Iran (January 3, 2021)
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1)
Gulf of difference: How Europe can get the Gulf monarchies to pursue peace with Iran
By Cinzia Bianco
The European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
December 10, 2020
„SUMMARY: The Gulf monarchies face a core dilemma: advancing their security interests through deterrence or through promoting a new diplomatic process. The arrival of the Biden administration in Washington, and the perception of US disengagement from the region, offers an opportunity for Europeans to help de-escalate tensions between GCC states and Iran. The European interest lies in supporting a return to the Iranian nuclear deal and a regional dialogue between the Gulf monarchies and Iran, an approach that is more likely to promote lasting stability. Europeans can support this process by strengthening their own regional security posture and confronting head-on the geopolitical tensions at the heart of regional rivalries.“
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2a)
Iran Nuclear Chief Unveils Plan for Enrichment Activities
By Tasnim News
January, 02, 2021
„[…] In a statement released on Friday, the IAEA said the Islamic Republic had sent a letter to the agency on December 31 regarding its decision to enrich uranium to up to 20 percent at Fordow facility, near the Iranian city of Qom. “Iran has informed the Agency that in order to comply with a legal act recently passed by the country’s parliament, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran intends to produce low-enriched uranium (LEU) up to 20 percent at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant,” the statement read. “Iran’s letter to the Agency … did not say when this enrichment activity would take place,” it added. The agency stressed that it “has inspectors present in Iran on a 24/7 basis and they have regular access to Fordow.” […]“
2b)
Joint Ministerial Statement on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action
December 21, 2020
The remaining member states to a groundbreaking nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), have reiterated their commitment to preserving the agreement and stressed their respective efforts in this regard.
2c)
E3 statement on the JCPoA: Response to Iranian plans to expand its nuclear programme and restrict access of IAEA monitoring
Press release
December 7, 2020
https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/en/newsroom/news/e3-jcpoa/2424078
„[…]Iran’s recent announcement to the IAEA that it intends to install an additional three cascades of advanced centrifuges at the Fuel Enrichment Plant in Natanz is contrary to the JCPoA and deeply worrying. Furthermore, we have taken note, with great concern, of the recent law passed by the Iranian Parliament, which – if implemented – would substantially expand Iran’s nuclear programme and limit IAEA monitoring access. The measures would be incompatible with the JCPoA and Iran’s wider nuclear commitments. If Iran is serious about preserving a space for diplomacy, it must not implement these steps. Such a move would jeopardise our shared efforts to preserve the JCPoA and risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the incoming US Administration. A return to the JCPoA would also be beneficial for Iran. We will address Iran’s non-compliance within the framework of the JCPoA. We welcome the statements by President-elect Biden on the JCPoA and a diplomatic path to address wider concerns with Iran. This is in all our interests.“
2d)
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has underlined the need for preserving the 2015 landmark Iran nuclear deal, urging the world countries to engage in trade ties with Tehran based on Security Council Resolution 2231 that endorsed the agreement.
By Press TV
December 19, 2020
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/12/19/641044/UN-Guterres-Iran-trade-JCPOA-Resolution-2231
„Guterres made the remarks in the 10th report on the implementation of Resolution 2231, which will be read out during a Security Council meeting on Tuesday. He hailed the nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as a testament to the effectiveness of multilateralism, diplomacy and dialogue, saying the agreement is the best way to ensure a comprehensive, long-term and proper solution to Iran’s nuclear issue and to help promote regional and international peace and security. Guterres also called for the continued commitment of the JCPOA’s signatories to preserve it and highlighted the importance of the deal’s economic benefits for the Iranian people. […]“
2e)
ANALYSIS: Iran Prepares for New Round of Talks with The West
By Ahmad Rafat
December 20, 2020
„Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has instructed the Expediency Council to revisit the principal components of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations, in an apparent effort to pave the way for Iran to rejoin an international system of banking transactions from which it is currently excluded. The FATF is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. The two components are the Palermo Convention and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML). To restart its economy, Iran must be able to access the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), a system used for banking transactions, which is only possible if the FATF removes the country from its blacklist. […]“
