JPost Editorial: More can be done to support the Iranian protests against strict Islamic laws
The civil unrest that began in Iran on September 16 has been called “The Mahsa Amini protests,” named after the young Iranian woman who died in police custody in Tehran after being severely beaten by the Guidance Patrol, the Islamic Republic’s morality police, which accused her of wearing an “improper” hijab in violation of Iran’s mandatory hijab law.Phyllis Chesler: Why Haven’t Linda Sarsour, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib Even Mentioned Iran’s Hijab Protests?
“The 22-year-old woman emerged from the Tehran subway, her dark hair covered with a black headscarf and the lines of her body obscured by loose clothing, when the capital city’s Guidance Patrol spotted her,” The New York Times reported. “They were members of Iran’s notorious morality police, enforcers of the conservative Islamic dress and behavior rules that have governed daily life for Iranians since the 1979 revolution, and newly energized under a hard-line president who took office last year. By their standards, Mahsa Amini was improperly dressed, which could mean something as simple as a wisp of hair protruding from her headscarf. They put her in a van and drove her away to a detention center, where she was to undergo re-education. Three days later, on September 16, she was dead.”
The protests erupted hours after her death outside the Tehran hospital where she was treated and spread like wildfire to her home province of Kurdistan and then to other cities across Iran.
In response, the Iranian regime initially implemented regional shutdowns of Internet access, and as the protests grew, it imposed a widespread Internet blackout together with nationwide restrictions on social media.
Still, dozens of protesters have been killed in almost two weeks of rage and street battles that are certainly the deadliest since the 2019–20 protests which resulted in more than 1,500 fatalities. The New York Times called them the largest the country has witnessed since 2009, when demonstrations broke out in response to the reelection of then-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a vote seen by many as fraudulent.
Chanting “Women, life and freedom” and “Death to the dictator,” the protesters targeted their anger at their ailing supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while their current president, Ebrahim Raisi, was in New York City to address the UN General Assembly. Ironically, Raisi canceled a scheduled interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour after she refused to wear a headscarf.
Clearly, the Iranian women and their male supporters find their lives intolerable. They’d rather be dead than continue to live in the prison that Iran has become for all but the ruling mullahs and their hirelings.Emily Schrader: Iran protests should be turning point in change for women, life and freedom
The demonstrations, however, are about more than women’s rights. Iranians have demonstrated in massive numbers before — in 2009 over election fraud, in 2017 over economic misery, and in 2019 over fuel prices. Each time, the government suppressed the uprisings with bullets, tear gas, beatings, arrests, torture, and murder. What might be required for a different outcome to occur?
In a personal interview, my esteemed colleague, Ibn Warraq, points out: “The protesters lack leadership and above all they lack weapons.”
Ibn Warraq also points out that “At some point the army would have to flip, refuse to kill their own people.”
Is this possible? Can it ever happen? Are a people who were able to drive out the Shah also capable of driving out Khomeini’s mullahs? That is the question.
For all its very serious faults, including using the American flag to fashion a hijab for the marchers, Sarsour was part of a Women’s March leadership that drew hundreds of thousands of people. Tlaib and Omar have run multiple successful campaigns.
Imagine if they applied their organizational skills to rallying Americans to take to the streets in support the heroic Iranian women and men who are risking their lives for the freedoms we enjoy in America.
It could show the Iranians that we stand with them, and that moral support might help keep them going. Sadly, we are unlikely to find out.
This past week, practically the entire country of Iran exploded over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, arrested by Iran’s infamous morality police for improperly wearing a hijab (a criminal offense in Iran). She was beaten and later died of her injuries. The response from the people of Iran has been overwhelming.
Iranians once lived in an extremely progressive and liberal country, but for 43 years now have suffered under the terrorist dictatorship of the Ayatollah – a radically Islamist regime known for its barbarity, cruelty, and misogyny. Mahsa’s death, however, has sparked an uprising. The people have had their fill of systematic oppression, in particular against women. Through massive protests and the help of social media, Iranians are doing all they can to reclaim their country. Sadly, the West appears to be failing them yet again.
