Iran Focus
London, 26 July – The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have attacked a Saudi oil tanker that was sailing off the Yemen Coast, according to the Western-backed Arab coalition.
The US-backed Saudi-led collation to restore the legitimate government in Yemen confirmed on Wednesday that the Iran-aligned Houthis hit a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea, inflicting slight damage on the ship, after the Houthis reported that they had targeted a Saudi warship in the area.
Iran Focus
London, 26 July – A state-run newspaper in Iran with close ties to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has quoted a warning from the spokesman for the Yemeni Houthi rebels stating that Western companies should leave Riyadh, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi because “missiles are on their way.”
The Kayhan wrote on July 25, under the frontpage headline “Missiles On Their Way, Evacuate Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh”, that this spokesman warned Western companies not to invest in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
These are two countries who are supporting the legitimate Yemeni government in their quest to take back control of the country from the Iran-backed Houthi rebels; a conflict that has been raging since 2014.
Iran Focus
London, 26 July – An American cybersecurity company has revealed their findings on a new “highly active” espionage group – believed to be Iranian – that is breaking into the networks of government organizations and other firms located in the Middle East.
On Wednesday, Symantec said that the hacking collective known as “Leafminer” has been targeting Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt, Israel and Afghanistan. The roughly 800 organisations targeted cut across several sectors, including energy, telecommunications, financial services, transportation and government.
Iran Focus
London, 26 July – The American military base near the Al-Tanf border crossing in Southern Syria was set up to train local Syrians to fight ISIS, but it also serves as an effective counter to Iran and its malign activities, according to US officials and experts.
Army Maj. Josh Jacques, a spokesman for US Central Command (CENTCOM), said: “Our mere presence there accomplishes that, whether it’s a goal or not.”
He went on to explain that the US military’s primary objective in Syria is the defeat of ISIS, so American soldiers at al-Tanf are currently training a Syrian group called Maghawir al-Thawra (MaT) who will fight ISIS militants.
Iran Focus
London, 25 July – Even though the U.S. sanctions against Iran have not yet taken effect, the country’s economy is displaying huge fluctuations on the foreign exchange market. The fluctuations have never been so dramatic and it is evident in the price of food and gold that has shot up. The country’s official currency, the rial, is also significantly losing value against the dollar.
The people of Iran are not only concerned about the economy, but they are feeling the impacts in a dramatic way. The state’s corruption is only adding to their discontent. It was recently revealed that of the dozens of credit institutes that stole money left by depositors, only one of them is going to be legally prosecuted.
Iran Focus
London, 25 July – Germany is considering new laws that would allow it to respond actively to cyber-attacks from foreign countries, according to Interior Minister Horst Seehofer when he presented a domestic intelligence agency report that identified Iran as the latest foreign power to dramatically increase attacks on German systems.
The report, which was released by the domestic intelligence service (BfV) on Tuesday, explained that the number of Iran-linked cyber attacks on Germany had been rising since 2014 and had seen a sharp increase in 2017.
Seehofer explained that the German intelligence agencies needed the power to launch counter-measures against such attacks, rather than merely being able to track and clean up cyber-attacks.
Iran Focus
London, 25 July – It appears that Donald Trump has decided that he must get tough on Iran on Twitter, as well as through traditional diplomatic measures, in the same way that he did with North Korea.
Following a threat by Iranian president Hassan Rouhani about the US heading for “the mother of all wars” with Iran, Trump hit back with an all-caps warning about the consequences that Iran would likely suffer if they continued to push the US.
Iran Focus
London, 24 July – It should come as no surprise to anyone with even the barest knowledge of foreign policy that appeasing a brutal government does not often convince their tyrannical leaders about the benefits of democracy, peace, and freedom.
The US has ended its policy of appeasement on Iran and is now getting tough on the mullahs who rule Iran, both via official US policy and via Twitter; a move which is more than supported by Saudi Arabia, as explained by the Saudi Ambassador to the United States, Prince Khalid bin Salman, in a powerful essay on Monday.
Iran Focus
London, 24 July – Iraq’s ruling political class has been shocked by the popular unrest in southern and central Iraq, which is fast growing from a singular issue into an overwhelming call for regime change, not unlike the ongoing uprising in Iran.
The Iraqi people are now completely condemning everyone who rules Iraq, and given that the Iranian mullahs are pulling the real strings in Iraq, this is a complete disaster for Iran.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) controls the sectarian Popular Mobilization groups, like the Badr militias, Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata’ib Hezbollah and the Al Khorasani Brigade, which in turn control the majority of Iraq’s wealth, influence and governance, which means that the Iraqi and the Iranian people are both rebelling against Iran.
Iran Focus
London, 24 July – Relations between the United States and Iran heated up over the weekend. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned that war with Iran would be “the mother of all wars”. He said: “America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars.”
U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran that he will not allow such threats to be made. His anger was evident in his message on social media that he posted in block capitals. His message on Twitter read: “To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!”
