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AFP: "Iran conducted multiple ballistic missile
tests Tuesday in what it said was a display of 'deterrent power,'
defying US sanctions imposed earlier this year aimed at disrupting its
missile programme. State media announced that short-, medium- and
long-range precision guided missiles were fired from several sites to
show the country's 'all-out readiness to confront threats' against its
territorial integrity. Pictures of the launches were broadcast and
reports said the armaments used had ranges of 300 kilometres (190
miles), 500 km, 800 km and 2,000 km. The United States hit Iran with
fresh sanctions on its missile programme in January, 24 hours after
separate sanctions related to Tehran's nuclear activities had been
lifted under a landmark deal with world powers. The latest tests,
during an exercise named 'The Power of Velayat', a reference to the
religious doctrine of the Islamic republic's leadership, were
undertaken by the Revolutionary Guards and its Aerospace wing... Major
General Ali Jafari, the Guards' top commander, and Brigadier General
Amir Ali Hajizadeh, spoke about the tests on television, with the
latter downplaying the effect of US efforts to disrupt its activities.
'Our main enemies, the Americans, who mutter about plans, have
activated new missile sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran
and are seeking to weaken the country's missile capability,' Hajizadeh
said. 'The Guards and other armed forces are defenders of the
revolution and the country will not pay a toll to anyone... and will
stand against their excessive demands.' ... On October 11, Tehran
conducted the first of two ballistic missile tests which angered
Washington. State television weeks later aired unprecedented footage of
underground missile storage bunkers. A UN panel said in December that
the tests breached previous resolutions aimed at stopping Tehran from
developing missiles capable of carrying a nuclear warhead... The White
House had first threatened to impose the measures in December but
withdrew them after Rouhani hit out at both their timing and intent.
Missiles were not part of the nuclear agreement. Asked before the
missile sanctions were announced how Iran would react to fresh measures
against it, Rouhani said: 'Any action will be met by a reaction.'"
http://t.uani.com/1THXPPF
AP: "Russia and the West overcame differences to
strike a landmark nuclear deal with Iran but are now divided on how
well the U.N. atomic agency is reporting on whether Tehran is meeting
its commitments. Western nations want more details while Moscow opposes
their push. Because all six want to avoid conflicts that could
complicate Iranian compliance of a deal that was years in the making,
their differences are mostly playing out behind the scenes. Vladimir
Voronkov, Moscow's chief delegate to the U.N.'s International Atomic
Energy Agency, which is monitoring the deal, acknowledges there is a
dispute that could affect the amount of information made public about
Iran's nuclear program in the future. 'In our view it's an absolutely
balanced document,' Voronkov said ahead of a discussion of the latest
IAEA report on Iran by the agency's 35-nation board scheduled for
Tuesday. 'But some of our colleagues would like to have more details.'
... But Voronkov told The Associated Press that diplomats from some of
those Western countries believe the Feb. 26 IAEA report was too
superficial to provide the broader view they feel is needed to show
Iran that the world was watching. China shares the Russian view. Iran
complains that the report is too detailed, leaving IAEA chief Yukiya
Amano caught in the middle... Critics say that the report falls short
on particulars on these issues. 'The report does not list inventories
of nuclear materials and equipment or the status of key sites and
facilities,' says former IAEA Deputy Director General Olli Heinonen.
