Obama's Plan to Talk With Iran Shows `Weak Judgment,' Kyl Says Bloomberg via Yahoo! News Sun, 18 May 2008 11:10 AM PDT
May 18 (Bloomberg) -- Republican Senator Jon Kyl said Barack Obama's willingness to negotiate with Iran
shows ``weak judgment,'' signaling his party will likely focus on
portraying the Democra
tic presidential candidate as naive about rogue
nations.
Iran Remains Key Concern as Bush Returns Washington Post
Sun, 18 May 2008 6:58 AM PDT
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, May 18 -- As he toured the Middle East over the
past five days, President Bush tried to shore up support for his
strategy of isolating Iran
in meetings with the leaders of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and
the Palestinian territories. But the one session that did not...
Iran rights group speaks out against violations AFP via Yahoo! News Sun, 18 May 2008 5:28 AM PDT
The rights group of Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi on Sunday warned against a "systematic violation" of human rights in Iran and criticized the government over its treatment of dissidents and activists.
Group says six Baha'is detained in Iran Reuters via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News
Mon, 19 May 2008 0:18 AM PDT
The Iranian authorities have detained six members of the Baha'i faith, an offshoot of Islam considered heretical by Iran's Shi'ite Muslim establishment, members of the religious group said.
Bush: Iran Will Not Be Allowed To Acquire Nuclear Weapons Nasdaq
Sun, 18 May 2008 11:39 PM PDT
(RTTNews) - Sunday, U.S. President George Bush said that Iran
would not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons, adding that,
otherwise, it would be an "unforgivable betrayal of future
generations."
Bush and Olmert planning naked aggression against Iran Online Journal Sun, 18 May 2008 9:58 PM PDT
But the White House Moron has the roles reversed. It is not Iran that is threatening war. It is Bush. It is not Bush who is appeasing. It is Iran. Iran has not responded in kind to any of Bush’s warlike moves and provocations.
IRAN TO HOLD 15 TRADE EXHIBITIONS IN IRAQ Asia Pulse via Yahoo!7 Finance
Sun, 18 May 2008 6:46 PM PDT
Trade / foreign investment The Islamic Republic of Iran
will hold 15 specialized exhibitions in Iraq in the current Iranian
calendar year which started on March 20, the deputy head of Iran's Trade Promotion Organization for marketing and trade affairs said on Saturday.
Bush to Urge Opposition to Iran Nuclear Program (Update1) Bloomberg.com
Sun, 18 May 2008 4:00 AM PDT
May 18 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush will say nations should unite to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and to oppose Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants who threaten the stability of Lebanon.
Iran says gunmen tried to assassinate embassy staff
Story Highlights
NEW: Suicide bomber kills seven, including infant, in Fallujah
Report: Iran calls Baghdad embassy shooting an "assassination attempt"
Iran Foreign Ministry: "Distrustful" U.S. forces destabilizing Iraq
U.S. military says its troops were not involved in the attack"
(CNN)
-- Iran is calling the shooting and wounding of its embassy personnel
in Baghdad an "assassination attempt," Iranian media reported Friday.
Iranian officials are blaming the shooting in Baghdad partially on inadequate security by U.S. troops.
Iran's Foreign Ministry also blames "distrustful" U.S. security
measures for contributing to such incidents, according to a report
Friday in the country's Islamic Republic News Agency.
"The onus
is on the occupying forces to ensure security of embassy personnel in
Baghdad. The distrustful safety measures taken by U.S. military forces
in Iraq have become a serious cause for concern as it is stoking
instability in the country," Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali
Hosseini is quoted as saying.
"The Islamic Republic is
determined to launch extensive investigations on the assassination
attempt and will pursue the incident through Iraqi officials," Hosseini
added.
The allegations followed conflicting accounts of Thursday's shooting.
An initial bulletin on IRNA's Web site said, "U.S. agents carried [out] terror attacks on Iranian Embassy staff in Baghdad," and another posted eight minutes later said, "Iran holds the U.S. government responsible for terror attacks on Iranian Embassy staff in Baghdad."
But IRNA reported on Friday that four Iranian Embassy staff members and
diplomats were seriously injured when "unknown terrorists" shot at
their car on Thursday.
