Tehran-Based Lebanese Researcher Hakam Amhaz: If Iran's Nuclear Facilities Are Attacked, It Will Be Forced to Produce Nuclear Weapons or Even More Powerful Ones; Iran Reportedly Already Possesses a 'P
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Shafaq News
4 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Beirut rebukes Iranian FM over Hezbollah remarks
Shafaq News – Beirut Lebanon's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday condemned recent remarks by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi regarding Hezbollah's role in the country, describing them as an unacceptable intrusion into Lebanon's internal affairs. The statement followed Araghchi's public rejection of a Lebanese government plan to bring all weapons under state authority—a proposal that has sparked political tensions and drawn strong opposition from Hezbollah and its allies. While asserting that Iran 'offers support but not direction,' Araghchi praised Hezbollah's military readiness and affirmed Tehran's continued backing for the group's decisions. In its response, the Foreign Ministry labeled the remarks 'rejected and condemned,' stressing that they 'do not concern the Islamic Republic in any way' and constitute 'a breach of Lebanon's unity, sovereignty, and stability.' It underscored that relations between states must be grounded in mutual respect, equality, and non-interference, adding that it is 'completely unacceptable' for foreign powers to back actors operating outside the framework of the Lebanese state. The controversy arose after Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced on Tuesday that the Lebanese Army has been tasked with drafting a phased roadmap to place all arms under state authority by the end of 2025. The plan, discussed during a cabinet session at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, forms part of a broader US-supported initiative aimed at arms control and comprehensive security sector reform. The announcement prompted ministers from Hezbollah and the Amal Movement to walk out of the meeting in protest. Information Minister Paul Morcos later confirmed that the cabinet will reconvene on August 9 to continue deliberations on the draft. Hezbollah called the plan a 'grave mistake' that weakens Lebanon's ability to defend itself against Israeli attacks. The group argued that the proposal contradicts the government's own ministerial declaration and accused it of being shaped by 'dictates from US Envoy Tom Barrack.' In June, Barrack reportedly submitted a roadmap for Hezbollah's full disarmament to Lebanese officials, including a proposed cabinet resolution committing the government to that goal. The US has increased its pressure on Beirut to take formal steps toward disarmament, warning that failure to do so could invite further Israeli military escalation. Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem reiterated on Thursday that the group would not accept any deal aimed at dismantling its arsenal, describing US demands as 'unacceptable.' While expressing readiness for dialogue on a national defense strategy, the group maintained that such discussions must take into account ongoing Israeli violations and the broader question of Lebanese sovereignty.
Rudaw Net
7 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Oil production resumes at two Kurdistan Region fields
Also in ECONOMY Baghdad says ready to receive any amount of oil from KRG KRG registers over 800k employees for digital financial initiative Erbil hands over oil to Baghdad, receives budget share Baghdad to resume payment of KRG salaries Tuesday: Deputy PM A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Oil production in the Kurdistan Region's Sarsang and Atrush oil blocks has resumed, an oil firm said on Wednesday, after damages sustained due to drone strikes last month halted production. ShaMaran Petroleum, a Canadian oil development and exploration company with shares in the two fields, said that production at its facilities has now resumed after it was halted on July 15 when a drone strike targeted the Sarsang block. 'The Atrush Block was not impacted, and production restarted at full capacity. The Sarsang Block restarted production at a reduced rate due to the damage sustained,' ShaMaran said in a statement. The Kurdistan Region has come under dozens of rocket and drone attacks in recent weeks, including strikes on its oil facilities. The Kurdish government has blamed Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi) for the attacks - charges strongly denied as 'unacceptable' by Baghdad. The strikes have badly damaged the Kurdistan Region's oil infrastructure, halting production in some fields entirely and cutting total output by about 70 percent. According to ShaMaran, half of Sarsang's oil production is expected to remain offline 'until late October 2025.' On July 15, HKN Energy, Sarsang's main stakeholder, reported an explosion at the oil field following a drone strike. The facility caught fire and operations were immediately suspended. ShaMaran explained that despite no attacks at the Atrush block, production in the two facilities was suspended 'as a precaution following several similar incidents.' The production drop at the Kurdistan Region's oil facilities has also delayed the transfer of oil to Baghdad, which has in turn stalled salary payments, as the federal government cites insufficient funds. The strikes also came amid suspended oil exports through Turkey. Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline have been suspended since March 2023 after a Paris-based arbitration court ruled in favor of Baghdad against Ankara, saying the latter had violated a 1973 pipeline agreement by allowing Erbil to begin exporting oil independently in 2014. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), federal authorities, and international oil companies continue to negotiate a long-term framework to restore full oil export capacity from the Region. ShaMaran holds a 50 percent working interest in the Atrush block and an 18 percent share in the Sarsang block.
