New Iran-backed militant group emerges in Syria - Newsweek

Iran’s Quds Force is managing the operation through its Unit 190 and Unit 700, according to the unidentified source. Shipments are arriving either directly to Lebanon or through intermediary countries.

Intelli Times also reported the same information about Quds Force involvement, citing the same two units.

“Hezbollah has refocused and reimposed its control over the port of Beirut,” the source said, referring to the facility’s gradual return to normal operations following the August 2020 explosion.

The Iran-backed group turned to sea routes after losing access to overland supply lines through Syria following the fall of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and after Lebanese authorities curtailed its influence at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport following a US-French brokered ceasefire with Israel in November.

The source said Hezbollah operates freely at the port through a network inside customs and port oversight bodies, directed by senior Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa.

“Safa is seeking, through his agents at the port, to facilitate the smuggling of equipment, weapons and money without any inspection or oversight,” the source said.

The source warned that the use of Beirut Port by Hezbollah - designated a terrorist group by countries such as the UK and US - risks Lebanon’s economic interests and may deter foreign investment.

“The Lebanese state must act urgently in light of Hezbollah’s violations and plans, which could repeat the August 2020 catastrophe,” the source said.

Speaking in a separate interview with LBCI aired Sunday, US Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus said Hezbollah and all militias in Lebanon must be disarmed “as soon as possible.”

“We, of course, always bring up disarming Hezbollah, but not just Hezbollah, all militias in this country,” Ortagus said.

“Only by disarming militant groups could the Lebanese people be ‘free from foreign influence, free from terrorism, free from the fears that have been so pervasive in society.’”

Ortagus added that President Joseph Aoun had made it clear in his inaugural speech that “he wanted the state to have the monopoly of force, he wanted the state to be the one with the weapons. That is a position that we support.”

“The AEOI (Atomic Energy Organization of Iran) also indicates that Iran’s uranium reserves are much larger than previously estimated,” said the 2014 biennial Red Book report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Nuclear Energy Agency' published Tuesday.

It added that Iran planned to operate six more uranium mines by the end of the first quarter of 2024.

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Iran could increase its ore production by almost four times, reaching 71 tons this year, according to the report.

In addition to the current Ardakan uranium production facility in Yazd Province, feasibility studies are underway for the development of the Narigan production center, also located in the same province.

Iran has always maintained that its uranium enrichment activities are for peaceful purposes. However, last year, the US-based Institute for Science and International Security said that while Iran's uranium resources could support a nuclear weapons arsenal, they are insufficient to fuel its growing nuclear power reactors.

Last month, the UN nuclear watchdog found that Iran's stock of near-bomb-grade uranium rose to levels which in principle could be refined further into the equivalent of six nuclear bombs.

Iran’s nuclear program remains a focal point of international tensions, particularly following Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and the imposition of economic sanctions.

The United States, meanwhile, has reinstated its "maximum pressure" policy on Iran, with President Donald Trump insisting that Tehran must never acquire nuclear weapons and has threatened military action against the country should it fail to reach a deal on its nuclear program.

Trump on Monday said that Tehran and Washington have begun direct talks over Iran's nuclear program and will hold a "very big meeting" at a senior level on Saturday.

Fars News Agency said the vessel was intercepted by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy and that six individuals were arrested. It did not specify the nationality of the tanker or those detained. Fars added that 100,000 liters of smuggled fuel were discovered during the inspection of the tanker.

The reported seizure follows an operation last month in which the IRGC detained two foreign tankers allegedly carrying over three million liters of smuggled diesel fuel. Those vessels, intercepted by the IRGC’s Second Naval District, were said to be systematically involved in fuel trafficking and were being moved to the port of Bushehr under judicial orders.

The IRGC regularly announces such actions, saying they are part of efforts to combat fuel smuggling in the Persian Gulf, a vital maritime route through which a significant share of global oil shipments passes.

Iran has previously seized tankers over alleged maritime violations or as retaliatory measures.

In April 2023, the Iranian Navy detained the Advantage Sweet, a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker, in the Gulf of Oman, citing a collision with an Iranian vessel.

In January, Iran seized the St. Nikolas, also Marshall Islands-flagged, in response to a US confiscation of Iranian oil the previous year.

Tensions between Iran and the United States have flared in recent years over a series of maritime incidents in the region, often involving oil shipments and sanctions enforcement.

The rial, which hit a record low of 1,050,000 per US dollar last month, bounced back to about 960,000 rials on Tuesday amid growing anticipation of renewed diplomacy between Tehran and Washington.

Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani confirmed on Tuesday that the talks will be held indirectly, mediated by Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi. “In the negotiation, what is important for the people and the national interests will be our focus,” she said.

The Iranian delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, while the US side will be represented by Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, according to Iranian and US media reports.

While US President Donald Trump has said the talks will be direct and at a senior level, Iranian state-affiliated media said otherwise.

Nournews, a site close to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, described Trump’s comments as part of a “psychological operation” meant to shift blame and shape public perception.

The rial’s gains follow a period of sharp decline, triggered by the absence of negotiations, ongoing US sanctions and Trump's 'maximum pressure' policy on Iran, and escalating regional tensions fueled by Iran's allies.

Inflation in food and other essentials has soared, with local producers citing rising packaging and transport costs as major drivers. Over one third of Iranians now live below the poverty line in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979.

Iran’s currency has halved in value since President Masoud Pezeshkian took office in August.

The latest figures show an increase of 119 executions from the previous year, when 853 executions were recorded.

Globally, the total number of recorded executions reached 1,518 in 2024, the highest figure since 2015, according to Amnesty International’s annual report on the global use of the death penalty released on Tuesday.

Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia were responsible for an overwhelming 91% of the known global executions, a sharp rise from the previous year's 89%.

“Those who dare challenge authorities have faced the most cruel of punishments, particularly in Iran and Saudi Arabia, with the death penalty used to silence those brave enough to speak out,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.

Amnesty said that the vast majority of the executions in Iran last year were linked to political repression, including those involved in the Woman Life Freedom protests sparked by the death in custody of 22 year old Mahsa Amini over alleged hijab law violations.

“In 2024, Iran persisted in their use of the death penalty to punish individuals who had challenged the Islamic Republic establishment during the Woman Life Freedom uprising.

"Last year saw two of those people – including a youth with a mental disability – executed in connection with the uprising following unfair trials and torture-tainted ‘confessions’, proving how far the authorities are willing to go to tighten their grip on power,” Callamard added.

According to Amnesty's report, in 2024, Iran executed 30 women, four individuals for crimes committed when they were under 18, and four people in public.

Over 40% of global executions in 2024 were for drug crimes, a practice Amnesty has criticized as unlawful and ineffective, as international human rights law restricts the death penalty to the “most serious crimes.”

“Drug-related executions were prevalent in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and, while no confirmation was possible, likely Viet Nam. In many contexts, sentencing people to death for drug-related offences has been found to disproportionately impact those from disadvantaged backgrounds, while it has no proven effect in reducing drug trafficking,” said Callamard.

Amnesty said that the figures reported in its annual report do not include the thousands of executions believed to have occurred in China, which it named the world’s leading executioner, nor those in North Korea and Vietnam, where the death penalty is also extensively used.