An Iraqi Interior Ministry report said
unidentified gunmen in northern Baghdad fired on two SUVs carrying five
employees and a driver -- all of whom were transported to an Iraqi
hospital for treatment.
The Baghdad Operations Command, however,
reported that an Iraqi army patrol was shot at and returned fire at the
SUVs -- injuring the embassy workers and their driver, according to the
official.
The U.S. military on Friday said the Iraqi Army found
four wounded Iranian nationals in a vehicle near Baghdad on Thursday,
and that the Iraqi police are investigating.
Col. Jerry
O'Hara, a U.S. military spokesman, emphasized the United States "was in
no way involved in this attack," refuting press reports that indicated
American forces were involved.
Other developments:
A
suicide car bomber killed seven people, including a 6-month-old girl
and four policemen, and wounded nine near a police station in Fallujah,
an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said.
Iraqi Prime
Minister Nuri al-Maliki said he will grant amnesty for some gunmen in
the northern province of Nineveh and its capital, Mosul, if they turn
in their medium and heavy weapons to security forces and tribal leaders.
A
civilian was killed and three others were wounded in a roadside bombing
in central Baghdad on Friday, the Interior Ministry said. In
southeastern Baghdad, a roadside bombing wounded two other civilians.
A
suicide bomber detonated explosives, but did not cause any casualties,
at a police station checkpoint in Falluja in Anbar province Friday,
police said.
As a cease-fire between
Shiite militants and security forces took hold in Baghdad's Sadr City,
U.S. soldiers battled fighters Thursday night in Shula, killing six
people. Soldiers killed one person when troops were attacked with
rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire, according to the U.S.
military
U.S. declines to help present nuclear deal to Iran
By Sue Pleming Thu May 8, 6:18 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -
World powers will in the coming days
offer a revised package of incentives to Iran but Washington
has refused to send its own envoy to help present the deal,
diplomats and a U.S. official said on Thursday.
Diplomats said the package, aimed at getting Iran to halt
its nuclear work, could be delivered on Friday or over the
weekend, most likely in Tehran, by the European Union's foreign
policy chief, Javier Solana.
In a change from normal protocol, political directors from
France, Britain, Russia and China -- permanent members of the
U.N. Security Council -- and Germany would probably go with
Solana, diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
But the United States, which is involved with major powers
in the negotiations, has made clear it will not join the
mission to present the offer, which is expected to be given to
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki.
"We are not going to be going to Tehran. But, again, we're
still working out some of the details with our partners in the
process," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, when
asked whether the United States would also deliver the deal.
The other major powers have argued that sending political
directors from nations that deal with the Iranian nuclear file
would add weight to the offer. Usually, Solana acts as the
official go-between with Tehran.
But McCormack said the United States had made it very clear
it would only sit down in talks with the Iranians over their
nuclear program if Tehran gave up uranium enrichment.
In Brussels, Solana's spokeswoman said she had no comment
on Iran. A European Union diplomat said a "number of issues
remained to be resolved" over how best to make contact with
Iran.
OFFER MORE SPECIFIC
Diplomats, who refuse to release details of the package
until it has been seen by the Iranians, said it was broadly
based on a 2006 offer but it was more specific in terms of
civilian nuclear cooperation with Tehran.
"Exploring the civilian capacity and going a little bit
beyond that is the most significant thing," said one diplomat,
who like all others asked not to be identified.
Another diplomat said the offer detailed what Iran would
get in terms of research help and fully functioning civilian
nuclear power reactors if it gave up work aimed at building an
atomic weapon.
"Basically, that is everything you need to have a fully
functioning state-of-the-art nuclear program but not a heavy
water reactor, not enrichment (of uranium) or reprocessing
plants," said the diplomat, referring to processes that could
be used to build an atomic bomb.
The June 2006 offer also included wider trade in civil
aircraft, energy, high technology and agriculture, if Tehran
suspended enrichment and negotiated with the six powers,
including the United States.
The revised offer also made clear that major powers would
recognize Iran's role in the region and offered some kind of
regional security cooperation, said one diplomat.
