U.S. disappointed by Iran's sentencing of U.S. hikers: Clinton

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton said on Sunday that Washington was "deeply disappointed" by Iran's sentencing of two U.S. hikers for eight years in prison.

In a statement issued by the State Department, Clinton said the United States continued to call and work for the two Americans' "immediate release," saying it was time for them to return home and be united with their families.

"I joined President Obama and the people of the U.S. in expressing our unflagging support for Shane, Joshua, Sarah and their families during this difficult time," she added in the statement.

The two detained U.S. hikers, Joshua Fattal and Shane Bauer, were sentenced to eight years in prison by Iran on Sunday on charges of illegal entry to the country and espionage.

Three U.S. nationals were arrested in Iran on July 31, 2009, for illegally entering Iran's western border and were later charged with espionage. The U.S. government considered the charges unfounded.

The female U.S. hiker Sarah Shourd, once jailed in Iran with the other two Americans, was released by Tehran's prosecutor in September 2010, on a bail of 500,000 U.S. dollars due to her health situation.

Tension rises between Iran and Gulf states

Tension between Gulf states and Iran has risen again, with the Sunni monarchies accusing their Shiite neighbour of "flagrant" meddling and Tehran charging Washington with sowing regional discord.

In a strong statement on Sunday, Gulf Cooperation Council member states told Iran to stop its "provocations," a month after Bahrain quelled a Shiite-led uprising, triggering a tirade of Iranian condemnation.

The group called on "the international community and the (UN) Security Council to take the necessary measures to stop flagrant Iranian interference and provocation aimed at sowing discord and destruction" among GCC nations.

Saudi Arabia on Sunday also threatened to recall its diplomats from Tehran unless they were better protected, a week after students protested outside the Saudi embassy against Riyadh's military intervention in Bahrain last month.

"The main reason (for the GCC move) is the uncovering of Iranian (espionage) cells in Gulf countries, in addition to direct and indirect interference," said the head of the Dubai-based Gulf Research Centre, Abdulaziz Sager.

Clinton warns Iran over meddling in Persian Gulf

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is warning Iran to stop meddling in Bahrain and other Arab states in the Persian Gulf, and she's calling on Bahraini authorities not to use force against anti-government protests.

Clinton says Iran is "undermining peace and stability" in the Gulf. But she also says Bahrain's attempt to quell demonstrations by force with the help of its Arab neighbors was not a solution.

The Sunni minority monarchy in the kingdom is facing growing opposition from the Shiite-majority population. Bahrain has accused Shiite-majority Iran of fomenting the protests that seek to end the monarchy.

Clinton spoke in Paris on Saturday after an international conference on the crisis in Libya.

Son says he met Karroubi in his home in Iran

The son of Iranian opposition figure Mahdi Karroubi says he met his parents in their home, the clearest evidence yet that Karroubi has been under house arrest.

Mohammad Taqi Karroubi says he was allowed by security forces to meet his father in his house, according to opposition website kaleme.com.

The children of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi also have said their parents are under house arrest.

Last month, the opposition reported that the two leaders were moved to a prison in Tehran. This month, it said they'd been taken back to their homes.

Iran authorities have confirmed that all outside contact with Mousavi and Karroubi have been cut as part of a campaign to silence dissent.

Iran sets date for trial of American hikers

The Irani government says a second session in the trial of three Americans accused of spying will be held May 11.

The Sunday report by the official IRNA news agency quotes Ali Reza Avaei, head of Tehran's justice department, as saying that the upcoming session will likely be closed, as the first one was on Feb. 6.

Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd were hiking in northern Iraq near the Iranian border in July 2009 when Iranian forces detained them. Iranian officials have accused them of spying for the U.S., but the Americans and their families say the espionage charges are untrue.

Bauer and Fattal pleaded not guilty in the February session. Shourd was released on bail last September and pleaded not guilty in absentia.

