Page 7 - Iran

29 executions in two days in Iran, UN rights office expresses concerns

The UN human rights office is expressing concerns about reports that Iran has executed 29 people over two days this week, with the rights chief decrying an alarmingly high number" of executions in such a short period of time. The office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said Friday it has verified 38 people were executed in July, bringing the total number of executions to at least 345 this year mostly for drug offenses or murder including 15 women. Imposing the death penalty for offenses not involving intentional killing is incompatible with international human rights norms and standards, rights office spokeswoman Liz Throssell told a U.N. briefing Friday. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Trk is extremely concerned about reports that, in the space of two days this week, Iranian authorities reportedly executed at least 29 people across the country, she said. This represents an alarmingly high number of executions in such a short period of time. Throssell

Iran could discard revenge plan against Israel in return for Gaza ceasefire

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US has told both- Israel and Iran that 'no one should escalate this conflict'

Iran accelerating cyber activity seemingly to influence US polls: Microsoft

Iran is ramping up online activity that appears intended to influence the upcoming US election, in one case targeting a presidential campaign with an email phishing attack, Microsoft said Friday. Iranian actors also have spent recent months creating fake news sites and impersonating activists, laying the groundwork to stoke division and potentially sway American voters this fall, especially in swing states, the technology giant found. The findings in Microsoft's newest threat intelligence report show how Iran, which has been active in recent US campaign cycles, is evolving its tactics for another election that's likely to have global implications. The report goes a step beyond anything US intelligence officials have disclosed, giving specific examples of Iranian groups and the actions they have taken so far. Iran's United Nations mission denied it had plans to interfere or launch cyberattacks in the US presidential election. The report doesn't specify Iran's intentions besides sowin

UK, Egypt issue alerts for Iran, Lebanon airspace amid conflict risks

Egypt's civil aviation ministry later confirmed on Wednesday the notice was intended to reduce flight safety risks in light of a notification it received from Iranian authorities

Who is Asif Merchant: Pak national charged with US assassination plots

Asif Merchant has been charged with murder-for-hire in connection with a foiled assassination plot targeting US politicians or government officials

Pak man with Iran ties charged in plot to assassinate gov officials in US

A 46-year-old Pakistani national with close ties to Iran was on Tuesday charged in connection with a foiled plot to assassinate a politician or US government officials on American soil, authorities here said. Asif Raza Merchant was charged in a complaint unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn with murder-for-hire as part of a scheme to assassinate a politician or US government officials on its soil. Law enforcement foiled the charged plot before any attack could be carried out. Merchant, who has stated that he has a wife and children in Iran and a wife and children in Pakistan, is in federal custody in New York. US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement that for years, the Justice Department has been working aggressively to counter Iran's brazen and unrelenting efforts to retaliate against American public officials for the killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. US Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York said that working on behalf of others ...

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US, allies push to avert possible Mideast war amid heightened tensions

The focus has been to prepare for and possibly blunt an attack by Iran, which has warned it will respond after blaming Israel for killing a top Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in a government

Putin ally holds talks in Iran as West Asia teeters on brink of wider war

Russia has condemned the killing of Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Iran last week

Iran Army refutes reports about IRGC infiltration to kill Hamas' Haniyeh

The statement by IRGS also accuses the criminal government of the United States of supporting the attack

US General arrives in Middle East as Iran prepares for attack on Israel

Three US and Israeli officials said that they expect Iran to launch an attack on Israel as early as Monday

US military destroys Iranian-backed Houthi cruise missile in Yemen

A suspected missile attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels struck a container ship travelling through the Gulf of Aden, authorities said on Sunday, likely the first assault by the group since Israeli airstrikes targeted them. The Houthis have offered no explanation for the two-week pause in their attacks on shipping through the Red Sea corridor, which have seen similar slowdowns since the assaults began in November over Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But the resumption comes after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, the Houthis' main benefactor, amid renewed concerns over the war breaking out into a regional conflict. The attack on Saturday happened some 225 kilometers (140 miles) southeast of Aden in a stretch of the Gulf of Aden that has seen numerous Houthi attacks previously. A security official on the vessel said a missile struck the vessel, but no fires, water ingress or oil leaks have been observed, according to a statement from the British military'

Iran says short-range projectile killed Hamas' Haniyeh, vows retaliation

Iran's Revolutionary Guard said a short-range projectile was behind the killing of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh and accused the United States of supporting the attack which it blamed on Israel, state TV reported. The televised statement, which reiterated a call for retaliation, said a rocket with a seven-kg warhead was used to target the residence of Hamas' political leader in the capital Tehran on Wednesday, adding it caused heavy devastation. It didn't share details of the residence's location. Haniyeh was in Iran to attend the inauguration of newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. The action was designed and carried out by the Zionist regime and supported by the US, said the Guard's statement. It added that the warmongering and terrorist Zionist regime will receive harsh punishment in the suitable time, place, and capacity. Israel has not confirmed or denied its role in the killing of Haniyeh, but Israel earlier pledged to kill him and other Hamas leaders ove

Hamas chief's killing: Iran's Khamenei orders strike on Israel, reports NYT

In a major escalation in the region, the New York Times reported that Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei has ordered its troops to carry out direct strikes against Israel

For Iran, calibrating response to Israeli strikes leaves no room for error

Two back-to-back strikes in Beirut and Tehran, both attributed to Israel and targeting high-ranking figures in Hamas and Hezbollah, have left Hezbollah and Iran in a quandary. Analysts agree that both strikes hit too close to home to pass without a response, and were serious security breaches for Iran and Hezbollah. Calibrating that response to restore deterrence without sparking an even more damaging escalation may be the most delicate balancing act in nearly a year of teetering on the brink of a regional war. Tuesday's rare strike in Beirut's southern suburbs killed a top Hezbollah commander who Israel says was responsible for a missile strike on a soccer field in the town of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, killing 12 children and teenagers. Hezbollah has denied responsibility for the attack. While the target of the strike in Beirut was a military figure, it hit a densely populated urban neighborhood on the outskirts of the capital where Hezbollah has many of it

Killing of Hamas chief in Iran sparks fears of retaliation, conflict

Haniyeh was killed by a missile that hit him directly in a state guesthouse where he was staying

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in 'Israeli raid' in Iran

Just a day before his assassination, the Hamas chief on Tuesday attended the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian

Who was Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, killed in an Israeli attack in Iran?

A prominent Palestinian political figure, Ismail Haniyeh was in Tehran at the inauguration of Iran's new president and met with Iran's Supreme Leader

Russia, Iran, and China seek to shape US election by recruiting Americans

Some US citizens have been helping foreign govts seed, promote and add credibility to narratives that serve the foreign actors' interests, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said