Let's talk Iran - March 18, 2022
Israel urges Biden not to remove Iran's Revolutionary Guards from terror blacklist
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid issued a joint statement on Friday urging the Biden administration not to remove the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps from the U.S. blacklist of foreign terrorist organizations.
Bennett and Lapid's statement was unusually strong in its criticism of the Biden administration, calling the proposed move "an insult to the victims."
It reveals the impact a decision on the Revolutionary Guards have on U.S. relations with Israel and other allies in the region who have been targeted by the group and would see such a move as a betrayal by the Biden administration. LINK
Bennett, Lapid urge US not to delist Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as terror group: ‘Insult to victims’
“The fight against terrorism is a global one, a shared mission of the entire world. We believe that the United States will not abandon its closest allies in exchange for empty promises from terrorists,” the ministers say.
“The Iranian Revolutionary Guards are Hezbollah in Lebanon, they are Islamic Jihad in Gaza, they are the Houthis in Yemen, they are the militias in Iraq,” the statement reads. LINK
Lifting sanctions on Iran will finance terror against Israel - interview with Rep. Torres
“If we lift the sanctions, how are those dollars likely to be spent?" US Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) said in an interview. Torres also said he does not think that a majority of Congress would support lifting sanctions on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). LINK
Clandestine Finance System Helped Iran Withstand Sanctions Crush, Documents Show
System set up outside Iran’s borders conducted tens of billions in banned trade, according to documents, intelligence officials
Iran established a clandestine banking and finance system to handle tens of billions of dollars in annual trade banned under U.S.-led sanctions, enabling Tehran to endure and giving it leverage in multilateral nuclear talks. Western officials say the clandestine system has worked well enough that Iranian authorities aim to make it a permanent part of the economy, not only to shield Iran from future possible sanctions campaigns but also to enable it to conduct trade without scrutiny...This is an unprecedented governmental money-laundering operation,” one of the Western officials said of the clandestine system.” LINK
Congress must stop Team Biden from giving Russia a financial lifeline in Iran deal
Biden appears determined to undermine its own economic-sanctions campaign against Putin for his unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and aid a second dictatorship in the process. LINK
Senators in both parties tie Iran to Russian invasion of Ukraine amid nuclear deal talks
Sen. Menendez warns, 'we cannot lose sight of the threat of the Iranian regime'
Republican and Democratic senators on Wednesday tied the Iranian regime to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, noting the hard line regime’s support of Russian President Vladimir Putin -- and linking the struggle for freedom in Iran to Kiev’s resistance to Moscow’s invasion. LINK
Ukraine Crisis Underscores Need for Early Pressure on Rogue States, Including Iran
Western powers believed they were taking the more cautious path when they avoided exerting pressure on Moscow prior to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Clearly, that was a mistake. Democratic nations must exert whatever pressure they can on belligerent, autocratic regimes before their belligerence crosses the threshold. The international community should apply this lesson to Iran policy immediately and throw its support behind the opposition as the sole democratic and peaceful alternative.
Otherwise, they will find themselves struggling to provide that support in the wake of a much greater devastation, just as they are doing in Ukraine today. LINK
Is Iran’s Regime Carrying Russia’s Water?
The talks in Vienna over the Iranian regime’s highly controversial and suspicious nuclear program took a turn for the worst last week. Russia, after being slapped with heavy international sanctions following its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, has been tying the future of the talks to its own new set of demands. LINK
Javaid Rehman’s Report Highlights Systemic Human Rights Violations in Iran
He listed numerous cases and called for an independent probe on the 1988 massacre of political prisoners and the crackdown of the November 2019 uprising as well as to end systemic impunity. LINK
Iran: 14 executions in several cities across the country
Reports also indicate a number of inmates have been transferred to solitary confinement to be executed on the verge of Nowruz, the Iranian calendar New Year (March 21). This brings the number of executions from March 21, 2021, to this day to 355 inmates. LINK
University Professor receives one-year prison time for scattering flowers on the graves of execution victims
Agents of the Abolfazl al-Abbas Security Garrison in Khuzestan arrested the university professor and her husband on June 29, 2021, at their residence in Andimeshk and transferred them to an unknown location. IRGC Intelligence forces ransacked their home at the time of the arrest. They took away their personal belongings, including their computers and mobile cellphones. LINK
Hasti Amiri sentenced to one year in prison for opposing the death penalty
This measure is merely one of example of the violation of the right to freedom of expression and opinion in Iran. She was also banned from participating in student rallies on charges of “propaganda against the regime.” LINK
Nowruz, hope, and prosperity for the Iranian people
The history of Nowruz is rooted in the 3,000-year-old tradition of Zoroastrianism. In harmony with the rebirth of nature, the Persian New Year Celebration, or Nowruz (new day), always begins on the first day of spring. This reawakening symbolizes the triumph of good over the evil forces of darkness, symbolically represented by winter. Nowruz ceremonies are symbolic representations of two ancient concepts – the End and the Rebirth, or Good and Evil. Among the people of Iran, Nowruz is considered the most significant national holiday that is accompanied by a host of customs and traditions. Visiting the elders, getting together, giving presents to children, planning for a prosperous new year, and strengthening family and friendship bonds,… are embedded in the spirit of Nowruz, both in philosophy and practice. LINK