Week in Review

DoctorZin provides a review of this past week's [7/30-8/06] major news events regarding Iran. (The reports are listed in chronological order, not by importance)

Iran's Nuclear Program. Iran announced they would resume some nuclear enrichment programs and that the EU3 had failed to provide their proposal on time.

• The Associated Press reported that Europe proposed a nonaggression pact with Iran.
• BBC News reported that Iran has brought forward its deadline of 1230GMT on Sunday for European states to submit their proposals to resolve the dispute over Tehran's nuclear program. Reuters also reported.
• BBC News reported that the UK Foreign Office urged Iran not to take unilateral steps that could jeopardize talks with the E3 saying, Should the Iranians persist, we will as a first step consult urgently with our partners on the board of the IAEA.
• Agence France Presse reported that at least three days would be needed to convene an emergency meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog agency (IAEA) if the crisis over Iran's nuclear program were to escalate.
• Shaheen Fatemi, Iran va Jahan reported that the Mullahs are back to their old tricks. Wishing to continue its policy of stalling and obfuscation, counting on the European position becoming more accommodating.
• The Jerusalem Post reported that Israel has adjusted its estimates of when it believes Iran will have nuclear bombs saying that Iran will probably have a nuclear bomb by 2012, but could have the capability as early as 2008.
• Kenneth R. Timmerman, FrontPageMagazine.com published a transcript of Ken Timmerman's speech at David Horwitz's Wednesday Morning Club entitled: Iran: The Threat We Cannot Neglect. A must read for those who have not yet read his book.
• Roozonline reported that while there is only a week left from the inauguration of the new Iranian president, there are plenty of events heralding the advent of policies that were forewarned by political observers and activists.
• Reuters reported that Iran said on Monday it had extended by one day its deadline for the European Union to submit proposals to solve a diplomatic impasse over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program.
• Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting reported that the Islamic Republic of Iran will deliver a letter to the International Atomic Energy Agency informing the UN watchdog about its partial resumption of peaceful nuclear work in Isfahan center.
• Business Finance News reported that Germany urged Iran not to take any "unilateral steps" on uranium enrichment.
• Dow Jones Newswires reported that Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said, I hope the Iranians understand they need to return to negotiations.
• Dow Jones Newswires reported that the French PM said Iran should face the UN if it restarts its nuclear work.
• Russian News Information Agency commenting on the decision of Iranian authorities to break the IAEA seals on the equipment at the Isfahan nuclear facility quoted Russian officials saying, It should be done only by IAEA experts because it's the agency's seals, after all.
• Iran Focus, an MEK website, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan office said, The Secretary-General urges restraint and patience on the part of the Iranian authorities.
• The Los Angeles Times reported that Tehran says it will resume uranium conversion, but some observers see a bluff. Mohamed ElBaradei, added he might be willing to back a plan that would allow Iran to carry out conversion at Esfahan and then ship the UF6 to Russia or another country for enrichment.
• Iranian blogger, Maryam Kashani, Roozonline reported that Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rohani submitted a report revealing revealing much of the activities of the thirty month negotiations between the West and Iran over its nuclear program.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that the Bush administration has justified its softly-softly approach to the Iranian nuclear program on grounds it has firm commitments from the Europeans to get tough should diplomacy fail. Those promises are about to be put to the test now.
• The NY Sun in an editorial said, the suffering of Akbar Ganji epitomizes why America can't afford to let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon.
• Roozonline reported on an meeting on Iran's nuclear program where Javad Larijani, tipped to be the next Iranian Foreign Minister, reportedly said, that nuclear weapons would bring more headaches than solutions to Iran and that Iran should not rule them out against the country’s enemies, arguing that since Iran possesses nuclear facilities, it is only natural for it to also have a nuclear defense.
• Iranian blogger, Mehrdad Sheibani, Roozonline published an interesting compilation of statements by world leaders on Iran's threat the restart parts of its nuclear program.
• The Financial Times reported that Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator said the decision to resume uranium conversion activity was irreversible.
• The Washington Times asked, can Eurocrats stop the Iranian Atomic Bomb?
• The Christian Science Monitor explored why pressing Iran over nukes is a difficult road.
• Iran Press News reported that Ayatollah Jannati, the Director of the Guardian Council, said: "We have said, from the very beginning of the discussions with the Europeans that they're duplicitous and conmen. It was evident from the outset that these talks with these 3 Europeans would not lead anywhere..."
• The Washington Post reported that the Bush administration expressed support for a proposal by European negotiators designed to ensure that Iran's nuclear activities will not lead to its development of nuclear weapons.
• The New York Times reported that European negotiators have prepared a sweeping proposal that raises the possibility of Iran acquiring nuclear reactors and fuel, and of achieving a full political and economic relationship with the West.
• Deutsche Welle reported that European diplomats have asked for an emergency meeting of the UN atomic agency next Tuesday, in order to keep pressure on Iran not to resume sensitive nuclear fuel cycle work.
• CBS reported that Iran rejected the EU's nuclear plan.
• The Times UK reported that Europe and Iran are in the midst of a serious diplomatic showdown.
• Daily Times reported that a UN inspection team is set to leave for Iran to install cameras to monitor a crucial site where Iran wants to resume nuclear fuel work.
• Dow Jones Newswires reported that Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Saturday said Iran was taking a "confrontational course" by rejecting European Union proposals for its nuclear program and forecast the matter will go to the U.N. Security Council unless Tehran backs down.
  