'Without detailed reporting, the international community cannot be sure
that Iran is upholding its commitments under the nuclear deal.' ... two
diplomats from EU nations said an EU statement will allude to concerns
of underreporting in some of the same language used by Amano, urging
the IAEA to provide 'the necessary information' on Iran's nuclear
activities in its next quarterly report." http://t.uani.com/24OiQvj
Reuters: "The United States is
imposing export restrictions on China's ZTE Corp and three other
entities over an alleged scheme developed by the telecoms equipment
maker to re-export controlled items to Iran, contrary to U.S. law,
according to a U.S. notice on Monday. The U.S. Commerce Department, in
the public notice, cited ZTE documents that showed the mobile handset
maker planned to use shell companies in the scheme, leading the
department to impose export curbs that will make it harder for ZTE to
acquire U.S. products. ZTE would be able to appeal the decision, which
the Commerce Department said will be effective beginning Tuesday... The
United States has long banned the sale of United States-made technology
products to Iran as part of its sanctions, even as China maintains
close diplomatic, economic, trade and energy ties with the Middle
Eastern country. The export curbs also apply to two of its Chinese
affiliates, ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications Ltd and Beijing 8-Star, and
an Iranian company, ZTE Parsian, the notice said." http://t.uani.com/1Lbsd1G
Nuclear
Program & Agreement
AP: "Iran's semi-official ISNA
news agency says the country has exported heavy water, a key component
for one kind of nuclear reactor, to the United States as part of a
landmark nuclear agreement. The Tuesday report quotes Deputy Foreign
Minister Abbas Araghchi as saying Tehran has exported 32 tons of heavy
water to the United States since the agreement was implemented in
January. Heavy water, formed with a hydrogen isotope, has research and
medical applications, but can also be used to produce weapons-grade
plutonium... Iran is allowed to use heavy water in its modified Arak
nuclear reactor, but must sell any excess supply on the international
market." http://t.uani.com/1p53JNf
Free
Beacon: "The
head of the international community's nuclear watchdog organization
disclosed Monday that certain agreements reached under the Iran nuclear
deal limit inspectors from publicly reporting on potential violations
by the Islamic Republic. Yukiya Amano, chief of the International
Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, which is responsible for ensuring Iran
complies with the agreement, told reporters that his agency is no
longer permitted to release details about Iran's nuclear program and
compliance with the deal. Amano's remarks come on the heels of a
February IAEA oversight report that omitted many details and figures
related to Iran's nuclear program. The report sparked questions from
outside nuclear experts and accusations from critics that the IAEA was
not being transparent with its findings. Amano disclosed in response to
questions from reporters that the last report was intentionally vague
because the nuclear agreement prohibits the IAEA from publishing
critical data about Iran's program that had been disclosed by the
agency in the past. 'The misunderstanding is that the basis of
reporting is different,' Amano said. 'In the previous reports, the
bases were the previous [United Nations] Security Council Resolutions
and Board of Governors. But now they are terminated. They are gone.'
... 'These two resolutions and the other resolutions of the Security
Council and Board are very different,' he said. 'And as the basis is
different, the consequences are different.' Amano said that going
forward, the agency would only release reports that are consistent with
the most recent Security Council resolutions on Iran, meaning that
future reports are likely to impact the international community's
ability to determine if Iran is fully complying with its end of the
agreement. The latest report 'provides insufficient details on
important verification and monitoring issues,' Olli Heinonen, the
IAEA's former deputy director general, stated in a policy brief." http://t.uani.com/1pddud3
Sanctions
Enforcement
WSJ: "The U.S. Commerce Department
slapped Chinese telecommunications equipment and smartphone maker ZTE
Corp. with export restrictions on Monday for allegedly exporting
U.S.-made high-tech goods to Iran. Exhibit No. 1 in the U.S. agency
case: company memos prepared by ZTE's legal department that are a
step-by-step guide for setting up shell companies to circumvent U.S.
export controls. One document - labeled 'Top Secret Highly
Confidential' - doesn't mince words. It says that U.S. export controls
are most strict for countries in the 'Z Group' - a category which
includes state sponsors of terrorism. 'Currently, our company is
conducting large amount of business in 'Z' Group countries,' the
document says. According to that document, ZTE's legal department
recommended the company resolve this problem by trying to persuade
clients to accept non-U.S. products and by setting up shell companies.
ZTE's lawyers laid out a detailed plan to set up a 'detached business
model,' complete with flow charts, the document shows. 'When our
company launches business in the countries of the 'Z' Group, [we will]
avoid using the name of our company to directly sign contracts,' the
document says. 'Our company needs to avoid directly exporting products
and providing services to [these] client(s), and increase the frequency
of circulation of goods inside and outside of our country.'" http://t.uani.com/24Oo0Yp
Reuters: "Chinese telecommunications
equipment maker ZTE Corp has urged its U.S. suppliers to apply for
export licensee to satisfy newly imposed U.S. trade restrictions, a
source with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters on
Tuesday... The moves announced by the U.S. Commerce Department on
Monday are likely to disrupt ZTE's sprawling global supply chain and could
create substantial parts shortages, according to sanctions experts. ZTE
purchases of technology components last year will not be enough to meet
demand in a rapidly changing global tech industry, said the source,
adding the U.S. export restrictions were a rare punishment for a
company. 'It's possibly the toughest punishment you can do to a tech
company,' said the source who declined to be identified as the
information was not public... While ZTE suppliers can apply for an
export license to ship any American-made equipment or parts, the
Commerce Department said such license applications generally will be
denied... The export restriction, which does not stop ZTE from selling
handsets in the United States, is expected to have a global impact. 'It
is going to have a large ripple effect. It's very significant to many
companies both in the U.S. and (outside the) U.S.,' said Doug Jacobson,
an export attorney at law firm Jacobson Burton Kelley PLLC." http://t.uani.com/1p5eS0t
Sanctions
Evasion
IBT: "Iran is trying to build up
its aging aircraft fleet and wants to partner with U.S. manufacturer
Boeing to get the job done. Iran invited the company to talks that
could lead to a potential deal, the country's transport minister said
Thursday on state television, but it still needs additional U.S.
approval to complete the purchases. The Iran-Boeing talks would mark
the first time in three decades that Iran entered into an official sale
with an American business. The U.S.-brokered nuclear deal went into effect
in January, lifting some restrictions on trade and sales to Iran. Under
the agreement, the U.S. permits 'the sale of commercial passenger
aircraft and related parts and services to Iran.' Even before the
nuclear deal went into effect Jan. 16, Iranian airlines purchased
Boeing aircraft from third parties, usually other airlines or aircraft
companies, to update their fleets, an International Business Times
investigation last year found. Some of those deals were prohibited by
U.S. sanction law and U.S. export controls. Under the terms of
sanctions, Iran was barred from purchasing aircraft from U.S. and
European entities - and U.S. and European entities were barred from
selling them to Iran - until Tehran had satisfied inspectors that it
had begun rolling back its nuclear program. Iranian airlines purchased
aircraft manufactured in the U.S. before those sanctions were rolled
back. After implementation day, Iranian airlines purchased aircraft
manufactured in the U.S. without the proper approval, an IBT review of
documents has found... Recently obtained Aviation records maintained by
a private registry show that Sepehran, an Iranian airline, purchased a
Boeing aircraft from the vendor Aero North, an Indonesian vendor, on
Jan. 23. Aero North would have needed a license from the U.S.
Department of Commerce because the aircraft was manufactured in the
U.S... ATA Airlines, another Iranian company, purchased a Boeing from
an undisclosed buyer in December." http://t.uani.com/1pvDwrV
Sanctions
Relief
Reuters: "Global oil traders have
entered into rare barter deals with the National Iranian Oil Company
(NIOC), supplying Iran with much-needed gasoline in exchange for
high-quality fuel oil, after most economic sanctions against Tehran
were lifted in January. Commodity traders Swiss-based Vitol [VITOLV.UL]
and Glencore (GLEN.L), for example, have won the right to lift a
combined total of at least 200,000 tonnes per month of Iranian fuel oil
from March through May, according to four trading sources with
knowledge of the deals. 'The big traders resumed moving gasoline to
Iran shortly after sanctions were removed. Instead of a cash
settlement, Iran pays back in fuel oil,' said one senior Iranian
trading official, who declined to be named as the deals were private.
The barter deals, which Iranian industry sources said also included
some done by Russian companies, have helped to wipe out the short-term
fuel oil available for export, said the official. 'There is no extra
fuel oil available in the short term, because they are all committed,'
the official said. Another Iranian industry official estimated Iran
usually exports 700,000-800,000 tonnes of fuel oil a month during the
spring months starting from late March, when warmer weather begins to
curtail the fuel oil used for generating power during winter months.
Although there have been instances of Iranian fuel oil being shipped
directly to Singapore, most cargoes are likely to be channeled into
Fujairah, a storage and bunkering hub in neighboring United Arab
Emirates, according to two Singapore-based traders. Once in Fujairah,
the fuel oil will be fed into the local bunker market or blended with
other grades to be redistributed to markets across Africa or Asia, the
traders said. Glencore was heard offering Iranian 280-centistoke (cst)
fuel oil to China for April arrivals, two China-based traders said.
Vitol and Glencore both have operations at Fujairah, allowing them to
use less expensive smaller vessels to deliver gasoline to Iran or to
load fuel oil from there, according to the Iranian oil officials."
http://t.uani.com/1W5YK9S
Reuters: "Royal Dutch Shell has paid
1.77 billion euros (£1.4 billion) it owed the National Iranian Oil
Company, settling debts after sanctions against the country were lifted
in January. The outstanding debt to Iran was a result of Iranian oil
deliveries which Shell had been unable to pay for due to sanctions that
were imposed on the country over its nuclear programme. The Anglo-Dutch
company resumed talks with Tehran on the debt after most Western
sanctions were lifted in January as part of a deal with world powers.
The payments were made over the past three weeks in euros as dollar
transactions are still under U.S. sanctions. 'Following the lifting of
applicable EU and U.S sanctions, we can confirm that payment of the
outstanding Shell debt to NIOC has now been made,' a Shell spokesman
said in a statement. The debt repayment could lead Shell to make new
investments in the resource-rich country that hopes to revive an oil
and gas industry that shrivelled under sanctions. 'We remain interested
in exploring the role Shell can play in developing Iran's energy
potential within the boundaries of applicable laws,' the spokesman
said." http://t.uani.com/1OYy4lK
PressTV
(Iran): "Global
industrial giant Mittal Steel on Tuesday signed a contract worth €1
billion to produce iron in southern Iran. The contract that has been
signed with Mahan Industries and Mines Development Company - a
subsidiary of Iran's Tourism Financial Group - envisages extracting
iron and the establishment of a processing plant in the country's
southern province of Kerman. Mahan has not specified which specific
iron mine will be the subject of the deal with Mittal but it owns a
major mine near Sirjan which is considered to be one of the largest in
the country with a reservoir of about 1.2 billion tons. The
company last year won a deal to extract 24 million tons of iron from
the same mine for 14 years. Mittal Steel is also based on the same deal
expected to take charge of managing Mahan's Bonab steel production
complex in northwestern Iran for a period of five years." http://t.uani.com/1RyfIdb
Reuters: "Oman's top port Salalah has
signed trade agreements with key Iranian terminals in the latest
efforts by the Gulf country to boost shipping ties with Tehran
following the lifting of international sanctions... The United Arab
Emirates previously enjoyed greater shipping activity with Iran but
ports in Oman are looking at expanding ties. Salalah, located near the
Gulf of Aden, said on Monday it had signed a memorandum of
understanding with Iran's biggest cargo port Bandar Abbas and with
Chabahar port, which would 'facilitate growth in shipping, trade and
commerce' between the two countries. 'We also envisage the landlocked
countries adjacent to Iran to use the existing multilateral agreements
for transport corridors to access new markets,' Port of Salalah Chief
Executive David Gledhill said in a statement. Oman's government owns a
majority stake in Salalah, which is the country's main transshipment
port, and handled 2.6 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) of
container trade last year as well as 12.5 million tonnes of bulk cargo.
AP Moller Maersk unit APM Terminals has a 30.1 percent holding.
Officials with Sohar port, which is located further north in the Gulf
of Oman and in which Oman's government holds a 50 percent stake, have
told Reuters they were in talks with Iranian shipping lines and ports
to boost trade amid tough shipping markets." http://t.uani.com/1Lbo4uM
Bloomberg: "Iran, a net importer of
gasoline, may start exporting the fuel once the Persian Gulf Star oil
refinery begins operating in late August, Fars news agency reported.
The OPEC member currently imports 9 million liters per day of gasoline,
Fars reported Tuesday, citing Naser Sajadi, managing director of National
Iranian Oil Products Distribution Co. Iran's domestic consumption rose
2 percent to 70 million liters (440,000 barrels) a day over the past 11
months compared with the same period in the previous year, according to
the report. The country needs $1.7 billion to modernize its refineries,
the oil ministry's Shana news service reported Tuesday, citing Amir
Hossein Zamaninia, deputy oil minister for commerce and international
affairs. The Persian Gulf Star facility at the southern port of Bandar
Abbas will be Iran's biggest refinery upon completion, with a planned
processing capacity of 360,000 barrels a day... Persian Gulf Star will
have a daily production of 36 million liters of gasoline, 14 million
liters of diesel and 370,000 liters of aviation fuel, the official
Islamic Republic News Agency reported on Sept. 7. Iran will stop
importing gasoline once the refinery opens and will export the fuel for
at least 10 years, IRNA reported. The refinery is to be completed in
three phases, each of which will have a processing capacity of 120,000
barrels a day. The first phase had been scheduled to begin operating
this month, according to the September IRNA report. The second and
third phases are to start at six-month intervals after the first, Saeid
Mahjoubi, the product coordination and supervision director at National
Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Co., said on Jan. 28 in
Tokyo." http://t.uani.com/1THOBTu
Yemen
Crisis
CNN: "An Australian naval ship has
seized a large arms cache that may have come from Iran and headed to
Yemen by way of Somalia. The Australian Navy said that one of its ships
patrolling the region, the HMAS Darwin, intercepted a small, stateless
fishing vessel about 170 nautical miles off the coast of Oman when it
made the discovery. On board they found more than 2,000 pieces of
weaponry -- including 1,989 AK-47 assault rifles and 100
rocket-propelled grenades. According to a U.S. assessment, the weapons
