Islamic revolution

KHARTOUM: "Just fall, just fall," Hadia chanted, her voice cutting through the din as a convoy of paramilitaries rolled past a mass of flag-waving protesters in downtown Khartoum.She was one of tens of thousands who hit the streets on Sunday (Jun 30) in Sudan's capital and other cities, responding to calls by protest leaders to keep up their "revolution" and pressure the ruling generals to hand power to civilians.Despite clouds of tear gas and a large deployment of the feared paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), cheering crowds thronged the avenues of the capital.Wrapped in large Sudanese flags, protesters whistled, cheered and chanted the slogans of the uprising."Civilian! Civilian!" they shouted, accompanied by a pulsing cacophony of car horns."Free revolutionaries, we will finish the job!"At times, the processions trailed through intersections where riot police and RSF troops were deployed, accompanied by pick-ups mounted with heavy machine guns."We want a civilian government … [Read more...] about Sudan protesters flood capital to defend ‘revolution’

PARIS: A surge of tensions in the Gulf has shown the risk of a military confrontation between arch-foes Iran and the United States, even if any conflict would likely be marked by guerrilla warfare rather than full-scale battles, analysts say.A series of mysterious attacks on ships off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, the key ally of Tehran's Gulf rival Saudi Arabia, prompted President Donald Trump to warn Iran would "suffer greatly" if it harmed US interests.The United States and Iran have had no diplomatic relations since the seizure by Iranian radicals of American embassy staff in the wake of the 1979 Islamic revolution.The two sides have at times been close to conflict - in particular during a tense period under former US president George W Bush - but analysts see a series of factors as making the current moment particularly combustible.Trump dismayed European allies by pulling out of the 2015 deal on Iran's nuclear programme unilaterally and is now ratcheting up the … [Read more...] about Could Gulf tensions lead to Iran-US war?

SIBIU, Romania: European powers on Thursday (May 9) denounced Tehran's threat to resume nuclear work, drawing a sharp response from the Iranian foreign minister who accused them of caving in to US bullying.The three European signatories to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal urged the Islamic republic to stick to its commitments after it said it would stop respecting some limits imposed by the agreement.They rejected an ultimatum from President Hassan Rouhani, who threatened to go further if they fail to deliver sanctions relief within 60 days to counterbalance US President Donald Trump's assault on the Iranian economy.EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini and France, Germany and Britain - the three European nations in the deal - voiced "great concern" over Rouhani's intervention, which came on the anniversary of Trump's withdrawal of the United States from the agreement negotiated under his predecessor Barack Obama."We strongly urge Iran to continue to implement its commitments … [Read more...] about Europe rejects Iran ‘ultimatum’ but stands by nuke deal

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday tightened the screws further on Iran with sanctions on its mining industry after a frustrated Tehran said it would suspend some promises it made under a nuclear deal rejected by Washington. On the anniversary of Trump’s withdrawal from the accord he denounced as “horrible,“ tensions were soaring as the United States deployed an aircraft carrier strike group and nuclear-capable bombers to the region and accused Iran of “imminent” attacks. In an announcement previewed for days, Iran said it would immediately stop implementing some restrictions under the 2015 deal – a move aimed largely at pressing Washington’s European allies to step up to preserve the agreement. Tehran said it would abandon even more if the remaining parties to the agreement – Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia – failed to start delivering on their commitments to sanctions relief within 60 days. President … [Read more...] about Trump moves to strangle Iran economy as nuclear deal withers