Iran

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A former speaker of Iran’s parliament registered Saturday to run in the Islamic Republic’s upcoming presidential election, becoming the first high-profile candidate to potentially back the policies of the outgoing administration that reached Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers.

12 May 2021; MEMO: Iran's Revolutionary Guards yesterday held the US Navy responsible for the warning shots fired against Iranian military boats in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards accused US naval ships of "unprofessional behaviour such as flying helicopters, firing flares and aimless and provocative shooting".

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s state television reported Wednesday that the country’s former firebrand president will run again for office in upcoming elections in June.

Broadcast footage showed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad marching accompanied by supporters to a registration center at the Interior Ministry where he filled out registration forms.

Ahmadinejad in recent years has tried to polish his hardline image into a more centrist candidacy, criticizing the government for mismanagement.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday rejected the U.S. Navy’s claim that fast-approaching Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a tense encounter in the already sensitive region.

The Guard’s website, sepahnews.com, published a statement Tuesday saying Americans were guilty of using “false narratives and unprofessional behavior” and should more strictly “abide by international regulations.” Specifically, the statement said the Guard’s navy warned the U.S. vessels to stop their “provocative and aimless shooting.”

(APP) --- Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh publicly confirms that the de-escalation of tensions between his country and Saudi Arabia is in the interest of both nations and the region.

Iran confirmed publicly for the first time on Monday that it was in talks with Saudi Arabia, saying it would do what it could to resolve issues between them, Reuters reported.

(Reuters) --- Time is of the essence in the Vienna negotiations to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Monday, adding talks were lengthy but conducted in a good atmosphere.

08 May 2021; MEMO: Supreme Iranian Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced on Friday: "The decline of the enemy Zionist regime has begun and will not stop."

Marking Al-Quds Day, an annual event that takes place on the last Friday of Ramadan, Khamenei asserted: "Israel is not a country, but a terrorist base against the nation of Palestine and other Muslim nations."

07 May 2021; MEMO: An Israeli research centre has addressed the rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, stressing that this step constitutes a significant breach in the anti-Iran front that Israel seeks to form.

(Reuters) --- An Iranian diplomat sentenced to 20 years in prison for planning a bomb attack in France has dropped an appeal in Belgium and will serve his sentence, lawyers said on Wednesday.

Belgian authorities have said they will oppose any potential swap deal with Western prisoners, prosecution lawyers said.

TEHRAN, May 4 (NNN-IRNA) – The coastal guards of Iran’s southern port city of Jask, seized a vessel with 19 Indian crew members on board, state TV reported yesterday.

After the vessel was stopped and tests were carried out, Mohammad Radmehr, governor of Jask, said that two Indian nationals were diagnosed positive with COVID-19.

All crew members of the vessel have been quarantined, Radmehr was quoted as saying, adding that, test samples of the two people have been sent to Bandar Abbas and Tehran to determine the variant of the virus.