Iran Shot Down a Ukrainian Passenger Plane

Iran Shot Down a Ukrainian Passenger Plane

January 8th, 2020, when Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport, Iran after being 'unintentionally' shot down by a missile fired by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Under pressure, Iran admits it shot down jetliner by mistake

By NASSER KARIMI and JOSEPH KRAUSS

January 11, 2020

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — In the face of mounting evidence, Iran on Saturday acknowledged that it shot down the Ukrainian jetliner by accident, killing all 176 people aboard. The admission by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard undermined the credibility of information provided by senior officials, who for three days had adamantly dismissed allegations of a missile strike as Western propaganda.

It also raised a host of new questions, such as why Iran did not shut down its international airport or airspace on Wednesday when it was bracing for the U.S. to retaliate for a ballistic missile attack on two military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq. No one was hurt in that attack, carried out in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in an American airstrike in Baghdad.

Iran’s acknowledgment alters the narrative around its confrontation with the U.S. in a way that could anger the Iranian public. Iran had promised harsh revenge after Soleimani’s death, but instead of killing American soldiers, its forces downed a civilian plane in which most passengers were Iranian.

On Saturday night, hundreds gathered at universities in Tehran to protest the government’s late acknowledgement of the plane being shot down. They demanded officials involved in the missile attack be removed from their positions and tried. Police broke up the demonstrations.

President Donald Trump tweeted messages of support to Iranians who back protests of the government, saying he and his administration are behind them. In the tweets, Trump called on the Iranian government to allow human rights groups to monitor the protests and expressed support for the “brave, long-suffering people” of Iran.

Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Guard’s aerospace division, said his unit accepts full responsibility for the shootdown. In an address broadcast by state TV, he said when he learned about the downing of the plane, “I wished I was dead.”

He said he raised the possibility to his superiors that his forces shot down the plane as early as Wednesday morning because “the simultaneous occurrence of the launch and crash was suspicious.”

Hajizadeh said Guard forces ringing the capital had beefed up their air defenses and were at the “highest level of readiness,” fearing that the U.S. would retaliate. He said he suggested Tehran should close its airspace but no action was taken.

He said the airline’s pilot and crew had done nothing wrong, but an officer made the “bad decision” to open fire on the plane after mistaking it for a cruise missile.

“We were prepared for an all-out conflict,” he said.

Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, expressed his “deep sympathy” to the families of the victims and called on the armed forces to “pursue probable shortcomings and guilt in the painful incident.”

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked the U.S, Britain, Canada and others for information about the crash and their support. He said that “undoubtedly helped” push Iran to acknowledge its responsibility for the crash. Zelenskiy said the crash investigation should continue and the “perpetrators” should be brought to justice.

The Ukrainian airline criticized Iran’s decision to leave its airspace open despite the hostilities.

“It’s absolutely irresponsible,” Ukraine International Airlines vice president Ihor Sosnovskiy told reporters. “There must be protection around ordinary people. If they are shooting somewhere from somewhere, they are obliged to close the airport.”

The plane, en route to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, was carrying 167 passengers and nine crew members from several countries, including 82 Iranians, 57 Canadians — including many Iranians with dual citizenship — and 11 Ukrainians, according to officials.

Iranians had rallied around their leaders after the killing of Soleimani, who was seen as a national icon for building up armed groups across the region that project Iranian influence and battle the Islamic State group and other perceived enemies.

Hundreds of thousands had attended funeral processions across the country in a show of support for the Islamic Republic just weeks after authorities had quashed protests ignited by a hike in gasoline prices. Iran has been in the grip of a severe economic crisis since Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 nuclear deal and imposed crippling sanctions.

The shootdown of the plane and the lack of transparency around it, along with the restrained response to the killing of Soleimani, could reignite anger at the country’s leadership.

President Hassan Rouhani acknowledged Iran’s responsibility but blamed the downing of the plane in part on “threats and bullying” by the United States after the killing of Soleimani. He expressed condolences, calling for a full investigation and the prosecution of those responsible.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also deflected some of the blame, tweeting that “human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster.”

The jetliner, a Boeing 737, went down on the outskirts of Tehran early Wednesday shortly after taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport.

The U.S. and Canada, citing intelligence, said they believed Iran shot down the aircraft with a surface-to-air missile, a conclusion supported by videos verified by The Associated Press.

“This is the right step for the Iranian government to admit responsibility, and it gives people a step toward closure with this admission,” said Payman Parseyan, a prominent Iranian-Canadian in western Canada who lost a number of friends in the crash.

“I think the investigation would have disclosed it whether they admitted it or not. This will give them an opportunity to save face.”

As recently as Friday, Ali Abedzadeh, the head of the national aviation department, had told reporters “with certainty” that a missile had not caused the crash.

On Thursday, Cabinet spokesman Ali Rabiei dismissed reports of a missile, saying they “rub salt on a painful wound” for families of the victims.

Iran has invited Ukraine, Canada, the United States and France to take part in the investigation of the crash, in keeping with international norms. The Boeing 737 was built in the United States and the engine was built by a U.S.-French consortium.

Ukraine’s president said its team of investigators, who are already on the ground in Iran, should continue their work with “full access and cooperation.”

Rouhani spoke Saturday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and said the investigation was progressing rapidly. His website quoted him accusing the United States of driving the situation in the Middle East to a “dangerous level” and said all should try to return “full stability and security” to the region.

