Iranian Alert -- June 18, 2004 [EST]-- IRAN LIVE THREAD -- "Americans for Regime Change in Iran"

The US media almost entirely ignores news regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran. As Tony Snow of the Fox News Network has put it, “this is probably the most under-reported news story of the year.” Most American’s are unaware that the Islamic Republic of Iran is NOT supported by the masses of Iranians today. Modern Iranians are among the most pro-American in the Middle East.

There is a popular revolt against the Iranian regime brewing in Iran today. I began these daily threads June 10th 2003. On that date Iranians once again began taking to the streets to express their desire for a regime change. Today in Iran, most want to replace the regime with a secular democracy.

The regime is working hard to keep the news about the protest movement in Iran from being reported. Unfortunately, the regime has successfully prohibited western news reporters from covering the demonstrations. The voices of discontent within Iran are sometime murdered, more often imprisoned. Still the people continue to take to the streets to demonstrate against the regime.

In support of this revolt, Iranians in America have been broadcasting news stories by satellite into Iran. This 21st century news link has greatly encouraged these protests. The regime has been attempting to jam the signals, and locate the satellite dishes. Still the people violate the law and listen to these broadcasts. Iranians also use the Internet and the regime attempts to block their access to news against the regime. In spite of this, many Iranians inside of Iran read these posts daily to keep informed of the events in their own country.

This daily thread contains nearly all of the English news reports on Iran. It is thorough. If you follow this thread you will witness, I believe, the transformation of a nation. This daily thread provides a central place where those interested in the events in Iran can find the best news and commentary. The news stories and commentary will from time to time include material from the regime itself. But if you read the post you will discover for yourself, the real story of what is occurring in Iran and its effects on the war on terror.

I am not of Iranian heritage. I am an American committed to supporting the efforts of those in Iran seeking to replace their government with a secular democracy. I am in contact with leaders of the Iranian community here in the United States and in Iran itself.

If you read the daily posts you will gain a better understanding of the US war on terrorism, the Middle East and why we need to support a change of regime in Iran. Feel free to ask your questions and post news stories you discover in the weeks to come.

If all goes well Iran will be free soon and I am convinced become a major ally in the war on terrorism. The regime will fall. Iran will be free. It is just a matter of time.

Iran Razed Nuclear Sites

June 18, 2004
Agence France-Presse
AFP

THE US today accused Iran of destroying nuclear sites to hide banned nuclear activity.

"It's deplorable but not surprising that Iran's deception has gone to the extent of bulldozing entire sites to prevent the IAEA from discovering evidence of its nuclear weapons program," said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.

"I can't give you any independent information, but commercial satellite photography shows the complete dismantling and the razing of a facility at Lavizan Shiyan.

"And that's a site that was previously disclosed as a possible Iranian weapons of mass destruction-related site," he said.

During a press conference, Mr Boucher was asked about an ABC News report saying that Iran had torn down buildings at an industrial complex in Lavizan Shiyan, a Teheran suburb.

ABC television said the IAEA had recently received information that the site had been hidden.

The network, which did not cite sources, published two photographs, apparently of the site, taken by commercial satellites about 12 months ago and in March 2004, showing the buildings were gone and the top soil replaced.

The ABC report also said that in May 2003, the National Council of the Resistance of Iran, an Iranian opposition group, said the government had built a bacterial weapons plant at Lavizan Shiyan.

Although the US believes the group has links with terrorism, it has in the past used the group's information on banned weapons.

"This raises serious concerns and fits a pattern, as I said, that we've seen from Iran of trying to cover up on its activities, including by trying to sanitise locations which the IAEA should be allowed to visit and inspect."

The US accuses Iran of seeking to arm itself with nuclear weapons under the guise of a civilian nuclear program, a charge the Islamic republic denies.

The IAEA has been examining a draft resolution demanding that Tehran cooperate fully to dispel any doubts about its intentions.

http://news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,9880752%255E1702,00.html

U.S. Charges New Iran Cover-Up Amid U.N. Nuclear Rebuke

June 18, 2004
The Associated Press
TheBakersfieldChannel.com

VIENNA, Austria -- The Bush administration says there's fresh evidence that Iran has been trying to hide a nuclear weapons program. It says satellite photos show Iran dismantled a facility at a suspected nuclear weapons site and then bulldozed the area over.

Chief U.S. delegate Kenneth Brill, in comments to the board Friday, accused Iran of taking "the wrecking ball and bulldozer" to the site "to deal with some particularly incriminating facts."

