Oct. 20 – A former reformist Iranian vice-president, Mohammad-Ali Abtahi, said Iran had no intention of entering into a war with Israel following attacks by militant group Hamas inside the country.
Abtahi added that Iran would be unlikely to intervene, even if Israel launched a full-scale ground invasion in Gaza.
Middle East analysts have also said the Islamic Republic would not stand to gain from a regional war and that while it supports Hamas, ideological differences remain between the Sunni militia group and Iran’s Shia regime.
The UK’s new counter-terrorism commissioner, Robin Simcox, will use his first speech as commissioner to tell the UK that it is “time to confront reality” about extremist threats posed by Hamas and the Iranian regime’s networks operating in Britain.
Simcox said support for Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the UK, the US and the EU, did to carry the same stigma as support for other terrorist groups, during a speech at the Royal United Services Institute this week.
Simcox also said attacks on Israel were often seen as more justifiable than attacks on other countries, and were sometimes even cause for celebration.
And Mahsa Jina Amini, the 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman who was killed by Iran’s morality police while in detention for allegedly breaching the regime’s hijab laws has been awarded Europe’s Sakharov Prize.
The prize, which recognizes individuals and organizations promoting human rights, was also awarded to Iran’s “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, which calls for gender equality in Iran.
