|
|
|
Join UANI
Top
Stories
Fars (Iran):
"Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and senior negotiator Seyed Abbas
Araqchi announced that Tehran wants to have uranium enrichment capability
at industrial levels and is trying to restore this right in its talks
with the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus
Germany). 'In the current negotiations, we specify the range of
enrichment based on our needs and have underlined that an
industrial-level enrichment should be considered for Iran in the final
deal,' Araqchi said, addressing a forum on Iran's nuclear policies in
Tehran on Monday. He described the Geneva agreement inked by Iran and the
G5+1 in November as a ceasefire between the two sides, and said the
limitations that Tehran has accepted are not permanent as 'we have
obviated the other side's concerns and we will actually make no
concessions'. Araqchi underlined that in the Geneva agreement Iran didn't
accept any suspension of its nuclear activities, 'but obliged the other
side, in a war of wills, to accept the third option among the three
possible options of threat, sanctions and agreement and the US
surrendered to Iran's intention'. He said that Iran entered the talks
with the world powers equipped with military and technical power,
resistance against the sanctions and enjoying 19,000 centrifuges for
enrichment of uranium, and added, 'Our negotiations with the western side
doesn't mean friendship and end of animosities.' ... He referred to the
trend of talks between Iran and the G5+1, and said, 'If we don't reach
results, no catastrophe will happen; we will return to our (nuclear)
program and they will return to their sanctions (against Tehran) but the
atmosphere against the Islamic Republic won't return to what existed
before the negotiations as it has been broken.'" http://t.uani.com/1pFs2OQ
Reuters:
"The U.N. nuclear watchdog chief said on Monday Iran had begun
implementing transparency measures ahead of an Aug 25 deadline, as part
of a long-running investigation into suspected atomic bomb research by
Tehran. Yukiya Amano, speaking at Vienna airport after talks with
President Hassan Rouhani in the Iranian capital, said he expected
progress by next Monday over the five steps the country agreed three
months ago. They include providing information about two issues that are
part of the U.N. nuclear agency's inquiry into what it calls the possible
military dimensions (PMD) of Iran's nuclear program, which Tehran says is
entirely peaceful... The two issues in the inquiry that Iran agreed to
address by late August concern alleged experiments on explosives that
could be used for an atomic device and studies related to calculating
nuclear explosive yields. They were among 12 specific areas listed in an
IAEA report issued in 2011 with a trove of intelligence indicating a
concerted weapons program that was halted in 2003 - when Iran came under
increased international pressure. The intelligence also suggested some
activities may later have resumed." http://t.uani.com/1p9IY0c
Tasnim (Iran):
"Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said
the country would cooperate with the agency only on 'rational issues' to
resolve the ambiguities over its peaceful nuclear energy program. 'From
our point of view, the allegations are all baseless. The IAEA has not
released a single document so far. In fact there is no document at all,
but a bunch of information provided by Western intelligence agencies
which has no basis. We are trying to refute such allegations one by one
while sticking to our principles. We have managed to reasonably convince
the Agency that the explosive detonators have been used for peaceful
purposes in Iran', said Reza Najafi." http://t.uani.com/1AuL1iT
Nuclear
Program & Negotiations
Al-Monitor:
"The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Ali
Akbar Salehi, protested to the chief of the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA), Yuki Amano, regarding the increases in questions about
Iran's explosive detonators and the lengthy process of resolving
questions about their nuclear program. 'In previous meetings, we had a
memorandum of understanding that in consideration of the answers to the
questions of the IAEA about EBW [exploding bridgewire detonator], for
them to consider this issue to be closed; but they didn't do this,
meaning they want to consider it closed in a half way, which we protested
against,' Salehi said on Aug. 18, according to Iranian Students' News
Agency (ISNA). EBW is a type of detonator that can be used for industrial
purposes, but also for the detonation of nuclear weapons. Salehi said,
'In regard to EBW, before there were not more than two or three
