Sunday's Daily Briefing on Iran

DoctorZin reports, 8.28.2005:

Iran rejects negotiations with Europe

Nasser Karimi, San Jose Mercury News:

Iran on Sunday rejected what it termed conditional negotiations with Europe over Tehran's nuclear program and said it wanted instead to have talks with the U.N.'s international nuclear watchdog agency.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said any future nuclear negotiations would not include the United States, which contends Iran wants to build atomic weapons. Iran insists its nuclear program is solely to produce electricity.

"Since Europe has demanded conditional negotiations, Iran will not accept that and negotiations won't be held," Asefi told reporters. "We are interested in negotiations and working with the International Atomic Energy Agency, as our partner." READ MORE

It's Official; the Iran/EU3 Talks are Over!

Here are a few other news items you may have missed.

• Itar-Tass News Agency reported that Iran does not count on Russia and China’s power of veto at the UN Security Council, should its nuclear dossier be taken to the Council.
• Dan Darling, WindsOfChange.net responded to the claim that the evidence was pretty thin that al-Qaeda leaders are in Iran directing operations.
• Chicago Tribune reported that this week Mohamed ElBaradei is expected to report to the agency's board of governors that Iran has failed to heed demands to halt its uranium-conversion activities, setting the table for a week or two of intense diplomatic poker.
• The Jerusalem Post responed to calls by some to respect Iran's honor in dealing with Iran's nuclear ambitions.
• Reuters reported that a gunman shot an Iranian judge in the eye and hand outside his Tehran home, seriously wounding him, a justice minister said on Sunday.
• Reuters reported that Iranian judges are to carry handguns after a judge was seriously wounded on Sunday in the fourth attack on a judiciary official in the last four weeks.
• Rooz Online disclosed the author of Hezbollah's statement of "slaughtering" the opposition. Surprisingly, it is a wealthy technocrat.
• Iranian blogger, Omid Memarian, Rooz Online reported that Emad Afrough, chairman of Majlis’(Parliament) Cultural Committee called it a risk to confirm Pourmohammadi, president Ahmadinejad’s nominee as the Minister of the Interior. Conservatists now fear Conservatists.
• And finally, Rooz Online has another cartoon: The regime fighting Satellite TVs.