Iranian official calls for negotiations with Washington in Iraq

[gregp]

3 minutes ago, CSM (R) Thackrey said:

We’d be in and out...kick a$$ and take names. No lingering, no nation building BS, no Counter Insurgency BS (to win the hearts and minds) just engage and destroy, ruck up and come home!!!🇺🇸

 

Mate you hearing or seeing any troop buildup?

[gregp]

17 minutes ago, gregp said:

 

Mate you hearing or seeing any troop buildup?

 

I typed “are” and spell check inserted “mate.” Aye Mate! 😂

[CSM (R) Thack]

8 minutes ago, gregp said:

 

I typed “are” and spell check inserted “mate.” Aye Mate! 😂

Negative!! But I am retired now...not truly in the loop anymore!

[Butifldrm]

US report: Iraq will suffer serious consequences of US sanctions on Iran

13:53 - 22/09/2018

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Information / Translation

The US site Exoscom reported on Saturday the damage to Iraq caused by US sanctions against Iran, pointing out that Iraq will suffer the consequences and toxic consequences of those sanctions.

"US sanctions on Iran will limit contracts to receive payments from Iraq while it must pay $ 3 million a year to Iranian natural gas, regardless of its delivery," the website said in a report.

"The US economic sanctions on Iran will have serious consequences for Iraq in particular, with the value of trade between the two countries reaching 12 billion dollars annually and the loss of natural gas supply of 6000 MW of electricity," he said.

"Sanctions will prevent Iraq from receiving natural gas. It will also affect the sector of importing spare parts for taxis, which currently stands at some 70,000 Iranian-made cars in Iraq," he said, adding that it wants to maintain lucrative religious tourism that has brought more than 2.5 million Iranian visitors. Najaf and Karbala last year. "

"It is not certain whether the Trump administration will grant exemptions to Iraq to support stability in a country that has not seen much wealth for decades," the report said, adding that "Trump's decision will depend on Iraq's choice of acceptable prime minister to Washington or someone similar to the current prime minister Haidar al-Abadi. " Ending / 25 z

http://www.almaalomah.com/2018/09/22/347020/

[yota691]

Rohani: Iran will increase its defense capabilities and will not abandon them

Readers

 

 

Rohani: Iran will increase its defense capabilities and will not abandon them

 

22-09-2018 12:11 PM

 

The Euphrates -

 

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rowhani said Tehran would increase its defense capabilities and would not abandon them. "Today we are well aware of the price and value of our missiles," he said. 

This came during a speech on state television on air during a military parade of his armed forces south of Tehran, on the anniversary of the start of the Iran-Iraq war 1980-1988. 

Rohani said the United States is engaged in a 'direct war with Iran by standing against the Iranian people and violating the nuclear agreement.' 

He said that the departure of US President Donald Trump from the nuclear agreement 'just a pretext' and its main goal is to target Iran, keeping in mind that Trump will fail in his confrontation with Iran just as 'failed' the late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

[Butifldrm]

Middle East

UPDATED: Armed group kills over 20 at military parade in Iran's Ahvaz

 Sangar Ali |

6 hours ago

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According to state-run media, as of early afternoon, 24 had been killed and 53 wounded. (Photo: Iranian media)

 

Iran Ahvaz 

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ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - Unknown gunmen opened fire on Saturday morning during a military parade in the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz, killing and injuring several people, state television reported.

According to state-run media, 24 had been killed, including 12 members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), and 53 people had been wounded.

In the early afternoon, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif responded, "Terrorists recruited, trained, armed & paid by a foreign regime have attacked Ahvaz," on social media. "Iran will respond swiftly and decisively in defense of Iranian lives."

The moment the attack begins is shown in the social media post below. At first, those present appear to think that the gunfire could be part of the ceremony, but then quickly realize it is a hostile attack and immediately begin to scramble from the scene.

 

Fazel Hawramy@FazelHawramy

 

 

The moment gunmen attack a military parade in city of Ahvaz #Iran

2:05 AM - Sep 22, 2018

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Ahvaz National Resistance Spokesperson Yaqoob al-Ahvaz later claimed responsibility for the attack in comments made to Iran International TV, saying, "We have no choice but to resist." The Ahvaz National Resistance is one of the groups that make up the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz (ASMLA), an umbrella group for Iranian Ahvazi opposition parties.

Ahvaz is the capital of Iran’s oil-rich Khuzestan Province, which has seen multiple attacks on oil pipelines by Arab separatists in the past.

Arabs are one of several major non-Persian ethnic groups in Iran that also include Kurds, Turks, and Baluch. 