Akbar Ganji's hunger strike: Nearing the end.

• Potkin Azarmehr, Iran va Jahan reported that more than a thousand Iranians gathered outside Akbar Ganji's house in Tehran to mark 50 days of his hunger strike.
• Eli Lake, The NY Sun reported that Ganji's wife made an appeal to the world for help.
• Roozonline reported that an Iranian Judicial official threatened Shirin Ebadi and Ganji's wife.
• Iranian blogger, Mansur Ahadi, Roozonline said it appears that because of imprisoned journalist Akbar Ganji’s plight has gradually shifted to the apex of the political decision-making pyramid in Iran. ...his principal charge and sentence in both court trials lies in his “insults of the Leader”.
• Roozonline reported that all routes to resolving the crisis have been unsuccessfully tried. What remains for Ganji's supporters is prayer.
• Reporters Without Borders staged a "Free Akbar Ganji" protest outside Iran Air office in Paris. Photos. Iranian/Americans held a demonstration in San Francisco.
• Roozonline reported that Masoumeh Shafiee, Akbar Ganji's wife, is going through the most difficult times yet saying, They want to kill him. Please help us.
• Iranian blogger, Sa‘id Farzaneh, Iran Scan reported on the Islamic regime‘s absolute determination to present Ganji‘s saga as no big deal.
• Iranmania reported that a number of journalists and media personalities held a protest gathering in Tehran and a symbolic hunger strike in support of Ganji
• The Washington Post reported that eight Nobel laureates appealed to the Iranian government yesterday for Ganji's immediate and unconditional release.
  

Iran's other under-reported dissidents.

• Rachel Zabarkes Friedman, The National Review published an interview with student movement activist Ahmad Batebi who is in hiding.
• Iran Press News reported that student leader/political prisoner Manouchehr Mohammadi who along with his brother Akbar have been on a hunger strike inside Evin prison in Tehran. Photo.
  

The unrest against the regime spreads in Iran.

