Sunday Telegraph: Iranians are bracing themselves for a fresh round of belt tightening after their government voted to impose petrol rationing coupled with sharp rises in the price of fuel.
Iran votes to impose petrol rationing
Defector spied on Iran for years
Sunday Times: An Iranian general who defected to the West last month had been spying on Iran since 2003 when he was recruited on an overseas business trip, according to Iranian sources.
Iran wants to brief U.N. on nuclear plans
Reuters: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wants to brief the U.N. Security Council about his country’s civilian nuclear plans, which the West says is a covert attempt to make bombs, state media reported on Sunday.
Iran’s dissenters
Washington Post: Here’s how International Women’s Day was celebrated Thursday in Tehran: Riot police swarmed over a few dozen women who bravely gathered near the parliament in an attempt to hold a peaceful demonstration.
Merkel confident world powers will agree on Iran
Reuters: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday she was confident world powers would agree on further steps to take against Iran, which has repeatedly defied international calls to suspend its nuclear fuel programme.
Arrests fail to halt Iran protest
The Guardian: Police in Iran arrested trade unionists in an unsuccessful attempt to stop thousands of teachers protesting against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s economic policies outside Iran’s parliament, the Guardian has learned.
U.S. and Iran hold rare direct talks
AP: U.S. and Iranian envoys spoke directly to each other about how to end Iraq’s violence, meeting at an international conference in Baghdad and opening limited but potentially significant contacts that could ease their nearly 28-year diplomatic freeze.
Iran raises the price of gasoline
UPI: Iran’s parliament has decided to ration gasoline and raise prices May 22 as part of an effort to lower demand.
French foreign minister to discuss Iran, economic ties during visit to Kuwait and UAE
AP: French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy was expected to discuss Iran’s disputed nuclear program during a visit to Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates on Saturday.
Bush extends “national emergency with respect to Iran”
Iran Focus: London, Mar. 10 United States President George W. Bush extended for one year the “national emergency with respect to Iran” in a statement released on Friday.
