Bloomberg: A dispute over whether to include Iran in proposed negotiations to end the fighting in Syria is complicating the effort by the U.S. and allies to present a unified front against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Iran dispute shows hurdles to Syria peace negotiations
Glencore says Iran metals swap deals did not violate sanctions
Reuters: Swiss-based commodities giant Glencore Xstrata (GLEN.L) said on Thursday that it had done nothing wrong when it engaged in metal swaps with Iran, rejecting a suggestion by U.N. experts that such bartering could have been a way of evading sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program.
Iran hacks energy firms, U.S. says
Wall Street Journal: Iranian-backed hackers have escalated a campaign of cyberassaults against U.S. corporations by launching infiltration and surveillance missions against the computer networks running energy companies, according to current and former U.S. officials.
US adds 20 individuals, firms to Iran blacklist
AFP: The US Treasury on Thursday added 20 companies and individuals to its Iran sanctions blacklist, accusing them of supporting Tehran’s nuclear efforts and helping the country avoid international sanctions.
Iran stacks poll with safe Khamenei men: analysts
AFP: Iran’s ruling establishment has moved to prevent infighting by allowing only a handful of conservatives loyal to the all-powerful supreme leader to contest next month’s presidential election, analysts say.
Role of Hezbollah, Iran in Syria denounced
Wall Street Journal: The top foreign-policy officials of 11 Western and Arab countries denounced the militant group Hezbollah and fighters from Iran for intervening in recent fighting in the Syrian civil war, calling in a formal statement Wednesday for their removal from the country.
Barred from poll, Rafsanjani calls Iranian leaders ignorant
Reuters: Former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has accused Iran’s leadership of incompetence and ignorance just days after he was barred from standing in an election next month, the opposition Kaleme website reported on Thursday.
Glencore, Trafigura deals with Iran may have skirted sanctions – U.N
Reuters: Metals swap deals with Iran by Switzerland-based commodities giants Glencore Xstrata and Trafigura could have been a way of skirting international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, according to a confidential U.N. Panel of Experts report seen by Reuters on Wednesday.
Iran paves over suspected nuclear-related testing site despite U.N. protests
Washington Post: Iran has begun paving over a former military site where its scientists are suspected to have conducted nuclear-weapons-related experiments, according to a new U.N. report, a move that could doom efforts to reconstruct a critical part of Iran’s nuclear history.
US House panel backs stiff new Iran sanctions
AFP: Iran could face tightened sanctions within months after a US congressional panel Wednesday adopted a measure targeting the nation’s auto and mining industries as well as its foreign currency reserves.