From the very start of the protests, the movement was women-led, with initial slogans being “women, life, freedom.” With the hashtag #MahsaAmini, videos began circulating across social media showing Iranian women cutting their hair and burning their hijabs to protest against the Islamic regime and its brutal morality police. The protests spilled into the streets as tens of thousands of Iranians gathered fearlessly, men and women, burning hijabs in public, dancing (another illegal activity for women in Iran), and chanting, “death to the dictator!” in the face of violent regime police.
Yet at the same time as Iranians were fighting for their basic freedoms and for equality between men and women, the United States – which is supposed to be a beacon of freedom and democracy in the world – welcomed Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, also known as the “Butcher of Tehran” for his role in mass executions and torture of political dissidents. Raisi touched down in New York to address the UN General Assembly, yet should never have been granted a visa.
The US prohibits issuing visas to leaders who have threatened US leaders or have carried out terrorist activities. Given that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is a terror group in the United States, the fact the US would grant Raisi a visa is appalling and disrespectful to Raisi’s victims and the Iranian people.
As if that wasn’t sickening enough, shortly before Raisi addressed the UN, he conducted an interview with 60 Minutes in which he blatantly refused to recognize that the Holocaust occurred. Later, in his UN speech, he criticized the United States and praised late IRGC Commander Qasem Soleimani, a man responsible for countless acts of terrorism.
Biggest Israel Moments at the United Nations
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid appeared before the assembled representatives of the nations of the world and spoke on matters of critical importance to the Jewish state as part of the opening meeting of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly.
When Lapid ascended to the rostrum, he joined a long and dignified list of leaders and representatives who have appeared before the international community to advocate on behalf of Israel, as well as to defend its citizens and their right to live in peace and security.
Over the past 75 years, a number of Israel-related moments at the UN have stood out for both their importance and their long-lasting impact.
The following are the top five Israel moments at the United Nations (in chronological order).
Moscow Cozies Up With Hamas to Pressure Israel
A delegation from the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, led by Politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh, made a multi-day visit to Moscow this month for meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as well as other Russian officials.Robert F. Kennedy's killer Sirhan Sirhan appeals denial of parole - report
Asharq Al-Awsat cited a source in the Russian capital, presumably from Hamas’ Moscow office, as saying that Haniyeh wanted to solicit Russia’s views on his “new ideas” for confronting Israel. For Moscow, the visit likely reflects a continuation of its efforts to leverage the Palestinians and other issues to pressure Israel over its stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Russia and Israel built friendly relations in the decades following the Soviet Union’s dissolution. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February, Jerusalem condemned the war, but made sure to tread carefully in order to preserve working ties with Moscow, lest Russian military forces in Syria disrupt Israel’s strategically important air operations there.
Nevertheless, bilateral tensions spiked in April after Yair Lapid, then serving as Israel’s foreign minister, joined the chorus of voices worldwide accusing Russia of committing war crimes in Ukraine. Jerusalem later provided Kyiv with some non-lethal military aid and a field hospital.
In response, Moscow hardened its rhetoric about Israeli actions in the Palestinian territories. Last month, for example, Russia’s embassy in Egypt slammed Jerusalem for accusing Russia of atrocities while allegedly showing “complete disregard and contempt for the lives of Palestinians” during an Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip.
In addition to its tough rhetoric, Moscow has cozied up to Hamas to signal displeasure to Israel and warn Jerusalem against harming Russian interests. Haniyeh’s visit this month followed a May 4-5 trip by another senior Hamas delegation, which traveled to Russia to discuss a flare-up in Israeli-Palestinian tensions over the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Temple Mount.
That visit came as Russian-Israeli ties soured further after Lapid expressed outrage at antisemitic comments by Lavrov, while Moscow accused Jerusalem of backing what Russia paints as the “neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv.” In July, Israel’s Channel 12 News reported that Russia’s ambassador to Israel had expressed dismay over Lapid’s ascension to the premiership, although both sides subsequently denied that report.
Sirhan Sirhan, a Palestinian man who was convicted for assassinating Senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy in 1968, is appealing California Governor Gavin Newsom's decision to reject his parole in January, The Associated Press reported on Wednesday.US envoy says Allenby crossing from West Bank to Jordan to open 24/7
Sirhan shot Kennedy after he delivered a speech regarding his victory in the state's primary election.
Newsom said Sirhan is still a threat to the public and cited the fact that he denies he killed Kennedy as a reason he denied parole.