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Iran will put three Americans facing spying charges on trial for the second time on May 11, an official was quoted Sunday as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

"The next trial session of three Americans who have been charged by espionage will be held on May 11 in Tehran's revolutionary and general court," Alireza Avaiee, head of Tehran's prosecutor's office told IRNA.

Avaiee said the trial, unusually, may be held in public.

Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd were arrested on July 31, 2009, near Iran's border with Iraq and said they had crossed the unmarked border by mistake while hiking.

Shourd was released in September last year on $500,000 bail and returned home. Iran says the move a "humanitarian gesture."

The first trial session was held in February.

The case has added to strains between Iran and the West, already at loggerheads over the Islamic state's nuclear program. The West suspects the program might be aimed at making atomic bombs. Iran denies this and says it needs nuclear technology to meet its booming demand for energy.

Unrest in the Middle East and North Africa -- country by country

Demonstrations have spread across parts of the Middle East and North Africa. Here is the latest from each country and the roots of the unrest.

Friday developments:

BAHRAIN

Hundreds of people were injured in Bahrain Friday, when rival groups clashed over an attempted march in the town of Riffa, a residential area where the ruling Al-Khalifa family lives.

The national health ministry said 774 people were injured and 107 were hospitalized in the wake of the fighting.

Roots of unrest:

Protesters initially took to the streets of Manama to demand reform and the introduction of a constitutional monarchy. But some are now calling for the removal of the royal family, which has led the Persian Gulf state since the 18th century. Young members of the country's Shiite Muslim majority have staged protests in recent years to complain about discrimination, unemployment and corruption, issues they say the country's Sunni rulers have done little to address. The Bahrain Center for Human Rights said authorities launched a clampdown on dissent in 2010. It accused the government of torturing some human rights activists.

Israel: Iranian experts operating in Gaza

A senior Israeli military official says the Islamic militant Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip now looks "much like an army," thanks to direct assistance from Iranian and Hezbollah agents stationed there.

He told The Associated Press that Hamas has recovered from its war against Israel two years ago. He said the militant group now has a "vast amount" of anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles and a "very big arsenal" of rockets that can strike deep inside Israel, as well as a sophisticated communications system.

He says Hamas could not have developed this expertise without foreign help.

The official, a senior officer in the Israeli military's Southern Command, spoke on condition of anonymity under military guidelines barring publication of his name.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) - A top Israeli diplomat says smuggling of arms from Egypt into the Gaza Strip has grown following the unrest in the Arab world.

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon says Israel has observed "increased activity" in Gaza. He accused militants of "trying to take advantage of the uncertainties in the region to booster their capabilities to attack Israeli cities and Israeli citizens."

Ayalon says explosives and terrorists are also being smuggled. Gaza militants have fired thousands of rockets at Israel in recent years.

Gaza is bordered by Israel and Egypt. After the militant group Hamas seized control in 2007, both nations imposed a blockade.

Hamas uses a vast network of tunnels under the Egyptian border to smuggle in both civilian and military supplies.

Iran asks US for new info on missing FBI agent

Iran urged the U.S. on Tuesday to provide new information about a retired FBI agent who disappeared inside the country, and says it will keep trying to discover his fate.

"On a humanitarian basis, we will continue our efforts," to find Robert Levinson, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said at a weekly briefing.

"If there is reliable information, relaying it to Iranian officials can turn this into a collective effort," he said.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton appealed to Iran for information about Levinson last week after Levinson's family received proof late last year that he was alive.

The State Department issued a three-sentence statement by Clinton Thursday saying there were indications Levinson was in southwest Asia and asking Iran for help.

Iran has long said it has no information about Levinson, but U.S. officials say they believe he was taken by Iranian government agents.

UN chief nuke inspector critical of Iran

The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said Monday he cannot guarantee that Iran is not trying to develop atomic arms, comments that reflect the lack of progress in his attempts to probe Tehran's nuclear secrecy.

