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Iran’s interim president to Syria’s Assad: Tehran will continue support for resistance axis, Damascus

By
IFP Media Wire
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Mohammad Mokhber

Mokhber made the remarks in a phone conversation with Assad on Thursday as the latter offered his condolences to the Iranian government and nation over the martyrdom of President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and their companions in a helicopter crash in the northeastern province of East Azarbaijan on Sunday.

Mokhber thanked Syria’s move to declare three days of mourning and the presence of the country’s prime minister and his accompanying delegation in Tehran to take part in the funeral processions held for the Iranian martyrs.

“Syria is a strategic partner and a constant friend of the Iranian nation,” he added.

He noted that Assad’s message and the presence of the Syrian delegation in Tehran were a consolation for the Iranian people.

Iran lost Raisi and Amirabdollahian as two influential figures, which was a great loss for all Iranians, he stated.

The interim president emphasized that all institutions and bodies are fulfilling their duties like before, which is indicative of Iran’s strong power and prudent leadership of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

On Sunday, the helicopter carrying Raisi and his entourage crashed as it was on its way to Tabriz, the capital of East Azarbaijan Province, from a location on the border with the Republic of Azerbaijan where the Iranian president had opened a major dam project.

Amirabdollahian and two senior provincial officials along with crew members and bodyguard also died in the crash.

The Syrian president, for his part, said he was eager to express his condolences to Ayatollah Khamenei in person and added that he will travel to Tehran as soon as possible.

Assad emphasized that just like the late commander of the Quds Force of the IRGC Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, the late Iranian president was an influential figure in the region and the world, whose memory will remain etched in the minds of the Syrian nation and government.

Raisi always fought against oppression and global unilateralism and supported the resistance front, the oppressed nations in the region and across the world as well as the Palestinian cause, he added.

Assad expressed Syria’s full solidarity with Iran in all circumstances and said he is confident that the Islamic Republic is able to overcome this painful incident.

Acting FM says Iran to continue détente diplomacy with neighboring countries

By
IFP Media Wire
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Ali Bagheri Kani Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan

Bagheri Kani made the remarks on Thursday in a meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed is in Tehran to attend the funeral procession of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.

Bagheri Kani said that détente with neighbors is a definitive and strategic policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran and an effective strategy for regional cooperation that will definitely continue.

Empathy and companionship in difficult times is a valuable asset for cooperation to jointly enjoy opportunities and deal with threats and challenges that threaten the peace, stability and security of the region, he added.

The Emirati foreign minister, for his part, in the meeting said that his visit to Iran in this difficult situation was aimed at expressing the depth of friendship and solidarity and emphasize the brotherly relations between the two countries and the nation.

Western officials say cutting off Palestine from global banking system would be ‘catastrophic’

By
IFP Media Wire
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Palestine Bank

The waiver, which Israeli banks rely on to maintain relations with their Palestinian counterparts, is set to expire on July 1. It allows payments for vital services and salaries tied to the PA and facilitates the import of food, water, and electricity into the occupied Palestinian territories.

Three Western officials told FT that without the waiver, Israeli banks would cease dealings with Palestinian financial institutions, severely hampering the PA’s ability to operate and crippling economic activity in the occupied West Bank, they argued.

Not renewing the waiver “will be to the detriment not only of Palestinian interests but also to Israel’s and the region’s security and stability”, an unnamed US official said.

“The point that we’re making… is that you shouldn’t be threatening people’s access to food, electricity and water at a moment like this, especially in the West Bank,” the person added.

Most transactions in Palestine use the Israeli shekel, while the enclave’s financial institutions are supposed to use the Bank of Israel and Israel’s banks to access the currency.

According to US government data, cited by FT, nearly $8 billion in trade between Israel and the West Bank passes through these channels each year. This includes $2.3 billion of payments for food, $540 million for electricity, and $145 million for water and sewage services.

The waiver was renewed annually due to an arrangement in 2016, when US Treasury officials started providing an annual letter to Israel with assurances that Israeli banks would not be targeted with allegations of terrorist financing over their dealings with Palestinian entities.

This year, however, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich issued a three-month extension of the previous year’s waiver, which expired on April 1.

Smotrich stated last month he would order the cancelation of the waiver to Israeli banks if the PA were to win recognition as a state by the UN Security Council, or if the International Criminal Court (ICC) were to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders or soldiers.

