THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 7:30 PM
Field Commander of Pro-Iranian Group Killed in Eastern Iraq
The field commander of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq armed group, an Iran-backed Shiite militia, has been killed in Maysan Governorate in eastern Iraq, the Shafaq New portal reported, citing a source in the local security services, APA reports.
According to the news portal, the killed man was identified as Abu Ali Al-Kaabi, also known as Naji al-Kaabi. Unidentified gunmen riding a motorcycle opened gunfire at the man in a city in the Maysan Governorate. An investigation is underway. No one has claimed responsibility for the killing.
Iraq Bans 8 Local Banks From US Dollar Transactions
BAGHDAD, Feb 4 (Reuters) – Iraq has banned eight local commercial banks from engaging in U.S. dollar transactions, taking action to reduce fraud, money laundering and other illegal uses of U.S. currency days after a visit by a top U.S. Treasury official.
The banks are banned from accessing the Iraqi central bank’s daily dollar auction, a main source of hard currency in the import-dependent country that has become a focal point of a U.S. crackdown on currency smuggling to neighbouring Iran.
A rare ally of both the United States and Iran with more than $100 billion in reserves held in the U.S., Iraq relies heavily on Washington’s goodwill to ensure that its access to oil revenues and finances is not blocked.
UPDATE: 1:30 PM
Former Officials Criticize Regime’s Elections, Public Apathy
As the Iranian regime’s sham elections draw near, increasing numbers of insiders and former state officials are voicing their pessimism regarding an imminent boycott and the exposure of the regime’s illegitimacy.
Mostafa Kavakebian, a former member of the regime’s parliament, voiced scathing criticism regarding the public’s disdain for the regime and the spectacle of elections. Kavakebian stated, “Look at the situation we’ve brought upon the people, to the extent that neither reformists nor principalists matter anymore. They used to chant “Reformists and principalists, the game is over.”
He added, “The economic problems of the people have really reached a point that when we talk to some about the March 1st elections, it’s as if they want to have a physical altercation with you. They say that you’re completely out of touch if you talk about elections. Our living conditions are ruined, they say. What elections? Go look for your own business, they respond. When we talk about elections, they really think that we are, for example, insulting and being offensive to them.”
Mehdi Nassiri, the former editor-in-chief of the Kayhan Daily, stated, “All evidence and polls indicate that the majority of people are firmly against participation. Just like in the 2020 elections, low turnout was also evident in the 2018 elections. In an attempt to motivate people to vote, some officials claimed they dreamt of the Imam Mahdi, while others mentioned dreaming of Qasem Soleimani. They may resort to such tactics to encourage voter turnout. However, I believe that most people won’t participate. There’s no glimmer of hope, no viable solution on the horizon of the Islamic Republic to improve people’s lives. The only certainty we have about the Islamic Republic and its current governance is that today is better than tomorrow, just that.”
Meanwhile, Hossein Raghfar, a state-affiliated economist, warned, “The continuation of the current trend will be detrimental to the country, and more importantly, to governance, as it will lead to the expansion of unrest and mass protests. Just as we have experienced several waves of widespread dissatisfaction protests so far. The important point is that we should not continue with the approach that has been taken in dealing with the issue over the past 35 years. The crisis we are facing today is the product of this anti-social approach, and if the policy is not changed, we will face a disaster.”
Iran Exploits British Banks for Sanctions Evasion, Financial Times Reports
A report published on February 4 by the Financial Times suggests that the Iranian regime has exploited two major British banks for clandestine money transfers worldwide as part of an extensive network aimed at evading sanctions, supported by Iranian government intelligence agencies. Based on documents obtained by the British newspaper, Lloyd’s and Santander UK have allocated numerous cover accounts to main English companies covertly owned by a sanctioned Iranian petrochemical trading company based in London.
The report adds that the petrochemical trading company is part of a network that the United States accuses of collecting hundreds of millions of dollars for the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards and collaborating with Russian intelligence agencies to finance proxy militias affiliated with Tehran.
According to the Financial Times, these clandestine money transfers across the globe have occurred while the petrochemical trading company and its British cover company, PCC UK, have been under U.S. sanctions since November 2018.
Revelations regarding the Iranian regime’s sanctions evasion operations in the heart of London come after the Royal Air Force joined U.S. airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
US Says Strikes on Iran-Linked Militias Just ‘The Beginning’ of Its Response
US airstrikes on Iranian-backed militias in the Middle East were just the beginning of a sustained response, the White House national security adviser warned on Sunday, as he refused to rule out strikes on Iranian soil.
Jake Sullivan said the strikes on Friday night against 85 targets in Iraq and Syria, designed as retaliation for the killing of three US soldiers, “were the beginning, not the end of our response, and … there will be more steps, some seen, some perhaps unseen, all in an effort to send a very clear message that when American forces are attacked, when Americans are killed, we will respond and we will respond forcefully”.
Speaking on NBC the day after separate overnight US and UK airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, Sullivan three times rejected a chance to rule out strikes on Iran itself, which would be a major escalation that the US has so far been determined to avoid.
UPDATE: 7:30 AM
Khamenei and Raisi’s Lies About Iran’s Economy
On January 30, Iranian regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei had a meeting with so-called “producers,” in which he praised his regime’s economic progress and complained about the fact that the people were “unaware” of this progress.
“We are disappointed that these advancements have not been explained to the people and most people are unaware of these efforts and successes and initiatives,” Khamenei said.
