Dubai

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran rejects as “irresponsible” comments by France that it is seriously considering triggering a mechanism within the Iran nuclear deal that could lead to U.N. sanctions, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Thursday.

“Iran’s scaling back of its nuclear commitments was implementation of its legal rights to react to America’s illegal and unilateral exit of the deal and the European parties’ failure to fulfill their obligations,” Mousavi said in remarks quoted by state television.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s supreme leader on Wednesday claimed without evidence that recent protests across the Islamic Republic over government-set gasoline prices rising were part of a “conspiracy” involving the U.S., as authorities began to acknowledge the scale of the demonstrations.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made the comment while addressing members of the Revolutionary Guard’s all-volunteer Basij force, which help put down the demonstrations.

DUBAI (Reuters) - A pro-government rally in Tehran on Monday will show the world who “real” Iranians are, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said, expressing surprise at foreign statements of support for a wave of protests against the authorities over a fuel price rise.

The protests grew into anti-government unrest that saw at least 100 banks and dozens of buildings torched in the worst violence at least since Iran put down a “Green Revolution” in 2009, when dozens were killed over several months.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco met investors in Dubai on Sunday to market its initial public offering (IPO), after trying to secure demand from Kuwait’s sovereign wealth fund for the deal, worth up to $25.6 billion, which relies heavily on local and regional buyers.

Top executives of the Saudi state-owned oil giant, including Aramco’s Chief Executive Amin Nasser, met officials of Kuwait’s sovereign wealth fund weeks ago, a source familiar with the matter said, confirming an earlier report on Sunday in the Kuwaiti newspaper Alrai.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian troops and members of the elite Revolutionary Guards helped police quell violent unrest in Kermanshah province this week, Iranian officials said on Saturday, accusing “U.S. agents” of being among the armed protesters.

Rights group Amnesty International said at least 30 people were killed in the western province, making it the worst-hit by days of protests over gasoline prices rises in which more than 100 people were killed nationwide. Iran rejected the death toll figures as “speculative”.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A U.S. federal judge has awarded a Washington Post journalist and his family nearly $180 million in their lawsuit against Iran over his 544 days in captivity and torture while being held on internationally criticized espionage charges.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Six conservationists working to save the critically endangered Asiatic cheetah have been sentenced to prison on internationally criticized espionage charges in Iran, activists said Thursday, even as protests and unrest continue in parts of the country amid a government-imposed internet shutdown.

The case against members of the nonprofit Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation show how spying charges and convictions can be levied against dual nationals and those with Western ties in Iran in closed-door trials before its Revolutionary Court.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian President Rouhani on Wednesday claimed government victory over unrest he blamed on Iran’s foreign enemies, according to state media, after protests since a hike in gasoline prices last week that have shaken the country.

“The Iranian people have again succeeded at an historic test and shown that they will not let enemies benefit from the situation, even though they might have complaints about the country’s management,” Rouhani said in remarks carried by the state broadcaster IRIB on its website.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Middle East’s biggest carrier, the Dubai-based Emirates, announced on Wednesday a firm order for 30 Boeing 787 Dreamliners in a deal valued at $8.8 billion.

Emirates CEO and Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said this order replaces an agreement for 150 777x Boeing to 126 of that aircraft, and adds 30 of the 787-9 Dreamliners. He spoke to reporters at the Dubai Airshow.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Days of protests over rising fuel prices and a subsequent government crackdown have killed at least 106 people across Iran, Amnesty International said Tuesday, adding that the real figure may be much higher.

Iran’s government has not released a toll of those arrested, injured or killed in the protests that began Friday and spread quickly across at least 100 cities and towns. But it disputed Amnesty’s report through its mission to the United Nations, calling it “baseless allegations and fabricated figures.”