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Europe Ready To Strengthen Iran Sanctions Under Pres. ...

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:18:30 +0100

The New York Times reported that European governments "are signaling that they may be more willing to engage with the incoming Obama administration on a variety of stalled issues, including taking in prisoners from the Guantanamo Bay detention center and strengthening sanctions against Iran.... America's allies may also be more willing to help out Mr. Obama on Iran - providing he makes good on his promise to allow his administration to engage directly with Iranian officials without preconditions, one European diplomat said. The United States, along with Europe, Russia and China, has been trying to get Iran to abandon its nuclear program through a mixture of economic sanctions and incentives, with no success so far. Bush administration officials have complained that part of the problem has been that Germany, Russia and China in particular have been unwilling to impose punitive sanctions against Iran. But those countries might be more willing to toughen the sanctions against Iran if Mr. Obama 'softens the atmosphere,' the diplomat said, by talking directly with Iranian officials - a change that European negotiators have long pushed for. 'It would be easier to make the case then that we are trying everything,' the European diplomat said. Read More

Reuters reported that Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Ali Larjani, said that "Gaza will become Israel's graveyard... on Sunday after the Jewish state launched a ground offensive deep into the coastal Palestinian territory. Israeli tanks and infantry battled Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip on Sunday after eight days of deadly air strikes failed to halt the Islamist group's rocket attacks on Israel." Read More

The New York Times reported that hard-line Iranian officials are "cracking down on activists who have supported reformist candidates in the past" leading up to Presidential elections. "Hard-liners have increased pressure on political activists before previous elections. And the Guardian Council, a body of clerics and jurists that vets candidates for office, has prevented many reformers from running." Read More

The AP reported that "An Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander is calling on Islamic countries to use oil as a weapon to end the fighting in Gaza." Read More

The New York Times reported on the role of Hezbollah in the recent violence in Gaza. "Hezbollah is well aware of Hamas's abilities, having worked with Iran to train and prepare the Gaza-based movement for this conflict... 'If Hamas is really losing, it becomes crucial for Hezbollah to intervene,' said Ms. Saad-Ghorayeb, the author. 'This isn't just a war with Hamas; it's a war against the whole resistance front,' meaning Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Hamas. For the moment, Hezbollah seems unwilling even to consider that possibility. But at least one figure who is close to Hezbollah's leadership agreed that the pressure for intervention would grow if Hamas seemed close to defeat." Read More

The AP reported on Iraqi Prime Minister Malaki's visit to Iran over the weekend. "Iran's state television says Iran and Iraq will increase their economic cooperation to $10 billion in 2010. The report on Sunday quotes Iranian Vice President Parviz Davoudi. He says the cooperation will be in the energy and trade fields and will also include reconstruction projects in Iraq." Read More

David Ignatius wrote in the Washington Post that "Perhaps Barack Obama imagined that he could take office on Jan. 20 with a clean slate in the Middle East. He spoke of opening a dialogue with America's adversaries, such as Syria and Iran, in the pursuit of peace and security in the region. That image of 'turning a page' brought hope to many in the Middle East, but it created concern among hard-liners on all sides. Iran and its proxies worried that American diplomacy might undercut their radical appeal; some Israelis worried that the peace policies of an untested new administration might undermine Israeli security. But as the continuing fighting in Gaza shows, there is no such thing as a clean slate in the Middle East." Read More

Ambassador Bolton wrote in the Washington Post about the "Three State Option" and the role of Iran in the recent Gaza violence. "War in the Gaza Strip demonstrates yet again that the current governance paradigm for the Palestinian people has failed. Terrorists financed and supplied by Iran control Gaza; the Palestinian Authority is broken, probably irretrievably; and economic development is stalled in Gaza and the West Bank. Palestinians are suffering the consequences of regional power struggles played out through them as surrogates.... The Palestinian and Israeli peoples deserve a little glasnost and perestroika from the outside world. Either we do better, conceptually and operationally, or Iran will be happy to fill the vacuum." Read More

