Page 22 - Iran

Syria's interim president visits Saudi Arabia, signaling shift on Iran

Syria's interim president made his first trip abroad Sunday, travelling to Saudi Arabia in a move likely trying to signal Damascus' shift away from Iran as its main regional ally. Ahmad al-Sharaa, who was once aligned with al-Qaida, landed in Riyadh alongside his government's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani. The two men travelled on a Saudi jet, with a Saudi flag visible on the table behind them. Saudi state television trumpeted the fact that al-Sharaa, first known internationally by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, made Riyadh his first destination. Syria's new three-star, tricolour flag flew next to Saudi Arabia's own at the airport as al-Sharaa in a suit and tie walked off the plane. He later met with a smiling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, at al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh. The state-run Saudi Press Agency described their discussions as examining ways to support the security and stability of sisterly Syria. Syria's state-run SA

Iran test-fires anti-warship cruise missile with range of over 600 miles

Iran test-fired an anti-warship cruise missile with a range of 1,000 kilometres capable of reaching US Navy ships in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman, state TV reported on Saturday. This is a Ghadr-380 mile type L. It has over 1,000 kilometres range. It has anti-jamming capability, said Gen. Ali Reza Tangsiri, the head of the navy of the Revolutionary Guard, in a report that showed an underground missile facility on the southern coast of Iran. The report elaborated neither on warhead that the missile carried, nor the time of the test. Tangsiri said the facility is only one part of the missile systems of the Guard, adding that the missiles can create a hell for the enemy's warships. The report said the new weapon was a sophisticated missile, without elaborating, which could be launched from the underground facility. The missile was launched from central Iran into the Sea of Oman, it said. It said the missile can be made ready and launched by one member of personnel in less than fiv

Blackouts in Iran leave industry in tatters ahead of Donald Trump's return

Since November, producers have been denied electricity for as many as two days a week as the aging grid staggers under international sanctions and lack of foreign investment

Russia, Iran have troubled history despite their current alliance

Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting his Iranian counterpart Friday for the signing of a broad pact between Moscow and Tehran. The Kremlin says the comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will take their cooperation to a new level. The signing comes ahead of the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to broker peace in Ukraine and take a tougher stance on Iran. What to know about the Russian-Iranian relationship: Historic rivals become allies Russia and Iran fought wars in the 18th and 19th centuries, with the Russian Empire capturing broad territories in the Caucasus and the Caspian region previously controlled by Persian rulers. In the early 20th century, Russian troops occupied large parts of northern Iran, but the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution ended their presence. In World War II, the Soviet Union and Britain invaded Iran, which still evokes painful memories in Tehran. Tensions ran

Looking at resuming crude oil supply to India, expanding trade basket: Iran

Iran is looking at ways to resume supplying crude oil to India and is keen on expanding the overall trade basket including in the petro-chemical sector through the strategically-located Chabahar port, a senior Iranian official said on Thursday. Tehran is also keen to expand counter-terror cooperation with India as the possibility of rise in the terrorist activities looming large over West Asia in view of the fragile situation in the region, especially in Syria, he said. The senior Iranian official told a group of journalists that the incoming Donald Trump administration is unlikely to be similar to that of his first term towards Tehran as the global geopolitics have undergone significant changes with China increasing its strategic heft. In his first term as the US president, Trump tightened the noose of sanctions on Iran, eyeing over 80 per cent of the country's economy and even ended Washington's participation in the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran. On the overall situation in West

Iran offers help in case of Kerala nurse Nimsha Priya on death row in Yemen

Priya's mother is currently in Yemen, negotiating with Mahdi's family to stop the death penalty by offering 'blood money', a compensation allowed under Yemeni law

US sanctions Russian, Iranian groups for disinformation targeting voters

The United States has imposed sanctions on two groups linked to Iranian and Russian efforts to target American voters with disinformation ahead of this year's election. Treasury officials announced the sanctions Tuesday, alleging that the two organizations sought to stoke divisions among Americans before November's vote. US intelligence has accused both governments of spreading disinformation, including fake videos, news stories and social media posts, designed to manipulate voters and undermine trust in US elections. The governments of Iran and Russia have targeted our election processes and institutions and sought to divide the American people through targeted disinformation campaigns, Bradley T. Smith, Treasury's acting undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement. Authorities said the Russian group, the Moscow-based Center for Geopolitical Expertise, oversaw the creation, financing and dissemination of disinformation about American candidates, ...

Iran restores WhatsApp, Google Play access after bans during protests

Iran's government on Tuesday said it had lifted a ban on access to WhatsApp and Google Play after more than two years, the official IRNA news agency reported. The report said the country's Supreme Council of Cyber Space made the decision in a meeting led by reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has vowed to remove restrictions on social media. Iran's telecommunication minister Sattar Heshemi in a post on X called the decision a first step in removing restrictions and said the path will continue" indicating the possibility of unblocking other services. Many people reached by The Associated Press across the capital, Tehran, and other cities said they had access to the services on computers but not yet on mobile phones. WhatsApp has been the third most popular messaging platform in Iran after Instagram and Telegram. The ban on WhatsApp and Google Play was put in place in 2022 during mass protests against the government over the death of a woman held by the country's morality po

