Amnesty International: Iran’s authorities have intensified the clampdown on dissidents ahead of the country’s presidential election on 14 June, Amnesty International said in a new briefing published today.
Iran: New briefing reveals crackdown on dissent ahead of election
Iran gets ‘verbal invitation’ to Syria conference: report
Reuters: An Iranian deputy foreign ministry said his country had been invited to a planned international peace conference in Geneva aimed at ending the war in Syria, Iranian state television reported on Wednesday.
Preview: Iran election offers choice, but little change
Reuters: Friday’s presidential election in Iran is unlikely to bring significant change to the Islamic republic, whose supreme leader has ensured hardline candidates dominate the field. But the sole moderate could yet upset the race.
Khamenei’s diplomatic adviser Velayati eyes Iran’s presidency
Reuters: With the ear of Iran’s supreme leader as the “real foreign minister” behind the scenes, Ali Akbar Velayati has long tended to the Islamic Republic’s prickly relations with the West and now hopes to put his diplomacy to use as president.
Iran’s sanction woes continue: shut out of Costco
Wall Street Journal: Economic sanctions have been working to strangle the Iranian economy, and now, the country’s diplomats and overseas businesses are being cut off from Costco.
Iran threats against Israel ‘unacceptable’: Putin
AFP: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Iran had a right to a peaceful nuclear programme but slammed as “unacceptable” its threats against its regional nemesis Israel.
Iran’s Rafsanjani backs Rowhani for president
AFP: Iranian ex-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani backed Hassan Rowhani for Friday’s presidential election, saying the former nuclear negotiator who champions better international ties is “more suitable” for the post.
Aref quits Iran vote as reformists back moderate Rowhani
AFP: Sole reformist candidate Mohammad Reza Aref pulled out of Iran’s presidential race on Tuesday as the reformist camp including ex-president Mohammad Khatami urged voters to rally around Hassan Rowhani, a moderate.
Iran denies ‘problem’ at sole nuclear reactor
AFP: Iran’s foreign ministry on Tuesday denied its Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power plant had suffered a malfunction, saying the process of its start-up was going ahead without a hitch.
Iran launches rearmed destroyer on Persian Gulf
AP: Iran says it has launched a 50-year-old destroyer on the Persian Gulf after overhauling it and rearming with modern missiles. Since 1992, Iran has been pursuing a self-sufficiency military program, reportedly producing its own jet fighters, tanks, missiles and light submarines as well as torpedoes.
