The Associated Press reports, in an article that’s currently being given top billing by Drudge, that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told CNN he has ruled out a preemptive strike against Iran’s possible nuclear facilities.
Sharon Rules Out Attacking Iran Over NukesJERUSALEM (AP) - Israel will not mount a unilateral attack aimed at destroying Iran’s nuclear capability, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Wednesday in a CNN-TV interview.
Sharon said he did not see “unilateral action” as an option. He said Israel did not need to lead the way on the Iran nuclear weapons issue, calling for an international coalition to deal with it.
The only problem is, reading the actual transcript of the interview in question, Sharon doesn’t actually say any of that!
Here’s the relevant portion of the interview:
BLITZER: A lot of our viewers will remember in 1981, when Israel unilaterally bombed an Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak. Are you considering — let me rephrase the question, at what point would Israel take unilateral military action to try to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb?SHARON: I remember, of course, that raid in Iraq and was always proud to [have been] a member of the inner Cabinet … I think that decision then has saved many lives. Just imagine what could have happened if Iraq would have had — Iraq under Saddam Hussein — would have had atomic weapons.
I think that here the situation is different. And the problem is different and much wider. And I think that here it should be a coalition of democracies who believe in the danger, led by United States, in order to put pressure upon Iran.
BLITZER: Have you ruled out a unilateral military strike against Iran?
SHARON: We don’t think that’s what we have to do. We’re not going to solve the problems for nobody. And then the thing that — I’d say the danger is so great that it should be an international effort. Altogether, I would like you to know that Israel is not leading the struggle. Of course we exchange intelligence. We exchange views, we discuss these issues, but it’s not that we are planning any military attack on Iran.
Somehow, that bundle of equivocation got mangled by the AP into “Sharon rules out attacking Iran” and “Israel will not mount a unilateral attack.”
Let’s review what Sharon actually said, shall we?
1. “We don’t think that’s what we have to do” is a speculative assertion of fact; it is by no means a blanket statement that any future option has been ruled out. What you “think” can be wrong. Just because you “think” you won’t have to do something, doesn’t mean it will not happen or that it’s no longer an option.
2. “We’re not going to solve the problems for nobody” is somewhat more forceful, but in addition to being gramatically incorrect, it’s also quite vague. What, precisely, are “the problems”? Just how solid is the level of certainty that’s supposed to be implied by the phrase “not going to”? One can draw various inferences, but this statement certainly isn’t an effective disavowal of any and all possible future preemptive options.
3. “[I]t’s not that we are planning any military attack on Iran” is not an assertion that anything has been taken off the table by any means. He’s merely saying that it isn’t being planned, not that it’s no longer an option or that it will not happen. That’s a HUGE distinction.
Bottom line, if Ariel Sharon had wanted to say, “We are taking the preemptive option off the table,” he could have. But HE DIDN‘T. And yet the AP is reporting that he did!
Also, nowhere in the interview transcript does the phrase “unilateral action” appear, and the only phrase that comes close — “unilteral military action” — was spoken by Wolf Blitzer, not Ariel Sharon. Sharon never even uttered the word “unilateral,” according to the transcript. So what is the justification for the first sentence of the second paragraph in the AP article? It reads: “Sharon said he did not see ‘unilateral action’ as an option.” Sharon said no such thing!
Finally, Sharon also didn’t say anything about what Israel “needs” to do, talking only about what “should” happen internationally. He was silent on the question of what Israel would “need” to do if the things that “should” happen, don’t happen. Another potentially significant distinction.
Unless the CNN transcript is badly flawed or I am really missing something, I’d have to conclude that this AP article is badly, badly flawed.
The Associated Press reports that Iran is stockpiling arms and military equipment including armor-piercing snipers’ rifles and night-vision goggles. Iran’s buying spree has raised fears the arms could end up with militants in Iraq:
Much of the military hardware has been hard to hide — sales of tanks and anti-ship missiles by Belarus and China, or helicopters and artillery pieces from Russia have been well documented by U.S. authorities and international nongovernment agencies.
Other weapons are smuggled and may be revealed only by chance — such as the consignment of 12 nuclear-capable cruise missiles delivered by Ukrainian arms dealers to Iran four years ago but divulged by Ukrainian opposition officials only recently.
The smaller weapons and related material Iran is amassing may not be as eye catching. But they are of U.S. concern because of their origin — through U.N.-funded programs or technically advanced western countries — and because they could harm U.S. troops in Iraq, Afghanistan or ultimately Iran (search), which President Bush has not ruled out as a military target.