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3a)
Iran, Russia will continue military cooperation regardless of US sanctions: Ambassador to Moscow
By Press TV
December 18, 2020
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/12/18/641004/Sputnik-Iran-Russia-military
„[…] The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said in mid-October that Moscow will consider military technical cooperation with Iran in line with mutual interests after the expiration of a United Nations arms embargo on Tehran. “We are convinced that all possibilities stemming from the expiration of the provisions of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 that are linked with military technical cooperation with Iran will be duly taken into account and used on the basis of mutual benefit and in the interests of the peoples of our two states,” Maria Zakharova said. […] Elsewhere in his interview, Jalali said the US must compensate Iran for losses due to its sanctions if it wants to returns to the nuclear deal with world powers. […] The Iranian ambassador also noted that the Islamic Republic seeks to boost cooperation with Russia in the production of the coronavirus vaccine while negotiations have been held over the issue in the recent months. […]“
3b)
Putin: Talks to begin with Iran on free trade agreement with EAEU
By Press TV
Sunday, 13 December 2020 11:55 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 13 December 2020 12:01 PM ]
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/12/13/640634/Russia-Putin-Iran-EAEU
„Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced plans to boost ties between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and countries such as Iran, saying negotiations have begun with Tehran on a free trade agreement. […] On Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed that Moscow and Tehran would be looking for “new methods of ignoring the sanctions’ negative economic effect.“ Russia and Iran are taking measures not to allow bilateral trade and economic cooperation „to shrink,” he told Iran’s IRIB broadcaster in an interview. „On the contrary, it is growing, in particular, thanks to the refusal to use the US dollar, the shift of the gravity center towards national currencies in settlements and new creative schemes of economic interaction. It works.” […]“
3c)
Sanctions-Skirting Energy Megaprojects
By Simon Watkins
December 28, 2020
„Alongside the continued development of its huge West Karoun oil fields, the completion of the supergiant South Pars non-associated gas offshore sector (including the implementation of Phase 11 operations), and the finalisation of the crude oil transfer pipeline from Guriyeh to Jask, Iran’s core focus in the current sanctions environment is to optimise the output and revenues from its already world-scale petrochemicals sector. This has always played a key role in Iran’s ‘resistance economy’ model – the concept of generating value-added returns by leveraging intellectual capital into business development wherever possible. In the last week or so, Iran has launched another three major petchems projects and discussed further co-operation with Russia in the sector. […]“
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4a)
Assertive Germany muddles Iran issue
By M.K. Bhadrakumar
December 10, 2020
„[…] In immediate terms, the EU stance on the situation around Iran is becoming crucial. Germany’s attitude toward the Iran nuclear issue has undergone change, hinting at a possibly new EU policy that seeks to achieve what the US president Donald Trump failed to achieve through the so-called “maximum pressure” campaign. In an interview with Der Spiegel earlier in the month, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said, “A return to the previous (2015 Iran nuclear) agreement will not suffice anyway. There will have to be a kind of ‘nuclear agreement plus,’ which is also in our interest. We have clear expectations of Iran: no nuclear weapons, but also no ballistic missile program that threatens the entire region. Iran also needs to play a different role in the region. We need this agreement precisely because we distrust Iran. I have already coordinated with my French and British counterparts on this.” […] Meanwhile, on December 3, Germany delivered to Israel the first of four advanced German-made warships equipped with rocket and missile defence systems, anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles, torpedoes and an upgraded launching pad for Israel’s newest attack helicopters. The Israeli military chief Lt. Gen. Aviv Kohavi, called them “one of the most advanced war machines in the world, which poses a significant leap forward in the Israeli military’s ability to ensure our strength at sea and in naval operations.” […]“
4b)
Iran implicates UK firm, US base in Germany in Soleimani killing
Allegations come amid rising tensions as Iran’s FM accuses outgoing Trump of aiming to fabricate ‘pretext for war’.