In 2015, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch both protested an Iranian crackdown against Ahvazi Arabs, as the regime undertook a large-scale campaign of arbitrary arrests in Khuzestan Province, where Ahvazis live and where most of Iran’s oil and gas reserves are located. The arrests were triggered by mass protests that coincided roughly with the anniversary of Ahvazi demonstrations a decade before. 

Hours later, the Islamic State (IS) in an online statement also claimed responsibility for the attack, but falsely stated that President Rouhani was at the scene when it occurred, as some early media reports had done.

On Friday, the IRGC and the Iranian army also held a joint aerial military drill in the Gulf, where the US keeps maintains a fleet to protect oil shipping routes, as reported by Reuters.

“In addition to a show of strength, this ceremony is a message of peace and friendship for friendly and neighboring countries,” Colonel Yousef Safipour, the deputy commander of the army for public relations said, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

Iran has recently said that it was able to stage military operations in the Gulf to block oil exports in retaliation for US sanctions put in place to severely limit its petroleum exports.

“And if the enemies and arrogant powers have an eye on the borders and land of Islamic Iran they will receive a pounding reply in the fraction of a second.”

Iran is also currently facing intensified attacks in its Kurdish-majority provinces (Rojhilat) and along its Western border with the Kurdistan Region, where Kurdish opposition groups operate. 

Editing by John J. Catherine

http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/132fc59a-20fe-4854-b2fc-6b415c54c47c

[Butifldrm]

Middle East

Iran closes two border gates to Iraq after attack on military parade in Ahvaz

 Sangar Ali |

3 hours ago

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This is the second time in September that Iran has closed at least one of its borders with Iraq following a security incident. (Photo: Archive)

 

 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - Iran closed two border crossings with neighboring Iraq following Saturday morning's armed attack during a military parade in southwestern Iran, Iraqi border crossing officials told Kurdistan 24.

Local media said that at least 11 members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have been killed in the incident, while Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that 20 people had been wounded.

Spokesperson of Iraqi border crossings Aladdin al-Qaisi said in a statement received by Kurdistan 24 that both al-Shaib and Shalamcheh border gates have been closed to passengers and trade.

In the early afternoon, Qaisi made an additional statement, in which he said that although Shalamcheh remained closed, al-Shaib had been reopened and was again operating at full capacity.

This is the second time in September that Iran has closed at least one of its borders with Iraq following a security incident. Earlier in the month, it closed its side of the Shalamcheh border crossing, which adjoins Basra Province, after protesters burned the Iranian Consulate in Basra city.

In a video posted on social media of Saturday's attack, those present appear to at first think that the gunfire could be part of the ceremony, but then quickly realize it is a hostile attack and immediately begin to scramble from the scene.

Ahvaz is close to Iran's southern border with Iraq and the capital of Iran’s oil-rich Khuzestan Province. The area has seen multiple attacks on oil pipelines by Arab separatists in the past, and Arab residents have been the target of several mass arrests and government crackdowns in the past. 

Arabs are one of several major non-Persian ethnic groups in Iran that also include Kurds, Turks, and Baluch. 

Editing by John J. Catherine 

http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/3935d88e-4f24-4af8-83b6-b030eaaa4544

[yota691]

 

US envoy: Nuclear deal helped Tehran to finance terrorism

 

15:21

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Follow - up / Tomorrow 's Press: 

revealed the US special envoy on Iran, Brian Hawk, said on Saturday that the nuclear deal helped Tehran to expand the financing of terrorism, accusing the Iranian regime as "seek" behind repeat the model of Lebanon in the region.


"Iran's threats to the world go beyond its nuclear program, and sanctions will force it to return to the negotiating table," Hawk said in an exclusive interview with Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper. 

"The sanctions do not want to harm the Iranian economy but we are targeting the regime," he said. "The United States is seeking a binding treaty, not a new agreement, on Iran." 

"Many do not understand the US government system, the treaty guarantees survival and continuity and is not affected by the change of US administrations, because it requires congressional approval and ratification, while the Iranian nuclear deal signed in 2015 by the United States, The former president, Barack Obama, has not been approved in Congress. "

"The treaty that we seek to sign will not only address Iran's nuclear program, but also extend to Tehran's behavior in the region, including aggression on shipping, electronic attacks, export of its revolution, terrorism of other countries, destabilization of its neighbors and assassinations. And bombings in other countries. " 

Hawk accused Iran's leaders of trying to "restore the Lebanese model, which includes Hezbollah, in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen, and support the Houthi terrorist organizations in Yemen to launch rockets into Saudi Arabia." 

In May, US President Donald Trump announced his withdrawal from the nuclear deal and last month began imposing the first package of sanctions against Iran, and the second package will be imposed in next April.

