THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 6:30 PM CET
Germany Warns Iran, Hezbollah Against Intervening in Gaza Conflict
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday warned Iran and Lebanon-based Hezbollah organization against intervening in the armed conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza.
Scholz told the German parliament in Berlin that a spillover of the conflict “would be devastating for the entire region and that is why it is now important that we do everything we can to help ensure that this situation does not escalate further. That there is no new escalation or a new front in the north.”
“And that’s why I want to repeat what I said last week in the Bundestag (parliament): there must be no entry by Hezbollah or Iran or their proxies in this war. That would be a serious mistake,” he warned.
Last week, Iran warned that if Israeli attacks on Gaza continue, Tehran “will have to intervene,” US media claimed.
Hamas and Iran Could Pose a Threat on the Streets of the UK, Government Anti-Extremism Tsar To Warn
Hamas and Iran pose a threat on the streets of Britain, the Government’s anti-extremism tsar will warn today.
Robin Simcox, the Home Office‘s independent commissioner for countering extremism, will say too many people in prominent positions in British life have sought to ‘excuse or rationalise’ Hamas’ actions.
In a keynote speech, the commissioner will say ‘It is time to confront reality’ and urge ministers to ‘commit to a long-term strategy for taking on extreme ideologies’.
Mr Simcox is expected to say Hamas and their Iranian state sponsor pose a threat beyond the Middle East.
He will also voice concerns that ‘support for Hamas does not carry the stigma that support for other terrorist groups does’.
Biden Must Pull Security Clearances of Officials With ‘Sympathy’ for Iran, Pompeo and Other Ex-Trump Officials Say
Several former Trump administration officials called on President Joe Biden to revoke the security clearances of officials who hold “ties to or sympathy for” Iran.
The statement’s signatories include former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, Pentagon Chief Christopher Miller, and Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliff.
“As former senior officials in the United States Government we are very alarmed by the information contained in recent articles regarding Iranian influence operations targeting American citizens, especially US Government employees,” the statement says.
Sen. Cramer Joins Fox Business to Discuss Reimposing Sanctions on Iran, Supporting Domestic Oil Production
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN) joined Larry Kudlow on Fox Business to discuss the need for a bipartisan bill reimposing sanctions on Iran. Excerpts and video below.
“Senator Hagerty could speak to this as well as anybody he went to the floor last night with requesting unanimous consent on Iran Sanctions Relief Act, that would require all sanction relief to come to the Congress before they would be enacted, and of course, Democrats objected to that. Senator Cotton made another request yesterday for unanimous consent on the floor, and Democrats objected to that, which would have frozen that $6 billion we often talk about, which is not a great deal of money, but it’s a pretty significant symbol of just how depraved we’ve become. I was hopeful there’d be some bipartisan support for that so far, not.”
Time to Stop Appeasing Terrorist Iran
The 2020s are starting to look like the 1930s, as I wrote last week in the wake of Hamas’s unprecedentedly vicious attack on Israel. Nations that embody, imperfectly but creditably in any historical perspective, representative politics, rule of law, and respect for human rights — Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan — have been under attack or threat of attack from nations whose leaders scorn those arrangements, and the United States has scrambled, awkwardly and possibly inadequately, to protect them. Historians have called their counterpart attacking powers of the 1930s revisionists. Nazi Germany, fascist Italy, and militaristic Japan wanted to revise and replace the wobbly but mostly benign international architecture that victorious powers created after what participants had not yet had occasion to call World War I. American and European leaders were reluctant to recognize the revisionist character of Putin’s Russia and Communist China.
Manchin, Colleagues Introduce Legislation To Freeze $6 Billion to Iran, Probe Additional Iranian Assets
Washington, DC – This week, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and 23 of his Senate colleagues introduced the Revoke Iranian Funding Act to rescind the general licenses that authorized the release of $6 billion to Iran and prevent the Iranian regime from accessing and using the funds held in Qatar to finance terrorist attacks against Israel or any other nation.
In addition, this bipartisan legislation directs the U.S. Treasury Secretary to study all high-value Iranian assets around the world that are currently blocked by U.S. sanctions and ensure Congress has the information necessary to enact further targeted legislation.
