Iran Focus

London, 20 Apr - The Donald Trump administration is preparing for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jung Un in the near future. To prepare Trump’s strategy, they should learn some lessons from the shortcomings of Iran nuclear deal. Let’s look at those lessons.

Go for a permanent deal now

Sanctions are very strong against North Korea at the moment and it will be hard to increase the pressure again after a temporary deal is struck.

When the Iran deal was struck, its major flaw was that the restrictions on nuclear weapons development were only temporary. Iran can start advanced development work as soon as 2024.

Iran Focus

London, 20 Apr - The exchange rate for Iran’s rial dropped its lowest ever price on April 9, at 61,000 to the dollar.

The following day, the Iranian govrenment artificially fixed the price at 42,000 and threatened to arrest anyone caught selling at a different price.

This was no empty threat. government arrested some money exchangers for flouting the rules, with some mullahs even calling for the death of the vendors.

Iran Focus

London, 20 Apr - On Thursday, the CHRI reported upon the latest call to action by United Nations experts regarding issues related Iran’s human rights record and its perennial abuse of the death penalty. The statement was signed by a trio of UN special rapporteurs, Agnes Callamard, Dainius Puras, and Nils Melzer, whose areas of focus are, respectively, extrajudicial and arbitrary executions, universal rights to physical and mental health, and cruel, inhumane, and degrading punishments including torture. It called attention to the case of Ramin Hossein Panahi, an Iranian Kurdish prisoner who is facing a potentially imminent threat of execution.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Apr - The instant messaging app Telegram will soon be banned in Iran, with the highest-ranking members of the Iran announcing their intentions to abandon the platform and move to domestic apps instead.

They’ve even issued a directive to Iranian government workers and school to prevent their use of foreign messaging apps.

The mullahs have claimed that the banning of Telegram is necessary to “protect national security” and would have the side benefit of promoting homegrown apps, like Soroush and Gap.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Apr - A senior Middle East analyst has said that the best thing Washington could do is to withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal on May 12.

Michael Pregent of the Hudson Institute said: “Iran is the biggest threat to the US interests and its allies in the region, including Israel, due to its activities in the region.”

These activities are the same ones that Donald Trump mentioned when he declared Iran not in compliance with the nuclear deal in late 2017.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Apr - Since United States President Donald Trump took office, he has maintained harsh rhetoric against Iran. His actions have been firm and he is taking steps to address Iran’s belligerence. Trump also wants to strengthen the 2015 nuclear deal and has warned the other signatories of the agreement that he will not keep the United States in the deal if he is not satisfied that it is effective enough.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Apr - When it was announced that John Bolton would be taking up the position of national security adviser in the Trump administration, many claimed that this was increasing the likelihood of another US war in the Middle East.

However, the US is already caught up in several conflicts in the region and the threat to international security is real. Stability in Iraq is uncertain and the Taliban looks set to re-emerge in Afghanistan. The United States has a necessary presence in Syria where is it trying to minimise the damage caused by Bashar al Assad. US allies are facing a threat with the civil war in Yemen.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - The 19,000-hectare wetland in Bandar Anzali, Iran, was once designated as a Ramsar site for its natural beauty, extensive water flora, and important role in the lifecycle of water birds, in particular breeding.

The unique ecosystem was once a flourishing tourist attraction and preservation site, but after decades of mismanagement regarding waste disposal and other environmental matters, the spectacular wetland is facing grave threats that need immediate attention.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - The cost of buying foreign pharmaceuticals in Iran has soared in recent weeks, which is causing major problems for Iranians who are sick or injured.

Some people reported to VOA Persian’s Straight Talk call-in show on Tuesday that some sick people have been unable to afford these imported medications and that insurance does not cover the rise, leaving the sick to pay out of pocket. In a country where one-third of the population live in absolute poverty, no one can afford this.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - Kaveh Madani, a well-known Iranian scientist has allegedly resigned from his position as the deputy head of the Islamic Republic’s Department of Environment. It has been reported that he put in his resignation while he was out of the country.

Madani had previously been arrested and held in prison for charges relating to spying on other environmentalists.

Mahmoud Sadeghi, a reformist member of Iranian Parliament said on social media that according to a “reliable source”, Madani and his wife had left the county after her travel ban was lifted.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - Chaos is still rampant in Iran’s foreign exchange market a week after the Iranian Government artificially set the currency exchange rate at 42,000 rials to the US dollar.

This move, which Paris-based economist Fereidoun Khavand described as “a very dangerous game”, was an attempt by the Hassan Rouhani administration to control the incredible devaluing of the rial. The rial hit an all-time high of 61,000 rials to the dollar on April 10.

By Edward Carney

On Sunday, the New York Times published an editorial by Thomas Friedman in which he argued that, of all the global conflicts and competing interests currently converging in Syria, the most dangerous is the escalating clash between Iran and Israel.

Syria is widely seen as being at the heart of Iran’s expansionist agenda in the surrounding region, and Israel has declared that it will not allow the Islamic Republic to develop a permanent foothold there for either its own military or its militant proxy groups, particularly Hezbollah.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - Faced with yet another cowardly chemical weapons attack, the United States, France and Great Britain vowed to take action. And they did so in the form of a US-led airstrike that caused significant damage to Syrian military sites.

The reaction from this Western alliance sends a big message, not just to Syrian President Bashar al Assad, but also to Iran and Russia. It is a clear signal that the days of appeasement led by former President Barack Obama are over.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Apr - United States President Trump warned the signatories of the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement that he will pull his country out of the deal if major changes cannot be made. He wants the significant flaws and weaknesses in the deal to be strengthened and fixed and wants Iran’s ballistic missile program to be addressed.

During the deal negotiations, Iran refused to let its ballistic missile program be included. It argued that the missile program has nothing to do with the nuclear issues – and former President Barack Obama agreed. However, Trump has argued that this is not the case. And it is certainly true that the situation has changed because Iran has unveiled new missiles that it has developed. They are capable of carrying a nuclear warhead – so logically, this should be classed as a nuclear issue.

Iran Focus

London, 17 Apr - On Sunday, the Arab League held its 29th summit in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. This is a significant choice because it is the closest city geographically to Iran and the Iranian issue was a key topic of discussion and condemnation at the meeting of 17 Arab countries.

The most vocal critic of Iran at the Summit was Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, the sponsor of the meeting, who called for a “strong international stance to confront Iran’s behaviour in the region,” and warned against the “threat” posed by Iran’s malign behaviour.

Iran Focus

London, 17 Apr - With Donald Trump’s final deadline on the Iran nuclear deal fast approaching, European leaders are scrambling to save the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) through last-minute meetings with Trump, rather than actually agreeing to fix the flaws of the deal.

In late April, both French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit the White House to persuade Trump to change his mind about the fate of the nuclear deal, but this will not work.