Iranian daily: Israel’s F-35 fleet legitimate target for retaliation

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January 22, 2024

Khorassan wrote in its Monday edition that Iran needs to revise its protection and security measures, without giving the enemy the opportunity to make dangerous moves.

“The response to a terror campaign is not effective except by direct attacks on some military and special sectors of the Zionist regime,” the daily wrote.

Khorassan further noted, “Due to Israel’s direct attack on the advisory forces, Iran has this international right to direct response. The response must be integrated and even simultaneous.”

It added that the resistance forces have previously targeted the Israeli regime’s F-35 fighter jets’ bases in the port city of Eilat and other areas in the occupied territories, calling on Iran to carry out the same strikes.

Five Iranian military advisors were recently killed in an Israeli air raid on the Syrian capital, Damascus.

Global support for Israel plummets: Report

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

According to figures released by the data-gathering company Morning Consult and published in Time magazine, the percentage of people viewing Israel positively after subtracting the percentage viewing it negatively, dropped an average of 18.5 percentage points globally between September and December.

Out of 43 countries surveyed on all six continents, including BRICS nations China, South Africa and Brazil, support for Israel dropped in all but one.

The steepest decline in support was recorded in wealthy countries that already had a negative view of Israel. These included Japan, which dropped from -39.9 to -62.0, South Korea, which dropped from-5.5 to -47.8, and the UK, which went from -17.1 to -29.8.

“The data shows just how tough of a road Israel has right now in the international community,” said Sonnet Frisbie, deputy head of political intelligence at Morning Consult.

According to the survey, the US was the only country in the developed world to retain a net positive view of Israel, with net favourability dropping just 2.2 percentage points from 18.2 to 16 between September and December.

Israel began its military aggression against Gaza on October 7, 2023 following Operation al-Aqsa Storm by the territory’s resistance movements. More than 25,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in the Israeli military onslaught so far, while nearly 63,000 others have been injured.

US calls on Israel to focus on eliminating Hamas leaders

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

“We have stood up for Israel’s right to take defensive actions against Hamas so that this threat cannot be perpetrated against them again. But we’ve also been quite clear that the way in which Israel conducts this conflict is of great concern to us. We have seen in recent days and weeks the beginning of a shift in a phase of the conflict that we have been calling for, where we would like Israel to focus more on high-value targets, on Hamas leadership, and we have seen them start to do that,” Finer told the ABC News broadcaster on Sunday.

Washington also urged Israel to expand humanitarian assistance to the population of the Gaza Strip, Finer said, adding that the Jewish state made “small but consequential steps” in this direction “but they are also not enough”.

On October 7, 2023, Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip while its fighters breached the border, opening fire on the military and civilians. As a result, over 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 250 others abducted.

Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza and launched a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 25,100 people have been killed so far in Gaza as a result of Israeli strikes, local authorities announced.

On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1.

Israel rejects Hamas proposal to end war, release captives

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

Netanyahu, who is under growing domestic pressure to bring the captives home, stated that accepting Hamas’s conditions would mean leaving the armed group “intact” and that Israel’s soldiers had “fallen in vain”.

“I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas,” Netanyahu said on Sunday.

“If we accept this, we won’t be able to guarantee the safety of our citizens. We will not be able to bring evacuees home safely and the next October 7 will only be a matter of time,” the Israeli leader added.

Netanyahu earlier repeated his opposition to an independent Palestinian state, insisting he would not compromise on “full Israeli security control over the entire area in the west of Jordan”.

Netanyahu is under pressure on multiple fronts, as families of the captives call for a deal to secure the return of their loved ones, members of his far-right ruling coalition push for an escalation of the war, and growing differences cloud relations with the administration of United States President Joe Biden.

On Sunday evening, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum began a protest outside the Israeli leader’s private home in Jerusalem, pledging not to leave until he agrees to a deal on the captives’ release.

“If the prime minister decides to sacrifice the hostages, he should show leadership and honestly share his position with the Israeli public,” the group announced in a statement.

Hamas freed more than 100 captives in exchange for the release of 240 Palestinian prisoners as part of a brief truce brokered in late November by Egypt, Qatar and the US.

Hamas is still holding 136 people in captivity, according to Israeli officials.

At least 25,105 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel declared its intention to eliminate Hamas in response to the group’s October 7 attacks.

Houthis warn US against any violation of Yemen’s sovereignty, act of aggression

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

Houthi spokesman, Mohammed Abdulsalam, made the remarks in a statement on Sunday, cautioning the Western powers that Yemen will counter any acts of aggression.

“We affirm that Yemen will not allow any violation of its sovereignty, [and] will confront any aggression it faces,” he said.

