Iran in the News
“He shall deliver you in six troubles, yes, in seven no evil shall touch you.”
(Job 5:19)
1. Oil Prices Top $66 as Iran Fears Persist - Fox News
Crude oil prices surged above $66 a barrel Thursday, driven to a new six-month high by concerns that strained relations between Iran and the West could put oil exports in jeopardy as U.S. gasoline supplies wane and demand swells.
2. Iran note ties nuclear stance to fear of attack - CNN; AP
Iran, in a confidential letter posted Friday on an internal Web site of the U.N. nuclear monitor, said its fear of attack from the United States and Israel prompted its decision to withhold information from the agency. In the letter, Iran said the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency had repeatedly allowed confidential information crucial to the country's security to be leaked.
The IAEA, in response, urged Iran to reconsider, saying the decision would be in defiance of the monitor's 35-nation board. Both the Iranian document and the confidential IAEA response were made available to The Associated Press.
3. Iran note shows no effort to end crisis: UK - Reuters
An Iranian diplomatic note gives no sign that Teheran is seeking a resolution to the detention of 15 British navy personnel seized in the Gulf, British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said on Friday. In an interview with Reuters and the BBC, she declined to comment on the note in detail but said: “What I would say is that there’s nothing in the letter which suggests that the Iranians are looking for a way out of this difficult situation. “We have been looking for a way out of it for them, for us and particularly for our service personnel from the very beginning. I wish I saw any sign that this is what Iran is trying to do,” Beckett said on the sidelines of a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in the German city of Bremen.
4. American investors in Bahrain advised to leave - DEBKA
The advice came from officers with US Central Command 5th Fleet HQ at Manama, who spoke of security tension, a hint at an approaching war with Iran. Arab sources report the positioning of a Patriot anti-missile battery in Bahrain this week; they say occupancy at emirate hotels has soared past 90% due mostly to the influx of US military personnel. They also report Western media crews normally employed in military coverage are arriving in packs.
5. UAE Won't Participate In US Moves Against Iran - Worthy News
The president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), forbade the US military from using bases in his country to attack or spy on Iran as mammoth US Navy maneuvers in the Gulf entered their second day. Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who leads this key US ally, said Tuesday that the Emirates had assured Iran that it was not siding with Washington in its dispute over Teheran's nuclear program. Leaders of Arab nations around the Gulf have grown increasingly uneasy with the tough US stance toward Iran, believing any outbreak of war would bring Iranian retaliation on their own soil, which lies in easy reach of Iranian missiles. (Note: There is no defined boundary separating the UAE from Saudi Arabia. After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., the UAE was identified as a major financial center used by al- Qaeda in transferring money to the hijackers, and two of the 9/11 hijackers were UAE citizens.)
• As David prayed for help in his time of chastening before the Lord, so may we remember to plead His mercy when our nation's "friends" desert us! • "Those also who seek my life lay snares for me; those who seek my hurt speak of destruction, and plan deception all the day long. For in You, O Lord, I hope; You will hear, O Lord my God. For I said, 'Hear me, lest they rejoice over me, lest, when my foot slips, they exalt themselves against me.'" (Psalm 38: 12, 15-16 NKJV)
6. Middle East Pondering Possible U.S. Attack on Iran- CNSNews.com
As U.S.-British tensions with Iran escalate, many in the Middle East are discussing the possibility -- some say probability -- of a U.S. attack on the Islamic Republic. The Arab press, particularly, is focused on the possibility of a U.S. strike against Iran. Iran, which has long provoked Israel and the West with its nuclear development program, has now earned itself another slap on the wrist from the international community. On Thursday, the U.N. Security Council issued a statement expressing "grave concern" over Iran's capture of 15 British sailors. The U.K. wanted a stronger statement -- one "deploring" the hostage- taking, but Russia reportedly opposed that suggestion. This is not the first time that Iran has defied the United Nations. It is currently flouting a U.N. demand to halt its uranium enrichment program -- a process that can be used for building an atomic bomb.
• Just as Jonah cried out to You, Lord, for deliverance from his aquatic prison; so we cry out to You, Lord, for help with our nation's deliverance from our enemies in Iran, the Middle East and worldwide! • " I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, and He answered me." (Jonah 2:1 NKJV)
7. Iran 'Doesn't Fool Anyone' - AP
Tony Blair condemns treatment of captives after Iranian TV shows alleged confession by one of 15 detained sailors.
