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TOP STORIES
American and western intelligence sources believe Iran
has been increasing its shipments of advanced weaponry to Hezbollah,
deliveries that now include Global Positioning System (GPS)
components to make previously unguided rockets into precision
guided-missiles, increasing the threat to Israel.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani appointed academic
Farhad Dejpasand as the new economy and finance minister in a cabinet
reshuffle on Sunday, state television reported, as the country faces
mounting U.S. sanctions. The proposed cabinet changes come as the
government faces intense pressure over the economic instability
mostly caused by U.S. sanctions.
The international group that monitors money-laundering
worldwide said on Friday Iran had until February to complete reforms
that would bring it into line with global norms or face consequences.
The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force said after a meeting of
its members that it was disappointed that Tehran had acted on only
nine out of 10 of its guidelines despite pledges to make the grade.
NUCLEAR DEAL & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
European and Asian leaders are giving their backing to
the Iran nuclear deal, saying the pact is good for global security
and that it's important to respect international agreements.
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
German exports to Iran have dwindled since the United
States pulled out of the international nuclear deal with Tehran, data
showed on Friday, despite Berlin's attempts to shield companies from
renewed U.S. sanctions against Tehran.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Sunday it
will be harder for countries to get waivers on Iran oil sanctions
than during the Obama administration and dismissed concerns that oil
prices could rise, saying the market had already factored in the
losses.
The Trump administration fears Russia could help Tehran
evade US sanctions by buying up Iranian oil and reselling it as its
own.
European nations are seeking to ensure at least one
Iranian bank stays connected to the world after the US imposed new
sanctions against the country, a French senator said in Tehran on
Sunday.
While secondary sanctions are aimed at influencing the
behavior of non-U.S. companies, U.S.-based companies are the ones
that must monitor and ensure compliance. The risks for violations of
the sanctions can be high.
Scores of Iranian executives running private businesses
converged on the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and
Agriculture on Saturday to meet their Syrian counterparts and secure
a foothold in a market that is now ripe for business after years of
conflicts.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
More international bodies have lent their voices in
defense of Iranian truckers who are on strike, demanding that their
hardship be addressed..
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS & NEGOTIATIONS
Russia, China, Iran and some other foreign countries
have "ongoing campaigns" to influence U.S. elections ahead
of the November midterms that are causing concern within the national
intelligence communities.
ECONOMIC WARFARE
A court in Iran sentenced to death a financial trader
known as the "Sultan of Coins" on Sunday, along with
another man, the judiciary's Mizan Online news agency reported..
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
Renowned international human-rights lawyer Irwin Cotler
is nominating Syria's famed White Helmets, a group of volunteer
humanitarian workers Canada helped rescue from the war-torn country,
for the Nobel Peace Prize. Mr. Cotler, a former Liberal cabinet
minister who helped co-ordinate last summer's rescue effort with
Israel, said he plans on nominating the White Helmets for the 2019
Nobel Peace Prize. The civil-defence organization, which has been
credited with saving more than 100,000 civilians during Syria's
ongoing civil war, has been nominated for the international award
before, but never won.
Iran's economic problems have reportedly decreased the flow of
financial patronage to the group, forcing it to seek another slush
fund at home.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
The deputy minister of education in the coup-government
of the Houthi pro-Iranian militias, Dr. Abdullah al-Hamdi, said that
he broke with the militias, calling to rise up against these rejected
militias from 90% of the Yemeni people who are suffering from hunger,
death and poverty due to the militias. Hamdi revealed in a television
interview on Sunday that these militias import Iranian ideology and
their destructive project to enslave the Yemeni people, exploiting
them to terrorize and control the society.
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