Yossi Klein Halevi and Michael B. Oren wrote in the LA Times that "Hamas, like Hezbollah in Lebanon, is a proxy for the real enemy Israel is confronting: Iran. And Israel's current operation against Hamas represents a unique chance to deal a strategic blow to Iranian expansionism. Until now, the Iranian revolution has appeared unstoppable. The Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s ended with Iranian troops occupying Iraqi territory. Iranian influence then spread to Saudi Arabia's heavily Shiite and oil-rich Eastern province, and to Lebanon through Hezbollah. Since the fall of their long-standing enemy, Saddam Hussein, Iranians have deeply infiltrated Iraq. Syria has been drawn into Iran's sphere, and even the Sunni sheikdoms of the gulf now defer to Iran, dispatching foreign ministers to Tehran and defying international sanctions against it. Iran has co-opted Hamas, a Sunni organization closely linked to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, transforming the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into a jihad against the Jewish state. But Iran's boldest achievement has been to thwart world pressure and approach the nuclear threshold. Once fortified with nuclear weapons, Iranian hegemony in the Middle East would be complete." Read More

Stephen Glover wrote about Iranian President Ahmadinejad's Christmas message to the people of Britain in the Independant. "No one should doubt that the Iranian government is repressive and authoritarian. Last month it closed the Tehran office of Human Rights Watch, run by the Nobel Peace Prize winner and lawyer Shirin Ebadi. President Ahmadinejad and most of his crew are not very nice people. They do not believe in a free press or in free expression. Mr Johnson's blackballing by the buffers in the Garrick may be a very good joke. Channel 4's showing of Ahmadinejad's Christmas broadcast was an extremely bad one." Read More

In the New York Times, William Kristol addressed the role of Iran in the recent Gaza violence. "The combination of such terror movements with a terror-sponsoring and nuclear-weapons-seeking Iranian state (aided by its sidekick Syria) has produced a new kind of threat to Israel. But not just to Israel. To everyone in the Middle East - very much including Muslims - who aren't interested in living under the sway of extremist regimes. And to any nation, like the United States, that is a target of Islamic terror. So there are sound reasons why the United States - whether led by George W. Bush or Barack Obama - will stand with Israel as it fights. But Israel - assuming it succeeds - is doing the United States a favor by taking on Hamas now. Read More

Former Iranian Pres Rafsanjani Says Hamas Has A "New Weapon" That Can Hit Targets ...

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 10:52:51 +0100

The LA Times reported that former Iranian President Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani said "Hamas possesses a 'new weapon' to face Israeli armor in case Israel decides upon a ground invasion into the Gaza Strip, a senior Iranian official and ranking cleric told worshippers in Tehran today. According to former Iranian president Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani, chairman of Iran's powerful Expediency Council, the advanced weapon would allow the Palestinian militant group to target Israeli tanks 'from a long distance.'" Read More

Iran's Supreme Leader was ranked #11 on Newsweek's 50 Global Elite saying "It is Khamenei, as the authoritative communicator of God's will, who will decide how Iran chooses to exercise its newfound clout in the region. Will he push ahead with Tehran's nuclear program and move from bleeding the United States in Iraq to pricking it in Afghanistan?" Read More

AFP reported that "Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki hit out at the international community for not doing more in the face of Israel's deadly blitz on Gaza on Friday and demanded an immediate halt to the assault.... Mottaki accused the Israeli navy of behaving like 'a bunch of Somali pirates' after a patrol boat collided with an aid boat carrying medicines and international activists trying on Tuesday to break Israel's blockade of Gaza. He said the Gazans were justified in their belief that some Arab countries had 'betrayed' them. Former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani called on Muslims to provide political, financial and military help to the Hamas fighters." Read More

In an editorial, The New York Times said "Men hold all of the meaningful levers of political power in Iran, but it is a woman they fear. If not, why is the mullah-led government trying to shut down the operations of Shirin Ebadi?... We condemn Tehran's mistreatment of this woman of extraordinary honor and courage. We urge the United States, Europe and other major powers to keep pressure on Iran to ensure that no further harm comes to Ms. Ebadi and that she remains free to do her essential work. If Tehran wants relief from international criticism about its human rights record, it must start by adhering to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and respecting the rights of all of its citizens." Read More

AP reported "A former Iranian now living in Tulsa wants to block a law proposed in Iran that would require men who leave the Muslim faith to be executed. The Rev. Reza Safa is the founder and president of TBN Nejat TV, a Tulsa-based television ministry that beams 24-hour-a-day Christian programming to satellite dishes in Iran." Read More

Ambassador Bolton wrote in the Wall Street Journal that "on proliferation, what is striking are the similarities between Mr. Obama and President George W. Bush's second term. Given Mr. Bush's recent record, continuity between the two presidencies is hardly reassuring. And where Mr. Obama differs with Mr. Bush, he is only more accommodating to the intractable rogues running Pyongyang and Tehran. This is decidedly bad news." Read More

Telegraph columnist Terry Riddell, wrote that "While it is never wise to over-state British clout, UK diplomacy has something to offer the rookie president of a country which has refused to denounce Israel or engage with Iran.... We can't afford, in 2009, to fight extravagant wars. Mr Brown must tell the incoming president that military might is never going to win Afghanistan. Once again, we risk pursuing the wrong conflict while another global crisis - this time in Iran - festers almost unseen." Read More

Over 20,000 Iranian Students Register To Fight In Gaza -- Hamas Displaying Upgraded Arsenal ...

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 10:49:50 +0100

Iranian press reported that over 20,000 Iranian students have "registered their names on a website to announce they are ready to be sent to the Gaza Strip and are prepared to be martyred there, the Fars news agency reported." Read More

The NY Times reported "Hamas has in recent days displayed an arsenal that has been upgraded with weapons parts smuggled into Gaza since it seized control of the territory 18 months ago, according to American and Israeli officials.... The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss intelligence matters, said that Hamas appeared to have relied on a combination of black-market entrepreneurs and help from its longtime patrons Iran and Syria to procure rocket parts." Read More

The LA Times reported on Iran's reaction to the recent violence in Gaza. "With bellicose rhetoric, the Islamic Republic has taken the lead in opposing the Israeli military operation in Gaza. The vociferous public displays, analysts say, are aimed primarily at hard-core government supporters in Iran whom officials are seeking to energize before the June presidential election. But the high-profile maneuvers are a double-edged sword, because they also reinforce perceptions in Israel, the U.S. and large parts of the Arab world about links between Iran and Hamas, the militant Palestinian group that took military control of Gaza in mid-2007." Read More

The NY Times reported on yesterday's Arab League meeting. "Moderate Arab states generally allied to the United States blamed Palestinian disunity for the crisis and more radical states, some of whom did not attend, urged collective action to defend the Palestinians against Israel.... Egypt's president, Hosni Mubarak, has made similar criticisms, and he has essentially told Arab nations that want Egypt to come to the defense of Hamas - and Iran - to mind their own business." Read More

Reuters reported "A newspaper close to former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been closed down for publishing an article the authorities said was sympathetic to Israel" Read More

Reuters reported "Iraq said on Wednesday it wants thousands of Iranian opposition exiles at a camp north of Baghdad to leave the country, although it does not plan to expel them by force." Read More

Hamas Rockets "Striking Deeper Than Ever" -- Iranian Hardline Students Storm UK ...

Thu, 01 Jan 2009 10:19:12 +0100

Reporting on the recent violence in Gaza, the LA Times noted that the Iranian supplied rockets Hamas is firing at Israel are "striking deeper than ever into the Jewish state.... One rocket landed 28 miles from Gaza in the desert city of Beersheba, a range that makes 700,000 Israelis, a tenth of the country's population, potential targets." Read More

The AP reported that Iranian hardline students broke into the UK Embassy's residence in Tehran. "According to the agency, the students stormed the compound Tuesday evening and pulled down the British flag. IRNA says the students then hoisted a Palestinian flag at compound's entrance before police forced them to leave." Read More

The New York Times reported that President Ahmadinejad presented his economic plan "that would scrap energy subsidies, a significant change in a major oil-producing country where gasoline is sold for 36 cents a gallon. Economists warn that the move could spur inflation and raise unemployment. But Mr. Ahmadinejad urged Parliament to vote for the bill because of the need to curb costly energy consumption, which the subsidies have encouraged." Read More