From California Yankee.
Agence France-Presse reports that Pakistan is going to send used centrifuge parts to the UN atomic agency to help determine the origin of highly enriched uranium contamination found in Iran:
“The centrifuge parts will be sent to the International Atomic Agency laboratory (IAEA) in Seibersdorf” near Vienna, which will analyze and compare them with centrifuge components Khan sold to Iran, a Western diplomat close to the IAEA told AFP.
The IAEA is investigating contamination by microscopic particles of highly enriched uranium (HEU) found in Iran at a workshop in Tehran, at a pilot enrichment plant at Natanz and at other sites where there were centrifuges.
Reuters reports that Pakistan admits Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, provided Iran with centrifuges that can be used to purify uranium for nuclear weapons:
Pakistan has admitted in the past that Khan smuggled nuclear secrets to North Korea, Iran and Libya, but has not given specifics as to what he supplied.
“He has given centrifuges to Iran, but the government was in no way involved in this,” Pakistani Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told Reuters.
From California Yankee.
Iran and Russia signed a nuclear fuel agreement Sunday, paving the way for Iran to begin operating is first nuclear reactor.Iranian Vice President Gholamreza Aghazadeh and Alexander Rumyantsev, the head of Russia’s Federal Atomic Energy Agency, signed the agreement at the Busher nuclear power plant. The signing, which had been delayed by a day, came after the two senior officials toured the $800 million complex.
This is the latest story. And here is a link to the Farsi language blog that has taken on the responsibility of advocating for the release of Iranian webloggers from prison.
Chester brings us up to speed on “The Technical Collection Game and the Strange Reports from Iran.”
Reuters reports that Iran and Syria said on Wednesday they will form a common front to face challenges and threats:
“We are ready to help Syria on all grounds to confront threats,” Iranian Vice-President Mohammad Reza Aref said in Tehran after meeting Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otari.
Otari told reporters: “This meeting, which takes place at this sensitive time, is important, especially because Syria and Iran face several challenges and it is necessary to build a common front.”
[. . .]
Washington has branded Iran part of an “axis of evil” along with pre-war Iraq and North Korea and accuses Tehran of seeking nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is solely for electricity generation.
President Bush has dubbed Iran “the world’s primary state sponsor of terror” and has warned the United States could use military action to prevent it acquiring a nuclear bomb.
From California Yankee.
The Associated Press reports that Iran will have the knowledge to build nuclear weapons within six months:
“In six months they will finish the tests to have the knowledge to produce weapons of mass destruction,” Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said during a visit to London, repeating long-standing Israeli government warnings about Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
This is not only Israel’s problem, but an international problem, as the long-range missiles can reach Europe.
From California Yankee.
The Washington Post explains that Iran’s UFOs are U.S. reconnaissance drones. In December, Iranians living along the Caspian Sea and on the Iraq border began reporting sightings of red flashes in the sky, streaks of green and blue, and low, racing lights that disappeared moments after being spotted. Iranian air force commanders identified the UFOs as U.S. drones.
According to the Post, the U.S. has been flying surveillance drones over Iran for nearly a year to seek evidence of nuclear weapons programs and detect weaknesses in air defenses:
U.S. officials confirmed that the drones were deployed along Iran’s northern and western borders, first in April 2004, and again in December and January. A former U.S. official with direct knowledge of earlier phases of the operation said the U.S. intelligence community began using Iraq as a base to spy on Iran shortly after taking Baghdad in early April 2003. Drones have been flown over Iran since then, the former official said, but the missions became more frequent last year.
From California Yankee.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Wednesday that Iran must live up to its international obligations to halt its nuclear program or “the next steps are in the offing.”“And I think everybody understands what the ‘next steps’ mean,” Rice told reporters after a meeting with NATO foreign ministers and European Union officials.
“It’s obvious that if Iran cannot be brought to live up to its international obligations that, in fact, the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) statutes would suggest that Iran has to be referred to the U.N. Security Council,” she said.
Iran has refused to halt its nuclear program, saying it is only intended for peaceful energy production.
I believe the issue the administration intends to focus on is human rights in Iran.If you follow the news on Iran, the administration has begun focusing on the human rights issue as it relates to Iran …
… Europe and the UN have a long history of advocating human rights. Europe has tied increased trade with Iran to improvements in their human rights record. European leaders advocacy for Human Rights in Iran bought them popular political support at home at very little cost.
