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Iran Tag

More details are emerging about the Iranian drone launched from central Syria that was brought down over Israeli territory, and the resulting Israeli attack on the Iranian base near Palmyra that launched and controlled the drone. In that attack on the Iranian base, an Israeli F-16 was brought down, though the precise circumstances are not yet clear based on public information. Differing news accounts have the F-16 hit by shrapnel, or alternatively being ditched when the pilots realize a Russian-made surface-to-air missile (SAM) had locked on to the plane.

The United States and Argentina are to work together to cut off Lebanese terrorist outfit Hezbollah’s funding networks in Latin America. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Argentinian Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie declared their intention to cooperate in this regard during a press conference in Buenos Aires on Sunday. Argentina is home to a large Lebanese expatriate population and U.S. authorities believe that the Iranian-backed terrorist group has been raising funds for it activities through organised crime in the region, including drug trade.

President Donald Trump and his administration continues to crack down on Iran, but this time it took aim at terrorist group Hezbollah, which relies on Iran. The sanctions will also try to dim Iran's influence across the Middle East. From the Treasury Department:
“Hizballah is a terrorist organization responsible for the death of hundreds of Americans. It is also Iran’s primary proxy used to undermine legitimate Arab governments across the Middle East. The Administration is determined to expose and disrupt Hizballah’s networks, including those across the Middle East and West Africa, used to fund their illicit operations,” said Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin. “The Treasury Department will continue to sever Hizballah from the international financial system, and we will be relentless in identifying, exposing, and dismantling Hizballah’s financial support networks globally.”

According to recent Israeli security assessments, more than a third (420 out of 1,027) of the terrorists released in a November 2011 swap for captive soldier Gilad Schalit have gone back to planning terror attacks. As noted by senior Israeli security officials, some of these freed murderers have taken up leadership roles in Hamas in Gaza, from where they are “working with Iran to execute terrorists attacks and kidnappings.”

German authorities allowed a top Iranian cleric accused of mass murder to flee the country on Thursday. The decision came despite formal requests from leading exiled Iranian groups calling for the cleric to face justice. Ayatollah Mahmoud Shahroudi, the 69-year-old Mullah touted as the successor to Iran's all-powerful theocratic dictator Ali Khamenei, came to Germany for treatment at the clinic of an Iranian-German neurosurgeon when exiled Iranian dissidents referred him to German prosecutors, citing his record of running Islamic courts, where he presided over the killing of thousands of Iranians. The leading German tabloid Bild Zeitung ran the headline "Death Judge In Iran, Luxury Patient In Germany,"  covering Shahroudi's stay in the country.

One of the predicted outcomes of the nuclear deal with Iran, contrary to what President Barack Obama claimed, is that it would strengthen the hands of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the "hardliners" in the regime. (I don't believe there are moderates in the regime. It is a revolutionary regime that seeks to export its ideology across the region. President Hassan Rouhani would not have been allowed to compete or win if he did not subscribe to the same ideologies as the hardliners.) Rather than opening up or liberalizing Iran, the deal was correctly predicted to lead to further repression.

Politico has reported that President Donald Trump has decided to extend the Iran nuclear deal. He stated, though, this will be his last waiver "unless the deal is strengthened by Congress and European allies." Politico continued:
Trump faced a Friday deadline to decide whether to reimpose economic sanctions on Iran the U.S suspended as part of a 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated with Tehran by the Obama administration and five other nations.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced that the regime has squashed the uprising that took place the last few weeks. The protests left 22 people dead and 3,700 arrested. Remember, people used social media and the internet to tell the world about the protests since Iran doesn't have a free press and the regime told state media not to report on it. To stop them, the regime shut down the internet. Yes, that helped them cut off access for the world to see the protests, but it also wrecked havoc on those who did not even participate.

Iran has seen six days of protests filled with people sick of the oppressive regime and demanding change. Not to be outdone, the regime staged pro-government rallies while Iran's Revolutionary Guards declared the uprisings have ended.

For almost a week, Iranians have been protesting against their oppressive regime. The demonstrations have been unfolding on social media since Iran has no free press and the state press have been told not to report on it. For some odd reason, officials from President Barack Obama's administration have advised people to ignore this uprising. Gee, could it be because their celebrated Iranian nuclear deal looks REALLY bad now? That deal was supposedly the most important foreign policy decision during the administration.

Protests have grown strong in Iran these past three days, reminiscent of the 2009 Green Movement, as people have grown tired of the ruling regime's oppression. From The Wall Street Journal:
Antigovernment demonstrations broke out for a third day across Iran on Saturday, extending some of the country’s most widespread street protests in nearly a decade, with protesters demanding an end to the Islamic Republic regime and the rule of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Video shot from inside Iran and shared with The Wall Street Journal suggest large rallies at dozens of cities across the country.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets across Iran. Demonstrations began Thursday when hundreds protested against high prices and shouted anti-government slogans Iran's second-largest city, Mashhad. The crowds drilled to chant 'death to America' went off the script and demanded the end of the Islamic regime instead. Videos show Iranians chanting 'Death to the dictator' and 'Death to Rouhani'.