White House Statement on the TRR Nuclear Swap
The White House has released a statement on the nuclear fuel swap agreement Brazil and Turkey just reached with Iran: We acknowledge the efforts that have been made by Turkey and Brazil. The proposal announced in Tehran must now be conveyed clearly and authoritatively to the IAEA before it can be considered by the international […]
The Radioactive Elephant in the Room (UPDATED)
With the NPT review conference in New York and the international community increasingly focusing on Iran’s nuclear program, a variety of media sources have picked up on what other countries in the Middle East have been saying for decades. “Israel’s nuclear arsenal stands like the radioactive elephant in the room,” blogger and journalist Khaled Diab […]
Iran Interested in Stable Afghanistan…For Now
The Sunday Times has recently claimed that Iran has been involved in training insurgents in Afghanistan to kill NATO troops. This claim has in turn been repeated by various other news sources like FOX News, The Australian, Global Times, Taipei Times, etc. But the source of this allegation is two Taliban commanders. How kind of […]
Changing Course on Iran Sanctions
This post appeared in today’s The Hill newspaper. New sanctions on Iran are about the surest bet in Washington these days. Both the House and the Senate have passed a “crippling” gasoline embargo, and the administration has all but given up talk of negotiations in favor of pressing for UN Security Council sanctions “that bite.” In […]
Reporting for Duty?
Hossein Yekta, a high ranking member of the Basij militia and a veteran of the Iran-Iraq war, said this week that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has already declared “war,” but “no one is reporting for duty.” Raja News, one of the most hard line news agencies in Iran reported that Yekta tells student Basijis to get […]
Iranian Women Band Together, Caution Against Broad Sanctions
March 8th, International Women’s Day, was celebrated with even more passion this year in Tehran. Zahra Rahnavard – the outspoken wife of the presidential election challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi – issued a statement at a meeting with members of the women’s rights movement in Iran praising all the brave women of the Green Movement for […]
Rafsanjani: National Healer?
As one of the main pillars of power in the Islamic establishment, Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani played a significant role in what became the Iranian Islamic Revolution in 1979. Depending on one’s political affiliation, Rafsanjani to this day is still either highly respected or highly feared in the internal political circles of Iran. Rafsanjani 75, a […]
The Latest Tool for Iran’s Opposition: iPhone Apps
Cross-posted from the Huffington Post Iranians will soon have a new tool at their disposal to broadcast their protests and their government’s repression to the outside world. Voice of America announced last week that it will unveil a new application for iPhone and Android mobile devices that will enable Iranians to upload videos, photos and […]
The Deep South Thanks the Iranian People
The Deep South has found a partner to resolve its healthcare woes: Iran. A recent Times Online article has discovered how local health officials, consultants, and doctors working in the Mississippi Delta region have partnered with Iranian health officials and strategists to address their financial woes and lacking healthcare system. The grim reality facing local […]
Will Congress Undo Obama’s Diplomacy?
Cross-posted from the HuffingtonPost: The 111th Congress is barreling forward in a last minute race to enact what may prove to be one of the most damaging American foreign policy decision for years to come before adjourning for the holidays. It is a decision that may isolate us from our closest allies and biggest trading […]
To Twitter or Not to Twitter
“It was Sullivan who famously proclaimed ‘The Revolution Will Be Twittered’ and called Twitter ‘the critical tool for organizing the resistance in Iran,’” writes Evgeny Morozov a Foreign Policy blogger and Georgetown University Fellow. “It is easy to see why so many pundits accepted this narrative: they had seen something similar before,” he continues, referring […]
Obama Should End Silence on Human Rights Abuses in Iran
Cross-posted from the Huffington Post Frustration is growing among the Iranian people over the Obama administration’s silence on human rights abuses in Iran. Condemnations of Tehran’s abhorrent treatment of its people have been few and far between. But before nuclear diplomacy moves towards a premature ending, the Obama administration must act quickly to reinvigorate its […]