The New York Times reported on the regional response to the violence in Gaza saying "as major street demonstrations continued Tuesday from North Africa to Yemen, some marchers and opinion-makers also lashed out at other moderate Arab governments for failing to take a stronger stand. Syria and Iran, meanwhile, have drawn praise for their militancy.... Egyptian officials see the hand of Iran, a patron of Hamas, in the current conflict. Iran had been pressing Egypt before the conflict, apparently eager to undermine Egypt's role as a mediator between the Palestinian factions. Demonstrators gathered in front of the Egyptian Embassy in Tehran on Dec. 17 to protest Egypt's position toward Hamas. Recently, government-allied newspapers in Egypt have lashed out at Iran and its ally Hezbollah, whose leader, Hassan Nasrallah, demanded Sunday that Egypt open its border and allow weapons and supplies to flow to Hamas." Read More

Reuters reported that while speaking to the Arab League today, President Ahmadinejad said "it must act quickly to end Israeli attacks on Gaza Palestinians adding that setting up a committee or making speeches was not enough. But Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not suggest specific action by Arab states, some of which non-Arab Iran has criticized for not doing enough to protect Palestinians after more than 380 deaths." Read More

Michael Gerson wrote in the Washington Post that "Given the momentum of his campaign promises, Obama seems likely to offer a grand bargain to Iran -- economic engagement, security assurances and nuclear fuel for civilian uses in exchange for Iranian abandonment of the nuclear enrichment cycle and ending support for anti-American (and anti-Israeli) terrorists and militias.... But the regime is likely to reject such a deal.... A failed grand bargain would come with a price: It would dramatically raise expectations of action. If Iran refuses a generous offer, its intentions would be completely unveiled, American influence in the Middle East would be challenged -- and President Obama would face one of the most difficult military choices of modern times." Read More

The AP reported that "The Bush administration on Tuesday expressed grave concern about the detention and interrogation in Iran of a prominent American academic, an incident that has led the National Academies of Science to suspend educational exchanges with Iranian institutions. Amid growing tension with Iran over its nuclear program and alleged support for extremists, the State Department said Iran's treatment of Glenn Schweitzer, head of the academies' Eurasia program... Schweitzer, who has visited Iran frequently in the past without incident and was in the country with a valid Iranian visa in his U.S. passport along with other American scientists, was detained on Dec. 4 in his Tehran hotel room and questioned for three hours by men claiming to be Iranian security officials, the National Academies of Science said." Read More

CNN reported that following the raiding of Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi's legal offices in Iran "Other peace prize winners have launched a letter writing campaign to the United Nations and Iranian embassies in an effort to raise concerns about her safety." Read More

The Canadian Press reported on Iran's imprisonment of a blogger. "Judiciary spokesman Ali Reza Jamshidi told reporters in Tehran that Hossein Derakhshan was being held under order of the revolutionary court. Jamshidi said Tuesday that Derakhshan was charged with insulting religious figures, but did not elaborate." Read More

Iranian Press reported "Iran says it will cut oil output by 545,000 barrels per day (bpd) from Jan.1 in line with OPEC's December decision to reduce supplies.... The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which produces about 40 percent of the world's crude, agreed in a December summit to cut output by a record 2.2 million bpd to prevent the downward spiral of oil prices." Read More

Breaking News - Iranian students break into UK Embassy residence

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 15:13:12 +0100

Iranian students break into UK Embassy residence

The Associated Press, Tuesday, December 30, 2008

TEHRAN, Iran: Iran's official news agency says dozens of hardline students have broken into the British Embassy residence in Tehran.

The IRNA agency says the students accuse Britain of supporting Israel's air assault on the Gaza Strip.

The agency says the students stormed the compound Tuesday evening and pulled down the British flag.

IRNA says the students then hoisted a Palestinian flag at compound's entrance before police forced them to leave.

The news agency says the break-in lasted about an hour and that the area is now calm. No injuries were reported.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has called for an immediate cease-fire by both Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza.

http://www.iht.com/bin/printfriendly.php?id=19009348

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Pres Ahmadinejad Introduces Economic Plan To Mixed Reviews -- More Questions For HP On Trade ...

