Tag Archives: sanctions

The United States said on Friday it was imposing sanctions on Lebanon and Kuwait-based financial conduits that fund the Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah as well as financial facilitators and front companies that support the group and Iran. Among individuals designated and sanctioned, the US Treasury said the measures apply to …

Lebanon’s finance minister Youssef Khalil on Friday signed a new contract with restructuring consultancy Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) to carry out a forensic audit at the country’s central bank, the ministry said in a statement. A&M will give an initial report to the ministry within 12 weeks of its team …

Iran, emboldened by the messy U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, is betting that its new hardline cabinet — including Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani — can force concessions in talks on Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Bagheri, a hardline senior diplomat, was named on Tuesday to replace Abbas …

The U.N. nuclear watchdog on Tuesday described as “unacceptable” incidents in Iran involving its inspectors, in which diplomats say security staff subjected female inspectors to inappropriate searches that the United States is calling harassment. In a first case this year at the Natanz nuclear site, a female inspector was subjected …

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will have no access to footage captured by surveillance cameras at Iranian nuclear sites, Iran’s state-run Press TV channel said on Twitter on Saturday. The channel added that an “informed source rejects reports suggesting that Iran may reconsider (its) decision on IAEA access restrictions.” …

Iran’s foreign minister met his visiting counterpart from U.S.-allied Qatar on Thursday, state media reported, as Tehran and Washington appear to be at an impasse over the fate of talks to revive a 2015 nuclear deal. Iran on Wednesday warned Western states against rebuking it at the International Atomic Energy …

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt called for a “rapid and comprehensive inspection” of all Iranian nuclear sites on Thursday. Gathering on the sidelines of an Arab League session in Cairo, ministers from the four countries also discussed stopping Tehran’s destabilizing policies that threaten global security and stability. The …

The UN nuclear watchdog on Tuesday criticized Iran for obstructing investigations into past activities and jeopardizing vital surveillance work, potentially complicating efforts to restart talks on the Iran nuclear deal. Of. The International Atomic Energy Agency said in two reports to member states reviewed by Reuters that no progress had …

Iran is determined to increase its oil exports despite sanctions imposed by the United States on sales of crude from Tehran, Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji said on Wednesday, adding that the use of oil sanctions as a “political tool” would hurt the market. “There is a strong will in …

Israel’s defense minister on Wednesday accused Iran of launching a deadly drone strike on an oil tanker last month from its territory and reiterated that Israel would act alone if needed to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.Benny Gantz spoke as Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was visiting Washington to …

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will push U.S. President Joe Biden to harden his approach to Iran during his first White House visit, with few prospects their talks will lead to renewed movement on Israeli-Palestinian peace. Yet both Israel and the United States have expressed hope the meeting on Thursday …

Iran has accelerated its enrichment of uranium to near weapons-grade, the U.N. atomic watchdog said in a report on Tuesday seen by Reuters, a move raising tensions with the West as both sides seek to resume talks on reviving Tehran’s nuclear deal. Iran increased the purity to which it is …

Facebook said Tuesday it was blocking WhatsApp accounts linked to the Taliban after the radical Islamic group seized control of Afghanistan and sought to use the messaging service to help it govern. “The Taliban is sanctioned as a terrorist organization under US law and we have banned them from our …

Iran has made progress in its work on enriched uranium metal, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said in a report to member states on Monday seen by Reuters, despite Western warnings that such work threatens talks on reviving the Iran nuclear deal. “On 14 August 2021, the Agency verified … that …

Iran is developing a so-called “kamikaze drone” program in the wake of heightened maritime warfare, analysts have warned. Experts from the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) have warned that the new exploding drone tactics are a “core element” of Tehran’s efforts to influence the region. The warning comes as the West …

New President Ebrahim Raisi named an anti-Western diplomat as foreign minister on Wednesday as Iran and six world powers seek to restore their 2015 nuclear deal. Raisi, a hardliner under Western sanctions over allegations of human rights abuses when he was a judge, was sworn into office on Aug. 5 …

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency director William Burns held talks in Israel on Wednesday with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, with Iran high on their agenda, an Israeli statement said. Regional tensions have risen over an attack on July 29 on an Israeli-managed tanker off the coast of Oman that Israel, the …

Israel said on Friday it had appointed its president’s brother, former general Michael Herzog, as its next ambassador to the United States, highlighting his experience on Iran and its nuclear programme. Tehran is currently negotiating with Washington and other world powers on reviving a 2015 deal that curbed the Islamic …

Iran will respond promptly to any threat against its security, the foreign ministry said on Monday, after the United States, Israel and Britain blamed Tehran for an attack on an Israeli-managed tanker off the coast of Oman. Tehran has denied any involvement in the suspected drone attack on Thursday in …

Syrian President Bashar al Assad has tasked Prime Minister Hussein Arnous with forming a new government following an election in May that extended Assad’s two-decade-old presidency. Assad originally named Arnous as prime minister last August to replace Imad Khamis, who was fired as Syria grappled with a major economic crisis …

The U.S. Navy is assisting an Israeli-managed petroleum products tanker attacked off Oman with two crew members killed, the U.S. military said on Saturday, adding the ship was most likely hit by a drone strike. Mercer Street, a Liberian-flagged, Japanese-owned vessel that was attacked on Thursday, is being escorted by …

Iran’s supreme leader on Wednesday declared Tehran would not accept Washington’s “stubborn” demands in talks to revive a 2015 nuclear deal and said the United States had failed to guarantee that it would never abandon the pact again. “The Americans acted completely cowardly and maliciously,” state TV quoted Ayatollah Ali …