questions, but suddenly it turned to 60 questions, which we protested
against.'" http://t.uani.com/1tdmtIF
Sanctions Relief
Trend:
"Iranian Oil Minister Bijian Namdar Zanganeh said that the country
will not limit its oil exports to any certain figure. 'Iran will continue
its oil exports in line with the administration's policies,' he said,
Iran's Mehr News Agency reported on August 19. 'By increasing gas output
the country will be able to export $5 billion worth of oil products in
the current year [to end March 20, 2015] and $12 billion worth of oil
products in the next calendar year,' Zanganeh said. 'Iran seeks to boost its
oil and gas condensates exports,' he said, adding that an increase in oil
revenues will help the country's economy to snap out of recession. 'Under
the Geneva agreement international oil tankers have no limitation in
entering Iranian ports,' he said. 'The Alexandra 1, which is run by
Transland Bulk Carriers Limited, called at Iran's Assaluyeh oil port on
July 25,' he explained, adding that the tanker was under insurance from
the West of England P&I Club." http://t.uani.com/1qmkr4b
Fars (Iran):
"Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Roknoddin Javadi voiced satisfaction in
the progressive trend of gas production, which has included a 30-percent
rise in the country's gas output in the first four months of the current
Iranian calendar year (March 21, 2014). 'During the first four months of
the current calendar year, our country's gas production has increased 30
percent from the year before,' Javadi said. Javadi, who is also
managing-director of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), said Iran has
stopped importing diesel fuel due to enhanced gas production mainly in
the giant offshore South Pars gas field." http://t.uani.com/1ti5Ef1
Sanctions
Enforcement & Impact
Bloomberg:
"German federal prosecutors charged a German-Iranian national with
helping supply the Middle Eastern country's government with components
for its rocket program, five years after the man was convicted of a
similar offense. Ali Reza B., 63, allegedly provided vacuum pumps, valves
and other industrial products with dual civilian and military purposes
from 2011 to 2013 to an unidentified Iranian organization that's subject
to a European Union trade embargo, the prosecutors office in Karlsruhe
said today in a statement, citing charges filed in a Hamburg court. The
goods' value totaled about 436,000 euros ($584,000)." http://t.uani.com/1AuIIfM
Human Rights
HRW:
"Several dozen prisoners in a northern city are serving prison terms
for exercising their basic rights, Human Rights Watch said in a report
released today. Iranian authorities should immediately and
unconditionally release all political prisoners, Human Rights Watch said.
The 59-page report, 'Locked Up in Karaj: Spotlight on Political Prisoners
in One Iranian City,' is based on a review of 189 cases in three prisons
in the city of Karaj, near the capital, Tehran, including the charges
they faced, details of their trials before revolutionary courts, and
information from lawyers, prisoners' families, and others. Human Rights
Watch concluded that in 63 of these cases, authorities had arrested the
prisoners, and revolutionary courts had convicted and sentenced them,
solely because they exercised fundamental rights such as free speech and
rights to peaceful assembly or association. In dozens of other cases,
including 35 prisoners sentenced to death on death row for
terrorism-related offences, Human Rights Watch suspects egregious due
process violations that may have tainted the judicial process." http://t.uani.com/1sRRN0Z
WashPost:
"A Washington Post reporter and two other journalists detained last
month are being held over 'security issues,' Iran's judiciary spokesman
said Monday, offering the first official indication on why they are being
held. Post reporter Jason Rezaian, his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, and two
photojournalists were detained July 22 here in Iran's capital. One
photojournalist was later released. Spokesman Gholam Hossein Mohseni
Ejehi told reporters Monday that the case of the three journalists is
still in the 'initial stages of investigation.' 'The reason behind their
detention is not financial but security issues,' Ejehi said. He did not
elaborate." http://t.uani.com/1yV4LJP
Guardian:
"Two photographers in Iran have been sentenced to a total of 75
lashes after criticising an illustrated book published by a local
official. Both men, who are from Qazvin province, were put on trial when
Mohammad-Ali Hazrati, the head of the local cultural heritage
organisation, felt insulted by the negative reviews the pair had written
in separate posts online about his photography book, 'Qazvin, the Land of
