UANI

AP reported that "Iranian police blocked opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi from attending a graveside memorial for victims of post-election unrest after he defied a government ban on the gathering. Mousavi, surrounded by hundreds of supporters, was trying to reach the graveside of Neda Agha Soltan, a young woman whose shooting death at an anti-government rally on June 20 was caught on video that became one of the iconic images of the upheaval. Witnesses said hundreds of police surrounded Mousavi and forced him to leave Behesht-e Zahra cemetery on Tehran's southern outskirts... Iran's state-run Press TV says police have used tear gas to break up a memorial rally by around 1,000 opposition supporters at the grave of a woman killed in post-election turmoil. The crowd were gathered in Tehran's Behesht-e Zahra cemetery Thursday to commemorate those who have died in the government's nearly 7-week-old crackdown against protests that erupted over the disputed June 12 presidential election." (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090730/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_election)

AFP reported that "US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday urged Iran to release political prisoners held after protests over the disputed elections last month. 'We believe that it is imperative for the (Iranian) authorities to release political prisoners,' Clinton told a press conference with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband. Clinton also said the United States deplores reports from Iran that political prisoners were allegedly being abused. Iran's 'continuing detention and abuse of political prisoners certainly suggests that the political situation inside of Iran has not yet resolved itself,' she said. She reiterated US support for the 'people of Iran being able to express their opinions, being able to demonstrate freely and openly and engage in peaceful protests.'" (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090730/pl_afp/iranpoliticsunrestopposition...)

The New York Times reported that "The Iranian authorities sent a mixed message of clemency and firmness on Wednesday, saying that more detainees arrested in the post-election crackdown would soon be freed, but also that 20 protesters charged with serious crimes would be put on trial, starting this weekend. There were also new arrests, including those of two prominent reformists, Saeed Shariati and Shayesteh Amiri, opposition Web sites reported. Separately, an 'underground network providing foreign media outlets with photos and footage of the post-election unrest' has been identified and its members arrested, the state-run Press TV reported, citing security forces. The report said that the network was made up of 'pro-reform extremists' and that at least two members had confessed to providing images of the unrest to Western news media in an effort to 'stage a regime change' in Iran. The Iranian leadership has blamed foreign media for riots and rallies after the disputed June 12 presidential election." (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/30/world/middleeast/30iran.html?_r=1&ref=...)

The LA Times reported that "The Iraqi government Wednesday rejected suggestions that Iranian pressure had prompted a raid on a camp belonging to an Iranian opposition group, saying that Iraqi security forces were merely seeking to extend sovereignty over all Iraqi territory... A police official in Diyala said Iraqi forces had established control over a portion of the camp Wednesday, but were encountering resistance from Mujahedin Khalq members who had lain on the ground to prevent police advancing. ..'The Iraqi government is determined to establish its sovereignty over all positions and facilities that were under the control of foreign forces,' government spokesman Ali Dabbagh told reporters. 'The government wants to open an Iraqi police station inside the camp to impose the rule of law and establish the rule of the state.' Dabbagh said Iranian citizens in the camp would not be forced to return to Iran, where they fear they would be punished." (http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraq30-2009jul30,0,4...)

The Washington Post reported that "Violent clashes continued for a second day Wednesday between Iraqi troops and members of an Iranian opposition group whose camp the Iraqis stormed Tuesday, presenting the first major dilemma for the U.S. government since Iraq proclaimed its sovereignty a month ago...The raid and its aftermath represent a conundrum for U.S. officials. Some say they feel obligated to the MEK because its members have provided information about Iran's nuclear program and because American officials vowed to protect them after the 2003 invasion of Iraq. But condemning this week's events could be seen as an affront to Maliki's government just as U.S. officials are talking up Iraq's sovereignty, proclaimed June 30 when American troops withdrew from cities...Tehran officials have long pressured the Baghdad government to expel the MEK, which seeks to overthrow Iran's Islamic regime. But Iraq has held off from raiding the camp because of U.S. opposition to a violent takeover." (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/29/AR200907...)