Angela Berry, an attorney for Sirhan, claims there is no proof that her client is still a threat to society and has filed a writ of habeas corpus requesting that a judge determine that the governor violated state law and denied Sirhan's constitutional right to due process, according to the AP report.
Furthermore, Berry accused Newsom of abusing the parole system for his own political biases because of the fact that he claims Kennedy is his political hero and keeps photographs of him in his offices.
Kennedy family split on support for Sirhan's release
While Kennedy's sons Douglas Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, Jr. have declared their support for Sirhan's release, Kennedy's wife and six of his other children oppose granting him parole, according to the report.
Sirhan is set for a new hearing before the parole board in March, AP added.
The Allenby Bridge border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan will begin a pilot in which it will operate 24 hours a day, every day of the week, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides announced Wednesday.BBC News returns to Jerusalem embassies game plan
All-hours access to the crossing, which is operated by the Israel Airports Authority on the West Bank end of the bridge, was declared as a goal by US President Joe Biden when he visited the country in July. At the time, the US set a deadline for September 30 but Israeli media reports since said it would not be met due to a lack of resources.
Nides announced the development in a tweet and thanked the Prime Minister’s Office, the Transportation Ministry, the airports authority and the government’s Israeli liaison office with the Palestinian territories, known as COGAT.
“It’s worth the investment to get to 24/7 access and will make a real difference in people’s lives!” Nides tweeted.
At a press conference in Jerusalem, Nides said that the pilot was supposed to have started on Friday but was delayed due to the Jewish High Holidays, which began with Rosh Hashanah on Sunday evening and will continue until mid-October. Nides said the Allenby pilot is now scheduled to start on October 24.
The Transportation Ministry confirmed that preparations are underway to have the Allenby crossing between the West Bank and Jordan stay open 24/7 beginning next month. “Yes, we are making preparations with the Airports Authority to open on the date the ambassador said,” the ministry told The Times of Israel.
It was not clear how long the trial period would continue.
As we know from Husam Zomlot’s long record of BBC interviews, anything the Palestinian representative does not like is frequently portrayed as a breach of ‘international law’, regardless of whether or not that is actually the case. Knell however makes no effort to unpack his allegation for her readers but instead uncritically amplifies it.
Knell tells readers that:
“The status of Jerusalem is one of the thorniest issues in the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict.
Israel sees the entire city as its eternal, undivided capital while Palestinians claim the eastern part as the capital of their hoped-for future state.
East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip, were captured by Israel from Jordan and Egypt in the 1967 Middle East war and have since been viewed internationally as occupied Palestinian territory.”
As ever – including in the recycled filmed backgrounder presented at the bottom of this report – she makes no effort to clarify the status of Jerusalem under the terms of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine or to explain that the parts of Jerusalem “captured by Israel from Jordan” were previously under illegal Jordanian occupation for 19 years.
Knell tells readers that:
“When US President Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital – fulfilling a campaign promise – it brought international condemnation.”
She fails to make any mention of similar pledges from previous US presidential candidates or the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Relocation Act and the related bi-annual presidential wavers.
Knell goes on:
“It also led to a flare-up in violence in which dozens of Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces.”
Knell refrains from informing her readers that pre-planned violent rioting instigated by Hamas and other terror factions in the Gaza Strip under the banner of the ‘Great Return March’ had been taking place for weeks before the US embassy in Jerusalem was opened in May 2018 and continued for months afterwards or that the majority of those “killed by Israeli forces” were affiliated with terrorist organisations.
Some paragraphs in Knell’s report indicate that the BBC is fully aware of the fact that what it presents as a “proposal” and a “possible UK Jerusalem embassy move” is currently in fact nothing more than supposition.
“Downing Street has not given any indication of timing but has confirmed that a review is under way.
British officials said they would not speculate on the outcome, adding that Ms Truss was aware of the sensitivity and importance of the location of the British embassy in Israel.”
Nevertheless, the BBC has obviously chosen to repeat the game plan it employed when the United States relocated its embassy, including partial portrayals of the status of Jerusalem, unevidenced allegations concerning ‘international law’ and uncritical amplification of hyperbolic Palestinian talking points – all of which contribute nothing to audience understanding of a topic which is not yet even a proper story.
