Iran Focus
London, 03 Apr – Most media coverage of Iran’s aggression and expansionism focuses on the Middle East. While this is important, focusing solely on the Middle East ignores Iran’s interference in other countries, like those in the South Caucasus, namely Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
All of these countries are of importance to Iran, but in this article we will be focusing on Georgia.
By Jubin Katiraie
This article is about the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and the 1979 Iranian Revolution.
Previously we had mentioned that, Massoud Rajavi the only MEK member that had escaped execution by the Shah, had been released from prison after the Shah fled and gave a speech advocating how the MEK would bring freedom and democracy to Iran.
Iran Focus
London, 02 Apr – After Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Boris Johnson’s continued unsuccessful bids to secure the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, her husband, Richard Ratcliffe called the battle a “test of endurance.”
Two years after her arrest in Iran, he said, “Our story has become a test of endurance, and there is a need to recharge spirits – particularly after the disappointment of the Foreign Secretary’s mission failing to deliver, and Nazanin becoming caught up in this government stand off – so we wanted the anniversary to be an occasion where we drew positive energy.”
Iran Focus
London, 02 Apr – The Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen have been boasting about their March 25 missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, supposedly in order to impress the increasingly disillusioned Yemeni people, but the Houthis are living dangerously, even for a terrorist group that deposed a rightful government.
So far in the three-year-long Yemeni Civil War, the Houthis have launched more than 100 missiles against Saudi cities and installations. Their most-recent attack launched seven missiles at the Kingdom and actually killed an Egyptian resident of Riyadh and wounded two other civilians; most Houthi missiles have been intercepted by Saudi defence systems beforehand, which prevented any deaths until now.
Iran Focus
London, 02 Apr – The Saudi Crown Prince has warned that war with Iran will happen by 2032, unless the international community acts now to contain Iranian aggression and expansionism in the Middle East.
Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Wall Street Journal that the international community needs to increase the economic and political pressure on Iran in order to stop another deadly war in the Middle East, the ramifications of which would spread far beyond the region.
Iran Focus
London, 01 Apr – To avoid being imprisoned for six years for producing metal music, “Confession” band member Nikan Khosravi, left Iran for Turkey on March 29th, according to
the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI).
He told the CHRI, “The interrogators had translated my English lyrics [into Farsi] verse by verse and were asking questions about this and that word and told me I was a Satan worshipper and didn’t believe in God.” Khosravi added,“They really thought I was a bad person. They asked about who was giving me financial support and what were my connections.”
Iran Focus
London, 01 Apr – Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, or ‘al-Nujaba’, a Shia jihadist group loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, is reported to have built a 10,000-strong force operational across several brigades in Iraq and Syria — considerable influence in Iran’s proxy wars in Syria and Iraq, that strengthens Shia power in the region.
In recent months the group has warned American troops not to attack Shia groups in the region.
Iran Focus
London, 31 Mar – Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s high-profile visit to the White House is significant because his discussions with US President Trump were tied to the upcoming quarterly deadline to assess whether Tehran is complying with the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Trump made his opposition to the JCPOA a central position in his presidential campaign, and it is uncertain whether the US will pull out of the agreement.
Following the Crown Prince’s visit, in a move that received widespread international condemnation, Yemen’s Houthi militia launched seven ballistic missiles targeting civilian areas in Saudi Arabia. In Washington, the attacks are viewed as an Iranian attempt to escalate the war in Yemen as part of a strategic effort to undermine the growing US-Saudi relationship.
Iran Focus
London, 31 Mar – As more foreign policy ‘experts’ try to defend the Iran nuclear deal, they actually strengthen the case for scrapping the deal altogether.
Those decrying the appointment of Mike Pompeo and John Bolton as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor respectively, are under the impression that it would be horrible for the US and the world in general if these two allow Trump to pull out of the nuclear deal in May.
Iran Focus
London, 30 Mar – There are some people who are greatly concerned about Donald Trump’s appointment of John Bolton as his new national security advisor, including the former top Obama officials who now run the National Security Action group.
The group is chaired by Ben Rhodes, a top Obama adviser who has now admitted to creating an “echo chamber” of lies, distortions and spin to promote the Iran nuclear deal, and Jake Sullivan, who likely would have served as national security adviser in Hillary Clinton’s cabinet.