“To demonstrate our commitment to Israel, we must hold Iran accountable for their sponsorship of Hamas and other terrorist organizations,” said Senator Manchin. “Our bipartisan legislation will halt efforts to provide billions of dollars to Iran and make sure Congress has the information to act against the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism. We must do everything we can to protect our greatest ally in the Middle East.”
U.S. Issues New Sanctions Targeting Iran’s Missile and Drone Programs
The Biden administration on Wednesday imposed new sanctions aimed at Iran’s ballistic missile and drone programs, acting to keep up pressure on Tehran after the expiration of United Nations restrictions on those activities.
The U.S. actions add to numerous existing measures to prevent and penalize Iran’s efforts to buy or sell technology or equipment related to its missile and drone programs, which are among the most sophisticated in the region.
In a statement on Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said the new penalties on several individuals and companies were meant to address “one of the greatest challenges to international peace and security.”
Iran-Backed Militia Threatens More Attacks on US Troops After Drone Strikes
A militia group supported by Iran has targeted U.S. bases in Iraq as regional tensions continue to build over the Israel-Hamas war.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Tehran-backed militias, claimed responsibility for two drone attacks that targeted the al-Asad airbase in western Iraq used by U.S. forces and one drone strike aimed at a base in northern Iraq, The Associated Press reported.
U.S. forces intercepted all three drones, destroying two but only damaging the third, which led to minor injuries among coalition forces at the western base, according to U.S. Central Command.
In a statement, the militia said the drone attacks “herald more operations” against the “American occupation,” the AP reported, echoing threats that Iranian-backed militias in Iraq will attack U.S. facilities there because of Washington’s support for Israel in its fight against Hamas.
UPDATE: 2:00 PM CET
MI5 Chief Warns of Iran-Backed Terror Attacks in the UK
The head of MI5 has raised the spectre of Iranian-backed terror attacks in the UK in the wake of the war in Israel. Ken McCallum, the security service’s director-general, addressed the conflict for the first time while at an unprecedented security summit also attended by intelligence chiefs from the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
He said the “monstrous attacks” on Israel could increase the risk of terror atrocities in the UK and raised concerns about the threat from Iran. The regime in Tehran, he said, already posed a “particularly intensive” threat but may now “move into new directions”.
UPDATE: 10:30 AM CET
Hamas Terror Attacks Prove the Need To Support Regime Change in Iran, Says Bob Blackman
Amidst fierce debates on the crises raging in the Middle East, there is growing consensus on the destructive role of the Iranian regime in the October 7 attack. The Wall Street Journal reported that on October 2, the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) gave the final order for the attack at a meeting in Beirut. On October 3, Khamenei threatened that “loss awaits governments that play the normalization gamble” with Israel. Relevant intelligence reports and statements from various governments have clarified that Tehran enjoys a longstanding relationship with its regional proxies. That relationship, including extensive financial and military support and training, has grown closer in recent years. Hence, in my view, to doubt the religious dictatorship’s full engagement in the October 7 attack is to demonstrate either ignorance or an intention to continue appeasing Iran.
Joint Statement of 47 World Countries in Support of Continuing Missile
In a joint statement released by the U.S. State Department on Thursday, 47 countries worldwide have collectively called for the continuation of missile sanctions against the Iranian regime, as stipulated in UN Security Council Resolution 2231. This call coincides with the lifting of arms sanctions.
These nations argue that the removal of missile sanctions on Iran was based on the assumption that the Islamic Republic would adhere to the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), a scenario that did not materialize.
The statement underscores that Iran’s missile program remains one of the most significant global challenges in preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction. It states, “Iran’s missile program remains one of the greatest challenges to international nonproliferation efforts. Today, Iran holds the largest inventory of ballistic missiles in the Middle East, and its ballistic missile programs continue to pose a threat to countries across the region and beyond. In addition, Iran’s provision of missile and UAV technology to its partners and proxies endangers international stability and escalates regional tension.”
This statement, which has garnered signatures from nearly all Western countries and some from the Middle East, East Asia, Africa, and South America, further points out that Tehran’s dissemination of missile and drone technology to its proxies and affiliated groups undermines international stability and exacerbates regional tensions.
