Iran News and Discussions

[Austin]

They say slightly higher enrichment is possible due to wrong centrifuges setting and any way far lower than 90 % of what iran would need for N bum.

Meanwhile Israel elites have gone silent and the window of opportunity is being sold as before November , which is before US elections forcing US to join in.

Iran attack decision nears, Israeli elite locks down

[Philip]

All systems at the ready,for the "dogs of war" to be unleashed against Iran.Both the US and Israeli armed forces are on standby mode,waiting for the opportune moment and signal.US sources say that they can crush the Iranians within three weeks.However,the big Q is what will the Russians and Chinese do if Iran is attacked? What support will they give the Iranian military (intel and material support) if such an event takes place? The situ in Syria is a fortaste of things to come as the Russians are refusing to toe the west's line on regime change.Any attack on Iran will unite the Shiite nation and usher in a global campaign (terror) against the "Great Satan".

http://adrempress.com/pentagon-source-u ... n-3-weeks/

Iran is the most pressing scenario now

The U.S. military is now shifting its focus from Iraq and Afghanistan as the Pentagon now believes that Iran is the most pressing scenario for the U.S. now. The Pentagon has now put in a contingency plan for Iran according to the new strategic guidelines put in place by President Barrack Obama.

3 weeks

According to sources within the Pentagon all the U.S. needs is 3 weeks to carry out devastating strikes in Iran. The Washington Times has reported quoting a source that the U.S. Central Command is confident it can either significantly degrade or destroy Iran’s conventional armed forces in 3 weeks. The plan is to use both air and sea strikes without engaging the enemy forces on the ground. The Pentagon is also steadily increasing its forces in the Gulf to ensure it can keep an eye on Iran and also respond in case any situation arises.

No discussion on war planning

Army Lt. Col. T.G. Taylor, who is a spokesperson at the U.S. Central Command, said that the Command does not discuss war planning however he did confirm that they took guidance from Washington D.C.

“We plan for any eventuality we can and provide options to the president,” Col. Taylor revealed. “We take our guidance from the secretary of defense and from our civilian bosses in D.C. So any kind of guidance they give us, that’s what we go off of.”

Meanwhile,the source of the sophisticated "worm" that hit Iranian sites is supposed to be part of a cyberwarfare programme suspected to be either from the US or Israel.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/ma ... -w32flamer

Computer worm that hit Iran oil terminals 'is most complex yet'

Experts warn W32.Flamer may have been developed by a nation state as part of cyberwarfare activities.

Xcpts:

Computer worm that hit Iran oil terminals 'is most complex yet'

Experts warn W32.Flamer may have been developed by a nation state as part of cyberwarfare activities

Nick Hopkins
guardian.co.uk, Monday 28 May 2012

Iran's Kharg island
Iran's Kharg island terminal processes 90% of the country's crude oil exports Photograph: Kaveh Kazemi/Corbis

A cyber-attack that targeted Iran's oil ministry and main export terminal was caused by the most sophisticated computer worm yet developed, experts have warned.

The virus appears to have been directed primarily at a small number of organisations and individuals in Iran, the West Bank, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates. This will inevitably raise suspicions that Israel or the US were involved in some way.

Analysts who have been decoding the computer worm, which is called W32.Flamer, have been unable to identify the source. But they say only a professional team working for several months could have been behind it.

The CrySys Laboratory, in Hungary, said: "The results of our technical analysis supports the hypothesis that [the worm] was developed by a government agency of a nation state with significant budget and effort, and it may be related to cyberwarfare activities."It is certainly the most sophisticated malware we [have] encountered. Arguably, it is the most complex malware ever found."

Orla Cox, a senior analyst at Symantec, the international computer security firm, said: "I would say that this is the most sophisticated threat we have ever seen."

Symantec undertook a detailed analysis of the groundbreaking Stuxnet virus, which targeted Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities two years ago, sending some of their centrifuges spinning out of control. Cox said W32.Flamer appeared to be even more complex than Stuxnet, and that it was an incredibly clever, comprehensive "spying programme".

"It is a backdoor worm that goes looking for very specific information. It scrapes a mass of information from any infected machines and then sends it, without the user having any idea what is going on. The amount of information it can send is huge."

Symantec first started working on the code over the weekend after it was discovered by specialists at the Laboratory of Cryptography and System Security, at the University of Budapest.

Analysis now shows that the worm has been around, undetected, for at least two years, and experts are confident it was responsible for the disruption to Iran's oil industry last month.

According to reports, the cyber-attack forced Iran to convene a "crisis committee" that ordered the disconnection of six of its main oil terminals from the internet, to stop the worm spreading.

One of these, on Kharg island, 16 miles off the north-western coast of Iran, processes 90% of the country's crude oil exports.

The Iranian Students' News Agency said that the virus had successfully erased information on hard disks at the oil ministry's headquarters.

Though the oil ministry insisted that the worm had been contained and that no significant data had been erased, the likelihood is that W32.Flamer had been inside the network for many months and may already have completed its primary mission. Cox said the worm was designed to gather and send information covertly – unlike Stuxnet, which was built to identify and destroy equipment.

"Once the attacker has that level of access, then all bets are off," she said. "Once the worm has infected a system, it would be possible to add new commands over time, to add an element of disruption."

Though Symantec said it was impossible to say whether the team behind W32.Flamer was also behind Stuxnet. Cox said the two were similar in some ways, and shared some features.

"To the casual observer, the worm looks like any piece of software," she said. "To get that level of sophistication would take a team of 10 several months. It's very professional."

The worm was able to take screenshots of users' desktops, to spread via USB drives, and to disable security systems. It was also able to find security vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows to help it spread from network to network. As well as major networks, the worm appears to have infected personal computers being used at home, she said.

Symantec said it believed at least 100 organisations and individuals had been targeted by the worm, and that these were "primarily located in the Middle East". The worm appeared to have transferred to Hungary, Russia, Austria and Hong Kong, though these may have been hit accidentally.

The use of so-called cyberwarfare was taken to new levels by Stuxnet, which disabled some of the centrifuges inside the Natanz enrichment plant, south-west of Tehran.

Though nobody has been able to say confidently who was responsible for building the virus, only certain countries are thought to have the necessary capability, or intent.

Israel and the US are thought to be world leaders in the development of such technology. Last year an investigation by the New York Times claimed Stuxnet was a joint US/Israeli operation designed to undermine Iran's efforts to make a bomb of its own.

[Philip]

Israel hints it may be behind super- virus targeting Iran

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/

'Flame' cyber attacks that can steal vast amounts of sensitive data come as Tehran nuclear talks falter.

Xcpt:

An astonishingly comprehensive and stealthy beast, but Flame virus doesn't pose a risk to the public... yet

Jerome Taylor

Wednesday 30 May 2012
Israel hints it may be behind 'Flame' super-virus targeting Iran

Ever since word of the Flame virus first got out the superlatives have come in thick and fast.
Analysts have competed with themselves to describe it as the most complex, the deadliest, largest and most comprehensive virus ever uncovered. In many ways it is all these things and more. But does it pose a risk to the average internet user?

The short answer at the moment is no. Whoever created Flame did it with a very specific agenda – the targeted acquisition of intelligence on very specific networks primarily in the Middle East.

While it is frighteningly capable, it is not particularly infectious. When organised criminals create malware they often try to make their product as virulent as possible. The more computers you infect, the bigger pool you get to swim in looking for ways to make money and pilfer data.

Flame is a much stealthier beast. Most likely the product of a nation state, it has been created to surreptitiously infiltrate designated networks and harvest as much data as possible without being detected. Once it is inside a system it works at a level of comprehensiveness and sneakiness that has rarely been seen before. But in the two-five year period Flame is thought have been in existence, it has infected hundreds of computers in the Middle East, not millions of computers worldwide.

Flame could become a danger to the public, however, if criminal networks are able to get their hands on some of the coding that has made it so effective. That is what happened with Stuxnet.

