Gold crush: U.S. ready to shut down gold sales to Iran

The U.S. is trying to stop the gold rush to Iran in a bid to undermine the Islamic Republic's plummeting currency, but critics say the move is more likely to hurt ordinary citizens than the rogue regime's leadership.

A top Treasury Department official told lawmakers that, starting July 1, the U.S. plans to crack down on all transfers of gold to the Iranian government or its citizens. The move appears aimed largely at banks and gold brokers in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

Companies operating from within those nations have shipped large amounts of gold to Iran as Tehran attempts to stabilize its currency, the rial, amid increasing international economic isolation.

"We have been very clear with the governments of Turkey and the UAE and elsewhere, as well as the private sector that is involved in the gold trade, that as of July 1 all must stop, not just the trade to the government," Treasury Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen told members of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee last week. Read more >>

China, India Major Importers of Iranian Crude

The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Director General for International Affairs says China and India remain the major importers of crude oil from the Islamic Republic.

“China has not reduced its oil imports from Iran, but has increased it compared to last year,” SHANA quoted Mohsen Qamsari as saying on Saturday.

He added that India is the second major importer of Iranian oil, saying, “in addition to long-term contracts, Iran’s costumers buy oil in the form of spot packages. Therefore, we must wait until the end of the year to find out which country purchased the most [oil].”

"Iran has extended contracts with all of its costumers for the year 2012 and before the imposition of sanctions,” Qamsari said. More...

Mossad, CIA, MI6 Set up Spying Centers Near Iranian Borders

Image via WikipediaTEHRAN (FNA)- A senior Iranian legislative official revealed on Wednesday that the US, Israeli and British spy agencies have set up a number of bases in the neighboring states of Iran to conduct espionage and sabotage operations against the Islamic Republic.

"Based on investigations, Mossad, CIA and MI6 spy agencies have set up spy bases on the borderlines of five neighboring countries (with Iran)," member of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Zohreh Elahian told FNA.

"The bases are tasked with directing terrorist groups and even conducting sabotage and espionage operations against the Islamic Republic and its citizens," she added.

Elahian named Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan as the five countries in which the US, Israeli and British spy agencies have established bases.

In December, an independent French weekly, Le Canard enchaine, revealed that the US, Israeli and British spy agencies have been directly involved in the recent terrorist attacks against Iranian scientists.

Mossad conducted the assassinations "with the help of the CIA and MI6," Le Canard enchaine said.

Intelligence sources told the influential French weekly that the assassinations were part of Israeli plots aimed at sabotaging Iran's nuclear program.

Iran announced in December that security forces have arrested a number of perpetrators of the recent terrorist attacks on the country's scientists and university professors.

Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said at the time that the confessions made by the arrested terrorists indicated Israel's direct role in the attacks. More...