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Showing posts from August 20, 2019

U.S. Watchdog Warns Airlines of Military Threats by Iran's Regime in the Persian Gulf

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U.S. Watchdog Warns Airlines of Military Threats by Iran's Regime in the Persian Gulf Written by  Amir Taghati  on  20 August 2019 . The United States government on Tuesday warned airlines to exercise caution while flying over the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman due to threats by the Iranian regime. The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday released new guidance to U.S. airlines and other commercial-flight operators, saying “there is an increasing inadvertent risk” to flights in that area, Bloomberg reported. “Iran has publicly made threats to U.S. military operations in the Gulf region,” the FAA said in a notice. Iran's regime possesses a variety of anti-aircraft-capable weapons, including surface-to-air missile systems (SAMs), man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) and fighter aircraft that are capable of conducting aircraft interception operations, according to the agency. "There is also the potential for Iran to increase their use of Global Po...

U.S. Removed Almost 2.7 Million Barrels of Iranian Oil from Market: Secretary Pompeo

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U.S. Removed Almost 2.7 Million Barrels of Iranian Oil from Market: Secretary Pompeo Written by  Amir Taghati  on  20 August 2019 . The United States has removed nearly 2.7 million barrels of Iranian oil from global markets by reimposing sanctions on all purchases of the Iranian regime’s crude, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday. In an interview with MSNBC, Secretary Pompeo said the U.S. government was confident it could continue with its strategy. The U.S reimposed sanctions on Iran's regime in November after pulling out of a 2015 nuclear accord between Tehran and six world powers. In May, Washington ended sanction waivers given to importers of Iranian oil, aiming to cut Tehran’s exports to zero. Iran's regime exported about 100,000 bpd of crude in July, according to an industry source who tracks such flows and data from Refinitiv Eikon. If condensate, a light oil, is included, shipments were about 120,000 bpd a day, according to Reuters. ...

Iran Regime Is Changing Tack with the MEK - Gen. James Conway

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Iran Regime Is Changing Tack with the MEK - Gen. James Conway Published on  20 August 2019 . In recent months, Iranian officials have begun to acknowledge a threat to their rule, which has existed for a long time -- but has been denied just as long. Institutions like the Iranian regime's judiciary and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have begun raising alarm within their own ranks about the influence of the leading democratic resistance organization: the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran ( PMOI or MEK ), argues General James Conway, former Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps. In an  opinion piece for the United Press International  on August 20, 2019, Gen. Conway wrote: "If you have not heard of the MEK (its Persian abbreviation), you are not alone. It was relegated to the margins of Western foreign policy discussions shortly after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. This was largely the result of lobbying and negotiations by Iranian officials, who so...

U.S. Conveys Its 'Strong Position' to Greece over the Iranian Regime's Tanker

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U.S. Conveys Its 'Strong Position' to Greece over the Iranian Regime's Tanker Written by  Amir Taghati  on  20 August 2019 . The United States has conveyed its "strong position" to the Greek government about an Iranian tanker that sailed for Greece on Monday after it was freed from detention off Gibraltar and Washington says is carrying oil to Syria, a State Department official said. Any efforts to assist the tanker could be considered as providing material support to the Iranian regime's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a foreign terrorist organization, which has immigration and potential criminal consequences, the official said, according to Reuters. The Grace 1, now renamed the Adrian Draya-1 and re-flagged as Iranian, cast off late on Sunday for Kalamata in Greece despite an 11th-hour attempt by the U.S. to block its departure from the British overseas territory. Gibraltar seized the Grace 1 on the grounds that the vessel was transp...

1988 Massacre Memory Haunts Iran's Regime, UN Action Needed

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1988 Massacre Memory Haunts Iran's Regime, UN Action Needed Published on  20 August 2019 . After 31 years, Iran’s 1988 massacre that sent over 30,000 political prisoners to the gallows over a few months based on a fatwa by Khomeini, has again become a live issue in Iranian society. Khomeini’s decree called for the execution of all political prisoners affiliated to the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran ( PMOI, Mujahedin-e Khalq or MEK ) who remained loyal to the organization. ‘Death Commissions’ were formed across Iran sending political prisoners who refused to abandon their beliefs to execution. Political prisoners affiliated to other groups were executed in a second wave about a month later. The victims were buried secretly in mass graves. Relatives of victims testified in a live satellite television program last week about the event and revealed new secrets on how families had been, and continue to be, harassed by the regime to cover the massacre. They feel ...

UN: Iran Regime Hanged at Least 7 Child Offenders Last Year

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UN: Iran Regime Hanged at Least 7 Child Offenders Last Year Written by  Mahmoud Hakamian  on  19 August 2019 . Iran's regime executed at least seven child offenders last year, while another 90 minors are on death row, according to a new report to the United Nations General Assembly by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran. The report by Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman, "A/74/188", circulated to the UN Member States on August 16, stated: "In 2018, there were seven reported cases of executions of child offenders. There are currently an estimated 90 individuals on death row who were all under the age of 18 at the time of their alleged offenses. Among the most recent cases, on 25 April 2019, two 17-year-old children, Mehdi Sohrabifar and Amin Sedaghat, were executed" in Adilabad prison in Shiraz for an alleged crime that they reportedly were forced to confess to under torture. Mr. Rehman pointed out that the position of UN rapp...

Iran news in brief, August 19, 2019

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Iran news in brief, August 19, 2019

Rouhani Defends IRGC And Iran’s Malign Activities: He Must Be Sanctioned

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Rouhani defends IRGC and Iran’s malign activities: He must be sanctioned By Perviz Khazai * The United States enforces sanctions on authorities, entities, and government institution based on U.S. foreign policy and national security goals against a wide array of targets, terrorists, and those engaged in activities related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction .   Sanctions have been a significant component of U.S. Iran policy since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the Shah of Iran, a U.S. ally. Trump Administrations have used sanctions extensively to try to change Iran’s behavior. Sanctions have had a substantial effect on Iran’s economy . On Aug.6,2019 State department BUREAU OF NEAR EASTERN AFFAIRS reported to Congress List of  sanctioned Persons or entities Who Are Responsible for or Complicit in Certain Human Rights Abuses in Iran On July 31, 2019, The United States sanctioned Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif ....

Human Rights Violations of the Iranian Regime

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Human Rights Violations of the Iranian Regime By  Raymond Tanter   Monday, 19 August 2019 _ As of September 19, 2017, “Iran remained the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and continued to support attacks against Israel. It maintained its terrorist-related and destabilizing activities through the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Qods (Jerusalem) Force and the Lebanon-based terrorist group Hizballah,” per the State Department . In the effect, the Iranian regime is one of the world’s leaders in human rights violations . To see a map of Iran, where plans for its destabilizing actions are hatched, click here . Looking Back to Look Forward Consider the following evidence. Ayatollah Montazeri (designated successor as the Supreme Leader of Iran) sent letters to the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, referring to “thousands of executions in a few days” in July 1988, per Amnesty International . In May 1988, Iran executed three p...