“NO DEPARTURES AND ARR DUE AIRSPACE RESTRICTION UNTIL FURTHER ADVISE” This was the message received at 3.30 pm GMT on Monday via ACARS (satellite messaging) by hundreds of airliners in the vicinity of Qatari airspace. Speculation had mounted since 12.20 pm GMT when a NOTAM announced that Al Udeid Air …
Read More »Why Israel’s war gambit could strengthen Iran’s hardliners
On 13 June, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a preemptive military campaign aimed at crippling Iran’s nuclear capabilities. But with symbolic references to the pre-1979 monarchy embedded in the operation’s name, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explicitly appealing to the Iranian people to “rise up,” observers believed that the …
Read More »From the Naksa to Iran: Israel aims to shape a new Middle East
For decades, preparations simmered. Covert and overt operations, escalating rhetoric, and mutual threats have long defined the standoff between the so-called Iranian axis and Israel. Capitalising on the 7 October attacks by Hamas-led militants, Tel Aviv chose to cut to the chase, launching successive strikes against Iran’s allies and finally …
Read More »The Most Significant Long-Term Consequence of the U.S. Strikes on Iran
Operation Midnight Hammer represented an extraordinary demonstration of American military capabilities. Seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers targeted Iran’s nuclear installations at Fordow and Natanz with fourteen 30,000-pound bombs while a guided missile submarine simultaneously launched more than two dozen cruise missiles at Isfahan, Iran’s largest nuclear research complex. The strikes …
Read More »Iranian Grand Ayatollah Issues Fatwa Calling for President Trump’s Murder
Latest Developments Fatwa Issued: Iran’s top Shia cleric, Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi, issued a fatwa, or religious edict, against President Donald Trump on June 29, calling on “Muslims of the world” to assassinate the U.S. leader. The fatwa was released by Shirazi’s office and published by several Iranian state …
Read More »Britain’s long history of spying on Iran
The UK has spent decades trying to subvert Iran’s government, but also secretly sold them chemical weapons and spied on opposition activists. As bombs fell on Iran this week, the UK government claimed it had “not participated” in the military action led by Israel and the US. But British spy …
Read More »Make Iran Free Again
The Islamist Regime in Tehran Must Go Almost two weeks into the war, the Trump administration is imposing a ceasefire on Israel. The most dangerous outcome is to allow the Islamic Republic to stay in power. A ceasefire that leaves the regime standing would not bring peace and stability, just …
Read More »IAEA board resolution declaring Iran in breach of non-proliferation duties
Below are key passages from a four-page resolution on Iran that diplomats said the International Atomic Energy Agency’s 35-nation Board of Governors passed on Thursday. The text is still confidential and was seen by Reuters. The Board of Governors,… (d) Recalling the Board of Governors’ resolutions of 19 June 2020… …
Read More »High Risk Of More Conflict As Iran-Israel Ceasefire Could Collapse – Analysis
Don’t hold your breath. President Donald J. Trump’s silencing of Iranian and Israeli guns is fragile at best. Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of a NATO summit, Trump admitted as much. “Can it start again? I guess it can, maybe someday soon,” Trump said. The fragility was …
Read More »Iran reports it evacuated materials prior to US strikes on nuclear sites
Iran’s state broadcaster political deputy said Iran evacuated materials from three nuclear sites prior to being attacked by the US, the IRNA news agency reported Sunday. “Part of the Fordo nuclear site area was subjected to an aerial attack by enemy forces,” IRNA reported, citing the Qom provincial governor’s office. …
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