USA+5 countries begin major Military exercise in Gulf

Sunday's Daily Briefing on Iran.
Major Western military exercise in the Persian Gulf to begin Monday.

• Forbes reported that the United States and five other countries will intercept a British vessel in the Persian Gulf on Monday in a mock interception of dangerous weapons technology, an exercise the U.S. expects nearby Iran to notice.

Why Ahmadinejad ignores Western calls to stop enrichment.

• Amir Taheri, Arab News reported that while Western diplomats are surprised at the Islamic republic’s decision to launch a new program aimed at doubling its capacity to enrich uranium, the Islamic republic is doing exactly what President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad promised it would do.

Will Khatami be arrested on his trip to the UK?

• IRVAJ Network reported that the former President of Iran, Mohammad Khatami will be visiting UK next week to be awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of St Andrews on 31st October. But a law suit which has been launched against the former President by two Iranian students who currently reside in the UK allege that they were brutally tortured during Mr. Khatami's tenure in office.

The growing Arab concern over the Islamic Republic's plan to export its Shia revolution.

• Asharq Alawsat reported on Arab concern over the Iranian plan to export the Shia revolution through out the Middle East.

Here are a few other news items you may have missed.

• Aljazeera reported that a state-owned Iranian newspaper has returned to the news stands more than five months after it was banned for insulting Iran 's Azeri minority.
• Chron.com reported that Iran replaced its air force chief and a key Cabinet minister Saturday, without giving the reasons.
• International Herald Tribune reported that the Islamic Republic has begun the largest census of the Iranian population in decades. Iran 's population grew by an estimated 10 million people since 1996, when the last census counted 60 million people.
• Monsters & Critics reported that Iran 's reformist movement is worried about possible manipulations in the country's forthcoming elections.

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