TOP STORIES
Experts Warn Iran Could Have A Nuclear Bomb Before The Next President Takes Office | Fox News
Iran is closer to becoming a nuclear-armed power than much of the world realizes, according to a nonpartisan research group’s new report. The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) claims Iran could have a nuclear bomb before the presidential election and suggests U.S. troops need to be deployed to the region immediately to counter such an outcome. The FDD published a strategic plan, "Deterring Iran's Dash to a Nuclear Bomb," with two dozen specific recommendations they say the Biden administration needs to quickly change the tides on Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
Netanyahu Blasts 'Iran's Axis Of Evil' After Jordan Border Terror Attack Kills 3 Israelis | Fox News
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted what he called Iran's "axis of evil" in remarks Sunday after a terrorist attack at the West Bank-Jordan border crossing killed three Israelis. "It's a hard day. A despicable terrorist murdered three of our citizens in cold blood at the Allenby Bridge. On behalf of the government, I send my condolences to the families of the victims," Netanyahu said at the beginning of his cabinet meeting Sunday. "We are surrounded by a murderous ideology led by Iran's axis of evil. In recent days, despicable terrorists have murdered six of our hostages in cold blood and three Israeli police officers. The killers do not distinguish between us, they want to murder us all, until the last one; right and left, secular and religious, Jews and non-Jews."
Iraqi Banks Used U.S.-Created System To Funnel Funds To Iran | The Wall Street Journal
Ali Ghulam was the undisputed dollar king of Iraq for almost a decade. His three Baghdad banks wired tens of billions of dollars in that time outside the country, ostensibly for car parts, furniture and other imports. He was one of the biggest operators in an ad hoc banking system set up around two decades ago under the U.S. occupation that gave the Federal Reserve Bank of New York a key role in processing Iraq’s international transactions. Years later, when the Fed finally began looking closely at where the money was going, it shut him down almost overnight.
UANI IN THE NEWS
The Walls Are Closing In On Benjamin Netanyahu — And There’s No Easy Way Out | The Daily Caller
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is finding himself stuck in an increasingly difficult situation with the war in Gaza, one that presents no clear way out and threatens to jeopardize his hold on the country’s highest office... “This is a very, very complicated situation, and anyone who is arguing that this is an easy decision either has no idea what they’re talking about or is gaslighting,” Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Nuclear Against Iran, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Israel’s government is confronted with a witch’s brew of choices, and it’s an incredibly difficult decision to make.”
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Head Of Iran's Stock Exchange Resigns Amid Loan Scandal | Iran International
Majid Eshghi, head of Iran’s Securities and Exchange Organization, has officially stepped down following the public outcry over the revelation of billion-rial loans granted to him and several board members at low interest rates. The resignation came after Shargh Daily, a pro-reform newspaper in Tehran, exposed the personal loans, totaling 105 billion rials ($175,000), sparking widespread outrage. These officials, appointed during President Ebrahim Raisi’s tenure, approved the loans in the final days of his government, bypassing orders from acting president Mohammad Mokhber and president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian. Experts warn that this move undermines investor confidence and further destabilizes Iran’s struggling capital market.
Iran Interrogating Software Firm At Epicenter Of ‘Worst-Ever’ Bank Hack | Iran International
Iran International has learned that "Tosan," the company whose system was used in the hacking of over 20 Iranian banks, is now under the control of security agencies, with its employees being interrogated. Earlier in the week, Politico reported that an Iranian entity paid hackers $3 million in ransom to dissuade them from releasing the data of over 20 hacked banks, confirming Iran International’s earlier report about the “biggest-ever” cyberattack on Iran’s banking system. Iran International reported on August 14 that the major cyberattack targeted several Iranian banks, leading to the theft of a huge amount of data. Initial assessments indicated at the time this could be one of the largest cyberattacks ever against Iranian state infrastructure, even though Iranian officials kept mum about the revelation.