The US Treasury Department on Wednesday announced a new list of sanctions targeting individuals and organizations linked to human rights abuses and the killing of civilians during the civil war in Syria. They include Syrian nationals, parts of the country’s military intelligence services, and two armed rebel groups. US government …

Jordan’s King Abdullah II said on Sunday that his country had previously been attacked by Iranian-made drones, adding that there are many concerns related to Iran’s activities in the region. Speaking during an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, the king said: “Jordan always supports dialogue…(but) there are legitimate concerns in …

Iran’s intervention in the internal affairs of other countries is a threat to the region and a matter of concern, the chief of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said on Saturday. Iran’s nuclear program, ballistic missiles, and its support for militias, must also be included in ongoing talks in Vienna …

Iran has opened its first oil terminal in the Gulf of Oman, President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday, to allow Iranian tankers to avoid using the strategically vulnerable Strait of Hormuz, which has been a focus of regional tension for decades. “This is a strategic move and an important step …

Iran insisted on Sunday that a prisoner swap deal has been agreed with the United States, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman said, a day after Washington denied such an agreement had been reached.FILE PHOTO: The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, amid the …

French President Emmanuel Macron will host a new international conference on Lebanon next month on the first anniversary of the Beirut port explosion, after premier-designate Saad Hariri gave up trying to form a government, the foreign ministry announced Friday. Macron will organize the conference on August 4 with the help …

Iran claimed on Wednesday that it had the ability to enrich fissile uranium to 90 percent purity  — the level required to build the core of a nuclear weapon. “Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization can enrich uranium by 20 percent and 60 percent and if … our reactors need it, it …

Saudi Arabia is concerned about increased nuclear activities by Iran which threaten regional security, a Saudi foreign ministry official said, after Tehran started the process of producing enriched uranium metal. The U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday Iran had begun the enrichment process, a move that could help it develop …

Iran has given notice of concrete steps to produce uranium metal enriched to up to 20 percent purity for reactor fuel, the UN atomic watchdog said on Tuesday, describing a move that is likely to anger Western powers in talks to revive the Iran nuclear deal. Iran has been in …

Jordan’s King Abdullah left for the United States on Thursday for a three-week visit that includes the first meeting by an Arab leader with President Joe Biden at the White House since he took office, a palace statement said. The statement said the monarch, accompanied by his wife Queen Rania, …

A human rights expert has called for an independent inquiry into allegations of state-ordered executions of thousands of of political prisoners in Iran in 1988 and the role played by President Ebrahim Raisi.  Javaid Rehman, the UN investigator on human rights, said on Monday that he believes it is ‘very important’ to …

US relations with Sudan have returned to normal, according to an embassy spokesperson in Khartoum. Amber Baskett, the Chargé d’Affairs at the American embassy in the Sudanese capital, confirmed the decision came as a result of the achievements of the interim transitional government. Sudanese Foreign Minister Maryam Al-Sadiq, who hosted …

Israel has serious reservations about the Iran nuclear deal being put together in Vienna, new foreign minister Yair Lapid told his American counterpart, as he pledged to fix ‘the mistakes made’ in US-Israeli relations in recent years. In their first face-to-face meeting since Israel’s new government was sworn in two …

Israel’s army chief on Wednesday hailed “unprecedented” cooperation with the US, as he wrapped up a US visit focused on preventing Tehran from obtaining military nuclear capabilities. Lt. Gen. Aviv Kohavi’s remarks came the same day as Iran said it had foiled a sabotage attack on an atomic energy agency …

Iran said on Wednesday the United States had agreed to remove all sanctions on Iran’s oil and shipping but Washington said “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed” in talks to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. The remarks by outgoing President Hassan Rouhani’s chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi echoed …

Iran likely conducted a failed launch of a satellite-carrying rocket in recent days and now appears to be preparing to try again, the country’s latest effort to advance its space program amid tensions with the West over its tattered nuclear deal. Satellite images, a US official and a rocket expert …

Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant has been temporarily shutdown for technical overhaul, Iranian state TV said on Sunday. “It has been temporarily shutdown since yesterday for technical overhaul which will continue for a few days,” an official told state TV. Source: Euro News

Israel allowed a limited resumption of commercial exports from the Gaza Strip on Monday in what it called a “conditional” measure one month after a truce halted 11 days of fighting with the Palestinian enclave’s Hamas rulers. Gaza border officials said the easing of Israeli restrictions would last two to …

A popular Persian music video from several years back features a long line of sullen-looking people waiting to be served at a cafeteria. When their turn comes to choose, we see the grim-faced chef offer them the option of maggot-filled mystery meat or slime filled with flies. Many Iranian artists …

Josep Borrell, the high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, has criticized Lebanese officials and conveyed a “severe” message for “not forming the government after nine months of the resignation of Hassan Diab’s government and nomination of Saad Hariri as prime minister-designate.” Borrell, who is also …

Iran has made 6.5 kg of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent, the government said on Tuesday, detailing a move that rattled the country’s nuclear talks with world powers by taking the fissile material closer to the nuclear weapons-grade of 90 percent. State media reported that government spokesman Ali …

US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan sounded upbeat after their first face-to-face talks on Monday, although they did not announce major breakthroughs in the relationship between the two allies, at odds over Russian weapons, Syria, Libya and other issues. “We had a positive and productive meeting, much …