Summary:
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) September 28, 2022
2011-22: Al-Muftah tweets “Jews are our enemies,” curses gays
2016: Top 50 Qatar social media influencer
2019: British Council award
2022:
—Named Qatar UN rep, seeks to head human rights forum
—We expose her hate
—She loses
—Guardian reports on her
—She deletes account https://t.co/iIJ7hEn1sY
The Israel Guys: The Anti-Israel Lies Fox News Told On This Story is SHOCKING
Fox News published a story about a terrorist that was killed in Nablus last week. There was just one problem. They got the story 100% wrong.
Instead of calling the terrorist an attempted murderer who had shot live fire three days in a row at a Jewish community, Fox called him a “fighter” and an “armed suspect”. Fox even bought into the lie that the Palestinian Foreign Ministry called this terrorist a “defenseless Palestinian”.
You don’t want to miss this cutting-edge story. How do we know what really happened? The Israel Guys team just happened to be in the same community that was fired on by this very same terrorist.
Palestinian gunmen ‘planning significant attacks’ killed in Jenin clash with troops
At least four Palestinians were killed in an Israeli military raid Wednesday morning in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, Israeli and Palestinian officials said.
A Border Police spokesman said in a statement that officers along with Israel Defense Forces soldiers sought to arrest Abd al-Rahman Hazem, the brother of a terrorist who carried out a deadly shooting attack in Tel Aviv earlier this year, and Muhammed Alownah.
The pair were responsible for a series of shooting attacks in recent months, including one that targeted a Defense Ministry engineering vehicle working along the northern West Bank security barrier earlier this month, the police spokesman said.
Israeli officials said the pair planned “more significant attacks in the near future.”
Israeli troops had surrounded the home belonging to the family of Ra’ad Hazem, the terrorist who opened fire on April 7 on patrons at the Ilka bar on Dizengoff street in Tel Aviv, killing three.
Footage published by Palestinian media outlets showed smoke rising from the building in Jenin.
DRONE FOOTAGE: This is the moment 2 Palestinian suspects involved in recent shooting attacks detonated a bomb as Israeli security forces operated to apprehend them in Jenin this morning. pic.twitter.com/nYqmOgbwHx
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) September 28, 2022
PA under pressure to cut ties with Israel after Jenin killings
The Palestinian Authority is facing growing pressure to cut all ties with Israel and stop its security crackdown on its political rivals in the West Bank in the aftermath of Wednesday’s IDF operation in Jenin.
Four Palestinian gunmen were killed and 44 others injured during the military operation, which was followed by a general strike in all West Bank cities.
After the operation, several Palestinian groups repeated their demand that the PA stop the security coordination with Israel. They urged Palestinians in the West Bank to step up the “resistance” attacks against soldiers and settlers.
The groups also urged the PA to stop its “political arrests” in the West Bank, a reference to the crackdown by the PA security forces on its political rivals.
Palestinian Authority accuses Israel of "massacres" against Palestinians
The PA did not comment on the calls to sever its ties with Israel. Senior PA officials, however, launched a scathing attack on Israel and accused it of committing “massacres” against the Palestinians.
“The Israeli occupation is continuing to tamper with security and stability,” said PA presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudaineh. “Israel and the US have lost their credibility.”
Jenin terrorist gets pink misted by a sniper. https://t.co/IQDmUdaeao
— Noam Blum (@neontaster) September 28, 2022
Brother of Dizengoff terrorist killed in firefight with IDF in Jenin
The brother of a terrorist who murdered three Israelis in Tel Aviv on April 7 was killed in Jenin on Wednesday during a firefight with Israeli soldiers, according to the Israeli military. Three other Palestinian terrorists were reportedly also killed during the exchange.
Rahman Hazem had been on the run from Israeli security forces since the April 7 attack, together with his father, Fathi Hazem. Ra’ad Hazem, Rahman’s brother, was killed in Jaffa in a firefight with Israeli security forces the morning after the attack.
“Earlier this morning, security forces operated in the Jenin Camp in order to apprehend two suspects involved in a number of recent shooting attacks. Following ISA [Israel Security Agency] intelligence, Israel Border Police forces, along with IDF soldiers, operated to apprehend both suspects. While surrounding the residence in which both suspects were located, an explosive device detonated and the suspects opened fire toward the security forces. The security forces fired back according to standard operating procedures and the two suspects were both killed.”
Acting on intelligence provided by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), Israeli soldiers and Border Police officers entered the Jenin camp in the morning and surrounded the residence in which Hazem and the other suspect were located, the IDF said in a statement. At this point, “an explosive device detonated” and the suspects opened fire at the Israeli forces, the statement continued.
The Border Police identified the second casualty as Muhammad Aluna, a resident of Jenin. Both Hazam and Aluna took part in a shooting attack near the Palestinian village of Jalamah on September 13, and had plotted additional, imminent attacks, according to the Border Police statement.
During the today's raid in Jenin, an IED was detonated near an Israeli security forces' vehicle. pic.twitter.com/GWxpHLbwld
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) September 28, 2022
A fire extinguisher rigged as an IED is used against an Israeli security forces bulldozer in Jenin a while ago. This type of IED is commonly used by militants in the West Bank. pic.twitter.com/zgnAbmAt3B
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) September 28, 2022
Hi @AP @APMiddleEast. Fixed it for you. You’re welcome! #Jenin #Israel #FactsMatter pic.twitter.com/mXAL0GLYlF
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) September 28, 2022
Palestinian Islamic Scholar Praises Martyrdom, Adds: The Jews Are the People of War and Corruption
On Friday, September 23, 2022, Dr. Nassar Al-Qaram, the head of the Nablus Shari’a Court of Appeals, delivered a sermon in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Dr. Al-Qaram said that in the battle against the Israeli “occupation”, the believers are guaranteed a positive outcome, because they will either be victorious or they will die as martyrs.
He said that the battle against the “occupation” will continue until Judgement Day, and he claimed that Israel even takes “into account” unborn Palestinian babies because it knows that they will one day fight against it. Later in the sermon, Dr. Al-Qaram described the Prophet Muhammad’s battles against the Jews in the Arabian Peninsula, and he said that the Jews are “the people of war and corruption”. Dr. Al-Qaram’s sermon was aired on Palestine TV. For more about Dr. Nasser Al-Qaram, see MEMRI TV Clips Nos. 9369 and 9545.
The MEMRI Lantos Project exposes anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial in the Middle East region and Middle Eastern communities in the West with the aim of supporting legislation and educating media and the general public.
PA denies Jewish history in Jerusalem: “The destruction of the alleged Temple… is a tale”
PA denies Jewish history in Jerusalem: “The destruction of the alleged Temple… is a tale invented by the settlers”
Official PA TV newsreader: “The occupation authorities decided to give permission to 3,000 settlers to invade the Al-Aqsa Mosque for the anniversary of the so-called ‘destruction of the Temple.’” …
Official PA TV reporter: “The anniversary of the destruction of the alleged Temple, which comes during the so-called ‘nine days of mourning,’ is a tale invented by the settlers to confirm an alleged right in Jerusalem, and for this purpose more than 15 Israeli religious organizations and groups were established whose goal is to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque and build a Temple on its ruins... The legend of the Temple is a result of this falsification.”
[Official PA TV News, Aug. 6, 2022]
The PA and its leaders misrepresent all of the Temple Mount as an integral part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Therefore, they vilify any presence of Jews on the mount as an “invasion.” It should be noted that Jews who visit the Temple Mount only enter some sections of the open areas, and do not enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock. Israeli police ban Jewish prayer at the Temple Mount because of threats of violence by Palestinians.
Tisha B’Av - Jewish day of mourning commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem (586 BCE and 70 CE) and the forced exile of most of the Jewish people from the land of Israel.
One of my favorites from #RoshHashanah last year #OTD. Just cod not stop laughing! pic.twitter.com/DeI2AKCZoD
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) September 28, 2022
This image of 'ancient Palestine' is a classic example of how the Palestinian argument is so delusional it may as well be from a different planet.
— David Collier (@mishtal) September 28, 2022
Masada - Judea - and a key site of Roman-Jewish battles.