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 11:30:08 +0100

Reuters reported that President Ahmadinejad introduced a new economic plan in Iran, "but some in parliament said it was ill-planned and would stoke inflation. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad suggested his reform ideas before oil prices tumbled but he said change was needed more urgently now crude has fallen". Read More

Following yesterday's report in the Boston Globe, The San Francisco Chronicle reported "Mike Turner, a former Commerce Department export control official who is now with the Washington trade consulting firm MK Technology, said enforcement of the trade embargoes was stepped up by the Bush administration, which put a particular focus on Iran.... The link between HP and Iran could force the issue. Turner said published reports suggest that a former HP official knew that the Dubai distributor was selling in Iran. That could prompt U.S. officials to question the company. An HP spokeswoman declined to say whether the company had been contacted by trade officials." Read More

Reuters reported "Iran has set up a court to try Israelis for its air attacks on Gaza and is ready to try in absentia any people who Tehran says have committed 'crimes,' a judiciary official said on Tuesday." Read More

The AP reported that Iranian authorities have "banned newspapers from advertising trips to the United States." Read More

The New York Times reported that "a suicide bomber affiliated with a Sunni militant group killed four people and wounded 12 in an attack early Monday in Saravan, a southeastern city, the official IRNA news agency reported. The group, Jundallah, has attacked Iranian armed forces and Revolutionary Guards in the past. But this was the first time it had used a suicide bombing similar to those in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan." Read More

According to the New York Times, "Swiss authorities have released from jail a man suspected of smuggling atomic technology to Libya and Iran as part of the nuclear black market of Abdul Qadeer Khan, officials and family members said Monday.... The Tinners are suspected of having worked for Dr. Khan, the Pakistani bomb pioneer who sold illegal materials to Libya, Iran and North Korea before Western nations disrupted his operations in 2003." Read More

In an editorial the Washington Post wrote that "Israel's battle with Hamas in Gaza is producing a schism among Muslim states. Iran and its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon have joined Hamas's Damascus-based leadership in calling for a new intifada, or uprising, against Israel -- and also against the governments of Egypt and Jordan, which are accused of silently supporting Israel's air attacks." Read More

Khamenei Orders Muslims to Defend Palestine & Criticizes Arab Governments Over Support -- ...

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:55:10 +0100

Reuters reported that Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "issued a religious decree to Muslims around the world on Sunday, ordering them to defend Palestinians in Gaza against Israeli attacks 'in any way possible'... Khamenei criticised some Arab governments for their lack of response towards the Israeli raids." Read More

Reuters reported that amid escalating tensions between Israel and Palestine, "A group of Iranian hardline clerics is signing up volunteers to fight in the Gaza Strip." Read More

Iranian press reported that "The first Iranian shipment of aid for the Gaza Strip has arrived it Egypt... Iran has also loaded food, fuel and medicine onto a ship that will depart the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas for Gaza later today with 2000 tons of humanitarian aid." Read More

The LA Times reported on Iranian President Ahmadinejad's Christmas message. "In a recorded message to air Christmas Day on Britain's Channel 4, Ahmadinejad praises Christianity but goes on to say that if Jesus returned to Earth, 'he would fight against the tyrannical policies of prevailing global economic and political systems.' Ahmadinejad didn't say specifically what he meant, but presumably he was referring to the policies of the United States and West European countries, which have imposed economic sanctions on Iran to try to force it to shut down its nuclear enrichment program." Read More

The Boston Globe reported that HP "uses third party to sell printers in Iran... if HP is aware enough of Redington Gulf's sales in Iran to control the types of products that are offered there, it could be in violation of US export laws, according to sanctions specialists." Read More

In the Washington Post, Ray Takeyh of the Council on Foreign Relations wrote "The very fact that Tehran is willing to have extensive talks with the United States would be recognition on its part that American power can still present a barrier to its resurgence. But the United States must seriously consider how it can leverage talks to its advantage; its Iranian adversary has lost little time doing just that." Read More