[Butifldrm]

Khamenei in his first comment on the attack Ahwaz

 

2 hours ago

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NRT

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused US allies in the region of being behind the attack on Saturday in a military parade in the southwestern city of Ahwaz .

"This crime comes as part of a series of plots orchestrated by the regional states, puppets of the United States, in order to blow up the security of the Islamic Republic," Khamenei said in a statement posted on his official website today, September 22, 2018 .

Khamenei instructed the Iranian security services to quickly prosecute and prosecute those involved in the bloody attack, without mentioning the names of these "Washington allies," but in a clear reference to Iran's Gulf rivals, primarily Saudi Arabia .

He pointed out that "this attack proves once again," slander and hardness of the enemies of the Iranian people. "

It is worth mentioning that at least 29 people were killed in an armed attack during a military parade in the city of Ahwaz in the southwest of the country, Saturday morning, while the security forces managed to eliminate the four attackers, according to Iranian officials .

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http://www.nrttv.com/AR/News.aspx?id=4662&MapID=3

[Butifldrm]

Iran begins military exercises in Gulf

 

2 hours ago

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NRT

TEHRAN ( Reuters ) - Iran's Revolutionary Guard and armed forces carried out joint air maneuvers in the Gulf on Friday after Tehran hinted weeks ago it might take military action in the Gulf in response to US economic sanctions aimed at halting its crude sales, Reuters reported on Saturday. .

"In addition to reviewing the force, this exercise is a message of peace and friendship to friendly and neighboring countries, " Deputy Army Commander for Public Relations Col. Joseph Safi Bour said in  a press release today . The IRNA news agency reported.

" But if the eyes of the enemies and the arrogant forces look to the borders or the land of the Islamic Republic, they will find an overwhelming response in the blink of an eye."

For his part, a spokesman for the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Brigadier Ramadan Sharif, said that "Iran will complete its naval exercises, Saturday, with the participation of 600 pieces of heavy and light and heavy variety of aircraft from various sectors of the Iranian military . "

"Dozens of Air Force and Guard Air Force fighters will also participate in the parade, as well as the participation of 200 popular navy pieces as mass mobilization," Sharif said.

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http://www.nrttv.com/AR/News.aspx?id=4660&MapID=3

[Butifldrm]

The Israeli army: We are closely watching Iran's actions in Iraq

 

9 hours ago

 

22724 views

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NRT

Israeli Air Force intelligence chief Major General Uri Oron confirmed that his country is following the military positioning of Iran in Iraq, including the installation of surface-to-surface missiles capable of striking Israeli targets .

"We will not allow the establishment of an Iranian military presence in Syria," said Zeev Elkinsoir, minister of Jerusalem affairs and environmental protection in the Israeli government.

"We are constantly pursuing Iranian firepower. We must care about Iraq," he said, adding that the Air Force intelligence did not give Iraq any attention a year ago .

Oron noted that Iran is also involved in missile production in Syria and Lebanon .

Israeli officials have repeatedly stressed their country's determination not to allow the strengthening of Iran's military presence in countries neighboring Israel, particularly in Syria .

 

P

http://www.nrttv.com/AR/News.aspx?id=4647&MapID=3

[trident]

World News

September 22, 2018 / 7:06 AM / Updated 12 hours ago

Iran will defeat Trump just like it did Saddam, won't abandon missiles: Rouhani

DUBAI (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump will fail in his confrontation with Iran, just like Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday, referring to the war between the two Middle Eastern powers and vowing that Tehran will not abandon its missiles.

 

Tensions have ramped up between Iran and the United States after Trump withdrew from a landmark multilateral nuclear deal in May and reimposed sanctions on the Islamic Republic last month.

 

As Rouhani spoke, Iran began displaying its naval power in the Gulf during annual parades in the capital Tehran and the port of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf marking the start of the country’s 1980-88 war with Iraq.

Iran has suggested in recent weeks that it could take military action in the Gulf to block other countries’ oil exports in retaliation for U.S. sanctions intended to halt its sales of crude.

Washington maintains a fleet in the Gulf that protects oil shipping routes.

 

“The same will happen to Trump. America will suffer the same fate as Saddam Hussein,” Rouhani said in a speech carried live by state television.

“Iran will not abandon its defensive weapons ... including its missiles that make America so angry,” Rouhani said.

State media said about 600 vessels took part in the Gulf naval drill on Saturday, a day after Iran held aerial exercises in the waterway, vowing that a “pounding reply” awaited the country’s enemies.

[Pitcher]

Iran Starts Air Force Drills Near The World’s Crucial Oil Chokepoint

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Sep 21, 2018, 9:30 AM CDT

Iran’s Air Force and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps began on Friday fighter jet drills over the waters near the world’s most important oil chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s IRNA news agency reported on Friday.

Aircraft including nine F-4, six Sukhoi, and four Mirage started the war games in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman waters, IRNA said.

The maneuver is a warning that Iran’s enemies will face a “stern response” if they show ill-will toward Tehran, the AP quoted the official Iranian news agency as saying.

Earlier this year, Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz for all tanker traffic if the U.S. drives Iranian oil exports to zero.

As the first round of U.S. sanctions on Iran kicked in last month and the second round of sanctions—including on Iranian oil exports—is set to snap back in early November, the Islamic Republic has recently stepped up rhetoric about controlling the most vital oil flow chokepoint in the world.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rebuffed Iran’s claims sayingin a statement posted on Twitter: “The Islamic Republic of Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz.” Related: Saudi Oil Inventories Continue To Plummet

The Strait of Hormuz is the world’s most important chokepoint, with an oil flow of 18.5 million bpd in 2016, the EIA estimates. The Strait connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea and is the key route through which Persian Gulf exporters—Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and Bahrain—ship their oil. Only Saudi Arabia and the UAE have pipelines that can ship crude oil outside of the Persian Gulf with additional pipeline capacity to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which is a route of more than 30 percent of the daily global seaborne-traded crude oil and petroleum products and more than 30 percent of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) flows.

Some 80 percent of the crude oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz goes to Asian markets, the EIA has estimated using data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence tanker tracking service. China, Japan, India, South Korea, and Singapore are the largest destinations for oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz.

 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Iran-Starts-Air-Force-Drills-Near-The-Worlds-Crucial-Oil-Chokepoint.html

[trident]

Rouhani says Iran ready to confront U.S. after military parade attack

 

Michael Georgy

 

DUBAI (Reuters) - President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday Iran was ready to confront the United States and its Gulf Arab allies, a day after an attack on an Iranian military parade killed 25 people, including 12 members of the elite Revolutionary Guards.

 

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani attends a news conference at the Chancellery in Vienna, Austria July 4, 2018. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner

Speaking before leaving Tehran to attend the annual U.N. General Assembly in New York, Rouhani accused U.S.-backed Gulf Arab states of providing financial and military support for anti-government ethnic Arab groups in Iran.

“America is acting like a bully toward the rest of the world...and thinks it can act based on brute force,” said Rouhani, who engineered Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal that ushered in a cautious detente with Washington before tensions flared anew with President Donald Trump’s decision to quit the accord.

• Iran Guards vow vengeance against military parade attackers: statement

“But our people will resist and the government is ready to confront America. We will overcome this situation (sanctions) and America will regret choosing the wrong path.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday summoned the United Arab Emirates’ charge d’affaires over comments made about the bloodshed in the southwestern city of Ahvaz.

State-run PressTV said the action was taken over comments by an unnamed UAE official, without giving details.

The Gulf Arab state of Qatar, which is at odds with U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE, condemned the assault on the military parade, which wounded at least 70 people.

 

Gunmen fired on a viewing stand where Iranian officials had gathered to watch an annual event marking the start of the Islamic Republic’s 1980-88 war with Iraq. Soldiers crawled as gunfire crackled. Women and children fled for their lives.

It was one of the worst ever attacks against the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp, the sword and shield of Shi’ite clerical rule in Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution.

It answers to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and runs its own business empire in Iran, a major oil producer which has been relatively stable compared with Arab states that have grappled with unrest since uprisings in 2011.

Since pulling out of the big powers’ nuclear pact with Iran in May, Trump has reimposed U.S. sanctions meant to isolate Tehran and force it to negotiate tougher curbs on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Iran has ruled this out.

 

“UNREAL FANTASIES”

“America wants to cause chaos and unrest in our country so that it can return to this country, but these are unreal fantasies and they will never achieve their goals,” said Rouhani.

Shi’ite Iran is at odds with Western-allied Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia for predominance in the Middle East.

The regional powers back opposing sides in the conflicts in Yemen and Syria as well as rival political groups in Iraq and Lebanon, with the Guards defending Iranian interests.

 

“The small puppet countries in the region are backed by America, and the United States is provoking them and giving them the necessary capabilities,” said Rouhani.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia on Rouhani’s allegations. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates say that Iran poses a security threat to the Middle East and tries to dominate the region.

Iran denies the accusations and calls for regional states to guarantee the oil-producing region’s security without the interference of the United States and other Western powers.

“Iran’s answer (to this attack) is forthcoming within the framework of law and our national interests,” said Rouhani, adding that the United States would regret its “aggressiveness”.

 

  An Iranian ethnic Arab opposition movement called the Ahvaz National Resistance, which seeks a separate state in oil-rich Khuzestan province, claimed responsibility for the attack.