This week, the ICC’s prosecutor requested warrants against Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

The waiver’s renewal is “a purely political game, but they’re trying to dress it up in the veneer of concerns about terrorist financial flows and promoting money flows to Hamas”, one of the Western officials said.

Palestinian banks have safeguards to ensure money is not flowing to terrorist groups, the official added, noting that revoking the waiver would push more Palestinian economic activity to informal channels.

Tehran hosts meeting of resistance groups

By
IFP Editorial Staff
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Meeting of resistance groups

The commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Quds Force, General Esmaeil Qaani, hosted the meeting.

The head of political bureau of the Palestinian resistance movement of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, the deputy secretary general of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassim, the spokesman of Yemen’s Ansarullah movement Mohammed Abdul-Salam and the IRGC Commander in Chief Major General Hossein Salami were among the participants of the meeting.

Meeting of resistance groups

The latest developments in the Gaza Strip following the anti-Israel Operation Al-Aqsa Storm by Palestinian forces and the role of the resistance were discussed in the meeting.

The representatives and officials pledged that they would continue to support the resistance until the complete victory of the Palestinians in Gaza.

Israel has killed just 30-35 percent of Hamas fighters in 7 months of Gaza war: US sources

By
IFP Media Wire
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Hamas

According to Politico, the majority of fighters who were members of the Palestinian movement prior to the 7 October attack in southern Israel are still alive, even as the death toll in Gaza has reached over 35,000 dead, mostly women and children.

In addition, around 65 percent of Hamas’ tunnel infrastructure remains intact, Politico’s sources said, and thousands of new members are said to have been recruited to the group in recent months.

The report comes as Washington has become increasingly concerned about the viability of Israel’s stated aim of destroying the Palestinian group.

On Monday, General Charles Brown, chair of the joint chiefs of staff, criticised Israel’s strategy in Gaza, warning that the failure of Israeli forces to both secure captured territory and eliminate Hamas from northern Gaza was hampering its ability to achieve its military objectives.

The comments by Brown were a rare note of criticism from the US military, which has aided Israel in its war on Gaza by providing military equipment and assistance through intelligence sharing.

That cooperation has polarised President Joe Biden’s Democratic political base in an election year.

While the Biden administration has thrown its full-fledged support behind Israel’s war efforts, some officials in the administration are beginning to offer more criticism of the Israeli government, particularly on its war strategy and the overall aid situation for the Palestinians in Gaza.

Around 128 people taken captive by Hamas and other Palestinian groups remain in Gaza. Israel’s government insists that military pressure is the best way to free them, and says it will not end its war in Gaza until it “eliminates” Hamas. Dozens of the captives are believed to be dead.

There is growing discontent in Israel over the war’s progress, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused of giving up on the Israeli captives.

Questions rise on Iranian late president’s chopper crash

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-
Iran President Helicopter Crash

Iran’s Jomhuri-e Eslami newspaper ran an article on Thursday, writing, “Out of the three helicopters returning from the border region to Tabriz, only the helicopter carrying the president faced the accident, which rules out the climate factors and strengthens the possibility of a plot.”

The daily also noted that the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces has launched a probe into the incident whose results have not been released yet.

Ham-Mihan daily also wrote on Thursday the unresolved ambiguities and rumors as well as the delay in responding have caused confusion for people.

The helicopter carrying the president and his accompanying delegation crashed on Sunday at noon in a fog-shrouded mountainous area, but their charred bodies were recovered on Monday morning after over 18 hours of search and rescue operation.

Ham-Mihan wrote that the contradictory and even unlikely reports by officials on the cyberspace raise more questions on the incident.

“The head of the presidential office claimed that he talked several times with the pilot’s cell phone, which was answered by the late (Friday prayers leader of Tabriz Mohammad Ali) Al-e Hashem,” Ham-Mihan stated, concluding, “It means there was a signal and communication with the telecommunication towers, so the site of the crash could easily be spotted. But no explanation has been given as to why they could not find the wreckage within the six hours before it got dark.”

Moscow blasts EU decision to use income from Russian assets

By
IFP Media Wire
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Kremlin

On Tuesday, the Council of the EU announced that it had officially approved the decision that will allow using income from frozen Russian sovereign assets to be used to provide military assistance to Ukraine. On Wednesday, the EU published a detailed decision on frozen Russian assets as part of the package of economic sanctions against Moscow, which is effective starting May 23.