Wiping Jews from history is a key strategy of Palestinian disinformation pic.twitter.com/tjq49bLnZP
Egyptian TV Host Muhammad Musa: Freemasonry Aims to Establish a New World Order, Turn Arab States into Zionist Lebensraum; The Protocols of the Elders of Zion Contains Plots to Spread Deviant Entertainment #Egypt #Antisemitism pic.twitter.com/z0Jg6jTppG
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) September 28, 2022
Lebanese Energy Expert Laury Haytayan: The Free Fuel Iran Is Giving Lebanon Does Not Solve Our Energy Crisis; This Is Merely a Political Deal, It’s Only a Matter of Time Before Iran Starts Charging Us #Iran #Lebnaon @LauryHaytayan pic.twitter.com/7UcbMKaFtX
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) September 28, 2022
Study: Nearly Half of Israelis Agree Iran Nuke Sites Should Be Attacked Even Without US Support
Forty-nine percent of all Israelis, and 55 percent of those who are Jewish, strongly or somewhat agree that Israel should attack Iranian nuclear sites even without US support, according to a survey by the Israel Democracy Institute.Iran’s Threats Against Israel’s Nuclear Facilities Must be Taken Seriously, Israel’s Atomic Energy Head Warns
The study also found that less than a third of Jewish Israelis (31 percent) want the next government in Jerusalem to advance the two-state solution as a means of resolving the conflict with the Palestinians. A full 36 percent of Israelis, including 58 percent of Jews, do not want this paradigm to be promoted following the Jewish state’s Nov. 1 elections (11 percent of Jewish Israelis said they were unsure how the next government should proceed).
Regarding the Jewish New Year, which began on Sunday at sundown, 29 percent of Israelis believe that next year will be better than the previous one; 30 percent think it will be about the same; 21 percent believe it will be worse; and 20 percent said that they don’t know.
The survey of 605 men and women interviewed in Hebrew and 149 in Arabic was conducted on the internet and by telephone between Sept. 18 and Sept. 20, 2022, and has a margin of error of 3.59 at a confidence level of 95 percent.
The threats by Iran and its proxies to target Israel’s nuclear facilities need to be taken seriously, the country’s Atomic Energy Commission chief warned the UN nuclear officials on Wednesday.Seth Frantzman: Iran’s impunity to attack Kurds grows with massive escalation in Iraq
“We must not ignore the repeated and explicit threats to attack Israel’s nuclear facilities by Iran and its proxies,” Brig. Gen. (ret.) Moshe Edri, said in a speech at the general conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. “Last year, Israel’s nuclear research centers were once again directly targeted.”
Edri emphasized that nuclear security and protection has most recently come to the forefront of worries in view of the conflict in the Ukraine and threats of a Russian nuclear strike.
Edri told the IAEA that Israel’s facilities are upgraded and reinforced to withstand any attack, and he reiterated Israel’s primary concern that Iran is the “leading factor in the instability” in the Middle East which threatens global security.
Speaking at the conference, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi acknowledged that the agency is seeking answers from Tehran to “resolve outstanding issues related to the presence of uranium particles of anthropogenic origin at three undeclared locations in Iran.”
“Since June, Iran has not engaged with the Agency,” Grossi noted. “Consequently, these issues have not been resolved and the Agency is not in a position to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful.”
Iran’s use of missiles, drones and artillery illustrates not only its new way of war, using precision drone and missile attacks, but also its sense of impunity that it can strike in Iraq, close to centers of power in Erbil, and destabilize the region. Iran knows that the Kurdistan Region is among the most wealthy and stable in Iraq and that it is close to US forces’ facilities.‘Savior of Tehran’: China Props Up Tehran With Major Oil Purchases
The Kurdish Peshmerga, the armed forces of the autonomous region, receives support from the US and the West. They have attempted to unify and reform their units, strengthening the region. Iran wants the region divided and weak. Its attacks are meant to show that the Kurdistan Region cannot defend itself. Many Kurds from Iran fled to Iraq to enjoy the freedom and opportunities it offers.
Iran appears to be purposely terrorizing civilians now in the Kurdistan Region. Videos that were published on Wednesday afternoon showed terrified children and parents. The regime seems to be indicating that if it cannot crush protests at home, it will use its power to attack random people in Iraq.
There are a number of Kurdish opposition groups from Iran that have supporters and bases in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Their houses and camps are usually spread out and quite small and modest. Iran has threatened to target these areas for years and likely knows the location of many of these groups and their supporters.
