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→ 2 March 2021
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Israel-owned ship suffers explosion in Gulf of Oman, raising suspicions about Iran | JTA

This picture taken on February 28, 2021 shows a view of the Israeli-owned Bahamian-flagged MV Helios Ray cargo ship docked in Dubai’s Mina Rashid (Port Rashid) cruise terminal. – The MV Helios Ray, a vehicle carrier, was travelling from the Saudi port of Dammam to Singapore when a blast occurred on February 25, according to the London-based Dryad Global maritime security group. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

An Israeli-owned cargo ship sustained an explosion in the Gulf of Oman early Friday morning, without harming any crew members.

It docked safely in a Dubai port on Sunday, the Associated Press reports.

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Saturday that his “assessment” is that Iran was behind the attack.

“Iran is looking to hit Israeli infrastructure and Israeli citizens,” Gantz told the Kan public broadcaster. “The location of the ship in relative close proximity to Iran raises the notion, the assessment, that it is the Iranians.”

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→ 1 March 2021
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Resurrecting Iran’s Nuclear Deal: A path to peace or sure-fire disaster?

NZFOI held a gathering of members to review the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal (aka JOCPA) and to discuss the high-level issues arising from the Biden administration’s moves to resurrect the deal.

For those who missed the gathering, you may download the slide deck here.

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→ 24 February 2021
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Unexplained uranium traces found in Iran where they shouldn’t have been | Newshub

Ali Akhbar Salahi discusses nuclear centrifuges with Hassan Rouhani

The UN nuclear watchdog found uranium particles at two Iranian sites it inspected after months of stonewalling, diplomats say, and it is preparing to rebuke Tehran for failing to explain, possibly complicating US efforts to revive nuclear diplomacy.

The find and Iran’s response risk hurting efforts by the new US administration to restore Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal, which President Joe Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump abandoned.

Although the sites where the material was found are believed to have been inactive for nearly two decades, opponents of the nuclear deal, such as Israel, say evidence of undeclared nuclear activities shows that Iran has not been acting in good faith.

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→ 18 August 2020
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The Israel-UAE agreement, winners and losers edition | JTA

(L-R, rear) Senior Advisor Jared Kushner, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin and National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien clap for US President Donald Trump (L) after he announced an agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel to normalize diplomatic ties, the White House August 13, 2020, in Washington, DC. – Trump on Thursday made the surprise announcement of a peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. The normalization of relations between the UAE and Israel is a “HUGE breakthrough” Trump tweeted, calling it a “Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends.” (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

The treaty between Israel and the United Arab Emirates is a big deal. 

President Trump announces the Israel-UAE agreement with, from left to right, senior adviser Jared Kushner, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, Aug. 13, 2020. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

The UAE is a Muslim kingdom in the Persian Gulf made up of seven smaller entities, called emirates, with huge oil and natural gas reserves. Its metropolis, Dubai, is a wealthy city known as a commercial center for the region. The country borders Saudi Arabia and is only dozens of miles across the water from Iran. It has a tiny Jewish community.

It becomes only the third Arab nation to establish official ties with the Jewish state. In addition to trade, tourism and other exchanges, the treaty means the two countries can collaborate on treatment for the coronavirus and countering the influence of Iran, a shared nemesis. 

That makes Iran a likely loser in this deal. The dealmakers are, of course, likely winners.

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→ 12 August 2020
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China And Iran Approach Massive $400 Billion Deal | Forbes

The Iranian and Chinese Foreign Ministers shake hands

NZFOI: There is much talk about a potential treaty between Iran and China that will enable Iran to circumvent US sanctions, bring respite to their economic hardships, allow Iran to pursue its nuclear programme and will give China access to oil and naval bases in the region.

China, sensing America’s internal political difficulties amidst social justice protests and a poor COVID-19 response, is taking off the gloves: Beijing is said to be in the final stages of approving a $400 billion economic and security deal with Tehran.

In addition to massive infrastructure investments, the agreement envisions closer cooperation on defense and intelligence sharing, and is rumored to include discounts for Iranian oil. If finalized, the PRC would gain massive influence in this geopolitically critical region, and simultaneously throw a lifeline to the embattled Mullah Regime.

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→ 8 July 2020
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Qassem Soleimani deemed ‘unlawful’ | Stuff

Qassem Soleimani funeral procession

The drone strike that had the stamp of approval from US President Donald Trump and killed Iran’s top general Qassem Soleimani​ has been labelled “unlawful”.

A report conducted by the United Nations said the targeted drone strike near Baghdad International Airport on January 3 that killed 10 people violated a UN charter that prohibited the threat or use of force against other states.

After claiming responsibility for the attack, the US asserted it was “in response to an escalating series of armed attacks” spanning months.

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→ 17 January 2020
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Qassem Suleimani’s Career of Trying to Kill Jews | Mosaic

Suleimani’s funeral procession

At the funeral of the Iranian general Qassem Suleimani, one of the few non-family members to deliver a eulogy was the Hamas chairman Ismail Haniyeh—a reminder that the elite Quds Force, which Suleimani commanded for over two decades, invested much in coordinating terrorist attacks against Israel. And not only against Israel, writes Yehudit Barsky, but against Jews wherever they might be found

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→ 17 January 2020
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Iranians defy Officials By Refusing To Tread On U.S., Israeli Banners | Radio Free Europe

Students walk around, instead of across, U.S. and Israeli flags at the Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran on January 12.

Chanting “Death to America” and trampling upon and burning U.S. flags have been part of state-sponsored, anti-American acts in Iran for the past 40 years.

Yet people’s opposition to that mantra and disrespecting the flag of the United States and others has increased in the Islamic republic in recent years — with some daring to publicly question the rationale behind such acts.

Amid the fury in Iran in recent days over the establishment’s mishandling of the downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), killing 176 people, students at two universities were seen walking around U.S. flags painted on the ground by officials in public acts of defiance against the clerical establishment and the state propaganda that portrays the United States and Israel as Tehran’s biggest enemies.

Videos of the incident at Tehran’s Shahid Beheshti University — which has been blacklisted by the United States for its nuclear-research activities — showed a majority of students moving to avoid treading upon painted American and Israeli flags.

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→ 10 January 2020
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US President Donald Trump called Iran’s bluff and won | Stuff

US President, Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump is not a strategy man. He has made clear he doesn’t like to think too far down the road; he likes to govern by instinct.

In short, he is a tactical leader, a Twitter president. Tactical leaders tend to make mistakes, largely because they cannot see the long-term implications of their decisions.

On Iran, however, President Donald Trump has not made a mistake.

His tactical game has worked, at least for the moment. He has called Iran’s bluff, taken out one of its most valuable leaders and, so far, made the correct calculation that Tehran will not risk a wider war with the United States.

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→ 8 January 2020
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Iran launches missiles at two Iraqi air bases housing US troops, in revenge for killing of top general | TVNZ

Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani

The Pentagon is confirming that Iran has launched “more than a dozen ballistic missiles” at two targets hosting against US military and coalition forces in Iraq.

‘More than a dozen’ ballistic missiles were fired from Iran at two US bases in Iraq, according to the Pentagon. Source: Associated Press

Defense Department spokesman Jonathan Hoffman says “It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran.”

He says the attacks “targeted at least two Iraqi military bases” at Ain Assad and Irbil.
Hoffman says the US is “working on initial battle damage assessments.”

Iranian state TV says the attack was in revenge for the killing of Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, whose funeral Tuesday prompted angry calls to avenge his death.

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