TOP STORIES
Iran Recruited Fugitive Hell's Angel For Arson Attack On German Synagogue | The National
An arson plot against a German synagogue was ordered by the Iranian state in an “escalation” of its secret activities in Europe, a court has found. Judges say a German-Iranian jailed over the ultimately aborted Molotov cocktail attack was put up to it by a fugitive Hell’s Angel passing on orders from Tehran. The middleman, Ramin Yektaparast – who was wanted in connection with two shootings – asked a friend awed by his luxury lifestyle to attack a synagogue as a “favour”. However, the intended arsonist, 36-year-old Babak J, got cold feet on the night of the attack and threw his weapon at a derelict school building.
Iran-Backed Iraqi Terrorists Claim To Target Israeli Power Plant | The Jerusalem Post
The Iranian pro-government Tasnim news media claimed that the “Islamic Resistance of Iraq announced that in support of the people of Gaza…it targeted the power plant of the Zionist regime in ‘Tel Aviv’ with a drone early this morning, Thursday.” The Iranian media included an image of an explosive-laden kamikaze drone in the report. These types of drones may have a range of up to 2,000 km. Iran has exported the Shahed 136 kamikaze drone to Yemen and Russia. It was not clear what incident the Iranian-backed terrorist groups in Iraq were referring to. The Iranian media said that the statement shows the “continuation of these attacks to crush the enemy's positions; it is stated that today's operation was carried out to complete the second phase of the operation to resist the occupation and support the people of Gaza and in response to the crime and killing of the Zionists against the defenseless Palestinian civilians.”
US Officials Warn Of Heightened Terrorism Threat From Iran | Iran International
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has informed a House panel that Iran is resolute in its intentions to carry out various attacks on US soil, including assassinations. During a hearing at the US House of Representatives, the current status of Iran’s 'Axis of Resistance' and its implications for US homeland security and interests worldwide were examined, with a consensus that threats posed by Tehran and its proxies have escalated significantly. Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee Mark Green (R-TN) commenced the hearing by outlining Iran’s threats, which encompassed "assassination plots on former Trump Administration officials, targeting and attacking US service members abroad, disrupting trade and commerce, and endangering Maritime Security in the Red Sea, along with attempting to coordinate external Terror operations in Europe and South America."
UANI IN THE NEWS
UANI CEO Amb. Mark D. Wallace | The Morgan Ortagus Show
On March 17, 2024, UANI Chief Executive Officer Ambassador Mark D. Wallace appeared on SiruisXM Patriot's "The Morgan Ortagus Show" to discuss the Iranian nuclear program and UANI's work to call out Iran for its incredibly malign activities.
Washington's misplaced priorities in the Middle East over the last decade have left tens of millions exposed to the aggression of an Iranian-backed menace, the Houthis, who killed three civilian mariners this week in a missile strike on a cargo ship in the Red Sea. With Tehran's support, Houthi forces have launched near daily missile and drone attacks and committed acts of piracy and hostage taking since October that has disrupted the global economy and threatens wider war. It is critical that the U.S. move beyond the half-measures it has deployed, end the crisis, and restore stability.
After Iran-Backed Synagogue Plot, Calls To Close Tehran’s Embassy | Iran International
… Jason Brodsky, the policy director for the US-based United Against Nuclear Iran, conveyed to Iran International that “Germany should be making a concerted push in the EU now to build consensus to sanction the IRGC as a terrorist organization. It should also be downgrading diplomatic ties with the Islamic Republic, namely withdrawing its ambassador and declaring a number of Iranian diplomats persona non-grata. It should also be banning Iranian banks from operating in Germany.”
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran’s Young ‘Super-Revolutionaries’ Lay Claim To Legacy Of Islamic Revolt | Financial Times
A group of younger ultraconservatives dubbed the “super-revolutionaries” has risen to prominence in Iran’s power structure, laying claim to the legacy of the country’s Islamic revolution despite coming of age long afterwards. The newcomers, who have set themselves apart from revolutionary old-timers they disparagingly call “patriarchs”, have marked their territory by issuing sharp criticisms of senior regime figures whom they accuse of corruption and nepotism. The radical-right cohort includes television host Amir-Hossein Sabeti, a political neophyte elected to parliament in this month’s low-turnout election. The 35-year-old grew up well after the 1979 revolution and the bitter war with Iraq that followed.
