AFP: Iran’s outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned arch-foe Israel Friday in one of his last public speeches that a regional storm was brewing that would “uproot” the Jewish state.
Iran’s Ahmadinejad warns Israel will be ‘uprooted’
Top Iran leader issues edict on Baha’i faith
AP: Iran’s supreme leader is urging Iranians to avoid all dealings with members of the banned Baha’i sect in a possible prelude to further crackdowns on the minority.
Rouhani: ‘Key developer’ of newly revealed Iranian nuke site
Clarion Project: A secret nuclear site in Iran has been identified by the National Council of Resistance of Iran, a Paris-based dissident group that has previously exposed hidden sites.
Iran customs hold four million tons of goods amid dispute
Bloomberg: Four million tons of food and medicines are stranded in Iranian customs because of disagreements between the central bank and the Commerce Ministry over access to a preferential currency exchange rate for importers of essential goods, local media reported.
The forgotten mass execution of prisoners in Iran in 1988
The Diplomat: The massacre of political prisoners by the Iranian regime, which took place in the summer of 1988 has never been acknowledged by Tehran and remains one of the darkest stains in recent history, although it is relatively unknown in the West.
The more things change, the more they remain the same
Roll Call: Dating back to the Carter administration, not long after Ayatollah Khomeini replaced the Shah, the U.S. and other Western governments have been looking for “moderates” in Tehran with whom to negotiate.
Iranian-Americans laud Congress sanctions legislation
PR Newswire: Last month, Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei orchestrated yet another sham presidential election through which Hassan Rouhani was chosen to serve as the next President of Iran. A feverish attempt is now underway in the United States and elsewhere to portray Rouhani as a moderate and a reformer.
Iraq seeks to promote tourism despite violence
AFP: As it trundles down busy roads, the minibus packed with tourists would be unremarkable except for two things — its passengers are Westerners and the city they are in is Baghdad. Iraq is no stranger to tourism, with countless pilgrims visiting its religious shrines.
Britain says open to talks with Iran on a ‘step-by-step’ basis
Reuters: Britain’s Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Wednesday he was willing to meet his Iranian counterpart to discuss the two countries’ frosty relationship, following the election of a new president in Iran.
House approves tough new Iran sanctions
AP: The House approved tough new sanctions Wednesday on Iran’s oil sector and other industries, brushing aside the Obama administration’s concern about undercutting the Islamic republic’s incoming president ahead of new nuclear negotiations.