By Maziar Motamedi
December 31, 2020
„An Iranian prosecutor has said a British security firm and an airbase in Germany had a hand in the assassination of Qassem Soleimani almost one year after the top general was assassinated by the United States in Iraq. The allegations come amid mounting tensions between the two countries, as Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Thursday accused outgoing US President Donald Trump of aiming to fabricate a “pretext for war”. […] The Tehran prosecutor also said a US airbase in Germany “handled reports on guiding the drone for the assassination and handed flight data of the drones to American forces”. Iranian authorities had previously said the US had used the Ramstein Air Base in southwestern Germany in Soleimani’s assassination. […]“
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5)
National Justice Investigates: American Tax Payers Spend At Least $23 Billion On Israel Every Year
By Eric Striker
December 31, 2020
„Last September, Donald Trump accidentally upended an entire generation of myths invented by the left and right that purport to explain America’s costly and unpopular military adventures in the Middle East: „The fact is, we don’t have to be in the Middle East, other than we want to protect Israel. We’ve been very good to Israel. Other than that, we don’t have to be in the Middle East. You know there was a time we needed desperately oil, we don’t need that anymore.“ As Mondoweiss pointed out at the time, the explosive admission went completely unmentioned in the mainstream media, which traditionally hangs on every one of Trump’s words and reacts hysterically. […]“
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6a)
Rocket attack against US embassy in Iraq mere fabrication by Washington: Kata’ib Hezbollah
By Press TV
December 27, 2020
„Iraq’s anti-terror group, Kata’ib Hezbollah, has called the last week’s rocket attack against the US embassy in Baghdad a false-flag strike and a plot hatched by Washington. […]“
6b)
Trump Warns Iran of Retaliation After Attacks on U.S. Embassy in Baghdad
The administration and military officials blame Tehran for recent rocket attacks in Iraq, adding to the growing tensions between the United States and Iran.
By Helene Cooper
December 23, 2020 (updated December 30, 2020)
„In a Twitter post that came after a meeting with senior officials at the White House, Mr. Trump said that Iran was behind rocket attacks on the American Embassy in Baghdad on Sunday. “Some friendly health advice to Iran,” Mr. Trump tweeted. “If one American is killed, I will hold Iran responsible. Think it over.” […] In the past two weeks, Central Command has flown B-52 bombers in the region in a show of force, sent an extra squadron of fighter planes to Saudi Arabia, kept the aircraft carrier Nimitz in the area, and announced that it is sending a Tomahawk-firing submarine. All of these measures, military officials said, are in the name of deterrence.“
6c)
Persian Gulf Buildup By US, Israel Worries Region: ‘A Perfect Storm?’
Concerns of an imminent confrontation that could take place in the Mideast before Trump exits the White House next January 20 are increasing.
By Riad Kakwaji
December 31, 2020
„[…] “These activities are more than just posturing. They are more like repositioning in preparation for something that could either be planned or anticipated,” said Mohammed Baharoon, the director general of B’huth Center for Public Policy here. “Moving a strike group and a nuclear submarine and flying bombers repeatedly on dry runs are costly exercises and are more than delivering a message to Iran to keep away. Wolves don’t run for nothing.” Baharoon pointed out that Israel’s decision to show and announce the sailing of a Dolphin submarine through the Suez Canal towards the Red Sea is by itself “a significant message and indication of a possible scenario in place.” […]“
6d)
Arrival of Israeli submarine in Persian Gulf ‘act of aggression,’ Iran says
By Tehran Times
December 27, 2020
„[…] If an Israeli submarine arrives in the [Persian] Gulf, Iran will consider that an act of aggression and “in this case, we will have the right to take revenge,” Abolfazl Amouei, spokesman for the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told Aljazeera on Saturday night, just a few days after Israeli and American news media reported that an Israeli submarine has openly crossed the Suez Canal en route to Iran. […]“
6e)
Iran Deploys Short-Range Missiles in Iraq After Attack on Green Zone Hosting US Embassy, Reports Say
By Henry Batyaev
December 27, 2020
„The transfer is said to have taken place at the Shalamcheh border crossing and was performed in two stages under the supervision of Iranian military personnel. Iran also reportedly dispatched two IRGC units to operate the missiles and drones. […] The reported deployment of Iranian military hardware to Iraq comes amid renewed tensions between the US and Iran in the wake of an attack on the US Embassy in Baghdad, which Trump blamed on Iran.“
6f)
In Abrupt Reversal of Iran Strategy, Pentagon Orders Aircraft Carrier Home
After weeks of escalation and threatening language, the Defense Department is sending mixed messages as the anniversary of the death of an Iranian general nears.
