Eye on Iran: Israel Says Long-Range Rockets Aboard 'Iran Arms Ship'

Join UANI           Top Stories AFP: "Israel said Sunday it had found 40 long-range rockets aboard a ship it intercepted in the Red Sea, charging that it carried weapons sent by Iran to Gaza Strip militants. A statement from the Israeli military said the M-302 rockets with a range of 160 kilometres (100 miles) were found in containers offloaded from the Panamanian-flagged Klos-C. The vessel was intercepted by Israeli naval commandos on the high seas on Wednesday between Sudan and Eritrea and escorted to the Red Sea port of Eilat by two warships. It arrived late on Saturday and was inspected and unloaded on Sunday in an operation dubbed 'Full Disclosure'. A statement said security forces searching the Klos-C had found '40 rockets (type M-302), up to the range of 160 kilometres, 181 122mm mortar shells, approximately 400,000 7.62-calibre rounds' ... 'Each one of these rockets poses a threat to the safety of the citizens of Israel - each bullet and each rocket that was discovered had an Israeli address,' army chief Lieutenant General Benny Gantz told sailors who took part in the operation. 'Our efforts in preventing the proliferation of weapons and the supply of critical components with strategic influence over the region is not over,' Gantz said." http://t.uani.com/1fQ7vDD AFP: "EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Sunday a final accord on Iran's nuclear programme cannot be guaranteed, during a landmark visit underscoring a thaw in Tehran's ties with the West... 'This interim agreement is really important but not as important as a comprehensive agreement (which is)... difficult, challenging, and there is no guarantee that we will succeed,' Ashton told a joint news conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. In an interview posted online by the European Commission late Sunday, Ashton reiterated although she had felt there was support 'across the political spectrum' in Iran to move talks forward 'that does not mean that we'll get an agreement'. 'But I have had a real sense that people are committed to wanting to see the talks happen and that, I think, is encouraging of itself.' Her trip is the first to Iran by a European Union foreign affairs chief since 2008, thanks to the November deal that raised hopes of diplomacy resolving the nuclear issue. The next high-level talks are scheduled in Vienna on March 17, followed by more rounds until July." http://t.uani.com/1ekwjhD AFP: "US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday marked seven years since the disappearance in Iran of American Robert Levinson and urged Tehran to work with Washington to ensure his safe return. 'Robert Levinson disappeared seven years ago from Kish Island, Iran, during a business trip. He is one of the longest held American citizens in history,' Kerry said in a statement. 'Mr Levinson's disappearance has been heart-wrenching for his wife and children, who feel his absence especially deeply at the many family milestones missed these past seven years,' Kerry said. 'We respectfully ask the government of Iran to work cooperatively with us on the investigation into his disappearance so we can ensure his safe return,' the statement said. 'This is the seventh year that Mr Levinson has spent without his family. We remain committed to the hard work ahead to ensure that it's his last.'" http://t.uani.com/1h6Kc5b       Nuclear Program & Negotiations WSJ: "The Iranian foreign minister raised doubts about the West's commitment to resolving the nuclear standoff in a pointed message to visiting European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton... After lengthy talks, Mr. Zarif publicly questioned the West's commitment to a full nuclear deal and about whether an interim deal reached in November was being properly implemented. 'It is up to the other side [to] come to the negotiating table with a desire, decision and commitment to reach a mutually acceptable agreement,' he said. The optimism over November's interim deal has dimmed somewhat recently as Iran criticized Western moves to safeguard its sanctions regime. Tehran has also questioned the form in which the U.S. is unfreezing Iranian oil revenues previously locked up in foreign accounts, said people involved in talks." http://t.uani.com/1nAxW0U Military Matters CNN: "The U.S. Navy had secret orders this week to be 'prepared to act' to stop a cargo ship carrying Iranian arms destined for Gaza, CNN has learned. Navy vessels in the Middle East received orders to move 'into the proximity of the ship and act if ordered,' according to a senior U.S. military official familiar with the operation. The scenario included the possibility of boarding the ship, which