TOP STORIES
EU Adds Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to Terrorist List | BBC News
The European Union has added Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to its terrorist list in response to Tehran's deadly crackdown on protesters in recent weeks. “Repression cannot go unanswered," the bloc's top diplomat Kaja Kallas said, adding the move will put the IRGC—a major military, economic and political force in Iran—on the same level as jihadist groups like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group. . . . Australia, Canada and the US have already classified the IRGC as a terror group but it has not been proscribed in the UK. On Wednesday, UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy condemned Iran’s “brutal oppression of peaceful protesters” but said it was long-standing government policy “not to comment on whether a specific organisation is being considered for proscription.”
Trump Weighs New Military Options Against Iran | New York Times
President Trump has been presented in recent days with an expanded list of potential military options against Iran aimed at doing further damage to the country’s nuclear and missile facilities or weakening Iran’s supreme leader, according to multiple U.S. officials. The options go beyond the proposals that Mr. Trump was considering two weeks ago as a means of following through on his promise to stop the killing of protesters by Iranian government security forces and affiliated militias, the officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss potential military plans. The current set of options even includes the potential for American forces to carry out raids on sites inside Iran, and it comes in a different context, now that the protests have been brutally quashed, at least for the time being.
Trump Says ‘It Would Be Great’ If US ‘Didn’t Have to Use’ Military Force on Iran | BBC News
Donald Trump says he has told Iran it has to do “two things” to avoid military action, as the US builds up its forces in the Gulf. “Number one, no nuclear. And number two, stop killing protesters,” the US President said, adding that “they are killing them by the thousands.” “We have a lot of very big, very powerful ships sailing to Iran right now, and it would be great if we didn’t have to use them.”
UANI IN THE NEWS
EU Designates Iran’s IRGC as Terrorist Organization amid Sanctions | Fox News
Advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) welcomed the EU’s move and urged swift implementation, calling on the U.K. to follow suit. “UANI applauds the EU for announcing its intention to designate the IRGC, the Islamic Republic’s ideological army, as the terrorists that they are,” the group said in a statement. “We now urge the United Kingdom to proscribe the IRGC, following the lead of the EU, the United States, Canada, and Australia. The IRGC must be denied the ability to operate with impunity abroad.”
Iran’s IRGC: the Feared ‘Pasdaran’ Behind Deadly Crackdown | Agence France-Presse
A research paper published this month by Saeid Golkar and Kasra Aarabi of the US-based think tank United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) said a shadowy IRGC unit known as the Tharallah Headquarters, responsible for security in Tehran, was the “most critical cog in the IRGC's security and suppressive apparatus.” “It coordinates intelligence, policing, Basij militia, IRGC units and psychological operations, ensuring that repression is not improvised but calibrated,” said Golkar and Aarabi, adding that it “functions as the regime's operational brain during moments of unrest.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would be “very skeptical and resistant to accept” Trump’s demands “as he would perceive acceding to them as paving the way for the collapse of the Islamic republic,” said Jason Brodsky, policy director at the Washington-based United Against Nuclear Iran. In the absence of a deal, Trump is “very likely” to authorize military action against Iran, said Brodsky, pointing to the president’s rhetoric and the US military buildup in the region. “This is a very similar pattern of statements and actions that resulted in the 12-day war in June and the US seizure of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela,” he said. “President Trump alternates between confrontational and conciliatory statements to throw the Iranian regime off.” Brodsky said the objectives of military action would be to hold Iran accountable for its bloody crackdown on protesters, deter its behavior in the region, and erode its military capabilities. He added Trump could view “further military action as the prelude to an eventual deal down the line.”
Jason Brodsky, policy director of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), commented that this was an important step that UANI has “long advocated for.”
UANI Director of IRGC Research Kasra Aarabi Discusses Designating the IRGC | GB TV
Kasra Aarabi: “Britain must now proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organisation. No ifs or buts.”
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is holding a security consultation in Jerusalem with top advisers and defense officials on a “classified topic,” the office of one of the attendees tells The Times of Israel. According to Channel 12, the discussion is focusing on Iran and the possibility of a US strike. Israeli officials do not believe that a limited strike will bring down the regime, and that US President Donald Trump shares their assessment, according to the outlet. Therefore, they assess that Trump will focus a potential attack on physical assets, especially the nuclear and missile programs. Even in the case of a limited strike, the channel reports, Israel believes that there will be a significant Iranian attack on Israel, to which Jerusalem will respond in force. . . . A directive from Trump on a potential strike on Iran is expected in the coming days, once all of the US military assets heading to the region are in place, a senior US official tells Channel 12.
