Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the capture of ten American sailors “God’s deed” in a tweet posted Sunday. God’s deed; IRGC’s timely job; Americans with hands on heads pic.twitter.com/b4XkdOdWoF — Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) January 24, 2016 Khamenei’s comment was part of a a series of tweets praising Iran’s Islamic...

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There are growing concerns that the $1.7 billion payment the United States released to Iran last week amounted to a ransom for the freedom of American hostages held by the Islamic Republic, The Wall Street Journal reported (Google link) Thursday. According to the Journal, the money was wired to Tehran...

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The commander of Iran’s Basij militia said that the $1.7 billion the United States agreed to pay Iran to settle outstanding debts was a ransom for the release of five American hostages over the weekend, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported on Wednesday. “This money was returned for the freedom of...

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Robert Gates, the first secretary of defense under President Barack Obama, said that the idea that Iran will moderate its aggressive behavior in the Middle East as a result of the nuclear deal “is mistaken,” Armin Rosen of Business Insider reported on Wednesday. “My view is that the belief that Iran over...

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The United States will not violate its commitments to confidentiality by releasing the framework proposal that had been discussed by Israel and the Palestinian Authority during U.S.-sponsored peace negotiations in 2013 and 2014, David Makovsky, a former member of Secretary of State John Kerry’s team for the talks, said on Tuesday. Makovsky, who...

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The United States military said that the 10 American sailors who were seized along with their two boats by Iran last week were held at gunpoint, Reuters reported on Monday. According to a statement released by the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), which is the fullest account of the incident...

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The wife and mother of Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian were seized by Iranian authorities and held incommunicado for hours before his release, nearly causing U.S. officials to cancel the deal to free Rezaian and four other American hostages held by the Islamic Republic, The New York Times reported Monday. Rezaian...

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The editors of The Washington Post celebrated Iran’s release of their reporter Jason Rezaian along with three other Americans in exchange for Iranian prisoners, but nonetheless warned in an editorial published Sunday that absent stronger action from the administration, “Iran’s attacks on Americans and vital U.S. interests will surely continue.” The editorial noted that the four...

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Four high-profile Americans who were being held in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison have been freed, U.S. officials announced on Saturday, although two other U.S. nationals will remain incarcerated in Iran. The Obama administration, meanwhile, has agreed to release seven Iranians currently in American custody and to drop its pursuit of...

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The seizure of two American naval vessels and their crews earlier this week is the latest “hostile act” carried out by Iran against the United States, Lee Smith, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, wrote in The Weekly Standard on Friday. Since the announcement of the nuclear deal, Iran...

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