On Iran deal, U.S. lawmakers on both sides criticize administration, hint at more sanctions

Washington Post

Testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Secretary of State John Kerry told lawmakers an interim nuclear deal with Iran hinges on no new sanctions as show of good faith.

Many in Congress - not satisfied with the nuclear deal reached last month in Geneva - believe that applying further pressure on the government of President Hassan Rouhani is the only way to extract concessions that would ensure Iran never develops nuclear weapons....Read On

Hostage location classified

Washington Times

Secretary of State John F. Kerry surprised members of Congress on Tuesday by revealing that the whereabouts of seven Iranian dissidents kidnapped in a deadly raid on a refugee camp in Iraq is classified. 

His comment suggests that the Obama administration knows their whereabouts and whether they are being held by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki as a favor to Iran's theocratic rulers...Read On

UN calls on Iraq to locate 7 Iranian dissidents

Washington Post

A group of U.N. independent experts urged Iraq on Monday to reveal what happened to seven members of an Iranian dissident group who were allegedly abducted in September.Six women and one man went missing after a Sept. 1 attack at that killed 52 people at the Camp Ashraf refugee camp in Iraq that once housed 3,000 Iranian exiles. 

The Geneva-based panel of human rights experts noted allegations that the attack and the abduction were conducted by Iraqi security forces....Read On

Iran's charm offensive belies mounting body count from executions at home

FOX News

The new, moderate face Iran is showing the world belies a sinister spike in executions in the country, with hundreds killed for such crimes as "waging war against God," according to a human rights group...Read On

Congress in revolt on Iran deal

Washington Post

The administration is nervous, very nervous. It seems bipartisan contingents in both the House and Senate are unwilling to be threatened by the totalitarian regime in Tehran, which has threatened to call off the whole deal (which isn't even a deal) unless the Congress shuts up. 

It is quite extraordinary - both the Times and the mullahs vilifying Congress's efforts merely to enforce the terms of U.N. resolutions on Iran's illegal weapons program....Read On

Iran commander suggests Foreign Minister stay out of military affairs-report

Reuters

Last week Mohammad Javad Zarif was quoted by local media as saying the West had little fear of Iran's military defenses and could destroy them if it wished, although Zarif has said his statement was skewed and taken out of context.

"We consider him an experienced diplomat, but he has no experience in the military field," Fars news agency reported Jafari as saying on Tuesday...Read On