Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday announced a four-month ban on all cryptocurrency mining, citing widespread power outages that have hamstrung the Islamic Republic earlier than usual this year. “Today everybody has a few miners laying around and are producing bitcoins,” the frustrated Rouhani told his cabinet. The practice of …

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up his two-day visit to the Middle East Wednesday evening, after meeting regional leaders in Jerusalem, Ramallah, Cairo and Amman in an effort to shore up the Israeli-Hamas cease-fire reached last week. During his trip, the US’s top diplomat made several announcements of …

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday expressed his support for the nation’s Guardian Council decision, announced Wednesday, to disqualify a string of reformist candidates from running in the upcoming presidential elections. The move, which all but ensures victory for hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi, who currently serves as Iran’s chief …