Let's talk Iran - August 20, 2021
Afghanistan: How Iran and its allies are relying on Soleimani’s deals with the Taliban
Important periodic reminders:
—Iran's Qassem Soleimani personally struck deals with the Taliban in 2015.
—Those deals included the Revolutionary Guard training and funding the Taliban. LINK
Planes, guns, night-vision goggles: The Taliban's new U.S.-made war chest
"... the Taliban are believed to control more than 2,000 armored vehicles, including U.S. Humvees, and up to 40 aircraft potentially including UH-60 Black Hawks, scout attack helicopters, and ScanEagle military drones.
“Current and former U.S. officials say there is concern those weapons could be used to kill civilians, be seized by other militant groups such as Islamic State to attack U.S.-interests in the region, or even potentially be handed over to adversaries including China and Russia.” LINK
Internal State Department Cable Warned of Kabul Collapse
July memo shows that Biden admin officials were cautioned about Taliban’s quick advance. Rest assured there have been similar cables warning about the U.S. returning to Obama's Iran nuclear deal.
An internal State Department memo last month warned top agency officials of the potential collapse of Kabul soon after the U.S.’s Aug. 31 troop withdrawal deadline in Afghanistan, according to a U.S. official and a person familiar with the document.
The classified cable represents the clearest evidence yet that the administration had been warned by its own officials on the ground that the Taliban’s advance was imminent and Afghanistan’s military may be unable to stop it.
The cable, sent via the State Department’s confidential dissent channel, warned of rapid territorial gains by the Taliban and the subsequent collapse of Afghan security forces, and offered recommendations on ways to mitigate the crisis and speed up an evacuation, the two people said.
The cable, dated July 13, also called for the State Department to use tougher language in describing the atrocities being committed by the Taliban, one of the people said. LINK
Taliban are rounding up Afghans on blacklist - private intel report
The Taliban have begun rounding up Afghans on a blacklist of people they believe have worked in key roles with the previous Afghan administration or with U.S.-led forces that supported it, according to a report by a Norwegian intelligence group. LINK
Relative of DW journalist killed by the Taliban
Taliban fighters hunting a Deutsche Welle journalist shot dead one member of his family and seriously injured another. The Taliban were going house-to-house to find the journalist. But don't you worry. CNN had an "expert" saying there are "moderate" Taliban factions. LINK
Latest Report on Iran’s Nuclear Activity Underscores Need for More Assertive Strategies
The IAEA confirmed on Tuesday that Iran has dramatically expanded its stockpile of enriched uranium metal, a key element in the process of developing nuclear weapons. LINK
The trial of Hamid Nouri is giving the world a window into the 1988 massacre
The historic trial of Hamid Nouri, an Iranian regime torturer, in Sweden is now in its second week. Nouri is being tried for his role in the 1988 massacre of more than 30,000 Iranian political prisoners. LINK
Why Khamenei’s plan to contain Iran’s angry population with COVID-19 has backfired
Iran's regime refused to buy credible COVID-19 vaccines as dictator Ali Khamenei banned them in January when world leaders were struggling to procure vaccines to safeguard their citizens against the deadly virus and normalize lives. LINK