After the call, which was unusual because Canada severed diplomatic relations with Iran in 2012, Trudeau said Iran’s acknowledgment was a first step but “many more steps must be taken.” He demanded a complete investigation and for Iran to take full responsibility for shooting down the plane, including the payment of compensation to the families of the dead.

While the dead included 57 Canadians, a total of 138 of the passengers were headed to Canada, many of them international students.

The Ukrainian president, who also spoke with Rouhani on Saturday, said his government will also push Iran to compensate victims’ families.

Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported that the supreme leader on Friday morning had ordered top security officials to review the crash and announce the results.

“If some individuals, in any position, were aware of the issue but made statements contradicting the reality or hid the truth for any reason, they should be named and tried,” said Fars, which is close to the Guard.

Others speculated that the security forces may have concealed information from civilian authorities.

“Concealing the truth from the administration is dreadful,” Mohammad Fazeli, a sociology professor in Tehran, wrote on social media. “If it had not been concealed, the head of civil aviation and the government spokesmen would not have persistently denied it.”

Late Saturday, Britain accused Iran of violating international law after its ambassador was arrested and briefly detained during protests in Tehran. Iranian media said ambassador Rob Macaire was arrested outside a university and detained for more than an hour before being released.

U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said “the arrest of our ambassador in Tehran without grounds or explanation is a flagrant violation of international law.”

___

Krauss reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, Rob Gillies in Toronto, Jim Heintz and Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and Yuras Karmanau in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.

Published on Jan 13, 2020

Anti-Government Protests Erupt After Iran's Admission It Shot Down Plane

Iranians joined protests in Tehran and other cities for the second day in a row Sunday, following the Iranian government’s admission that it shot down a Ukrainian Airlines passenger jet Wednesday, killing all 176 people on board. The government had previously insisted that allegations of a missile strike were Western propaganda. As Henry Ridgwell reports, Iran’s government is facing growing pressure but it’s not clear if the protests will develop into bigger anti-government demonstrations.

Iran protests erupt for a second day

CBC News: The National

January 10th, 2020

PRESS BRIEFINGS

Press Briefing by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and
Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin on Iran Sanctions

FOREIGN POLICY

Issued on: January 10, 2020

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

10:27 A.M. EST

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Good morning, everybody. Thank you for being here today. I’d just like to make a brief comment before we talk about Iran sanctions. I’m sure everybody saw that the DOW hit 29,000. The President’s economic plans are clearly working. We’re looking forward to the China signing, USMCA, and a very strong economy this year.

As previously announced by the President, we are announcing additional sanctions against the Iranian regime as a result of the attack on U.S. and allied troops.

First, the President is issuing an executive order authorizing the imposition of additional sanctions against any individual owning, operating, trading with, or assisting sectors of the Iranian economy, including construction, manufacturing, textiles, and mining. And let me be clear: These will be both primary and secondary sanctions. The EO also allows us to designate other sectors in the future as Secretary Pompeo and me think is appropriate.

Second, we are announcing 17 specific sanctions against Iran’s largest steel and iron manufacturers, three Seychelles-based entities, and a vessel involved in the transfer of products. As a result of these actions, we will cut off billions of dollars of support to the Iranian regime, and we will continue our enforcement of other entities.

Third, we are taking action against eight senior Iranian officials who advanced the regime’s destabilizing activity and were involved in Tuesday’s ballistic missile strike. Secretary Pompeo will comment more on this.

Today’s sanctions are part of our commitment to stop the Iranian regime’s global terrorist activities. The President has been very clear: We will continue to apply economic sanctions until Iran stops its terrorist activities and commit that it will never have nuclear weapons.

I’ll now turn it over to Secretary Pompeo.

SECRETARY POMPEO: Thank you, Steven. Good morning, everyone.

Today, President Trump is delivering on the pledge that he made the day after Iran attacked American forces in Iraq: There will be a series of new sanctions.

Secretary Mnuchin just mentioned eight senior Iranian officials that are responsible for the regime’s violence, both at home and abroad. We’re striking at the heart of the Islamic Republic’s inner security apparatus. These sanctions targets include the Secretary of the Supreme National Council and the Commander of the Basij Forces; that’s the regime’s brute squad, which has, in the last few months, killed approximately 1,500 Iranians who were simply demanding freedom.

Our action targets other senior leaders close to the Ayatollah. They’ve carried out his terrorist plots in destabilizing campaigns across the Middle East and around the world. They’ve employed soldiers across the region’s battlefields. They’ve trained militias in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere in the arts of domestic repression.

Today, they’re accountable for murder and mayhem. The goal of our campaign is to deny the regime the resources to conduct its destructive foreign policy. We want Iran to simply behave like a normal nation. We believe the sanctions that we impose today further that strategic objective.

Our campaign is composed of diplomatic, economic components that have deprived the regime of billions in revenue the regime has used to fuel death and destruction across the Middle East and all across the world.

Sadly, the previous administration had opened up revenue streams for Iran. But under our administration, oil revenues are down by 80 percent and Iran cannot access roughly 90 percent of its foreign currency reserves. And not even two weeks ago, President Rouhani of Iran admitted that our sanctions have cost Iran over $200 billion in lost foreign income and investment. As long as Iran’s outlaw ways continue, we will continue to impose sanctions.