Iran Planning Live Fire Drills in Strait of Hormuz amid Tensions with US | The Hill
Iran is preparing live fire drills in the Strait of Hormuz following tensions ratcheting up between Tehran and the U.S., according to Iranian state media.
Iran Army Spokesman Says It Will Respond ‘Instantly’ in Case of Any Attack | Agence France-Presse
“A decisive response [to a U.S. attack on Iran] will be delivered instantly,” army spokesman Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia tells state television after the USS Abraham Lincoln deployed in the region, saying that US aircraft carriers have “serious vulnerabilities” and that numerous American bases are “within the range of our medium-range missiles.” “If such a miscalculation is made by the Americans, it will certainly not unfold the way [US President Donald] Trump imagines—carrying out a quick operation and then, two hours later, tweeting that the operation is over,” he warns.
Iran Seeks to Avert US Military Action with Talks in Ankara | Guardian
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, will travel to Ankara for talks aimed at preventing a US attack, as Turkish diplomats seek to convince Tehran it must offer concessions over its nuclear programme if it is to avert a potentially devastating conflict. Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, proposed a video conference between Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian—the kind of high-wire diplomacy that may appeal to the US leader, but would be anathema to circumspect Iranian diplomats.
Hegseth Tells Trump Pentagon Is Prepared on Iran | Reuters
With a large U.S. military force gathered in the region, [U.S. Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth was asked by Trump at a cabinet meeting to comment on the situation. “They should not pursue nuclear capabilities. We will be prepared to deliver whatever this president expects of the War Department,” Hegseth said, referring to the Trump administration’s unofficial renaming of the Defense Department.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran Rounds Up Thousands in Mass Arrest Campaign After Crushing Unrest, Sources Say | Reuters
Plainclothes Iranian security forces have rounded up thousands of people in a campaign of mass arrests and intimidation to deter further protests after crushing the bloodiest unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, sources told Reuters. . . . One of the activists said security forces were detaining not only people accused of involvement in the latest unrest but also those arrested during protests in previous years, even if they had not participated this time, plus members of their families.”
Wealthy Iranian Brothers Chose Protest and Were Killed | Iran International
Brothers Hamid and Vahid Arzanlou were two well-known entrepreneurs in Iran’s furniture industry who despite their wealth still chose to raise their voices in anti-government protests this month and paid with their lives. During mass killings by security forces in the Tehranpars area east of Tehran on January 9, Hamid Arzanlou was shot in the head and Vahid was shot twice in the neck while trying to save him, according to sources close to the family. Both brothers later died from their wounds.
State Department Demands Iran Halt Execution of 19-Year-Old Wrestling Star | Fox News
Iran is seeking to execute a decorated Iranian wrestler for merely peacefully protesting against the regime in early January, prompting the U.S. State Department on Wednesday to demand that Tehran overturn the death penalty for 19-year-old Saleh Mohammadi.
Iran Accused of ‘Campaign of Revenge’ as Doctors Arrested for Treating Protesters | Guardian
Doctors are being arrested in Iran for helping save the lives of some of the tens of thousands injured during Iran’s brutal crackdown on anti-regime protests, with at least one surgeon now at risk of being sentenced to death. The arrests and death sentence are part of a campaign of “revenge,” say human rights groups, after healthcare workers and doctors refused to ignore the plight of badly injured protesters shot or stabbed at close range, and in some cases set up makeshift treatment centres. An Iranian surgeon, Alireza Golchini, 52, from the central city of Qazvin, has been charged with “moharebeh” (waging war against God), which can carry the death penalty, according to the Norway-based rights group Hengaw. The US state department yesterday called for his release.
WHO Chief Urges Iran to Stop Attacks on Healthcare as Tehran Tightens Grip on Protesters | Telegraph
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on the Iranian authorities to cease attacks on hospitals and medical personnel amid Tehran’s deadly crackdown on protesters. Posting on X (formerly Twitter), WHO Director Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus said the global health body had confirmed “multiple reports” of assaults and arrests of health workers amid the recent protests that have seen thousands murdered.
Activists in Iran Say Khamenei Responsible for ‘Crime Against Humanity’ | Iran International
A group of Iranian activists, lawyers, and cultural figures said Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei bears primary responsibility for what they described as a period of mass killings and repression, accusing Iran’s ruling system of committing crimes against humanity. In a joint statement a statement posted on the Instagram page of jailed Nobel Peace laureate Narges Mohammadi on Wednesday, the signatories said the killing of protesters demanding political change amounted to an “organized state crime against humanity,” citing the use of live ammunition, mass arrests, attacks on the wounded, and the denial of medical treatment.
