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TOP STORIES
The French, British and German governments have told
Iran they are exploring activating accounts for the Iranian central
bank with their national central banks in a bid to open a financial
channel to keep alive the Iranian nuclear deal, according to several
European officials.
The United States in certain cases will consider waivers
for countries that need more time to wind down imports of oil from
Iran as it seeks to avoid disrupting global oil markets while
reimposing sanctions against Tehran, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven
Mnuchin said.
US President Donald Trump asserted Monday that Iran was
being roiled by nationwide riots since he pulled out of an
international nuclear deal and that Washington supports the
protesters.
UANI IN THE NEWS
The president may be indulging Russia as his predecessor
did the Islamic Republic.
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
The Trump administration still has no firm commitments
from the biggest Iranian oil importers that they will wean themselves
off that supply to comply with sanctions being reinstated by the U.S.
as part of its withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.
Iran's oil exports could fall by as much as two-thirds
by the end of the year because of new U.S. sanctions, putting oil
markets under huge strain amid supply outages elsewhere in the world.
Washington initially planned to totally shut Iran out of global oil
markets after President Donald Trump abandoned a deal that limited
Iran's nuclear ambitions, demanding all other countries to stop
buying its crude by November.
Iran has lodged a complaint with the International Court
of Justice against the United States' reimposition of sanctions, the
foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
Tehran has generally responded to pressure by issuing
threats, ramping up its nuclear activities, accepting temporary
limits, and, when the heat is turned up, launching cyber, military,
and terrorist operations.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iranian authorities have arrested dozens of people in
fresh crackdowns on models and associated colleagues posting
"immoral images" online.
Iran's judicial spokesman has revealed that certain
individuals have been arrested and several companies closed down over
the alleged abuse of subsidized dollars and price violations on the
cellphone market.
Masih Alinejad is helping Iranian women challenge the
regime - one hijab at a time.
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
Despite claims by Israeli sources that Russia is acting
to distance Iran from the Israeli-Syrian border, the recent Syrian
army campaign in the area of Daraa, near the border, saw cooperation
between the Russians army, Syrian forces, Hezbollah, and pro-Iranian
militias.
In a first, Argentina's government has targeted a
Hezbollah fundraising network in the northern Triple Frontier with
Brazil and Paraguay.
"US President Donald Trump's threats against Iran
and Palestinian resistance groups don't scare us," a senior
Iranian general told leaders of Palestinian terrorist groups in the
Gaza Strip on Monday via a video conference during a meeting
organized simultaneously in Gaza City and Tehran, according to a
report by the Turkish news agency Anadalou.
The Lebanese group Hezbollah wants the world to think of
it as fighting against terrorists - not supporting the Assad regime
or threatening the Western world.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Monday the U.S.
withdrawal from world powers' 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran would
have negative consequences for Middle East stability.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
On the morning of 16 December 2015 Qatar's ruling family
got bad news: 28 members of a royal hunting party had been kidnapped
in Iraq... In one version of events, they would pay more than a
billion dollars to free the men. The money would go to groups and
individuals labelled "terrorists" by the US: Kataib
Hezbollah in Iraq, which killed American troops with roadside bombs;
General Qasem Soleimani, leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards'
Quds Force and personally subject to US and EU sanctions; and Hayat
Tahrir al-Sham, once known as al-Nusra Front, when it was an al-Qaeda
affiliate in Syria.
Iran's supreme leader has railed against Saudi Arabia's
control over two of Islam's holiest sites as the two Middle Eastern
powers continue to vie for regional influence.
IRAQ & IRAN
Over the last few days, Iraq's southern provinces have
witnessed widespread protests, with some turning violent. Protesters
voiced legitimate demands, but also attacked vital public facilities,
such as Najaf International Airport, leading to the suspension of its
operations. Offices of political parties were also attacked in what
appeared to be a continuation of the political violence taking place
elsewhere in Iraq following the May 12 parliamentary elections.
AFGHANISTAN & IRAN
Rafiqullah Dawoodzai says his fields were too dry to sow
crops this year, the first time he has skipped a growing season in
more than 40 years... Severe drought across much of Afghanistan is
spurring plans to build new dams to help farmers such as Dawoodzai.
It is also aggravating tensions with Iran over supplies from the
Helmand - a decades-old dispute that has fed accusations that Tehran
is helping the Taliban insurgency.
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