were believed to be initially sent from Iran and were likely intended
for Houthi rebels in Yemen, Lt. Ian McConnaughey with the U.S. Navy
told CNN... Iran has been accused before of attempting to arm the
Shiite Houthis in a civil war that's largely a proxy fight between
those two parties and Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi, who is
backed by Saudi Arabia and other Sunni gulf states." http://t.uani.com/1UaM3eQ
Reuters: "A senior Iranian military
official signaled on Tuesday that Iran could send military advisers to
Yemen to help the Shi'ite Houthi group fight a Gulf Arab coalition led
by Saudi Arabia. Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, deputy chief of staff
of the armed forces, suggested Iran could support the Houthis in a
similar way it has backed President Bashar al-Assad's forces in Syria,
in an interview with the Tasnim news agency. Asked if Iran would send
military advisors to Yemen, as it had in Syria, Jazayeri said: 'The
Islamic Republic felt its duty to help the Syrian government and
nation. It also feels its duty to help the people of Yemen in any way
it can, and to any level necessary.'" http://t.uani.com/1LOGfGJ
Regional
Destabilization
Al
Arabiya: "Emirati
Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed said it is necessary to put
an end to the Iranian intervention in the region, stressing that Iran
was the only country whose constitution stipulated that the revolution
and sectarianism should be exported." http://t.uani.com/1Rye4IB
Iran-Saudi
Tensions
WSJ: "The Obama administration is
pressuring Saudi Arabia not to take further steps to punish Lebanon
economically in retaliation for the growing political power amassed in
Beirut by Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant and political
group, according to U.S. and Arab officials. The dispute over Lebanon
marks the latest foreign policy rift to emerge between Washington and
Riyadh, decades-old allies, particularly concerning the regional role
played by Iran and its proxies... Senior U.S. diplomats, including
Secretary of State John Kerry, have privately warned Saudi Arabia and
other Gulf states that they were overreacting and risked destabilizing
Lebanon's broader economy, according to these officials. Beirut is
heavily dependent on Arab investment and remittances from Lebanese
workers living in the Persian Gulf. 'We thought the actions were
reckless and risked driving the Lebanese further into the hands of
Iran,' said a senior U.S. official briefed on the communications with
Saudi Arabia. 'It feels like a significant overreaction.'" http://t.uani.com/1pvDQqw
FT: "UAE officials say Gulf
targeting of Iran's proxies could broaden in the coming months as
countries consider listing Iraq's Shia militia forces fighting
alongside the army as 'terrorists'. The GCC blames Iran's intervention
in the Arab world for fuelling sectarian resentment in the region and
argues constraining it would stem recruitment to Isis and al-Qaeda...
An Abu Dhabi adviser said the UAE - along with other GCC states - is
considering expelling thousands of alleged Hizbollah supporters, which
critics say could become a purge of Lebanese Shia. In past years, the
UAE has carried out several such deportations." http://t.uani.com/1UPZFgo
Al
Arabiya: "The
Iranian authorities released one hundred fifty two persons accused of
storming the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in the city of
Mashhad last January. The spokesman for the Iranian judiciary Gholam
Hussein Ejani announced in a press conference that one hundred fifty
two detainees were released, while only two are still under
investigation, stressing that the stages of the investigation will be
announced later." http://t.uani.com/1SwTvkF
Human
Rights
IranWire: "In Iran, women continue to
face harsh discrimination, discrimination that is embedded within
Iranian society - but also enshrined in Iranian law. Although in
many ways, Iranian women are empowered, with female students
outnumbering men in a number of fields, and women playing an active
role in social sciences and the arts, Iran's legal system continues to
hold them back and repress them. On International Women's Day, IranWire
looks at the laws that have a direct impact on the lives of
women." http://t.uani.com/1QEl0Yi
Fox
News: "The
number of Muslim converts who are risking prison or death by secretly
worshipping as Christians in Iran's house church movement has grown to
as many as 1 million people, according to watchdog groups. The
London-based Pars Theological Center is training at least 200 Iranian
Christians to become the next generation of Iran's church leaders, the
Christian Post reported. The persecution of Christians has persisted in
Iran since the 1979 rise of the country's theocratic Shiite Muslim
government -- with Christians facing the threat of death, lashing and
torture. About 100 Christians currently remain imprisoned under Iranian
President Hassan Rouhani's rule. In 2010, Iranian Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the country's underground house churches 'threaten
the Islamic faith and deceive young Muslims.' Despite the crackdown,
there is now a growing movement of Christians in the Islamic Republic.