Europeans are proud of their leaders stand for Human Rights. It was no surprise to Europeans that the Iranian human rights lawyer, Shirin Ebadi, won the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize.
If the US makes Human Rights in Iran a centerpiece of its Iran policy, the EU and the UN will have to support it. Russia and China would find it difficult to oppose it.
President Bush’s support for “their issue” will likely be perceived by Europeans generally as a European victory. Popular support could force their leaders to join the US effort.
If Iran refuses to permanently end its uranium enrichment program, as they claim, the EU will have to withdraw its offer of increased trade.
Instead, I would then expect an ever increasing demand of the international community to end all trade (the EU’s only real weapon) until the regime guarantees the Iranian people’s human rights.
Just part of a lengthy analysis. Read the rest.
Reuters reports President Bush will not rule out military action against Iran if that country was not more forthcoming about its suspected nuclear weapons program:
“I hope we can solve it diplomatically, but I will never take any option off the table,” Bush said in an interview with NBC News when asked if he would rule out the potential for military action against Iran “if it continues to stonewall the international community about the existence of its nuclear weapons program.”
From California Yankee.
Reuters reports the Pentagon criticized Seymour Hersh’s New Yorker article titled “The Coming Wars,” that said the U.S. was mounting reconnaissance missions inside Iran to identify potential nuclear and other targets.
The Pentagon’s chief spokesman, Lawrence DiRita said that the Iranian regime’s apparent nuclear ambitions and its demonstrated support for terrorist organizations is a global challenge that deserves much more serious treatment than Hersh’s article provides:
Hersh’s article, published on Sunday, was “so riddled with errors of fundamental fact that the credibility of his entire piece is destroyed,” DiRita said.
Hersh reported that President Bush had signed a series of top-secret findings and executive orders authorizing secret commando groups and other Special Forces military units to conduct covert operations against suspected terrorist targets in as many as 10 nations in the Middle East and South Asia.
DiRita did not comment on that assertion.
Instead, he said, Hersh’s sources fed him “rumor, innuendo, and assertions about meetings that never happened, programs that do not exist and statements by officials that were never made.”
Asked whether U.S. military forces had been conducting reconnaissance missions in Iran, Defense Department spokesman Lt. Col. Barry Venable said, “We don’t discuss missions, capabilities or activities of Special Operations forces.”
From California Yankee.
The Guardian reports U.S. Special Forces are on the ground’ in Iran scouting for U.S. air strike targets on suspected nuclear weapons sites.
The Guardian report is based upon an article written by Seymour Hersh in the latest edition of the New Yorker. According to the Guardian, US commandos have penetrated territory in eastern Iran seeking to pinpoint underground installations suspected of being nuclear weapons sites:
The report in the New Yorker said the Americans have been conducting secret reconnaissance missions over and inside Iran since last summer with a view to identifying up to 40 possible targets for striking should the dispute over Iran turn violent.
From California Yankee.
[by Dan Darling]
The mad mullahs have had some interesting developments of their own today, most notably the apparent extradition of Mustafa Hamza (now being denied by the Iranians), a major figure with in Gamaa al-Islamiyyah and as such commanded the al-Qaeda assassination team that planned to kill President Mubarak in 1995 during a state visit to Ethiopia.
The report of Hamza’s extradition comes from the London-based al-Maqrizi Center for Historical Studies, a source I must admit that I’m not all that familiar with as far as reliability. The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Egyptian security has confirmed that Hamza is indeed in their custody. He is presumably most uncomfortable as I type this.
If it’s true, count Hamza being taken out of circulation as a victory in the war on terrorism. Far more significant are two other revelations contained in the above links:
The march for freedom in Iran continues.
Iranian students have interrupted a speech by President Mohammad Khatami to mark Student Day at Tehran university.Students chanted “Shame on you” and “Where are your promised freedoms?” to express their frustration with the failure of Iran’s reform movement.
A visibly-shaken Khatami defended his record and criticised the powerful hardliners who have closed newspapers and jailed dissidents.
…
But student leader Abdollah Momeni complained that there was is no difference between the president and the authoritarians who thwarted his reform programme.
“Students are very disappointed because they paid a heavy price for supporting Khatami, but in return they got nothing,” he is quoted as saying by Reuters.
A statement distributed by one pro-reform student group at the meeting said: “Unfortunately what Khatami sees as his tolerance was his extreme weakness towards the opponents of democracy”.
