Reuters: A South Korean construction company reported to have recently engaged in Iran’s energy sector had a contract with the U.S. government even as Tehran came under pressure for its disputed nuclear program, a U.S. government watchdog said on Monday.
South Korea firm had U.S. contract while investing in Iran gas: GAO
Iran slams Hollywood over ‘Argo’ Oscar win
AFP: Iran on Monday criticised Hollywood for awarding its top honour to the Iran hostage drama “Argo”, with a senior official saying it “lacks artistic value” and media poking fun at US first lady Michelle Obama’s surprise appearance at the Oscar ceremony.
Return of sectarian threats in Iraq raises alarm
AP: The fliers began turning up at Sunni households in the Iraqi capital’s Jihad neighborhood last week bearing a chilling message: Get out now or face “great agony” soon. The leaflets were signed by the Mukhtar Army, a new Shiite militant group with ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
UN experts probe Iran-linked arms ship in Yemen
AFP: UN experts in Yemen on Sunday investigated an Iran-linked arms shipment which authorities intercepted in January, the official Saba news agency reported.
On Iran, Europe hopes still trump frustrations
Wall Street Journa: European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Iranian chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili open a fresh round of talks here Tuesday on Iran’s nuclear program, ending a long diplomatic skirmish that has exasperated European officials.
Iran says it downed drone
UPI: A general in the Revolutionary Guards Corps said a foreign surveillance drone was shot down on the first day of military exercises in Iran.
Iran reports death of Revolutionary Guards officer
AP: An Iranian semi-official news agency is reporting that a commander of the Revolutionary Guards has been killed in the country’s Kurdish northwest.
Kerry makes first foreign trip as top U.S. diplomat
Reuters: John Kerry views his first trip as U.S. secretary of state as a listening tour, but the leaders he meets will want to hear whether he has any new ideas on Syria, Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The UN’s role in Baghdad’s killing fields
The Telegraph: New York’s former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, made an impassioned speech, calling on Ban Ki-moon to fire Mr Kobler, saying that Camp Liberty was “not only a concentration camp, it’s a killing field”, and that it was Kobler who had “permitted it to become a killing field”.
Iran probes diplomat’s defection in Norway
AFP: Iran said Saturday it is investigating the reported defection of one of its diplomats in Norway, with a spokesman suggesting it was due to personal problems, Mehr news agency said.
