Iran news in brief, May 31, 2019

Iran news in brief, May 31, 2019

Saudi King Tells Regional Summit: Iranian Regime's Actions Threaten Regional and Global Security

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman told an emergency Gulf Cooperation Council meeting on Thursday that the Iranian regime’s development of nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities threatened regional and global security.

He said Tehran’s actions threatened international maritime trade and global oil supplies in a “glaring violation of UN treaties,” following attacks this month on oil tankers off the United Arab Emirates and on oil pumping stations in the Kingdom.

King Salman added that Iran’s regime has been threatening security in the region for four decades, stating that not taking a stand against its activities has led to its transgressions.

GCC and Arab League Call on Iran to Reconsider Its Role in the Region

The Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council called on Iran’s regime to reconsider its role in the region, the league’s Secretary-General told reporters following the conclusion of two emergency summits held in Mecca.

“The emergency Arab League Summit in Mecca called on Iran to reconsider its role in the region,” Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit said.

Pompeo Says Iran Attacked Oil Tankers to Raise Global Oil Price

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday blamed Iran’s regime for attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf, saying it was an effort by Tehran to raise the global price of oil.

Earlier speaking in London, White House National Security Adviser John Bolton said evidence that Iran was behind the attacks would be presented to the United Nations Security Council next week.

US Says Iranian Regime Sought to Carry out Coordinated Terrorist Attacks

US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford revealed Wednesday that he was the driving force behind the recent U.S. deployments to the Persian Gulf region, which he recommended after reviewing intelligence that indicated an ominous pattern in Iranian actions.

“We saw something that looked more like a campaign than individual threat,” Dunford said at an event at the Brookings Institution. The intelligence covered a wide area and indicated Iran and its proxies were preparing coordinated attacks.

“It was the geographic span and the perception that that activity would try to be synchronized in time that caused us to look at that threat differently than 40 years of malign activity by the Iranians,” he said.

Iranian Police Arrest 30 During Protest

Reports from Iran’s southeastern Sistan and Baluchistan Province say some 30 people have been arrested in a rally to protest the killing of a young Balochi man by the police.

Local people gathered on May 27 in front of the governor’s office in Zahedan after police shot dead the man.

The state security forces called for backup and fired shots in the air to disperse the crowd, fearing that the protest could draw more protesters and turn into larger unrest.

Iran's State TV Under Fire for Insulting Sunni Community

Widespread protests targeting Iran’s state-run channel 5 TV for insulting the Sunni community in southern Iran forced this TV station to fire the network’s director and the program manager.

Fearing the spread of the unrest and protest to other Sunni communities, the judiciary was forced to step in and issue a farce arrest warrant for an official in charge of the station. The official was shortly released after preliminary questioning. However, as protests continued, the TV station was forced to relieve the network’s director and the show manager to quell public anger.