Iran

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Iranian Cartoonist Draws Politician, Gets 25 Lashes

Mahmoud Shokraiyeh will be whipped for poking fun at legislator

(Newser) - An Iranian cartoonist has been sentenced to 25 lashings for drawing a member of parliament wearing a soccer jersey, reports MSNBC's Cartoon Blog . Mahmoud Shokraiyeh illustrated a caricature of the politician as part of a news story involving the relocation of a soccer team to a different city. It...

UN Nuke Inspector Dies in Iran Crash

Inspectors' car overturned near a heavy water reactor

(Newser) - Cue the conspiracy theories: A UN nuclear inspector from South Korea was killed and a second inspector from Slovenia was injured in a car crash today, the nuclear watchdog agency said. Iran's official IRNA news agency said the inspectors' car overturned around a heavy water reactor being built in...

Clinton to India: Back Off the Iran Oil

Secretary on 3-day visit seeking more support for oil sanctions

(Newser) - Hoping to wean India from Iranian oil imports, Hillary Clinton is urging Indian leaders to explore alternative suppliers as she opens a three-day visit to the energy-starved South Asian giant. Clinton arrived in the eastern city of Kolkata today as officials traveling with her said the Iranian oil imports would...

Iran's New Political Flashpoint: Tiny Gulf Island

Ahmadinejad makes push to claim Abu Musa in Persian Gulf

(Newser) - Add the island of Abu Musa to those lands whose location and politics makes their importance far greater than their size. As the New York Times explains, the island is only four square miles, but it happens to sit in the Persian Gulf, and both Iran and the United Arab...

US Might Allow Iran Some Uranium Enrichment

Concession would come in exchange for increased inspections

(Newser) - Iran might be allowed to continue enriching uranium up to 5% purity, the high end of civilian usage, if it allows unrestricted inspections and strong supervision of its nuclear program, reports the LA Times . The deal would be a major concession by the United Nations and United States, and Iran...

Obama: Use Tech to Abuse Rebels, We'll Sanction You

Executive order fingers entities backing Iran, Syria, but could be enlarged

(Newser) - If you use technology to help a repressive regime commit human rights abuses, you'll find yourself slapped with US sanctions. That's the message from President Obama, who this morning announced a new executive order specifically targeting those backing Iran and Syria via technology, though it could be expanded...

Iran: We're Copying US Spy Drone

Iran military claims to have reverse-engineered drone

(Newser) - A senior Iranian commander says the country has reverse-engineered an American spy drone captured by Tehran's armed forces last year and has begun building a copy. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who is chief of the aerospace division of the powerful Revolutionary Guards, was quoted today by the semi-official Mehr...

Could Iran Be Brought to Its Knees by ... Insurance?

European insurance sanction will be the toughest to dodge, Reuters says

(Newser) - Could the decisive blow in the West's struggle with Iran involve insurance salesmen? An upcoming European ban on providing maritime insurance for Iran's oil tankers may be the most vexing sanction Tehran has ever faced, experts tell Reuters . That's because 90% of the world's tanker insurance...

1st Iran Nuke Talks 'Constructive'

Catherine Ashton sees 'sustained process of dialog'

(Newser) - Negotiators on all sides are saying nice things after Iran and six world powers began nuclear talks with a meeting in Istanbul today, the New York Times reports. The discussion was "useful and constructive," said European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, leader of the talks. “We...

Rocket Failure? Kim Jong Un Still Promoted

And North Korea re-confirms 'military-first' policy

(Newser) - If at first you don't succeed, bomb, bomb again. In the wake of its failed rocket launch , North Korea is doubling down on its "military-first" policy, promoting 20-something Kim Jong Un to first secretary of the powerful National Defense Commission—that officially makes him the country's leader,...

Why This Time, Iranian Talks Might Actually Work

Talks kick off tomorrow in Istanbul

(Newser) - Iran usually uses "negotiations" over its nuclear program to complain about the US and the West in general, but things might actually be different when talks kick off tomorrow in Istanbul. This time, Iran might actually be willing to talk, thanks to the crippling sanctions it's laboring under,...

Kofi Annan Asks Iran for Help With Syria

UN envoy says he still thinks ceasefire will somehow work

(Newser) - Kofi Annan isn't panicking just because the Syrian regime blew off yesterday's ceasefire deadline . Annan says Bashar al-Assad's regime has assured him that it will respect the ceasefire plan and end hostilities tomorrow morning, the BBC reports. "If everyone respects it, I think by six in...

Günther Grass Barred From Israel Over Poem

German author banned after new poem lashes Jewish state

(Newser) - Controversial German author Günther Grass has been barred from Israel for a new poem sharply criticizing the Jewish state for its secretive nuclear program and its belligerent position on Iran. "If Günther wants to spread his twisted and lying works, I suggest he does this from Iran,...

Iraq's 'King of Clubs' Appears Online

Former deputy to Saddam Hussein rails against Shiites, Iran

(Newser) - He was the king of clubs. Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein's government still at large, appears to have turned up in an online video posted yesterday, railing against Iraq's government, reports the AP . In the hour-long video, which appears on a website linked to...

Iran Tried to Stir Anti-US Violence After Koran Mess

Its efforts to make trouble in Afghanistan largely failed

(Newser) - As if the situation in Afghanistan isn't messy enough, American officials today revealed that Iran tried to stir the pot. Tehran apparently jumped on the news that US troops had burned Korans at Bagram in late February, ordering agents stationed in the country to try to spur on violent...

Obama Clears Way for Sanctions on Iran

President says world market has enough oil to enact restrictions

(Newser) - President Obama today greenlighted sanctions designed to choke Iran's oil industry and pressure Tehran into giving up its nuclear ambitions. The decision comes after the White House established that there's enough crude oil in world markets to keep American allies steady if they reduce imports from Iran, reports...

Syria Sells Oil to China—Thanks to Iran

Meanwhile, Annan has message for Assad: Cease-fire, now

(Newser) - With the West united against the Syrian government and implementing a series of punishing sanctions, it's Iran and China to the rescue—as Chinese state-run firm Zhuhai Zhenrong bought an estimated $84 million in crude oil, and Iran supplied the boat to transport it, reports Reuters . The Malta-flagged vessel...

Iran: Nuke Talks Resume April 13

Ali Akbar Salehi gives likely date

(Newser) - As expected , nuclear talks between Iran and world powers will resume, likely on April 13. Iranian media quoted Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi giving the likely date today; he also noted that Turkey is willing to host the talks and Iran is "considering it" and will reply soon....

US World's No. 5 Executioner: Amnesty

Executions surge in Middle East

(Newser) - Fewer countries than ever are executing people, but those countries are doing so with gusto, according to a new report from Amnesty International. Just 20 nations still use the death penalty. The US executed 43 people last year, making it 5th globally, and the only Western democracy on the list,...

Obama Ready to Cut Nukes Again

President issues nuclear warnings to North Korea, Iran

(Newser) - President Obama still thinks we could stand to get rid of a bunch of our nukes, and has promised a renewed effort to cut American and Russian nuclear arsenals following 2010's START treaty . "We can already say with confidence that we have more nuclear weapons than we need,...

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