Tag: Iran

Iran executes four men convicted of spying for Israel

Iran executed four men at dawn on Monday after they were convicted of collaborating with the country’s arch-foe Israel on a plan to sabotage an Iranian defense site, according to the judiciary. The four defendants, identified as Mohammad Faramarzi, Mohsen Mazloum, Wafa Azarbar, Pejman Fatehi, were arrested in July 2022 and accused of plotting to carry out out an operation against a Ministry of Defense centre in the central province of Isfahan, according to the […]

US military declares two Navy SEALs lost at sea ‘deceased’

WASHINGTON, Jan 21, 2024 (AFP) – Two US Navy SEALs who went missing during an operation to seize Iranian weapons bound for Yemen’s Huthi rebels have been declared dead after a 10-day search failed to locate them, the US military said Sunday. The Central Command (CENTCOM) had previously said that two SEALs who were reported as lost at sea were involved in the January 11 operation, in which the elite special operations personnel boarded a […]

Three women, four children killed in Pakistan strike on Iran: state media

TEHRAN, Jan 18, 2024 (AFP) – At least three women and four children were killed on Thursday in a missile attack by Pakistan on Iran’s southeast border region, Iranian state media reported. “Pakistan attacked an Iranian border village with missiles,” state television said, quoting Alireza Marhamati, deputy provincial governor of Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan province. “Three women and four children children were killed in this incident. All non-Iranian nationals,” he added. The attack targeted a village near […]

Two children killed in Iran air strike on Pakistan

By Emma CLARK ISLAMABAD, Jan 17, 2024 (AFP) – Pakistan said Wednesday that Iran carried out an air strike on its territory that killed two children, after Tehran launched attacks in Iraq and Syria against what it called “anti-Iranian terrorist groups”. Pakistan denounced the strike, near the nations’ shared border late on Tuesday, as “completely unacceptable”, saying it was unprovoked. Iranian news agency Mehrnews said the “missile and drone response” targeted the Jaish al-Adl group’s […]

Iran seizes oil tanker off Oman in dispute with US

DUBAI, Jan 11, 2024 (AFP) – Iran’s navy seized a ship off Oman to retaliate for the “theft” of its oil from the same tanker last year by the United States, state media said Thursday. The United States condemned what it called an “unlawful seizure” and demanded Iran “immediately release the ship and its crew”. The announcement came hours after a British navy maritime security agency said armed men boarded the Greek-owned, Marshall Islands-flagged St […]

Bombs kill 103 at Iran memorial for slain general: state media

TEHRAN, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – At least 103 people were killed in Iran Wednesday as two bombs in quick succession struck a crowd commemorating slain general Qasem Soleimani on the anniversary of his killing, state media reported. The blasts, which state television called a “terrorist attack”, came with tensions running high in the Middle East a day after Hamas number two Saleh al-Aruri — an Iran ally — was killed in drone attack on […]

Iran executes 4 over Israel ‘collaboration’: judiciary

  TEHRAN, Dec 29, 2023 (AFP) – Iran on Friday hanged four people convicted of spying for arch foe Israel, the judiciary said, less than two weeks after authorities had executed a man on similar grounds. “Four members of a sabotage group related to the Zionist regime (Israel)… were hanged this morning” in Iran’s northwestern province of West Azerbaijan, the judiciary’s Mizan Online website reported. It identified them as three men — Vafa Hanareh, Aram […]

Israeli strike in Syria kills senior general with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Tehran vows retribution

TEHRAN, Dec 25, 2023 (AFP) – An Israeli strike in Syria has killed a senior general with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the military force said, with Tehran vowing retribution. The incident further raises tension in the Middle East where Iran-aligned groups have escalated attacks since Iran-backed Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, triggering a war with Israel. Iranian state media also reported the death of Razi Moussavi, describing him as “one of the most […]

Stepping up tone, US says Iran ‘deeply involved’ in Huthi ship attacks

By Shaun TANDON WASHINGTON, Dec 22, 2023 (AFP) – The United States on Friday accused Iran of close involvement in attacks on commercial ships by Yemen’s Huthi rebels, stepping up the tone as Washington considers tougher measures including possible force. The White House publicly released US intelligence as the Iranian-linked Yemeni insurgents persist with ship strikes they say are in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is battling Hamas militants. The White […]

Challenges facing a Red Sea anti-rebel naval task force

By Didier LAURAS PARIS, Dec 19, 2023 (AFP) – A multinational naval task force to protect a key global shipping lane from Yemen’s Huthi rebels would face severe challenges in a difficult strategic and military context, experts say. The United States has been pushing for such a force after Huthis pledged to continue attacking cargo ships in the Red Sea in support of Palestinians in the Gaza war raging between Israel and militant group Hamas. […]

Walkout, no-shows at COP28 as Israel-Hamas war resumes

By Talek HARRIS and Sahar AL-ATTAR DUBAI, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Iran’s delegation walked out and Israel’s president cancelled his speech as tensions over the Gaza war spilled over at the UN COP28 climate talks in Dubai on Friday. As deadly air strikes resumed after a week-long truce, several of the world leaders gathered to discuss climate change took the chance to lament the Israel-Hamas war that has left thousands dead. “It is impossible […]

US strikes Iran-linked sites in eastern Syria

WASHINGTON, Nov 12, 2023 (AFP) – The United States carried out strikes against two Iran-linked sites in Syria on Sunday in response to attacks on American forces, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. It is the third time in less than three weeks that the US military has targeted locations in Syria it said were tied to Iran, which supports various armed groups that Washington blames for a spike in attacks on its forces in the […]