The AP reported that "Iran's top diplomat in Bolivia says the Islamic republic has approved a $280 million low-interest loan for President Evo Morales' government to use as it sees fit. Gas and oil exploration are possibilities. Masoud Edrisi told The Associated Press on Wednesday that loan's terms have not yet been set. Iran established diplomatic ties with Bolivia in late 2007 and Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited last year. The country has sold Bolivia Venezuelan-made tractors, built dairy plants and offered to help finance a state-owned cement factory. Edrisi says Iran now has 11 embassies in Latin America, staffed by a total of less than 50 diplomats. He says the Caracas embassy is the largest with 12 officials." (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iFemenyNCPX4IBTr4s4hbD...)

AFP reported that "Iran Khodro, the Middle East's biggest car manufacturer, is to receive one billion dollars in a government-backed rescue package, a company official said on on Wednesday. Debts of several billion dollars were reportedly threatening to force the bankruptcy of the company, which has 60 percent of the Iranian car market and sends exports around the world. 'The Monetary and Credit Council finally agreed with the one-billion-dollar aid to Iran Khodro,' Etemad newspaper said. Jamshid Imani, deputy director of Iran Khodro Company (IKCO), said half of the aid will be available 'within days.' IKCO, a publicly traded company established by private owners in 1962, exports to foreign markets such as Algeria, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and several former Soviet states. It has built manufacturing plants in Egypt, Senegal and Syria.” (http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iTAa_cPOmP2SXPwRATbcp...)

The WSJ reported that "Reports from Tehran families in recent days of receiving the bodies of relatives arrested at opposition rallies who later died from violent treatment in prison have fueled anger at the government...Some of the families say they are speaking out despite being warned against speaking to the media and holding funerals and memorial services. On receiving the bodies, they say, they were told to sign consent forms that named the cause of death as meningitis, flu or bacterial infection... Iran's regime appears to be responding to the pressures, seemingly wary of an even deeper divide in an already volatile political landscape... The parliament last week named a special committee to investigate the conditions of prisoners and facilities after hundreds of families wrote to lawmakers complaining about lack of transparency and reports of abuse. According to independent human-rights organizations, over 1,000 people have been arrested and nearly 100 killed after the June 12 presidential election upset. Among the arrested are 250 prominent reformers, journalists, lawyers and student activists." (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124882798823088671.html)

AFP reported that "Iran might ban pilgrimages to Mecca during the holy month of Ramadan because of swine flu fears as the number of Iranians infected with the virus topped 60, the health minister said on Thursday. 'The umrah during Ramadan will either be very restricted or even cancelled if necessary,' Kamran Bagheri Lankarani told the ILNA news agency about the Muslim fasting month which begins around August 22...Hundreds of thousands of Iranians make the pilgrimage every year...Iran reported its first swine flu case in June and the number of those infected has now risen to 61, Lankarani said." (http://www.breitbart.com/print.php?id=CNG.22cbef62a6115a5a904ca06aa09b5a...)

UANI Board Member Henry Sokolski wrote in the Washington Times "Certainly, if Iran gets a pass for bending the nuclear rules, its model for developing civilian nuclear energy (and getting within weeks of a bomb) would appeal to its insecure neighbors far more than any no-nuclear fuel-making scheme ever could. Conversely, if its nuclear misbehavior is sanctioned heavily, Tehran would become an example to be avoided. Getting the United Arab Emirates to back sanctions will be critical. Rep. Brad Sherman, California Democrat, noted that roughly $12 billion in foreign goods destined for Iran pass through Dubai, including nearly all of Iran's refined petroleum imports. Given Iran's heavy dependence on outside oil refiners, Congress has proposed sanctioning firms and states that export gasoline to Iran or help it refine oil...The IAEA has repeatedly asked Iran to allow the agency to establish secure communication links to the IAEA's remote inspection cameras. Tehran has rebuffed each request. These links are necessary to enable officials in Vienna to see that their cameras are not being interfered with and that reactor fuel containing materials that can be used to make bombs isn't being diverted during the 90-day interval between human inspector visits." (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jul/30/uae-nuclear-deal-atoms-f...)

