Radiofarda – Prime Minister Netanyahu on Monday distanced Israel from Soleimani’s killing while Iran’s regional rival Saudi Arabia said the kingdom does not want to see further escalation of tension in the region and Pakistan announced it will not take sides in the escalating confrontation between Iran and the U.S. In a cabinet meeting on Monday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin …

Al-Arabia – Iran has been considering 13 “revenge scenarios” in retaliation for a US strike that killed a top Iranian commander in Iraq, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said on Tuesday, the semi-official Fars news agency reported. “The Americans should know that until now 13 revenge scenarios have been discussed in the council and even if there …

Iran- HRM- Four Iranian citizens have been arrested in Shahreza, Isfahan province, on charges of “insulting Qassem Soleimani”on social media platforms, a local news agency reported on Monday. The state-run Sina news agency quoted the prosecutor general and revolutionary of the city of Shahreza, as saying that four people have been arrested for “insulting Qassem Soleimani.” Amir Hossein Razaz Zadeh …

RFL/RE – The Russian and Chinese envoys at the UN say they oppose the New Year’s Eve attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad but insist that a statement by the international body’s Security Council condemning it should address the subsequent U.S. killing of Iran’s top military commander.Their stance prompted the United States on January 6 to accuse the two …

RFL/RE – U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has strongly indicated that the U.S. military will not fire on Iranian cultural sites, targets that President Donald Trump had threatened to strike.“We will follow the laws of armed conflict,” Esper said during a briefing at the Pentagon. When asked if that ruled out targeting cultural sites, Esper said pointedly, “That’s the laws …

VOA – Iranian state media reported Tuesday a stampede at the funeral for top military commander Qassem Soleimani killed at least 32 people and injured 190 others. Tens of thousands of people had gathered to honor Soleimani in his hometown of Kerman before his burial, following similar ceremonies this week in Tehran, Qom and Ahvaz.  State media reports said the …

VOA – The leader of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard threatened on Tuesday to “set ablaze” places supported by the United States over the killing of a top Iranian general in a U.S. airstrike last week, sparking cries from the crowd of supporters of “Death to Israel!’’ Hossein Salami made the pledge before a crowd of thousands gathered in a central square …

VOA – The United States has denied a visa to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif that would have allowed him to attend a United Nations Security Council meeting in New York on Thursday, a U.S. official said. Monday’s comments by the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, came as tensions escalate between the two countries after the United …

Al-Monitor – Iran officially held the funeral for the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force, Qasem Soleimani, in Tehran Jan. 6. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, flanked by President Hassan Rouhani and judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi, conducted the prayer service. Various processions across Iran were held in the days leading up to the funeral, drawing the largest crowds Iran has seen since the …

Radiofarda – In an interview with Deutchlandfunk (DLF) radio Monday German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Iran’s announcement on Sunday that it would not comply with any limitations on uranium enrichment it had agreed to before, could be the first step towards the end of the treaty. Iran rolled back its commitments to the 2015 nuclear agreement with the six …