was eventually stopped in the Red Sea by Israeli naval forces, who authorities said seized a cargo of Iranian rockets and missiles. A second American official confirmed that U.S. intelligence and the Israelis became aware of the effort by Iran to smuggle the weapons several days ago... The United States secretly tracked the shipment as it left Iran by air and then landed in Syria. The weapons were then shipped into Iraq and loaded at a port in southern Iraq. U.S. and Israeli intelligence grew concerned when the cargo ship in the Persian Gulf suddenly diverted from its expected heading to Sudan and suddenly turned north toward Iraq to load up... The Pentagon said in a statement both nations 'have been in consistent touch on Israel's interdiction operation, coordinating extensively through military and intelligence channels.' The seizure showed the United States was continuing to hold Iran 'accountable for its destabilizing activities in the region, even as we continue efforts to resolve our concerns over Iran's nuclear program through diplomacy,' the statement said." http://t.uani.com/PjKIFG Sanctions Relief WSJ: "Foreign oil companies hoping to invest in Iran as sanctions are relaxed won't be able to count Iranian reserves among their assets under the draft terms of new contracts, a senior Iranian oil and gas industry official said. But overseas oil companies may be allowed to wholly own Iranian oil services companies as part of the country's privatization program, Ali Kardor, vice president for finance and investment at the state-owned National Iranian Oil Co., said in an interview. Mr. Kardor also said Iran hopes eventually to partner with oil giants like Total SA in joint ventures elsewhere in the world. An interim deal with Western governments over Iran's nuclear program last November has raised hopes sanctions on investing in Iran's oil sector could soon be lifted. Executives from European Union oil companies that had previously pulled out of Iran have been visiting the capital Tehran in recent weeks to study a possible return. Iran is planning to present final versions of its new oil contracts in July and will launch tenders soon afterwards. Foreign companies will be allowed to account for prospective revenues based on these contracts, which will span 20 to 25 years, Mr. Kardor said... The ability to book reserves-an important valuation metric for oil companies-has been a key demand from Western companies looking to enter Iran... Mr. Kardor said Iranian oil officials had discussed potential joint ventures with France's Total SA, Italy's Eni SpA, Norway's Statoil ASA and Gazprom and Lukoil of Russia, among others." http://t.uani.com/1fjgI6m Reuters: "Dubai's non-oil trade expanded 7.6 percent last year, slowing from 13 percent growth in 2012, but the emirate's trade with Iran stabilised despite U.S. economic sanctions, according to Dubai customs data released on Sunday... Merchandise trade between Dubai and Iran plunged 31 percent to 25 billion dirhams in 2012. But last year it rebounded slightly to about 26 billion dirhams, representing 2 percent of Dubai's non-oil trade, Dubai customs told Reuters. Although the banking sanctions remain in place, Iranian traders say their activities have become easier since President Hassan Rouhani took office last August, reducing geopolitical tensions and helping to stabilise the rial currency." http://t.uani.com/1geeLb5 Trend: "Iranian Saipa and Chinese Changan car manufacturing companies have agreed to produce two models of cars jointly, ISNA reported on March 8. The two sides signed an agreement in this regard at the Changan factory's site, located in the city of Beijing. The two models of car will be produced in Saipa Kashan, a subsidiary of Saipa, which has the capacity to produce 180,000 cars per annum." http://t.uani.com/N0XKpr Sanctions Impact & Enforcement WSJ: "French banks Société Générale SA and Crédit Agricole SA are under U.S. investigation for alleged money laundering and sanction breaches involving Iran, Cuba and Sudan, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter, the latest case in a series of probes of European banks related to embargo violations. The banks are being investigated by the U.S. Treasury Department, the Justice Department, the Manhattan district attorney, and the New York Department of Financial Services, the person said... Last month, France's largest listed bank BNP Paribas SA said it had set aside $1.1 billion to cover potential penalties related to transactions in countries under U.S. sanctions. This provision was booked in addition to the bank's existing legal provision of €1.68 billion ($2.34 billion) as of Dec. 31, 2013. The bank is in talks with federal and New York state officials to settle