IOC Voices Concern for Iranian Athletes amid Unrest | Reuters
The International Olympic Committee on Thursday expressed concern for the welfare of Iranian athletes amid the country’s escalating unrest, saying it remains in contact with Iran’s Olympic community. . . . “At this moment in time, we are particularly concerned about the situation of Iranian athletes impacted by the events unfolding in their country—as we are with all athletes who face conflict and tragedies elsewhere in the world,” the IOC said. “Unfortunately, these situations are more regularly brought to our attention due to the increasingly divided world in which we live. We have to be realistic about the IOC’s ability to directly influence global and national affairs. At the same time, we will continue to work with our Olympic stakeholders to help where we can, often through quiet sport diplomacy.”
SANCTIONS, SHIPPING, BUSINESS RISKS & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
How the Son of Iran’s Supreme Leader Built a Global Property Empire | Bloomberg
On a tree-lined street in north London, known as “Billionaire’s Row,” a clutch of mostly empty mansions sit behind tall hedges and blacked-out gates. As school children wander by, private guards in dark SUVs patrol outside. Behind the facades of these luxury homes on The Bishops Avenue lies a network stretching from Tehran to Dubai and Frankfurt. The ultimate ownership traces back, through layers of shell companies, to one of the most powerful men in the Middle East: Mojtaba Khamenei, the second-eldest son of Iran’s Supreme Leader. The 56-year-old cleric, touted as a potential successor to his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, oversees a sprawling investment empire, according to people familiar with the matter and the assessment of a leading Western intelligence agency.
Iran: Worried Families in India Urge Return of Crew on Seized Ship | BBC News
The families of 16 Indian seafarers held in Iran since December say they are anxious about the fate of their loved ones as the geopolitical situation in the region remains tense. On 8 December, Iranian authorities seized an oil tanker, MT Valiant Roar, while it was in international waters. They alleged that the ship, operated by Dubai-based Prime Tankers LLC, was carrying 6,000 metric tonnes of illegal diesel. The company has denied this.
CONGRESS & IRAN
Cruz Calls for Arming of Iranian Protesters | The Hill
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Tuesday called for the U.S. to arm Iranian protesters amid the Iranian government’s crackdown in the country. “We should be arming the protesters in Iran. NOW,” Cruz wrote Tuesday in a post on the social platform X. “For the Iranian people to overthrow the Ayatollah—a tyrant who routinely chants ‘death to America’—would make America much, much safer,” Cruz’s post continued.
EUROPE & IRAN
UK-Based Pair Behind Messaging App Accused of Giving Data to Iranian Regime | Guardian
Hadi and Mahdi Anjidani are the cofounders of TS Information Technology, established in 2010 and now registered at the address of a tax accountancy in Shoreham-by-Sea in West Sussex. It is the UK branch of an Iranian software corporation, Towse’e Saman Information Technology (TSIT). The company makes popular computer games, a payment platform capable of helping Iranians skirt sanctions, and Gap Messenger, a sleek purple messaging app billed as an Iranian alternative to Telegram. But while Gap’s public profile says the app is encrypted and does not share its data with third parties, Iranian digital rights experts say their investigations contradict those claims. A report from FilterWatch, an organisation monitoring Iran’s internet censorship, has accused Gap Messenger of being among the “main actors and entities that participate in the Iranian government’s internet control and suppression efforts.” Mahdi Anjidani, TSIT’s chief executive, has also widely espoused pro-regime views in Iranian media—including pushing for draconian censorship measures on a broadcast by state television.
How the EU’s Internal Resistance on Iran Finally Cracked | Politico
The EU’s move to designate Iran’s feared paramilitary force as a terrorist organization was the product of a recalculation by several governments, in which the need to respond to Tehran’s brutal crackdown outweighed the diplomatic risks. For weeks, a group of influential EU capitals—led by France and, until recently, Italy and Spain—warned that a terror listing would close off what little diplomatic leverage Europe still had with Iran, risking reprisals against European nationals and complicating nuclear talks. That argument began to unravel as the regime’s internet blackout lifted and video footage circulated of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ violence against protesters. By Wednesday afternoon, the capitals championing the designation, among them Berlin, had managed to peel away Italy and Spain from France—with Paris loath to be out on its own.