News Digest
February 12Diplomacy: Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian spoke with Qatari officials in Doha about the war in Gaza and regional tensions.Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian met with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha. pic.twitter.com/uj0oK3qa8O— Press TV (@…
February 5Nuclear: Iran’s nuclear chief, Mohammed Eslami, announced the start of the construction of a new domestically designed 10-megawatt research reactor in central Isfahan. It would produce materials for cancer diagnostics and treatment. Eslami had also announced the construction of a nuclear…
January 29Diplomacy: Deputy Interior Minister Majid Mirahmadi met with Syrian Minister of Interior Mohammad Khaled al Rahmoun in Damascus to discuss security coordination and counterterrorism efforts. They reviewed the complex security landscape in Syria and the regional challenges both states face…
October 9
International: Iran’s U.N. mission argued that the brutal attack on Israel by Hamas and Islamic Jihad was a “wholly legitimate defense against seven decades of oppressive occupation.” But it denied playing any role in the multi-prong assault. "We emphatically stand in unflagging support…
September 25
International: The State Department had denied Iran’s request for Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian to travel to Washington, D.C. “Given Iran’s wrongful detention of U.S. citizens, given Iran’s state sponsorship of terrorism, we did not believe it was either appropriate or…
September 18
Diplomacy: Iran released five Americans as part of a prisoner swap with the United States. The four men and one woman had been imprisoned on unproven charges of espionage. One had been held since 2015. In return, the Biden administration released five Iranian men imprisoned in the…
September 11
International: Israel “would have to act” if Iran enriched uranium above 60 percent, just below the weapons-grade level of 90 percent, Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi vowed. “There would not be any choice,” he added, as such an escalation would indicate that “we have…
September 4
Nuclear: Iran slowed uranium enrichment to 60 percent, according to the IAEA. It enriched 7.5 kilograms (16.5 pounds) of uranium to 60 percent between June and August 2023. In the first half of 2023, Tehran enriched more than 50 kilograms of uranium to near weapons-grade. The IAEA…
August 28
Domestic: Pop singer Mehdi Yarrahi was detained by police for criticizing the mandatory hijab ban in his song “Roosarito”, Farsi for “Your Headscarf.” The song encouraged women to remove their headscarves and featured the slogan “Woman, life, freedom,” often chanted by protesters. “Don’t…
August 21
International: The U.S. Defense Department rejected Tehran’s claim that the Iranian Navy had intercepted U.S. Navy vessels, based on edited footage. “That report is not true,” said Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh. “So I don’t know where that’s coming from, but we’ve seen…