Yukiya Amano, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency, also said that Iran may have worked on a nuclear arms program past 2004, indirectly contradicting U.S. intelligence estimates in the public domain.

U. S. officials said last month that a newly drawn up National Intelligence Estimate concludes Iran's leaders are split over whether to use their nuclear program to develop atomic weapons. But they did not specify whether the new document revised a conclusion arrived at in 2007 that Tehran had abandoned attempts to develop nuclear weapons in 2003. That report was disputed by Israel and several European intelligence services.

Amano's comments Monday follow even stronger warnings in a confidential report last month, when he said Iran may be working on a secret nuclear weapons program even now.

Share this on: Mixx Facebook Twitter Digg delicious reddit MySpace StumbleUpon LinkedIn Iran unloading fuel from Bushehr reactor

In a possible setback to its nuclear program, Iran is unloading fuel assemblies from the reactor at a plant already plagued by delays, according to a report issued Friday by the global nuclear watchdog agency.

The Russian-built plant in the Persian Gulf city Bushehr was expected to produce 1,000 megawatts of electricity and was considered a showcase for nuclear power to be used for civilian purposes in Iran. It was supposed to be operational by the first quarter of this year.

Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), however, said the fuel removal was temporary.

"Upon Russia's request fuel will be removed from the core of the reactor in order to conduct a number of tests and [carry out] technical work," Ali Asghar Soltanieh told the semi-official Islamic Students News Agency on Saturday. "After the tests are conducted, (the fuel) will be placed in the core of the reactor once again."

He said Russia is responsible for completing the plant in accordance with highest safety standards.

Iran began loading fuel into the core of the Bushehr reactor in October after it was launched in August. That came after more than three decades of delays.

Construction started in 1975 when Germany signed a contract with Iran. But Germany pulled out of the project after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iran then signed a deal with Russia in 1995, under which the plant was scheduled to be completed in 1999, but the project was repeatedly delayed.

Ahmadinejad: Upheaval will reach Europe, America

Iran's president is warning that the wave of protests sweeping the Middle East will spread to Europe and North America.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says popular demands for change will put an end to the oppression of what he called "arrogant powers." Without signaling out nations by name, he says similar uprisings will strike Europe and North America.

Speaking on state TV Wednesday, the president also condemned Libya's use of force against demonstrators and urged Libyan leaders to give in to the demands of their people.

Voice of America internet site hacked by Iranians

A group calling itself the "Iran cyber army" claimed responsibility Tuesday for hacking into a number of Voice of America internet pages, according to reports from both Voice of America and Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency.

The group displayed a message on Voice of America's Farsi page, calling for an end to U.S. "interference" in the Muslim world.

"Ms. Clinton, do you want to hear the oppressed voices of nations from the heart of America?" the group asked. "The Muslim world does not believe in U.S. deceit. We tell you, stop intervening in Muslim countries."

The action was taken "in response to the propagation of lies and plots of anti-revolutionary sites," Fars reported, claiming that a total of 95 sites affiliated with Voice of America were hacked.

Fars said that Voice of America acts as "part of the United States' spying organizations."

Voice of America indicated that the cyber attack may have been launched in response to a recent ABC interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. During the interview, Clinton referenced the State Department's opening of Twitter accounts in Arabic and Farsi, stating, "We want to be joining young people who, like young Americans, seek their right to express their views."

Voice of America noted that websites in other languages -- including Azeri, Dari, Pashtun, and Urdu -- were also targeted by the hackers.

Israel: Iranian naval vessels are provocation

A senior Israeli official says Tehran's decision to send two naval vessels through the Suez Canal is part of an Iranian campaign to gain "hegemony and control" over the Middle East.

The warships sailed through the canal en route to Syria earlier Tuesday in what Israeli officials say is a provocation by the Iranian regime. It's the first time Iranian military vessels have sailed into the Mediterranean since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Israel's vice prime minister, Silvan Shalom, told reporters the move is part of an Iranian struggle "against the West for hegemony and control in the Middle East."