Even more targeted than Flame, Stuxnet was developed – most likely by Israel or the United States – to disrupt Iran’s nuclear programme by exploiting the very specific Siemans computer systems that were used by Tehran in its uranium enrichment facilities

On its own it was harmless to other systems. But once the coding became public – an inevitable side effect of analysing and defeating viruses – criminal groups were able to take sections of the virus and develop it for their own nefarious purposes. Malware using Stuxnet’s capabilities soon began to surface on the black market and cause carnage online.

Any malware worth its salt looks out for anti-virus software once it’s inside a machine. A sophisticated virus might have between 20-50 defences already built in to counter security software. Cyber security researchers have told me Flame has an astonishing 346 separate defences. The list, which is circulating among professionals, is not being made public in a bid to keep it o

[Vayutuvan]

(This should probably go into other threads also)

NightWatch

For the night of 31 May 2012

...
International North South Transport Corridor: Special Report. An Indian news service published an update on the status of an important Asian infrastructure project, encouraged by the United Nations, which ensures Iran will never be isolated again.


A multi-national and multi-mode transport corridor from Mumbai to Moscow via Iran and Tajikistan will be completed within the next year, provided final funding is found for one last segment in Iran. The new corridor which involves some new construction to link existing infrastructure will reduce cargo transportation time significantly between India and Russia and points in between.


A three-day meeting of experts from 16 countries on 30 May discussed ways to smooth the way for the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and at least six supplementary routes.


In contrast with a US-backed Silk Road proposal that would bypass Iran, the INSTC depends on Iran's port of Bandar Abbas as the hub of all north-south cargo shipments. The meeting on the INSTC proposed a joint venture between Iran, India, Russia and Azerbaijan to find solutions to various issues, such as infrastructure and funding. It also suggested a core group on customs -- India, Russia, Iran and Turkey -- consisting of experts from these countries, based in Delhi to sort out issues


In stark contrast, Iran plays a crucial role in the multi-modal North-South Corridor because its port Bandar Abbas will be the hub of all activity. Experts proposed the setting up of two four-nation groups to resolve many of the issues. Iran along with Russia and India (all three initiators of the project) will be in both groups.


Comment: All that remains for completion of the infrastructure for this corridor is fewer than 150 kms of railroad in northern Iran. That segment should be finished in the next year. The mix of national partners is unprecedented. The route is unprecedented, bypassing Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as the Suez Canal. When finished, it will be the shortest high-volume, low cost cargo route between India and Russia.

[Prem]

http://venturebeat.com/2012/06/01/stuxn ... rael-iran/
Stuxnet revealed: U.S. and Israel developed, lost control of Iran cyberwar campaign, NYT says

facilities in 2010 before escaping and wreaking havoc on the public Web, was a joint effort between the U.S. and Israel. But, aside from security firm reports, their connection was mostly speculation — until today.A lengthy New York Times report this morning confirms that Stuxnet was indeed an American and Israeli project, and it also reveals some fascinating details about the first major cyberwar effort in the world.According to the NYT, the cyberwar campaign, dubbed “Olympic Games,” began under President Bush in 2006 as a way to stall Iran’s nuclear ambitions. After virtually mapping Iran’s Natanz plant, the U.S. worked with an Israeli team to create an early variant of Stuxnet, which was programmed to target Siemens equipment and destroy centrifuges being used to purify uranium.Given that the U.S. was in the middle of several ground efforts in the Middle East, it was tough to rally international support for a physical strike against Iran as well. A cyber-strike made more sense at the time, and it seems President Obama agreed, as he accelerated the cyberwar effort during his first few years in the White House.“From his first days in office, he was deep into every step in slowing the Iranian program — the diplomacy, the sanctions, every major decision,” a senior administration official told the NYT. “And it’s safe to say that whatever other activity might have been under way was no exception to that rule.”All was going well until an updated version of the virus made its way out of the Natanz plant. The new version of the virus had an error in its code that allowed it to spread to an Iranian engineer’s laptop, and it spread to the Internet when he left the plant. White House officials blamed Israel for the mistake, according to the NYT.Once the virus began replicating itself on the Web and attacking Siemens equipment worldwide, security companies ended up calling it Stuxnet.Flame, the most recent virus targeting computers in the Middle East, wasn’t a part of Olympic Games, American officials told the NYT. They didn’t comment on whether the U.S. was behind Flame.There are plenty of advantages to cyberwarfare: it involves practically no human casualties and lengthy ground campaigns, to name just a few. But it’s not a panacea, as relying too much on cyberwar efforts will inevitably make the U.S. a bigger target for cyber-strikes. That’s something that President Obama kept in mind as he accelerated the Olympic Games effort, the NYT reports.

[Prem]

Pakistani Al Qaida Khan facilitated centrifuges

[ramana]

Two x-posts from Philip:

In 1980,the size of the Israeli bomb was "2ft. long and 22" in dia.In an ironic fact that should be publicised,the Israelis and Iranians actually collaborated together in developing a nuclear-tipped missile under "Operation Flower",when the Shah was in power.This $1B ultra-secret programme was hatched between the two def. mins,Ezer Weizmann and Hassan Toufanian in late 1977.The missile with a warhead of 750kg was to have had a range of 200+ km.The US was against giving the Israelis the Pershing,the Soviets anything equivalent too.Therefore the secret deal was hatched between the two seemingly antagonistic nations.

It was an oil-for-arms deal brokered by a Swiss entity,since Israel was facing an oil embargo from the Arab states.The assembly line was to be in Iran,Sirjin,with a 747 capable runway for flown in components from Israel.The Israeli project even then was to have had the ability of the weapon to be launched from subs! Israel had just recd. 3 Vickers built subs.This would've given the Israelis the capability to hit Libya,Tunis and Alexandria in Egypt.The money (oil) flowed into Israel from the Shah,$250m in '78 alone.However,the project suffered a major setback due to the fall of the Shah,but was reportedly completed by Israel.Israeli missiles are supposedly hidden in UG bunkers and on rail cars hidden in caves.With the controversial (Gunther Grass's diatribe against the sale) acquisition of the German built Dolphin subs ,even newer and more deadly warheads would've been developed and much longer ranged cruise missiles to carry the warheads.Terribly ironic at this time of tension with Iran to acknowledge that the Israeli nuclear deterrent was part funded by Iran itself!

I am mentioning this titbit from history to show how small an Israeli N-warhead is/was way back in '77.From these stats one can see how many MIRVs we can also carry atop each ICBM whose diameter we must assume is that of one silo on the ATV,which can carry 3 K-15 750km+ missiles.Enjoy working out that oneself!

and

PS,in continuation of my earlier post,the size of the Israeli bomb became known because the Israeli's were allegedly being helped by American nuclear scientists who leaked the details! It is not known whether this was official US assistance to Israel,just as the Chinese gave Pak the bomb,delivery systems and their designs,or whether it was rogue Yanqui scientists moonlighting for Israel,as the state has enormous clout and influence in the US.,yet also spies on it too,take the Pollard case for ex.Until Vanunu exposed Israel's secret arsenal and facilities,the world had little inkling of its N-capability.

[Hiten]

The June copy of Combat Aircraft mag has an article about Iranian MiG-29s

http://www.aame.in/2012/06/iranian-air- ... ghter.html

[svinayak]

http://iranpoliticsclub.net/history/nazis2/index.htm

Coup Makers, Thugs and Hooligans paid with CIA money, at the Radio Station Building, Tehran, Iran (1953).

[nvishal]

BROADSWORD: US-India strategic dialogue: Iran disagreement recedes as talks begin

On Monday, Clinton granted India (and six other countries) a six-month waiver from sanctions, justified by the actions they have taken to reduce oil dependency on Iran. India has reduced oil imports from Iran from the 2008-09 high of 16% of total oil imports to just 10% last year, with further reductions planned to 7%. Reducing below this level is problematic because refineries like those of Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) are engineered specifically for Iranian crude.

New Delhi officials, speaking anonymously, say entirely shutting off Iranian crude would be undesirable, even if Saudi Arabia offered to make good the shortfall. “We would not like all our eggs in one basket. Besides, we are exploring other sources: imports of crude from Venezuela have begun; and our traditional source, Iraq, has begun exporting crude again,” says a senior foreign ministry official.

Even at the reduced import levels from Iran, India faces difficulties in making payment. While it has been agreed that 50% of India’s oil imports will be paid for in rupees (reassuring to America because that reduces the flow of hard currency to Teheran), India’s share of the $15-16 billion bilateral trade is a mere $2.6 billion. Paying in rupees requires India to step up exports to Iran, but enhancing trade arouses further criticism of India.

“After 28th June, if the US decides to implement watertight sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran, payments would be difficult unless we have a larger rupee component, or implement counter-trade,” says the foreign ministry official.

Within New Delhi’s strategic elites, India’s relationship with Iran has become a major discussion point. Officials and analysts inclined towards the US point to Iran’s unpredictability; to India’s emerging strategic partnership with the US and Israel; and to gulf states like Saudi Arabia with whom India has longstanding relations, and to the need to keep the gulf region stable as it has 6.3 million migrant Indian workers.

I call the above lobby as the bjp NRI lobby who are responsible for the indo-us nuke deal in the first place. Rookie diplomats who either have short term memory or have ghass in place where there should have been a bhejja.

The counter view, which is closer aligned to official policy, sees Iran as an influential player in West Asia that opposes Sunni extremism; as a potentially crucial Indian ally in stabilizing Afghanistan, and as a country that provides India a gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia through the port of Chabahar.

The nehru policy of non-alignment still triumphs to this day. Madam sonia was probably instructed by her mother-in-law and the histories of that time. I assume she must be a passive aggressive version of indira.

While many regard the ongoing Iran crisis as a “west-versus-Iran” confrontation, the longer-term Indian security perspective envisions a balancing act between Riyadh and Teheran, both geopolitical rivals in a West Asian power play. They have multiple points of confrontation: civilizational Arab-Persian tension; Shia-Sunni sectarian rivalry; radically different approaches towards the west, and different outlooks to tackling Israel.

“The internal dynamics of the Islamic world are crucial. If Iran is badly weakened, the fundamentalist, pan-Islamic forces, which are heavily funded by Wahabbi regimes like Saudi Arabia and others will gain in vigour,” argued a senior diplomat in a closed-door discussion in New Delhi last week.

MEA officials have long insisted that reports of US-India tension over New Delhi’s continuing relations with Teheran reflected analyst opinion rather than the official bilateral relationship. Washington and New Delhi, in fact, were understanding of each others’ concerns and imperatives in dealing with Teheran. That appears to have been verified by the US waiver on Monday.

The strategic dialogue caps an intense engagement between Washington and New Delhi over the preceding months. Andrew Shapiro, the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, visited New Delhi in April, followed by Defence Secretary, Leon Panetta this month. The Us Treasury Secretary, Tim Geithner, is scheduled to visit India on June 27-28.

There's an urgent need to create a strategic equal equal between the shias and the sunnis in west asia.

[RajeshA]

nvishal ji,

I don't think we need to proceed to create any equal equal between Shias and Sunnis in West Asia. I think it is good if Syria falls and there is Arab Shia nationalism in Iraq.

[Agnimitra]

Yes, Shi'a political and theological power must pass into Arab hands. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has clearly stated that the Arab Quraish caste people only have the right to theological rule:

Allah's prophet (SallAllah-u-Alaihi-wa-Sallam) said: "This matter (rule) will remain with the Quraish even if only two from them existed."
[Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 89, Number 254]

Iranic peoples should know their place in the proper Islamic caste order stipulated by the divine.

[Suraj]

India Clears Iran Payments Move

India, after much delay and uncertainty, is ready to move ahead with a rupee payment mechanism designed to bypass U.S sanctions on trade with Tehran, a senior industry executive said Wednesday.

Under the move, Indian oil companies that import crude oil from Iran will deposit the payments into rupee accounts held in UCO Bank, and these funds will be used by Iran to pay for agricultural products and medicines from India.

"Around $550 million equivalent [in rupees] will be deposited into the account as a first tranche" in the next couple of days, said Rafeeque Ahmed, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organization.

Despite Iranian oil continuing to flow to India, the payments were held back pending formal action on a budget proposal in March that promised tax exemptions for such transactions. Under Indian law, rupee transactions between two domestic entities require a general-service tax, but the finance ministry had offered to treat the rupee payment mechanism differently.

Payments can be made now that the exemption has been signed into law, Mr. Ahmed said. He said a total of about $4.5 billion could eventually flow into the rupee account, although he didn't provide a time frame for this.

Following the budget proposal in March, businessmen on both sides have signed deals valued at an estimated $3 billion for shipment of goods, such as rice, wheat, soy meal and pharmaceutical products, Mr. Ahmed said.

Progress on the rupee payment mechanism comes close on the heels of the U.S. decision to hand out exemptions to several countries—including India—under more stringent sanctions aimed at cutting off Iran's oil sales.

[gunjur]

Massive cyber threat detected on nuclear installations

"Based on obtained information, America and the Zionist regime (Israel) along with the MI6 planned an operation to launch a massive cyber attack against Iran's facilities following the meeting between Iran and the P5+1 in Moscow," Iran's English-language Press TV quoted him as saying.

"They still seek to carry out the plan, but we have taken necessary measures," he added, without elaborating.

[Johann]

Yes, Shi'a political and theological power must pass into Arab hands. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has clearly stated that the Arab Quraish caste people only have the right to theological rule:

Allah's prophet (SallAllah-u-Alaihi-wa-Sallam) said: "This matter (rule) will remain with the Quraish even if only two from them existed."
[Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 89, Number 254]

Iranic peoples should know their place in the proper Islamic caste order stipulated by the divine.

Thats part of the reason being a Sayyid was in some ways even a bigger deal in Persian societies than Arab ones back in the days when they were religious. Being a descendant of Ali naturally being a descendant of the Quraish even if you spoke Persian and were 99% Iranian.

[Agnimitra]

Thats part of the reason being a Sayyid was in some ways a bigger deal in Persian societies back in the days when they were religious. Being a descendant of Ali naturally being a descendant of the Quraish even if you spoke Persian and were 99% Iranian.

Yes, names like Seyed (father's bloodline is from the Quraysh) and Tabataba'i (proper bloodlines from BOTH parents) are still prestigious in Iran. Plus, at least part of Khorasan is in Iran, and Khorasan is where the predicted Mahdi is supposed to come from.

Last year there was a speech by Hassan Nasrollah (Hezbollah) that infuriated nationalistic "green wave" Iranis. In it, Nasrallah was placating his Arab audience by explaining to them that taking all the support that Iran gives them does not mean that the proud Arab is receiving favours from the Persian "Majoosi" (Zoro priest). He called their attention to the fact that the rulers of Iran were in fact all Arabs - SEYED Ali Khamenei, etc. He declared that while the masses may not be quite in the top rung, Iran's ruling mullacracy were all bona fide Arabs, and that Hezbollah and other Arabs need have no qualms about receiving Iranian help - they were entitled to help themselves to it. And this was in a speech to Shi'a Arabs, not Sunnis! This speech created a furor amongst green wavers who feel that Iran spends too many billions of dollars for Arab causes. So it must have been hard for them to hear this insulting ingratitude from the Arab beneficiaries of Iranian largesse.

Another related issue that angers anti-regime Iranians is the practice of providing Persian female company to visiting Arab dignitaries from the Gulf countries, in order to assist negotiations. Most of these women are reported to be female baseejis, who do it for God and country.