• SMCCDIreported on the scattered clashes which took place, today, in the northwestern City of Sannandaj located in the Iranian province of Kurdistan.
• Iran Focus, an MEK website, reported that disenchanted Iranians stated more than 280 anti-government protests, clashes, strikes, and other forms of social unrest throughout Iran over the past month.
• SMCCDI reported that at least 4 demonstrators and members of the security forces were killed in the violent clashes that rocked, yesterday, the northwestern City of Sannandaj.
• SMCCDI reported that tens of Saghezi residents have been killed or wounded following bloody aerial attacks.
• Potkin Azarmehr, Iran va Jahan reported that protests by the Iranian Kurds condemning the brutal murder of Shwane Ghaderi reached the Kurdistan province capital, Sanandaj.
• The Guardian reported that Iran sent in 100,000 troops to crush border unrest.
• Iran Focus and SMCCDI both reported that Iranian security forces are using helicopters to fire on demonstrators.
• SMCCDI reported that a heavy explosion rocked a militia camp located in the northwestern City of Marivan by resulting in tens of wounded among Islamic republic's security forces.
• SMCCDI reported that for the first time several Iranian militiamen were injured by an IED.
• Roozonline reported that the head of the Basij militia said sweeping changes will be taking place in Iran.
• Iran Focus, an MEK website, reported that a prominent women’s rights activist in Iranian Kurdistan was arrested in the Kurdish region.
• Iran Press Service reported that the bloody unrest continues in at least three Iranian provinces.
• Reuters reported that Kurdish police dispersed hundreds of Kurds protesting outside U.N. offices in northern Iraq on Saturday over reports of detentions of dozens of Iranian Kurds just across the border.
• SMCCDI reported that the unrest and clashes continued in several northwestern cities, such as, Mahabad and Bookan.
• Iran Press News reported on the unrest in the Iranian city of Saqqez. Huge protests there have lead to clashes with the authorities and the number of injured continues to increase and witnesses described the hospitals as having been turned into prisons! A must read.
  

Increasing violence inside of Iran.

• BBC News reported that the Judge that sentenced Ganji was shot dead in Tehran today.
• ScanIranic asked, who assassinated Judge Moghaddas (the judge who sentence Ganji)?
• Iranian blogger, Windsteed, Iran Hopes reported that police say they are still investigating the assassination of Moghaddasi which took place last Tuesday in Tehran. But speculation is rampant.
• Iranian bloggers and news sources reported that a group took full responsibility of murder of the judge who was shot a few days ago in Tehran, saying they killed the judge because he has been killing and torturing political prisoners.
• CNN reported that an explosive device has detonated in a building housing offices for British Airways and oil company BP.

Ahmadinejad becomes President.

• Daily Times reported that Iran confirmed on Sunday that hardline president-elect Mahmood Ahmadinejad will attend the UN General Assembly in New York in September, dismissing any possible US visa restrictions.
• Iranian Jewish Public Affairs Committee reported two opposing statements on the meeting of Iranian Jews in the US and Ahmadinejad.
• Payvand reported that Mohammad Khatami's tenure as Iran's president will end today, Tuesday August 2, 2005 and Mahmood Ahmadinejad will take office as the new president as of Wednesday.
• Ray Takeyh, International Herald Tribune said, as Ahmadinejad prepares to assume office, the country's conservatives will finally be consolidating their power but rather than unifying Iran's right wing, Ahmadinejad is likely to fracture it.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad received religious approval to take office. He is sworn to be in on Saturday. BBC News reported also. Photo.
• The Washington Post reported that the International Crisis Group warned that the consolidation by hard-liners marks a new challenge for the rest of the world.
• The Financial Times reported that the Bush administration is considering denying a visa to Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, Iran's new elected conservative president from addressing the United Nations.
• Reuters reported that at his inauguration, Ahmadinejad said, Iran won't be intimidated.
• Reza Bayegan, Iran va Jahan discussed Ahmadinejad's promises to reform the Iranian oil industry with an expert, Dr Parviz Mina.

Iran's Troublemaking.

• Dan Darling, WindOfChange.net discussed NBC's report on the capture of truckloads of IED's into Iraq from Iran. I was told that there were over thirty tons of IED's.
• NBC News reported American soldiers intercepted a large shipment of high explosives, smuggled into northeastern Iraq from Iran only last week. Intelligence officials believe the high-explosives were shipped into Iraq by the Iranian Revolutionary guard or the terrorist group Hezbollah.
• The New York Times reported that many of the new, more sophisticated roadside bombs used to attack American and government forces in Iraq have been designed in Iran and shipped in from there.
  

U.S. Policy on Iran.