His comment came after the US and the UK conducted several missile attacks against Yemeni targets over the past month.

They claimed that the attacks were in response to strikes by Yemen’s Armed Forces against Israeli vessels or those bound for ports in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Yemeni forces have also launched missile and drone attacks on targets controlled by the Israeli regime in the occupied territories in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, who have come under a genocidal US-backed war by the regime since October 7, 2023.

More than 25,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in the Israeli military onslaught so far, while over 62,600 others have been injured.

Abdul-Salam stated, “We affirm our support for Palestinian people by exerting pressure on Israel to stop its criminal aggression against Gaza.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, he urged the United States to “stop evading responsibility for ending the aggression against Gaza.”

As the Israeli regime’s biggest ally, the US has provided Israel with unwavering military and political support during its onslaught on the coastal territory. It has armed the regime with more than 10,000 tons of military hardware, and has also vetoed all United Nations Security Council resolutions that called for cessation of the aggression.

“We appeal to all countries to stand alongside the Yemeni position, [and] not allow themselves to be victims of American deception,” he added.

He, meanwhile, reiterated that the targets of the Yemeni strikes in the Red Sea will continue to be “Israeli ships or those heading to occupied ports of Palestine”.

Hamas says October 7 military operation was a ‘necessary step’, admits to ‘some faults’

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

In a 16-page report titled “Our Narrative” and published on Sunday, Hamas, which governs Gaza, said it wanted to “clarify” the background and dynamics of the surprise attack it calls Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.

In its first public report since the attack, Hamas stressed it was “a necessary step and a normal response to confront all Israeli conspiracies against the Palestinian people”.

Early on October 7, Hamas fighters stormed communities along Israel’s southern fence with Gaza. Nearly 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the attack and about 250 others were seized as captives.

Around 100 of the captives were released during a seven-day truce in late November in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

Israeli authorities have accused Hamas fighters of committing war crimes during the attack, including torture, rape and mutilation. Hamas has strongly rejected allegations of sexual violence and or mutilation.

The report said Hamas planned to target Israeli military sites and to capture soldiers, which could be used to pressure the Israeli authorities to release thousands of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

The group added that avoiding harming civilians “is a religious and moral commitment” by fighters of Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades.

“If there was any case of targeting civilians; it happened accidentally and in the course of the confrontation with the occupation forces,” read the report.

It added that “maybe some faults happened” during the attack “due to the rapid collapse of the Israeli security and military system, and the chaos caused along the areas near Gaza.

“Many Israelis were killed by the Israeli army and police due to their confusion,” it said.

Israel responded to the attack with a devastating bombardment of Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade for 17 years, killing more than 25,000 people – mostly women and children, according to Palestinian authorities in the territory.

Palestinian officials and human rights groups have accused Israel of committing war crimes in its assault on Gaza.

The Hamas report also addressed the issue of post-war Gaza, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doubled down on his opposition to Palestinian statehood.

“We stress that the Palestinian people have the capacity to decide their future and to arrange their internal affairs,” the report said, adding that “no party in the world” had the right to decide on their behalf.

The report also listed the reasons that led to the attack, citing Israel’s campaign of settlements’ construction “and Judaization of the Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem”, and the killing of thousands of Palestinian civilians from 2000 until this year.

Iran says supports South Africa’s ICJ case against Israel over Gaza war

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IFP Media Wire

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January 22, 2024

Raisi made the remarks in a meeting with South Africa’s new Ambassador to Tehran Francis Molloy on Sunday as he received his credentials.

“South Africa’s move in complaining about the crimes of the Zionist regime (Israel) is a historic, lasting and commendable action and the Islamic Republic of Iran supports this smart and wise action.”

Iran’s president also hailed “very good and advancing” relations between the two countries and said no obstacle can hinder the promotion of ties.

The South African ambassador, for his part, vowed to take constructive steps to boost relations in order to serve the interests of the two nations and countries.

In a meeting with Ramón Alberto Moncada Colindres, the new ambassador of Nicaragua to Tehran, on Sunday, Raisi stated Nicaragua pursues a humanitarian and justice-seeking stance on international issues, including Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people.

“If other countries have had such a position, the Zionist regime (Israel) and its supporters would not have dared to commit such crimes against the oppressed but strong Palestinian people.”

He underscored the importance of following up on the full implementation of the agreements reached between the two countries during his visit to Managua in June 2023.

Nicaragua’s ambassador, for his part, said Tehran and Managua are making efforts to promote relations in various fields.

In a meeting with Japanese new ambassador to Iran Toskada Tamaki on Sunday, Raisi noted Tehran plans to promote relations with Tokyo in various fields.