I dunno if I have posted anything on this aspect before, but it's interesting to explore the stereotypes and expectations around the caste hierarchy and mentality in the Middle East.

The Islamist hardcore in Iran considers the Iranian nation as subservient to the higher Islamist cause - its resources, culture, etc. According to shari'ah, it is clear that lovers of Islam must love and serve Arabs, if they haven't already been acculturated into becoming Arabs themselves. Even within the Arab world (and in Islam in general), there is a certain spartan mystique attached to the lifestyle and bloodlines of the Bedouins that live deep in the desert, which pleases Nature and Allah. To admire that lifestyle is essential to cultivating one's spiritual discipline, and to have that vigorous bloodline is prestigious. To quote the Indo-Paki Islamist poet Allama Iqbal:

fitrat ke maqaasid ki kartaa hai nigahbaani
ya banda e sehraaee ya mard e kohistani

"The custodians of the purposes of Essential Nature are from amongst
Either the slaves of the wilderness/desert or the men of the mountains."

Only people from the deserts, steppes or mountain crags (Arabs, Turks, Mongols, even the Greeks) are supposed to have the vigour and puissance to get Nature's work done, and especially to chasten and bring back those soft and effete nations that have grown too civilized for their own good. The Qur'an repeatedly mentions how God has repeatedly exterminated entire nations and civilizations for becoming too far removed from primal nature.

The fascination around the wild, simple, unburdened, tough and violent lifestyle of the Bedouin Arab is pretty redneck, but the whole Islamic civilization, even the most sophisticated strata, is coloured by it.

Alexander the Macedonian has been hailed as a hero by most Moslem historians and the name Eskander/Sikander is quite common amongst them, since he is considered the one to have laid the historical foundations of the Islamic core empire. He is usually identified with an earlier prophet "ZulQarnain" mentioned in the Qur'an. However, many Persians like to identify ZulQarnain with Cyrus. Tough luck, I'm not sure if even Shi'a Arabs would accept that.

I have also noticed a grandmother's tale amongst Persian women that Arab men have a legendary sexual appetite, very manly and with tremendous vigour. On the other hand, I have come across an Arab attitude that considers Persian men effeminate. I find such cultural attitudes interesting. Even in Islamic Sufism, the more ascetic schools were all Iranian - from Khorasan which had a long history of Buddhist-Zoroastrian-Manichaen traditions before Islam. Theother Arab and Turkish schools denounced such attitudes and encourage one to go forth and be fruitful with money and women, fi sabeelillah. As for us Indians, even Persians think they are more masculine, vigorous, creative and alive than the "Hendoo ye zan-goreez" - the Hindoo who runs away from wife and women in general.

[RajeshA]

Carl ji,

great post. Please post it to Iranian Faultlines Thread as well.

[Johann]

Hi Carl,

Khomeini and Khamenei after him were never servile to the Arabs. Rather what they tried to do is use mastery of classical Islam and support for the Arab struggles with Israel as a bridging ideology to project power and influence into the Arab and Muslim world. Unfortunately the Arabs not only understand that but are terrified of it. The panic about being controlled by Persians and Shiites is simply enormous. Najaf may be in the Arab world, but its much more often a 1-way conduit for Iranian ayatollahs to go to the Arab world, rather than putting Arab Shiite clergy in Iran.

Most Iranians and Persians today can not stand Arabs, although they'll make some concessions for non-Sunni Arabs. Partially its the growth of nationalism, but its also the fact that almost the entire Arab world stood 100% behind the Iraqi invasion which caused so much suffering to so many Iranians.

Still, I do think that nationalism draws from deep historical roots.

The Shahnameh along with the poetry of Saadi and Hafez is probably the most defining Persian cultural product. Yet although the Shahnameh (which incidentally is one of the earliest works to turn Iskander into a super-hero, which even the Greeks didnt do) was written almost 400 years after the Arab/Islamic conquest and paid for by a Muslim ruler, is a lament for Persia's pre-Islamic history.

Even when the Persians adopted the Arab alphabet they simply dispensed with the sounds they disliked for aesthetic reasons, Quran or no Quran. If there's one thing the Persians love most of all, its aesthetics.

The Persians like to say that the Arabs might have brought the religion, but they brought the civilisation. The only Arabs they respect are the Egyptians, and that's because like Persia they had an impressive pre-Islamic civilisation.

[Austin]

Iran Great Prophet-7 exercise videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-5YCrGWNLo

Iran has developed an anti-ship ballistic missile using the fateh 110 missile

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mQ8_xaPYSI

[Austin]

'US ships available for Iran missiles'-News Analysis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TcqVCEoQn8

[Agnimitra]

In quick succession, two Iranian diplomatic staff in two different countries have been arrested - for pedophilia.

Iranian diplomat arrested in Brazil for abusing young girls

Iran's foreign ministry rejects the swimming pool allegations with embassy saying they derive from a 'cultural misunderstanding'

An Iranian diplomat is facing child abuse allegations in Brasilia after angry parents at a local swimming pool accused him of fondling girls between the ages of 9 and 15.

The diplomat was arrested by Brazilian police at the weekend shortly after the incident but his diplomatic immunity secured his immediate release.

And now in Frankfurt:
دادستانی فرانکفورت: معاون کنسولگری ایران متهم به آزار جنسی کودکان است
Synopsis of report in translation:

Frankfurt Court - Iranian Deputy Consul accused of child sexual abuse
An African origin lady in Germany is suing him for making sexual advances toward her 10 year old daughter. The Senegalese mother says that 10 days ago her daughter was playing at a park when the Iranian diplomat approached her, touched and caressed her, and the little girl felt like he was going to kiss her. A week later while walking down the street she spots the same man close by. so she reports him to the police. It turns out he was a member of the Iranian consul. IRNA reports Iranian officials saying that this scenario has been choreographed to entrap their officials in scandal, by a conspiratorial circle against the Islamic Republic. The accused, Mr. Qashqavi, says that the munafiqeen (Moslems whose hearts are actually with the kafirs) are conspiring with the media and security agencies of the West in order to blacken the name of the Islamic republic, etc.

I do wonder whether it was an innocent cultural petting of a little girl or a sexual advance. After all, in India also its quite common to pet little children, both male and female. Nothing sexual about it at all, and the hypersensitivity about even parents sleeping in the same bed as their children in the West is ridiculous and perverted. Its also not hard to believe that at this political juncture Western media and security agencies would do anything to embarrass the Islamic Republic.

OTOH, some of the "cultural tendencies" in Iran and the Middle East are definitely deviant, even by their own admissions. The celebrated Persian-Arab Islamic theologian, Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, says in one of his works that sometimes some desires are natural to man, but they are still prohibited by God's laws. As an example, he says that sexual attraction for young boys is natural to grown men, but God in His wisdom still forbids it. That's right - lusting after young boys is being considered "natural" by him; while in India lusting after even pre-pubescent girls would be considered weird. My point is that some of the tendencies considered "natural" in the Middle East may be very difficult for Indians (and perhaps Westerners) to comprehend. Also, the name of at least the accused Iranian in Germany is clearly Turko-Iranian - and the popular perception and "jokes" within Iran do indicate a marked tendency towards pedophilia in that community.

The propaganda about child sex abuse in Iran has been going strong in recent times. A 2009 report:
Iran's Dark Secret: Child Prostitution and Sex Slaves

[Agnimitra]

Not sure how significant this is, but some Western commentators are making a fuss about it. Couple of days back Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei made a speech asking the faithful to prepare for the End of Time and the appearance of the Hidden Imam (who has been in occultation thus far).

This speech is being given wide coverage by the state-run and other Iranian media.
Eg 1 - http://www.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=13910417000756
Eg 2 - http://www.basijpress.ir/9300

Before this, such statements urging people to prepare for the imminent End of Times would usually come from some clerics, but not from the establishment, which is always quick to dodge the charge of messianism. So the wide publication of the Supreme Leader's speech is causing some alarm to Western observers.

