I should also state unequivocally that Iran's defensive and missile capabilities and Iran's missiles will never be the subject of any negotiations, Araghchi said during a news conference alongside his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan. The security of the Iranian people is no one else's business, and we will preserve and expand our defensive capabilities to whatever extent is necessary to defend the country.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warns that attacking Iran would be wrong and says Tehran is ready to return to negotiations. He urges a step-by-step diplomatic approach and cautions against escalation.
The governors have been given authority to import goods without using foreign currency, engage in bartering and allow sailors to bring in products under simplified customs rules, according to the government-run IRNA news agency. In addition to importing essential goods, governors now have the authority to bring in all goods that are directly linked with the livelihoods of the people and the needs of the market in order to balance the market and prevent hoarding, Pezeshkian was quoted as saying at the meeting.
Iran's 86-year-old supreme leader, who believes that he represents God's will on Earth, ordered what now appears to be one of the deadliest two-day mass slaughters in modern history. According to estimates provided by two anonymous senior officials in the country's ministry of health, as many as 30,000 citizens may have been killed during this 48-hour rampage on January 8 and 9.
What he's saying: In the interview, Trump mentioned his decision to dispatch the Lincoln. "We have a big armada next to Iran. Bigger than Venezuela," Trump said. He declined to discuss the options presented to him by his national security team, or which one he prefers. At the same time, he said diplomacy remained an option. "They want to make a deal. I know so. They called on numerous occasions. They want to talk."
Kataib Hezbollah is one of the largest groups within the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), founded in 2014 to stop lightning advances by ISIL (ISIS) at the time. In a phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on Sunday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Baghdad to keep a distance from Iran. Rubio said, Iraq can fully realise its potential as a force for stability, prosperity and security in the Middle East
A French prosecutor Friday sought a one-year jail term for an Iranian woman accused of promoting "terrorism" online in a case linked to a possible prisoner swap with two French citizens. Judgment in the case is expected on February 26. Mahdieh Esfandiari, a 39-year-old Iranian, was arrested in France in February on charges of promoting and inciting "terrorism" on social media.
The ones who did it can always rationalize their actions and even forget what they did. They can turn away from things they don't want to see. But the surviving victims can never forget. They can't turn away. Their memories are passed on from parent to child. That's what the world is, after all: an endless battle of contrasting memories.
"Several weeks ago, invitations were issued to individual government representatives from Iran. In light of current events, the Munich Security Conference will not uphold these invitations," an MSC spokesperson told the German Press Agency in response to an inquiry. Earlier, the German Foreign Office had advised against extending an invitation. "We consider participation inappropriate in view of the bloody suppression of protests," a spokesperson said at a press conference.
But listen, I pushed back so many times. This interview at times is frustrating, but with specifics, with details on the ground, and essentially what he's saying is that this was a Mossad operation from Israel, that they looked like Iranian agents designed to kill a large number of people, and that was designed to spark President Trump's action into Iran.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and other close allies of President Donald Trump fumed on Wednesday after reporters went around that Iranian state TV broadcast an image threatening to assassinate the president. Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on the image of the 2024 Butler rally assassination attempt on President Trump that included the caption, This time it will not miss the target. The New York Post quickly pushed out a viral story headlined, Iran issues sickening assassination threat against Trump.
Gold keeps cranking higher with spot prices moving to a new all-time high a whisker off $4,640, while silver extended its parabolic rally to clear $90. Crude prices were at three-month highs with Brent (continuous) running into resistance at the 200-day moving average around $65.75, as flagged in yesterday's note. WTI spiked to $61.50 - as noted on Friday a clear break above $59 was likely to see a swift move toward the $60-61 area.
Because it severed the country's internet connection, facts are difficult to establish, but the respected Human Rights Activists in Iran has confirmed 544 have been killed and well over 10,000 arrested those numbers are probably significant underestimates. Here is a regime that consolidated its power in the 1980s by butchering leftists helped, it should be noted, by both MI6 and the CIA, who supplied them with lists of alleged Soviet agents.
President Donald Trump said Monday that he'll impose a tariff of 25% on any country that does business with Iran. "Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This story is breaking. Check back for updates.