Groups like Open Doors USA estimate around 450,000 practicing
Christians in the country, while other estimates record more than 1
million Christians in Iran... While Iran has released high-profile
Christian pastors from captivity -- most notably Iranian American Saeed
Abedini -- other Christian ministers still languish in the country's
prisons. Pastor Farshid Fathi has been locked up in Iran's notorious
Evin prison since December 2010 for what the American Center for Law
and Justice describes as practicing his Christian faith... Another
Christian minister, Pastor Behnam Irani, is serving six years in Ghezal
Hezar prison for alleged 'actions against the state,' after he preached
to a group of converted Christians in a house church as well as sharing
his faith with Muslims." http://t.uani.com/1W65N2v
CPJ: "The son of imprisoned
Iranian journalist Issa Saharkhiz says his father's health has
deteriorated and he has lost a worrying amount of weight since being
sent to Evin prison last November. In an interview with CPJ, Mehdi
Saharkhiz said his father, who is due in court this week, has been
treated poorly. Saharkhiz, a prominent journalist who contributed to
opposition news website Rooz Online, was arrested in an apparent
pre-election crackdown by Iranian authorities on November 2, the same
day as three reformist journalists--Saman Sarfarzaee, Afarin Chitsaz,
and Ehsan Mazandarani. At the time of their arrests Tasnim, a news
agency closely associated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards, and the
conservative Rah-e Dana news website reported that the journalists were
members of an 'infiltration network' with links to 'hostile Western
countries.' With 19 journalists behind bars, Iran was the third worst
jailer of journalists in the world in 2015, according to CPJ's annual
prison census." http://t.uani.com/21j7L0F
IHR: "In a recent press conference
the spokesperson for Iran's Judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje'i,
announced death sentences for Babak Zanjani and two other individuals
who are convicted in the same case. According to Eje'i, the three men
were charged with 'corruption on earth' by a lower court and sentenced
to death. 'In addition to the death penalty, the defendants must compensate
the plaintiff, the National Iranian Oil Company, and also pay a fine
equalling to one fourth of the total amount of the money laundering,'
says Eje'i. Zanjani, 34, was reportedly arrested by Iranian
authorities on December 30, 2013 and accused of money laundering.
Although Eje'i did not mention the names of the two other individuals,
Iranian semi-official sources have pubished their names: Mehdi Shams
and Hamid Fallah Heravi. Iran Human Rights strongly condemns the
execution sentences for Babak Zanjani, Mehdi Shams and Hamid Fallah
Heravi. 'Iran's Judiciary regards the death penalty as the main
solution to all major problems in Iran. Corruption, drug trafficking
and violent crimes are increasing in Iran; despite three decades of
executions. Authorities need to realize that the problems of Iranian
society are rooted in state corruption and lack of accountability.