Gary Metz has a new Iran briefing up over at Winds of Change, and has a particular focus in the proliferation issue.
The New York Times reports that international inspectors are requesting access to two secret Iranian military sites where intelligence suggests that Tehran’s Ministry of Defense may be working on atomic weapons:
The inspectors at the International Atomic Energy Agency base their suspicions on a mix of satellite photographs indicating the testing of high explosives and procurement records showing the purchase of equipment that can be used for enriching uranium, the diplomats said. Both are critical steps in the development of nuclear arms.
The suspicions were aired here as an Iranian opposition group was preparing to release what it called new information that Iran was secretly developing a nuclear-capable missile whose range is significantly greater than what the Iranians have publicly acknowledged to date.
[. . .]
Mohamed ElBaradei, the director general of the I.A.E.A., said in an interview here on Wednesday that he had repeatedly asked Iran for access to the two sites, but that it had not yet been granted.
“We are following every credible piece of information,” he said. Understanding the exact significance of what is happening at the two military sites is “important,” he added. “We still have work to do, a lot of work.” He estimated that even with full Iranian cooperation, it would take at least two years to resolve all of the outstanding questions surrounding the country’s nuclear program.
“We’re not rushing,” he said. “It takes time.”
From California Yankee.
From Reuters via News Ltd :
The United States has seen information suggesting Iran is working on the technology to deliver a nuclear warhead on a missile, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said today.”I have seen some information that would suggest they have been actively working on delivery systems … you don’t have a weapon until you can put it in something that can deliver a weapon,” he told reporters during a brief stop in Brazil on his way to an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Chile.
“I’m talking about what one does with a warhead,” Mr Powell said.
“We are talking about information that says they not only have (the) missiles but information that suggests they are working hard about how to put the two together.”
The Associated Press reports that Iran has agreed to fully suspend uranium enrichment and related activities:
“Basically it’s a full suspension,” one of the diplomats said on condition of anonymity.
However, the diplomat said Iran had not yet fulfilled a key part of the deal - formally informing the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency of its decision and asking for agency inspectors to police adherence to its commitment.
In October 2003, Iran committed to Britain, France and Germany that it would suspend all uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities.
From California Yankee.
From Reuters via the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) :
Iran said today it was now able to manufacture large quantities of its medium-range Shahab-3 ballistic missile, which defence experts say is capable of hitting Israel or US bases in the Gulf.”We have the capability to mass-produce Shahab-3 missiles,” Defence Minister Ali Shamkhani told reporters.
His comments were confirmed by the Defence Ministry.
[…]
Iran recently announced it had improved Shahab-3’s accuracy and increased its range to 2,000 kilometres.That potentially brought parts of southern Europe within Iran’s reach but Mr Shamkhani said the increased range was merely so that Iran could launch the missile from anywhere within its own borders.
“The change in Shahab-3’s range is based on this concept, not to threaten a certain country,” he said.
Winds of Change.NET Regional Briefings run on Tuesdays & Wednesdays, and sometimes Fridays too. This Regional Briefing focuses on Iran, courtesy of Reza Torkzadeh.
TOP TOPIC
Other Topics Today Include: Iran processing uranium; Kerry’s campaign connection to the Islamic Republic; Russia completes construction of a nuclear plant in Iran; EU appeases Islamic Republic; Iranian bloggers shut down, arrested; NIAC issues statement on death of Iranian-American Soilder in Iraq; Germany supports Iran’s entrance in the WTO; Armed resistance gains momentum; ActivistChat launches Iran Blog
REUTERS: Iran Given Last Chance to Halt Uranium Enrichment
Senior officials from France, Britain and Germany will meet Iran’s top nuclear negotiator in Vienna Thursday to offer Tehran a final chance to halt uranium enrichment plans or face possible U.N. sanctions.“This Thursday, there will be a meeting of our political directors,” British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw told a London news conference with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.
“What will be sought Thursday will be discussions about Iran’s compliance — not with any conditions laid down by the three of us, but by the (International Atomic Energy Agency) board of governors,” he said. “A proposal will be put to them.”
REUTERS: Iran Says Its Missiles Can Now Reach 1,250 Miles
Iran has increased the range of its missiles to 1,250 miles, a senior official was quoted as saying on Tuesday.The range would put parts of Europe within reach for the first time. Military experts had earlier put Iran’s missile range at 810 miles, which would allow it to strike anywhere in Israel.
