AP: The Obama administration informed Iran it would not grant a visa to Hamid Aboutalebi, a member of the group responsible for the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. The announcement was an acknowledgement that efforts to persuade Iran to withdraw Aboutalebi’s name had not been successful.
US blocks Iran’s envoy to UN
Iran secretly convicted former marine, lawyer says
New York Times: Amir Hekmati, a former Marine incarcerated in August 2011 and sentenced to death on espionage charges that were overturned, was secretly retried by a revolutionary court in December, convicted of “practical collaboration with the American government” and given a 10-year prison term.
Diplomat who led secret talks with Iran plans to retire
New York Times: William J. Burns, a career diplomat who led the Obama administration’s back-channel negotiations with Iran, plans to step down as the State Department’s second-ranking official in October, administration officials said on Friday.
Iran hammered from Washington to Brussels
Inside Embassy Row: Iran was hammered this week from Washington to Brussels, as the brutal regime in Tehran screamed about “four-legged” infidels blocking its ambassador to the United Nations or denouncing it for human rights abuse.
Iran steps up pace of executions as it courts West
Fox News: At a time when the West would like to think its negotiating partner is adopting a new, softer tone, Iran’s executions have only increased over the past year, according to a report by the Human Rights and Democracy Report.
Iran Feb oil shipments highest since sanctions began: IEA
Bloomberg: Iran’s crude shipments in February were the highest since the imposition of Western sanctions that have crippled its oil-dependent economy, according to the International Energy Agency. Imports of Iranian oil were 1.65 million barrels a day in February, the highest level since June 2012, the IEA said.
Iran: UN rights experts appeal for urgent medical care for detained political prisoners
UN News Centre: A group of independent United Nations human rights experts today voiced alarm at the denial of medical care to two political prisoners in Iran who are at risk of dying in detention due to worsening health conditions, and urged the authorities to provide them with treatment.
White House to Iran: No visa for UN envoy pick
AP: In a rare diplomatic rebuke, the United States will not grant a visa to Tehran’s controversial pick for envoy to the United Nations, the Obama administration said Friday. White House spokesman Jay Carney said: “Our position is that we will not be issuing him a visa.”
EP backs Rajavi’s plan for regime change in Iran
GroundReport: A conference at the European Parliament has given its full backing to Maryam Rajavi’s ten-point plan for regime change in Iran. MEPs also demanded an end to executions and human rights abuses in Iran, urgent protection for Camp Liberty and a UN probe into the Camp Ashraf massacre.
U.S. warns Russia over any oil-for-goods deal with Iran
Reuters: U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew told his Russian counterpart on Thursday that any oil-for-goods deal Moscow might strike with Iran could run afoul of U.S. sanctions. Lew also told Siluanov a deal would run counter to an agreement between Iran and six world powers.