investigations of money laundering and sanctions violations in countries including Iran and Cuba, according to people familiar with negotiations." http://t.uani.com/1qpjo6S Human Rights NYT: "Executions have been a primary form of punishment in Iran for decades, some of them public but most carried out behind prison walls. The United Nations estimates that Iran executed 500 to 625 convicts in 2013 - among them two juvenile offenders and 28 women - by far the most in the world after China. Most of the sentences were handed down for drug smuggling and dealing, but executions were also carried out for murder, sodomy and 'enmity against God,' a religious accusation open to a multitude of interpretations. But in recent years attitudes have shifted, social activists say. Public hangings still attract hundreds of onlookers, but Iran's enormous middle class is turning against capital punishment. 'The increasing number of executions has made the middle class upset,' said Saleh Nikbakht, a prominent lawyer. 'It is making many people disillusioned.'" http://t.uani.com/1gkPlFd IHR: "The execution wave continues in Iran. In another show of horror, four prisoners were hanged in one of the streets of Bandar Abbas (Southern Iran) early this morning. More than 160 people have been executed since the beginning of 2014." http://t.uani.com/1cNeYO2 Reuters: "After Iranian film actress Marzieh Vafamehr appeared with her head uncovered in My Tehran for Sale, an Australian film critical of her home country, she was sentenced to three months in jail and a hefty fine. When Iran banned lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh from flying to Italy to receive a human rights prize, she sent a video-taped acceptance speech and was promptly fined for not wearing a hijab in the recording. The actress and lawyer are among hundreds of thousands of girls and women who have fallen foul of Iran's strict dress code. More than 30,000 have been arrested over the last decade for violating the law, according to a report published on Friday which calls for an end to forced hijab. Some of those detained were as young as 12 years old. Campaign group Justice for Iran (JFI) says nearly half a million other girls and women have been warned by special police patrols over alleged violations of Iran's hijab rules, which it denounced as 'a systematic and widespread human rights abuse'. The report, illustrated with many accounts of girls and women who have been harassed, arrested or beaten, says Iran's hijab laws violate numerous international treaties as well as Iran's own constitution." http://t.uani.com/1i0fRXT ICHRI: "As the world prepares to honor and promote the economic, political, and social achievements of women on International Women's Day, Iran has sentenced yet another young woman, Maryam Shafipour, for her peaceful activities.  The Iranian Judiciary should release student activists Shafipour and Bahareh Hedayat, along with the eight other women held in Tehran's Evin Prison's political prisoners' ward Nesvan, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said today. 'There is no justification for these young women to languish in prison for precisely the kind of positive engagement that International Women's Day is meant to promote,' said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the Campaign... The eight other women serving prison terms in Evin's political ward Nesvan include six women of the Baha'i faith-Fariba Kamal Abadi, 20 years; Mahvash Shahriari, 20 years; Faran Hesami, 4 years; Nooshin Khadem, 4 years; Leva Khanjani, 2 years; and Zhinoos Rahimi, 1 year-as well as a Christian convert, Maryam Naghash Zargaran, 4 years; and a member of the Mourning Mothers of Laleh Park, Hakimeh Shokri, 3 years." http://t.uani.com/OdkpQq ICHRI: "Security agents arrested 20 Arab-Iranians on February 26 in Ahvaz, Khuzestan Province, for converting from Shia' Islam to Sunni, human rights activist Karim Dahimi told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. Those arrested are aged between 20- and 30-years-old and are being held at the Intelligence Ministry office in Ahvaz. Only one of those arrested has been allowed to contact his family... The human rights activist pointed out that none of those arrested were involved in political activities but the security forces have been cracking down on converts in the region." http://t.uani.com/1irho8k Domestic Politics AFP: "Iranian President Hassan Rouhani defended Saturday what he called 'freedom of the press with responsibility' and criticised the practice of shutting down offending newspapers. 'The government is in favour of freedom of expression with responsibility,' he said in a vigorously applauded speech to media figures broadcast live on television. 