Finally, I want to reiterate President Trump’s concern for Americans and dual national citizens detained inside of Iran. Iran knows these individuals have committed no crime. They know the charges against them are fake. And we will do all that we can to get each of them returned home safely to their families.

With that, we’ll take just a few questions.

Yes, ma’am.

Q Mr. Secretary, the administration said this strike was based on an imminent threat, but this morning you said we didn’t know precisely when and we didn’t know precisely where. That’s not the definition of “imminent.” The President has also suggested that there was some sort of attack being planned against an embassy, perhaps several embassies.

Can you clarify? Did you have specific information about an imminent threat, and did it have anything to do with our embassies?

SECRETARY POMPEO: We had specific information on an imminent threat, and those threats included attacks on U.S. embassies. Period. Full stop.

Q So you were mistaken when you said you didn’t know precisely when and you didn’t know precisely where?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Nope. Completely true. Those are completely consistent thoughts. I don’t know exactly which minute. We don’t know exactly which day it would’ve been executed. But it was very clear: Qasem Soleimani himself was plotting a broad, large-scale attack against American interests. And those attacks were imminent.

Q Against an embassy?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Against American facilities, including American embassies, military bases. American facilities throughout the region.

Q Mr. Secretary —

SECRETARY POMPEO: Yes, sir. John?

Q Mr. Secretary, in the initial hours after the missile attacks on Al-Asad, in Erbil, it was believed that Iran may have taken steps to avoid U.S. casualties. But then, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Mark Milley, came out, the Secretary of Defense came out, other officials came out to say, “No, these missiles were intended to kill Americans.”

If it was Iran’s intent to kill Americans, does that not deserve some sort of response? I mean, if somebody takes a shot at you and they don’t hit you simply because you duck, does that mean that they weren’t trying to kill you?

SECRETARY POMPEO: So, look, I’ll defer to the Department of Defense on the details, but there’s no doubt in my judgment, as I observed the Iranian activity in the region that night, they had the full intention of carrying — killing U.S. forces, whether that was our military folks or diplomatic folks who were in the region. And I am confident that the response the President has taken is appropriate.

The President said we don’t want war; we want Iran to behave like a normal nation. The reason that the Secretary of Treasury and I are here this morning is to continue this campaign — our strategic effort to get Iran to behave in a way that doesn’t continue their 40-year-long effort to terrorize the world.

Q Mr. Secretary and Secretary Pompeo, do you believe that the Iranians shot down the Ukrainian International Airways [sic] plane? And if the Iranians shot that plane down, will there be consequences?

SECRETARY POMPEO: We do believe that it’s likely that that plane was shot down by an Iranian missile. We’re going to let the investigation play out before we make a final determination. It’s important that we get to the bottom of it.

I’ve been on the phone — I was on the phone with President Zelensky. Just before I came here, I was on the phone with my Canadian counterpart. They’re working to get their resources on the ground to conduct that thorough investigation. We’ll learn more about what happened to that aircraft. And when we get the results of that investigation, I am confident we and the world will take appropriate actions in response.

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: And let me just —

Q Will you allow the NTSB to work with the Iranians?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Yeah, I was just going to comment on that. The Treasury will issue waivers for anybody, whether it’s Americans or others, that can help facilitate the investigation.

Q The last time that you both joined us in this room, it was back in September and you were announcing additional sanctions, including on the Quds Force. And, Secretary Mnuchin, at that point you said, “I think we’ve done more sanctions on Iran than anybody, and it’s absolutely working.”

Since then, we’ve seen an escalation in violence from Iran: shooting down the drone, attacking the embassy, a contractor who was killed, U.S. troops that were wounded. How are sanctions keeping the United States — economic sanctions keeping the United States and United States’ interests more secure?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: I think we have 100 percent confidence, and we are consistent in our view that the economic sanctions are working; that if we didn’t have these sanctions in place, literally Iran would have tens of billions of dollars. They would be using that for terrorist activities throughout the region and to enable them to do more bad things. And there’s no question, by cutting off the economics to the region, we are having an impact.

And as the President has said, the fact that the Obama administration turned over $150 billion to the regime, we think we wouldn’t be in this situation had that not been the case.

SECRETARY POMPEO: May I just add, it’s important to keep in mind what’s taking place in Iran today. This country has never been in the place that it is today. Big, challenging problems. Their budget — they’re going to fail by tens of billions of dollars of achieving their revenue for this year. They’ve got real challenges, and figuring out how to make difficult decisions: Do you underwrite Hezbollah? Do you pick Hamas? Do you underwrite the Shia militias in Iraq? Or do you allow your people to have the opportunity to live the life they want and grow your economy? Those are the difficult choices that the regime is facing.

And you can see the protests — protests that we expect will continue — that we’ll demand from the Iranian regime that they begin to treat the Iranian people in the way that they so richly deserve. And this administration will continue to support those efforts as well.

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: In the back.

Q Thank you, Mr. Secretary. You mentioned secondary sanctions here. What is your message to our European allies who continue to do business with the Iranians? And then, specifically, if you can, will this impact the INSTEX barter mechanism, which was set up by a number of European countries to avoid U.S. sanctions and continue to do business without using the U.S. dollar?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Sure. Thank you. I think those are both very important questions.

