Reuters: Iran said on Monday it had struck a deal with Brazil and Turkey for a nuclear fuel swap but it was far from clear if that was enough to ease international concern over Tehran’s atomic ambitions and avert new sanctions.
Is new Iran nuclear swap deal a breakthrough?
Iran deal must be based on IAEA plan – EU diplomat
Reuters: A Turkish-Brazilian deal to help Iran swap nuclear fuel cannot be considered a breakthrough unless it is fundamentally based on a fuel-swap proposal made by the IAEA last year, a senior EU diplomat said on Monday.
Iran sanctions call over sentences
PA: British Parliamentarians have condemned the wave of death sentences handed out to Iranian opposition activists, and called on the Government to impose sanctions on the mullah regime in Tehran.
Iran to send uranium to Turkey in nuclear fuel deal
AFP: Iran agreed on Monday to ship the bulk of its low enriched uranium abroad in a fuel swap deal backed by Turkey and Brazil that could blunt calls for sanctions over Tehran’s sensitive nuclear programme.
Iranian killer to be expelled from France -source
Reuters: France’s interior minister will sign an expulsion order on Monday for an Iranian national who is serving a life sentence in France for the 1991 murder of Iran’s last prime minister under the Shah, a government source said.
Officials in Iran, fearing protests, plan state memorial
Iran Focus: Sebzevar, Iran, May 17 – From the Grapevine… The authorities in Iran have established an ad-hoc group called “Headquarters on the Passing of the Imam [Khomeini],” in various provinces in Iran.
Confronting Iran’s executioners
Iran Focus: For the past 30 years, executions have defined the state’s systematic reaction to political dissent in Iran. But, after a series of nationwide protests following last year’s presidential elections, the use of hangings has taken on a vital significance for the regime. Opponents are not merely executed for physical annihilation but also to spread fear among the rest of the population.
Calls for June protests in Iran continue
Iran Focus: Tehran, May 17 – From the Grapevine… Political activists on Sunday wrote graffiti on walls in the eastern district of Tehran, Farrah-Abbad, urging residents to participate in demonstrations marking the anniversary of last June’s uprising.
Iran shells Kurdish rebels in Iraq: Iraqi Kurd official
AFP: Iranian artillery bombarded parts of northern Iraq’s Kurdish region where Kurdish rebels opposed to Tehran are said to be holed up, an Iraqi Kurdish official said on Sunday.
Iraq recount fails to overturn Allawi election win
Reuters: A cross-sectarian coalition led by secularist former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi held its two-seat win in Iraq’s March 7 election after a recount of votes cast in Baghdad, elections officials said Sunday.