When Maryam Keshavarz was a young girl growing up in New York City in the 1980s, she would spend her summer holidays travelling to Iran, from where her parents had migrated. As well as her luggage, she would fly with small plastic bags taped to her body containing objects she would smuggle into and out of Iran. The most common thing Keshavarz was asked to bring from the US was cassette tapes featuring American pop. “I would stick them in my underwear,” she says over video call from Los Angeles, “because it was an Islamic country. They were never going to check girls’ bodies.” Her new film, The Persian Version, revisits her days as a music mule. The story is fictional but heavily drawn from the real life of Keshavarz and her parents, who arrived in the US from Iran in 1967.
Iran’s Human Rights: Global Milestones Achieved Amidst Struggle | Iran Wire
Over the past Persian year, from March 2023 to March 2024, Iranians achieved significant milestones regarding human rights on the global stage, despite significant repression during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests and a historic decrease in the number of executions in Iran. This report outlines six crucial achievements from the past year. The independent international fact-finding mission, established by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) during the height of protests following the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, has unveiled its report on the suppression of protesters during the final days of the Persian year.
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
Iran's Militant ‘Proxies’: Allies, Collaborators Or Mercenaries? | Iran International
Iran's regime dubs its regional armed groups "resistance forces," while opponents label them mercenaries. Many ordinary Iranians view them as terrorists who exploit their country's resources. However, the term "proxies" employed by Western media and think tanks fails to accurately depict the diverse relationships these forces maintain with the regime. No section of Iranian society refers to them as na’eb or niabati (proxies). The exact relationship with the regime What truly defines the relationship between the Iranian regime and these entities often termed "proxies"? Are they allies, foreign terrorists fully integrated into Iran's operations, collaborators, mercenaries, or something else?
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Iran's Leaders Urge Boost In Domestic Production To Solve Economic Woes | The Jerusalem Post
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Wednesday called on citizens to boost domestic production as a key strategy to tackle economic challenges in a New Year's address. Highlighting the significance of increasing output in economic sectors, Khamenei linked advancements in national production directly to solving pressing issues like inflation, unemployment, and stabilizing the national currency. During his speech, which welcomed the Iranian New Year, Khamenei praised the country's strides in scientific, technological, and infrastructure sectors over the previous year.
For the past month, severe floods have ravaged the province of Sistan and Baluchistan in Iran, impacting the health and livelihoods of tens of thousands of residents along the way. In early March, following days of relentless rainfall, distressing videos of widespread flooding in multiple counties and villages emerged, revealing the state of chaos caused by overflowing rivers and dams across the southeastern province. Bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, Sistan and Baluchistan has a population of more than 3 million ethnically and religiously diverse people mostly living in rural areas. The province is also recorded the poorest in the country having suffered through decades of economic, social and environmental hardship.
CONGRESS & IRAN
Sens. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) introduced a bipartisan measure that would ban the export or sale of oil from the United States’s oil reserves to China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Syria and Cuba. The measure, the Banning Oil Exports to Foreign Adversaries Act, would also prohibit the sale of oil from the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to “any entity owned, controlled or influenced” by the Chinese Communist Party. “Our Strategic Petroleum Reserve is meant to protect the energy security of America and our allies,” Fetterman said in a statement. “Our adversaries should not be able to purchase oil from our SPR — that’s just common sense.”
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
U.S. military leaders warned members of Congress on Thursday about the growing alliance among adversaries and the threats it poses to American interests. Gen. Michael Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, told House lawmakers on the Armed Services Committee that he is “very concerned” about the growing partnership between China, Russia, and Iran. “Collectively, Iran, Russia, and China are strengthening their relationships and fostering a chaotic landscape favorable to their exploitation,” Kurilla explained, later adding, “The ramifications of this partnership will have global implications.”
OTHER FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Canada Orders Deportation Of Former Iran Official | Iran International
Canada has expelled another former senior Iranian official as part of efforts to ban regime figures from seeking refuge there. According to Global News on Wednesday, Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) ordered the deportation of Salman Samani, Iran's deputy minister of interior during Hassan Rouhani's term as president. The tribunal’s verdict is issued in compliance with the Canadian sanctions imposed against Iranian officials following the 2022 nationwide protests triggered by the death in morality-police custody of Mahsa Amini.