'If we break the pens and shut the mouths, public trust will be deeply harmed.' There is a long-standing practice in Iran of temporarily shutting down newspapers as punishment for publishing articles deemed offensive to the values of the Islamic republic. But Rouhani said 'shutting down a newspaper should be the last resort not the first. If one violates the law we should deal with him or the managing director of the daily.' 'Why should we shut down the whole newspaper and make a lot of people unemployed,' he asked. As recently as last month, the judiciary banned a newly launched reformist daily Aseman (Sky) and arrested its managing director over an article deemed insulting to Islamic law. The editor was later freed on bail. In October, reformist daily Bahar (Spring) was ordered closed over an article seen by critics as questioning the beliefs of Shiite Islam." http://t.uani.com/1i0fcWw Foreign Affairs AFP: "Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is expected in Muscat for a two-day visit starting Wednesday during which he will discuss with Oman's leader bilateral cooperation and regional tensions, Tehran's envoy announced. Tehran enjoys good relations with Muscat but is locked in a decades-long rivalry with Saudi Arabia while other Gulf states are wary of the ambitions of their neighbour across the water. In his first visit to a Gulf Arab state since his election last year, Rouhani will discuss 'means of strengthening bilateral relations' as well as 'security and stability' in the region, Tehran's ambassador in Muscat, Ali Akbar Sibeveih, said on Monday. He will also discuss the 'Syrian crisis and ways of peacefully resolving it,' he added... On the economic front, Oman and Iran are seeking to expand trade, which reached $1 billion last year, as well as bilateral investments which they expect will top $10 billion by the end of this year, according to the ambassador. Iran is planning to invest $4 billion in Oman's Duqm port on the Arabian Sea, in projects that include the establishment of 100 large oil and gas tanks and an iron-smelting plant, among other projects. It will invest a further $2 billion in two other ports -- Sohar and Salalah, according to the diplomat. Meanwhile, Oman will invest in petrochemical, education, and oil exploitation projects in Iran worth $4 billion." http://t.uani.com/1ncGbnc Opinion & Analysis Daniel Levinson in LAT: "Seven years ago Sunday, my father, Robert Levinson, was taken hostage while visiting Kish Island, Iran. He is currently the longest-held hostage in U.S. history, and will likely be marking his 66th birthday Monday in captivity, thousands of miles from his wife, seven children and four grandchildren - three of whom have been born since he was kidnapped. We have not been able to communicate with him at all in those seven years. Nearly three months ago, against my family's wishes, the Associated Press disclosed that my father was working on contract for the CIA. The AP and the New York Times had known this but, out of concern for my father's safety, withheld publishing the information at our request. The AP rationalized its decision, with no admission that journalistic politics might have played a role over my father's well-being. Lost in the controversy surrounding that report was the failure of U.S. officials to secure my father's release in the early weeks following his capture. He was there on behalf of the U.S. government and, as such, believed it would do what was necessary to bring home one of its own if something were to happen to him. Unfortunately, the government has thus far failed to fulfill its duty in the seven years since his kidnapping. We believe everyone - especially the U.S. government and the media - must operate under the assumption he is still alive. He suffers from a number of health problems, but he was alive in a video sent 3 1/2 years after he was taken; he was alive less than three years ago when we received photos of him; and there is no reason to think he isn't alive now. Those holding my dad understand how valuable he is, and I am certain they have had some of their best doctors monitoring his health. Type II diabetes is aided by weight loss, so his most serious health problem could very well have been improved while in captivity... Now, the U.S. government should make bringing my father home its top priority in its negotiations with Iran. It should be the first topic of any discussions with the Islamic Republic, and a prerequisite for any final deal related to its nuclear program... My family, and more importantly my father, have suffered this unimaginable nightmare for far too long." http://t.uani.com/1fQ53NJ Claudia Rosett in Forbes: "On Wednesday, in the Red Sea, Israeli commandos intercepted