It has also been sending agents to the Kurdistan Region for years, keeping tabs on the opposition and also engaging in assassinations and other types of attacks. This is well known to Iranians who live in northern Iraq, especially among Kurds. They know that Iran has tried to infiltrate their communities and spy on them.
Opposition groups also know that Iran has threatened and carried out attacks, and it is clear that Wednesday’s attacks are an escalation of some sort. The number of missiles and drones used and the many locations that were targeted point to an expanding conflict and Tehran’s attempt to stamp out these groups in one fell swoop.
Iran has illicitly sold China $38 billion worth of oil since President Joe Biden took office and relaxed sanctions enforcement on Tehran. Revenue from the Chinese has kept Iran's hardline regime afloat as it grapples with the largest outbreak of nationwide protests in years.
China "has proven to be the savior of Tehran by continuing to import millions of barrels of oil every single day," according to newly released figures calculated by United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), an advocacy group that tracks Iran’s illicit oil trade. "Chinese imports have likely even exceeded the purchases made when the trade was not subject to U.S. sanctions." Iran's oil trade is heavily sanctioned by the United States as part of measures aimed at curbing the hardline regime's revenue sources.
"It is widely acknowledged," according to UANI, "that China is principally responsible for keeping the Iranian regime in business through oil purchases that have totaled $38 billion since President Joe Biden assumed office." Entities found to be complicit in violating sanctions can face huge fines and be iced out of the U.S. financial system.
While the Biden administration has not nixed U.S. sanctions on Iran’s lucrative oil trade, it has eased its enforcement of these measures, according to experts tracking the situation. This has allowed Iran to export around 1,000,000 barrels of crude per day to Beijing amid a global supply crisis and enriched Tehran’s hardline regime at a time when its grip on power is more threatened than ever.
Protests have erupted across Iran since the regime’s morality police beat and killed a 22-year-old woman for not properly wearing her head covering, which is required under Iran’s theocratic legal system. Since her death, men and woman have taken to the streets across the country to express outrage at the regime’s human rights crimes, as well as its mismanagement of the country’s economy, which remains in shambles.
Starlink is a decoy. If Biden really wants to help the Iranian people, he’ll stop helping the regime. That means cutting of the nuclear negotiations. The US can’t fund a brutal Islamist state and also claim to stand with the people. #IranRevolution
— Mariam Memarsadeghi (@memarsadeghi) September 27, 2022
???? Foreign Minister @melaniejoly: UN Watch urges you to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist entity. There’s no time to waste. https://t.co/GAKs2k3a3s
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) September 28, 2022
As protests reach 11th day in Iran, activist @AlinejadMasih tells The Lead “This is a women’s revolution. This is an Iran revolution pic.twitter.com/M2UFbxJn75
— The Lead CNN (@TheLeadCNN) September 27, 2022
I cut my hair in “Good Morning America” to show that the rest of the world that a 20 year old woman #MahsaAmini got killed just because of a bit of hair.
— Masih Alinejad ??? (@AlinejadMasih) September 27, 2022
We want an end to a gender apartheid regime.#OpIran #????_?????
pic.twitter.com/vIk9kt7RDa
It’s disappointing that politicians still ask Islamic Republic to address Iranian people’s need, when brave people are shouting Down With The Islamic Republic every night.
— Masih Alinejad ??? (@AlinejadMasih) September 27, 2022
A regime who organizes terror attacks in US soil & is killing protesters is illegitimate.#????_????? https://t.co/VDUITBy9tY
This is Ahmad Irvani head of Middle-east studies in Iran and his daughter in US modeling. Why US allows these murderers' families live freely in US when they sanction Russian authorities' families? pic.twitter.com/eE0NL23HVM
— mina bai (@bai_mina) September 28, 2022
Good thing we're on the @UN_Women Rights commission otherwise we'd care. https://t.co/y5bxmh3qI5
— Iran Morality Police (@IranMorality) September 27, 2022
Well spoken by our favourite Holocaust denial cartoon contest participant. Whenever something bad is going on somewhere, always ask yourself: What about the Zionists? https://t.co/X38Y0zRLJT
— Iran Morality Police (@IranMorality) September 27, 2022
Buy the EoZ book, PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism today at Amazon! Or order from your favorite bookseller, using ISBN 9798985708424. Read all about it here! |
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