“The Persian Gulf states are providing monetary, military and political support for these groups,” said Rouhani.

Islamic State militants also claimed responsibility. Neither claim provided evidence. All four attackers were killed.

“Hopefully we will overcome these sanctions with the least possible costs and make America regret its aggressiveness toward other countries, and particularly Iran,” said Rouhani.

[Butifldrm]

 

Sunday، 23 September 2018 02:21 PM

 

Iran ready to confront U.S. after military parade attack: Rouhani

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President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday Iran was ready to confront theUnited States and its Gulf Arab allies, a day after an attack on an Iranian military parade killed 29 people, including 12 members of the elite Revolutionary Guards.

Speaking in Tehran before heading to attend the annual UN General Assembly in New York, Rouhani accused U.S.-backed Gulf Arab states of providing financial and military support for anti-government ethnic Arab groups in Iran.

"America is acting like a bully toward the rest of the world...and thinks it can act based on brute force," said Rouhani, who engineered Iran's 2015 nuclear deal that ushered in a cautious detente with Washington before tensions flared anew with President Donald Trump's decision to quit the accord.

"But our people will resist and the government is ready to confront America. We will overcome this situation (sanctions) and America will regret choosing the wrong path."

The Gulf Arab state of Qatar, which is at odds with U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE, condemned the assault on the military parade, which wounded at least 70 people.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/31646/Iran-ready-to-confront-U-S-after-military-parade-attack-Rouhani

[Butifldrm]

Israeli expectations of an indirect confrontation with Iran

 

9 hours ago

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NRT

An Israeli newspaper report predicted Sunday that Iran's withdrawal from Syria is unlikely at present, after  investing nearly $ 30 billion to $ 100 billion in support of the Syrian regime . 

The report, published today (September 23, 2018) in the English-language Jerusalem Post, said that "Israel will face the most precise challenges in the coming period from Iran to maintain its security . "

The newspaper said that "Israel was an old policy of hitting Syrian targets by air and trying to achieve Israeli targets in Syria through Israeli raids on them, but the developments of recent events and the fall of the Russian plane in Syria will force Israel to change the rules of the game militarily in Syria ."

The newspaper said "there are expectations of the possibility of confrontation between Israel and one of the Arab military teams that cooperate with Iran and is considered an ally ."

Iran has invested almost $ 30 billion to $ 100 billion in support of the Syrian regime over the past seven years, which has contributed to the long-term strengthening of Iran's presence and deepening its influence in Syria .

For his part, an Israeli military source told the newspaper that the strategic and military developments in Syria now impose on Israel to change the strategic bases, which will in turn reflect on the overall Israeli moves at the end .

The report concluded that a number of Israeli military experts expected increased chances of possible confrontations between Israel and Iran outside the borders of Syria, without specifying the location or location of these confrontations .

AA

http://www.nrttv.com/AR/News.aspx?id=4676&MapID=3

[Butifldrm]

Trump is ready to hold talks with Iranian officials on the nuclear program

Written by: Yasser Hilaliin:September 23, 2018In: The Arabs and the WorldNo comments

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Nour News / Agencies

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Sunday that President Donald Trump is ready to hold a constructive dialogue with any representative of Iran at the UN General Assembly in New York.

"I do not know if there are such plans, the president is clear enough, and if the president has the opportunity to have constructive talks with the Iranians, he will," Pompeo said in a September 23 press release in response to a question about whether Trump could meet with Iran's representatives in New York. Is happy to do so, and will be ready to do so, "according to the network" CNN ".

The Secretary of State confirmed that Trump is ready to meet with any representative of Iran, who can conduct a constructive dialogue, including with the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The United States permanent representative to the United Nations, Nicky Hayley, announced at a press conference earlier that Iranian President Hassan Rowhani asked to meet with the US President on the sidelines of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

http://alnoornews.net/archives/184224/الخارجية-الأميركية-ترامب-مستعد-لإجرا/

[Butifldrm]

Sunday، 23 September 2018 10:37 PM

 

Hussein Mu'ayyad: Ahvz problems will not end until people's demands met

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Hussein al-Mu'ayyad

Sunni scholar and politician Hussein al-Mu'ayyad addressed the current situation of Ahvaz, saying that the turmoil will continue until the fair demands of its people are achieved.

 

Mu'ayyad slammed the Mullah regime, saying that it only knows the language of brute force.

 

On his official Twitter account, Mu'ayyad asserted that the military attack carried out by the Ahvaz National Resistance has foiled the military parade of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The Ahvaz National Resistance is one of the groups comprised by the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz (ASMLA).

