Thursday, December 21, 2017

Eye on Iran: Haley: New UN Resolution Punishing Iran Could Be in the Works





   EYE ON IRAN
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TOP STORIES


Nikki Haley, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, said that based on a new report by the U.N. Secretary General, new pressure on Iran's continued behavior could lead to a new resolution against the Tehran regime or the strengthening present ones... Haley warned the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps could be included for its many violations.


US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on Dec. 6. In a matter of days, Iran voiced its rejection. On Dec. 11, for the first time ever, Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, the head of Iran's Quds Force, called the leaders of the military wings of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to offer military support... Also on Dec. 11, the Beirut-based pan-Arab Al-Mayadeen News reported that in the telephone call, Soleimani stated that all the Arab resistance movements, such as Hezbollah and other groups that emerged during the Syrian war, are prepared to defend Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.


A viral propaganda video depicting a Saudi Arabian invasion of Iran has dominated social media in the Middle East in recent days as the proxy war between the two rival nations has continued to play out across the region to devastating effect. The animated video, titled "Saudi Strike Force," has been viewed nearly a million times on YouTube and imagines Saudi Arabia's one-sided takeover of Iran following an unprovoked attack on a humanitarian vessel.

IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL


Congress isn't likely to pass new Iran-related legislation any time soon, if ever. So the ball is now back in Trump's court. If he wants to re-impose sanctions on Iran, he will have to do it himself. The good news for the White House is that the president has the power to do just that. All he has to do is stop signing executive orders waiving the sanctions that were suspended once the Iran nuclear deal went into effect. He has waived them twice so far in his presidency, most recently in September. The sanctions can be waived for up to 120 days, which means Trump will have to decide whether to waive them again before January 12. Mark that date on your calendar. It's going to be important.

U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS


Iran is likely to be a major policy target in the new year when the McMaster strategy is completed. With American troops fighting in Afghanistan for the 17th year, presenting a case for confronting Iran anew is likely to take considerable public education and selling, short of a direct attack by Iran on Israel or American troops.

SANCTIONS ENFORCEMENT


A New York jury is deliberating the fate of a Turkish banker in a sanctions-busting trial full of political intrigue and international tension.

TERRORISM AND EXTREMISM


German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said his country was concerned about Iran's role in the region and noted that Berlin and Riyadh agreed on the external political role played by Iran in the region and the role of Hezbollah.

HUMAN RIGHTS


The husband of jailed British woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been given fresh hope after learning that an Iranian judiciary database has listed her as 'eligible for release.'


Four UN rights experts on Wednesday called on Iran to "immediately" annul the death sentence against an academic accused of espionage during nuclear talks with world powers, warning his trial had been marred by violations. Ahmadreza Djalali, an Iranian emergency medicine specialist resident in Sweden, was sentenced to death in the Islamic republic in October for spying for Israel.

MILITARY MATTERS


Revolutionary Guard Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Hossein Bagheri highlighted on Tuesday local efforts being poured into widening a rift between the Revolutionary Guard and the national army. On the other hand, Iranian Army Commander-in-Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi vowed to introduce radical structural changes to the Iranian army so it becomes "more in keep with the revolutionary (in reference to the Revolutionary Guard) style"-- Mousavi said it was according to orders of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

SYRIA CONFLICT


On his first night fighting ISIL in Syria's Aleppo province, Afghan Ali Hoshman witnessed the death of 41 of his fellow militiamen. "We lost that battle along with 30 Afghan and 11 Iranian colleagues, one of whom was my bunk mate," he said. Over the next five months, Ali, now 25, would witness countless deaths, strengthening his resolve to be a part of the forces loyal to Syrian president Bashar Al Assad.

GULF STATES, YEMEN, LEBANON, AND IRAN


On Tuesday, the Middle East grew a little more tense. For at least the second time in as many months, Saudi Arabia announced that it had intercepted a missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels at Riyadh. 


Recent changes in the dynamics of Yemen's civil conflict - widely seen as a proxy war between rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran - are making it very hard to predict what could happen next in the Middle East.


Earlier this month, Qais al-Khazali, leader of the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Asaib Ahl al-Haqq, showed up in southern Lebanon to issue threats against Israel alongside fellow Shia militants from Hezbollah. At first glance, highly publicized video of the incident seemed to signal that Tehran was might expand its military activities from Syria into Lebanon... But for all its tough talk, Tehran does not want to spark a fight in Lebanon, which is far too important to Iranian interests to be turned into another battlefield-at least not before Hezbollah solidifies its grip there in the coming months.

IRANIAN DOMESTIC ISSUES


Amid speculation about an increase in gasoline prices in Iran, reports of a 70% surge in the salaries of parliament members have infuriated both public opinion and the media. 


Iran has raised the price of fuel by up to 50% during the next year's budget and will move to cancel the monetary support of more than 34 million people.


A former deputy of Iran's hardline ex-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed Wednesday that he had been sentenced to 15 years in prison on financial charges.


Schools were closed for a fourth straight day in Tehran on Wednesday as dangerous air pollution covered the Iranian capital and traffic restrictions failed to clear the thick smog.
Average airborne concentration of the finest and most hazardous particles (PM2.5) was "unhealthy" at 160 microgrammes per cubic metre, slightly worse than Tuesday, authorities said.


As a 28-year-old woman born and raised in the holy city of Qom - the Vatican of Iran's Shia Islam - Zeynab Mousavi is breaking numerous barriers to become the country's first female standup comic to find fame, and notoriety, on a national scale. Mousavi has found legions of young fans, but has also touched a nerve in a country where standup comedy is relatively new, and being a female performer remains taboo for many.







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@uani.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.

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