Reuters: Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi on Wednesday urged Qatar’s new Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to revise his country’s policy of backing Syrian rebel groups.
Iran urges Qatar’s new emir to revise Syria policy
Iran’s new president looks westward for nuke talks
AP: Hasan Rouhani knew there was an element of risk. Just a week before Iran’s election gatekeepers announced the presidential ballot, Rouhani said one-on-one talks with Washington are the only way for breakthroughs in the nuclear standoff, given that the United States – as he put it – is the world’s “sheriff.”
Ahmadinejad to attend GECF summit in Moscow
Xinhua: Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will attend a summit meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) in Russia next month, semi-official Fars news agency reported on Tuesday.
Talk to Iran’s new president. Warily.
New York Times: The election of Hassan Rowhani as Iran’s new president has created a sense that there are new possibilities of progress on the nuclear issue; we need to respond, but warily.
NY regulator cracks down on sanctions violations
CNBC: Wall Street banks are being investigated for transactions that violated sanctions on Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, Sudan and other countries with ties to terrorism, New York state’s chief financial regulator disclosed Tuesday.
Iraq bombs targeting protesters, pilgrims kill 17
AFP: Bombs targeting mostly protesters and pilgrims killed 17 people in Iraq on Tuesday, the latest incidents in a surge of violence that has sparked fears of a revival of all-out sectarian conflict.
Bahrain arrests 9 Shiites for ‘planning prison break’
AFP: Bahrain announced on Tuesday the arrest of nine Shiites it said are linked to Iran and that were planning to attack a prison to facilitate a jail break.
Iran’s president-elect praises ties with Russia
AP: Iran’s president-elect says Tehran’s relations with Russia will take high importance during his term in office. The statement carried late Monday on the official website of Hasan Rouhani is the first to a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Saudi says ‘cannot be silent’ at Iran, Hezbollah role in Syria
Reuters: Saudi Arabia regards the involvement of Iran and Hezbollah in Syria’s civil war as dangerous and believes the rebels must be offered military aid to defend themselves, the kingdom’s foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Who’ll topple Iran?
New York Post: Want to see US bipartisanship on Iran? Go to Paris and attend a rally led by Maryam Rajavi, the charismatic head of the best-organized anti-regime group of Iranian exiles. Where else can you hear former lefty congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee calling Rajavi “my sister” and soon after listen to righty Rudy Giuliani saying she’s the best alternative to “that killer,” Iran’s President-elect Hassan Rouhani?