Executing these three individuals would only add to the grim execution
record of the regime in Iran,' says Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, spokesperson
for Iran Human Rights." http://t.uani.com/1M4tqml
ICHRI: "An Appeals Court in Iran has
upheld the 15-year prison sentence of the student activist Arash Sadeghi
for 'collusion against national security,' 'propaganda against the
state,' 'spreading lies in cyberspace' and 'insulting the Founder of
the Islamic Republic [Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini].' Sadeghi's sentence
has been confirmed without taking into consideration Article 134 of
Iran's New Islamic Penal Code, which limits a prison term to the
heaviest sentence of the most serious charge in cases of multiple
charges. Sadeghi told the International Campaign for Human Rights in
Iran that his lawyer, Amir Raeesian, was not allowed to be present at
the opening session of his trial. Raeesian was allowed to attend the
second session but wasn't permitted to read the case file. Raeesian was
only able to see a portion of the file just before the Appeals Court
hearing. Political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Iran are
routinely subjected to due process violations such as denial of full
access to counsel or a lawyer's full access to case files... Sadeghi's
wife, Golrokh Iraee, an accountant with no previous criminal record,
has also been sentenced to six years in prison for 'propaganda against
the state' and 'insulting the sacred.'" http://t.uani.com/1X9IB3v
ICHRI: "Navid Kamran, a former
political prisoner, has been sentenced to one year in prison without
any new evidence supporting the charge against him of 'propaganda
against the state,' he told the International Campaign for Human Rights
in Iran. 'When the agents came into the shop jointly owned by me and
[former prisoner of conscience] Arash [Sadeghi], they only had a
warrant for Arash's arrest. Nevertheless, they also arrested me,
Arash's wife [Golrokh Iraee], and Behnam Mousivand,' Kamran told the
Campaign in an interview. 'All the things they accused me of during
interrogation and the trial were stuff I did years ago for which I've
already spent time in prison. It seems that now that they had me under
arrest, they wanted to punish me.' Kamran was arrested at his
stationery store on Azarbaijan Street in Tehran on September 6, 2014
along with three others including his business partner, former student
activist Arash Sadeghi, by the Revolutionary Guard's Intelligence
Organization." http://t.uani.com/1OYuZC8
Journalism
Is Not A Crime:
"The health of jailed blogger and activist Hossein Ronaghi-Maleki
continues to deteriorate in prison. The young Iranian, who suffers from
serious kidney problems, has now been diagnosed with liver disease too,
according to his family. Ronaghi-Maleki is currently serving a 15-year
prison sentence for his work as a human rights activist and blogger. He
has only one functioning kidney and needs constant monitoring and
access to specialized medical care, which he cannot get in prison,
according to his doctors. Since the blogger returned to Evin Prison on
January 20, 2016 following medical leave, his condition has worsened
further due to extreme medical negligence. Yet prison authorities have
repeatedly refused to hospitalize him. According to one of his
relatives, Ronaghi-Maleki was transferred to hospital for medical tests
and ultrasound on Saturday, March 5, but only for a short two-hour
visit, before being sent back to Tehran's notorious Evin Prison. He was
reportedly diagnosed with liver disease and is 'critically ill,' the
relative said." http://t.uani.com/24Oahke
Iran
Press Watch:
"According to the Campaign to Stop Harassment and Imprisonment of
Baha'i Citizens: Seven Baha'i residents of Isfahan, who had
earlier been arrested by the security and intelligence authorities
along with a group of 11 Baha'is from Tehran and Mashhad, were
convicted in court without their prior knowledge, and were informed of
the decision only by text message. A close relative of one of the
convicted individuals told the Campaign that one of the accused Baha'is
who resides in Isfahan had gone to the courthouse on 16 February to
inform them of the particulars of her legal counsel, at which time she
was told by the judicial authorities that her hearing had already been
held, and that her verdict, and that of the other six Baha'is, would be
issued and announced within the next 2 days. None of the seven Baha'is
were present in court or given a chance to choose legal representation.
Earlier on November 15, these five citizens, along with 11 other
Baha'is, totaling 16, were arrested in a raid by agents of the Ministry
of Intelligence at their homes in Tehran, Isfahan, and Mashhad." http://t.uani.com/1RPTQwC
RFE/RL: "Iran has set new
restrictions on concerts held at universities, as hard-liners dig in
their heels after election gains for moderates who might seek to ease
some of the Islamic republic's harshest limits on cultural life. The
regulations, issued by the state council for the Islamization of
universities and educational centers, declares that 'holding concerts
and independent musical programs is not a priority for universities and
is not allowed.' But it adds that only 'fine and valuable Iranian
music' that 'strengthens national identity' and is in line with
'Islamic norms' can be played while emphasizing that promoting music is
not part of universities' mission. The regulations also say that music
played at university concerts should encourage commitment to 'moral,
social, political, and revolutionary responsibilities.' It also says
that music should not create 'excitement that is out of the norm' or
provoke 'lust.' Lyrics that encourage 'promiscuity,' 'despair and
hopelessness,' 'superficiality,' and 'neglect human dignity' should be
avoided, according to the regulations as published by the news site
Khabaronline.ir. The new restrictions come several months after Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei strongly criticized university concerts
and mixed student camps as very wrong. In a July 2015 meeting with a
group of students, Khamenei quoted approvingly a student as saying that
'university is not a place for concerts.' 'Sending students to mixed
camps and holding concerts in universities to, in our minds, create joy
in the student environment, is among the most wrong deeds,' Khamenei
was quoted as saying by domestic media." http://t.uani.com/1R5lSYf
Domestic
Politics
NYT: "Just a week after his forces
made significant gains in national elections, President Hassan Rouhani
of Iran has started a campaign to rescind a news media blackout against
a former president, Mohammad Khatami. Mr. Rouhani's calculated remarks
broke a longstanding taboo and set the stage for a showdown between the
president and the country's hard-line dominated judiciary. The blackout
had been in effect for some time before it was publicly acknowledged in
February 2015. Since then, press officers for the judiciary have said
that other institutions had ordered it, but it is the judiciary that
has punished newspapers and websites that defied the ban. Mr. Rouhani's
comments on Mr. Khatami were for the most part ignored by the Iranian
news media. The lone exception was the IRNA, a state-run news agency
voicing the opinions of the Iranian government, which highlighted Mr.
