody in Iran. Iran has meanwhile accused a Swedish court of unjustly sentencing a former Iranian official to life in prison over a mass execution of political prisoners in the 1980s.
Iran Executes 23-Year-Old Man In Further Crackdown On Protests | New York Times
The Iranian authorities hanged a 23-year-old man early Tuesday, the latest in a string of executions linked to the large-scale protests that shook the country in the fall of 2022. The man, Mohammad Ghobadlou, who worked in a barbershop, was accused of killing a police officer by running over him with his car. His execution, several months after the last hanging of a protester, illustrated how the government is continuing to crack down on dissent in the wake of that monthslong uprising against the Islamic Republic. “They are killing us one by one,” the actor Ashkan Khatibi wrote on social media in a post that included a picture of Mr. Ghobadlou’s father, a disabled veteran of the Iran-Iraq war, wrapped in a blanket in front of the prison, north of Tehran, where his son was held.
Iranian Activist Condemns Execution Of Protester | Iran International
Iranian-American dissident Masih Alinejad slammed the execution of protester Mohammad Gobadlou on Tuesday, calling for international intervention. Alinejad asserted, "As long as the West, instead of punishing the Islamic Republic, rolls out the red carpet for the killers, they will execute more young people in Iran," referring to Iran's recent presence at the United Nations. Expressing dismay over Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian's attendance in New York for a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Alinejad labeled it as "shameful" and called on the US government to revoke Amir-Abdollahian's visa and send him back. Gobadlou, a 23-year-old Iranian, was executed by the Islamic Republic for participating in last year's protest against the murder of Mahsa Amini by morality police. Alinejad highlighted the gravity of the situation, stating, "His crime is protesting for Woman, Life, Freedom, in order to see a free Iran, but he was hanged this morning right after the morning prayer while his mother was in front of the prison to save his life."
US Condemns “Sham Trials” Against Protesters In Iran | Iran Wire
The US Office of the Special Envoy for Iran has strongly condemned this week’s “unjust” execution of a young Iranian man who was sentenced to death in connection with nationwide protests against the clerical establishment. Mohammad Ghobadlou, 23, was handed capital punishment for allegedly running over a police officer with his car and killing him during a protest near Tehran in September 2022. Ghobadlou faced an unfair trial marred by torture allegations, and appeals to take into account his mental health condition were rejected. His execution was the ninth in connection with the monthslong Woman, Life, Freedom protests. “Mohammad Ghobadlou should be alive today. We strongly condemn his unjust execution and the Iranian regime’s continued use of sham trials and the death penalty against those who participated in the Woman, Life, Freedom protests,” US Deputy Special Envoy for Iran Abram Paley said on the social media network X on January 23.
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
Drone Attacks Target US Airbase In Iraq, Causing Injuries, Damage | Al Arabiya
“Multiple attack drones were launched” at the Ain al-Assad base in the western Anbar province, a US military official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject. “Latest reports include injuries and damage to infrastructure,” said the official, adding he did not have further details as yet. An Iraqi security official meanwhile said a drone was shot down as it attempted to target the base.
Iran is sending increasingly sophisticated weapons to its Houthi allies in Yemen, Western officials and advisers say, enhancing their ability to attack merchant vessels and disrupt international commerce despite weeks of U.S-led airstrikes. The Houthis, once derided as a ragtag militia operating in Yemen’s arid backcountry, have emerged as one of Iran’s most capable proxies, these officials and analysts say, due to the flow of weapons from Tehran—and their own homegrown ingenuity. Among other high-end gear, Iran has provided the Houthis with drone jammers and parts for long-range rockets and missiles. The Iranians and their Lebanese Hezbollah allies have sent advisers to Yemen to help the Houthis plan and launch their attacks.
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Iran Bans Ex-President Rouhani From Running For Elite Assembly | Jerusalem Post
Iran's hardline Guardian Council has banned former pragmatist President Hassan Rouhani from standing again in an election in March for the Assembly of Experts, which appoints and can dismiss the supreme leader, state media said on Wednesday. The 88-member assembly, founded in 1982, supervises the most powerful authority but has rarely intervened directly in policy-making. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is 84, so the new assembly is expected to play a significant role in choosing his successor since its members are only elected every eight years.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
The Pentagon joined the White House on Tuesday in remaining elusive about Iran's efforts to resupply the Houthis after the US says it successfully destroyed much of the group's military capabilities. However, the Pentagon says the Houthis still maintain some military capability and additional strikes against US targets are not out of the question. The Houthis haven't launched an attack against US targets since Jan. 18, which Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said is an effect of the US' pressure on the group.
US Urges China To Help Curb Red Sea Attacks By Iran-Backed Houthis | Financial Times
The US has asked China to urge Tehran to rein in Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea but has seen little sign of help from Beijing, according to American officials. Officials have repeatedly raised the matter with top Chinese officials in the past three months, asking them to convey a warning to Iran not to inflame tensions in the Middle East after Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel and the ensuing war. US national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his deputy, Jon Finer, discussed the issue in meetings this month in Washington with Liu Jianchao, head of the Chinese Communist party’s international department, according to US officials. Secretary of state Antony Blinken also raised it, a state department official said.
OTHER FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Iran's Raisi Expected In Turkey For Delayed Gaza Talks | AFP
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was expected to fly to Turkey on Wednesday for twice-delayed talks aimed at ironing out past differences and trying to halt the spread of the Israel-Hamas war. Raisi's visit to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan comes with the war in Gaza starting to enflame tensions and escalate fighting across the Middle East. The United States and Britain have stepped up joint air strikes against Iranian-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen in response to their attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes. Israel has repeatedly targeted Tehran-linked figures in Syria and appears to be on the brink of launching a full-scale war against Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. Iran and Pakistan last week exchanged strikes against "militant" and "terrorist" targets and Turkey itself has stepped up attacks against Kurdish groups in Syria and Iran.