ASMLA has claimed responsibility for an attack on IRGC's military parade on Saturday, which took place in Iran’s southwestern city of Ahvaz, a statement released by the group said.

“This action was part of our legitimate resistance, and no civilians were targeted in the attack,” the statement added.

Security and intelligence forces attacked a number of Ahvaz districts, imposing a fierce crackdown on the city's local residents following the bloody attack. According to the latest reports, the death toll has risen to 29, with over 50 injured.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/31655/Hussein-Mu-ayyad-Ahvz-problems-will-not-end-until-people-s-demands-met

[nannab]

The IRGC got a taste of their own medicine.   Butifldrm

Edited September 24, 2018 by nannab

[yota691]

Iraq defies America in Iran's oil quota

Date of release: 2018/9/24 15:17 • 214 times read

Iraq, OPEC's second-largest producer, exports about 3.6 million bpd of crude from its southern fields, with Opec and others increasing production to offset supply shortages from Iran and Venezuela, an oil official said.

"We are just under 3.6 million barrels per day, but we can reach that level," Ali Nazar, deputy director of National Oil Marketing Company (SOMO), told Reuters. 
Iraq's exports from southern oil fields in September are heading towards a record high, according to two sources in the sector last week, exceeding August's 3.58 million bpd. 
"The increase will not be huge, it will be only a small increase, just to meet the needs of the market everyone is waiting to see what will happen after the US sanctions are not opportunists will not take a market share of Iran." 
Iran's exports are falling as the United States reinstates sanctions on Iran's oil sector from November to force Tehran to negotiate a new nuclear deal.

"Iraq also plans to produce 20,000 tons per day of LPG and 15,000 bpd of condensate in 2020," Nizar said at the Asia-Pacific Petroleum Conference.

[Butifldrm]

Ruhani: We can sell oil without being affected by the country's banking system

 

 

 

15:52 - 24/09/2018

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Isaac Jahangiri

Information / follow-up ...

Iranian Vice President Ishak Jahangiri said on Monday that his country could sell oil without being affected by the banking system in the country.

"Iran can sell oil and not allow banking relations in the country to face more danger," IRNA news agency reported in a news item quoted by the official Jahangiri as saying.

He added that "the commodities will be guaranteed by the Iranian government in all circumstances that will face us."

"With the withdrawal of the US from the nuclear agreement and the imposition of sanctions on Iran, new challenges have emerged in the country, and attention has become greater to determine the necessary budgetary trends," Jahangiri said. Ending / 25

http://www.almaalomah.com/2018/09/24/347737/

 

 

 

[Pitcher]

The United States’ Role in the Future of Iraq

Mithal Jamal Al-Alusi is an Iraqi politician, former member of the Iraqi parliament, and founder of the Democratic Party of the Iraqi Nation.

September 24, 2018

The United States of America has invested significant time and effort in Iraq over the last fifteen years, yet the Iraqi political process continues to falter. The damage of the country’s limited adoption of democratic values is continually demonstrated in each election cycle. This is especially complicated by the outsized role of Iraq’s Islamist political parties connected to Iran.

Since these parties believe in the primacy of the Quran in governance and Ayatollah Khomeini’s doctrine of Velayat-e Faiqh, their goals are driven by regional concerns for the primacy of Iran rather than domestic stability and democracy—even treating democratic principles with a large degree of suspicion. Values of democratic equality such as those connected to women, child protection, human rights, and citizenship are often viewed with suspicion. These connections are complicated; Quds Force head Major General Qassem Soleimani has control over sizable Iraqi militias, and his dictates further contribute to the submission of these political parties to Iranian dictates.

In contrast with Iran’s clear and continued engagement in Iraqi politics, U.S. interests in the future of Iraq remain opaque for many domestic observers. Though the United States has stated that the regional influence of Iran is one of its primary foreign policy concerns, these efforts are complicated by the history of U.S. foreign policy in Iraq. With the Obama administration’s nuclear agreement with Iran and the withdrawal of American military forces from Iraq, many anti-Iranian groups inside Iraq have interpreted the United States as acquiescing for Iraq to be subject to Iran’s expansionist whims. The inclusion of the Fatah Alliance in the dominant political coalition demonstrates the result of the Obama administration’s previous silence on Soleimani’s actions in the country, and the continued mixed messaging from the current administration.

It is not unreasonable to trace many of Iraq’s ills to a failed American policy in Iraq: political and economic crises in the face of disappearing Iraqi sovereignty and a real absence of the principle of the separation of powers, with rampant financial and administrative corruption. Iran has exploited the indecision of U.S. foreign policy to expand its influence in Iraq as a means of developing stronger influence across the whole region, and Iranian-backed parties have shown little interest in stemming Iraq’s major crises. Rather, Iranian actions actively threaten Iraqi democracy; political parties affiliated with Iran have worked in a concerted manner to forge election results in both Shi’a and Sunni provinces—the latter of which contain Sunnis suffering from corruption who are linked through mutual connections with Soleimani and his followers.