“We have already said that such decisions, well, although we see that they are cautious, they see the potential danger of such decisions and understand the danger for them of the potential consequences that are inevitable, so they went for a truncated version, but the truncated version is nothing more than expropriation,” Peskov told reporters.

Russia will continue assessing the consequences of the EU’s decision and its response, the official added.

The Kremlin spokesman acknowledged that the Russian government was aware of warnings from global financial institutions about the West’s intention to use funds generated from frozen Russian state assets to provide military aid to Ukraine.

“We have taken note of the recent warnings made by the heads of international financial institutions that [the West] should rethink any step that will inevitably damage the global monetary system,” Peskov added.

IMF Communications Director Julie Kozack stated last week that any action taken by the West should have “sufficient legal underpinnings” so that it does not undermine the functioning of the global monetary system.

PA’s Mahmoud Abbas urges other countries to recognize Palestinian state

By
IFP Media Wire
-
Mahmoud Abbas

The president’s office said Madrid’s decision “reflects Spain’s keenness to support the Palestinian people and their inalienable and legitimate rights to their land and homeland”, according to a statement cited by Palestinian news agency Wafa.

“Spain’s decision, in these times, comes as a contribution from countries that believe in the two-state solution as an option that represents international will and legitimacy, in saving this solution, which is being systematically destroyed as a result of Israeli policies, especially through the continuation of the genocidal war in the Gaza Strip.”

Abbas added Norway and Ireland have “steadfastly supported the rights of the Palestinian people over the past years and voted in favor of these rights in international forums”.

“This initial decision is a culmination of these positions and is consistent with the principles of international law that recognize the right of peoples to get rid of colonialism and oppression and to live in freedom, justice and independence.”

The presidency called for other countries to “follow the example of Norway, Ireland and Spain, which chose the path of supporting the achievement of peace and stability and consolidating the rules of international legitimacy, and international law”.

Norway, Ireland and Spain’s decision to recognize a Palestinian state has been welcomed by Hamas, who has urged other countries to follow suit.

“We welcome the announcement by Norway, Ireland and Spain to recognize of the State of Palestine, and we consider it an important step on the path to establishing our right to our land and establishing our independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” a Hamas statement said.

“We call on countries around the world to recognize our legitimate national rights, support the struggle of our people for liberation and independence, and end the Zionist occupation of our land,” it added.

Funeral procession of FM Amirabdollahian begins in Tehran

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-
Funeral Procession Iran's FM

Besides the staff of the ministry, people from all walks of life have attended the event.

Amirabdollahian’s body will be laid to rest at Shah Abdul Az in Shayr-e-Rey in southern Tehran later in the day.

He passed away in an air crash on Sunday in northwestern Iran while accompanying President Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage who all died in the tragic incident.

US says concerned by Israel’s growing diplomatic isolation

By
IFP Media Wire
-
Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store
Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the situation raises concern for Israel’s security.

“I think it’s a fair question. As a country that stands strong in defense of Israel in international forums like the United Nations, we certainly have seen a growing chorus of voices, including voices that had previously been in support of Israel drift in another direction,” Sullivan stated.

“That is of concern to us because we do not believe that that contributes to Israel’s long term security or vitality.”

Sullivan, who travelled to Israel and other countries in the Middle East this past weekend, added that it was an issue that he discussed with the Israeli government.

“That’s something that we discussed with the Israeli government and something that we believe that a strategic approach to defeating Hamas, protecting civilians surging humanitarian assistance, and then pursuing that vision of regional integration I just talked about, will put Israel in the best stead to engage countries around the world and revitalize a lot of the partnerships and friendships that have been a source of great strength for Israel overtime and can be again.”

Spain, Norway and Ireland have announced plans to formally recognize a Palestinian state, a decision that has angered Israel, prompting Tel Aviv to immediately recall their ambassadors from each country.

Both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority welcomed the decision, urging other countries to follow suit.

The Joe Biden administration pushed back against the move, reiterating that while the US president backs a path to a two-state solution, it would continue to pursue one through diplomatic negotiations between the two parties.

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs is considering further diplomatic steps against Norway, Ireland and Spain after they declared their intention to recognize a Palestinian state, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Steps under consideration include canceling visits by officials from these countries to Israel and revoking visas from the countries’ diplomats, which would limit their ability to visit areas in the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority.

Israel is also considering reaching out to the United States to seek diplomatic support in providing clarification from Norway, Ireland and Spain on their intended decision, and to ask the US to try and convince other countries not to follow suit.

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