Iran Focus
London, 1 Jun – It’s always been tricky to do business with Iran, but this has become even more so since Donald Trump announced that he would be withdrawing the US from the nuclear deal last month and reimposing sanctions on the mullahs.
Ever since Trump’s announcement on May 8, businesses have been pulling out of deals with Iran or promising to do so if they cannot get sanctions waivers – no business wants to get shut out of the US financial markets.
Iran Focus
London, 1 Jun – The truck drivers’ strike has paralyzed the country, leaving many Iranian cities reeling, and adding to Iran’s ongoing economic woes.
Social media is circulating a video that shows the main highway empty of trucks between the two most important economic centers in the Islamic republic – Tehran, the capital, and Isfahan, the second largest city.
Now grown to include 242 cities in 31 Iranian provinces, the striking truck drivers are joined by van drivers and cab drivers in Kermanshah and Buchan.
Iran Focus
London, 31 May – Iran and Europe have been participating in talks regarding the situation in Yemen. Some analysts believe that Iran may use the crisis in Yemen as a way of getting US President Donald Trump to soften his stance on Iran.
A few weeks ago, Trump announced that he was pulling the United States out of the deal. He listed a number of reasons for this including the fact that the United States is no safer with the deal in place and Iran’s belligerence in the Middle East. Just over a week ago, his Secretary of State Mike Pompeo listed 12 conditions that Iran must comply with before the US would even consider re-entering the deal.
Iran Focus
London, 31 May – The political situation in Lebanon is in turmoil. The recent parliamentary elections had the aim of selecting representatives. However, one other thing became glaringly obvious – the power that Iran and Hezbollah hold there.
Iran has gained considerable influence in the country mostly due to its political alliances, especially that of Michel Aoun – the Lebanese president – and several political parties including the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) party.
Not forgetting Iran’s use of brute force and violence that it employs to eliminate the threat from opponents.
Iran Focus
London, 30 May – The women of Iran have been brutally repressed for decades and they are treated like second-class citizens. They have very little freedom and are even subject to specific dress codes. However, this does not mean that the women in Iran do not have a voice – quite the contrary, in fact.
Iran Focus
London, 30 May – The 2015 Iran nuclear deal has been a major source of debate since the negotiations were taking place. Former President Barack Obama led the negotiations. He was so desperate to create his foreign policy legacy that he conceded to Iran on a large number of issues. Far from being an achievement, it has been a much talked about hindrance to the Trump administration.
Iran Focus
London, 29 May – In Iraq, talks about a new coalition government are underway. Many are wishing Iraq well and hope to see a stronger and more successful country emerge.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has reached out to Iraq and has given hope that there will be a strategic partnership in the coming years.
Following the elections earlier this month, there was no clear leader, however it was very clear that the Iraqi people in general are looking for change and want an independent leadership that rids Iraq of the corruption and political division that has plagued the country for years. The politicians and political groups that were most successful were the ones that support this stance.
Iran Focus
London, 29 May – Iran regularly mentions Israel, referring to it as “Little Satan”. They take swipes at each other in the media and there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that they are fierce enemies.
Iran make believe to support the Palestinian people and some say that it is more against Israel than it is for the Palestinian people. The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has admitted that his country’s hatred of Israel is to aid the “oppressed” Palestinians.
Iran Focus
London, 29 May – MSNBC aired their “On Assignment” Program, which was narrated by Richard Engel, on May 25, 2018. Engel made a series of allegations against the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) that have been repeatedly disproven.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), that acts as Iran’s Parliament in Exile, has called out the MSNBC piece by Richard Engel on May 25, 2018, as lacking the minimum standards of journalism as well as objectivity.
The piece appears to be based on assertions of Masoud Khodabandeh, who is reportedly an agent of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) for some 20 years.
Iran Focus
London, 28 May – In Tehran on May 27th, a large group of demonstrators remembered pre-revolution superstar Nasser Malek Motiee, who passed away on Friday evening of kidney failure at the age of 88.
Motiee was barred from appearing in movies or on television for some 40 years. Thousands of Iranians took to the streets on Sunday to pay homage to him. Young people who were born long after Malek Motiee vanished from their screens came out in large numbers to attend his funeral.