Kathleen Troia McFarland wrote in Real Clear World "Iran may be the world's fourth largest oil exporter but, since it doesn't refine that oil, still has to import 40% of its gasoline. That gasoline comes from just five companies - four in Europe and one in India. The ships that deliver that gasoline are insured by a just a handful of companies in Britain, France, Germany and Japan. If we can pressure those refining and insurance companies to stop doing business with Iran, we can get Iran in an economic stranglehold. Congressional legislation has been introduced by Senators Lieberman and Kyl to that effect - to sanction any company that helps Iran import gasoline. British Petroleum (BP) in anticipation of such a move, last year stopped selling gas to Iran. They figured it was better to miss out on business with Iran than risk losing their American business. If these European, Indian and Japanese companies do what BP did, and stop selling gas to Iran, others will no doubt move into fill the void...The one thing we can do, and should do immediately, is cut off their gasoline. It will encourage those Iranian citizens, who recently took to the streets to protest a sham election, to take to the streets again to protest an incompetent government. Then they can change their regime themselves. That's how we helped bring down the Soviet Union, and that's how we can help bring down the Mullahs." (http://www.realclearworld.com/printpage/?url=http://www.realclearworld.c...)

Ambassador John Bolton wrote in yesterday's Wall Street Journal "Under the worst-case scenario, Iran will continue improving its nuclear facilities and Mr. Obama will become the first U.S. president to tie the issue of Israel's nuclear capabilities into negotiations about Iran's. Israel understands that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's recent commitment to extend the U.S. 'defense umbrella' to Israel is not a guarantee of nuclear retaliation, and that it is wholly insufficient to deter Iran from obliterating Israel if it so decides. In fact, Mrs. Clinton's comment tacitly concedes that Iran will acquire nuclear weapons, exactly the wrong message. Since Israel, like the U.S., is well aware its missile defense system is imperfect, whatever Mr. Gates said about the 'defense umbrella' will be politely ignored. Relations between the U.S. and Israel are more strained now than at any time since the 1956 Suez Canal crisis. Mr. Gates's message for Israel not to act on Iran, and the U.S. pressure he brought to bear, highlight the weight of Israel's lonely burden. Striking Iran's nuclear program will not be precipitous or poorly thought out. Israel's attack, if it happens, will have followed enormously difficult deliberation over terrible imponderables, and years of patiently waiting on innumerable failed diplomatic efforts. Absent Israeli action, prepare for a nuclear Iran." (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020360920457431609362274480...)

Amir Soltani Sheikholeslami and Rita Nakashima Brock wrote in the Boston Globe "The iconic image of Neda Agha Soltan, a young woman whose dying moments shook the conscience of the world, has exposed the face of a nightmare: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader. Khamenei is intent on denying Iranians the blessings of life and liberty by sanctifying fraud and force in the name of religion. Having wrapped himself in a tissue of lies to fix Iran's 2009 elections to protect his toxic dauphin, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Khamenei has blamed the Iranian people's protests on the United States and Britain...Iran's crisis is no longer about the sanctity of Ahmadinejad's vote. It is about Khamenei's abduction of the republic and usurpation of religion. Khamenei has shattered his religious authority by converting the Iranian state into a caliphate whose guardians prey on the corpse of Iran's children in the name of guarding the constitution of an absent sovereign: the Hidden Imam...With the presidential oath scheduled for as early as Sunday, Khamenei stands alone, isolated and exposed. Virtually all of Iran's ancient religions and traditions bind its people to the rejection of falsehood. Whether or not Ahmadinejad takes the oath, Iranians will not accept it and Obama should not recognize force and farce as a substitute for faith and freedom." (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2009/0...)

Massimo Calabresi wrote in Time "There was activity recently in Washington as well, on the Iran front. At a congressional hearing on Iran on July 23, House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Howard Berman announced that if Iran doesn't engage in talks, he would move ahead 'in the early fall' with a widely supported bill that would ban U.S. commercial ties with any company that sells refined petroleum products to Iran...Iran has not responded to an offer of talks made on April 8 by the U.S. and its allies. The Europeans have yet to reopen communication with Tehran in the aftermath of the June 12 presidential election and the ensuing crackdown. And there have been no contacts between Iran and the countries pushing for talks since the Obama Administration reached out to Iran in March...Until now, Iran has shown little appetite for negotiating over its nuclear program, and the continuing post-election turmoil inside the regime further bedevils prospects for talks. But the Administration is hoping to focus minds in Tehran on finding a diplomatic solution through a flurry of activity designed to make clear the consequences of Iran's refusal to negotiate over its nuclear program." (http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1913365,00.html)