Iran Summons EU Ambassadors in Protest 02/02 06:11

   

   DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Iran said Monday it had summoned all of 
the European Union ambassadors in the Islamic Republic to protest the bloc's 
listing of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard as a terror group.

   The move came as Turkey tried to organize a meeting between the U.S. special 
envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian officials, seeking to jump-start talks to ease 
the threat of U.S. military action against the Islamic Republic, two Turkish 
officials said.

   The American military has moved the USS Abraham Lincoln and several 
guided-missile destroyers into the Mideast. It remains unclear whether 
President Donald Trump will decide to use force, though regional countries have 
engaged in diplomacy in an effort to halt a new Mideast war breaking out.

   "Trump is trying to calibrate a response to Iran's mass killing of 
protesters that punishes Iranian leaders without also embroiling the United 
States in a new, open-ended conflict in the region," the New York-based Soufan 
Center think tank said Monday.

   "Some Trump aides seek to exploit Tehran's weakness to secure major 
concessions from the regime, but Trump has set conditions for a diplomatic 
resolution that Tehran cannot accept."

   EU sanctions draw Iran's anger

   The EU agreed to list the Guard as a terror group last week over its part in 
the bloody crackdown on nationwide protests in January that killed thousands 
and saw tens of thousands detained.

   Other countries, including the U.S. and Canada, have previously designated 
the Guard as a terrorist organization. While the move is largely symbolic, it 
does add to the economic pressure squeezing Iran, particularly has the Guard 
has a major influence on the country's economy.

   Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told journalists that the 
ambassadors had begun to be summoned on Sunday and that process went into 
Monday as well.

   "A series of actions were reviewed, various options are being prepared and 
were sent to the related decision-making bodies," Baghaei said. "We think that 
in coming days, a decision will be made about a reciprocal action by the 
Islamic Republic of Iran toward the illegal, unreasonable and very wrong move 
by the EU."

   Iran's parliament speaker said Sunday that the Islamic Republic now 
considers all EU militaries to be terrorist groups, citing a 2019 law.

   The Guard emerged from Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution as a force meant to 
protect the Shiite cleric-overseen government and was later enshrined in its 
constitution. It operates in parallel with the country's regular armed forces 
and has expanded into private enterprise, allowing it to thrive.

   The Guard's Basij force likely was key in putting down the demonstrations, 
starting in earnest from Jan. 8, when authorities cut off the internet and 
international telephone calls for the nation of 85 million people. Videos that 
have come out of Iran via Starlink satellite dishes and other means show men 
likely belonging to its forces shooting and beating protesters.

   Turkey tries to organize Iran-U.S. talks

   In Turkey, officials have been trying to organize talks with Iran and 
Witkoff there, two Turkish officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity 
as they were not authorized to brief journalists. One described the goal as 
trying to have Witkoff meet the Iranians by the end of the week, if possible.

   Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Witkoff met multiple times last 
year in negotiations over Iran's nuclear program in Rome and Oman, but never 
finalized a deal. On June 13, Israel launched a series of attacks on Iran that 
sparked a 12-day war between the countries, effectively halting those talks. 
The U.S. during the war bombed three Iranian nuclear sites.

   Baghaei declined to give any specifics about the possibility of talks in 
Ankara.

   "What is clear is that we are engaged with reviewing either principles and 
details related to this diplomatic process," he said. "It is natural that 
regional countries have intensified their efforts."

   The U.S. did not immediately comment on the possible talks.

   Axios first reported on the possible talks in Turkey.

   Guard drill in Strait of Hormuz 'ongoing'

   Baghaei also said a drill by the Guard in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow 
mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of all oil traded passes, was 
"ongoing based on its timetable." Iran warned ships last week that a drill 
would be carried out on Sunday and Monday, but prior to Baghaei's comments had 
not acknowledged it taking place. The U.S. military's Central Command issued a 
strong warning to Iran not to harass its warships and aircraft, or impede 
commercial vessels moving through the strait.

   Satellite photos taken Sunday by Planet Labs PBC and analyzed by The 
Associated Press showed small vessels moving at speed in the strait between 
Iran's Qeshm and Hengam islands, some distance away from the corridor 
commercial vessels take. The Guard relies on a fleet of small, fast-attack 
ships in the strait.

   Asked about whether Iran could face a war, Baghaei told the public "don't 
worry at all." He declined, however, to discuss whether Trump set a deadline 
for Iran to respond to America's demands.

   Iran state TV host faces charges for mocking dead

   Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported on Monday that prosecutors in 
Tehran filed charges against the head of state television's Ofogh channel, as 
well as producers and the host of a program who mocked those killed in the 
crackdown.

   The program, which aired Saturday, saw the host reference allegations made 
abroad about Iran hiding bodies of the dead in freezers to bring out as victims 
if the U.S. attacks the country.

   The host asked viewers a multiple-choice question about where Iran would 
hide the bodies, listing things like ice cream freezers and supermarket 
refrigerators.

   The crackdown on the demonstrations killed at least 6,842 people, according 
to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate 
in other rounds of unrest in Iran. It fears even more may be dead. The 
Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the death toll.

   As of Jan. 21, Iran's government put the death toll at a far lower 3,117, 
saying 2,427 were civilians and security forces, labeling the rest 
"terrorists." In the past, Iran's theocracy has undercounted or not reported 
fatalities from unrest. However, the country's presidency published a list of 
names Sunday it said belonged to 2,986 of those killed, something it hasn't 
done in past protests.