Iran

TEHRAN, Sept 23 (NNN-TASNIM) – Iran released British oil tanker, the Stena Impero, detained in the Strait of Hormuz in July, for “maritime violations.”

Allahmorad Afifipour, general manager of Iran’s Hormozgan Maritime and Ports, confirmed the release of the British tanker, saying, the vessel will start its voyage from Iran’s Bandar Abbas to international waters “soon.”

Although the tanker is allowed to leave Iran’s waters, “the legal dossier for its violations is still open in Iran’s judiciary,” Afifipour was quoted as saying.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s president called Sunday on Western powers to leave the security of the Persian Gulf to regional nations led by Tehran, criticizing a new U.S.-led coalition patrolling the region’s waterways as nationwide parades showcased the Islamic Republic’s military arsenal.

Hassan Rouhani separately promised to unveil a regional peace plan at this week’s upcoming high-level meetings at the United Nations, which comes amid heightened Mideast tensions following a series of attacks, including a missile-and-drone assault on Saudi Arabia’s oil industry.

22 Sep 2019; MEMO: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Sunday his country is ready to extend a hand of friendship to all neighbours and “forgive their past mistakes”.

“Wherever Americans have set foot, they increased insecurity, as it was proved in cases of Afghanistan and Iraq,” he said in a speech marking the 39th anniversary of the Iraqi-Iranian war.

TEHRAN, Sept 22 (NNN-IRNA) – Iran on Saturday displayed the debris of recently downed U.S. and British drones by its air defence system.

In the showcase, called “Hunting Vultures,” Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) displayed the remaining pieces of a U.S. military drone downed by the country’s air defence system in June in its southern waters.

On June 21, Iran announced that it had downed a U.S. RQ-4 Global Hawk “spy drone” which had violated Iranian airspace near the Strait of Hormuz.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard is ready for combat and “any scenario,” its chief commander said Saturday, as the country’s nuclear deal with world powers collapses and the U.S. alleged Iran was behind a weekend attack on major oil sites in Saudi Arabia that shook global energy markets.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s president says his country should lead regional security in the strategic Persian Gulf.

Hassan Rouhani said Sunday Iran extends its “hand of friendship and brotherhood” toward cooperating with regional nations.

Rouhani also said the presence of foreign forces in the Gulf could cause problems for the world’s “energy security.”

The U.S. is sending more troops to the Gulf and leading a maritime coalition, which includes the U.K., Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab nations, to secure the area’s waterways and vital oil trade routes.

21 Sep 2019; MEMO: Supreme Adviser to the Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Armed Forces, Yahya Rahim Safavi, announced that their people would counterattack the Americans if they conspired against their country, and that the counterattack would extend from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean.

This came in a speech given by Safavi, just before the Khutbah (sermon) of Jumu’ah prayer, according to the official Iranian news agency IRNA.

TEHRAN, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday rejected talks with the United states over the mutual issues, while Washington maintains its "maximum pressure campaign" against Tehran.

Rouhani, who was talking in Iran's cabinet meeting, said that "negotiations under maximum pressure are impossible," official IRNA news agency reported.

"If the Americans want talks, they should stop all pressures" against Iran, Rouhani was quoted as saying.

(Reuters) - Iran dismissed U.S. accusations over weekend attacks of Saudi Arabia’s oil sites as a distraction from the realities in the Middle East, Iran’s Students News Agency ISNA quoted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying on Wednesday.

“The United States should seek to look at the realities in the region, rather than simply using distractions. We feel that the U.S. government is trying to somehow forget the realities in the region,” Zarif said.

Tehran, Sept 17, IRNA - Iran is expected to unveil a new radar system to detect low-altitude missiles in a bid to expand the country’s national air defense systems, said a senior defense official on Tuesday.