Eye on Iran: Iran Snub to UN Officials Shows Stance Unchanged, U.S. Says

Top Stories

Bloomberg: ”Iran’s refusal to let United Nations experts investigate allegations of illicit nuclear activities at a military base doesn’t inspire confidence for a return to negotiations with the international community, U.S. officials and nuclear-proliferation specialists said. An International Atomic Energy Agency team visiting Tehran was denied access to the Parchin military base during two days of meetings that ended Feb. 21. IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano expressed disappointment that the team ‘engaged in a constructive spirit, but no agreement was reached.’ White House spokesman Jay Carney said Iran’s refusal to allow access to sites where Western intelligence agencies have reported suspected nuclear weapons work ‘suggests that they have not changed their behavior.’ It is ‘another demonstration of Iran’s refusal to abide by its international obligations,’ he said yesterday.” http://t.uani.com/xkKmVd 

Iran News Round Up (Feb. 23)

Iran renews opposition to foreign interference in Syria; Iranian leaders predict massive voter turnout in parliamentary polls; IRGC steps up cyber warfare; Russia opposes new sanctions against Iran

Politics Hossein Mozaffar, United Principled Front member, predicts 65 percent popular participation in the parliamentary elections. Diplomacy According to Shi’a News, Bahraini authorities have agreed to establish a union between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, which means ending Bahrain’s status as a sovereign state. [E] Ahmadinejad in a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev underlined support for the Syrian people and the Damascus government’s reform plan, and voiced Tehran’s opposition to any foreign interference in Syria’s internal affairs.

RFE/RL Iran Report – 2/23/2012

Iranians Told To Vote, Don’t Vote, In Next Week’s Election  The head of Iran’s Basij force, Mohammad Reza Naghdi, has congratulated Iranians on their “epic” turnout in the country’s parliamentary elections. The only problem is that the elections aren’t until March 2. More  Iran’s National Internet Gets Late Spring Launch Date  Iran’s so-called “national Internet” will be launched in either in late May or June, according to an announcement by Iranian Telecommunications Minister Reza Taghipour. More  A Student Takes On The Iranian Regime  An Iranian student, who publicly challenged the regime and then fled to Turkey, talks to Persian Letters.More  The Iran Conflict Comes To The Caucasus  Incidents involving Jewish diplomats being targeted for attack in the South Caucasus illustrate how Georgia and Azerbaijan risk being drawn into the conflict between Tehran on one side and Israel and the West on the other. More  Iran Honors Its ‘Nuclear Martyrs’  Tehran appears to be trying to develop a personality cult around the four nuclear scientists who have been assassinated over the past two years. More  Basij Commander Addresses New Poem To ‘Great Satan’  On “Persian Letters,” we’ve previously reported about the artistic skills possessed by the head of Iran’s Basij force, Mohammad Reza Naghdi, who, along with cracking down on opposition activists, appears to be a budding poet. More

Wir bitten um Verzeihung

Enver Şimşek

Abdurrahim Özüdoğru

Süleyman Taşköprü

Habil Kılıç

Mehmet Turgut

İsmail Yaşar

TheodorosBoulgarides

Mehmet Kubaşik

Halit Yozgat

Michèle Kiesewetter

Zehn brennende Kerzen – zehn ausgelöschte Leben. Ihrer gedenken wir heute. Zehn Kerzen – sie stehen für eine Mordserie in Deutschland von 2000 bis 2006, deren Täter bis 2011 und damit also über mehr als zehn Jahre unentdeckt blieben – mitten unter uns; beispiellos für unser Land.

Rede Bundeskanzlerin Merkel: “Dafür bitte ich sie um Verzeihung”

Foto: Bundesregierung/Denzel

Merkel warnt vor “Verrohung des Geistes”

Bei der zentralen Gedenkveranstaltung hat sich Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel bei den Angehörigen der Opfer für die Zeit der falschen Verdächtigungen entschuldigt. Die Rede im Wortlaut:

 

Sehr geehrter Herr Bundesratspräsident,
sehr geehrter Herr Bundestagspräsident,
sehr geehrter Herr Präsident des Bundesverfassungsgerichts,
Exzellenzen,
sehr geehrte Damen und Herren,
ganz besonders aber: liebe Familien, die Sie einen Angehörigen verloren haben oder selbst einen Anschlag erleben mussten,

ich danke Ihnen, dass Sie heute zu dieser Gedenkveranstaltung gekommen sind.

