Radiofarda – After two weeks of mixed signals on Iran, from high-profile U.S. military moves to administration assertions that it’s not angling for war, President Donald Trump said Friday that even the Iranians may be confused about what comes next. “With all of the Fake and Made Up News out there,” Trump wrote on Twitter, “Iran can have no idea …

Al-Arabia – A number of Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, have approved Washington’s request to redeploy US forces in Arabian Gulf waters and territories to thwart possible Iranian attacks in the region, informed Gulf sources told Asharq al-Awsat. The sources said the redeployment of US forces in the Gulf states was part of joint US-Gulf efforts to deter Iran from …

Al-Arabia – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday he did not believe a war would break out in the region as Tehran did not want a conflict and no country had the “illusion it could confront Iran”, the state news agency IRNA reported.Tensions have escalated in recent days, with growing concerns about a potential US-Iran conflict. Earlier …

Al-Arabia – US President Donald Trump on Friday denied friction with his hawkish foreign policy advisers on Iran, specifically giving statements of support to White House national security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.Trump called “bullshit” a variety of news reports that he had chafed at his advisers and privately expressed concerns that they were trying to …

Iran-HRM – Twenty-three prisoners convicted of theft are languishing in the Great Tehran Penitentiary, Fashafoyeh, awaiting hand amputation. Reports indicate that the hand of one of the prisoners is to be amputated in the coming days. The prisoner has been identified as Alireza Khan Baluchi and his verdict has been sent to the Sentence Implementation Department. Baluchi was convicted of …

Iran-HRM – Online Tyranny: Revolutionary Guards hunting Iran Internet users Iranians are considered one of the most vibrant populations using the internet. More than half of the 80 million Iranians, especially the youth, use the internet to share news and information, debating in private, and conducting business. Iranian regime however, has used the internet to suppress its own people. This …

RFL/RE – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has warned U.S. commercial airliners flying over the waters of the Persian Gulf that they risk being misidentified amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran. An advisory, issued by the FAA on May 16, said the warning came amid “heightened military activities and increased political tensions in the region which present an …

VOA – An international writers association says three Iranian authors apparently sentenced to long prison terms this week in Iran remain free, pending possible appeals in their trial for alleged security offenses. In a statement to VOA Persian on Friday, London-based PEN International said it understands that writers Baktash Abtin, Keyvan Bajan and Reza Khandan-Mahabadi have not yet been arrested. …

VOA — In the event of war with the United States, Iran “will not be alone.” That message was delivered by the leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group to a mass rally in Beirut in February marking the 40th anniversary of Iran’s Islamic Revolution. “If America launches war on Iran, it will not be alone in the confrontation, because the …

VOA – A senior member of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps said Friday Iranian short-range missiles can “easily” reach warships in the Persian Gulf, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. Revolutionary Guard deputy chief Mohammad Saleh Jokar’s comments came amid rising tensions with the United States. The U.S. has increased its military presence in the region by deploying additional …