The End of the Dispensable Iranian

Dawn had always arrived in Berlin’s Turm Strasse with the bustling of shopkeepers and the drowsy hiss of buses pulling into their stops. Always, except on the morning of April 10, 1997. On that day, the street had been cleared of traffic and blocked to anyone but pedestrians. On the rooftop of every building leading to Nos. 91-92, snipers had been stationed. By Roya Hakakian

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 22:5:55 GMT
U.S. Says Iran's Possible Absence at Iraq Conference "Unfortunate"
Washington -- The United States said Tuesday that Iran's possible absence at an international conference on Iraq is "rather unfortunate" and urged Teheran to show support for a stabilized Iraq. "If in fact that is their final position, it's rather unfortunate," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. more
By Xinhua

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 16:57:18 GMT
Iranian Nukes Not For Sale
The Islamic Republic of Iran celebrated its first national "Nuclear Technology Day" on Monday. The celebration began at 9 a.m. local time, when school bells across the country rang in unison, congratulatory text messages from the government were sent out to millions of mobile phone users, U.S. and Israeli flags went up in flames and a massive cake colored to resemble yellowcake was devoured. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad led the festivities at the country's enrichment facility at Natanz, where he boldly announced that Iran "has joined the nuclear club of nations and can produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale.'' more
By Stratfor

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 13:38:56 GMT
Where Angels Fear to Tread
The wisest fool in Christendom. This moniker, first applied to England’s James I, was very much up for grabs late last week, as two senior British prelates — one Anglican, the other Roman Catholic — weighed in with uncommonly dumb and disedifying pronouncements on the latest Iranian-instigated hostage crisis. more
By National Review Online

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 12:21:45 GMT
FM: Iran-5+1 Talks Should Seek Thorough Solution
Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said here Tuesday that Iran's talks with 5+1 on its peaceful nuclear activities should be comprehensive and serious, adding that they should be objective-oriented and aim to come up with a thorough solution. more
By Islamic Republic News Agency

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 11:46:39 GMT
How Iran Probed, Found Weakness and Won a Triumph
Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, an improbable Easter bunny, scored a political victory, both in Iran and internationally, by his "gift" of the return of Britain's 15 hostages. Against all odds, Iran emerged with a win-win from the crisis: winning by its provocation in seizing the hostages in the first place and winning again by its unilateral decision to release them. more
By The Financial Times

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 11:36:55 GMT
Jerusalem Dismisses Iran's 'Nuke Boasting'
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday Iran is now capable of enriching nuclear fuel "on an industrial scale," a claim that senior officials in Israel brushed off as "nuclear boasting." more
By The Jerusalem Post

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 11:32:4 GMT
Russia Skeptical About Iran Announcement
MOSCOW -- Russia voiced skepticism Tuesday about Iran's announcement of a dramatic expansion of its uranium enrichment effort, saying it had not received confirmation of the claim. more
By The Associated Press

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 11:30:0 GMT
US Casts Doubt on Iran's Nuclear Claims
President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad said on Monday that Iran had reached what he called “industrial scale” in its production of nuclear fuel. But a lack of detail in his announcement left analysts trying to disentangle atomic substance from political rhetoric. more
By The Financial Times

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 11:22:13 GMT
Britain Was Once Great Britain
It is painful to see the decline of Great Britain. Greatness in individuals is rare; in countries it is almost unique. And Great Britain was great. more
By Frontpagemag.com

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 11:6:28 GMT
Faye's Blast at Squirming Tyrant
Gutsy Faye Turney turned the tables on Iranian tyrant Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as he freed her in front of TV cameras — making him SQUIRM. Watch Sun's exclusive interview with Faye here more
By The Sun

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 10:55:34 GMT
The Pirates of Tehran
Oil prices fell. The stock market rose. Video images of smiling British soldiers with Iranian President Ahmadinejad were everywhere. So were pictures of the 15 freed hostages embracing family members back home. The relief over the return of the Brits was so tremendous; you could almost hear birds singing. Maybe it's because military action won't be needed or maybe it's just because the ordeal won't drag on and on, but the world is breathing easier now. A lot of folks are happy. The problem, as I see it, is that Ahmadinejad seems to be the happiest. more
By Redstate

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 10:6:47 GMT
Iran: Détente, Not Regime Change
Summary: To tame the growing power of Iran, Washington must eschew military options, the prospect of conditional talks, and attempts to contain the regime. Instead, it should adopt a new policy of détente. By offering the pragmatists in Tehran a chance to resume diplomatic and economic relations with the United States, it could help them sideline the radicals and tip Iran's internal balance of power in their favor. more
By Foreign Affairs

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 9:52:47 GMT
Iranian General Bypasses Travel Ban
TEHRAN, Iran -- An Iranian Revolutionary Guard general who is banned from traveling abroad by the U.N. Security Council visited Russia without any difficulty, Iranian state television reported on its Web site Monday. more
By The Associated Press

Posted 10/4/2007 @ 9:8:58 GMT
Inspectors in Iran After Nuclear Announcement
TEHRAN -- Two U.N. nuclear inspectors began a week-long trip to Iran on Tuesday to visit the country's Natanz uranium enrichment facility, a day after Tehran declared it had begun industrial atomic work at the site. An Iranian official confirmed the inspectors' arrival to Reuters and said they were on a routine visit. He gave no further details. more
By Reuters

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 17:3:23 GMT
Iran Begins 'Dramatic' Nuclear Expansion
NATANZ, Iran -- Iran today announced it has begun enriching uranium with 3,000 centrifuges, a dramatic expansion of a nuclear program that has drawn U.N. sanctions and condemnation from the West. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said at a ceremony at the enrichment facility at Natanz that Iran was now capable of enriching nuclear fuel "on an industrial scale." more
By The Associated Press

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 16:27:12 GMT
US 'Very Concerned' Over Iran Nuclear Steps
YUMA, United States -- The White House said Monday it was "very concerned" about Iran's claim it was producing enriched uranium on an industrial scale and warned against "unacceptable" limits on Tehran's cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog. more
By AFP

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 16:19:44 GMT
Ahmadinejad: World Powers Won't Thwart Iran Nuclear Drive
NATANZ -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday vowed that world powers would not be able to stop Iran's nuclear drive, saying the atomic programme was on its way to the 'summit.' more
By Thomson Financial

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 16:13:51 GMT
Halliburton Completes Work in Iran
Halliburton HAL announced today that all of its contractual commitments in Iran have been completed and the company is no longer working in Iran. The winding down of Halliburton's work came as the result of a decision announced in January 2005 that only contractual commitments existing at that time would be honored, and that no new work would be accepted going forward. more
By All BusinessWire News

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 13:46:31 GMT
Iran Announces "Industrial" Nuclear Fuel Work
NATANZ, Iran -- Iran has entered the "industrial stage" of nuclear fuel production, the country's atomic chief said on Monday. The announcement, which suggested a significant advancement for Tehran's nuclear plans, is likely to anger the West which fears Tehran is secretly trying to build atomic bombs. more
By Reuters

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 13:31:28 GMT
Iran Says It's Prepared to Start 'Industrial Scale' Uranium Enrichment
NATANZ, Iran -- Iran on Monday announced it was prepared to start "industrial scale" enrichment of uranium, expanding a key nuclear process that the United Nations has demanded it halt. The announcement came as Iran celebrated its first success in enriching small amounts of uranium at its Natanz enrichment facility in central Iran. more
By The Associated Press

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 13:15:58 GMT
Larijani Says the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Completed
TEHRAN -- Iran is ready for serious negotiations with the West to seek a deal that would end a row over its atomic plans, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator said on Monday. more
By Reuters

Posted 9/4/2007 @ 11:19:56 GMT
Fury as Bishops Back Iran
The Roman Catholic bishop who oversees the armed forces has provoked fury by praising the Iranian leadership for its "forgiveness" and "act of mercy" in freeing the 15 British sailors and marines last week. more
By Telegraph