So let me first comment on INSTEX. I don’t believe there’s been any INSTEX transactions. As we’ve made clear, we are working on a Swiss channel that we have approved for humanitarian transactions. We’ll continue to allow humanitarian transactions. We’ve warned INSTEX and others that they will most likely be subject to secondary sanctions, depending on how they use that. So that’s absolutely the case.

As it relates to the Europeans, both the Secretary and I have spoken to our counterparts in Europe several times over the last few days. We’ve emphasized the impact and the issue of — Iran has announced that they are no longer part of the JCPOA. And we’ve had very direct conversations with our counterparts about that.

Q Secretary Pompeo, what is your definition of “imminent”?

SECRETARY POMPEO: This was going to happen, and American lives were at risk. And we would have been culpably negligent. As the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, we would have been culpably negligent had we not recommended to the President that he take this action at Qasem Soleimani. He made the right call, and America is safer as a result of that.

Q But then why has there been these — Secretary Pompeo, why have there been these shifting definitions —

(Cross-talk.)

Q Thank you. Thank you, sir.

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Go — go ahead. We’re going to —

Q — shifting explanations of the intelligence?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: We’re going to try to do one question for everybody, just —

Q Were they trying to hit Iranian troops — was Iran trying to hit our troops or not?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: — so that as many people can get questions. So I don’t mean to cut you off, but we’re trying to — go ahead.

Q I mean, let me defer to my colleague — but, sir, six months ago, Secretary Pompeo, the President said that U.S. intelligence agencies had been running amok. He spent most of the past three years he’s been in office denigrating and attacking the intelligence community and disputing findings, whether it’s on Russia or North Korea, or really any area that contradicts things that he has said publicly.

Why then should Americans suddenly believe your assertions that you had good intelligence on this when the head of the Executive Branch has been casting aspersions on the intelligence community for most of his time in office?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Look, I served as the CIA Director for the first year and a half of this administration. I watched the President rely on the work that the intelligence community did for the entire time I served as the head of the Central Intelligence Agency. I watched him rely on the capable men and women who are delivering exquisite information to the Executive Branch. I watched the President have confidence in that information.

We all challenge their work. We have to make sure we get it right. The intelligence community is not flawless. We — we get it wrong. In this case, the intelligence community got it fundamentally right. Even the reflections we’ve seen after the after-effect, after the strike that Qasem Soleimani took, has demonstrated that we were quite right. There was an imminent attack. There was active plotting. And we took an action that we thought was likely to create less risk for the American people, and I’m confident that we did that.

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Go ahead, in the back. In the back.

Q Thank you. This question is for Secretary Pompeo. There are reports that the Iraqi Prime Minister has asked you to start negotiating some withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq immediately. Is that the case? Can you comment on that?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Yeah, he didn’t quite characterize the conversation correctly. But to the larger, more important point, we are happy to continue the conversation with the Iraqis about what the right structure is. Our mission set there is very clear: We’ve been there to perform a training mission to help the Iraqi security forces be successful and to continue the campaign against ISIS, the counter-Daesh campaign.

We’re going to continue that mission. But as the — as times change and we get to a place where we can deliver upon what I believe and the President believes is our right structure, with fewer resources dedicated to that mission, we will do so.

We also have today a NATO team that’s here at the State Department working to develop a plan, which will get burden-sharing right in the region, as well, so that we can continue the important missions to protect and defend and keep the American people safe while reducing our cost, our resources, and our burden, and the risk to our soldiers and sailors who are in the region.

Q Secretary Pompeo, if I can — here, today, at the podium, you said that the imminent threat was a threat to U.S. embassies. You didn’t know precisely when or where. Last night, the President said it was a threat to embassies, including to our Baghdad embassy.

Why can you say that here, and the President could say it at a rally in Toledo, but no one said it to lawmakers behind closed doors in a classified setting, as multiple senators have since said?

SECRETARY POMPEO: We did.

Q You said —

SECRETARY POMPEO: Yes.

Q So the senators are lying when they say that (inaudible) imminent threat was a threat?

SECRETARY POMPEO: We told them about the imminent threat. All of the intelligence that we’ve briefed, that you’ve heard today, I assure you, in an unclassified setting, we provide in the classified setting as well.

Q To be clear, you told them that embassies were the — were to be targeted? That was the imminent threat?

SECRETARY POMPEO: I’m not going to talk about the details of what we shared in a classified setting. But make no mistake about it: Those leaders, those members of Congress who want to go access this same intelligence, can see that very same intelligence that will reflect what I described to you and what the President said last night, as well.

Q Is that threat now gone with Soleimani gone?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Threats are never gone. Uh, right? It’s always — a lot of danger in the world.

Q The next general will pick it up?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Always — always a lot of danger in the world, throughout the region. Nobody believed that a single mission, in any respect, took down the risk of terror — terror from al Qaeda, terror from ISIS, terror from al-Shabaab. No — no one believes that. The President doesn’t.

Look at the list though; look at the achievements in the administration. We took away the caliphate in its entirety. We took down Hamza bin Laden. We took down al-Baghdadi. We took down Qasem Soleimani. This is a list that has reduced the capacity for terrorists around the world to perform the functions that put American men and women and the homeland at risk. We’re very proud of what we accomplished. We’re going to stay the course.

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Why don’t we take one more over there? Yes. Thank you.

Q I’m curious —

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: No, no. Next to you. Right there. Yes.

Q Me?

SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Yes.