Times Past'. The photographers, Khalil Imami and Abbas Alipour, had
criticised the official for using public money in publishing a book they
felt lacked artistic merit. Hazrati's book is sponsored by Qazvin's
municipality and reportedly distributed for free. He is also cultural
adviser to Qazvin's governor." http://t.uani.com/1n5ozEQ
Opinion &
Analysis
Sasha Eskandarian
in the National Post: "It's not difficult for me to
remember the horrible days of hardship I experienced as a Baha'i
teenager, living in Shiraz, Iran, in the early 1980s. As a member of the
Baha'i faith, the largest religious minority community in Iran, life
became harder and harder for us as we were being attacked and terrorized
in the aftermath of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Baha'i families in my
hometown of Shiraz, including my own, lost their livelihoods. We were
scared for our lives, as well. In those years, many members of Baha'i
institutions, both at the national and local levels, were arrested and
killed. Some were tortured in an effort to force them to recant their
faith. Others mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Baha'i homes were
attacked by mobs, and some were burned. Even the dead were targeted:
Baha'i cemeteries around the country were attacked and destroyed. I
vividly remember the Baha'i cemetery in Shiraz. We called it the
'Everlasting Garden,' a place of peace and tranquillity. We visited our
departed family and friends' graves, including those of my younger
brother and my grandmother. We prayed and meditated there in a loving and
spiritual atmosphere. I remember going there after it was attacked, along
with a group of youth, to help restore what was left, to plant flowers,
water the garden, dig graves in preparation of burials. At a time of
crisis, it was a joy to render this service to my community. In 1983, 10
Baha'i women from Shiraz were hung because of their faith. I knew them
all. The youngest, Mona Mahmudnizad, was a close friend of mine. We had
such a good time together, including many sleepovers where we shared our
youthful confidences. She was only 17 years old, and was buried in our
'Everlasting Garden.' Soon after, I left Iran to come to Canada. I was
determined not to look back. I wanted to close this chapter of my life
forever. I even changed my name, hoping that it would bring a new
beginning. Thirty years later, I realize how childish it was to think
that I could turn my back on such injustices. How could I forget my
family and friends? After all that time, the situation hasn't changed
much in Shiraz. Many more Baha'is were killed since I left; many others
are in prison. The attacks continue, even if they are overshadowed in the
media by other instances of bloodshed elsewhere in the Middle East. Now,
the 'Everlasting Garden' is being completely demolished to make way for a
new sports and cultural complex. Iran's Revolutionary Guards are
destroying whatever was left of the cemetery. As early as the 1980s, the
main buildings were destroyed after the property was confiscated by the
government. The Guards now are going further. They've started digging out
bodies - including those of my brother, grandmother and dear friend Mona
- from their resting graves, and placed them in an open canal. They even
held a public celebration of the demolition's progress, to which the
media was invited. The commander of the Guards gave a speech attacking
Baha'is while standing on top of our loved one's graves, or what is left
of them. How much longer do Baha'is in Iran need to suffer? Are we
hearing the voices of the innocent? I share the suffering of those in
Shiraz. They are my family and friends, whose only aim is to follow the
precepts of their faith, and work for the betterment of mankind. I invite
others to raise their voices to protest this outrageous wrongdoing and
help stop this injustice." http://t.uani.com/1uRLZVZ
|
|
Eye on Iran is a periodic news summary from United Against
Nuclear Iran (UANI) a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear
Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code. Eye on Iran is not intended as a comprehensive media clips
summary but rather a selection of media elements with discreet analysis
in a PDA friendly format. For more information please email Press@UnitedAgainstNuclearIran.com
United Against Nuclear
Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a
commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a
regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons. UANI is an
issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own
interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of
nuclear weapons.
|
|
|
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment