Clenched In Another Crackdown On Pro-Reform Newspapers

Iran bans pro-reform business daily:

An Iranian media body banned on Monday the publication of a leading business daily, Sarmayeh, which is critical of the economic policies of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government. The official IRNA news agency said Iran's press supervisory body took the decision because of "repeated violations of the press law." It did not give further details.

"Based on a decision by the press supervisory board ... the authorization for the publication of Sarmayeh daily was annulled," IRNA said. Sarmayeh editor Saeed Laylaz, an outspoken government critic, was arrested shortly after Iran's disputed election in June. The opposition says the vote was rigged to secure Ahmadinejad's re-election.

The authorities deny vote rigging, and have portrayed the huge street protests that erupted after the election as a foreign-backed bid to undermine the Islamic state.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched And Openly, Laughingly Toying With Int'l Community

'Iranian nuke deal response on Thursday':

Iranian lawmaker Mohammad Karamirad on Wednesday said Iran will formally respond on Thursday to a UN-drafted plan to ship much of its uranium abroad for enrichment...

Also Wednesday, opposition leader Tzipi Livni told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that the world should learn from Iran's past conduct and "understand that it doesn't act with transparency, honesty or openness toward the international community."... "Iran is toying with the world. The deal doesn't solve a major issue - the complete halt of uranium enrichment. There's a clear international consensus that a nuclear Iran is unacceptable," Livni said in a statement during her a one-day visit to Moscow.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Pakistan

Iran arrests eight Pak officials for crossing territorial waters:

Iranian marine guards have apprehended eight Pakistani officials, who allegedly crossed into Iran's territorial waters.he arrest of eight officials of Pakistan's Fisheries Department, including a marine inspector, comes in the wake of 10 Iranian Revolutionary Guards personnel having been caught by Pakistan's Frontier Corps (FC) last week.

The Daily TImes quoted sources, as confirming that eight Pakistanis arrested by the Iranian Marine Security Agency have been moved to Chabahar, an Iranian port city, for further investigation. The arrested personnel had not been released despite repeated requests by Pakistan, they added.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched But Willing To String The West Along A Little Longer

Iran Says U.N.-Backed Nuclear Deal Not Dead:

Iran said Monday it has not rejected a U.N.-backed plan aimed at limiting the country's ability to make nuclear weapons as it called for a technical panel to review its terms. Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters in Kuala Lumpur that Iran conveyed its stand to the International Atomic Energy Agency two days ago. Mottaki is in Malaysia to attend a meeting of foreign ministers of eight Islamic countries.

His statement could be seen as a softening of Iran's stand after senior Iranian lawmakers rejected the plan on Saturday. Earlier last week, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also said his government will persist with its nuclear program despite international concerns. Asked if this meant Tehran has rejected the deal, Mottaki simply said, "No."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Europe For Trying To Protect Europeans From Torture

Iran criticizes EU stance over verdict on British embassy staff:

Iran's Deputy Foreign Ministry for European Affairs Ali Ahani criticized the EU stance on the initial verdict issued for an Iranian citizen who was a staff of British embassy in Tehran. In a meeting with Swedish ambassador to Iran, Magnus Wernstedt, Ahani said, "the EU stance on protesting to the verdict issued by Iran's judiciary against an Iranian staff of British embassy is illogical and unjustifiable."

Ahani also highlighted political approach of the EU on human rights and democracy and said, "Europe can not ignore cultural and social values of other countries including those of Islamic states."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Their "Mosquito" Western Enemies

Ahmadinejad: Iran's enemies a 'mosquito':

Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday compared the power of Iran's enemies to a "mosquito," saying Iran now deals with the West over its nuclear activities from a position of power. The comment from Ahmadinejad came as Iran is negotiating with the West over a U.N.-backed proposal to ship its uranium abroad for further enrichment...