Khamenei's regime has been instrumental in setting up institutes across Iran to study the conditions of the appearance of the Mahdi, and how to make way for it. The regime also distributed a booklet "the last six months" among its military forces as a preparation for confrontation with the West and Israel. Shi'a theology holds that all this will entail a genocidal war in which 60% to 80% of the world's population will die.

[Agnimitra]

According to some...

[Philip]

The coming "nightmare"?

http://www.presstv.com/detail/2012/07/2 ... ght-in-pg/
US fears nightmarish conflict with Iran in Persian Gulf: Experts

The US and Middle East analysts have described Iran's new naval capabilities to strike American warships in the Persian Gulf as a “nightmare” scenario for the US navy.


“Some [US] Navy ships could find themselves in a 360-degree threat environment, simultaneously in the cross hairs of adversaries on land, in the air, at sea and even underwater,” leading US daily The Washington Post reported Friday, quoting “a Middle Eastern intelligence official” that helps coordinate Persian Gulf strategy with his American counterparts.

“This is a scenario that is giving people nightmares,” the report added, quoting the unnamed official on the strategy for reacting to possible Iranian strikes on US warships in case a clash erupts in the Persian Gulf. The official, says the Post, spoke on condition of anonymity.

Pointing to a Pentagon decision to send more ships to the Persian Gulf in response to concerns expressed by Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, describing the presence of US warships in the area as a “real threat” to regional security, The Post cites its sources to argue that Iran's ability to inflict “significant damage” on American naval forces is “substantially greater” than it was a decade ago.

The report then cites a US Defense Department study in April, warning that Iran had made gains in the “lethality and effectiveness” of its arsenal, which “now includes ballistic missiles with ‘seekers’ that enable them to maneuver toward ships during flight.”

The Pentagon’s April assessment also cautions on Iran's “steady progress in developing ballistic missiles capable of striking targets in Israel and beyond,” the Post notes.

According to the report, Iran's growing naval capabilities have led some American military experts “to question the wisdom of deploying aircraft carriers and other expensive warships to the (Persian) Gulf if a conflict appears imminent.”

It then quotes a 2009 study by the US Naval War College, which warns of Iran's increasing ability to “execute a massive naval ambush” in the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway dotted with small islands and inlets and “perfectly suited for the kind of asymmetric warfare preferred by Iran's commanders.”

Although, the new US warships are equipped with multiple defense systems, “such as the ship-based Aegis missile shield,” Iran, according to the report, has sought to “neutralize the US technological advantages by honing an ability to strike from multiple directions at once.” The Iranian naval strategy, it adds, “relies not only on mobile missile launchers, but also on new mini-submarines, helicopters and hundreds of heavily armed small boats known as fast-attack craft.”

The Post then expresses fear that the small Iranian vessels can “rapidly deploy” anti-ship mines against hostile ships in the Persian Gulf “or mass in groups to strike large warships from multiple sides at once, like a cloud of wasps attacking much larger prey.”

“It is a dilemma,” says the Middle East intelligence official cited in the report. “When the [US] Navy ships are in the strait, they are vulnerable to attack. But if you were to take them away, the (Persian) Gulf (Arab) countries would feel more vulnerable. And already they feel very, very vulnerable.”

American officials have announced new war games with regional Arab sheikhdoms in the Persian Gulf region, including the deployment of new radar stations and land-based missile-defense batteries in Qatar.

Meanwhile Iran's Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari reiterated on Tuesday that the country’s naval forces are fully capable of providing security for the Middle East region.

Rear Admiral Sayyari also pointed out that Iran's Navy possesses all the required capabilities to conduct surface, submarine, aerial and missile operations aimed at safeguarding regional security.

Relying on efficient human resources, the Iranian Navy has enhanced the deterrence power and security of the region, he noted.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340 ... 81,00.html

Xcpts:

US fears major Iranian threat in Persian Gulf
Washington Post report reveals that security experts believe that Iran's upgraded military capabilities could be key in case of military confrontation in Persian Gulf

Experts estimate that Iran is bolstering its retaliation capabilities against US naval ships in the Persian Gulf – among other things Tehran is amassing an arsenal of advanced anti-ship missiles and expanding its fast attack boat fleet, the Washington Post reported on Friday.

According to the Post, officials claimed that the new systems, many of which were developed with foreign assistance, are giving Iran’s commanders new confidence that they could quickly damage or destroy US ships if hostilities erupt.

Although US Navy officials are convinced that they would prevail in a fight, Iran’s advances have fueled concerns about US vulnerabilities during the opening hours of a conflict in the gulf.

Experts including current and former military analysts believe that increasingly accurate short-range missiles — combined with Iran’s use of “swarm” tactics involving hundreds of heavily armed patrol boats — could strain the defensive capabilities of even the most modern US ships.

According to expert assessments, the likelihood that Iran would risk an all-out attack on a vastly superior US fleet is small. But leaders in the Islamic Republic could decide to launch a limited strike if Israel or the United States bombed the country’s nuclear facilities.

'Devastating first salvo'
Iran’s ability to inflict significant damage in this scenario is substantially greater than it was a decade ago. A Pentagon study in April warned that Iran had made gains in the “lethality and effectiveness” of its arsenal.

Iran’s increased power to retaliate has led some military experts to question the wisdom of deploying aircraft carriers and other expensive warships to the gulf if a conflict appears imminent.

A 2009 study prepared for the Naval War College warns of Iran’s increasing ability to “execute a massive naval ambush” in the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway dotted with small islands and inlets and perfectly suited for the kind of asymmetric warfare preferred by Iran’s commanders.

According to the study: “If the US chooses to station warships in the Strait of Hormuz during the buildup to conflict, it cedes the decision of when to fight and allows the fight to begin in the most advantageous place for Iran.

“This could lead to a devastating first salvo on US Navy warships, which would most likely be operating under restrictive rules of engagement.”

Since the study's release in 2009, analysts say, Iran has added defensive and offensive capabilities.

Some of them have been on display in recent months in a succession of military drills, including a missile exercise in early July dubbed Great Prophet 7.

The exercise included a demonstration of Iran’s newly deployed Khalid Farzh anti-ship missile, which has an internal guidance system, a powerful 1,400-pound warhead and a range of 180 miles.

The April Pentagon assessment signed by US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta noted that Iran’s arsenal now includes ballistic missiles with “seekers” that enable them to maneuver toward ships during flight.

Modern US warships are equipped with multiple defense systems, such as the ship-based Aegis missile shield. But Iran has sought to neutralize the US technological advantage by honing an ability to strike from multiple directions at once.

The emerging strategy relies not only on mobile missile launchers but also on new mini-submarines, helicopters and hundreds of heavily armed small boats known as fast-attack craft.

'360-degree threat'
A Middle Eastern intelligence official who helps coordinate strategy for the gulf with US counterparts said some Navy ships could find themselves in a “360-degree threat environment,” simultaneously in the cross hairs of adversaries on land, in the air, at sea and even underwater.

“This is the scenario that is giving people nightmares,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity in discussing strategy for defending against a possible Iranian attack.

In line with these assessments the Navy has ordered new systems for defending against small-boat “swarms,” including ship-launched unmanned aerial vehicles and special missiles and artillery rounds for use against fast-attack craft.

But many of the new defenses will not be deployed for several months, said Michael Eisenstadt, a former military adviser to the Pentagon and the State Department.

“We’re behind and we’re catching up,” Eisenstadt added. “But if there’s a conflict in the near term, we may not be completely ready.”

Experts believe US forces would probably recover quickly from any early losses, but Iranian leaders could claim a psychological victory if the world’s media carried images of burning US warships in the gulf.
“A lot of Iranian ships would be at the bottom of the gulf, but Iran would be able to point to a victory,” Eisenstadt said.

“The outcome would never be in doubt when you’re dealing with the most powerful military in the world. But in their minds they would have shown the world that if you mess with us, you’ll pay a heavy price.”

Meanwhile, US ships continue steaming toward the gulf as the Obama administration seeks to reassure allies in the region and discourage Iran from moving to block the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz.
US and Middle Eastern officials acknowledge that deployments carry inherent risk, but they say there are no good alternatives.


“It is a dilemma,” the Middle East intelligence official said. “When the Navy ships are in the strait, they are vulnerable to attack. But if you were to take them away, the gulf countries would feel more vulnerable. And already they feel very, very vulnerable.”

[Atri]

Cops name Iran military arm for attack on Israeli diplomat

NEW DELHI: Alleging that an Iranian state agency was involved in the February 13 bomb attack on an Israeli diplomat in the capital, the Delhi Police has concluded that the suspects were members of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, a branch of the nation's military.

The investigation report, exclusively accessed by TOI, states that the IRGC members had discussed the plan to attack the Israeli diplomats in India and other countries with Indian journalist Syed Mohammad Ahmad Kazmi in January 2011, after Iranian scientists had been attacked allegedly by the Israelis. The cops have also learnt that Kazmi was in touch with these people for almost 10 years.

Details about the suspects have been shared with Iran through a letter rogatory. Delhi Police has sought more details of the five IRGC members, including the main bomber, Houshang Afshar Irani, who mentions his profession in Iran as a builder, Sedaghatzadeh Masoud (sales employee in a commercial company on Baharestan St, Tehran), Syed Ali Mahdiansadr (a mobile shopkeeper in Tehran), Mohammad Reza Abolghasemi (clerk in the finance department of Tehran's water authority) and Ali Akbar Norouzishayan (a retired accountant in Tehran).

According to the sources, Masoud is said to be the operational head and it was he who planned the attacks in Georgia, Bangkok and Delhi.

Apart from these five, police have also come across the role of an Iranian woman, identified as Leila Rohani, in the February 13 attack in New Delhi as well as the attacks in Bangkok and Georgia, and has sought details about her as well from Iran. Rohani had allegedly helped Iranian suspects in Bangkok attack of February 14 in getting a flat, after which she fled to Tehran.

[shyamd]

Supreme leader Khomeini dies

[RajeshA]

Supreme leader Khomeini dies

That news is more than 23 years old! No?

[RajeshA]

Published on Jul 31, 2012
By Amir Taheri
A fallout among Assad’s allies: New York Post

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi says his nation’s policy on Syria is now “directly shaped” by “Supreme Guide” Ali Khamenei, who has called the Syrian uprising “a Zionist plot that has to be crushed by all means necessary.”

“If Assad goes, we shall face an absolutely dangerous situation,” says Hassan Abbasi, a Tehran foreign-policy specialist called “the Kissinger of Islam.” According to Abbasi, the fall of Assad would represent “the first step in a campaign designed to bring regime change to Iran and Russia as two powers capable of preventing” the total domination of the world by the United States and its Zionist allies.

[chaanakya]

Supreme leader Khomeini dies

That news is more than 23 years old! No?

He probably means Ali Khamenei current Supreme leader of Iran. Ayatollah since 1989 after death of Khomeini

[shyamd]

Sorry meant Ali Khamanei. Now they are saying its a fake

[RajeshA]

Sorry meant Ali Khamanei. Now they are saying its a fake

A couple of weeks ago I saw Sacha Baron Cohen's "The Dictator" in cinema. He too was using doubles or fakes of himself.

[shyamd]

Haha funny film

[satya]

A Crass and Consequential Error

Two years after Mossadegh’s nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) in 1951, the CIA unloosed Kermit Roosevelt and his fellow American agents on Tehran to oust him. The operation, code-named TPAJAX, carried forward to a bloody denouement what Britain’s MI6 had first plotted. The objectives of a rising America and a declining Britain diverged; they overlapped just sufficiently for both to do their worst. Mossadegh, even if he had been spared such execrable meddling, may not have been able to control the swirling currents of communism, Islamism, monarchism, and militarist despotism that the CIA fanned.

Still, what we do know is enough to lament the path not taken and to label Operation Ajax a singular disaster. It reinstated the feckless Shah, who had complained to Loy Henderson, the American ambassador, “What can I do? I am helpless.” It turned him into the despot of the Peacock Throne, propped up by the US-trained SAVAK secret police. It quashed Iran’s strong democratic stirrings. It embedded a fathomless Iranian suspicion that would find expression in the seizure of US diplomats after the 1979 revolution. It did nothing to halt British decline, as was evident three years later at Suez. It thrust the United States into the unhappy business of support for Middle Eastern tyrants able, they claimed, to deliver oil and stability—a strategic position at odds with American values that spurred Islamist hostility and was also one of the targets of the hypocrisy-exposing Arab Spring.

On his return, serving as deputy finance minister, he objected to Iran conceding legal jurisdiction over Christian residents to separate Christian authorities. “In order for a country to be independent,” he wrote, “it is necessary that it have jurisdiction over all its residents.”

Enduring characteristics of Mossadegh​ism were coming into focus: a fierce probity and “pebbly pride”; sharp rejection of the quasi-colonial Western domination articulated by George Nathaniel Curzon, a former viceroy of India, who said of Persians, “These people have got to be taught at whatever cost to them that they cannot get on without us”; a constitutionalism that defended the monarchy (as a bulwark against godlessness and communism) but held that kings should reign rather than rule.

At the very outset of Pahlavi rule, Mossadegh rose in the majlis to oppose the resolution abolishing the Qajars. Although “utterly disappointed” with the corrupt dynasty, he scorned its successor: “So, the prime minister becomes sultan,” he commented. “Is there such a thing as a constitutional country where the king also runs the nation’s affairs?” Why, he asked, “did you needlessly shed the blood of the martyrs on the road to freedom?”

Good questions: Iran has taken many false roads to a long-sought liberty since 1905. Ayatollah Khomeini, of course, promised freedom in 1979 when Reza’s son was ousted and he founded an Islamic republic. The promise came to naught. It is now clear that Mossadegh was the last Iranian leader to unite strands of religious and secular nationalism, faith and democracy, and so offer some chance of a reconciliation of the two. But Britain and then the United States were too blinded by his effrontery and too dismissive of the very notion of Iranian national ambition (although Washington demonstrated some understanding) to see more than a nuisance—Newsweek’s “Fainting Fanatic”—in Mossadegh. De Bellaigue writes, “Infusing British policy, the stink in the corner of the room, was a profound contempt for Persia and its people.” The United States, to its cost, would be infected by it.

Oil exploration began in earnest in Iran in 1901 with the award of a concession to a British entrepreneur, William Knox D’Arcy. Here was the seed of what would become the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, then the AIOC, and ultimately the behemoth called BP. Churchill, as First Lord of the Admiralty, oversaw the deal in 1914 that gave Britain control of Iranian oil and ensured the Royal Navy a dependable supply on terms that left Tehran with only small revenues. Reza Shah renegotiated slightly better terms in 1933 but did little to alter Iran’s status as oil lackey of the Empire. Mossadegh was incensed. Iranian oil helped drive the Allied victory in World War II just as it had fueled the British warships in World War I. By 1950 Anglo-Iranian’s profit stood at £86 million. In the same year, Abadan, the Iranian town at the heart of the oil industry, “had only enough electricity to supply a single London street.” When it came to oil, “no one asked the Persians what they thought.” The paternalistic reasoning of the AIOC went something like this: give a little and the damn natives will want everything.

Such dismissiveness toward Iran was the leitmotif of Mossadegh’s life: the Anglo-Persian Agreement of 1919 that turned his country into little more than a protectorate; the humiliating oil deals; the summary Allied occupation of 1941 that led the Shah to abdicate in favor of his young son Mohammed Reza; the contempt after 1945 for an Iran seen as a hapless cold-war pawn. Mossadegh, who kept a small ivory of Gandhi in his room at Ahmadabad (the man in pajamas contemplating the man of the loincloth), was, as de Bellaigue notes, part of a generation of Western-educated Asians who returned home “to sell freedom to their compatriots.”