That charge came from from the State Department, even as the U.N. watchdog agency Friday approved a resolution denouncing Iran's lack of cooperation.

Iran's delegate said the allegations are "wild and illusionary." He's threatening to withdraw a pledge to suspend uranium enrichment.

The U.S. representative said the agency is now on record as rejecting what he said is Iran's "continuing tactics of delay, denial and deception."

The U.N. atomic watchdog agency censured Iran for past cover-ups in its nuclear program in a resolution adopted Friday, warning Tehran to be more forthcoming.

While escaping sanctions, Iran threatened that it still might retaliate by reconsidering plans to suspend its uranium enrichment.

In harsh language, the resolution approved by the 35-member board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency said it "deplores" that "Iran's cooperation has not been as full, timely and proactive as it should have been."

It notes that since Iran's undeclared program came to light two years ago, "a number of questions remain outstanding."

The resolution submitted by France, Germany and Britain was a product of days of diplomatic maneuvering over the wording.

IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said the resolution "calls in very explicit terms on Iran to accelerate its cooperation with the agency."

Asked whether a deadline was needed to force Tehran to comply, he said the board "expects these issues to come to a close in the next few months."

U.S. Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton said Washington was "very pleased."

"The results will keep Iran's nuclear program and its efforts to deceive and obstruct IAEA inspectors at the center of international attention for quite some time," he said in a statement to The Associated Press.

In a veiled condemnation of the United States, which insists Tehran has nuclear weapons ambitions, Iranian delegate Amir Zamaninia told the meeting that the tone of the resolution was affected by "wild and illusionary allegations of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons program."

He warned that his country was reviewing its "voluntary confidence-building measures," an indication that Iran might rethink the suspension of its uranium enrichment activities. Enrichment can lead to fuel for electricity or weapons-grade uranium for warheads.

As the agency put final touches on the wording late Thursday, diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity said the IAEA was looking into accusations that Iran was razing parts of a restricted area next to a military complex in a Tehran suburb. Satellite photos showed that several buildings had been destroyed and topsoil had been removed at Lavizan Shiyan, one diplomat said.

Iran's chief delegate to the IAEA's board of governors, Hossein Mousavian, denied there was a cover-up and told the AP the agency was free to see the site. "There is nothing there," he said.

Asked about Lavizan Shiyan, ElBaradei said his agency would "like to ... clarify" suspicions about the site, but he added that the IAEA for now was withholding judgment on whether there had been undeclared nuclear activities there. He said he hoped inspectors could go to the site and report their findings to the next scheduled board meeting in September.

Most of the still-unanswered questions in Iran focus on the sources of traces of highly enriched uranium found at several sites in Iran, and the extent and nature of work on the advanced P-2 centrifuge, used to enrich uranium.

Though the resolution does not give a deadline, it states that it is essential for Iran to deal with issues "within the next few months."

It does not contain a "trigger mechanism" -- a clause sought by Washington that could send the Iran case to the U.N. Security Council for violating the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Tehran said the minute finds of highly enriched uranium were not produced domestically but were inadvertently imported in purchases through the nuclear black market -- an assertion the agency has not yet proven.

Tehran says it is interested only in generating electricity; Washington says Iran's nuclear activities are a smoke screen for a weapons program.

In a clear warning to Iran that its activities will be closely followed, the resolution also asked ElBaradei to report on his findings "well in advance" of the next board meeting in September if warranted.

The rebuke was agreed on despite Iranian efforts to tone it down substantially, including tactics that led ElBaradei on Thursday to acknowledge one mistake in a report criticizing Tehran for repeated lack of cooperation with the agency probe.

Earlier, the agency criticized Iran for not admitting to a purchase of 150 magnets for P-2 centrifuges that Iran was building secretly. On Thursday, ElBaradei acknowledged the veracity of an audio tape submitted the day before by Iran that records an agency inspector being informed about their purchase.

The report also said Iran inquired about buying thousands of such magnets on the black market - substantially more than Tehran needed for what it said was a research program. ElBaradei on Thursday said Iran expressed interest in 100,000 of such magnets.

"We still have no concrete proof that this has a military dimension but we are still are not in a position to say that this is exclusively for peaceful purposes," ElBaradei said.

Iran asserted the revelation showed its honesty.

http://www.thebakersfieldchannel.com/news/3433917/detail.html

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