Iran's regime in 'dire straits' as it faces energy crisis due to sanctions

Industries are forced to shut down due to the grim situation

Syrian youth will resist incoming govt, says Iran's supreme leader

Iran's supreme leader on Sunday said that young Syrians will resist the new government emerging after the overthrow of President Bashar Assad as he again accused the United States and Israel of sowing chaos in the country. Iran had provided crucial support to Assad throughout Syria's nearly 14-year civil war, which erupted after he launched a violent crackdown on a popular uprising against his family's decades-long rule. Syria had long served as a key conduit for Iranian aid to Lebanon's militant Hezbollah. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in an address on Sunday that the young Syrian has nothing to lose" and suffers from insecurity following Assad's fall. What can he do? He should stand with strong will against those who designed and those who implemented the insecurity," Khamenei said. God willing, he will overcome them. He accused the United States and Israel of plotting against Assad's government in order to seize resources, saying: Now they feel victory, the

Iran hires locals, including minors to attack Israeli targets in Europe

Britain's MI5 has also issued warnings of an increase in Iran-linked attacks. But the Nordic countries are particularly vulnerable

Israeli fighter jets strike Houthi targets in Yemen in retaliation: IDF

According to the IDF statement, the Houthis "with Iran's guidance and funding" have acted together with Iran-backed militias over the past year to target Israel

Iran puts brakes on hijab laws amid backlash, President hints at law reform

Debate reignites as Iranian police detain Parastoo Ahmadi over her hijab-less performance in an online concert

Two charged in Iran-backed drone strike case that killed 3 US troops

Two men, including a dual Iranian American citizen, have been arrested on charges that they exported sensitive technology to Iran that was used in a drone attack in Jordan that killed three American troops early this year and injured dozens of other service members, the Justice Department said Monday. The pair were arrested after FBI specialists who analyzed the drone traced the navigation system to an Iranian company operated by one of the defendants, who relied on technology funnelled from the U.S. by his alleged co-conspirator, officials said. We often cite hypothetical risk when we talk about the dangers of American technology getting into dangerous hands, said U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy, the top federal prosecutor in Massachusetts. Unfortunately, in this situation, we are not speculating. The defendants were identified as Mahdi Mohammad Sadeghi, who prosecutors say works at a Massachusetts-based semiconductor company, and Mohammad Abedininajafabadi, who was arrested Monday in ..

Oil prices decline as weaker Chinese retail sales pressure demand

The Fed is expected to cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point at its Dec. 17-18 meeting, which will also provide an updated look at how much further Fed officials think they will reduce

Iranian singer arrested for not wearing hijab while performing online

Iranian authorities have arrested a female singer who performed a virtual concert on YouTube, a lawyer said. Milad Panahipour, an Iranian lawyer, said Parastoo Ahmady, 27, was arrested in Sari City, capital of the northern province of Mazandaran, on Saturday. On Thursday, the judiciary had filed a case regarding Ahmady's concert performance, in which she performed wearing a long black sleeveless and collarless dress, but no hijab. She was accompanied by four male musicians. Ahmady had posted her concert on YouTube the day before, saying: I am Parastoo, a girl who wants to sing for the people I love. This is a right I could not ignore; singing for the land I love passionately. The online concert has been viewed more than 1.4 million times. Panahipour told The Associated Press: Unfortunately, we do not know the charges against Ms Ahmady, who arrested her, or her place of detention, but we will follow up on the matter through legal authorities. He also said two musicians in Ahmady's

India, Iran, and Armenia hold second trilateral consultations in Delhi

The second India-Iran-Armenia trilateral consultation was held on Thursday, where the three sides discussed a wide range of matters, including connectivity initiatives, engagement in multilateral fora, and regional developments, the Ministry of External Affairs press release stated.The discussion in the trilateral consultations was led by Joint Secretary of the Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran Division JP Singh from the Indian side, along with delegations from Iran and Armenia. From Iran, the Director General of the South Asia Division in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, Hashem Ashja' Zadeh, led the discussion; meanwhile, Armenia was represented by the Head of the Asia-Pacific Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Anahit Karapetyan."The 2nd India-Iran-Armenia Trilateral Consultations took place in New Delhi today. Discussions covered connectivity initiatives, multilateral engagement & regional developments. Emphasis was placed on enhancing trade, ...

Hamas finds itself with few options for the day after the Gaza war

Israel's recent ceasefire agreement in Lebanon has further damaged Hamas' prospects by curbing Hezbollah's direct support in Gaza and by extension that of Iran

US Judge orders CIA analyst accused of Israel-Iran leak held pending trial

A CIA analyst charged with leaking top secret details ahead of a planned Israeli attack on Iran earlier this year will remain jailed pending trial, a judge ordered Wednesday. The ruling by US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles overrules a magistrate who said last week that Asif Rahman, 34, of Vienna, Virginia, could be free on restrictions while he awaits trial on charges of disclosing national defence information. The fight over Rahman's detention revealed additional details about the government's investigation of the leak and the analyst who allegedly disclosed the classified documents in October on the Telegram messaging app. At Wednesday's detention hearing, prosecutor Troy Edwards said Rahman was motivated by ideology, though he did not discuss what that ideology might be. In fact, he said the conclusion that Rahman's motive was ideological was essentially process of elimination, noting that Rahman comes from a wealthy family and has access to a multimillion-dollar family

Trump's national security pick vows return to maximum pressure on Iran

During his first term, Trump pulled the US out of an agreement that imposed limits on Iran's nuclear program