Free Republic

Top News Story Weekly Standard THE FAILURE OF CONTAINMENTU.S.-European Iran policy reaches a dead end. by Amir TaheriWeekly StandardSeptember 26, 2005 THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is scheduled this week to decide whether to refer Iran to the United Nations' Security Council for alleged violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Iran is making a last-minute effort to stall the decision, but it is already clear that the European strategy--carried out by Britain, France, and Germany--for dealing with Iran's clandestine quest for nuclear weapons has failed. The trio of E.U. nations had based their...

PHILADELPHIA - A prominent Muslim cleric on Monday was sentenced to more than seven years in prison on racketeering and other charges, the latest in a string of convictions stemming from the FBI's sweeping probe of municipal corruption. Prosecutors said that Shamsud-din Ali, 67, used his political connections to obtain dubious loans, donations and city contracts. In addition to his 87-month sentence, Ali was ordered to pay restitution. He was released pending an appeal. The investigation of the so-called "pay to play" culture in Philadelphia's city government has led to the convictions and guilty pleas for more than a dozen...

Top News Story Guardian NEW YORK (AP) - The United States and European nations whose diplomatic advances were rebuffed by Iran worked Sunday to present a case against the Tehran regime to the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency meeting this week. The Bush administration's lead diplomat on Iran, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns, huddled with representatives of Germany, France and Britain a day after Iran's new hardline president used a United Nations speech to proclaim his country's ``inalienable right'' to produce nuclear fuel. In a fiery speech to the U.N. General Assembly, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defiantly rejected the...

Top News Story Iran Readying for Conflict With USAmir Taheri   Incredible though it may sound there are signs that Tehran may be preparing for a military confrontation with the United States, and has convinced itself that it could win.The first sign came last June with the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president of the Islamic Republic, an event that completed the conquest of all levers of power by the most radical elements of the establishment. Since then the revolutionary factions have conducted a little publicized purge of the military, the security, the civil service, and state-owned corporations and...

Top News Story IRIB CNN to Interview Iranian President Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting:President Ahmadinejad to appear before CNN cameras for an exclusive interview on Saturday. The Cable News Network's (CNN) celebrated Christian Amanpour will make an exclusive interview on Saturday at 2230 gmt with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, currently in the United States for UN annual meeting in New York. Amanpour is expected to raise Iran's nuclear issue during her talks with the president, but she will also pose questions on critical international issues. READ MORE CNN's Amanpour had several interviews with high and middle ranking Iranian officials, including...

Top News Story U.S. Briefing on Iran Alleges Pattern of Concealment, Deception An Excerpt: Jacqueline Shire, ABC News: Hat tip to Web Gardian In a presentation for International Atomic Energy Agency officials and the 35 countries on its governing board, U.S. Energy Department officials detail evidence claiming to show that Iran remains committed to developing a nuclear weapon and is deceiving the international community, ABC News has learned. ABC News has obtained a copy of the 43-slide PowerPoint computer presentation, which was delivered to IAEA Board members in the run-up to its meeting Monday, when Iran's nuclear program will...

Top News Story Iran offers nuclear know-how to Islamic states 15 Sep 2005 11:36:22 GMT Source: Reuters (Adds British reaction, background) By Paul Hughes TEHRAN, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Iran is ready to share its nuclear technology, considered to be a front for bomb-making by Washington, with other Islamic countries, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on Thursday. The comments were likely to heighten Western concerns about Tehran's nuclear programme just ahead of a key meeting of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog this month which could decide to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council for punitive action. "The...

Top News Story The Washington Times Unwelcome mat An Excerpt: Kenneth R. Timmerman, The Washington Times: Tomorrow, New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly should order his men to escort the new hard-line president of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Kennedy International Airport, the minute he finishes speaking to the U.N. General Assembly at 3:10 p.m. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who took office in August after disputed elections, is not just any head of state. He has a terrorist pedigree that should make him an unwelcome guest in any civilized country, if having a terrorist "watch list" serves any purpose. But...

Top News Story Daneshjoo Iranian secularist opposition groups are gathering, in New York, to protest against the presence of the Islamic regime's President at the United Nations. These groups are forming the "Iran UN Protest 2005" (IUNP2005) Coalition which includes the National-Secular Party, Iran Society, Marzeporgohar Party, Alliance of Iranians (TX), National Iranian Congress, Social-Democrats, Iranian Council, Free-Thinkers, Pan-Iranist, Iran of Tomorrow and the SMCCDI as the main organizer of the action. Activists and members of IUNP2005 are flying or driving from several North American and European cities, such as, Dallas, Los Angeles, Paris and Toronto in order to...

Top News Story UN inspectors 'powerless to stop atom bomb plans in Iran'By Con Coughlin(Filed: 11/09/2005)The former head of the United Nations inspection team that is investigating Iran's nuclear programme has called on the Security Council to give it greater powers so it can determine whether Teheran is trying to build an atomic bomb.For the past six years Dr Pierre Goldschmidt, a Belgian nuclear scientist, has been in charge of the inspectors sent by the UN-sponsored International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, to investigate Iran's nuclear programme.   Dr Pierre Goldschmidt: 'Many serious omissions' Throughout that period the...