Sanctions in Response to Iran’s Nuclear and Missile Programs
Australia has reimposed targeted financial sanctions and travel bans on 19 Iranian individuals and 57 entities for their role in Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.
These sanctions were previously imposed under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2231 and will now be listed under Australia’s autonomous sanctions framework. This is consistent with the approach taken by international partners.
In addition, a further three individuals and 11 entities were listed, due to their association with persons or entities sanctioned under UNSC Resolution 2231.
The Albanese Government is working deliberately and strategically to apply pressure on the Iranian regime for failing to uphold its international obligations, including its nuclear-related commitments.
Treasury Sanctions Actors Supporting Iran’s Missile and UAV Programs
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 11 individuals, eight entities, and one vessel based in Iran, Hong Kong, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and Venezuela that are enabling Iran’s destabilizing ballistic missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) programs. The persons designated today have materially supported Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL), or their subordinates in the production and proliferation of missiles and UAVs.
“Iran’s reckless choice to continue its proliferation of destructive UAVs and other weapons prolongs numerous conflicts in regions around the world,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. “The United States will continue to take action to disrupt Iran’s proliferation of UAVs and other weapons to oppressive regimes and destabilizing actors, and we encourage the international community to do the same.”
UPDATE: 8:00 AM CET
Poverty and Misery, the Flipside of the Warmongering of Iran’s Regime
These days, regime-controlled media, Friday prayers and all state-run tribunes in Iran are filled with warmongering hysteria and slogans meant to project power. Regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei himself claimed during a meeting with one of his foreign agents on Saturday, October 13, that the Islamic Republic has become stronger day by day since its establishment and will continue to grow stronger in the future. During his visit to Fars Province on October 13, regime president Ebrahim Raisi said, “This state, with the support of you, the people, possesses a very valuable power, which is the power of religious people, the power of the people, an inexhaustible power.”
However, state-run newspapers with ties to Raisi’s rival faction raise concerns about the power and progress of the regime.
Iran’s 45-Year Warmongering, Fueling the Flames of Conflict
The ongoing conflict between Gaza, and Israel, and the incessant threats from both sides paint a grim picture for the homeless and war-torn people of Gaza.
On October 13, 2023, millions from Arab nations demonstrated in a massive show of solidarity with Gaza’s residents. They called for an immediate end to the bombings in Gaza. Many analysts and politicians attributed the crisis to the aggressive policies of Iran’s belligerent mullahs.
This war, with its tragic loss of life and financial toll on both sides, has a public face displayed on media and in front of cameras. However, there is a hidden aspect, far removed from the urban areas where the conflict unfolds.
Femicide in Iran: The Plight of Razieh Hassanvand and Trotskeh Abdollahzadeh
A Revolutionary Guard shot her sister to death in Aleshtar, northern Lorestan Province. Razieh Hassanvand, 20, was the mother of one child.
Razieh Hassanvand had been forced into marriage as a child. After several years, she divorced her cousin despite the opposition of her family. Now, his brother, Bahman, wanted her to marry someone of his choice. Razieh lost her life on Thursday, October 12, 2023, after several days of hospitalization.
In another horrific incident of honor killing, Trotskeh Abdollahzadeh, 21, the mother of two children, was brutalized and hanged by her father, father-in-law, and husband.
556,000 Iranian Adolescents Drop Out Before High School Due To Poverty
The Statistical Center of Iran has announced that at least 556,000 Iranian adolescents are forced to drop out of school before entering high school due to reasons primarily related to “poverty and deprivation.”
According to a report published by Iran’s Statistical Center, titled “Social and Cultural Status of Iran, Spring 2023,” during the academic year 2022-2023, more than 556,000 children between the ages of 15 and 17 remained out of school, including 295,000 boys and 261,000 girls.
According to this report, the “dropout rate” in elementary education in the academic year 2016-2017 was “0.99 percent,” but after five years, during the academic year 2022-2023, it reached “1.2 percent,” and in the first cycle of secondary education, it was “4.11 percent,” gradually increasing to “5.47 percent,” indicating an upward trend.
Also, read Iran News in Brief – October 18, 2023