Politico reported on the next admistration and the challenge of a nuclear Iran mentioning UANI Advisory Board Co-Chair, Ambassador Dennis Ross. "Within Obama's transition, Democrats say there's a subtle division between between advisers who hold out hope for a direclty negotiated peace, culminating with a signing ceremony on the South Lawn, and those who have argued for a more oblique approach aimed at a negotiated peace between Israel and Syria, and weakening Syria's ties with Iran. The latter group of advisers - which include former Clinton aides Dennis Ross and Martin Indyk - see weakening the role of Iran, which is closely tied to Hezbollah, as central to establishing an Israeli-Palestinian peace." Read More

Karim Sadjadpour of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace wrote in the Australian that "The US can and should make clear that it is eager to put aside 30 years of mutual mistrust and hostility and establish a new tone for the relationship. If and when it becomes evident that hardliners in Iran are the chief impediment to better relations, internal elite and popular opposition could build, and potentially large, unpredictable cleavages could be created within the Iranian political system." Read More

AFP reported that "The rights group headed by Iranian Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi is to lodge a complaint against the 'illegal' closure of its office". Read More

Voice of America reported that "The State Department said Wednesday that Iraq has assured the United States it will not forcibly repatriate members of an Iranian rebel group that has been based in Iraq since the Saddam Hussein era. The status of about 3,500 members of the Iranian exile group, the Mujaheddin-e Khalq, or MEK, has been an issue of contention between Iraq and Iran." Read More

The Guardian reported that "Rising numbers of Iranians are spurning marriage and having sex illegally outside wedlock". Read More

Russia Denies Missile Sale To Iran -- Pres. ...

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:50:39 +0100

The New York Times reported that Russia denied recent reports of surface to air missile sales to Iran. "A Russian government agency on Monday denied an Iranian official's claim that Russia was selling an advanced air-defense system to Iran. The Iranian claim 'did not correspond to reality,' said the agency, the Federal Military and Technical Cooperation Service." Read More

The McClatchy News Service reported that "President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad may be the subject of incessant grumbling and the butt of jokes zinging from cellphone to cellphone, yet with presidential elections six months away, he's still the man to beat. The elections will be of intense interest to President-elect Barack Obama. Iran's alleged nuclear-weapons program, support for terrorist groups and influence in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf, are likely to make the Islamic Republic one of his main foreign policy challenges. Some observers have speculated that Obama may wait until after June before offering direct negotiations with Iran, in hopes that Ahmadinejad will be replaced by a more moderate figure. Ahmadinejad's opponents, mostly reformers and some traditional conservatives, are struggling to capitalize on the president's woes and heal their own internal divisions." Read More

The New York Times reported that under President-Elect Obama and Senator Clinton, the State Department will have "a bigger budget, high-profile special envoys to trouble spots and an expanded role in dealing with global economic issues at a time of crisis" noting UANI Advisory Board Co-Chairs Ambassadors Holbrooke and Ross. Read More

The LA Times reported that Iranian security officials "shut down the office of the country's leading rights defenders Sunday as activists and lawyers gathered there to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A swarm of uniformed and plainclothes security officers raided Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi's Center for the Defense of Human Rights, reportedly taking video footage of offices, making an inventory of equipment and demanding that members leave, telling them authorities had a court order banning any ceremony." Read More

Reuters reported that "Emirates Telecommunications (Etisalat) ETEL.AD said on Tuesday it was part of a consortium that had made the highest bid for Iran's third mobile telephone licence." Read More

Canada's Globe and Mail published an oped by Richard Haas of the Council on Foreign Relations on Iran's nuclear ambitions noting "Iran and its nuclear program may well constitute the Obama administration's first foreign policy crisis. The reason is simple. Iran is well down the path to being able to enrich uranium on a large enough scale to produce a nuclear weapon." Read More

The New York Times reported that "An Iranian resistance group on Monday condemned a renewed push by the Iraqi government to deport its members as a result of undue Iranian influence." Read More

President of Iranian Front Company Arrested in New York

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:46:54 +0100

Bloomberg reported that "The president of a foundation that owns a 60 percent stake in a 36-story New York office tower that U.S. prosecutors say belongs to the Iranian government was arrested for destroying documents." "Farhsid Jahedi is president of the Alavi Foundation, the successor to a foundation created in the 1970s by the Shah of Iran. Alavi has majority control of the building at 650 Fifth Ave. in Manhattan. The U.S. on Dec. 17 sought to seize part of the building, claiming the Iranian government's Bank Melli co- owns the building through ASSA Co., a Channel Islands-based corporation." Read More