Q Thank you. Secretary Mnuchin, this is a question for you too about the China trade deal. So the Chinese side is going to be here next Wednesday to sign the phase one part of that deal. But China is also a big importer of Iranian oil and Iranian minerals, and that’s a big part of their economy as well. So how do you balance the two? And are you concerned about the Iran issue coming up in either the signing of the phase one deal or the negotiation for the phase two deal?

SECRTEARY MNUCHIN: Well, let me just comment: I had no idea you’d ask that question, but that’s a good last question to end on.

So let me first say that we are looking forward to the Chinese delegation coming next week. Phase one is very significant. It includes very significant components of changes to technology issues, intellectual property issues, and $50 billion of purchases for our farmers.

I would comment: I don’t agree with your comment that China is a big buyer of oil. The China state companies are not buying oil from Iran. And I would just say we are having conversations with China, as well with any other counterparty on sanctions evasion.

So thank you very much. Thank you, everybody.

END

11:04 A.M. EST

STATEMENTS & RELEASES

Statement from President Donald J. Trump Regarding
Executive Order to Impose Sanctions with Respect to
Additional Sectors of Iran

FOREIGN POLICY

Issued on: January 10, 2020

Today, I am holding the Iranian regime responsible for attacks against United States personnel and interests by denying it substantial revenue that may be used to fund and support its nuclear program, missile development, terrorism and terrorist proxy networks, and malign regional influence. I have issued an Executive Order authorizing the imposition of sanctions against any individual or entity operating in the construction, manufacturing, textiles, or mining sectors of the Iranian economy or anyone assisting those who engage in this sanctioned conduct. This order will have a major impact on the Iranian economy, authorizing powerful secondary sanctions on foreign financial institutions. Iran continues to be the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism. The Iranian regime has threatened United States military service members, diplomats, and civilians, as well as the citizens and interests of our allies and partners, through military force and proxy groups. The United States will continue to counter the Iranian regime’s destructive and destabilizing behavior. Iran will never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. These punishing economic sanctions will remain until the Iranian regime changes its behavior. The United States is ready to embrace peace with all who seek it.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS

Executive Order on Imposing Sanctions with Respect to
Additional Sectors of Iran

FOREIGN POLICY

Issued on: January 10, 2020

IMPOSING SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO ADDITIONAL SECTORS OF IRAN

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,

I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, find that Iran continues to be the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism and that Iran has threatened United States military assets and civilians through the use of military force and support to Iranian-backed militia groups. It remains the policy of the United States to deny Iran all paths to a nuclear weapon and intercontinental ballistic missiles, and to counter the totality of Iran’s malign influence in the region. In furtherance of these objectives, it is the policy of the United States to deny the Iranian government revenues, including revenues derived from the export of products from key sectors of Iran’s economy, that may be used to fund and support its nuclear program, missile development, terrorism and terrorist proxy networks, and malign regional influence.

In light of these findings and in order to take further steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12957 of March 15, 1995, I hereby order:

Section 1. (a) All property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of the following persons are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:

(i) to operate in the construction, mining, manufacturing, or textiles sectors of the Iranian economy, or any other sector of the Iranian economy as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State;

(ii) to have knowingly engaged, on or after the date of this order, in a significant transaction for the sale, supply, or transfer to or from Iran of significant goods or services used in connection with a sector of the Iranian economy specified in, or determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, pursuant to, subsection (a)(i) of this section;

(iii) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; or

(iv) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order.

(b) The prohibitions in this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted before the date of this order.

Sec. 2. (a) The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to impose on a foreign financial institution the sanctions described in subsection (b) of this section upon determining that the foreign financial institution has, on or after the date of this order, knowingly conducted or facilitated any significant financial transaction:

(i) for the sale, supply, or transfer to or from Iran of significant goods or services used in connection with a sector of the Iranian economy specified in, or determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, pursuant to, section 1(a)(i) of this order; or

(ii) for or on behalf of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to section 1 of this order.

(b) With respect to any foreign financial institution determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, in accordance with this section to meet the criteria set forth in subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary of the Treasury may prohibit the opening, and prohibit or impose strict conditions on the maintaining, in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through account by such foreign financial institution.

(c) The prohibitions in subsection (b) of this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted before the date of this order.

Sec. 3. The unrestricted immigrant and nonimmigrant entry into the United States of aliens determined to meet one or more of the criteria in section l(a) of this order would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, and the entry of such persons into the United States, as immigrants or nonimmigrants, is hereby suspended, except where the Secretary of State determines that the person’s entry would not be contrary to the interests of the United States, including when the Secretary so determines, based on a recommendation of the Attorney General, that the person’s entry would further important United States law enforcement objectives. In exercising this responsibility, the Secretary of State shall consult the Secretary of Homeland Security on matters related to admissibility or inadmissibility within the authority of the Secretary of Homeland Security. Such persons shall be treated in the same manner as persons covered by section 1 of Proclamation 8693 of July 24, 2011 (Suspension of Entry of Aliens Subject to United Nations Security Council Travel Bans and International Emergency Economic Powers Act Sanctions). The Secretary of State shall have the responsibility for implementing this section pursuant to such conditions and procedures as the Secretary has established or may establish pursuant to Proclamation 8693.

Sec. 4. I hereby determine that the making of donations of the types of articles specified in section 203(b)(2) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)(2)) by, to, or for the benefit of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to section 1 of this order would seriously impair the President’s ability to deal with the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12957, and I hereby prohibit such donations as provided by section 1 of this order.