Ahmadinejad - A dangerous terrorist is flying into NY City next week.The following are a few reports on the arrival of the Iranian President's trip to the UN next week. Freepers need to join SMCCDI in their protest in front of the UN this next Wednesday - Friday! Iran Press News reported that Hamidreza Assefi, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran said: The U.S.'s refusal to grant a visa to the Islamic Republic's Parliamentary delegation to attend the world conference of international parliamentarians is considered exceedingly rude. Adding: The United States with this action has proven...

Top News Story US turns Iran screw, wants India to join WASHINGTON, VIENNA, SEPTEMBER 9: Asserting that seeking UN sanctions against Iran was a “reasonable option,” US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice today asked India, China and Russia to send a unified message to Tehran that it has to adhere to its international obligations on the nuclear issue. ‘‘Now we need leadership on this. The EU-3 (UK, France and Germany) led on this issue. The United States supported the EU-3 on this issue. But Iran needs to get a message from the international community that it is a unified...

Top News Story Iran readies for UN nuclear battle with EU, US By Louis Charbonneau BERLIN (Reuters) - Iran is working hard to gather allies to defeat a joint effort by the European Union and Washington to refer Tehran to the U.N. Security Council because of their fears it may be developing nuclear weapons. The 35 nations on the governing board of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), meet on September 19 to discuss Iran's nuclear program and the EU wants it to report Tehran to the highest body of the United Nations. EU and...

Top News Story Regime reveals anxiety in the face of U.N. Security Council referral One of the regime's newspapers, belonging to Mullah Khamnei, attacked Mohammad El Baradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, accusing him of purposefully targeting the Islamic regime. The newspapers protested that El Baradei's report could be the basis for the decision to refer the regime's dossier to the United Nations' Security Council. Ali Zaadsar, one of the members of the Islamic Parliament expressing anxiety regarding this matter, said: "El Baradei's report to the General Assembly will set the stage for our condemnation. Our...

Top News Story Transatlantic Divide Deep, Not So Wide, Poll Finds An Excerpt: Sebastian Rotella, Los Angeles Times: Europeans and Americans have often starkly different views of each other and the world, but agree on some major issues such as promoting democracy and avoiding war with Iran, according to a survey being released today. ... About 74% of European respondents, compared with 51% of Americans, want their governments to help establish democracy in other countries. The breakdown in responses among Americans was 76% among Republican voters and 43% of Democrats, probably because the latter associate the "democracy promotion" phrase...

Top News Story Pessimism over Iran's nukes From: Agence France-Presse From correspondents in Brussels September 07, 2005 THE European Union has lost hope that Iran will again suspend its uranium conversion activities or resume talks on its controversial nuclear program, a senior EU diplomat said overnight. The diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Iran's decision to reject EU incentives, aimed at ensuring it does not develop nuclear weapons, and resume conversion work meant that the EU's role had virtually ended. "If the Iranians changed their minds and decided to restart the suspension or discuss restarting the suspension,...

Top News Story Infamous and Shameless Charlatans Akbar Ganji's wife, Massoumeh Shafii, in a radio interview called the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran “Infamous and Shameless Charlatans”; she said hopelessly: “the judiciary officials acted in contradiction to the agreement we arrived at together.” Shafii explained: “The regime actively manipulated my family into convincing Akbar to discontinue his hunger strike; they had also struck a deal with us, demanding that I refrain from any further interviews or public statements and they had promised that Mortazavi (pint-size Tehran prosecutor-general known for killing Zahra Kazemi among others) would also stop...

Top News Story Iran dissident journalist Ganji back in jailSun Sep 4, 2005 9:51 AM ET TEHRAN (Reuters) - Dissident Iranian journalist Akbar Ganji has recovered sufficiently from his two-month-long hunger strike to return to prison, Iran's Justice Minister Jamal Karimirad said on Sunday. Ganji, jailed in 2000 after writing a series of articles linking senior officials to the murder of political dissidents, was hospitalized in July when his health deteriorated due to a hunger strike aimed at pressuring authorities to release him. The outspoken reporter, whose plight brought comments of outrage and concern from the United States and...

Top News Story Iran Focus Tehran, Iran, Sep. 04 – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the jihad against Israel must continue and be strengthened, Iran’s semi-official daily Jomhouri Islami reported on Sunday. “The only way to fight the Zionist enemy is to continue and increase resistance and jihad”, Ayatollah Khamenei said at a meeting on Saturday with secretary general of the Palestinian group Islamic Jihad, Ramadan Abdullah, the hard-line daily Jomhouri Islami wrote. Iran’s official policy is to call for the annihilation of the Jewish state. The country’s clerical rulers have been strongly opposed to Palestinian President...

Top News Story U.S., Europe Must Forge Broader Alliance, Says State's Fried The Washington File, Embassy of the U.S., London: America and Europe must work together to support democratic development throughout the broader Middle East, just as they supported the democratic aspirations of pro-democracy movements in central and Eastern Europe, says the State Department’s Daniel Fried. Speaking in Paris September 1, the day after attending a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the founding of Solidarity in Gdansk, Poland, Fried said the Polish people “achieved democracy through their own efforts, but they had support from abroad,” including from Western...