Tag "Iran"
Let’s get some things straight about the upcoming war with Iran
The upcoming war with Iran is again back in the news and while the international media is awash with reports and discussions about the recent Iranian missile test, some usually savvy observers, such as Tom Englehardt and Tony Karon, now say that the US-Israeli aggression on Iran will not happen at all. So which is it – Iranian missiles raining down on Israel or no war at all? Neither. First,
Interview with Iran’s Ambassador to IAEA
CASMII Exclusive: Interview with Iran’s Ambassador to IAEA (source: CASMII) Mohammad Kamaali, board member of CASMII UK speaks to Iran’s Ambassador to the IAEA Dr Ali Asghar Soltanieh who was recently in London to attend an international conference on a Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone, organised by the School of Oriental and African Studies, SOAS. In this interview Dr Soltanieh explains the reasons behind Iran’s determination to
US, anti-Iran groups hold secret meeting
Press TV reports: US officials and heads of four Kurdish anti-Iran groups have held a secret meeting in the Iraqi city of Sulaimaniyah, a Kurdish website says. The two-day meeting was aimed at coordination of the US and the anti-Iran groups on mounting more pressure on the Islamic Republic. Ten American military officers and leaders of four Kurdish terrorist groups attended the meeting in the Palace Hotel in Sulaimaniyah, northern
How lying and warmongering will get you an Emmy
No even Hitler could have hoped for a more sophisticated and immoral propaganda machine…
Iran fully converts its foreign currency reserves into non-dollar denominations
Press TV reports: Iran says a decision to convert its dollar-denominated foreign reserves to non-dollar reserves is critical and needs to be properly publicized. Iran’s government has had great achievements in various fields that must be publicized by the country’s officials, Mujtaba Samereh-Hashemi, Iran’s Senior Presidential Advisor, told reporters at the end of a cabinet minister’s meeting. One of the most important decisions made by the government was to convert
Are Congress Democrats demanding a war with Iran?
On May 20th I reported that Ehud Olmert told Nacy Pelosi that the USA should impose a naval blockade on Iran. Back in Washington, the rabidly pro-Israeli Pelosi immediately got to work and less than a month later H.CON.RES 362 was introduced by a New York Democrat (what else?) and with no less than 146 co-sponsors. Predictably, AIPAC was a key supporter of the resolution. Take a look at the
They get our oil and give us a worthless piece of paper (UPDATED)
It appears that Iran is on the offensive on the question of oil prices. First, the Iranian OPEC Governor, Mohammad Ali Khatibi, has disputed that supply is the cause of high oil prices blaming “international political tensions, a weak dollar and speculation” instead. Then Iran predicted that the price of oil would reach $150 “shortly” (Goldman Sachs agreed). A couple of weeks later, Iranian President Ahmadinejad urged OPEC members to
Iran withdraws 75 billion dollars from EU banks
Ha’aretz reports: Iran, acting on orders from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has withdrawn around $75 billion from Europe to prevent the assets from being blocked under threatened new sanctions over Tehran’s disputed nuclear ambitions, an Iranian weekly said. “Part of Iran’s assets in European banks have been converted to gold and shares and another part has been transferred to Asian banks,” Mohsen Talaie, deputy foreign minister in charge of economic affairs,
Why we all owe Shaul Mofaz a big ‘thank you!’
The big news last week was the report that Shaul Mofaz, a Lieutenant-General and former IDF Chief of Staff under no less than four prime ministers, declared that an Israeli attack on Iran was “inevitable”. Most observers understood that Mofaz, who is currently a Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transportation, made these statements as an opening shot in his campaign to succeed Ehud Olmert. Even the US immediately distanced
US issues threat to Iraq’s $50bn foreign reserves in military deal
By Patrick Cockburn for The Independent The US is holding hostage some $50bn (£25bn) of Iraq’s money in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to pressure the Iraqi government into signing an agreement seen by many Iraqis as prolonging the US occupation indefinitely, according to information leaked to The Independent. US negotiators are using the existence of $20bn in outstanding court judgments against Iraq in the US, to pressure
Senior Iranian Cleric: US plan for Iraq ‘impractical’
Press TV reports: A senior Iranian cleric says the US should withdraw its troops from Iraq if Washington seeks to survive the quagmire in the country. The military agreement that the White House wants the Iraqi government to sign is ‘impractical’, said Tehran’s interim Friday prayers leader Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati with regards to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) drawn up by Washington. The US echelons are currently negotiating with
Maliki summoned to Tehran
Press TV reports that Maliki will travel to Tehran this Sunday for the discussion of “a further expansion bilateral ties” and that he will meet with both President Ahmadinejad and, more importantly, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. So what are they going to discuss? Opening an Iraqi chamber of commerce in Tabriz or maybe expanding cultural ties? Hardly. There is no doubt in my mind at all that what will really
Israeli deputy prime minister Shaoul Mofaz: Israel will attack Iran
Press TV reports: An Israeli deputy prime minister has claimed that the Israeli regime will attack Iran if the country continues its nuclear program. “If Iran continues its nuclear weapons program, we will attack it,” claimed Shaoul Mofaz. “Other options are disappearing. The sanctions are not effective. There will be no alternative but to attack Iran in order to stop the Iranian nuclear program,” Mofaz, also a transportation minister, told
Hamas Leader urges Arab countries to forge stronger ties with Iran
Press TV reports that the Political Leader of Hamas Khalid Meshaal has called on Arab countries to forge stronger ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Arab and Islamic countries should consolidate their unity and distinguish friend from foe, he said while addressing a ceremony held in the Syrian capital, Damascus, to commemorate the demise anniversary of the Founder of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, the late Imam Khomeini. He stressed the
Iraqi government rejects US SOFA; bomb explodes near Iranian embassy in Baghdad
It’s official now: even the Iraqi government has rejected the US SOFA. The former Prime Minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari also condemned the SOFA as “undermining the Iraqi sovereignty”. Of course, that rejection should not be seen as some sudden outburst of patriotic fervor: the Maliki regime is a US stooge and that did not change overnight. But even a US stooge cannot openly defy a united Shia opposition to the SOFA.
Pakistan will extradite US-backed terrorists to Iran
Press TV reports: Pakistan, Iran agree on Jundullah’s fate Tehran says members of the Jundullah terrorist group taken into custody in Pakistan may be extradited to Iran as early as next week. “We are currently discussing the matter with the Pakistani government and there is a possibility that the terrorists will be turned over to Iran in the coming week,” caretaker Interior Minister, Mehdi Hashemi told reporters on Saturday. Hashemi
Hamas’ Khalid Meshaal meets with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei
Press TV has just published a short article saying that the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has granted an audience to Hamas’ political leader Khaled Meshaal. The AFP provides some more details about the meeting and its context: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday told the visiting political supremo of Hamas to keep up the resistance against Israel, warning that abandoning the struggle would lead to
Asia Times: Bush ‘plans Iran air strike by August’
By Muhammad Cohen for the Asia Times NEW YORK – The George W Bush administration plans to launch an air strike against Iran within the next two months, an informed source tells Asia Times Online, echoing other reports that have surfaced in the media in the United States recently. Two key US senators briefed on the attack planned to go public with their opposition to the move, according to the
Lots of interesting stuff on Press TV (Iran)
First, a senior Iranian cleric says that signing a SOFA agreement with the occupation forces would be a betrayal of Islam (so much for the alleged Iranian support of the occupation or the Maliki regime). Second, a top US military commanders says that Iran’s role in the Middle-East is “analogous to al-Qaeda’s” (which sadly goes to prove that with the departure of Adm. Fallon all that’s left in the Pentagon