"While enemies have used all their capacities ... the Iranian nation is standing powerfully and they are like a mosquito," a government Web site quoted Ahmadinejad early Sunday as saying. Ahmadinejad also said Iran doesn't trust the West when it sits for talks. "Given the negative record of Western powers, the Iranian government ... looks at the talks with no trust. But realities dictate to them to interact with the Iranian nation," he said according to the site.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched But Clinton Is Willing To "Be Creative" To Appease Them

Clinton urges Iran to take deal, won't "wait forever":

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Saturday that Iran should accept a deal that it has been offered on reprocessing enriched uranium because Washington and its allies had limited patience. "We are willing to work toward creative outcomes, like shipping out the low-enriched uranium to be reprocessed outside of Iran, but we are not going to wait forever," she told a news conference in Jerusalem.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With Nukes That Obama's Ready To "Contain" Instead Of Block

EDITORIAL: Getting ready for the Islamic bomb:

The White House believes there is an Islamic bomb in your future. Associated Press reported Tuesday that the Obama administration is "quietly laying the groundwork for long-range strategy that could be used to contain a nuclear-equipped Iran and deter its leaders from using atomic weapons." Granted this could be routine contingency planning, but it's believable that President Obama is pursuing an acquiescent policy given his foundering efforts to dissuade Iran from developing a nuclear capability. American planners are pondering whether Iran can be deterred from using nuclear weapons. This is the wrong question. They should instead examine how the United States will be deterred should Iran go nuclear.

Even under the current equation (the United States has nuclear weapons and Iran does not), Iran is the number one state sponsor of terrorists, supplies Hamas and Hezbollah with rockets and conventional weapons, and gives materiel, training and intelligence support to extremists in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With The Blessing Of Pseudo-Sophisticated Liberal Foreign Policy Experts

Itchy Fingers on the Iran Sanctions Trigger:

So let me start with the negotiations over Iran's nuclear program -- conservative drumbeats for imposing stronger sanctions in particular. In Thursday's Washington Post, Bob Kagan gave his version of the real-presidents-bring-the-hammer-down argument (Peter Feaver of Shadow Government was ahead of Bob by a month). These arguments are only partly aimed at achieving the desired outcome with Iran; to a great extent they're a continuation of the debate over toughness, resolve, and the proper use of American power. They also reveal conservatives' lingering naivete about both the practicalities and likely effect of a premature push for sanctions...

Instead, in the words of a senator from last year's campaign, really "we need patient diplomacy, and that requires two things: patience and diplomacy." In other words, it's important to avoid underestimating the amount of time to reach a solution, but it's also crucial to make fullest use of that time by negotiating at a pretty rapid tempo.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With Sneering Statements About Nuke "Cooperation"

Iran Lauds Nuke 'Cooperation' _ but Hedges on Deal:

Iran's president pledged Thursday to work with the West to resolve a standoff over its nuclear program even as his country reportedly balked at a U.S.-backed deal to limit its uranium enrichment and curb its ability to make a nuclear warhead. A Western diplomat said Iran rejected a plan to export most of its enriched uranium, offering instead to enrich it to a higher level inside the country under U.N. supervision.

The disconnect between the words of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Tehran's decision, as related by the diplomat, reflected the difficulties facing international negotiators trying to persuade Iran to give up enrichment.

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, whose country holds told the European Union's rotating presidency, was dismissive after seeing the offer. "It's the same old tricks," he told the AP: "A back-and-forth for further talks."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Firmly And Finally Against Any Nuke Deal But Obama Wants More Talking

Clinton says US to let Iran nuclear talks play out:

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signalled on Friday that the United States will allow talks with Iran over its nuclear programme to play out before considering fresh sanctions against Tehran. Iran on Thursday proposed changes to a U.N.-drafted nuclear fuel deal, making demands that seemed to challenge the basis of the agreement with the United States, France and Russia.

Asked during a CNN interview whether it was time to stop talking with Iran and move toward sanctions, Clinton said: "We are working with the IAEA (the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency), with France, Russia ... who are all united and showing resolve in responding to the Iranian response and seeking clarification. So I'm going to let this process play out."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Catholics

Vatican City: Pope Calls On Iran to Allow Christian Worship:

Pope Benedict XVI called on Iran on Thursday to grant Christians “the freedom to practice their faith” and Catholics “the essential conditions” to survive in the Islamic republic. In remarks in French to Iran’s new ambassador to the Holy See, Ali Akbar Naseri, Benedict called Iran “a great nation with eminent spiritual traditions,” which he said could provide “hope for an opening and a close collaboration with the international community.” The Holy See and Iran have had full diplomatic relations for more than 50 years.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With An All-Out Assault Against The Dollar

OPEC Shift From Dollar A Good Topic For Next Mtg-Iran Official:

A shift away from the dollar for oil trading among members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would be a good topic to discuss at the group's next meeting, Iran's OPEC governor said Wednesday.

Muhammad Ali Khatibi said "it is a good issue" to debate when the organization meets in December in Luanda. Khatibi said he had received no indication that the matter would be on the agenda. "It depends on the decision of the ministers," he added.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against UK Embassy Workers Being Arrested And Abused

UK asks Iran to overturn Rassam verdict:

Britain has asked Iran to overturn a four-year jail term handed down to a local British Embassy employee. The appeal came after Hossein Rassam was reportedly sentenced to four years in prison after being found guilty of fomenting violence during the post-election unrest in the country.

Iran's judiciary has not officially confirmed the report. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has said that the charges of spying and provoking unrest against Hossein Rassam are unfounded. "We will wait for official confirmation but from our sources we understand that he has been sentenced," AFP quoted Miliband as saying.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Sunnis While They Try To Politicize The Hajj

Saudi warns Iran not to politicise hajj: report:

Saudi Hajj Minister Fouad al-Farsi told Iran not to politicise the hajj after Tehran leaders said Iranians could experience mistreatment during the annual pilgrimage, a report said on Wednesday. Iran "should not take advantage of the pilgrimage for political purposes and its own agenda," Farsi was quoted as saying in the Al-Watan newspaper report.

Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently warned that Saudi Arabia,.. might abuse the mainly Shiite Muslim pilgrims from Iran during the hajj... "If they impose restrictions on Iranian pilgrims... the Islamic Republic will take the appropriate measures," Ahmadinejad said

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Officially With Khamenei's Decree Outlawing Questioning The Election

Iranian leader says questioning election a crime: TV:

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday it was a crime to cast doubt on the June election, which the opposition says was rigged in favor of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, state television reported. Khamenei endorsed Ahmadinejad's victory in the June 12 election, which was followed by opposition protests and plunged Iran into its deepest internal crisis since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Khamenei said the election was held and there was a big voter turnout but that some people had "unfairly" ignored this. "The leader ... termed questioning the basis of the election the biggest crime," state television said in a report from Khamenei's meeting with leading scientists in Tehran.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched In "Victory In Nuclear Battle With The West"

Iran claims victory in nuclear battle with the West:

As Iran's nuclear negotiator handed in the country's response to a proposed deal to process its enriched uranium stocks abroad, Mr Ahmadinejad hailed a change in Western policy from "confrontation to co-operation".

"We welcome fuel exchange, nuclear co-operation, building of power plants and reactors and we are ready to co-operate," he said in a speech shown live on state television. But he said he would not retreat "one iota" in his demand that the country continue with its nuclear programme, understood by most observers to mean its policy of enriching uranium. Western governments have yet to make explicit comments on whether they will accept the Iranian response to the deal, thrashed out at the International Atomic Energy Agency last week.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched But Russia Won't Impose Sanctions No Matter What The WH Says

Kremlin says sanctions against Iran unlikely:

The Kremlin said on Wednesday sanctions against Iran were highly unlikely in the near future, the latest signal that Russia is not yet ready to raise the heat on Tehran to allay Western fears over its nuclear program. Iran is one of the few countries where the Kremlin still has considerable clout, making Russia a major player in big power efforts to force the Islamic Republic to be more open about its nuclear activities and to stop enriching uranium.

But Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has warned Western powers that they will gain nothing by trying to intimidate Tehran and Russian officials have refused to publicly back the United States in threatening tougher sanctions against Iran. "Sanctions in relation to Iran are hardly possible in the near future," the Kremlin's top foreign policy aide, Sergei Prikhodko, was quoted as telling Russian reporters by Interfax news agency. Foreign reporters were not invited to the briefing.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Knowing That The EU Will Deliberately Ignore The Iranian Threat

EU "underestimates" Iran threat, Czech premier charges:

The European Union 'underestimates the Iranian threat,' Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said in remarks quoted Sunday. In an interview with the Ha'aretz daily as he wrapped up a visit to Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Topolanek, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, added however that he believed that 'at this very moment, there is no imminent threat of a war between Israel and Iran.'

Israel regards Iran as its biggest existential threat, given Tehran's nuclear programme, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's repeated statements that the Jewish state should be wiped off the map.

New Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman are especially vocal regarding Iran, but the Czech leader said their rhetoric was 'understandable.' 'The fact that Iran is a threat whose danger can be magnified if the country will have a nuclear weapon - that is something the entire world knows about. The fact that the EU is somewhat underestimating this threat is also true,' Topolanek said.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With Paranoid Fantasies Of Cheating And Scheming Westerners

Parliament speaker says West trying to cheat Iran:

Iran's parliament speaker accused the West on Saturday of trying to cheat the country with a U.N.-drafted plan that would ship most of Iran's uranium to Russia for enrichment, raising further doubts about the likelihood Tehran will approve the deal. The U.S. and its allies have been pushing the agreement as a way to ease their concerns that Iran is using its nuclear program as a way to covertly develop weapons capability...

"Westerners are insisting on going in a direction to cheat and impose their will on us," Iran's semiofficial ISNA news agency quoted parliament speaker Ali Larijani as saying Saturday.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against The US Because Khamenei Is Ideologically Committed To It

MP says Iran leader opposes direct talks with U.S.:

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei opposes holding direct negotiations with the United States, newspapers on Monday quoted a senior lawmaker as saying. But Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said talks on the nuclear issue would continue within the framework of Tehran's contacts with six world powers, including the United States.

"Presently we do not have any new issue for talks," Mottaki said, the semi-official Fars News Agency reported. The comments by vice speaker Mohammad Reza Bahonar appeared to be in contradiction of discussions on Tehran's disputed nuclear program that took place in Switzerland earlier this month and that included officials from the two old foes.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched And Determined To Scuttle The Geneva Deal With New Demands

Iran seeks changes to nuclear deal:

Iran accepted the general framework of a U.N.-draft nuclear deal yesterday but said it would seek "important changes" that could test the willingness of world powers to make concessions in exchange for a pact to rein in Tehran's ability to make atomic warheads.

It was unclear how far Tehran would push for those changes. Already, Iran has raised a potential roadblock: It wants a step-by-step approach to send low-enriched uranium stockpiles out of the country rather than the big single shipment called for under U.N. provisions.

Western powers say it is critical for Iran to send out at least 70 percent of its uranium store in one load to eliminate - at least temporarily - its options to make a nuclear weapon. A significantly lower amount or gradual shipments by Iran could jeopardize a key part of the proposal, which was reached after talks last week that included the United States.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With Promises Of "Punishment" Against Jewish Saboteurs

'Israel behind Iran attack':

After accusing the United States and Britain of involvement in the suicide attack that took place in south Iran on Sunday, the Islamic Republic on Monday claimed that Israel was also involved in the terror attack. Five senior Revolutionary Guards commanders and 37 others were killed in the bombing.