a freighter carrying a secret cargo of munitions loaded in Iran and hidden under bags of cement. The weaponry included dozens of Syrian-made M-302 rockets which Israeli authorities say were bound for terrorists in Gaza, and from there would have been capable of striking almost anywhere in Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The next day, Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif ridiculed the munitions seizure, implying it was a public relations stunt tied to the annual meeting in Washington of a pro-Israel lobbying group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, at which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a speaker.Sending out a sarcastic note on Twitter, Zarif wrote, 'An Iranian ship carrying arms for Gaza. Captured just in time for annual AIPAC anti Iran campaign. Amazing Coincidence! Or same failed lies.' If Zarif is troubled by the timing, his real quarrel ought to be with his Iranian cohorts who dispatched the weapons. Instead, he's trying to cover for them - turning the arms seizure into a game of they-said we-said. That's a dark portent for the Iran nuclear talks, at which Zarif is serving as Iran's chief negotiator, pledging Iran's 'good faith.' But Zarif does have one thing right. The time lines surrounding this shipment are intriguing. Not least, they provide a rich context for the recent diplomatic activities of Zarif himself, including his smiling presence at last month's round of nuclear talks in Vienna. From details of this latest Iranian munitions-smuggling saga, it can be gleaned that while Zarif was in Vienna, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, reading a statement to the press about their 'very productive' nuclear talks, the freighter, secretly stuffed with weapons, was already enroute from Iran toward the Red Sea. If Zarif knew anything about this, that's damning. If he was clueless, that's alarming. Which is it?Here are some things we do know. Israeli authorities have released a statement, accompanied by video footage, in which they describe an elaborate smuggling scheme, meant to escape detection via a circuitous route - an approach in which Iran's terror-sponsoring regime is well versed. The Israelis say that 'several months ago' the Syrian-made rockets were flown from Damascus to Tehran, then transported to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. There, crates containing the rockets, concealed under bags of cement marked as made in Iran, were loaded along with other cargo into a Panama-flagged freighter named the Klos C. The Israelis say the crew did not know the ship was carrying munitions. The Klos C then sailed further up the Gulf to take on more cargo at the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, a move that Israel says was designed to 'obscure the Iranian connection.' From Iraq, the freighter set out for Port Sudan, on the Red Sea, whence the munitions could be smuggled overland through Egypt to Palestinian-terrorist-controlled Gaza.Apart from specifying that the ship was boarded and taken into Israeli custody on March 5, the Israeli account does not provide dates. But shipping data on the Klos C helps sketch in some of the picture, including the timing of the ship's course as signaled by her live onboard transponder, or Automatic Identification System. Some context: According to Lloyd's List Intelligence shipping database, the Klos C was built in the mid-1990s in St. Petersburg, Russia, and for years sailed under the Dutch flag. In mid-2012, the ship changed hands, and was reflagged to Panama. Her current registered owner, according to Lloyd's, is a company called Whitesea Shipping & Trading Company Limited, which was incorporated in the Marshall Islands a month before acquiring, as its entire fleet, in July, 2012, the Klos C. The beneficial owners of Whitesea Shipping & Trading are listed by Lloyd's as 'unknown.' The Marshall Islands corporate registry, which is housed not on the shores of the North Pacific island nation, but under U.S. jurisdiction, in Reston, Virginia, does not disclose the identities of corporate shareholders or directors. A spokeswoman for the registry says that all parties are vetted, and nothing in this case triggered any alarm." http://t.uani.com/1gkRtwD Eye on Iran is a periodic news summary from United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Eye on Iran is not intended as a comprehensive media clips summary but rather a selection of media elements with discreet analysis in a PDA friendly format. For more information please email Press@UnitedAgainstNuclearIran.com United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons.  UANI is an issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of nuclear weapons.