The British responded with disquisitions on the Oriental mind. In Iran they did not get it. As George McGhee, a US diplomat who negotiated with Mossadegh, remarked, nationalist movements in Iran and Egypt were “examples of a much wider movement in men’s minds.” He urged on the British Foreign Office a change in postwar Middle Eastern strategic policy. The aim: to ensure “that it is recognised by these countries that they are being treated as equals and partners.” His appeal fell on deaf ears—in London and, after November 1952, in the Eisenhower White House.

The days proved numbered. De Bellaigue, fluent in Farsi, draws on previously unused Iranian sources to bring Mossadegh to vivid life. As the plotting of the coup gathers pace, he also demonstrates a deft hand in describing broad political trends and the personal foibles of the main protagonists. British authorities rebuffed the author’s efforts to gain access to MI6 records of the coup—deemed too sensitive sixty-nine years after the event. But the CIA has been forthcoming and the broad lines are clear. Secretary of State Dean Acheson, in a remarkable cable quoted by de Bellaigue, got it right. Postwar Britain, he noted, “stands on the verge of bankruptcy.” He continued: “Therefore, in my judgment, the cardinal purpose of British policy is not to prevent Iran from going Commie; the cardinal point is to preserve what they believe to be the last remaining bulwark of British solvency.”

Britain loathed Mossadegh because it wanted its Iranian oil money back. The United States was focused on a distinct issue, communism. North Korea crossed the 38th parallel in June 1950. Truman declared: “If we just stand by, they’ll move into Iran and they’ll take over the whole Middle East.”

Indeed, without the rightward lurches in British and US politics of 1952, which brought Churchill and Eisenhower to power, the coup plot might never have coalesced. Churchill blamed his predecessor, Clement Attlee, for the biggest fall in British stature “since the loss of the American colonies nearly 200 years ago.” Eisenhower declared that, to defeat communism, “longstanding American concepts of fair play must be reconsidered.” The Dulles brothers took over at the CIA and the State Department: neither needed “much persuasion that Mossadegh was a dangerous madman tipping his country into the abyss.” Britain had passed the mantle to America: its post-imperial grievances met the new superpower’s fears. It was easy enough for Britain to talk up the Communist threat—never really persuasive in God-fearing Iran. The Eisenhower administration heard what it wanted to hear.

There is a troubling mystery with de Bellaigue’s book. Its subtitle in Britain is “Muhammad Mossadegh and a Very British Coup.” In the United States it is “Muhammad Mossadegh and a Tragic Anglo-American Coup.” This looks like an unfortunate marketing ploy. The US subtitle is right. Britain laid the groundwork; America delivered overthrow. De Bellaigue’s description of the initial plotting of Nancy Lambton, an “austere bluestocking,” and Robin Zaehner, a British agent “with a taste for gin, opium and the homoerotic verses of Rimbaud,” is brilliant. Iranian newspapers were bought, tribal divisions probed. Zaehner, asked by a visiting correspondent to Tehran in 1952 what he should read, suggested Alice Through the Looking Glass. The West’s nuclear negotiators can take comfort: they are not the first to be enmeshed in Iran’s political labyrinth

The plotters had these advantages: the prime minister’s eroded political base, his dithering, and his delusions. They went to work. British diplomats had been expelled from Iran and the embassy closed on October 17, 1952; the leading role passed to Americans. Chief among them was Kermit Roosevelt, “an Ivy Leaguer of private means urging cloak-and-dagger operations.” The favorite tune of the CIA officers in Tehran was “Luck Be a Lady Tonight”: they rode their luck. Roosevelt cozied up to the Shah and got him to fire Mossadegh; he identified a senior general named Fazlullah Zahedi as the man to replace him; deployed agents provocateurs to stir up the Communist threat; dispersed money to the mullahs and the army and newspaper editors. To all of which the prime minister responded by insisting that in a “constitutional country there is no law that is higher than the will of the people.”

The United States and the West bear significant responsibility for all those lost Middle Eastern decades since 1953. “Everything should be in proportion with the need,” Mossadegh wrote in his doctoral thesis. The coup was disproportionate. It was reckless and damaging, “that which should not have happened,” in the words of one observer. De Bellaigue’s powerful portrait is also a timely reminder that further Western recklessness toward Iran, at a time of a further “movement in men’s minds” across the Middle East, would only pile tragedy upon tragedy and again put off the day when Iranians’ quest for constitutional liberty can be realized.

[Philip]

Iranian terrorism charges put Standard Chartered in the dock

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comm ... -dock.html

Just when you thought it couldn't get worse for Britain's banks, Standard Chartered trumps HSBC's involvement in money-laundering and Barclays' role in rigging Libor.

By Alistair Osborne, Business Editor
06 Aug 2012

What would Bob Diamond make of it? The famously ex-chief executive of Barclays Bank merely got embroiled in rigging interest rates.

Since then, HSBC has turned up as every Mexican drug baron’s money-laundering intermediary of choice. And now, as if to go one better, here is Standard Chartered accused by New York’s top financial regulator of helping fund terrorism – and the Iranian variety to boot.

Like HSBC, Standard Chartered had been burnishing its reputation as the best of the British banks – not only untainted by the financial crisis but the bank to which Government ministers turned for advice. Why, chief executive Peter Sands was widely lauded as the brains behind the Balti bail-out – 2008’s emergency rescue for his cash-strapped rivals, washed down with that late-night curry from Ghandi’s in Kennington.

Now it’s Sands’ turn to feel the heat. In a coruscating 27-page missive, colourfully penned by Benjamin M Lawsky of the New York Department of Financial Services, Standard Chartered stands accused of scheming with the Iranian government and hiding from regulators “60,000 secret transactions, involving at least $250bn”. From this, it claims, the bank made “hundreds of millions of dollars in fees”.

Not only that, the bank’s activities “left the US financial system vulnerable to terrorists, weapons dealers, drug kingpins and corrupt regimes”.

Things could get trickier too. Although the investigation is so far only focused on rogue state Iran, the regulator claims to have uncovered evidence that “apparently” shows the bank had similar operations going with “US sanctioned countries, such as Libya, Myanmar and Sudan”.

Sure, it’s tempting to dismiss superintendent Lawsky’s charge-sheet as no more than allegations – and ones couched in the typically overblown rhetoric favoured by US regulators. But, its investigation spanning 10 years, is based on 30,000 pages of documents, including emails.

They include one email exchange from October 2006 in which the bank’s US chief voices his fears that dealing with Iran has the “potential to cause very serious or even catastrophic reputational damage to the group”, while exposing management to the risk of “serious criminal liability”. In response, one of the bank’s executive directors is alleged to have “caustically” responded: “You f---ing Americans. Who are you to tell us, the rest of the world, that we’re not going to deal with Iranians.” Indeed, Lawsky alleges the bank tried to increase “wallet share” of Iranian business in a scheme codenamed Project Gazelle, while hiding its activities with the help of Deloitte.

Sands did not become chief executive until a month after that exchange. But he was finance director from May 2002, so would appear to be centre stage – as would the now Lord Davies, the former trade minister who was the bank’s chief executive between 2001 and 2006, followed by its chairman until 2009.

Tonight, the bank admitted it did not know “what the outcome will be”. But apart from a big fine, Lawsky is also threatening to kick the bank out of America by revoking its banking licence.

What of Sands’ reputation too? He was being tipped for the Bank of England Governor job. If things turn out to be as bad as they look, even Diamond would have a better chance.

Don't mention the M-word but Heritage Oil chief should take up his rights
Sometimes it’s so tricky to spot exactly what it is that puts investors off a company.

