Iran news in brief, March 14, 2019

Iran news in brief, March 14, 2019

US Says Sanctions Have Cost Iran $10 Billion in Oil Revenue

Iran has lost $10 billion in revenue since U.S. sanctions in November have removed about 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian crude from global markets, a U.S. State Department official said on Wednesday.

Brian Hook, the State Department's special representative on Iran, said in remarks at the CERAWeek energy conference that due to a global oil surplus - in part due to record U.S. production - the United States is accelerating its plan of bringing Iranian crude exports to zero.

Hook said: Trump "has made it very clear that we need to have a campaign of maximum economic pressure" on Iran.

Top Official Says U.S. Has Cautioned Europe on 'Risks' With Iran Trade

A senior U.S. Treasury Department official has told a Congressional subcommittee that U.S. has “engaged extensively with European countries on the significant risks” of providing Iran with a special facility for trade.

Under Secretary of U.S. Treasury Sigal Mandelker, the head of Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) told the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services on March 12, the U.S. continues “to maximize economic pressure on the regime to combat its weapons proliferation, terrorism, and regionally destabilizing activities”.

Iran Executes Father, son on Drug Related Charges

A father and son were executed in the prison of Birjand, capital of the southern Khorasan Province in eastern Iran.

The prisoners, identified as Shir-Mohammad Naroui, 50 and Younes Naroui, 20 were hanged on drug related charges on Monday, March 11, 2019.

On the same day, four prisoners were hanged in the cities of Urmia, northern Iran, and in Zahedan, west of the country.

Iran Sentences 23 Dervishes to Heavy Prison Terms and Lashes

The Iranian Judiciary sentenced 23 prisoners who belong to the Sufi Dervish order to hefty prison terms and lashes. The dervishes have been sentenced to overall 190 years of prison, 46 years of exile, 1,776 lashes, a 46-year travel ban and a 46-year ban on involvement in social and political activities.

All the dervishes are currently detained in the Greater Tehran Prison. 

The sentences are final and not subject to review.

Lawyers for Huawei Due in US Court in Iran Sanctions Case

Lawyers for the Chinese electronics giant Huawei (HWAH'-way) are due in court in a U.S. case charging the company with violating Iran trade sanctions.

The company is to be arraigned Thursday morning on an indictment filed in federal court in Brooklyn.

Prosecutors have accused Huawei of using a Hong Kong front company to trade with Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. They allege the daughter of the company's founder lied to banks about those dealings while serving as the compnay's chief financial officer.

The daughter was arrested in Canada earlier this year and is awaiting extradition to the U.S.

Livestock Smuggling Leads to Rising Meat Prices

A member of Iran’s Agriculture Commission in parliament says smuggling of domestic livestock out of the country, mainly to Iraq, has intensified, leading to price hikes.

Nasser Mousavi Largani said: "I have heard that livestock is imported to Iran, but immediately reloaded on ships and planes to be exported to other countries,”.

The government subsidizes essential food imports by supplying cheap dollars and smuggling the meat out of the country means some people are making huge profits.