News Digest

February 26International: Iranian security forces shot at and injured 20 Kurds crossing the border area of Nowsud in western Kermanshah province. Border guards have repeatedly targeted kolbars, porters who transport untaxed goods across Iran’s borders with Iraq and Turkey. “The injuries sustained…

February 19International: Mehr News Agency signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with TV BRICS at the 24th Iran Media Expo. The MoU set up further cooperation on content production and distribution across media outlets from BRICS member states, which include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South…

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…