By Eric Schmitt
January 1, 2021
„The Pentagon has abruptly sent the aircraft carrier Nimitz home from the Middle East and Africa over the objections of top military advisers, marking a reversal of a weekslong muscle-flexing strategy aimed at deterring Iran from attacking American troops and diplomats in the Persian Gulf. […] American intelligence analysts in recent days say they have detected Iranian air defenses, maritime forces and other security units on higher alert. They have also determined that Iran has moved more short-range missiles and drones into Iraq. But senior Defense Department officials acknowledge they cannot tell if Iran or its Shia proxies in Iraq are readying to strike American troops or are preparing defensive measures in case Mr. Trump orders a pre-emptive attack against them. “What you have here is a classic security dilemma, where maneuvers on both sides can be misread and increase risks of miscalculation,” said Brett H. McGurk, Mr. Trump’s former special envoy to the coalition to defeat the Islamic State. […] Pentagon officials said they had sent additional land-based fighter and attack jets, as well as refueling planes, to Saudi Arabia and other gulf countries to offset the loss of the Nimitz’s firepower. […]“
6g)
The big finale: is Trump dangerous enough to start a war?
By Paul R. Pillar
December 26, 2020
„[…] The role of Iraqi militias, which probably fired the rockets in Baghdad, points to how the Trump administration could be given an excuse to attack Iran even if Iran itself continues to restrain itself while counting the days until Trump leaves office. A widespread undercurrent of Iraqi resentment against the U.S. presence has continued ever since the destruction and misery that followed the U.S. invasion of the country in 2003. That resentment was reflected in the agreement for a pullout of U.S. troops that was negotiated during George W. Bush’s administration. […] On top of that history comes Trump’s pardon in the past few days of four Blackwater security guards who had been convicted and imprisoned for the massacre of seventeen Iraqi civilians, including children, at a road intersection in Baghdad in 2007. This pardon sends a terrible message to all Iraqis. It says not only that the rule of law in the United States is a sham but also that the United States does not value or respect Iraqi lives. With this one act, Trump has increased the chance of future Iraqi shots being fired in anger at Americans—and the sort of incident that Trump could use as an excuse for starting a military conflagration with Iran. […]“
6h)
Pentagon Sends More B-52s to Middle East to Deter Iranian Attacks on U.S. Troops
The flights came a week after President Trump warned Tehran following rocket strikes on the U.S. Embassy in Iraq.
By Eric Schmitt
December 30, 2020
„Two American B-52 bombers flew another show-of-force mission in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday, a week after President Trump warned Iran that he would hold it accountable “if one American is killed” in rocket attacks in Iraq that the administration and military officials blamed on Tehran. The warplanes’ 36-hour round-trip mission from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota was the third time in six weeks that Air Force bombers had conducted long-range flights about 60 miles off the Iranian coast, moves that military officials said were intended to deter Iran from attacking American troops in the region. […] In the past three weeks, Central Command has dispatched the bombers, sent an extra squadron of fighter planes to Saudi Arabia, kept the aircraft carrier Nimitz in the region and publicly announced for the first time in nearly a decade that a Tomahawk-missile-firing submarine was operating.“
6i)
A Very Trumpian Christmas Surprise? Signs Point to a Possible US Attack on Iran
Now is the time to prevent a possible strike on Iran, before Trump’s military posturing becomes military action.
By Michael T. Klare
December 10, 2020
https://www.thenation.com/article/world/trump-iran-attack/
„On November 12, President Trump reportedly asked his top national security advisers to prepare plans for attacking nuclear processing facilities in Iran after Tehran announced its intent to accelerate its uranium enrichment activities—a step taken in response to Trump’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and his imposition of crushing economic sanctions. According to White House sources, Trump was talked out of launching an attack on that date by some of his top advisers, including Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who claimed it would ignite an eruption of violence all across the Middle East. But Trump never pledged to refrain from ordering strikes on Iran at some future time and there is growing evidence that he is preparing to initiate such an assault before his term ends. Indeed, it is entirely conceivable that he will give the go-ahead for an attack now that his legal options for preventing Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20 appear to be vanishing and he gropes for a way to create pandemonium at home or, at the very least, punish his enemies abroad. […]“
6j)
Quick Thoughts: Pouya Alimagham on the Assassination of Iranian Nuclear Physicist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh
By Pouya Alimagham
December 15, 2020
„Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, an Iranian nuclear physicist and key official in that country’s nuclear program, was killed in an ambush on a provincial road outside Tehran on 27 November 2020. The assassination was widely assumed to be the work of Israel, perhaps acting in coordination with the United States and local agents. Coming during the waning days of the Trump administration, the killing was characterized as an attempt to raise US-Iranian tensions at a sensitive point in time and frustrate the stated ambition of President-elect Joe Biden to resume United States compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the multilateral 2015 Iran nuclear agreement from which Washington unilaterally withdrew in 2017. Mouin Rabbani, editor of Quick Thoughts and Jadaliyya Co-Editor, interviewed Pouya Alimagham, a specialist on Iranian affairs at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), to learn more about the context and potential consequences of the Fakhrizadeh assassination. […]“
6k)
Major Israeli Cyber security provider targeted in sophisticated hack
By Press TV
January 2, 2021
„[…] The hack, which appears to have taken place over a period of months, appears to be from a source known as Pay2Key, with the hackers deploying a form of highly sophisticated ransomware designed to extract high quantities of information from its target, as well as demanding 100,000 pounds in bitcoins to stop leaks going public. It seems that the hack targeted a cyber security company by the name of Portnox, which itself appears to be a major provider of cybersecurity to multiple Israeli regime concerns, including the Israeli Aerospace Industry, El Al, Bezeq and Clalit Healthcare, many of which have direct links to the Israeli government, and defence systems. […]“
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7a)
China’s new Silk Road outlook includes Pakistan-Iran-Turkey railways networks
By IRNA
January 3, 2020
„Efforts aimed at the revival of the container-carrying Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) train, which began during the recent decades by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey show the general outlook of China’s new Silk Road strategic ring-way. The 10th meeting of high ranking Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul Railway Project workgroup, better known as the ECO Train was recently convened aimed at the urgent revival of this major regional economic plan. […]“
7b)
New Iran-Pakistan border crossing has implications beyond trade
The opening could indicate a tilt toward China by Iran and comes at a time when there have been small tensions in Islamabad’s relations with Riyadh.
By Sabena Siddiqui
December 31, 2020
„Pakistan and Iran inaugurated a second official border crossing Dec. 19 at the strategically located crossing point of Gwadar-Ramdhan. Situated in Iran’s southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, which lies adjacent to Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, this new gateway is now the shortest land route connecting the port of Gwadar to Iran. The idea for a second border crossing had recently been suggested by Iran. On his fourth visit to Pakistan since the Imran Khan government assumed power, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif came to Islamabad in November. During meetings with the Pakistani leadership, the proposed land crossing remained at the top of the agenda. […]“
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8)
Expansion of Qatar-Iran ties
By IRNA
December 27, 2020
https://en.irna.ir/news/84163012/Expansion-of-Qatar-Iran-ties
„A visit by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to Iran’s capital city of Tehran is a milestone, which helped Doha and Tehran to enhance relations in 2020. […] Iran has good relations with Qatar, and Tehran has taken friendly stances when the Qatari people and government were grappling with oppressive siege by some littoral states of the Persian Gulf; so, Doha is grateful for the Iranians‘ support, Al-Qahtani stated. In 2020, the two friendly countries also held the seventh joint economic commission in Isfahan, Iran, in order to expand bilateral trade ties.“
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9)
Survey Shows Iranian Pessimism on Economy, Pride in Healthcare Response
By Nancy W. Gallagher and Clay Ramsay
December 16, 2020
„Recent Western reporting and analyses of Iran depict dire circumstances and make natural assumptions about how the population must be reacting to an economy battered by sanctions from the United States and ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic. A public opinion survey conducted in September and early October by the University of Maryland’s Center on International and Security Studies and IranPoll provides data to compare with these assumptions. The telephone survey included a national probability sample of 1,004 respondents. Some results are surprising, and some are remarkably similar to public attitudes about the pandemic in the United States and European countries. The survey finds that Iran’s public is more pessimistic about the economy than they were earlier in the Trump administration’s maximum pressure campaign. But domestic mismanagement and rising inflation appear to be bigger factors in this shift than the sanctions per se. Those most directly affected by COVID-19 are more negative about the economy. Yet, the Iranian public is generally satisfied by the government’s response to the pandemic and support public health efforts, even when they make a bad economic situation worse. […]“
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10)
Middle East Roundup: Khamenei Says Sanctions Lifting Shouldn’t be Delayed & Dissident Executed
By The National Iranian American Council (NIAC)
December 18, 2020
„This week, Iran’s Supreme Leader leaves the door open for Iran to negotiate with the U.S. under President Elect Biden. Also, Iran’s execution of dissident Ruhollah Zam provoked international condemnation, while the Rouhani administration submitted its budget proposal. […]“
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11a)
‘Nasrin’ Review: Righting Wrongs in Iran
Filmed in secret, Jeff Kaufman’s portrait of the Iranian lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh captures her ongoing battles for the rights of women, children and minorities.
By Jeannette Catsoulis
December 17, 2020
11b)
MPs denounce European Parliament’s anti-Iran resolution
By Tehran Times
December 19, 2020
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/455929/MPs-denounce-European-Parliament-s-anti-Iran-resolution
The Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee has strongly condemned a European Parliament resolution on human rights situation under the Islamic Republic of Iran. In a statement on Saturday, the committee denounced the European Parliament’s interference in the internal affairs of Iran after the MEPs adopted the anti-Iran resolution. […] The statement came after the European Parliament strongly condemned the “arbitrary detention, sentencing and, recently, return to prison of woman human rights defender, lawyer and 2012 Sakharov Prize laureate Nasrin Sotoudeh in Iran.” […] In addition, the resolution condemned “the recent executions in Iran of France-based journalist Ruhollah Zam, editor of the Amad News Telegram channel, and wrestler Navid Afkari, while urging Iran to immediately halt the imminent execution of Swedish-Iranian academic Ahmadreza Djalali. […]“
11c)
Iran’s Human Rights Violations Require Legal and Diplomatic Response, Says Atlantic Council Conference
By Natasha Phillips
December 18, 2020
„The Iranian government’s human rights breaches should be addressed using a combination of pioneering legal and diplomatic tools to ensure victims can hold perpetrators to account, according to experts speaking in an online seminar hosted by the Washington-based think tank the Atlantic Council. The conference, held on Dec. 15, looked at how global litigation strategies could be used to promote human rights in countries around the world, with a particular focus on the Islamic Republic of Iran. […]“
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12)
Iran Approves Payments for Shooting Down Ukraine Airliner
Tehran said it will pay $150,000 to the family of each victim, but Ukraine said it expects more, including a thorough investigation.
By Reuters
December 30, 2020
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13)
Iran Is Nearing Collapse Under the Strain of Covid-19
There are indications that Iran could be among the worst-affected countries in the world by the coronavirus pandemic and its associated problems.
By Ahmad Jalalpour
December 21, 2020
„[…] On paper, there are no sanctions on Iran for medical supplies and pharmaceuticals. But as Human Rights Watch pointed out in an April 6 report, “these exemptions have failed to offset the strong reluctance of US and European companies and banks to risk incurring sanctions and legal action by exporting or financing exempted humanitarian goods.” In other words, while domestic production has stepped up to offset the shortfall in imported drugs (now 3 percent of the total, down from 15 percent), hardly any foreign firm could be relied on to sell the ingredients needed to make such drugs, either for fear of being sanctioned or because they can’t be paid for their products because of sanctions on financial transactions. The end result is harrowing shortages, shoddy substitutes, and skyrocketing prices in almost every pharmaceutical category. This development, even more than the fivefold increase in consumer prices, is breeding discontent on a massive scale, which may be precisely what the framers of the sanctions—the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo—had in mind in the first place. The problem, of course, is that a policy of purposely inflicting mass havoc and suffering on a civilian population is collective punishment, which is prohibited by the Geneva Convention. The first casualties of the sanctions were patients who relied exclusively on imported brands. There was now a shrinking reservoir of foreign exchange to draw on for these patients, plus most foreign manufacturers feared approaching the Iranian market. The next casualties were patients who had been fine with domestically manufactured medicines, but the drugs they needed became suddenly not only more expensive and/or of lower potency but often had serious, sometimes dangerous, new side effects.[…]“
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Amir Mortasawi (alias Afsane Bahar) (امیر مرتضوی (افسانه بهار 