Revolutionary Guard chief Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said Monday that the Sunni rebel group, known as Jundallah, or Soldiers of God, is at work to disrupt security in Iran and he vowed to deliver a "crushing" response... When asked how those responsible for the attack would be punished, Jafari said, "The American and Israeli intelligence agencies are behind this. We must pay them back in order to punish them, and, God willing, we hope to be able to do so."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With Conspiracy Theories That Make Deals Impossible

Iran leader links attacks in region to foreign states:

In a suicide bombing in southeastern Iran on Oct. 18, more than 40 people died, including senior commanders of the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Guards. Both Iran and Iraq are predominantly Shi'ite Muslim countries, with Sunni minorities.

Iranian officials have accused intelligence services of Britain, the United States and Pakistan of backing the Sunni rebel group which claimed last week's bombing attack in Sistan-Baluchestan province bordering Pakistan. London, Washington and Islamabad deny involvement. "Those who commit these bloody terrorist actions, directly or indirectly, are related to foreign countries," Khamenei said.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched With The Help Of Turkey's Warm Embrace

Erdogan officially welcomed by Iran's VP:

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been officially welcomed by Iran's Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi. During the official ceremony on Tuesday, the national anthems of the countries were played and then the two officials reviewed a guard of honor.

Heading a high-ranking politico-economic delegation, Erdogan arrived in the Iranian capital Tehran on Monday night and was welcomed by Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki at Tehran's Mehrabad international airport. Erdogan who arrived in Iran after a visit to Pakistan will meet with Iranian high-ranking officials including President Ahmadinejad to exchange views on different regional and international issues.

His visit to Iran comes just a few hours after he accused the West of treating Iran unfairly over its nuclear work. Erdogan told The Guardian that Europe and the US have been treating Tehran unfairly over its enrichment program because "although Iran doesn't have a weapon, those who say Iran shouldn't have them are those countries which do [have nuclear weapons].”

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Pakistan But Pakistan Is Appeasing Them Anyway

Pakistan Frees 11 Iran Security Officers:

Police say Pakistan has released 11 Iranian security officers held near the countries' border amid tensions. The Iranians were accused of illegally crossing the border... The 11 officers were taken into custody Monday in Mashkel, close to the countries' border in the southwestern province of Baluchistan, police officer Dadur Raman said. He said officers were interrogating the men and had seized two vehicles.

Authorities first said the 11 were members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, but later identified them only as security officers. Ties between Pakistan and Iran have been strained since the Oct. 18 suicide attack killed 15 members of the powerful Revolutionary Guard, including five senior commanders, and at least 27 others in the town of Pishin on the Iranian side of the border.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Against Pakistan

Iran ramps up pressure on Pakistan over Guards bombing:

Iran turned up the heat on Pakistan on Tuesday, saying the group accused of carrying out a suicide bombing that killed top commanders of the elite Revolutionary Guards is based on its territory. Islamabad strongly denied the allegations, saying the attack was an attempt to "spoil ties" with Iran.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said members of the group accused of mounting Sunday's attack in southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan province regularly criss-cross the frontier with Pakistan. "They cross into Iran illegally. They are based in Pakistan," Mottaki said without directly naming the group. "The hands of those behind the crimes in southeast Iran must be cut."

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page

Clenched Explicitly Against The Nuke Deal Since Last Week

Senior Iran MP casts doubt on atom fuel deal:

A senior Iranian lawmaker rejected on Thursday the idea of sending low-enriched uranium abroad for further processing, casting doubt on a proposal aimed at easing international tension over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. The comment came a day after the UN nuclear watchdog presented a draft deal to Iran and three world powers for approval within two days to reduce Tehran's stockpile of enriched uranium, seen by the West as a nuclear weapons risk.

"They (the West) tell us: you give us your 3.5 percent enriched uranium and we will give you the fuel for the reactor. It is not acceptable to us," parliament's deputy speaker Mohammad Reza Bahonar was quoted as saying by ISNA news agency. "The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) is obliged to provide us with the fuel based on the safeguards," he said.

Get more news, information, and analysis on Iran at Mere Rhetoric's full Iran coverage page