Amid Fears of Conflict with Iran Senate Debates New Sanctions Bill
Yesterday, James Clapper, director of National Intelligence, presented his annual “worldwide threat assessment” to Congress. Clapper publicly implicated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in 2011 plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the U.S., ”some Iranian officials — probably including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei — have changed their calculus and are now more willing to conduct an attack in the United States in response to real or perceived U.S. actions that threaten the regime,” he said. Clapper added, “we are also concerned about Iranian plotting against U.S. or allied interests overseas. ”
Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team wrapped up their visit to Iran, amid student protests. Iranian news reported the U.N. inspectors did not visit any of the country’s nuclear sites, but instead concentrated on talks with officials. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi reportedly offered to ”facilitate such visits if they had wanted to.” IAEA Chief Inspector Herman Nackaerts stated there was ”three days of intensive discussions about all our priorities, and we are committed to resolve all the outstanding issues.” Nackaerts added, “of course there is still a lot of work to be done, and so we have planned another trip in the very near future.” Judith Miller reported that Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman, the longtime discreet intermediary with Iran, has been engaged in promoting a peaceful resolution to the current situation.
In related news, the Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Ranking Member Richard Shelby(R-AL) have released a draft of ”the Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Human Rights Act of 2012.” While outlining an expansion of sanctions on Iran if the country fails to meet certain guidelines, it allows outlines a comprehensive strategy to promote internet freedom and access to information in Iran. This includes an expedited process for human rights, humanitarian, and democracy-related activities funded by agencies of the United States Government. The bill also imposes new limitations and sanctions on individuals committing human rights abuses, and calls for support to political prisoners in Iran.
