US and Iran clash on security and human rights | Tehran wants former US President Donald Trump to face trial
\nUNITED NATIONS
\nThe United States and Iran clashed on security and human rights on Wednesday, with Iran\u2019s president demanding US guarantees to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and the US president vowing Tehran would never get an atomic bomb.
\nIranian President Ebrahim Raisi struck a defiant tone at the United Nations General Assembly by decrying \u201cdouble standards\u201d on human rights after the death of an Iranian woman in police custody that has sparked protests around Iran.
\nRaisi also said Tehran wanted former US President Donald Trump to face trial for the 2020 killing of Iran\u2019s top Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in a US drone attack in Iraq, holding up a picture of the general.
\n\u201cThere is a great and serious will to resolve all issues to revive the (2015 nuclear) deal,\u201d Raisi told the UN General Assembly. \u201cWe only wish one thing: observance of commitments.\u201d
\nSpeaking later, US President Joe Biden reiterated his willingness to revive the nuclear pact under which Iran had agreed to restrain its atomic program in return for relief from economic sanctions.
\nIn 2018, Trump withdrew the United States from the nuclear deal and unilaterally reimposed sanctions that have hobbled Iran\u2019s economy.
\nA year later, Tehran reacted by gradually violating the deal\u2019s nuclear limits and reviving US, Israeli and Gulf Arab fears that Iran may be seeking to obtain an atomic weapon, an ambition Iran denies.
\n\u201cWe have before us the experience of America\u2019s withdrawal from the (deal),\u201d Raisi said. \u201cWith that experience and this perspective, can we ignore the important issue of guarantees for a durable agreement?\u201d
\nRaisi did not mention Iran\u2019s demand that investigations by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) into traces of uranium found at three undeclared Iranian sites be closed, a major stumbling block to reviving the deal.
\nUS and European officials have said the probes can only be closed if Iran provides satisfactory answers to the UN nuclear watchdog whose chief, Rafael Grossi, said these issues cannot be wished away.
\n\u2018Double standards\u2019
\nRaisi also sought to deflect criticism of last week\u2019s death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was arrested by morality police in Tehran for \u201cunsuitable attire\u201d. Amini\u2019s death has unleashed anger in the streets since Friday over issues including freedoms in the Islamic Republic and an economy reeling from sanctions.
\nAt least seven people have been killed in protests with some demanding \u201cregime change\u201d.
\n\u201cThe Islamic Republic considers the double standards of some governments in the field of human rights as the most important factor in the institutionalisation of human rights violations,\u201d Raisi said in a text of his speech released by his office.
\nHe said this led to \u201cdiverse and numerous positions towards an incident under investigation in … Iran,\u201d an apparent reference to Amini\u2019s case, and \u201cthe deathly silence\u201d about allegations of human rights violations in the West.
\n\u201cHuman rights belongs to all, but unfortunately it is trampled upon by many governments,\u201d he added, referring to the discovery of unmarked graves of indigenous people in Canada, the suffering of the Palestinians and images of migrant children held in cages in the United States.
\nBiden expressed a willingness to return to the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and made clear US sympathies lay with the protesters in Iran.
\n\u201cWhile the United States is prepared for a mutual return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action if Iran steps up to its obligations, the United States is clear: We will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon,\u201d he said, repeating a long-held US position.
\n\u201cWe stand with the brave citizens and the brave women of Iran who right now are demonstrating to secure their basic rights,\u201d Biden added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
US and Iran clash on security and human rights | Tehran wants former US President Donald Trump to face trial UNITED NATIONS The United States and Iran clashed on security and human rights on Wednesday, with Iran\u2019s president demanding US guarantees to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and the US president vowing Tehran would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":285070,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-285046","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n