Khamenei tried to reframe the abysmal performance of the government of regime president Ebrahim Raisi—which the people are fully aware of—as “growth and progress” and said, “This growth and progress and the work that has been done all took place under sanctions.”
Exclusive – National Security Expert: Iran ‘Deathly Afraid’ of ‘Dedicated’ MEK Dissident Group
The MEK Iranian dissident organization “poses the greatest internal existential danger to the oppressive Iranian Regime” which is “deathly afraid” of the “very committed, very organized, and very resourceful” resistance group, according to author and national security expert L. Todd Wood, whose latest book details the origins and firsthand accounts of many of its current members who seek a free and democratic Iran, all while Tehran and its proxies continue destabilizing acts that risk sparking an even broader Middle East conflict.
In an exclusive interview with Breitbart News, Wood, a political analyst, discussed the exiled People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran (MEK) opposition group — the subject of his recently-published book, Paying the Price: The Untold Story of the Iranian Resistance — and its formation “as a resistance unit against the Shah,” as well as the current threats it poses to today’s theocratic regime, as he highlighted the regime’s brutality as well as the resistance as a viable alternative.
Fiat Money Flood: The Unbridled Inflation Threatening Iran’s Stability
Following the Iranian regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s statements regarding the imperative to curb the growth of liquidity, the Central Bank of Iran has released a report revealing a nearly 32% increase in the liquidity rate in December compared to the same period last year.
During a meeting with economic activists on January 29, Khamenei urged the cessation or reduction of liquidity growth in Iran, claiming that producers’ dissatisfaction indicates the government’s failure to heed his warnings from the previous year.
The Central Bank of Iran’s report, while refraining from specifying the volume of liquidity in the country, emphasized the concern over the ‘deceleration of liquidity growth,’ a point of contention with the International Monetary Fund’s estimates.
Ali Khamenei’s Dangerous Gambit With Repression and Warmongering
The Iranian regime has escalated executions and warmongering in an irrational manner. In Iran, we witness the execution of various political prisoners, insurgents arrested at different times, and other detainees almost every day, as reported by state media.
Abroad, the regime has launched rockets and drones at commercial ships and American bases in the Middle East through its proxies. Pursuing such a policy is akin to walking on the edge of a sharp sword.
The execution of protesters and political prisoners may exacerbate the volatile situation within the country, potentially leading to an uprising. Warmongering abroad will also draw attention to the regime’s terrorism, increasing the likelihood of a military attack.
Silent Exclusion: Political and Religious Criteria in Iran’s Teaching Recruitment
The Coordinating Council of Trade Union Organizations of Iranian Cultivators has reported that in the recruitment exams of the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Education in 2023, approximately 3,000 to 6,000 candidates were rejected for political and religious reasons.
This teachers’ council issued a statement highlighting that the Ministry of Education has not provided accurate statistics, and the matter has been kept silent.
According to this report, the results of these tests were announced at the end of August and the beginning of September 2023. Currently, these volunteers, referred to as “code 19 files,” are in a state of uncertainty.
Daya Sharifa, a Justice Seeking and Bereaved Mother Is Placed Under House Arrest
Daya Sharifa, the justice-seeking mother of Ramin Hossein Panahi, was arrested by security forces in Kamyaran, a city south of Sanandaj, the capital of the Iranian Kurdistan Province.
Daya Sharifa, also known by her real name Sheraft Zarrini, is over 70 years old. She is a fervent opponent of the death penalty in Iran and is renowned for being among the mothers seeking justice in the wake of their sons’ executions.
Ramin Hossein Panahi, 23, was arrested in June 2017. He was viciously tortured in the detention centers of the IRGC Intelligence and the Ministry of Intelligence. He was executed after a grossly unfair trial on September 8, 2018, along with Zanyar and Loqman Moradi, while on hunger strike. His body was shown to his mother two days later.
Central Bank of Iran: Liquidity at Unprecedented 80 Quadrillion Rials
In response to the Iranian regime’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s statements regarding the need to halt the growth of liquidity, the Central Bank of Iran has published a report indicating a close to 32% increase in the inflation rate in December 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.
On January 30, Khamenei called for a halt or reduction in the growth of liquidity in Iran and claimed that the dissatisfaction of producers was a result of the government’s failure to heed his warnings in the past year.
The Central Bank of Iran’s report highlights the significant increase in the rate of liquidity growth, which contradicts the estimate of the International Monetary Fund.
Heidelberg, Germany—February 3, 2024: MEK Supporters Exhibition in Solidarity With the Iran Revolution
Heidelberg, Germany—February 3, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized an exhibition to express solidarity with the Iranian Revolution.
The purpose of this exhibition was to voice opposition against the increasing number of executions in Iran, shedding light on the oppressive governance of the mullahs’ regime. The exhibition also aim to condemn Ebrahim Raisi, who is implicated in the 1988 massacre and is held responsible for the loss of lives among the Iranian people.
MEK supporters in Heidelberg demanded the trial of the mullahs’ regime leaders, especially Ali Khamenei (Supreme leader of the mullahs’ regime) and the mass murderer Ebrahim Raisi for crimes against humanity, in an international court.
Paris, February 3, 2024: Exhibition by MEK Supporters in Solidarity with the Iranian Revolution
Paris, France—February 3, 2024: Freedom-loving Iranians and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) organized an exhibition, demonstrating their solidarity with the Iranian Revolution.