Iraqi News
9 hours ago
- Iraqi News
Lebanon's Hezbollah rejects cabinet decision to disarm it
Beirut – Hezbollah said Wednesday that it would treat a Lebanese government decision to disarm the militant group 'as if it did not exist', accusing the cabinet of committing a 'grave sin'. Amid heavy US pressure and fears Israel could expand its strikes on Lebanon, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Tuesday that the government had tasked the army with developing a plan to restrict weapons to government forces by year end. The plan is to be presented to the government by the end of August for discussion and approval, and another cabinet meeting has been scheduled for Thursday to continue the talks, including on a US-proposed timetable for disarmament. Hezbollah said the government had 'committed a grave sin by taking the decision to disarm Lebanon of its weapons to resist the Israeli enemy'. The decision is unprecedented since Lebanon's civil war factions gave up their weapons three and a half decades ago. 'This decision undermines Lebanon's sovereignty and gives Israel a free hand to tamper with its security, geography, politics and future existence… Therefore, we will treat this decision as if it does not exist,' the Iran-backed group said in a statement. – 'Serves Israel's interests' – The government said its decision came as part of implementing a November ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which culminated in two months of full-blown war. Hezbollah said it viewed the government's move as 'the result of dictates from US envoy' Tom Barrack. It 'fully serves Israel's interests and leaves Lebanon exposed to the Israeli enemy without any deterrence', the group said. Hezbollah was the only faction that kept its weapons after Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war. It emerged weakened politically and militarily from its latest conflict with Israel, its arsenal pummelled and its senior leadership decimated. Israel has kept up its strikes on Hezbollah and other targets despite the November truce, and has threatened to keep doing so until the group has been disarmed. An Israeli strike on the southern town of Tulin on Wednesday killed one person and wounded another, the health ministry said. Israel also launched a series of air strikes on southern Lebanon, wounding several people according to Lebanon's state-run National News Agency. Hezbollah said Israel must halt those attacks before any domestic debate about its weapons and a new defence strategy could begin. – 'Pivotal moment' – 'We are open to dialogue, ending the Israeli aggression against Lebanon, liberating its land, releasing prisoners, working to build the state, and rebuilding what was destroyed by the brutal aggression,' the group said. Hezbollah is 'prepared to discuss a national security strategy', but not under Israeli fire, it added. Two ministers affiliated with Hezbollah and its ally the Amal movement walked out of Tuesday's meeting. Hezbollah described the walkout as 'an expression of rejection' of the government's 'decision to subject Lebanon to American tutelage and Israeli occupation'. The Amal movement, headed by parliament speaker Nabih Berri, accused the government of 'rushing to offer more gratuitous concessions' to Israel when it should have sought to end the ongoing attacks. It called Thursday's cabinet meeting 'an opportunity for correction'. Hezbollah opponent the Lebanese Forces, one of the country's two main Christian parties, said the cabinet's decision to disarm the militant group was 'a pivotal moment in Lebanon's modern history — a long-overdue step toward restoring full state authority and sovereignty'. The Free Patriotic Movement, the other major Christian party and a former ally of Hezbollah, said it was in favour of the army receiving the group's weapons 'to strengthen Lebanon's defensive power'. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a televised interview that any decision on disarmament 'will ultimately rest with Hezbollah itself'. 'We support it from afar, but we do not intervene in its decisions,' he added, noting that the group had 'rebuilt itself' following setbacks during its war with Israel.