TERRORISM & EXTREMISM
Paris Court Charges Couple In Iranian Plot To Kill Jews And Israelis | Iran International
A Paris court has arrested and charged a couple for their involvement in Iranian-backed plots to assassinate Israelis and Jews in Germany and France in Tehran’s escalating campaign of state-sponsored terrorism in Europe. French police sources told AFP that Abdelkrim S., 34, and his partner Sabrina B., 33, were detained on May 4, accused of conspiring with a terrorist organization. The pair now sit in pre-trial detention as part of an investigation known as "Marco Polo," a case that underscores the Iranian government’s renewed use of terror tactics on European soil. According to a report by France’s General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI), consulted by AFP, Iran has ramped up its policy of targeted killings since 2015. The DGSI highlighted how the threat has intensified in the context of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran Escalates Crackdown Ahead Of ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ Anniversary | Iran International
As the anniversary of Iran’s Woman, Life, Freedom protests approaches, security forces have begun a wave of arrests, repeating a pattern of repression targeting Iranian civil society and families of slain protestors. This year’s crackdown began in Iran’s Kurdistan province, where at least 17 citizens were arrested in the first week of September, just days ahead of the second anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death in police custody on September 16, 2022, which sparked the nationwide Woman Life Freedom protests.
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS & NEGOTIATIONS
US Sees Potential Iran Transfer Of Missiles To Russia As Alarming | Reuters
Any Iranian transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia would mark a sharp escalation in the Ukraine war, the United States said on Friday, following reports that the two countries had deepened ties in recent weeks with such an arms transfer. Reuters reported in August that Russia was expecting the imminent delivery of hundreds of Fath-360 close-range ballistic missiles from Iran and that dozens of Russian military personnel were being trained in Iran on the satellite-guided weapons for eventual use in the war in Ukraine.
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
Israel Carries Out Intense Strikes In Central Syria, Killing 4, State Media Says | Associated Press
A series of Israeli strikes hit multiple areas in central Syria late Sunday, killing at least four people, wounding 13 and sparking fires, state media reported... The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based war monitor, reported that one of the strikes targeted a scientific research center in Maysaf and other sites where “Iranian militias and experts are stationed to develop weapons in Syria.” Local media also reported strikes around the coastal city of Tartous.
The authorities in Tehran continued to warn of a severe and widespread response following the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh on July 31, according to an Al-Arabiya report on Monday. Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Salami stated that "the nightmare of Iran's inevitable response is shaking Israel day and night." Salami added that Israeli leaders are in a state of imbalance and tension, anticipating an Iranian response that will be "painful and different from what you expected." The Iranian regime emphasized that the retaliatory response would be precise and calculated but did not specify the timing or method of execution.
Kremlin, On Report Of Missile Supplies From Iran, Says Tehran Is Its Partner | Reuters
The Kremlin, asked on Monday about a Wall Street Journal report that Iran has sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, said that Iran is Russia's partner and that the two countries are developing dialogue in all areas. The Journal cited unidentified U.S. and European officials as saying that Iran had sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that he had seen the report but that not all such reports were correct. "Iran is our important partner, we are developing our trade and economic relations, we are developing our cooperation and dialogue in all possible areas, including the most sensitive ones," Peskov told reporters.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
US Military Destroys Three Houthi Drones And Two Missile Systems In Yemen | Al Arabiya
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Sunday that it destroyed three Houthi drones and two missile systems in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen over the past 24 hours. The Iran-aligned Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drone and missile strikes on ships they believe are linked to Israel or the United States since November, claiming it as an act of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war.
AFGHANISTAN & IRAN
IRGC Arrest 12 Afghans Amid Intensified Crackdown On Migrants | Iran International
Twelve Afghan nationals were arrested on Friday in southwestern Iran, accused of attempting to "abduct several children and teenagers," according to a statement from Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The arrests were conducted by local security forces in collaboration with IRGC during a "surprise operation" also involving the intelligence ministry as reported by the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency. Following their detention, the suspects, allegedly armed with knives, were handed over to judicial authorities for further legal proceedings. The IRGC’s history of using trumped-up charges to detain vulnerable populations raises concerns about the legitimacy of these arrests and the broader human rights implications on marginalized Afghan communities.
TURKEY & IRAN
Iran And Turkey Are Betting On Drone Aircraft Carriers To Project Power | Business Insider
Turkey and Iran say they're building navies capable of projecting power far from their shores, and at the center of these ambitions are motherships for aerial drones. These regional powers are betting they can build an expendable air force without the massive costs of aircraft carriers, fighter jets and pilots trained to fly them. "I think both navies will use these carriers in the same way — to attack enemy troops and facilities ashore and enemy ships in littoral areas where they can be targeted by shore-based radar and spotters," Bryan Clark, a naval expert at the Hudson Institute think tank, said.