Israeli Air Force Simulates Military Strikes On Iran Nuclear Facilities

The Washington Free Beacon cited information obtained by United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI) to reveal a network of Chinese petrochemical refiners, or "teapots," behind the upswing in illicit Iranian crude oil trade, saying they provided the Islamic Republic with at least $22 billion in revenue since President Joe Biden took office.

These Chinese private firms, which are not state-controlled, are primarily responsible for "funding this illicit and uniquely lucrative trade" with Iran, the report said, adding records seen by the UANI detailed at least 40 different shipments of Iranian oil to China dating back to 2019. 

The information about small refiners buying Iranian oil is not new but the details in UANI’s report shed further light on the illicit trade.

"Since the US has in fact sanctioned Chinese state-owned imports in the past, such as Zhuhai Zhenrong, the decision to import Iranian oil via dozens of small unaffiliated ‘non-state' firms helps obscure the Chinese government's role and protect its own big firms from scrutiny, accountability, and attendant sanctions," a brief issued said.

Earlier in the year, Bloomberg said teapot refineries have benefited from Washington’s sanctions on Iran and Venezuela because they bargain for more discounts while other buyers have stopped purchases in fear of the US financial system freezing their assets.

Idaho’s Republican Senator Jim Risch said in a tweet on Tuesday that “The Biden Admin must prioritize efforts to address this egregious behavior, which continues to threaten the US, its partners, and freedom of navigation everywhere.”

On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the "unjustified seizure" of the Greek-flagged vessels, saying, "Iran's continued harassment of vessels and interference with navigational rights and freedoms are a threat to maritime security and the global economy.”

France has also denounced the capture of the oil tankers in Persian Gulf waters, urging the Islamic Republic “to immediately release the crews and vessels."

The European Union also issued a statement on Sunday to express its serious concern to the Islamic Republic following the capture of the oil tankers, and called for transparency, de-escalation and a fast resolution of the issue.

On Friday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized the tankers in helicopter-launched raids in the Persian Gulf about a week after the confiscation of Iranian oil from a tanker held off the Greek coast and its transfer to the US.

Iran said on Saturday that the crew of two Greek tankers had not been detained and are on board their vessels.

Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof said on Tuesday that the signatories of the statement – headlined ‘Lay Down Your Arms’ -- have been threatened and intimidated by the Islamic Republic authorities to rescind their signatures.

"They think cinema is their barracks where they can use militarism to silence the artists' protest against violence,” he said.

In their open letter published on Sunday, a large group of film makers and actors called on security forces responsible for suppressing protests to lay down their weapons. Citizens have been demonstrating since last week against the rulers of the clerical regime.

Without directly mentioning the statement, the Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance warned Monday night, “We will punish those who seek to stand in the way of IRGC and guardians of Iran’s security by releasing worthless statements and delusional remarks.”

In reaction to the letter, Cinema Press website, with links to the security apparatus, quoted an “informed source” as saying that anyone who incites armed forces to rebel, flee, or surrender will face from six months to 10 years of prison.

The ongoing protests began when a 10-story building collapsed in Abadan, in the oil-rich Khuzestan province May 23, leaving 36 people dead while dozens are still missing.

In an interview published on Tuesday, Mostafa Nili said a message received from his client, civil and human rights defender Narges Mohammadi, and photojournalist Alieh Motalebzadeh said their lives are danger by one of the prisoners who is charged with murder and threatening to kill them to become famous. 

Pointing out that the prisoner had no "previous problems or conflicts" with Mohammadi and Motalebzadeh, he said that such threats without any history of disputes or conflicts seemed "suspicious".

Nili also said that following the death threat, several inmates with a history of violent crimes tried to provoke clashes twice with the prisoners of the political ward during visits to the prison infirmary. 

He added that the issue began with the threats to Mohammadi and Motalebzadeh, but since Sunday other political prisoners have also been threatened. Nili noted that prison authorities have not taken any action.

He said that such incidents are reminiscent of similar clashes between criminal prisoners and political detainees in recent years, such as the cases for Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, Atena Daemi, Shakila Monfared, and Saba Kord Afshari who were beaten in apparent clashes with other inmates. 

In 2019, political prisoner Alireza Shir-Mohammad-Ali was killed in Tehran’s Fashafoyeh Prison after he was stabbed in the neck and stomach by two inmates of the general ward.

Earlier in the year, Reporters Without Borders expressed concern for the lives of jailed activists who have been transferred to detention centers known to mistreat prisoners, including Qarchak women’s prison.

A coalition source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday that the projectiles landed on the vicinity of the airbase, located about 160 kilometers (100 miles) west of the capital Baghdad, adding that the rocket attack caused no casualties. 

Sabereen News, a Telegram channel associated with Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), claimed that six 122mm BM-21 Grad rockets had targeted Ayn al-Asad. An Iran-backed militia group that calls itself ‘The International Resistance’ has claimed responsibility for the attack. 

The base is the frequent target of Iran-backed proxy groups in the region. Late in April, it was targeted by three Grad missiles, which fell outside the base, without causing significant losses, and earlier in the month, two combat drones hit targets inside the air base, again without any casualties.

The base was also targeted by Iranian ballistic missiles in January 8 2020 in retaliation for the killing of Ghasem (Qassem) Soleimani the commander of Qods (Quds) force, a branch of the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), who was killed in Baghdad by a targeted US drone attack on January 3, 2020.

The attacks came as nuclear talks in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers have paused, mainly over Iran’s demand to remove the IRGC from the US list of foreign terrorist organizations.