“Oppressive sanctions against the Islamic Republic should not and cannot create an obstacle in the path of the development of mutual relations as they have so far failed to bring any achievement for the United States,” the president stated.

He added the US plays a role in every conflict in the world.

“From the use of the atomic bomb against the Japanese people to today’s crimes against the people of Gaza, the US plays a key role.”

The Japanese ambassador submitted his credentials to the Iranian president and said the two countries enjoy close and deep relations.

In a meeting with Belgium’s Ambassador to Tehran Michel Malherbe, the president said Iran sets no limits to enhanced relations with countries based on mutual trust and respect.

Raisi added the United States has lost its credibility and reputation in the world given its full support for Israel.

He urged European countries to pursue their interests and relations independently of the United States.

In a meeting with Burkina Faso’s new Ambassador to Tehran Mohammadi Kaboureh, the Iranian president stated the United States, Israel and certain European countries, which claim to fight terrorism, are the root cause of terror and main sponsors of terrorist groups.

Raisi added that Iran is willing to deepen cooperation with African countries, including Burkina Faso.

In a meeting with the new ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Tehran, Nijaz Čardaklija, the Iranian president said cooperation and cohesion among Muslim countries could stop the crimes of Israel.

Pointing to arrogant powers’ hostility towards the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Raisi underlined in the absence of interference against Muslims, including the Palestinians, Muslims would have been able to have a peaceful coexistence.

Čardaklija, for his part, said his country calls for the expansion of relations and constructive cooperation with Iran.

Iran vetting body approves over 1,000 candidates for parliamentary votes

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IFP Editorial Staff

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January 21, 2024

The announcement comes from Hadi Tahan Nazif, the spokesman of the Guardian Council, shedding light on the rigorous scrutiny process undertaken.

According to the spokesman, individuals who had registered for the upcoming parliamentary elections and initially faced disqualification, have now been deemed fit for participation.

The decision follows a wave of protests from the affected candidates, urging a re-evaluation of their eligibility.

According to the reformist daily Etemad, most of those rejected were reformist and moderate candidates.

The parliamentary election is slated for March 1, 2024.

Russia decries Ukrainian deadly shelling as “barbaric”, using Western arms

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IFP Media Wire

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January 21, 2024

Sunday’s bombardment of a busy market in the capital of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic was inflicted with weapons supplied to Kiev by the US and its allies, the ministry said in a statement.

“This again confirms [the West’s] direct involvement in the conflict and makes it complicit in the criminal acts of the Volodymyr Zelensky regime, which has once again displayed its inhumanity and hatred towards innocent people,” it noted.

“The West’s unrestrained desire to inflict a ‘strategic defeat’ on Russia through the hands of their Ukrainian puppets, whom it is eager to support mindlessly and without limit, is pushing the Kiev regime to increasingly reckless steps, including acts of terrorism, massive violations of international humanitarian law, and war crimes,” the ministry added.

Russia has called on governments and international bodies to condemn this “treacherous attack on the civilian population”, it stated. Failure to do so would be a sign of “silent approval of the murders of civilians” that would only encourage Kiev “to commit even more bloody atrocities”, it also pointed out.

All those involved in the shelling of Donetsk and in other “terrorist attacks” on Russia will face “an inevitable punishment”, the ministry warned, adding that the “desperate strikes” clearly demonstrate the lack of political will on the part of the Ukrainian authorities to search for peace through diplomatic means.

“The need to achieve all of the goals and objectives of Russia’s military operation is obvious. Security threats and acts of terrorism shouldn’t be committed from the territory of Ukraine,” it said.

Iran’s historic cars center unveils automotive marvels

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IFP Editorial Staff

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January 21, 2024

The center’s mission goes beyond mere display; it aims to preserve and highlight these national treasures, offering a captivating journey through Iran’s automotive history.

Among the gems showcased is a gold-plated Pierce Arrow, the exclusive Panther Laser, and a collaborative masterpiece from Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Volkswagen.

The Rolls-Royce exhibit boasts historic models like Ahmad Shah Qajar’s Silver Ghost and the legendary bulletproof Phantom 4.

Meanwhile, the museum’s extensive Benz collection features standout models like the 500k and 600 limousines, alongside classics like the 190 SL.

Dedicated sections showcase super sports cars, featuring iconic names such as Lamborghini Miura, Cantash, Ferrari Super Fast 500, Bitzarini, and a range of Porsche models.

The Iran Historic Cars Center not only celebrates automotive marvels but also invites visitors to delve into the rich narrative of Iran’s automotive evolution.

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