“Now we have the power to launch a missile with a 2,000 km (1,250-mile) range,” the news agency IRNA quoted influential former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as saying. “Iran is determined to improve its military capabilities.”
“If the Americans attack Iran, the world will change … they will not dare to make such a mistake,” Rafsanjani was quoted as saying in a speech at an exhibition on Space and Stable National Security.
REUTERS: Libya Tells Iran: Be Like us and Comply with IAEA
Libya, which last year renounced its nuclear weapons program, Monday urged Iran to follow suit and comply with the demands of the U.N. nuclear watchdog to stop enriching uranium which can be used to make atomic bombs.“As (IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei) said today, some things have to be fulfilled by Iran,” Libyan Deputy Prime Minister Matouq M. Matouq told reporters after meeting U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) annual general conference.
“The Iranians have to meet these obligations because of the agreement with the IAEA, and we hope that we can have another example (of) Iran of fulfilling the obligations and following the IAEA agreements,” he said.
Matouq also said Tripoli’s December 2003 decision to abandon all weapons of mass destruction could be seen as an example for Iran and all other countries.
“Libya has set an example for everybody,” he said.
(Visions of the old “Be Like Mike” Nike commercials floating through my mind, bombing discos and blowing up airplanes… MAKE THEM STOP!)
JERUSALEM POST: Iran recruits ‘human shield’ for nuclear reactor
Iran is seeking volunteers to act as a massive human shield around Iran’s nuclear reactor in case of a military attack against the facility.About two weeks ago Iran announced its plans build more nuclear power plants with Russian help the in southern port city of Bushehr, ignoring US and Israeli concerns that by-products from the plants could be used to manufacture atomic bombs. The US and Israel strongly suspect Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, but Iran has consistently denied the charges.
The Committee for the Commemoration of Martyrs of the Global Islamic Campaign is organizing the human shield campaign to protect Bushehr reactor, the Sydney Morning Herald reported Wednesday.
According to a spokesman for the group, 25,000 people have already signed up to participate in the shield campaign, Army Radio reported.
Tehran Times: IAEA rules, NPT, additional protocol only nuclear criteria: official
TEHRAN (MNA) -- An Iranian official said on Tuesday that the only mechanism for allaying the international community’s concerns about a country’s nuclear program is the observation of legal and technical regulations determined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and no one has the right to give guarantees or written agreements to Europe and the agency outside this mechanism.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Mehr News Agency that the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the additional protocol to the NPT, and the current safeguards agreement are the only criteria for confirming the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program and there has been no breach of these regulations or treaties.
He said that it is a grave mistake to call the report Mohamed ElBaradei recently delivered to the IAEA Board of Governors “positive”, adding that ElBaradei’s report emphasizes negative points and downplays the positive points.
JERUSALEM POST: Iran preparing for second test of Shahab-3
Iran is ready to repeat a test of a new version of its Shahab-3 ballistic missile, a weapon Iran maintains it produced in response to Israeli efforts to improve its own missile power and test-fired successfully last month.Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani said his employees were ready to test the missile “in the presence of observers,” the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. He did not elaborate.
In August, the Defense Ministry announced the new version of the Shahab-3 _ which already was capable of reaching Israel and U.S. forces in the Middle East _ had been successfully test-fired.
Israeli reports have said the new version of the missile has a longer range than Shahab-3, but Defence Ministry officials have refused to give details about the range.
The Shahab-3, successfully tested before that in 2002 ahead of equipping the elite Revolutionary Guards with it in July 2003, is the Persian state’s longest-range ballistic missile, with a range of 1,296 kilometers (about 810 miles).
Shamkhani on Tuesday was confident the second test also would be successful, IRNA reported. The minister, however, said the tests were no act of muscle-flexing.
“Being powerful does not necessarily mean warmongering,” Shamkhani was quoted as saying.
JERUSALEM POST: Iran says it arrested several nuclear spies
Iran said Tuesday it has arrested dozens of spies, including several people who passed the country’s nuclear secrets to Iran’s enemies, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.Intelligence Minister Ali Yunesi did not identify those arrested but said members of the armed opposition group Mujahedeen Khalq, played the main role.
“The Intelligence Ministry has arrested several spies who were transferring Iran’s nuclear secrets out of the country,” IRNA quoted Yunesi as saying. He did not provide further details.
“The hypocrites (Mujahedeen) had the leading role in passing information (about Iran’s nuclear facilities) and have already said they were proud of spying against Iran,” Yunesi was quoted as saying.