The currently forming Iraqi government seems to be particularly vulnerable to Iranian machinations. Soleimani himself met with Iraqi politicians—including a number of politicians notorious for corruption—in order to form a bloc of over a hundred members that stands as a clear challenge to politicians looking to reduce Iranian influence in Iraq.

In the past months since the Iraqi elections, Soleimani has also sent a clear message to Iraqi and U.S. officials alike through the development of an oppositionist bloc of 145 members of parliament under Badr’s Hadi al-Ameri and former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki that Iran will have significant control of minister positions and voting blocs.

Soleimani’s clear success in controlling a sizable source of power in the new Iraqi government demonstrates the impact of a persistent and clear stance in Iraqi politics, both to the Iranian government and Iraqis themselves. Moreover, Soleimani’s activist stances continue to contrast with State Department officials’ mixed messaging throughout the lengthy process of Iraqi government formation, including its apparent acceptance of Iraqi elections results despite evidence of corruption.

Without a clear vision from U.S. officials in Iraq, the country lacks serious prospects of a moderate Iraqi government liberated from Iranian influence ever forming. Many Iraqis who relied on the U.S. vision of moderation and democracy as a model for their country have lost trust in American policy. Soleimani's efficacy in promoting his goals is appealing in comparison, and his allure may serve as a fatal blow to independents, moderates, democrats, and to future American interests in Iraq.

The solution is clear: the United States and its representatives in Iraq must have clear stances on Iraqi politics and demonstrate that working with the United States has clear benefits for Iraq. The American administration should not allow its staff to recycle the same policies adopted by Obama’s administration in Iraq, especially since they no longer reflect the United States’ overall renewed focus on Iran.

Perhaps the most effective and quickest way to restore benign American influence is the implementation of existing Iraqi-American agreements. America could also contribute to bringing about reconciliation between Iraq’s different sects in order to re-engage Sunni Iraqis in the political process by giving them the sense of playing a part in Iraq’s future. Perhaps the United States can allocate further resources to support the country’s process of decentralisation in the country and supporting efforts to bring Sunni Arabs into the country’s armed forces. Finally, the United States should work to support Iraqi media that can counter sectarian Iranian propaganda that seeks to spread division among the people of Iraq.

However, this does not mean that the United States is unilaterally responsible for the U.S.-Iraqi relationship. Iraq, for its part, must retain its ability to act independently in oil markets, whatever the situation with market indicators and regional struggles may be. Strengthening the Iraqi-American partnership will not come about only through American investment in Iraq, but rather through cooperation, which will ultimately bring about economic and strategic benefits to both countries.

 

https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/fikraforum/view/the-united-states-role-in-the-future-of-ira

[Butifldrm]

JCPOA Participants Agree to Develop Payment Channels to Facilitate Iran's Export

 

 

EUROPE

04:49 25.09.2018(updated 04:51 25.09.2018)Get short URL

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EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Federica Mogherini said European Union will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran to allow continued trade.

https://sputniknews.com/europe/201809251068302929-jcpoa-agreement-mogherini/

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Major Powers, Iran Meet to Salvage Nuclear Deal Without U.S.

By Reuters

Sept. 24, 2018

UNITED NATIONS — Iran has ample reason to stay in the 2015 nuclear deal despite the U.S. withdrawal and the remaining parties on Monday will discuss ways to blunt the effect of impending U.S. sanctions on Tehran, the European Union's foreign policy chief said.

Speaking before a gathering of senior officials from Britain, China, Germany, Russia and Iran, the EU's Federica Mogherini made the case for Iran remaining in the deal that U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned on May 8.

"An essential part of the agreement and its implementation regards Iran having the possibility of benefiting from the lifting of sanctions, and this is exactly why we are discussing tonight, operational concrete steps that we can put in place," Mogherini told reporters before the talks at the United Nations.

"Iran has good arguments and good reasons to remain in the agreement. ... the more operational decisions we will manage to take and ... implement, I believe the more Iran will have reasons to do," she added.

The European Union, however, has so far failed to devise a workable legal framework to shield its companies from U.S. sanctions that go into effect in November and that, among other things, seek to choke off Iran's oil sales, diplomats said.

Highlighting just how difficult it will be for the Europeans to come up with concrete solutions, French state-owned bank Bpifrance on Monday abandoned its plan to set up a financial mechanism to aid French companies trading with Iran.