Auf dem Podest links neben mir brennen Kerzen. Es sind Kerzen für Menschen – für Menschen, deren Leben ausgelöscht wurde, ausgelöscht durch kaltblütigen Mord.

Enver Şimşek. Er wurde 38 Jahre alt und hatte sich, seiner Frau und seinen beiden Kindern in Nürnberg den Traum vom eigenen Blumenhandel erfüllt.

Abdurrahim Özüdoğru. Er half häufiger in einer Änderungsschneiderei in Nürnberg aus. Dort trafen ihn die tödlichen Schüsse. Er wurde 49 Jahre alt und hinterlässt eine Tochter.

Süleyman Taşköprü. Er betrieb in Hamburg einen Gemüsemarkt. Als er im Alter von 31 Jahren starb, war seine Tochter gerade einmal drei Jahre alt.

Habil Kılıç. Wenige Monate vor seinem gewaltsamen Tod im Alter von 38 Jahren hatte er in München zusammen mit seiner Frau ein Lebensmittelgeschäft eröffnet. Die beiden haben eine Tochter.

Mehmet Turgut. Der 25-Jährige war gerade aus Anatolien nach Rostock gekommen. Hoffnungen und Träume begleiteten ihn. Er hatte keine Chance, sie zu verwirklichen.

İsmail Yaşar. Vor allem die Schulkinder der Nürnberger Nachbarschaft kamen häufig und gerne zum Imbiss des Familienvaters. Er wurde 50 Jahre alt und hinterlässt drei Kinder.

TheodorosBoulgarides. Der 41-jährige Vater von zwei Kindern lebte in München und glaubte als Geschäftsmann an seine Zukunft in Deutschland.

Mehmet Kubaşik. Er war mit seiner Frau nach Deutschland gekommen, hatte mit ihr in Dortmund einen Kiosk eröffnet und sich so eine Existenz aufgebaut – für seine Tochter und die beiden jüngeren Söhne. Er wurde 39 Jahre alt.

Halit Yozgat. Der 21-Jährige betrieb in seiner Heimatstadt Kassel ein Internetcafé – bis die Mörder sein junges Leben auslöschten.

Michèle Kiesewetter. Die Polizistin zog für ihre Polizeiausbildung von Thüringen nach Baden-Württemberg. Sie war gerade einmal 22 Jahre alt, als sie in Heilbronn in ihrem Dienstwagen ermordet wurde. Ihr neben ihr sitzender Kollege überlebte die Schüsse der Täter schwer verletzt.

Zehn brennende Kerzen – zehn ausgelöschte Leben. Ihrer gedenken wir heute. Zehn Kerzen – sie stehen für eine Mordserie in Deutschland von 2000 bis 2006, deren Täter bis 2011 und damit also über mehr als zehn Jahre unentdeckt blieben – mitten unter uns; beispiellos für unser Land.

Bevor wir die alles überragenden Fragen „Wie konnte das geschehen?“, „Warum sind wir nicht früher aufmerksam geworden?“, „Warum konnten wir das nicht verhindern?“ beantworten, bitte ich darum, dass wir schweigen. Schweigen, so wie heute um 12 Uhr Beschäftigte im ganzen Land schweigen werden. Gewerkschaften und Arbeitgeber haben das vereinbart.

(Schweigen)

Ich danke Ihnen.

Roundup of Today’s International News 23/02/12

IRAN

IAEA Inspectors Return from Iran Talks with No Way Forward
Officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency, sent to Iran to defuse tensions over the country’s nuclear program, were denied access to a military base and said the talks “couldn’t finalize a way forward.”

Iran talks failure sparks confrontation fears
The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s latest mission to Iran failed to budge a defiant Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme, sending oil prices to a nine-month high over fears of an increasing risk of confrontation with the West.

Khamenei: No obstacles can stop Iran’s nuclear course
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that Iran’s nuclear course would not change regardless of international sanctions, assassinations or other pressures.

