Reuters: Essar Oil owes $2 billion to Iran for oil imports since late December when the Indian central bank ended a long-standing payments mechanism for refiners, and it is ready to tap other sources of supplies if needed.
India Essar owes $2bln to Iran, to buy LatAm crude
U.S. may act unilaterally vs Iran-armed Iraq militias
Reuters: The United States will take unilateral action when needed to deal with the threat to American troops in Iraq from Shi’ite militias armed by Iran, U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said on Monday.
12 dead in Iran arms blast at Cyprus naval base
AFP: Huge blasts in a seized Iranian arms cache at a Greek Cypriot naval base in southern Cyprus killed at least 12 people on Monday, triggering power and water outages at the height of the summer.
Turkish FM to visit Iran
AFP: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will visit Iran on Sunday to discuss a wave of unrest shaking Middle East countries, a senior Turkish diplomat said.
Iraqi farmers block Iran border post
AFP: Dozens of Iraqi farmers on Sunday blocked a border crossing with Iran in protest at its diversion of a river which helps to irrigate one of their country’s main agricultural regions.
Top al-Qaida ranks keep footholds in Iran
AP: On a cold March morning last year, an Iranian diplomat was flown home nearly 15 months after being kidnapped by gunmen in an ambush on the Pakistani side of the Khyber Pass.
Iran says fires missiles to Indian Ocean for first time
Reuters: Iran said on Saturday it test-fired two long-range missiles into the Indian Ocean earlier this year, the first time it has fired missiles into that sea, according to state television.
Iran says OPEC will not lift output ceiling
Reuters: Iran’s caretaker oil minister said on Saturday that OPEC was opposed to any increase in output ceilings in the absence of “well-studied justifications”.
Iranian commander: US carriers target if attacked
AP: A senior Revolutionary Guard commander threatened Saturday that U.S. aircraft carriers would be targeted if Iran came under attack amid a standoff with the West over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Report: Iran on pace for record year for capital punishment
Fox News: Iran has reportedly executed at least 183 people during the first six months of 2011, with reports of an additional 130 executions that have gone unacknowledged.