Take Heritage Oil. Is it that its chief executive and 33pc owner, Tony Buckingham, happens to be a former mercenary? Or that its operations are in places like Iraqi Kurdistan, Libya and the Congo? Or that it’s still embroiled in a $407m tax dispute in Uganda?

And that’s before Heritage tries to tap you up for $370m via a rights issue. It wants the money for a “transformational” deal: the $850m cash purchase of a 45pc stake in some Nigerian onshore oil fields. Given Heritage is only valued at £317m, you can’t fault Buckingham’s ambition. And he might be right that buying cash-generative assets producing 35,000 barrels of oil a day balances its jam-tomorrow exploration. But the vendors of the Nigerian fields – Shell, Total and ENI – didn’t have the easiest time there. And, despite estimates the reserves could be worth $3.1bn-$3.8bn, you’ve got to get them out of the ground.

The shares, back from suspension today, are down 39pc in the last 12 months. And, while Buckingham admittedly has a big stake, he’s only “considering” taking up his rights. Asking others to do so, if he won’t, does seem a shade mercenary.

alistair.osborne@telegraph.co.uk

[chanakyaa]

Sheeria is done!! Eeran is next!! And the lessons learned from Sheeria are so valuable. Defections made by bribes proves that corrupt politicians will sell their skin for worthless money. Such type of population is must be ruled, directly or indirectly.

Control or be controlled.

[shyamd]

Indian PM Likely to Visit Iran

By BIMAN MUKHERJI And RAJESH ROY

NEW DELHI--Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to visit Iran at the end of this month to attend a Non-Aligned Movement summit, a government official said Friday, spurring hopes of improving trade ties between the two countries.

Although India has moved to reduce purchases of crude oil from Iran in recent months following western sanctions, Iran still remains a major supplier to India.

Shipments have become increasingly difficult, however, with few companies willing to provide insurance cover for transport of the crude, including Indian-owned companies.

The two sides are expected to discuss a wide range of trade issues, including purchases of crude oil by India as well as exports of commodities to Iran.

India and Iran had moved ahead with a rupee payment mechanism in June that essentially bypasses western sanctions and has enabled exports of a wide range of commodities to Iran from India in lieu of purchases of crude oil from Iran.

Rafeeque Ahmed, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations, said that so far, commodities such as rice, other food items and medicines had mostly been exported under the system.

So far, about $1 billion had been put into a rupee account in a local bank by state-owned Indian oil importers for Iranian oil, he said, adding that about 60% would have been used up.

Still, there's a vast scope to improve trade ties, particularly as slower imports of crude from Iran are bound to affect two-way trade sooner or later, industry officials said.

Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd., India's largest importer of Iranian crude oil, imported only a single crude cargo against plans for four cargoes in June because of shipment problems, industry officials said.

India MRPL may load 2 mln barrels of Iran crude in Aug

[Philip]

Will NAM take place at all? Are the Israeli's crying "Wolf" yet again or putting their money where their mouth is? Coupled with the Israelis planning to text SMS warnings of missile attacks and that the Olympics are over,the contests can now move on to the battlefield what?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... -Iran.html

Israel demands nuclear ultimatum for Iran
Israel declared that international talks with Iran on its nuclear programme had failed as it demanded a deadline of "just a few weeks" be handed down to Tehran to scrap its atomic build-up.

By Mark Weiss in Jerusalem

8:50PM BST 12 Aug 2012

It emerged that new intelligence shared with Israel by the West indicated that Iran had moved several steps closer to developing a nuclear warhead that could be fitted on the Shahab-3 missile.

According to an unidentified official, new intelligence obtained by Israel, the United States and other Western states shows that Iran's development of a nuclear weapon is progressing far beyond the scope reported by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Tehran has made significant progress towards assembling a nuclear warhead for a Shahab-3 missile, which has a range of nearly 1,000 miles, putting the whole of Israel, including the Dimona nuclear reactor in the southern Negev desert, within the Islamic republic's range. Danny Ayalon, Israel's deputy foreign minister, called on the Western powers to declare that the negotiations with Iran, conducted by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, had failed.

He called for Iran to be presented with an ultimatum of a "few weeks" to cease its nuclear programme.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, issued a public warning that Tehran must not be allowed to develop a nuclear bomb. "Every threat against the home front is dwarfed by one threat. Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon," he told ministers at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem.

In a further sign that Israel is stepping up preparation for a possible showdown with Iran, the army's home front command sent out thousands of text messages in a test run of a programme to alert people when rocket attacks are launched on specific areas.

The test continues this week when hundreds of thousands of people will receive text messages in Hebrew, Arabic, Russian and English.

[Agnimitra]

Earthquake in Iran, about 6.0 on the Richter. Yet the number of casualties is significant, property damage unexpectedly high. Which points to the substandard post-war construction work in many towns and villages. Many politicians and toadies of the regime acquired name and wealth via the construction business, not to mention the booming real estate market in Iran. But now it looks like there was a lot of corruption and substandard material was used to build up areas. Its going to be another bit added to the public disaffection for the Islamist regime.

[Rony]

Relate this to the Iranian's use of the Indian muslim professor in the New Delhi bombing attempt on Israeli interests !

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/teh ... tml?page=1

Tehran’s Unlikely Assassins

[Samudragupta]

A serious split is developing within Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard, with one faction favoring the overthrow of the dictatorial regime. This presents a window of opportunity for the West to support regime change before the Islamic Republic successfully tests nuclear weapons. Once the regime has those nuclear bombs, that opening will be much narrower.
Iran has tried hard to show strength in the face of sanctions aimed at pressuring Tehran to quit its suspected nuclear-bomb and missile development programs. Iranian leaders are now flexing their military muscles in the strategic waterway, the Strait of Hormuz, threatening to shut it down and choking off a major part of the world’s oil supply.
The regime has long tried to scare the West from taking any action against it, by threatening the world’s security and stability. However, behind its mask of strength and unity, big cracks are beginning to show.
Ever since entering politics, the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been a vengeful politician who rarely trusts anyone. Sources reveal that after the Nov. 12 explosions at the Guard's base west of Tehran, many Guard members, including commanders and even officers at the supreme leader’s office, have been arrested and are under investigation.

On that day, Mr. Khamenei, along with many other high-ranking Iranian officials, was supposed to be present at a ceremony at the explosion site. The massive blast not only rattled Tehran more than 20 miles away but shocked the regime’s hierarchy, which saw it as a covert operation to take out the supreme leader and his cronies.

The regime now worries about the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for March 2. First, there is the possibility of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s faction taking control of parliament, creating problems for Khamenei and his allies, as a growing rift has appeared between Mr. Ahmadinejad and the supreme leader. But the regime also worries about the possibility of another uprising by the people of Iran, as the majority of Iranians resent the totalitarian regime.

Just days ago, Ahmadi Moghadam, the top police commander of the regime, announced the “readiness” of security forces to confront possible unrest on election day for the ninth Majlis (parliament).
However, the mullahs’ biggest worry is the Revolutionary Guard themselves, the very force that has been the regime’s pillar of support ever since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. A letter written by one of its commanders to Mohammad Nourizad, a conservative journalist who himself continues to criticize Khamenei and the regime despite being jailed, beaten, and threatened, was recently published on Mr. Nourizad's blog.

The commander, whose name was withheld for security purposes, states that, “Like many millions of suffering Iranians, myself and hundreds of freedom-loving and free-thinking commanders of the Revolutionary Guard do think about the devastation" that Khamenei has forced on the country.

The commander continues, “I can positively assure you and announce to the dear people of Iran that a collective majority of the Revolutionary Guard absolutely despise the regime leadership, but they are stuck in an exceedingly cruel and bloodthirsty system. This authority does not tolerate an alternative approach by the so-called insiders, and so they orchestrate military courts in order to label members of the Revolutionary Guard as traitors and send them to the gallows.”

Is it a psyop?