The Washington Post reported that "Iranian authorities on Sunday closed the office of the country's main human rights organization, headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi." "Dozens of plainclothes detectives and local police officers entered the Center for the Defense of Human Rights in Tehran and shut it down hours before a ceremony was to take place commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights." Read More

In a New York Times Op-Ed, Oded Eran, Giora Eiland, and Emily B. Landau wrote that Russian is "the key to a tougher Security Council resolution" against Iran, and President-elect Obama "should offer Moscow a grand bargain." "Russia would give up its weapons and some commercial sales to Iran, but there is much more profit for Moscow to be made trading with a respectable Iran than a pariah state. The American reversal on missile defense would be portrayed as a victory for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, and Moscow would gain international respectability by helping to avert the serious crisis that would occur should Iran develop the bomb. Iran, in exchange for relinquishing its nuclear dreams, would avoid painful sanctions, be readmitted to the international community and eventually gain the economic and political benefits of being recognized as a regional power." Read More

AFP reported that "Iran is using its warm relations with Venezuela to dodge UN sanctions and use Venezuelan aircraft to ship missile parts to Syria, an Italian newspaper reported Sunday." "Citing US and other Western intelligence agencies, La Stampa said Iran is using aircraft from Venezuelan airline Conviasa to transport computers and engine components to Syria for use in missiles." Read More

Iranian press reported that "Iran has called for the release of the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at the U.S. president." "'Historical memory won't forget the current U.S. president because of the violent crimes of the U.S. occupiers in Iraq and Afghanistan and his support for the Israeli regime and hundreds of other crimes,' the statement noted. 'The shameful incidents and horrible tortures used in Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, Israel, and other prisons through the support and on the orders of the United States are sufficient to bring George W. Bush to trial in international courts as a war criminal. While the Iraqi and Afghan people face insecurity, poverty, the flouting of their basic human rights, and the plunder of their national resources, Bush the younger calls himself the upholder of these people's rights and speaks about freedom and human rights.'" Read More

Reuters reported that "Russia has begun delivering S-300 air defense systems to Iran which could help repel any Israeli and U.S. air strikes on its nuclear sites, the official IRNA news agency reported on Sunday." "'After few years of talks with Russia ... now the S-300 system is being delivered to Iran,' IRNA quoted Email Kosari, deputy head of parliament's Foreign Affairs and National Security committee, as saying." Read More

The Washington Post reported that "Iraqi officials say they intend to expel members of an Iranian exile group living in a camp north of Baghdad that is protected by the U.S. military." "The expulsion, which the Shiite-led government has long sought, is expected to become feasible once the U.N. mandate that regulates the presence of U.S. troops -- and which gave the Iranian opposition group protected status -- expires at the end of the year." Read More

Iranian press reported that "The Islamic Republic has reportedly arrested several BBC reporters for spying in the wake of the latest espionage activities against Iran." "In a Saturday interview with ILNA news agency, a member of the Foreign Policy and National Security Commission of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad-Karim Abedi said the spy cell was identified and dismantled before carrying out any operations against the country." Read More

The Wall Street Journal covered last week's US government announcement about the 650 Fifth Avenue building. "The Treasury Department last week named one of the owners of the skyscraper at 650 Fifth Avenue as a front company for an Iranian bank that has helped fund Tehran's nuclear program. Bank Melli, which is owned by the Iranian government, was previously designated as a proliferator by the U.S. and European Union for its role in Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Treasury said last week that Bank Melli created ASSA Corp. 'as a vehicle' to hold the bank's interest in 650 Fifth Avenue and that ASSA 'repeatedly transferred' rental income to Bank Melli." Read More

CNN reported that "A group of Iranian warships steamed into the Gulf of Aden, joining an expanding list of navies sent to protect shipping routes from Somali pirates, state-run media reported Saturday." Read More

