Iran nuclear program
Hamas would stay out of any Israel-Iran fighting
By Ibrahim Barzak | AP | Gaza | 07 Mar 2012
Gaza’s Hamas rulers said Wednesday they would stay on the sidelines if war breaks out between Israel and Iran, easing a key Israeli concern and distancing the Islamic militants from their sponsors in Tehran.
The comments by Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum coincided with speculation that Israel might strike Iran to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons. Such concerns were heightened by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tough rhetoric on Iran during his high-profile visit to Washington this week.
Ex-Generals, Intelligence Officials to Obama: No War of Choice With Iran
By Bryant Jordan | Military.com | 05 Mar 2012
Several former high-ranking military, intelligence and State Department officials took out an ad in the Washington Post today urging President Obama to stand fast against political and lobbying pressure to attack Iran over claims it is trying to develop nuclear weapons.
The letter, signed by five retired generals, two senior intelligence analysts and a senior State Department official, is accompanied by a photo and quotes from other current military and defense officials warning against such an attack.
Hezbollah says attack on Iran would set Middle East ablaze
By Michael Stott and Samia Nakhoul | Reuters | Beirut | 29 Feb 2012
An Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear program would set the Middle East ablaze, possibly drag in the United States and unleash a conflict beyond the Jewish state's control, the deputy head of Lebanon's pro-Iranian Hezbollah movement said.
Iran says making nuclear bombs a ‘great sin’, calls for more talks with IAEA
Source : Al Arabiya | Tehran | 28 Feb 2012
Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful but negotiations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have stalled and Western powers have grown increasingly concerned over the possible military dimensions of Tehran’s atomic work.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, in a speech to the U.N.-sponsored Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, said he expected talks to continue and that he was optimistic they would proceed in the right direction.
Israeli Officials: Israel Won't Warn U.S. Before Attacking Iran
By The Associated Press | Washington | 28 Feb 2012
Israeli officials say they won't warn the U.S. if they decide to launch a pre-emptive strike against Iranian nuclear facilities. The pronouncement, delivered in a series of private, top-level conversations with U.S. officials, sets a tense tone ahead of meetings in the coming days at the White House and on Capitol Hill.
US spies see no evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons program
By James Risen and Mark Mazzetti | NY Times | Washington | 24 Feb 2012
Even as the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said in a new report Friday that Iran had accelerated its uranium enrichment program, American intelligence analysts continue to believe that there is no hard evidence that Iran has decided to build a nuclear bomb.
Russian PM warns of Western 'Regime Change' in Iran
Source : News Agencies | 24 Feb 2012
The Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin, said the West's focus on Iran's nuclear program was a cover for western attempts to oust the clerical regime in Tehran, and implied he would use Russia's own military and political strength to avert a course it deems dangerous.
Iran Vows to Launch Preemptive Strike If Attack on Them Imminent
Source : FNA | Tehran | 22 Feb 2012
A senior Iranian military commander underlined that Tehran would use every possible means in response to potential enemy aggressions.
Speaking to FNA on Tuesday, Deputy Head of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces for Logistic and Industrial Research General Mohammad Hejazi pointed to Iran's latest strategy to embark on posing threats in response to enemy threats, and explained that the strategy means "we will no more wait to see enemy action against us".
Iran nuclear tensions put Caucasus on alert
By Damien McGuinness | BBC | Tbilisi | 20 Feb 2012
Tensions between Iran and the West have spread to the Caucasus, where a bomb was found attached to an Israeli diplomatic car last week.
Iran and Israel appear to be engaged in a covert war of threats, bomb attacks and assassination plots in the Caucasus, a region that was firmly inside Russia's sphere of influence in the Cold War.
Iran's secretive nuclear programme is a target for spies, as Western leaders remain convinced that Tehran is trying to develop nuclear weapons, despite its denials.
Israel under huge pressure to avoid Iran attack
By Jean-Luc Renaudie | AFP | Jerusalem | 21 Feb 2012
Israel is coming under increased pressure from Washington and Europe to hold off from attacking Iran over its disputed nuclear drive and allow time for a regime of tight international sanctions to kick in.
Pressure is being exerted from all directions, officials acknowledge, with Washington's concern over a pre-emptive Israeli strike reflected in the steady stream of senior officials arriving in Jerusalem for top-level talks.