The crux of the deal, negotiated over almost two years by the administration of former U.S. President Barack Obama, was that Iran would restrain its nuclear program in return for the relaxation of sanctions that had crippled its economy.

Trump considered it flawed because it did not include curbs on Iran's ballistic missiles program or its support for proxies in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq.

The United States began reimposing economic sanctions this summer and the most draconian measures, which seek to force Iran's major customers to stop buying its oil, resume Nov. 5.

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Their impending return has contributed to a slide in Iran's currency. The rial has lost about two-thirds of its value this year, hitting a record low against the U.S. dollar this month.

There are limits to what the EU can do to counter the oil sanctions, under which Washington can cut off from the U.S. financial system any bank that facilitates an oil transaction with Iran.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols, Parisa Hafezi; Additional reporting by John Irish and Yara Bayoumy; Writing by Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-nuclear-eu/as-u-s-sanctions-near-europe-fails-to-protect-iran-deal-idUSKCN1M41UO

[yota691]

Why Trump’s Sanctions on Iran Carry So Much Force

 

 

 

Traders and visitors mingle at the entrance to the Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran, on Monday, Aug. 6, 2018. Iran’s central bank, acting on the eve of U.S. sanctions, scrapped most currency controls introduced this year in a bid to halt a plunge in the rial that has stirred protests against the government of President Hassan Rouhani. (Bloomberg)

By Bill Faries | Bloomberg

September 24 at 11:09 AM

Few things in Donald Trump’s foreign policy have been more consistent than his opposition to the Iran nuclear deal the U.S. reached with that country and five other nations in 2015. He campaigned against it while running for president, complained about it regularly during his first year in office and finally pulled the U.S. out of it in May 2018. Now, Trump is gradually reimposing sanctions that were frozen by the agreement, threatening to penalize even close allies if they keep doing business with Iran. That’s undermining Iran’s economy and raising the pressure on President Hassan Rouhani, who pushed hard for the nuclear accord.

1. Why did Trump abandon the nuclear deal with Iran?

Despite broad international support for the accord, Trump and his allies said the agreement -- which eased economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program -- never addressed what they see as Iran’s malign behavior in the Middle East, its support for terrorism or its ballistic missile program. Trump wants a new, tougher deal.

2. How do sanctions factor in?

Sanctions that banned most trade and investing with Iran were credited with forcing Iran to the negotiating table, then were relaxed when the nuclear deal was signed. So far, Trump has reinstated sanctions that include prohibitions on purchasing Iranian debt and pistachios, and a bar on the planned sale of commercial aircraft by Boeing Co. and Airbus SE. Sanctions returning on Nov. 5 are aimed at Iran’s port operators, insurance and reinsurance businesses and -- most importantly -- foreign purchases of Iranian oil. Iran currently exports hydrocarbons to countries around the world, including China and India, as well as U.S. allies Japan, South Korea and Iraq. U.S. officials have sent out teams of diplomats in an effort to persuade nations to cut Iranian oil purchases to as close to zero as possible. Countries that don’t do so will find their companies under sanctions.

3. What effect will sanctions have on Iran?

Even without U.S. sanctions, Iran’s economy had been struggling with slow growth and inflation, with allegations of corruption spawning public protests. The rial weakened further as the August sanctions neared. But Iran’s dependence on oil exports means the planned U.S. sanctions in November will strike a serious blow against the economy.

4. What are the possible consequences?

The economic consequences are already playing out. While a range of companies have had an interest in doing business in Iran, the reimposition of U.S. sanctions has increased the risks of doing so. Within hours of Washington unveiling its first round of sanctions, German carmaker Daimler AG froze a plan to make Mercedes-Benz trucks in Iran. Companies from Total SA to Renault SA and PSA Group have said they’ll backtrack on Iran plans. Politically, tougher U.S. sanctions put a harsh spotlight on Rouhani, who staked his credibility on securing the 2015 nuclear deal. He’s been imploring other partners in the agreement to ensure Iran keeps reaping the benefits of the deal, though the reaction from companies is making that job harder. The U.S. says it isn’t seeking regime change. Should Rouhani’s government fall, it’s unlikely to be replaced by leaders more accommodating toward the U.S. and its allies.

5. Would a Trump-Rouhani summit help?

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on state affairs, has rejected talks “at any level” with the U.S., saying the Trump administration has proved that it cannot be trusted. The U.S. president has said he’d meet Rouhani “without preconditions,” citing his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in June 2018 as a precedent. That kind of get-together would be tough for Iran’s current leadership to stomach. Rouhani said he’d be open to negotiations if the U.S. is “sincere,” but he added that such talks would be meaningless while his nation is being hit with sanctions.