Sec. 5. The prohibitions in section 1 of this order include:

(a) the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; and

(b) the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.

Sec. 6. (a) Any transaction that evades or avoids, has the purpose of evading or avoiding, causes a violation of, or attempts to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

Sec. 7. For the purposes of this order:

(a) The term “entity” means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization;

(b) the term “foreign financial institution” means any foreign entity that is engaged in the business of accepting deposits, making, granting, transferring, holding, or brokering loans or credits, or purchasing or selling foreign exchange, securities, commodity futures or options, or procuring purchasers and sellers thereof, as principal or agent. The term includes, but is not limited to, depository institutions, banks, savings banks, money service businesses, trust companies, securities brokers and dealers, commodity futures and options brokers and dealers, forward contract and foreign exchange merchants, securities and commodities exchanges, clearing corporations, investment companies, employee benefit plans, dealers in precious metals, stones, or jewels, and holding companies, affiliates, or subsidiaries of any of the foregoing. The term does not include the international financial institutions identified in 22 U.S.C. 262r(c)(2), the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the North American Development Bank, or any other international financial institution so notified by the Secretary of the Treasury;

(c) the term “Government of Iran” includes the Government of Iran, any political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including the Central Bank of Iran, and any person owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, the Government of Iran;

(d) the term “Iran” means the Government of Iran and the territory of Iran and any other territory or marine area, including the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, over which the Government of Iran claims sovereignty, sovereign rights, or jurisdiction, provided that the Government of Iran exercises partial or total de facto control over the area or derives a benefit from economic activity in the area pursuant to international arrangements;

(e) the term “knowingly,” with respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result, means that a person has actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, the circumstance, or the result;

(f) the term “person” means an individual or entity; and

(g) the term “United States person” means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States.

Sec. 8. For those persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order who might have a constitutional presence in the United States, I find that because of the ability to transfer funds or other assets instantaneously, prior notice to such persons of measures to be taken pursuant to this order would render those measures ineffectual. I therefore determine that for these measures to be effective in addressing the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12957, there need be no prior notice of a listing or determination made pursuant to this order.

Sec. 9. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary of the Treasury may, consistent with applicable law, redelegate any of these functions within the Department of the Treasury. All departments and agencies of the United States shall take all appropriate measures within their authority to implement this order.

Sec. 10. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

Sec. 11. This order shall not apply with respect to any person for conducting or facilitating a transaction for the provision (including any sale) of agricultural commodities, food, medicine, or medical devices to Iran.

Sec. 12. Nothing in this order shall prohibit transactions for the conduct of the official business of the United Nations (including its specialized agencies, programmes, funds, and related organizations) by employees, grantees, or contractors thereof.

Sec. 13. The measures taken pursuant to this order are in response to actions of the Government of Iran occurring after the conclusion of the 1981 Algiers Accords, and are intended solely as a response to those later actions.

DONALD J. TRUMP

THE WHITE HOUSE,

January 10, 2020.

STATEMENTS & RELEASES

Message to the Congress on Imposing Sanctions with Respect to Additional Sectors of Iran

FOREIGN POLICY

Issued on: January 10, 2020

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:

Pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), I hereby report that I have issued an Executive Order (the “order”) with respect to Iran that takes additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12957 of March 15, 1995.

The order takes steps to deny Iran revenue, including revenue derived from the export of products from key sectors of Iran’s economy, that may be used to fund and support its nuclear program, missile development, terrorism and terrorist proxy networks, and malign regional influence.

The order blocks the property and interests in property of persons determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:

to operate in the construction, mining, manufacturing, or textiles sectors of the Iranian economy, or any other sector of the Iranian economy as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State;

to have knowingly engaged, on or after the date of the order, in a significant transaction for the sale, supply, or transfer to or from Iran of significant goods or services used in connection with a sector of the Iranian economy specified in, or determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, pursuant to, section 1(a)(i) of the order;

to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to the order; or

to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to the order.

The order also authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to impose correspondent account and payable-through account-related sanctions on a foreign financial institution upon determining the foreign financial institution has, on or after the date of the order, knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant financial transaction:

for the sale, supply, or transfer to or from Iran of significant goods or services used in connection with a sector of the Iranian economy specified in, or determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, pursuant to, section 1(a)(i) of the order; or

for or on behalf of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to section 1 of the order.

I have delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, the authority to take such actions, including adopting rules and regulations, to employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA as may be necessary to implement the order.

I am enclosing a copy of the order I have issued.

DONALD J. TRUMP

THE WHITE HOUSE,

January 10, 2020.

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:

The order blocks the property and interests in property of persons determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:

to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to the order.

The order also authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to impose correspondent account and payable-through account-related sanctions on a foreign financial institution upon determining the foreign financial institution has, on or after the date of the order, knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant financial transaction:

for or on behalf of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to section 1 of the order.

I am enclosing a copy of the order I have issued.

DONALD J. TRUMP

THE WHITE HOUSE,

January 10, 2020.

-------------

Attack on US Embassy

US Embassy in Baghdad was attacked on the last day of 2019. The attack was organized and directed by Iran's proxy leaders Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, Qays al-Khazali, Hadi al Amari and Faleh al-Fayyad. They are seen in the pictures taken on the scene.

Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, one of the leaders of attack on US Embassy in Baghdad, was condemned and spent years in jail in Kuwait for directing the December 1983 attacks on US and French embassies there.

For a long time, Iraqi anti-government protestors tried to enter Green Zone and were brutally suppressed and held back. On 31 December, groups of Popular Mobilization Forces (al-Hashd al-Sha'abi) entered the Green Zone and went directly toward the American Embassy without being blocked by security forces.

Timeline 2019

October

Protesters in Baghdad on 1 October

1 October: Protests erupted in Baghdad in Liberation Square over high unemployment, poor basic services, and state corruption. These protests spread to the southern provinces. The authorities imposed an internet blackout and shut down 75% of the country's internet access. Protesters demanded the resignation of Adil Abdul-Mahdi and prepare for early elections. The protesters also began demonstrating against Iranian influence, and against the leader of Quds Force, Qasem Soleimani. The Iraqi prime minister declared a curfew until further notice.

2 October: Two activists, Hussain Almadani and his wife, Sarah, were killed by unknown forces in their house in Basra.

3 October: According to Amnesty International, 18 civilians and one police officer were killed and hundreds were injured after three days of protesting.

4 October: In Nasiriyah, many headquarters of political parties were burned down.

5 October: Unknown forces raided many TV channels such as Al Arabiya, Dijlah TV, NRT and Al Rasheed TV for airing the protests. The forces destroyed these channels' properties.

7 October: Dozens of protesters were killed and hundreds were injured in Sadr City.

8 October: Protests largely ceased due to Arba'een, a Shia religious holiday which occurred on October 19.

24 October: Thousands of protesters began to congregate at Liberation Square in Baghdad, protesting against the government and against the Iranian influence. Nearly 50 protesters were killed and injured after attempting to enter the Green Zone.

25 October: Protesting in Maysan Governorate began to turn into riots between Peace Companies led by Muqtada al-Sadr on one side and Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq and Badr Organization on another. Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq member Wisam Alyawi and his brother, both PMU commanders for the Maysan Governorate, were lynched by angry protesters who dragged them out of an ambulance and beat them to death. Qais Khazali, chief of all Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, announced that nine PMU members had been killed in the recent protests, blamed Israel for their deaths, and stated he would take revenge "four times over." Protesters burned down and destroyed many offices of political parties in the city of Samawah. Protesters in Karbala chanted against Iran, tearing up Ali Khamenei's pictures. They also attacked the Governorate Council building. They also burnt the Iranian consulate. In Al-Qadisiyyah Governorate, protesters burned down the Governorate Council building. Administrative authorities declared a curfew in the province. In the city of Al Kut, protesters attacked many of the political parties' offices and also attacked the house of former Minister of Interior, Qasim al-Araji.

26 October: 7 protesters were killed and 28 wounded after conflicts between Badr Organization and protesters in city of Hillah in Babil Governorate.

28 October: A top security authority for Baghdad declared an open-ended curfew on the capital, four days after the renewed protests against government killed more than 70 protesters. In Karbala, 14-30 people were killed in protests. Government officials denied any deaths occurred.

30 October: Iranian military officer Qasem Soleimani met with Hadi al-Amiri, one of Abdul-Mahdi's political opponents, and asked him to support Abdul-Mahdi.

31 October: President Barham Salih said in a televised address that the Prime Minister had agreed to resign, "on the condition that a successor is agreed to replace him."

November

2 November: Protesters blocked Iraq's main port Umm Qasr. Oil exports from offshore platforms were not affected, but imports of staple food were. Iraq is heavily dependent on food import.

3 November: Protestors stormed the Iranian consulate in Karbala, where they set fires around the building and replaced the Iranian flag with an Iraqi one.

4 November: An internet blockage observatory, NetBlocks highlighted that the internet access in Baghdad and five other regions in Iraq were cut off on 4 November, in wake of the continued rage in the country. Iraqi authorities had taken a similar move in October, where social media and messaging remained highly restricted in several parts of the country.

8 November: Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, called on the government to meet the demands of the protesters, and urged the security forces to avoid the use of violence.

10 November: The Iraqi Parliamentary Human Rights Committee reported that at least 319 people had been killed during the protests. According to the Independent High Commission for Human Rights of Iraq, an additional 15,000 were injured.

13 November: The Iraqi Parliament held a special session to discuss the crisis. Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq addressed the session to present her plan to resolve the crisis, which involves election reform and anti-corruption measures.

14 November: Four people were killed and 62 injured in Baghdad in clashes between security forces and protesters.

16 November: At least four protesters were killed and nearly 20 were injured as a car bomb attack took place at the Tahrir Square in Baghdad. No group claimed responsibility of the first explosion in the ongoing anti-government protests.

17 November: Documents leaked by The Intercept revealed details of Iranian influence inside Iraq.

19 November: Protesters blocked the entrance to the country's second largest commercial port, Khor al-Zubair port, halting the trade activity for oil and other tankers. Prior to that, the access to Umm Qasr Port was also cut off.

21 November: Al-Jazeera reported that at least seven protesters were killed and 78 wounded by security forces in Baghdad.

24 November: At least two protesters were shot dead in the southern city of Nasiriyah, as they shut down schools and blocked the Zaitoun and the Nasr bridges into the city centre. Nearly 47 people were also wounded during the clashes with security forces.

