THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 9:30 PM CET
Group Alleges Us Firm’s Tanker Illicitly Traded Iran Oil
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A tanker owned by a Los Angeles-based private equity firm likely took part in the illicit trade of Iranian crude oil at sea despite American sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic amid the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers, an advocacy group alleges. The firm said Thursday it is cooperating with U.S. government investigators.
The group United Against Nuclear Iran raised its allegations in a letter dated Tuesday to Oaktree Capital Management, which holds assets worth over $160 billion. Satellite images and maritime tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press correspond to the group’s identification of the vessels allegedly involved and showed them side-by-side off the coast of Singapore on Saturday.
UPDATE: 4:30 PM CET
Security Forces Disrupt commemoration Ceremony of Deceased Poet
Today, security forces raided the ceremony near Tehran that was held in commemoration of an imprisoned Iranian poet, Baktash Abtin, who died due to the state’s deliberate negligence and refusal of treatment when he contracted Covid-19. People who had gathered to pay respect to Abtin were arrested and several people were transferred to an unknown location.
According to local sources, at least 20 vehicles carrying security forces are said to have attacked the venue. Eyewitnesses say the incident took place one hour after the ceremony started and the security forces disrupted the gathering, forcing people to end it. Footage shows moments before the state’s disruption and the crowd is chanting “Death to the oppressors, peace be upon Abtin!”
Another Report of Execution in Central Iran
The Iranian regime’s Judiciary executed a prisoner on Sunday morning, February 13, in Adelabad prison in Shiraz. The executed prisoner was identified as Mokhtar Valizadeh.
UPDATE: 2:30 PM CET
Australia to List Hamas and Us Far-right Group as Terrorists
The Australian government has called the two groups’ views “deeply disturbing.” Supporting them could lead to 25 years in jail. Australia has said it is to designate the entirety of the militant Palestinian group Hamas and the US far-right group National Socialist Order as terrorist organizations.
Hamas’ paramilitary wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, was first listed as a terror organization in 2003. Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews says she has now written to state governments to rubberstamp the listing of Hamas’ political wing as soon as possible.
“It’s vital that our laws target not only terrorist acts and terrorists, but also the organizations that plan, finance, and carry out these acts,” Andrews said.
Voices of Concern About ‘Longer and Stronger Deal’ Amid Nuclear Talks Carrying On
The state-run daily Jahane Sanat wrote on Wednesday, February 16: “The tweets of Ali Shamkhani, our Supreme National Security Council Secretary are an indication that the atmosphere of negotiations is not as promising as in previous days. The Westerners, and especially Americans, are still talking and have not taken a step towards an agreement. The Iranian side also insists on its previous positions.”
Quoting state-affiliated experts, the newspaper added: “Ali Bigdeli, an international affairs analyst, has said that the most serious disagreements at the moment are over regional, missile and human rights issues. Qassem Mohabeli, the former director-general of the foreign ministry, also said that negotiations have reached a critical point and require political decisions on the Iranian as well as the American side. Iran expects the United States to lift sanctions related to the JCPOA, in addition to the sanctions imposed after the withdrawal of the United States from the nuclear deal. The Americans also expect that the talks will not be limited to the JCPOA terms and try to talk about other issues such as the Middle East, missiles, and human rights.”
Human Rights Lawyers Attempt To Bring Syria War Crimes Cases to ICC
A groundbreaking attempt to make Iranian and Syrian military officials answerable for war crimes they may have committed in Syria is being launched, as part of an effort to have the cases brought before the international criminal court.
The request includes evidence of Syrian victims forced to flee into Jordan due to attacks and intimidation by the Syrian government and Iran-backed militia groups. It is being brought by the US-based Iran Human Rights Documentation Center in conjunction with Haydee Dijkstal, a UK barrister.
UPDATE: 2:00 PM CET
Nearly 200 U.S. House of Representatives Warn Against Nuclear Agreement Without Congressional Approval
In a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden, nearly 200 members of the U.S. House of Representatives warned against any nuclear agreement with the Iranian regime without congressional approval, rebuffing the Iranian regime’s suggestion of a Congressional guarantee in the event of a nuclear deal.
“We will view any agreement reached in Vienna which is not submitted to the US Senate for ratification as a treaty — including any and all secret agreements made with Iran directly or on the sidelines of official talks — as non-binding.”, the letter said.
“As duly elected representatives of American citizens across the United States… we feel compelled to remind you that you do not have the power to provide any such “guarantee.” Indeed, if you forge an agreement with the Supreme Leader of Iran without formal Congressional approval, it will be temporary and non-binding and will meet the same fate as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),” the letter added.
UPDATE: 8:30 AM CET
Tehran’s Terror Machine Loathed in the Middle East
In 2003, Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), warned that the terrorist threats of Iran’s regime are a hundred times more dangerous than its nuclear program. This was a significant warning, especially since it came from the head of the movement that first revealed Tehran’s nuclear weapons program.
However, Western states, which at the time were heavily engaged in trying to curb the regime’s nuclear program through offering concessions, did not heed that warning. Rapprochement and appeasement, the West’s dominant policy toward Iran’s regime, resulted in politicians and governments turning a blind eye to the Iranian regime’s multitude of threats, especially its terrorist and fundamentalist ambitions.
Iran JCPOA Vienna Talks Will Amount to Naught
The seemingly never-ending, seesaw-style JCPOA Vienna talks have been going on and off for a few months. All parties have repeatedly acknowledged that the negotiations have reached a critical stage, and meaningless deadlines and ultimatums have been voiced to legitimize these negotiations. A White House spokesman recently said that “a deal that addresses all sides’ core concerns is in sight, but if it is not reached in the coming weeks, Iran’s ongoing nuclear advances will make it impossible for us to return to the JCPOA”
A spokesman for Iran’s Parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Commission said: “The conditions are ready for a win-win agreement.” But he laments that “it was our right to ask for the lifting of all the sanctions, but the opponent agreed to remove some of them.”
Correct Policy Toward Iran Is Within Reach, Says NCRI President-Elect Maryam Rajavi
In an online conference hosted by the Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC) on Friday, February 11, 2022, some 50 bi-partisan members of the United States House of Representatives declared their support for the struggle of the Iranian people and their organized Resistance for a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear republic of Iran.
Democrat and Republican members of Congress on the U.S. administration to adopt a firm policy toward the regime in Iran.
While addressing the event, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian coalition opposition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said, “The correct and feasible policy is to recognize the right of the Iranian people and Resistance to overthrow the Iranian regime.” The Representatives also emphasized the imperative of supporting the Iranian people’s cause for freedom and democracy on the 43rd anniversary of the 1979 anti-monarchical revolution in Iran.
Iran: COVID-19 Fatalities Surpass 507,400
Read more: Iran News in Brief – February 16, 2022