However, he said the new offer once again made clear that
Iran must verifiably suspend enrichment.
"We have our red lines. They have to suspend enrichment,"
said the diplomat.
Iran said on Monday it would not consider any incentives
that violated its right to nuclear technology, ruling out a
precondition to halt atomic work the West believes is aimed at
making bombs.
Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, says its
nuclear program is for peaceful power purposes. The enrichment
process, if desired, can also be used to make material for
nuclear bombs.
"If there really was good faith on the Iranians' part,
would they be rejecting out of hand something they haven't seen
yet?" asked McCormack.
Diplomats said a key concern was that the new offer should
be made known to as many Iranians as possible and discussions
were under way among major powers on how to do that.
The U.N. Security Council has already imposed sanctions on
Iran three times for failing to give up enrichment.
(Additional reporting by Mark John in Brussels; Editing by
Eric Beech)
Yahoo! Alerts
Friday, May 9, 2008 12:45 AM PDT
U.S. agrees to EU's Iran nuclear plan CNN.com
Thu, 08 May 2008 6:31 PM PDT
The United States has signed off on a European plan that would offer increased incentives for Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program, senior State Department officials said Thursday.
U.S. declines to help present nuclear deal to Iran Reuters via Yahoo! News Thu, 08 May 2008 3:18 PM PDT
World powers will in the coming days offer a revised package of incentives to Iran but Washington has refused to send its own envoy to help present the deal, diplomats and a U.S. official said on Thursday.
US will not send envoy to Iran with nuclear offer AFP via Yahoo! News Thu, 08 May 2008 3:05 PM PDT
The United States on Thursday ruled out sending a US envoy to Tehran to present a new offer from the big powers to persuade Iran to halt uranium enrichment.
Iran says explosion in mosque last month was deliberate AP via Yahoo! News Thu, 08 May 2008 12:01 PM PDT Iran
said Thursday that a bomb, not an accident, caused last month's
explosion in a mosque that killed 14 people and injured more than 200.
US the main obstacle to Mideast peace: Iran leader AFP via Yahoo! News
Thu, 08 May 2008 6:52 AM PDT
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Thursday that Iran's arch-foe the United States was the main obstacle to resolving both the crisis in Iraq and the Palestinian question.
Iran 'blames monarchists for mosque blast' AFP via Yahoo! News Thu, 08 May 2008 6:17 AM PDT Iran
on Thursday blamed a mosque explosion that killed 13 people in the
southern city of Shiraz last month on Western-backed monarchists who
oppose the Islamic republic, the Fars news agency reported.
Presidential Candidates Come Out Strong on Iran NPR Thu, 08 May 2008 2:07 PM PDT
All Things Considered , May 8, 2008 · U.S. foreign policy has not been
the No.1 focus of the presidential campaign. But one nation always
seems to invoke sharp comment from the candidates: Iran.
Presidential Candidates Come Out Strong on Iran NPR
Thu, 08 May 2008 2:02 PM PDT Iran's
nuclear program and its involvement in Iraq present formidable foreign
policy challenges for any U.S. president. The public comments of the
current presidential candidates have lacked complexity, but their
actual positions are more nuanced.
Iran: Britain, U.S. helped mosque bombers CNN.com Thu, 08 May 2008 1:45 AM PDT Iran has once again switched its account of what caused a mosque explosion last month that killed 13 and wounded more than 200.
Iran arrests group for mosque blast, blames West Reuters via Yahoo! News
Thu, 08 May 2008 1:13 AM PDT Iran
has arrested members of a terrorist group with links to Britain and the
United States who were behind a blast at a mosque last month that
killed 14 and wounded 200 in the southern city of Shiraz, a news agency
said.
TEHRAN (Reuters) -
Iran has arrested members of a terrorist
group with links to Britain and the United States who were
behind a blast at a mosque last month that killed 14 and
wounded 200 in the southern city of Shiraz, a news agency said.
Iranian officials had previously said the April 12 blast,
in the Shohada mosque during an evening prayer sermon by a
prominent local cleric, was caused by explosives left over from
an exhibition commemorating the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.
"The blast ... was caused by a bombing by a terrorist group
with links to Western countries, especially Britain and
America," ISNA news agency quoted Intelligence Minister
Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei as saying late on Wednesday.
