|
TOP STORIES
Citizens of six countries have joined an auxiliary force
that supports Iran's world view, and have sworn an allegiance to the
Islamic Republic's supreme leader, according to a top Iranian
military commander.
Two videos that aired on Iranian television over the
weekend suggest Tehran is trying to pressure the United States in
advance of a potential decision on sanctions and push Britain to
repay more than a half-billion dollars for undelivered weapons.
Iran has embarked on a large-scale cyber piracy
operations in an attempt to expand its influence over the Middle
East, especially in Lebanon, according to a new report. A group of
Iranian hackers backed by Iran, attacked the servers of the offices
of the Lebanese president Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri
after his resignation, according to French newspaper Le Figaro. The
attacks also targeted the Lebanese ministries of justice, foreign
affairs, the army and several banks, according to Western
intelligence.
SANCTIONS ENFORCEMENT
A Turkish gold trader will not go on trial this week on
charges of conspiring to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran in a case
that has strained Turkish-U.S. ties, a U.S. judge in New York said Monday.
Reza Zarrab, 34, stopped appearing in court in the two months leading
up to his scheduled trial, prompting Turkey's prime minister to
suggest he has reached a plea deal with U.S. authorities.
The trial of a Turkish banker charged with helping Iran
evade economic sanctions is set to begin Tuesday after a jury was
selected in New York. The banker, Mehmet Hakan Atilla, will be the
only defendant on trial, U.S. District Judge Richard Berman told
jurors in court on Monday. That still leaves unanswered whether the
main defendant, Turkish-Iranian gold trader Reza Zarrab, has struck a
deal with the U.S. and will testify against Atilla.
HUMAN RIGHTS
The wife of an American graduate student who is behind
bars in Iran pleaded with the Trump administration to do more to
secure his release Tuesday. In an exclusive broadcast interview with
NBC News, Qu Hua revealed that her husband, Xiyue Wang, has attempted
suicide during his almost 16 months in prison. "Only the U.S.
government can sort this out, only the U.S. government can help
us," she said. "I hope President Trump can open up a
dialogue with Iranian authorities to discuss a resolution of my
husband's case."
SYRIA CONFLICT
A sobering report on the Trump administration's
nonexistent Syria policy is out from the Iran task force of the
Gemunder Center of the Jewish Institute for National Security of
America (JINSA). While the administration has been playing games with
"decertifying" but not negating the Joint Comprehensive
Plan of Action (JCPOA), the real fight against Iranian aggression is
being lost on the ground.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, AND IRAN
With tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran ratcheting
up and OPEC about to announce its plans for global crude supply,
investors would be forgiven for anticipating a few gyrations in oil
prices. The opposite has happened: the market is the calmest it's
been for almost nine months.
IRANIAN DOMESTIC ISSUES
A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck an area
straddling the Iran-Iraq border on Nov. 12. Iran's western province
of Kermanshah was the hardest hit with over 400 fatalities.
Sympathies immediately began pouring in from across Iran, with many
taking direct measures to help the victims. Many of these efforts,
however, only created more difficulties in the delivery of aid to
quake-stricken regions. Iran's social media networks were abuzz from
the initial hours after the earthquake, with people asking how they
could help. Very few suggested government-affiliated organizations,
such as the Iranian Red Crescent Society, which, at times of
disaster, is the largest entity involved in providing relief efforts
in the country. Instead, most Iranians seemed interested in finding
nongovernmental organizations that could deliver their aid and
donations to victims.
Saeed Mortazavi, a former judge and prosecutor in Iran,
has been sentenced to two years in prison for the deaths at a
notorious detention facility during the 2009 postelection protests.
An appellate court in Tehran upheld the sentence for Mortazavi for
"accessory to murder" in the death of Mohsen Ruholamini,
the son of a conservative politician who was on the campaign staff
for 2009 conservative presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei.
Iran's government has paid tribute to one of the
country's wrestlers who threw an international bout when he was ahead
because winning would have meant fighting an opponent from Israel.
|
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment