Iran Focus

London, 19 Jun - While the eyes of the world were focused on last week’s Singapore Summit, many speculated that it was concerning that Iran was not there. After all, what is the point in securing a denuclearized North Korea, if their nuclear programme is just packed up and shipped off to their rogue-state ally Iran?

It is no secret that Iran and North Korea have been cooperating on ballistic missiles and nuclear technology for the past 20+ years. You can see this in both the actual photos and videos of Iranian nuclear scientists at North Korean missile launches and the eerily similar missiles that they have produced.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Jun - Seven years of civil war has taken a toll on Syria. A huge toll. The Russians and Chinese are working towards the country’s reconstruction. Russia is entering a new phase of reconstruction costing around $450,000 billion.

China is in less of a rush to start the process. It knows that it is in a good position to fund the construction process and that it is sure to have a large share. Waiting around to see what happens in Syria seems like its best bet until now.

Iran, on the other hand, is an obstacle to the Russians and the Chinese.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Jun - In the Gisha area, a builder pre-sold several housing units that were under construction to several people simultaneously. After issuing a tracking code, the builder fled with over 80 billion tomans (approximately 19 million USD). On Monday, June 18th, a group of the betrayed home buyers staged a protest against the million-dollar scam of the Gisha housing construction in Tehran, Iran.

Iran Focus

London, 19 Jun - Iran claims that through full use of governmental facilities and comprehensive planning, there are few voluntary Afghan fighters deployed to Syria by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

However, Afghans are the least expensive of the IRGC’s foreign forces. Statistics show that there are an estimated 3 million Afghan citizens living in Iran, and it is reported that there is a Division of some 15,000 to 20,000 troops called Fatimids or Fatemiyoun.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Jun - Many have been saying that Iran is putting Saudi Arabia in a position where it cannot act. However, this is not true. There are a number of possibilities still open to Saudi Arabia even if Iran does go ahead and block an increase in OPEC's oil production.

Iran is threatening to veto any proposal for more OPEC output and claims that it has the support of Venezuela and Iraq. Both Saudi Arabia and Russia are keen for output to be increased.

OPEC's representative from Iran - Hossein Kazempour Ardebili - said yesterday that if Russia and Saudi Arabia want the production to increase, it must have unanimity.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Jun - There is huge controversy surrounding the decision by the Lebanese Security General not to stamp the passports of Iranian travellers as they enter the country, instead issuing them landing slips.

While, the Security General has said that these decisions are "entirely within its jurisdiction” and do not mean that any Iranians have entered the country illegally, you have to wonder what the justification was for changing their policy.

After all, this would be a controversial decision to make at any time, but it is especially troubling considering the rising pressures on Iran from the US and the West, since Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal citing Iranian cheating.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Jun - Iran is facing yet another problem in Syria, this time related to a border dispute between Lebanon and Israel that affects the stationing of Iran-backed Hezbollah militias.

It is no secret that Iran is facing numerous problems in Syria, from air strikes by Western powers to the general anger over the conflict from the Iranian people, but this one could seriously affect Iran’s ability to direct its proxy forces in the country.

The Israel-Lebanon border dispute, which covers occupied Palestine, has become an important topic of discussion once again as the US has proposed that it arrange negotiations between the two countries.

Iran Focus

London, 18 Jun - The US government rejected a request by the UAE to provide support in intelligence, aerial photography, and mine scanning to the Arab Coalition to restore the legitimate government in Yemen, but this might be for the best.

If the Donald Trump administration had approved the support, then the Arab Coalition’s successful fight to liberate Hodeidah from the Iran-backed Houthis might have been undermined by those who oppose Trump. Now, the Arab Coalition has sent 21,000 fighters in and cleared thousands of mines in the surrounding area, even keeping the port open while doing so to receive humanitarian aid.

By Jubin Katiraie

Iranian society is deeply troubled by the country’s economic and social crises. There has been a significant increase in protests staged by people from all walks of life, including teachers, factory workers, truckers, and others.

The annual Grand Gathering in Paris on June 30 will be held by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and this year, it will support Iranian people’s turn of the year uprising, as well as the ongoing protests that have followed. The NCRI promotes the Iranian people’s demand for a regime change, and the gathering shows that Iranian people’s protests are backed both domestically and by the international community.

Iran Focus

London, 15 Jun - Ever since Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in May, many people have discussed the matter at length, but have failed to explore and explain the massive failings in the deal.

The failings, including that it did not actually prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, were so severe that any amendments to address the pressing security concerns of international governments would have essentially involved rewriting the deal as a whole.

Iran Focus

London, 15 Jun - An analysis of the debris from five missiles fired at Saudi Arabia by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen since July 2017 shows evidence of Iranian manufacture, according to United Nations chief Antonio Guterres.

In a confidential June 12 report to the Security Council, Guterres wrote: “[The missiles] share key design features with a known type of [Iranian-made] missile.”

However, he went on to say, in his biannual report on the implementation of UN sanctions on Iran, that the UN has not been able to fully determine when the missiles, components or related technology were transferred from Iran or if Iran violated UN restrictions.

Iran Focus

London, 15 Jun - On June 13, in her home in Tehran, human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh was arrested. According to her husband, Reza Khandan, she was then transferred to the prosecutor’s office of Evin prison.

Sotoudeh was told she was being arrested to serve a five-year prison sentence, said Khandan, but neither he nor his wife knew anything about this sentence.

The same day, Amnesty International issued a statement calling for Iranian authorities to immediately release Nasrin Sotoudeh. The statement said, “We call on the Iranian authorities to release Nasrin Sotoudeh immediately and unconditionally.

Iran Focus

London, 14 Jun - There were hopes that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was going to ease up on its control over the Iranian economy. The country’s defence minister had said that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered the IRGC to diminish its economic activities.

However, its actions show that this is not the case at all. In fact, looking at its actions, it is safe to say that it is planning to increase its activities.

Iran Focus

London, 14 Jun - An Austrian bank has become the latest company to withdraw from deals with Iran in light of strict US sanctions that are set to be imposed in November.

Oberbank, which signed a deal with Iran in September, announced on Wednesday that it would withdraw from Iran due to the increased risk for European companies.

Oberbank said on its website: "Oberbank has supported numerous clients and their Iran business in the past two years. The threat posed to European companies by U.S. secondary sanctions is forcing us to retreat."

Iran Focus

London, 14 Jun - Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un have recently released a joint statement committing to “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” and while there are still issues to be sorted out and only time will tell if this will be successful, this moment should still inspire hope for the people of the world.

One thing is certain though, this meeting would never have happened if it wasn’t for the firm policy against North Korea by the US.

Iran Focus

London, 13 Jun - As the US takes measures to re-impose crippling sanctions on Iran, options to support the Iranian people’s strive for freedom and democracy are being revealed.

For instance, severing all access for Iranian banks to SWIFT, or the Society for the Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication has the potential to exert crippling economic and financial pressure Tehran that would affect the regime’s trade relations and import/export process.