Iran views its nuclear activities as non-negotiable
Iran said on Tuesday it views its nuclear activities as a non-negotiable right, but confirmed they will be discussed in mooted talks with world powers aimed at defusing a crisis containing the seeds of a new Middle East war.

URGENT APPEAL>> Saeed Malekpour, Zaniar Moradi, Loghman Moradi, Sherko Moarefi, Yusuf Naderkhani Can Be Executed Any Time Now! – Take Action!

Saeed Malekpour, resident of Canada, a freelance web developer and programmer was arrested in October 2008 in the city of Tehran while visiting his terminally ill father in Iran. He is sentenced to death on charge of “Agitation against the regime”.

Zaniar Moradi & Loghman Moradi, political activists; they were arrested in August 2009; both of them are sentenced to death on charges of moharebeh (being enemy of God) and “corruption on earth”.

Sherko Moarefi, a political activist, was detained in October 2008; he was sentenced to death for “acting against national security” and “being enemy of God”.

Berlin: Gedenkveranstaltung für die Opfer rechtsextremistischer Gewalt mit Rede von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel.

Typisch Deutsch e.V. – Mitmachen – Mitwirken

 

Mehr hier

Iran Snap Analysis: Nuclear Postures and “War is Coming!”

The signal could not have been clearer or louder. Steve Forbes, one of America’s most prominent businessmen, has used the pages of his magazine to declare, “War with Iran is Coming!“

In the heat of battle the ayatollahs may not be able to contain themselves. Iran will also attempt to have its agents carry out terrorist acts around the world, particularly in the U.S….Israel will find itself embroiled in a horrific conflict….Much as the White House might wish otherwise, the U.S. will become involved. In fact, President Obama could well respond to the conflict the way he did when he went after Osama bin Laden: give U.S. forces the green light to do whatever is necessary on water and in the air to help the Israelis. 

Iran: journalists jailed

 

Adnan Hassanpour, Aso

Imprisoned: January 25, 2007

Security agents seized Hassanpour, former editor of the now-defunct Kurdish-Persian weekly Aso, in his hometown of Marivan, Kurdistan province, according to news reports.

In July 2007, a Revolutionary Court convicted Hassanpour on antistate charges and sentenced him to death. After a series of appeals and reversals, he was sentenced in May 2010 to 15 years in prison, defense lawyer Saleh Nikbakht told the Reporters and Human Rights Activists News Agency.

The government’s case against Hassanpour amounted to a series of assertions by security agents, defense attorney Sirvan Hosmandi told CPJ in 2008. Hassanpour’s sister, Lily, told CPJ that she believed his critical writings were behind the charges.

Journalist for Iranian media imprisoned in Azerbaijan

Anar Bayramli, Baku-based correspondent for Iranian broadcaster Sahar TV and news agency Fars, has been imprisoned for two months pending trial over drug charges. The Committee to Protect Journalists has determined the charges are fabricated and calls on authorities in Azerbaijan to release him immediately.

On Friday, Baku police visited Bayramli’s home, summoned him for interrogation, and detained him after declaring they found 0.387 grams of heroin in his jacket, Reutersreported. The journalist denied the accusations and said police planted the drugs. The next day, the Binagadinsky District Court ordered Bayramli’s pretrial imprisonment for two months on charges of drug possession and resisting police officers; the ruling was announced without his lawyer present. If convicted, Bayramli faces up to three years in jail.

Mehdi Khazali to Prison Authorities:”In the Event of my Death, I Ask That My Autopsy Be Performed by an International Entity”

February 22nd, 2012 [Kaleme]  In a letter addressed to prison authorities at Evin prison, Dr. Mehdi Khazali has announced that in the event that he dies while in prison and as a result of his hunger strike any autopsy or forensic examination take place only at the hand of medical examiners associated with International Organizations.

In this letter, Dr. Khazli reportedly points to the martyrdom of Hoda Saber while at Evin and the autopsy that took place at the time. Hoda Saber, journalist and political activist arrested after the 2009 presidential elections died at Evin prison after he launched a hunger strike protesting the martyrdom of Haleh Sahabi.  The day before he died, security agents finally transferred Saber to Modares Hospital after he suffered a stroke. Saber died because he did not receive adequate and timely medical attention.