Five or six people were arrested, including the main
culprit who was trying to flee the country, Mohseni-Ejei said.
The group was found with weapons and "intended to carry out
similar acts in other places," he said.
"The group, which has relations to Western countries
including Britain and America, has carried out other terrorist
activities in the country in the past few years," he said.
Tehran has in the past accused Britain and the United
States of trying to destabilize the Islamic Republic by
supporting rebels, mainly those in sensitive border areas.
Mohseni-Ejei said Iran had handed intelligence about the
group to Western nations but they had ignored its appeal for
action. "They (those in the group) were even supported," the
minister said.
The minister's remarks echo allegations U.S. officials have
made about Iranian support for militias in Iraq that have
fought U.S. and U.S.-backed government forces there,
accusations Tehran denies.
Security is normally tight in Shi'ite Muslim Iran and bomb
attacks have been rare in recent years. Several people were
killed in 2005 and 2006 in blasts in a southwestern province
with a large Sunni Arab population.
Shiraz is a southern city with more than one million
inhabitants and is a popular tourist destination.
(Writing by Zahra Hosseinian; Editing by Tim Pearce)
Iran MPs to challenge Khatami's "insulting" speech Reuters via Yahoo! News
Wed, 07 May 2008 0:09 AM PDT
A group of hardline lawmakers plans to complain to the Intelligence
Ministry about comments by moderate former President Mohammad Khatami
deemed insulting to Iran's revolutionary leader, a newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Iran: What Does ?exporting the Revolution? Mean? New York Times Tue, 06 May 2008 7:26 PM PDT
A former president has come under attack by Tehran?s leading
conservative newspaper for comments that appeared to suggest that Iran was supporting insurgents in other countries.
Diplomats say IAEA chief urging more US flexibility on Iran AP via Yahoo! News Tue, 06 May 2008 4:09 PM PDT
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency urged Washington on Tuesday to show more sensitivity in dealing with Iran if it hopes to see Tehran make concessions on its nuclear program, diplomats said.
Iran seeking to keep Afghanistan unstable: US official AFP via Yahoo! News Tue, 06 May 2008 1:33 PM PDT Iran
is seeking to keep Afghanistan weak and unstable, delivering arms to
the Taliban whilst ostensibly supporting Kabul's government, a senior
US state department official said in Paris Tuesday.
Baghdad doubts U.S. weapons claims on Iran UPI Tue, 06 May 2008 3:59 PM PDT
BAGHDAD, May 6 (UPI) -- The Iraqi government disputes U.S. allegations that Iran is stokidng the sectarian violence there with money, weapons and paramilitary tra
inked an agreement on expansion of cultural cooperation between the two states. T Islamic Republic News Agency Tue, 06 May 2008 11:58 PM PDT Iran - Algeria - Culture Iran and Algeriahe agreement was signed by Iran's
Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Mohammad-Hossein
Saffar-Harandi and his visiting Algerian counterpart, Ms Khalida Toumi.
Iran calls off more security talks with U.S. about Iraq Daily Herald Tue, 06 May 2008 10:53 PM PDT Iran
called off further Iraq security talks with Washington until U.S.
forces stop their crackdown on Shiite militias, but the military
brought more air power into the fight Monday and escalated its
accusations of Iranian backing for extremists.
Outside View: Iran and ABMs Moscow (UPI) May 5, 2008 Space War Tue, 06 May 2008 6:18 PM PDT
On May 2, the foreign ministers of Russia, China, the United States,
Britain, France and Germany met in London to discuss a diplomatic
solution to Iran's nuclear problem.
Iran MPs to challenge Khatami's "insulting" speech The Star Wed, 07 May 2008 0:44 AM PDT
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Hardline Iranian lawmakers plan to complain to the
Intelligence Ministry about comments by moderate former President
Mohammad Khatami deemed insulting to Iran's late revolutionary leader, a newspaper said on Wednesday.
Iran hardliners condemn Khatami BBC News
Tue, 06 May 2008 10:09 AM PDT
Members of Iran's parliament complain about remarks made by former President Khatami on Ayatollah Khomeini.