He says Iran's goal is to show the Arab world "who the new leader is in the Middle East."

Israel considers Iran to be its greatest threat.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

CAIRO (AP) - Two Iranian naval vessels traveled through the Suez Canal on Tuesday en route to Syria, officials said, the first time in three decades that Tehran has sent military ships through the strategic waterway.

Canal officials said the ships - a frigate and a supply vessel - had reached the Mediterranean Sea by about 4 p.m. local time.

Israel saw the passage as a provocation. Israeli officials refused to comment Tuesday, though earlier this week Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he viewed the move "with gravity."

Report: Iranian warships enter Suez Canal

Two Iranian warships entered the Suez Canal on Tuesday on their way to the Mediterranean Sea, Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency reported, citing canal officials.

They are the first such ships to sail through the Suez since the Islamic republic's 1979 revolution.

The move, which comes four days after Egypt's post-Hosni Mubarak government gave the green light to the passage, puts Egypt's new military regime in a prickly position with its Israeli neighbor.

The canal is an internal body of water, and as such, Egypt has sovereignty over it. But Egypt also is bound by the 1978 Camp David Accords, which guarantee the right of free passage by ships belonging to Israel and all other nations on the basis of the Constantinople Convention of 1888. Before that, Egypt did not allow Israeli ships to sail through the canal.

Earlier this month, Egypt's newly empowered military government said it would honor all its international treaties, including Camp David.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Iran on Sunday of trying to expand its influence in the region by planning to send the warships.

Netanyahu said Israel views the crossing of the Iranian ships through the Suez Canal "gravely."

The vessels, a frigate and supply ship, are on a yearlong intelligence-gathering mission to prepare cadets to defend Iran's cargo ships and oil tankers from the threat of attack by Somali pirates, Iranian officials have said, according to Fars.

Iranian lawmakers: Put opposition leaders on trial

 Hard-line Iranian lawmakers called on Tuesday for the country's opposition leaders to face trial and be put to death, a day after clashes between opposition protesters and security forces left one person dead and dozens injured.

Tens of thousands of people turned out for the opposition rally Monday in solidarity with Egypt's popular revolt that toppled President Hosni Mubarak after nearly 30 years in power. The demonstration was the first major show of strength from Iran's beleaguered opposition in more than a year.

At an open session of parliament Tuesday, pro-government legislators chanted "death to Mousavi, Karroubi and Kahatami," referring to opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mahdi Karroubi and former reformist President Mohammad Khatami.

More than 220 lawmakers said in a statement that the trio should be held responsible for the unrest. "We believe the people have lost their patience and demand capital punishment" for the opposition leaders, the statement said.

Hardliners have long sought to put high-ranking opposition figures on trial, but the calls for the death penalty signaled an escalation in their demands.

Authorities appeared to be moving quickly in a bid to stifle the opposition before its gains momentum, issuing promises of swift action against leaders and activists, the official IRNA news agency reported.

"The judiciary will quickly and resolutely deal with major elements and those who violated public order and peace," the spokesman for Iran's judiciary and state prosecutor, Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi, told IRNA.

Russia's Lavrov against further Iran sanctions

MUNICH (AP) -- Russia's foreign minister is indicating that he opposes slapping more international sanctions on Iran in the standoff over its nuclear program.

Iran has been hit with several rounds of U.N. sanctions over its refusal to halt uranium enrichment. Tehran again rebuffed U.N.-drafted proposals at talks in Istanbul in January, generating speculation about more economic pressures.

But Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Saturday that "any new proposals ... would basically be aimed at suffocating the Iranian economy."

He says that "was not part of the agreement" when the U.N. Security Council's five permanent members and Germany started trying to allay doubts over Iran's nuclear intentions with a combination of incentives and pressure.

Lavrov argues the Istanbul meeting was "not a total failure."