Rouhani's remarks on its web page. Mr. Khatami, a reformist, led the
country from 1997 to 2005, winning office twice by overwhelming margins.
Under the ban issued by judiciary officials, no Iranian news outlet of
any sort is permitted to mention his name or show his photograph. Mr.
Rouhani, speaking during a live broadcast on Monday from the city of
Yazd, made a point of explicitly mentioning Mr. Khatami's name. Mr.
Rouhani recalled how he had entered Parliament at the same time 'as my
dear brother Seyyed Mohammad Khatami,' who comes from the region of
Yazd. As the audience cheered, state television quickly muted the
sound." http://t.uani.com/1LOQOcM
LAT: "A conservative Iranian
lawmaker was caught on video saying that women, like donkeys, have no
place in parliament, sparking calls for him to be thrown out of office.
The video, which surfaced on YouTube last week, shows Nader Qazipour
giving a fiery victory speech after winning reelection as a member of
parliament representing the city of Urmia. 'Parliament is not the place
for donkeys and foals, monkeys and women,' the 57-year-old cries, amid
boasts about his fearlessness and commitment to challenging the wealthy
and powerful. Qazipour was speaking candidly in his native Turkish
language, independent analyst Nader Karimi Juni said, and evidently did
not expect to be recorded... Qazipour's crude remarks represent the
feelings of many in the traditional strata of Iranian society -
feelings that are becoming less acceptable to express publicly as women
make gains in public life." http://t.uani.com/1R5d30q
Opinion
& Analysis
UANI
Advisory Board Member Roger F. Noriega in AEI: "Last week, an Argentine
intelligence official testified that Iran sought nuclear technology
from that South American country and that a prosecutor investigating
suspected Hezbollah bombings in Buenos Aires had been murdered for
attempting to expose Tehran's dangerous plot. This fresh testimony
supports reports I published in July 2011 regarding suspicious nuclear
diplomacy in 2007 and a massive cash transfer in 2010 involving then
Iranian and Argentine leaders, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Nestor Kirchner,
respectively. Despite congressional inquiries and mounting evidence,
the State Department has chosen to ignore this blind spot in strategy
for containing Iran's illicit nuclear program. According to the
Argentine daily newspaper, Clarin, a former Argentine senior
intelligence official, Antonio Stiuso, confirmed in two days of
testimony before a judge that the former president of Venezuela, Hugo
Chávez, interceded with Nestor Kirchner to resume nuclear cooperation
with Iran, which had been suspended in 1991. Also, according to
Stiuso's testimony, Ahmadinejad was interested in using Argentina's
technology to produce plutonium bombs, which he characterized as more
sophisticated than the ones Iran was trying to make with enriched
uranium. Stiuso noted that Venezuela did not possess the technical
knowledge to make use of the nuclear technology sought by Chávez from
Argentina. Instead, because Iran's nuclear plans were designed by
Argentines in the 1960s, Stiuso's theory is that Tehran was the
ultimate beneficiary of such nuclear cooperation. Stiuso also testified
that the former prosecutor, Alberto Nisman, was murdered for refusing
an order from former president Cristina Kirchner to cease investigating
Iran's role in the 1992 and 1994 bombings and its corrupt dealings with
Argentine officials. In a draft criminal complaint discovered after the
prosecutor was found dead last year in an apparently staged suicide,
Nisman accused Cristina Kirchner of covering up the involvement of five
Iranians who have been charged with planning the 1994 terrorist attack
against the Jewish Community Center in the heart of Argentina's capital
city." http://t.uani.com/21jmVmS
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Eye on Iran is a periodic news summary from United Against
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