Social and Political

Al-Monitor – Iran’s national airline banned today travelers coming to Iran via four European countries.  IranAir said it will not receive non-Iranian citizen passengers coming from the United Kingdom, France, Norway and Denmark, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.  The ruling refers to travelers coming to Iran via the banned countries — not necessarily citizens of the countries. Iranian citizens are …

Al-Monitor – Talks over reviving the Iranian nuclear accord resumed in Vienna this week, with Iran demanding the eighth round of negotiations address its sanctions-battered oil industry.  Guarantees and verification: Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Monday that verification of sanctions relief remains a top priority for Iran’s negotiating team.  “The most important thing for us is to reach a point where we …

Al-Arabia – The sexagenarian Iranian Hasan Irlu, who according to rumors led the militias in Sanaa, was appointed an ambassador to an internationally unrecognized government, despite the protest of the legitimate one, and in violation of all international conventions. The man – an expert in training militias – was assigned in Sanaa months following the killing of Qassem Soleimani near …

Al-Arabia – The US condemned the Iran-backed Houthi militia’s continued attacks on Saudi Arabia, stressing that the militia is a threat to its allies, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Wednesday. US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said during a virtual press conference that the Kingdom was able to eliminate about 90 percent of Houthi attacks adding that …

RFL/RE – Diplomats from the three European countries directly involved in the negotiations to breathe new life in a faltering nuclear deal with Iran have stressed the “urgent” nature of talks.The eighth round of negotiations aimed at reviving the agreement, which unraveled after the United States withdrew from the accord in 2018 and reimposed tough sanctions on Tehran, opened in …

RFL/RE – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will Russia after receiving an invitation from Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, an Iranian government spokesman said on December 28. Putin has invited Raisi to Moscow early next year “in the framework of strategic interaction between Iran and Russia,” Ali Bahadori Jahromi said.. The visit would address “bilateral, regional and national cooperation” and in particular …

Al-Monitor – Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri said Israel’s key Dimona nuclear facility will be “a prime target” should a war break out between the two archenemies.  According to Bagheri, to conduct such an attack at the heart of Israel’s Negev Desert, Iran possesses the knowhow and technology to use “multiple routes” and firing options …

VOA — Iran and Russia sounded upbeat about talks on salvaging the 2015 Iran nuclear deal on Tuesday, with Tehran saying an accord was possible if other parties showed “good faith” and a Russian negotiator reporting “indisputable progress.”Iran and the United States resumed the indirect talks in Vienna on Monday, with Tehran focused on one side of the original bargain …

Al-Arabia – Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Tuesday that world powers should take a more firm position in nuclear talks with Iran. “Of course there can be a good agreement. Of course. We know the parameters. Is that expected to happen now ins the current dynamics? No. Because there needs to be a much firmer position,” Bennett said in …

RFL/RE – Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has said he is not opposed to a “good” nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, although he expressed skepticism that the talks that resumed this week can result in such an outcome. “At the end of the day, of course there can be a good deal,” Bennett told Israeli Army Radio on …