The Boston Globe profiled Iran's upcoming Presidential election. "Although Ahmadinejad is still popular with the rural poor, his reputation has soured among some conservatives because of the country's ailing economy. He has long been despised by Iranian liberals for rolling back social freedoms and cultivating a confrontational image in the West. This has prompted an unusual effort to unite both conservatives and liberals behind a compromise candidate to try to unseat him." Read More

U.S. Seizes a 'Commander of Iranian Special Operations in Iraq'

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:40:41 +0100

Bloomberg reported that "U.S.-led forces said they seized an Iranian intelligence agent near Baghdad who was involved in training Iraqi militants." "The main suspect is believed to be a commander of Iranian special operations in Iraq, the military said, adding that he helped train Iraqi fighters at elite camps." Read More

Reuters reported that "Iran, a regular exporter of fuel oil, will halt spot exports in first-quarter 2009, as it looks to meet domestic demand for power generation during winter, giving more support to a recovering Asian market, industry sources said on Thursday." "The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), which typically exports around three to four fuel oil cargoes monthly between January and March, will offer spot cargoes only if domestic requirements ease. 'We cannot offer spot cargoes because we have to manage our requirements for power generation in Iran during the winter,' a source familiar with the fuel oil export programme said. 'We will continue to meet our agreements on our term contracts, and will only consider spot sales if the winter is not severe and the requirement for domestic power generation is less.'" Read More

The LA Times analyzed the recent report that the Iranian government is planning a stock market bailout. "Iran is considering a $300-million financial bailout plan for companies listed on its weakened stock market, a newspaper reported this week, as share prices falter for businesses hurt by sagging oil and commodity prices. ... The newspaper revealed few details about the bailout plan, and no official could confirm the discussions between exchange chief Ali Saleh Abadi and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration." Read More

AP reported that "Benjamin Netanyahu, who hopes to become Israel's next prime minister, warned Thursday that 'a terribly dangerous threshold will be crossed' if Iran obtains nuclear weapons, and urged world leaders to make sure it does not happen." " 'We have never had a situation in the history of the world in which a radical regime with a retrograde ideology and apparently known ambitions on the use of force will get access to the weapons of mass death,' Netanyahu told reporters, referring to the prospect of an Iranian nuclear bomb." Read More

The Boston Globe wrote that Iran's recent absence from the Paris conference of Afghanistan's neighbors "sends the wrong signals about the Islamic Republic's readiness to align itself with the international resistance to terrorism and fanaticism." "Iran's snub of the conference in France raises questions about its interest in striking a grand bargain with the incoming Obama administration. Such a deal could provide Iran with security guarantees, an accepted role in regional security, and the inflows of foreign investment and technology that Iran's economy desperately needs. In return, the mullahs will have to forswear their pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability." Read More

AP reported that "an Israeli envoy urged Russia on Friday not to sell weapons to Iran that could be used to attack the Jewish state, a news agency reported." "'The deliveries of dangerous armaments to our enemies won't serve the interests of peace and, for instance, can help Iran wipe Israel off the face of earth,' Gilad was quoted as saying. 'So we expect Russia to demonstrate responsibility on the issue.'" Read More

Reuters reported that "Three members of Kuwait's parliament requested on Tuesday to question the prime minister after he allowed a controversial Iranian Shi'ite Muslim cleric to visit Kuwait, provoking an outcry among some deputies." "The three Islamist deputies accuse Iranian cleric Mohammad Fali of offending Kuwait's predominantly Sunni Muslim population by insulting some of the Prophet Mohammad's companions, whom Sunnis revere." Read More

In a UPI piece, James Phillips and Peter Brookes argued that "Iran's dissidents can put pressure on mullahs." "A well-educated group of young reformers does exist in Iran. ... The United States and its allies should discreetly support all Iranian opposition groups that reject terrorism and advocate democracy by publicizing their activities both internationally and within Iran, giving them organizational training, and inviting them to attend international conferences and workshops outside Iran." Read More

Iranian press reported that "Oman has criticized the United States for sponsoring a meeting on Persian Gulf security to which Washington did not invite Iran." "According to Alawi, leaders of Persian Gulf states had previously agreed not to interfere in the issue. He says the meeting in New York did not benefit the region because securing the Persian Gulf is 'impossible' without the help of Iran." Read More