THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 7:00 PM CEST
Iranian Regime’s Official Came Under Fire in Baghdad
The Iranian regime’s official news agency reported that a member of the regime’s embassy in Baghdad was attacked. IRNA wrote: “On Wednesday, the legal representative of the embassy in Kazemeyn was attacked by armed assailants. While he remained unharmed, the assailants damaged his car.”
In an interview with the Washington Post, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi said that if he is re-elected prime minister, his first goal would be to strengthen Iraq’s sovereignty and independence so that it can stand up to foreign interference in the country. The next step is to restrict the possession of weapons by the government, which would mean disarming the militants. Washington Post wrote:
“When I asked Kadhimi what his agenda would be if he gets a new mandate as prime minister, he immediately answered, “consolidating Iraq’s sovereignty,” so it can resist outside attempts to manipulate the country. His second goal is to “establish state monopoly on weapons,” which I translated as disarming the militias. He went on to discuss economic reform and privatization.
Tehran Says it Will Not Hand Out Surveillance Images of New Site to IAEA
Following a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency that the Iranian regime has started a new workshop in Natanz, Nour News which is run by the regime’s Supreme Security Council announced today: “Following the transfer and installation of equipment in the new site since yesterday and after the machines were released from the IAEA seal, the production process of centrifuge parts began at the Natanz site. The Agency’s surveillance activities will not change at the new location, and according to the current procedure, surveillance camera images will not be delivered to the agency.”
UPDATE: 3:30 PM CEST
German Government: Iran Systematically Violates Nuclear Agreement
Berlin: (hib/JOH) To the knowledge of the German government, Iran has significantly expanded its nuclear capabilities and thus systematically undermined its nuclear obligations under the so-called Iran Nuclear Agreement (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JCPOA). Iran’s “breakout time” has therefore fallen sharply from the originally targeted twelve months, she writes in response (20/1349) to a small question (20/806) of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group.
Suicide Attempt Prevented in Kerman, Southeast Iran
A clip posted on social media today shows a young girl from Kerman trying to commit suicide by jumping from a bridge. Fortunately, this time, a few Samaritans prevent her from committing suicide.
In Iran under the rule of the clerical regime, multiple intertwined socio-economic crises have thrown the Iranian society into misery with hundreds of thousands of suicide attempts each year, mostly under women who have to deal with the misery in society as well as the misogynist culture in the community and sometimes even at home.
Iran Is Opening New Centrifuge-parts Workshop at Natanz -IAEA Report
VIENNA, April 14 (Reuters) – Iran is starting to operate a new workshop at Natanz that will make parts for uranium-enriching centrifuges with machines moved there from its now-closed Karaj facility, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said in a report on Thursday seen by Reuters.
The new workshop raises questions about Iran’s plans for the manufacturing of advanced centrifuges – machines that produce enriched uranium much faster than the first-generation machines it was restricted to using for that purpose by its 2015 deal with major powers.
Ahmadinejad Excluded from Meeting with Regime’s Supreme Leader
According to the state-run Dideban website, Ahmad Alireza Beigi, a member of the regime’s parliament explained why former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not the meeting with the regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on April 12. Responding to widespread speculations, he said: “I called him and Mr. Ahmadinejad said that I had not been ‘invited’ to this meeting.”
UPDATE: 11:00 AM CEST
US Responds to IRGC Leader’s Bellicose Remarks on Avenging Soleimani
Responding to remarks by the Iranian regime’s Revolutionary Guards commander Mohammad Pakpour that “killing all American leaders is not enough to take revenge for Qassem Soleimani, State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters in his press briefing: “We have already said, and we have consistently made clear that we will protect and defend our citizens. This includes those serving the United States now, and those who have formerly served the United States in the past.”
“What is true is that this is an issue – Iran policy – on which there are many disagreements. But we are united in our resolve against threats and provocations, and we will work with partners and allies around the world and in the region to deter and respond to any attacks that may be carried out by Iran,” he added.
Released Funds from The UK Will Go to Defense Ministry, Official Says
Following news reports and speculations about the release of some frozen funds of the Iranian regime from foreign banks, a state official said that before any planning, the very organization or institution these resources belong to will affect how they are spent.
In an interview with the state-run ISNA, a board member of the Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce, Hamid Hosseini stated: “First, we must see which money will be released and how, and then we must check where this blocked money belonged to. According to the information we have, about 20 to 30 percent of the blocked money in South Korea belongs to the National Development Fund, 14 percent to the Oil Company, and about two to three percent to the deprived areas. The money that was blocked in the UK belongs to the Ministry of Defense.”
“It is wrong to say that any money released is directly available to the government and enters the treasury or will be spent for the economic purposes of the executive branch,” he added.
46 Retired Generals, Admirals Urge White House Against Iran Nuclear Deal
In an open letter to President Biden Wednesday, 46 retired U.S. generals and admirals voiced their opposition to the ongoing negotiations with Iran on striking a nuclear deal.
“In Ukraine, we are bearing witness to the horrors of a country ruthlessly attacking its neighbor and, by brandishing its nuclear weapons, forcing the rest of the world largely to stand on the sidelines,” the letter, penned in coordination with the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA), said. “The new Iran deal currently being negotiated, which Russia has played a central role in crafting, will enable the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism to cast its own nuclear shadow over the Middle East.”
U.S. Sets up New Mideast Naval Task Force Amid Strained Gulf Ties
DUBAI, April 13 (Reuters) – The U.S. Navy on Wednesday said it was establishing a new multinational task force that would target arms smuggling in the waters around Yemen, the latest American military response to Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Washington has sought to reassure Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who see the U.S. commitment to the region as waning, by providing additional military support in recent months following the missile and drone attacks on the Gulf nations.
UPDATE: 12:00 AM CEST
Iranian Regime Returns Political Prisoner to Evin Prison Despite Illness
On April 3, regime security forces forcibly returned political prisoner Fatemeh Mosanna, 53, to Evin prison despite being seriously ill. Her return to prison was ordered by Amin Vaziri, one of the senior authorities of Evin prison.
Mosanna was put behind bars despite suffering from an intestine infection and according to her doctors, she cannot be treated while she is in prison. Prison authorities had to give her a furlough because of her medical condition and give her time to undergo treatment. But they decided to return her to prison before she could undergo treatment.
Life of Zahra Safaei in Danger as Prison Authorities Prevent Her Dispatch to Hospital
The life of Zahra Safaei is in danger in Qarchak Prison as the prison authorities have prevented her dispatch to the hospital on April 12, 2022.
Political prisoner Zahra Safaei had an appointment for angiography at the hospital. However, the Qarchak Prison authorities told her that she could not go to the hospital unless her hands and feet were cuffed. She refused to accept this condition, and as a result, she could not make her appointment for angiography.
Iran: Regime Collapse Is the Mullahs’ First and Foremost Concern
April 1 signifies the anniversary of the referendum of the ‘Islamic Republic’, the day when the Iranian regime’s founder Ruhollah Khomeini foisted his theocratic and fundamentalist regime as a ‘republic’ to the people. Like every year since the regime’s inception, officials and experts have once again analyzed the regime’s situation.
However, this time, unlike in previous years, we have witnessed different reactions to the remarks of the regime’s officials. They are currently expressing their fears about the critical situation in Iran, and their destiny, reminding each other that the regime must survive at any cost.
Read more: Iran News in Brief – April 13, 2022