(Keep this all in mind when the Iranians laud Mordechai “Traitor” Vanunu as a hero and former “prisoner of conscience”)
REUTERS: Iran tests latest Shahab missile
Iran says it has carried out a successful field test of the latest version of its Shahab-3 medium-range ballistic missile, which defense experts say can reach Israel or U.S. bases in the Gulf.Defence Minister Ali Shamkhani said last week Iran was working to improve the range and accuracy of the Shahab-3 in response to Israel’s moves to boost its anti-missile capability.
The Defence Ministry, in a brief statement carried on the official news agency IRNA, said the test of the new Shahab-3 “was carried out successfully … The pre-determined targets were hit in the testing,” it said.
Iran says its missile program is purely for deterrent purposes.
Tehran also denies U.S. and Israeli accusations that it is seeking to develop nuclear warheads which could be delivered by the Shahab-3.
In Washington, the State Department said Iran’s attempts to improve its missile capability were a threat to the region and U.S. interests.
“We will continue to take steps to address Iran’s missile efforts, and to work closely with other like-minded countries in doing so,” State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said.
Based on the North Korean Nodong-1 and modified with Russian technology, the Shahab-3 is thought to have a range of 810 miles (1,300 km), which would allow it to strike anywhere in Israel.
Shahab means meteor in Persian.
The Arrow Missile Defense System is said to be unable to intercept Shahab-3 systems yet, but upgrades and research are progressing.
Reuters reports that backtracking from a pledge to Britain, France and Germany, Iran has resumed building nuclear centrifuges, which can be used to enrich uranium for use in bombs:
“We have started building centrifuges,” Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi told a news conference.
However he insisted Iran had not resumed enriching uranium, the key part of the process which can either produce fuel for power stations or bomb material.
Iran had previously said it would restart making centrifuges to retaliate against a resolution from the U.N. nuclear watchdog last month deploring Tehran’s failure to co-operate fully with inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Diplomats say Iran has also restarted work at a uranium conversion facility near the central city of Isfahan. The plant turns processed ore, or yellowcake, into uranium hexafluoride gas which is pumped into centrifuges to form enriched uranium.
[. . .]
“We just want to produce fuel for our plants and we are not after nuclear weapons,” he said.
Washington says Iran’s nuclear program is a cover for seeking atomic weapons.
From California Yankee.
GUARDIAN: Diplomats: Iran Resumes Nuclear Program
Iran is once again building centrifuges that can be used to make nuclear weaponry, breaking the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency’s seals on the equipment in a show of defiance against international efforts to monitor its program, diplomats said Tuesday.Iran has not restarted enriching uranium with the centrifuges - a step that would raise further alarm. But the resumption of centrifuge construction is likely to push European nations, which have been seeking a negotiated resolution, closer to the United States’ more confrontational stance.
The United States accuses Tehran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons and wants the U.N. Security Council to take up the issue. Iran denies the charge and says the centrifuges are part of a nuclear program aimed only at producing energy.
Under international pressure last year, the Islamic republic agreed to stop enriching uranium and stop making centrifuges, in a deal reached with Britain, France and Germany.
But the moratorium ended several weeks ago, when Tehran - angry over international perusal of its nuclear program - broke seals placed on enrichment equipment by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the diplomats told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Iranian officials then resumed assembling and installing centrifuges, which can enrich uranium fuel for generating power or developing warheads, the diplomats said.
JERUSALEM POST: Iran threatens to wipe Israel off map, again
Iran on Monday repeated its threat to “wipe Israel off the map” if Israel attacked the Islamic Republic’s nuclear sites.“The United States is showing off by threatening to use its wild dog, Israel,” Revolutionary Guards Commander Seyed Masood Jazayeri was quoted as saying by the Iranian student news agency ISNA.
“They will not hesitate to strike Iran if they are capable of it. However, their threats to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities cannot be realized. They are aware Tehran’s reaction will be so harsh that Israel will be wiped off the face of the earth and US interests will be easily damaged,” he warned.
A number of stories concerning Iran have come out recently, and I want to have the chance to gather them in one post.
This article discusses the abrupt ending of the trial surrounding the murder of Zahra Kazemi:
Iran’s hardline judiciary abruptly ended the trial on Sunday of an intelligence agent accused of killing a Canadian journalist, prompting angry lawyers to complain key evidence had been ignored or covered up.A verdict is expected in a week or so.
Foreign diplomats and journalists were barred from the third day of the trial of the agent, Mohammad Reza Aqdam, over the death last July of Zahra Kazemi, 54, a photographer of Iranian origin who was detained after taking pictures of a Tehran jail.
Iranian human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi, a Nobel Peace laureate, said the judge had ignored testimony that might have incriminated a judiciary official.
The case has damaged Iran’s relations with Canada, which announced the withdrawal of its ambassador last week, and turned an international spotlight on Iran’s judiciary and prisons.
It has also exposed deep rifts between President Mohammad Khatami’s reformist government and the judiciary which is run by his hardline opponents.
“I’m so angry I cannot speak. They didn’t even pay attention to our evidence and announced the end of the trial,” Ebadi, who was representing Kazemi’s family, said outside the Tehran court.
“This is not a fair trial. The case hasn’t been reviewed. If they issue a verdict it will be unfair,” she added.
This story follows up:
A hard-line prosecutor has ordered Iranian newspapers to censor their coverage of a trial of a secret agent accused of murdering an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist, journalists said Monday.Speaking to government spokesman Abdollah Ramezanzadeh after his weekly press conference, several reporters said Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi called their offices and told them to not report on parts of the trial, which ended abruptly Sunday.
One journalist said Mortazavi told him, “It’s in your interest to consider the murder trial over and avoid publishing things that you should not.”
Hard-liners were angered after a legal team representing the mother of slain photojournalist Zahra Kazemi accused prison official Mohammad Bakhshi of inflicting the fatal blow to Kazemi, and accused the hard-line judiciary of illegally detaining her.
Most Iranian newspapers have not published the accusations against Bakhshi and the prosecution, apparently fearing retribution.
“I was afraid to publicly put this to you during the press conference because I was afraid of possible punishment from Mortazavi,” one of the journalists told Ramezanzadeh.
“Mortazavi called our newspaper Sunday to say we have to delete parts of the trial where lawyers implicated Bakhshi in the murder,” she said.
Ramezanzadeh said imposing such restrictions on newspapers was illegal.
“Restricting approved freedoms is against the constitution,” Ramezanzadeh told reporters.
The judiciary ordered two reformist publications to shut down Saturday, when the trial opened. Sources at the newspapers said officials appeared upset with an article one of them published last week about Kazemi’s death.
A former judge, Mortazavi is widely seen as the man behind the closure of more than 100 pro-democracy publications the past four years.
And finally, we have this story concerning the fate of academic dissident Hashem Aghajari:
Iran’s hardline judiciary sentenced dissident academic Hashem Aghajari to five years in prison on Tuesday for saying Muslims should not blindly follow their clerical leaders like “monkeys,” his lawyer said.The sentence marked a major climb down by the judiciary which originally condemned Aghajari to death for blasphemy after making the speech in 2002.
The death sentence, issued by a provincial court in western Iran, sparked some of the largest student protests for years and fueled international concern about restrictions on free speech in the Islamic state.
The blasphemy verdict was finally overturned by the Supreme Court in June after many senior clerics said it was too harsh. A re-trial was held in Tehran earlier this month.
“The Tehran court sentenced him to five years in prison for insulting Islamic values,” Aghajari’s lawyer Saleh Nikbakht told Reuters.
REUTERS: Israel sees “nuclear capable” Iran by 2007
Israeli estimates of when Iran will be able to build a nuclear bomb have been shifted two more years to 2007, an intelligence report said on Wednesday and analysts credited the delay to international scrutiny of Tehran.Security sources quoted the report — delivered to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in private and leaked in part to the media — as saying that within three years Iran would have the means to produce an atomic bomb by itself.
Iran vehemently denies pursuing nuclear weapons, arguing its atomic ambitions are limited to generating electricity.
Here is the latest story on an ongoing issue in Iran:
Iran’s morality police have made several raids in Tehran, in an apparent crackdown on women who flout the strict Islamic dress code. Witnesses said dozens of young women were held in the raids on shopping centres and shops in the capital.Police also confiscated several items of clothing deemed to be too revealing.
After winning parliamentary elections in February, hardliners warned they would not tolerate what they described as social corruption.
However, the clampdown could be the usual summer anti-vice operation, correspondents say.
Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran’s laws say all young women must wear the veil and a long coat that conceals their figures, or face fines or even imprisonment.
AP: U.S. Expels 2 Guards at Iran U.N. Mission
The U.S. government has expelled two Iranian security guards at Iran’s U.N. Mission, citing activities “incompatible with their stated duties,” a U.S. official said Tuesday.The language is reserved for cases involving espionage.
The Iranians were caught on three occasions taking photos of infrastructure, transport systems and New York City landmarks, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The first incident was in June 2002 and the second was in November 2003; after they were stopped recently while taking photographs, the government asked them to leave the country, the official said.
The pair left the United States in the last few days, the official said.
AP: Khamenei Says Tehran Not Seeking Nukes
Iran’s supreme leader said Monday his country was not seeking nuclear weapons, but he vowed that Tehran won’t give up its program to enrich uranium for fuel in nuclear reactors.“If Europeans and others are really worried that we may acquire nuclear weapons, we assure them that we are not seeking to produce such weapons,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in his first remarks since Friday’s rebuke of Iran’s nuclear activities by a U.N. atomic watchdog agency.
“But if they are unhappy about Iran’s access to the outstanding nuclear technology and want to stop this trend, I tell them they should be assured that the Iranian nation won’t give in on this,” he told a gathering of university officials.
CNN: Iran: British vessels confiscated
Iran has confiscated three British vessels that had crossed into Iran’s territorial waters and arrested eight sailors aboard the ships, according to Iranian state television.The Iranian government confiscated weapons and maps from the ships on Monday as well, the Arabic language Al-Alam television reported.
“Iranian forces confiscated the ships and eight military personnel on board,” the report said.
Al-Alam said crew members were carrying maps and weapons, The Associated Press reported.
It also said the ships were confiscated at about 11 a.m. between the Bahmanshir and Arvand rivers, which would put them in the Shatt-al-Arab waterway east of the Iraqi city of Faw, AP reported.
The broadcast gave no further details.
Here is the story:
Toughening its stance in advance of a meeting of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, Iran on Saturday said it would reject international restrictions on its nuclear program and challenged the world to accept Tehran as a member of the “nuclear club.”Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi rejected further outside influence on Tehran’s nuclear ambitions two days before the International Atomic Energy Agency board of governors meets to discuss Iran’s highly controversial program.
“We won’t accept any new obligations,” Kharrazi said. “Iran has a high technical capability and has to be recognized by the international community as a member of the nuclear club. This is an irreversible path.”
Iran has repeatedly insisted its nuclear program is geared toward generating electricity, not making weapons, but the United States and its allies say Tehran has a secret nuclear weapons program. The IAEA has wrestled with the dilemma for more than a year.
Iran has already suspended uranium enrichment and stopped building centrifuges. It has also allowed IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities without prior notice, part of the additional protocol to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty that still must be approved by parliament.
Kharrazi insisted that Iran would not give up its development of the nuclear fuel cycle, the steps for processing and enriching uranium necessary for both nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Iran says it has achieved the full cycle, but is not now enriching uranium.
JERUSALEM POST: ElBaradei: Too early to tell if Iran making nukes
The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday his agency has not found proof to date of a concrete link between Iran’s nuclear activities and its military program, but said it was premature to make a judgment.Mohammed ElBaradei, the IAEA director general who addressed a NATO Parliamentary Assembly meeting in the Slovak capital, said there was still some work to do regarding Iran.
Agency experts were still probing into whether “the Iranian program has been designated exclusively for peaceful purposes or has a military dimension,” ElBaradei said. He added, “We haven’t seen a concrete proof of a link to the military program, but as I said it’s premature to make a judgment.”
CNN: Strong earthquake rocks Iran
A 6.2 magnitude earthquake has struck northern Iran, centered about 45 miles north of the capital, Tehran, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.Friday’s quake is the first major one to hit Iran since last December’s 6.6 magnitude event that virtually destroyed the ancient city of Bam, killing more than 25,000 people.
Friday’s quake is centered much deeper than the Bam quake — 26 km (16 miles) instead of the relatively shallow 10-km (6-mile) Bam quake. Bam is about 990 km (610 miles) southeast of Tehran.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.
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REUTERS: Iran to Present Full Nuke Picture to UN Soon-Envoy
Iran has drafted a report aimed at providing a complete picture of its nuclear program and will hand it over to the U.N. nuclear watchdog “very soon,” its ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna said Thursday.
Iran is due to present a complete account of its nuclear activities and plans to the International Atomic Energy Agency by mid-May, ahead of a meeting of the agency’s board of governors next month.“The report is ready,” Iranian envoy Pirooz Hosseini told Reuters.
“After a final review by the experts, we will hand it over very soon to the agency,” Hosseini said.