Middle East

U.S. berated by Iran for racism regarding Minnesota police killing

Jim Stein May 31, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iran took Washington to task on Saturday over the alleged killing of an unarmed black man by a white police officer that sparked protests in the United States over racial injustice. “Some don’t think #BlackLivesMatter,” Iranian Foreign Minister

Middle East

Mosques in Iran to resume daily prayers, president says

Jim Stein May 30, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Government employees went back to work in Iran on Saturday and President Hassan Rouhani said mosques are to resume daily prayers throughout the country, even though some areas are seeing high levels of coronavirus infections. Rouhani also said on state television that the hours of shopping malls, which had been allowed […]

Middle East

Former Iranian Guards commander elected as speaker

Jim Stein May 28, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iranian lawmakers elected former Revolutionary Guards air force commander Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf on Thursday as the speaker of the hardliner-dominated parliament for one year, state television reported. State TV said 230 lawmakers, out of 264, voted for Qalibaf, whose record as a veteran of Iran’s eight-year war with Iraq in the […]

Middle East

Iran parliament reconvenes under strict coronavirus curbs

Jim Stein May 27, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iran’s parliament reconvened on Wednesday after the Feb. 21 elections under strict health protocols and social distancing rules to ward off the coronavirus in one of the hardest-hit Middle Eastern countries. Many lawmakers wore masks and their temperatures were taken before entering the parliament building in southern Tehran, Iranian media

Middle East

Rouhani says Iran to retaliate over any U.S. ‘trouble’ for Venezuela-bound tankers

Nia N May 23, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned on Saturday of retaliatory measures against the United States if Washington caused problems for tankers carrying Iranian fuel to Venezuela, the semi-official news agency Mehr reported. “If our tankers in the Caribbean or anywhere in the world face trouble caused by the Americans, they (the U.S.) […]

Middle East

Iran’s Khamenei says Israel is a ‘cancerous tumor’ in Middle East

Nia N May 22, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Palestinians on Friday to continue their uprising against Israel, suggesting the Israeli government was a “tumor” that should be confronted until Palestinians were liberated. “The uprising by Palestinians should continue … fight to liberate Palestine is an

Middle East

Iran appeals to people not to travel for Eid holiday to avoid COVID-19 spike

Nia N May 21, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iran’s top health official appealed to Iranians to avoid travelling during the Eid al-Fitr religious holiday later this month to avoid the risk of a new surge of coronavirus infections, state TV reported on Thursday. Iranians often travel to different cities around the country to mark the end of the Muslim […]

Middle East

Iran’s navy will still operate in Gulf despite U.S. warning

Nia N May 20, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – The Iranian navy will maintain regular missions in the Gulf, the ISNA news agency reported on Wednesday, a day after the United States warned mariners there to stay away from U.S. warships. “The naval units of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman will […]

Middle East

Iran complains to United Nations; summons envoy over U.S. threat on Venezuela shipment

Jim Stein May 18, 2020

(Middle East) – Iran complained to the United Nations on Sunday and summoned the Swiss ambassador in Tehran, who represents U.S. interests in the Islamic Republic, over possible measures Washington could take against an Iranian fuel shipment to Venezuela. A senior official in U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration told Reuters on Thursday the United

Middle East

French academic sentenced to six years in prison by Iran

Jim Stein May 16, 2020

DUBAI (Middle East) – Iran has sentenced French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah to six years in prison on national security charges, her lawyer told Reuters on Saturday. “The court has sentenced her to six years,” said Saeid Dehghan. “The branch 15 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court has sentenced her to five years jail for gathering and