The heads of Iran and Russia’s state-run nuclear agencies discussed the construction of new nuclear plants in Iran during a meeting held on Friday around the same time that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, also sat down for a chat about Tehran’s ongoing nuclear negotiations with the West, according to regional reports.
An Iranian Christian pastor imprisoned for his faith now faces the death penalty after being officially charged with “spreading corruption on [the] Earth.”
Iranian military leaders on Tuesday vowed that Tehran would take military action against Israel in response to an alleged Israeli drone that was shot down in Iran on Sunday, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder arrived in Ferguson to lead the investigation into the shooting. It was revealed that Darren Wilson, the police officer whose fatal shooting of Michael Brown touched off more than a week of demonstrations, suffered severe facial injuries, including an orbital (eye socket) fracture, and was nearly beaten unconscious by Brown moments before firing his gun. Meanwhile, Community elders and the clergy were credited with helping to bring “a different dynamic” to protests in this St. Louis suburb, police said as fewer arrests took place.
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani told the visiting head of the UN nuclear watchdog said Tehran’s long-range missile program will not be discussed as part of talks aimed at resolving a decade-long nuclear dispute. Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister did not believe a final-status agreement would be made with the West by the time the next deadline comes in four months.
Pastor Saeed Abedini is facing death threats from members of the Islamic State who are incarcerated in the same Iranian prison where Abedini is being held, according to CBN.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) blasted U.S. nuclear negotiations with Iran Tuesday, saying the rolling back of sanctions and allowance of the world’s largest sponsor of terrorism to enrich uranium constituted a “dangerous national security failure,” the Washington Free Beacon reported.
After U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry failed in bringing a ceasefire to the region, U.S. President Barack Obama called and urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayahu to agree to a ceasefire late Sunday night as Operation Protective Edge enters its 21st day. Since the beginning of the operation, 2,538 rockets have been fired into Israel. The death toll in Gaza move above 1,000, while the Israel Defense Forces have lost 43 soldiers.
Iran could still produce enough nuclear material to fuel a bomb in as little as two months, a time frame that has not been prolonged under the recently struck agreement to extend nuclear talks through November, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
The United States will give Iran access to another $2.8 billion over the next several months and appears to have conceded to Iran’s demand that it be permitted to domestically enrich uranium, the key component in a nuclear weapon, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Diplomats said a deal with Iran concerning its nuclear program will not be completed by the July 20, the six-month interim deadline, and that “significant gaps” remain.
Israel accepted a Egyptian proposed ceasefire that went into effect at 9 AM, while Hamas’ armed wing rejected the offer completely saying it was “surrender.” If the ceasefire does not hold, Israel vowed to respond in force. Over the seven days of Operation Protective Edge, Israel has struck over 1,500 terrorist related targets in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned any nuclear deal leaving Iran the capability to enrich uranium would be “catastrophic,” as significant gaps remain with a six-month interim deal with Iran expires on July 20.
Iranian security forces have arrested three Christians including a pastor, according to Christian Today.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will hold a rare face to face meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif in Vienna to determine Iran’s commitment to reaching a nuclear agreement with the West.
Israel does not expect a nuclear agreement will be reach by the July deadline, according to a high level Israeli government minister.
A July 20 deadline looms for a ‘historic’ nuclear agreement with Iran as the sixth and final round of negotiations with Western powers and Iran begun in Vienna.
As negotiations for a nuclear agreement with Iran enters its final stage with a deadline looming just weeks away, Israel sent an emergency high-level delegation to Washington to express its concerns.
Several U.N. Representatives of Islamic states will be asking the U.N. Security Council to condemn Israel’s “aggression” for the second time in as many weeks.
Pastor Behnam Irani, who was assaulted by his own guards and transferred to a then unknown location on June 7, has been returned to Ghezal Hesar Prison, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide.