|
TOP STORIES
For a decade, the U.S. and other major powers squeezed
Iran's economy to force it to rein in its nuclear program. That ended
in early 2016, creating an opportunity for Iran to bounce back. By
many measures, it has... Still, Iran hasn't reaped as large a
dividend as many citizens expected when the country agreed in 2015 to
limit its nuclear program and subject it to external inspections. One
obstacle has been U.S. sanctions that remained even after every world
power lifted its nuclear-related ones. And under President Donald
Trump, who opposes the accord, the U.S. keeps pulling the noose
around Iran tighter. At stake is more than Iran's gross domestic
product. Its prosperity affects the role the country plays in the
world's most volatile region.
President Trump notified Congress Monday that he was
extending the national emergency with Iran that has been in place
since the 1979 hostage crisis, saying relations with the Islamic
regime have not normalized.
Saudi Arabia charged Monday that a missile fired at its
capital from Yemen over the weekend was an "act of war" by
Iran, in the sharpest escalation in nearly three decades of mounting
hostility between the two regional rivals.
UANI IN
THE NEWS
On the morning of October 23, 1983, Imad Mughniyeh and
Mustafa Badreddine perched atop a building in south Beirut,
binoculars fixated on the four-story U.S. Marine barracks attached to
the International Airport. After months of meticulous planning, the attack
that would launch them into international infamy as Hezbollah's most
storied - and lethal - commanders was about to unfold. At 6:22
AM, a truck laden with six tons of explosives slammed into the
building, collapsing it to rubble and killing 241 American
servicemen. Calmly watching the explosions, the duo smiled with
satisfaction at their plan's success. Minutes later and four miles
away, another truck detonated at French Paratrooper headquarters,
leaving 58 dead.
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS
US President Donald Trump notified Congress on Monday
that he was extending the national emergency with Iran that has been
in place since the 1979 hostage crisis. "Our relations with Iran
have not yet normalized, and the process of implementing the
agreements with Iran, dated January 19, 1981, is ongoing," Trump
wrote Congress in the formal notice.
SANCTIONS RELIEF
Europe must make clear how it will
react if the United States pulls out of the multinational nuclear
deal with Iran and do more to encourage international banks to return
to the country, a senior Iranian official said on Tuesday.
HUMAN RIGHTS
Britain's foreign secretary faced accusations on Monday
of having made a misleading and careless statement about a British
citizen of Iranian descent imprisoned in Iran that could prolong her
ordeal there. The foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, spoke in
Parliament last month about Iran's imprisonment of the woman, Nazanin
Zaghari-Ratcliffe. He described her conviction for sedition as a
mockery of justice but also said she had been "simply teaching
people journalism." Ms. Zaghari-Ratcliffe's employer, family and
local parliamentary representative said Mr. Johnson's statement about
the activities of Ms. Zaghari-Ratcliffe in Iran not only were untrue
but also had created new risks for her. Days after Mr. Johnson's
comments, Ms. Zaghari-Ratcliffe was taken to a new court hearing,
where Mr. Johnson's words were cited as evidence that she had been
engaged in "propaganda against the regime."
Britain said on Monday that comments by Foreign
Secretary Boris Johnson about jailed Iranian-British aid worker
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe should not be used by the Islamic Republic
to bring additional charges against her.
The British foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, is
expected to call the Iranian foreign minister on Tuesday as he comes
under increasing pressure to retract remarks that campaigners believe
could lead to a British-Iranian woman being jailed for five years.
Iran has eased conditions for opposition leader Mehdi
Karroubi, who has been under house arrest since 2011, allowing him to
receive visitors, one of his sons said on Monday. Mohammed Hossein
Karroubi was speaking to ISNA and ILNA news agencies, which are close
to the Iranian reformist camp.
YEMEN CRISIS
The British ambassador to Yemen said on Tuesday that the
United Kingdom and the international community are fully aware of the
seriousness of the negative role of Iran in Yemen. Simon Shercliff
stressed on the need to put an end to Iran's intervention and support
for Houthi militias and fighters allied to ousted President Ali
Abdallah Saleh.
GULF STATES & IRAN
Saudi Arabia, locked in a struggle for regional
dominance with Iran, will have no choice but to create and strengthen
militias in countries across the region, a prominent columnist wrote
in a state-owned daily.
Mohammad Ali Jafari, the head of Iran's Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps, has denied claims by President Donald
Trump that Iran was responsible for the missile that was launched
into Saudi Arabia from Yemen over the weekend.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on
Monday Saudi Arabia was blaming Iran for the consequences of its own
"wars of aggression", after his Saudi counterpart accused
Tehran of threatening regional security.
|
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment