Iran Focus
London, 14 July – The leading Iranian opposition group has said that the plot to bomb their annual resistance rally in France on June 30 was directed by the highest powers in the Iranian Regime.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) cited intelligence sources inside the country and revealed that the terror plot was approved months ago by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, President Hassan Rouhani, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
Iran Focus
London, 13 July – US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Andrew Peek said in an interview during his visit to Bahrain as part of his regional tour, that Washington is committed to halting Iran’s regional aggression.
The US is working with its Gulf allies to bring Iran to the negotiating table, stop it from supporting military proxies, terrorism, and proliferation of missiles, according to Peek.
He said, “The discussion in particular highlighted the ways in which Iran attempts to destabilize and provoke conflict in Bahrain through proxies that have their headquarters abroad, other key personnel abroad, and that work to cause cleavages in Bahraini society.”
Iran Focus
London, 12 July – Iran recently announced that they planned to circumvent US sanctions on Iranian oil by offering their crude oil to buyers through the national stock exchange.
Eshaq Jahangiri, Iran’s first vice-president said: “We have friendly countries to which we sell our oil, and we’ve started negotiations with them. The private sector can openly buy oil and export it.”
However, this plan has its own limitations according to Senior Fellow at the OCP Policy Francis Perrin, who explained that this is not an efficient and effective way to evade sanctions on Iranian oil and that this would not become a significant method of trade as the US would still impose sanctions on it, no matter how the purchaser came across it.
Iran Focus
London, 12 July – Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian dual citizen that was detained in Iran while on a visit to her family in April 2016, remains in jail. She was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for “plotting to topple the Iranian dictators”.
She has unjustly been held for more than 800 days, simply for wanting to see her family for Iranian New Year. Her infant daughter was taken away from her and has been living with Nazanin’s mother in Iran.
Nazanin’s husband, Richard Ratcliffe, another victim of the Iranian rulers is being denied precious time with his daughter.
Iran Focus
London, 12 July – An independent investigation has been called for by Amnesty International after it received reports that security forces used “unnecessary and excessive force” against the people who protested peacefully in Khuzestan Province over water scarcity and pollution. Amnesty has also called on Iran to ensure that Iranians have access to clean water.
The rights group issued a statement on July 6th, saying, “Iranian authorities should also ensure that people in Khuzestan and other provinces across Iran enjoy their right to access sufficient amounts of safe drinking water for personal and domestic uses.”
Iran Focus
London, 12 July – US President Donald Trump will be meeting his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Helsinki on 16th July. The purpose of the visit is to soothe the tense relations between the two countries and it is a much anticipated meeting between the two leaders.
The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has spoken about his interest in the outcome of the meeting and has said that he is anticipating the “deal of the century”.
Iran Focus
London, 12 July – Oil refineries in Asia are now seeking alternatives to Iranian oil from the other Middle Eastern oil-producing countries following the US’s announcement that they would be renewing sanctions on Iran and not issuing waivers, according to Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) Chief Executive Officer Nizar al-Adsani.
Al-Adsani, who spoke to Reuters at an event in Beijing on Monday, said that KPC has increased its output by 85,000 barrels per day (bpd) in order to meet its commitment in an agreement by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which also includes Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq, but that output may rise again if OPEC agrees.
Iran Focus
London, 10 July – The US is looking to halt all of Iran’s crude oil exports from November and in relying on Saudi Arabia and other oil-producing countries to fill the gap.
They are hoping that by cutting off Iran’s oil exports, they can further destabilise the Iranian economy enough to bring it back to the table for a new nuclear deal or enough that the people can make a major change.
Iran Focus
London, 10 July – The senior commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has made a terrifying threat against Israel in a speech this weekend.
Hossein Salami said that Iran had created an “Islamic army” near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights in Syria, which he warned would be used to “end” Israel.
The Times of Israel reported that Salami had said: “Today, an international Islamic army has been formed in Syria, and the voices of the Muslims are heard near the Golan. Orders are awaited, so that the eradication of the evil [Israeli] regime will land and the life of this regime will be ended for good. The life of the Zionist regime was never in [so much] danger as it is now.”
Iran Focus
London, 10 July – The clerical government in Iran is known for its suppression of the people. Freedom is something that the Iranians have been denied for decades and it affects them in many different areas of life. Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to dress as one likes, etc. are just a few examples.
Recent reports from Iran indicate that a young woman – Maedeh Hojabri – has been arrested because of the content on her Instagram page. She was filmed dancing to music.