• Dafna Linzer, The Washington Post reported on a major U.S. intelligence review has projected that Iran is about a decade away from manufacturing the key ingredient for a nuclear weapon. Michael Ledeen, Dan Darling and Dr. Corsi have published responses.
• Middle East Newsline reported Iran's strategic weapons programs were expected to significantly increase the prospect of a nuclear war according to a study, conducted by Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Richard Lugar.
• Iranian.ws reported that U.S. Ambassador John Bolton urged all nations "to meet their obligations to stop the flow of terrorist financing and weapons, and particularly on Iran and Syria."
  

The Iranian Military.

• Middle East Newsline reported that Iran has asserted that its enhanced Shihab-3 intermediate-range ballistic missile can strike targets at distances of nearly 2,000 kilometers. Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani was quoted as saying, the liquid-fuel Shihab could also be fitted with a nuclear warhead.
• Iran Press News reported that Iranian Commander Saffari, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's Navy said "If the Americans and Europeans are not judicious and act disrespectfully, overstepping their boundaries, 'the people' wouldn’t for a moment, hesitate to chop off that [overstepping] leg..."

Human Rights/Freedom of the press inside of Iran.

• Reporters Without Borders released their Iran - 2005 annual report. It said, press freedom shrank daily during 2004 in Iran and that Iran has for years been the Middle East's biggest prison for journalists.
• IranMania reported that Canada threatened to introduce a UN resolution on Iran's human rights record.
• Amnesty International released a public statement calling on Iran's new President, Mahmoud Ahmadinezhad, should make human rights a top priority.
• Reza Pahlavi published a letter to Kofi Annan to act on behalf of Iranian political prisoners.
• Reporters Without Borders condemned a wave of harassment of Kurdish journalists by local authorities in Iranian Kurdistan.
  

Iran and the International community.

• Mosnews reported that Israel has asked Ukraine to demand that Iran return 12 long-range cruise missiles purchased during the tenure of the previous Ukrainian government.
• Iraqi blogger, Iraq The Model asks are we going to let them win? He argues the US needs to deal with Iran and Syria.
• Kuwait News Agency reported that Lebanese Hezbollah said the Iranian leadership asserted its continued support for Lebanon, its unity, and resistance.
  

Must Read reports.

• Post-Gazette discussed Debkafile's report that al-Qaida is shifting more than 1,000 of its operatives to Europe for terror offensives.
• Dan Darling, The Weekly Standard detailed the birth of the Kurdish terrorist organization, Ansar al-Islam.
• Frank Gaffney, Jr, The Washington Times takes a looks at the old games of the Saudis.
• Fred Pruitt, Rantburg responded to suggestion that the U.S. should "nuke Mecca" if the U.S. suffers a major attack.
  

The Experts.

• Michael Ledeen, National Review discussed, can an atom bomb save the Iranian mullahs from democracy? A must read.
• Ray Takeyh, The Washington Post published a book review on Ken Timmerman's: COUNTDOWN TO CRISIS. Ken responds.
  

Photos and cartoons of the week.

• A photo from the Iranian Students News Agency of the terrorist leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, of Lebanon meeting with Iran's president-elect Ahmadinejad.
• Ahmadinejad: on democracy. Must see.
• Ganji on his hunger strike.
• Mahabad.org published photos showing Iranian Kurds protesting.
• A photo and report from Iran Press News of Iranian helicopters firing on protestors.
  

And finally, The Quote of the Week.

You are not going to believe this press conference with Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi, broadcast on Iranian in which reporters ask questions about Iran’s plan to restart their UCF (Uranium Conversion Facility) at Esfehan:

Reporter: What will the scope of the (UCF) activity in Esfahan be at the beginning? Will it have full or partial capacity?

Asefi: What do you care?

Female reporter: I’ll repeat my colleague’s question...

Asefi: Go ahead, please...

Female reporter:... regarding the UCF in Esfahan. Will its activity start at full or partial capacity, in order to show that the suspension...

Asefi: He asked, and I already said it is of no interest to you.

Female reporter: Please tell us, it might interest us.

Asefi: No. I know it is of no interest to you.