27 November: Protestors attacked the Iranian consulate in Najaf for the second time, this time burning it down. Security forces fired tear gas into the crowd and injured some of them but had to escape when hundreds protesters poured into the consulate and set it on fire.

29 November: 44 protestors were killed in southern Iraq. The prime minister announced his pending resignation on the same day.

December

1 December: Despite the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi, demonstrators in the Shi'ite populated city of Najaf set fire to the Iranian consulate, for the second time in a week.

6 December: Unidentified gunmen in vehicles opened fire on protesters in Baghdad's Khilani Square, killing 25 (including three police officers) and injuring around 130 others.

8 December: An Iraqi civil activist, Fahim al-Ta’i was assassinated by unknown gunmen on motorcycle outside al-Ansar Hotel in the Baroudi area of Karbala.

12 December: A 16-year old boy was falsely accused of shooting protestors; was dragged along the ground and lynched by protestors after security forces withdrew. The boy’s body was stripped of clothes apart from underpants and was hung from a traffic light. It was later removed by his family and taken to a forensic morgue.

Muqtada al-Sadr's group stated that it would withdraw its "blue helmets" support for the protests unless the "terrorists responsible" for the lynching were identified. A protestors' group described the lynching as "a Machiavellian plan aimed at tarnishing the reputation of the peaceful protesters" and that the protestors "had nothing to do with" the lynching event.

24 December: The Council of Representatives passed a series of electoral laws to placate protestors. The laws allowed voters to select individuals rather than use party lists, while the candidates would represent electoral districts rather than provinces.

26 December: President Barham Salih submits a letter of resignation after refusing to appoint Asaad Al Eidani as Prime Minister following the resignation of Adil Abdul-Mahdi. Salih stated that Al Eidani would not be approved by the demonstrators.

29 December: The US bombarded Kata'ib Hezbollah positions in Iraq, killing 25 members of those Kataib forces and injuring 51 others.

31 December: Hundreds of pro-Iran protesters surrounded the US embassy in Baghdad in the Green Zone of the city where embassies and government buildings are concentrated, in protest over the US air strikes in Iraq, two days earlier. Protesters elsewhere in Baghdad stated: "demonstrations at the US embassy are a natural response to the US strikes over Hashd positions in Iraq". However, they condemned the attack on the U.S. embassy by Iraqi supporters of the Hashd group saying, "we are staying here in the hub of the peaceful protest movement " and added that the "crowds in the Green Zone do not represent us. We want peaceful change." Rumours were that day, that some protesters had broken into the US embassy compound. Some time later however, the US ministry of foreign affairs announced that protesters had not entered the actual embassy building in Baghdad, and that the US embassador was still at his post.

Timeline 2020

January

5 January: Following the 3 January assassination by the United States (US) of Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani and of the head of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, protests continued in Nassiriyah, Dewaniya, Kut, Amarah, Karbala and Baghdad with a deliberate shift to protesting against both the Iranian and US roles in Iraq. Earlier protests tended to mostly oppose Iranian influence in Iraq. The earlier slogan "Out, out Iran" was replaced by "No to Iran, no to America". Protestors in Basra and Nassiriyah blocked symbolic funeral processions for Soleimani and al-Muhandis. In Nassiriyah, pro-Iran funeral participants shot and wounded three protestors. In revenge, the local headquarters of the PMF was set alight. Protestors in Najaf burnt tyres and protested against the US and Iran.

7 January: Online and street campaigns to buy local products, titled "Made in Iraq" and "Iraqi National Product", continued after the Soleimani and al-Muhandis assassinations, strengthening in Baghdad.

10 January: Two thousand people protested in Basra and Nassiriyah, with slogans including "Neither America nor Iran, our revolution is a young revolution." Appeals for a "million-man march" spread through online social media.

Ukraine plane 'highly likely' shot down by Iran missile - US officials say

Channel 4 News

Iran plane crash: What are Canada's next steps in the investigation?

Global News

;

Published on Jan 9, 2020

New intelligence from Canada and its allies suggests an Iranian missile caused Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 to crash near Tehran, Iran, killing all 176 people on board.

Redmond Shannon reports on the crash investigation, and on the growing concerns the Iranian government cannot be trusted.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday that the strike may not have been intentional.

David Akin asks Trudeau why he thinks this strike may or may not have been accidental, and how Canada's relationship with Ukraine could help with the crash investigation.

Graham: Soleimani was 'orchestrating chaos,' strike neutralized future attacks.

Violent demonstrations at U.S. Embassy in Iraq

CBC News: The National

Published on Jan 2, 2020

President Donald Trump has ordered about 750 U.S. soldiers deployed to the Middle East with about 3,000 more preparing for possible deployment in the next several days

U.S. Deploying Thousands More Troops to Middle East Amid Growing Threats to Security in Region

U.S. Defense News

Published on Jan 5, 2020

The United States is sending nearly 3,000 additional troops to the Middle East from the 82nd Airborne Division as a precaution amid rising threats to U.S. forces in the region, the Pentagon said on Friday.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said additional U.S. deployments were also being weighed, including sending elements of the Europe-based 173rd Airborne Brigade for tasks like embassy protection in Lebanon.

Sources: White House, wikipedia, Fox News, Global News, CNN, NBC, Channel 4 News, CBS, US Defense News, AP
catch4all.com, Sandra Englund, January 12th, 2020

Rev. January 14th, 2020

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