|
TOP STORIES
U.S. intelligence officials are probing a
transcontinental network of real-estate, weapons and electronic firms
for ties to two Lebanese men blacklisted for their alleged support of
terrorist group Hezbollah, according to people familiar with the
matter.
Iran's rial tumbled to another historic low, resisting
government efforts to shore up the economy as the restoration of U.S.
sanctions looms. In an effort to signal they're taking action to
fight corruption and cushion the blow of the U.S. economic offensive,
authorities have rounded up more than two dozen merchants who they
say exploited government currency measures for personal gain.
The Trump administration is quietly pushing ahead with a
bid to create a new security and political alliance with six Gulf
Arab states, Egypt and Jordan, in part to counter Iran's expansion in
the region, according to U.S. and Arab officials. The White House
wants to see deeper cooperation between the countries on missile
defense, military training, counter-terrorism and other issues such
as strengthening regional economic and diplomatic ties, four sources
said.
UANI IN THE NEWS
Although [Iran Quds Force Commander Qassem] Soleimani
was likely aiming his posturing, in part, at Iran's domestic
hardliner audience and external proxies, this incident shows that Iran's
campaign of defiance is escalating as sanctions inexorably roll out.
Soleimani, Iran's Supreme Leader, and Iran's President have all
recently made statements against the United States to which President
Trump has responded harshly. The comments from Soleimani also may
signify that Tehran is seeking to elicit a bellicose response from
the United States to bolster its domestic anti-American narrative as
well as to gain sympathy from Europe, which tends to overlook Iran's
rhetoric as revolutionary hot air common at Iran's many political
events.
And if you have [the Bab-el-Mandeb], and the Straight of
Hormuz, if you're Iran, you have about 46 percent of all the oil
floating every day so it's a powerful incentive for Iran to remain
involved this area, and that's why it's critical that the United States
support the Saudis and the Emirates in maintaining the freedom of
global trade in that area.
NUCLEAR DEAL & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
Iran will likely have to agree to complete, verifiable
and irreversible denuclearization in any future deal with the United
States, just like North Korea, a top diplomatic official signaled
Friday. "Nothing in the conduct of foreign policy is ever done
in a vacuum," Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control,
Verification and Compliance, Dr. Yleem D.S. Poblete, told an audience
in Washington.
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Iran plans to offer price and tax incentives to private
investors to take over idle state projects and help boost the
economy, state media reported on Saturday, as the country faces
likely U.S. sanctions and the exit of many foreign companies.
MMK (MAGN.MM), one of Russia's largest steel producers,
has postponed the launch of a lucrative project in Turkey due to
uncertainty created by global trade wars... Tariffs are not the only
Trump policy to affect MMK's strategy. The steelmaker has also
stopped deliveries to Iran... against the backdrop of new sanctions
Washington has promised to impose on Tehran... [S]teel traders
told Reuters earlier this month that Russian metals firms were
cutting back on sales to Iran for fear, at least in part, of falling
foul of the sanctions.
American victims of terror attacks have filed a civil
action against the European Investment Bank (EIB) for continuing
their financial ties with the Iranian regime.
Saudi Arabia agreed to build a solar power plant and
sell the electricity to Iraq at a steep discount to supplies the
war-torn country previously bought from the kingdom's regional
arch-rival Iran.
While Iran would prefer EU help when it comes to relief
from US sanctions, Moscow might be better suited to this role than
the Europeans.
Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh is imposing
four-year term limits for all top oil managers at state-run energy
companies, with the rule taking effect in October.
The chairman of Iran's National Center for Persian
Carpets says she plans to file a complaint against the United States
at international tribunals for the sanctions Washington has imposed
on handwoven Persian carpets.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran's top security body has approved the release of
opposition figures Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, under
house arrest for seven years for leading mass protests in 2009, a
family member told local media.
Human rights groups say Iranian courts have confirmed
prison terms for eight Baha'is, members of a religious minority that
has experienced decades of discrimination in the Shiite
Muslim-majority nation.
A Baha'i International Community representative who
participated in a first-of-its-kind U.S. conference on religious
freedom says she urged delegates to press Iran to stop mistreatment
of its Baha'i minority.
A small group of Iranian farmers drove their tractors to
the entrance to the town of Varzaneh. The vehicles stopped next
to a canal that once provided their crops, but has been dry for
years. The farmers appealed to government officials for help.
"We are the people," shouted Mostafa Benvidi. "Help
the people. At night they go to bed hungry!"
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
As tensions between the US and Iran ratchet up, the
Trump administration is looking at what military options may be
needed to keep vital waterways in the Middle East open in the wake of
attacks on Saudi oil tankers by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels on July
25, according to two administration officials. Both officials
emphasize that if any military action is taken it would be carried
out by US allies in the region, such as the Saudis, and not by US
forces.
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS
The United States has not instituted a policy of regime
change or collapse in Iran, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on
Friday, saying the goal was still to curb what Washington sees as
Iran's threatening behavior in the Middle East.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew the United
States from the Iran nuclear deal, the Iranian government will move
to boost its uranium enrichment capacity, as Supreme Leader Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei threatened, and to keep testing ballistic missiles.
Nevertheless, Tehran will be careful to avoid violating the deal or
provoking further action from the U.S. administration for fear of
international and domestic backlash. Iran, instead, will focus on its
economic and political problems for now, while trying to muddle through
the restored U.S. sanctions.
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
An official from Yemen's foreign ministry said that
Lebanese 'Hezbollah' is a partner in shedding the blood of Yemenis by
insisting on sabotage roles.
Russia, Iran, and Turkey, co-sponsors of Syrian peace
talks held periodically in Kazakhstan, will meet on July 30-31 in the
Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi to discuss issues related to the
seven-year-long civil war.
U.S. security aid to Lebanon has never been politically
palatable, and it's facing new headwinds these days. But the
strategic case for continuing it remains sound.
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
There is a war going on within the Iranian presidential
palace, where two leading members of the administration are striving
to force First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri out of the government.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
A military coalition led by Saudi Arabia said Sunday it
had destroyed sites used by Huthi rebels in neighbouring Yemen to
launch missiles at the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia lamented on Friday the United Nations
Security Council's inaction on Yemen, which it said helped Iran arm
the Houthi militias.
How should the international community deal with
state-sponsored terrorism? The official position of most countries is
to not negotiate with terrorists because it encourages them to commit
further acts of terrorism. Does paying a ransom encourage more of the
same? The consensus is that paying for the release of captured
civilians sets the ground for more kidnappings. When terrorists
discover they can collect large sums of cash and get away with it,
why not repeat the exercise?
The latest tanker attack by Iranian-backed rebels
underlines the need to restore the entire Red Sea coast to Yemen's
internationally recognized government.
IRAQ, TURKEY & IRAN
Prominent Iranian Sunni leader Molavi Abdul Hamid sent a
letter July 21 to Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Ali al-Sistani, regarding
the unequal status of Sunnis in Iran. Abdul Hamid asked Sistani to
act as a mediator between Iranian authorities and Iran's Sunni
community, with the goal of encouraging the government to adopt
fairer policies toward Sunnis in Iran.
AFGHANISTAN & IRAN
Over the past four years, thousands of young Afghan
Shiite men have been drawn into the war in Syria by Iran, part of a
well-financed system of recruitment, training and incentives that
funnels Afghan recruits to fight for a repressive Arab government.
The Afghans are soldiers in someone else's war, propelled by economic
woes and religious loyalty to join a foreign fight.
|
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment