Jim Lobe comments on Daniel Pipes' piece advocating the bombing of Iran.

Islamophobe Daniel Pipes makes what has to be considered the strongest case ever (and in a manner entirely consistent with his and other hard-line neo-cons notoriously cavalier attitude toward violence and war) for bombing nuclear facilities in Iran in his op-ed on National Review Online Tuesday. Obama should do it for political expediency.

Interview with Shirin Ebadi in the Telegraph.

There is also a report.

Shirin Ebadi, 62, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for her long career as a human rights lawyer in Iran. She spoke to The Sunday Telegraph during a stay in London.

Press TV report.

Iran said Saturday it arrested seven people, including two Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operatives, who planned to stoke unrest and violence on a march scheduled for February 11.

Independent report.

Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered his country's atomic agency to begin the production of higher enriched uranium.

He said in comments broadcast on state television today: "God willing, 20% enrichment will start" to meet Iran's needs.

AFP report.

More than half of Iran's lawmakers have filed a new complaint urging the prosecution of opposition leaders, including Mir Hossein Mousavi, for their alleged role in post-election violence, Iran newspaper reported on Saturday.

Guardian article.

But despite Mottaki's assurances, the US defence secretary, Robert Gates, today dismissed the idea that a deal was close and said it might be time to push forward with sanctions.

"The reality is they've done nothing to assure the international community" or "to stop their progress toward (building) a nuclear weapon," Gates said.

Independent report.

Iran sees good prospects for clinching a deal with world powers on exchanging some of its low-enriched uranium (LEU) for higher-grade fuel it can use in a reactor producing medical isotopes, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on yesterday.

Such a deal could represent a major breakthrough in the long-running dispute over Iran's nuclear programme, but it was not clear whether Iran's conditions would be acceptable to the United States and others.

Reuters report.

Israel's new rocket-interceptor system will not be deployed near the Gaza Strip as expected but kept on standby, possibly to counter attacks from the north by Lebanese Hezbollah should conflict erupt with its backer, Iran.

Guardian report.

Iran's opposition leader, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has attacked "dictatorship in the name of religion" at the start of anniversary celebrations of the 1979 revolution, boosting expectations of a new round of mass protests against the regime.

Laura Rozen in Politico.

In what was being reported as a potentially signficant shift, Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told Iranian State Television today that Iran is ready to send its uranium abroad.

...

"If Iran has something new to say, we are prepared to listen," a U.S. official said on condition of anonymity.

Guardian report.

Iran today dismissed the US buildup of a missile shield in the Gulf as a "puppet show" as details emerged of an unsuccessful US missile test designed to simulate an Iranian attack amid a tense standoff between the two countries.

Independent article.

The US will provide new anti-missile systems to at least four Arab countries, and help Saudi Arabia triple the size of a 10,000-man force protecting its most important potential military targets from attack. America's Navy will also begin deploying ships capable of intercepting medium-range nuclear missiles off the Iranian coast at all times.

NYT news article.

The Obama administration is accelerating the deployment of new defenses against possible Iranian missile attacks in the Persian Gulf, placing special ships off the Iranian coast and antimissile systems in at least four Arab countries, according to administration and military officials.

Laura Rosen reports.

Israeli sources say CIA director Leon Panetta traveled to Israel this past week.

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The main subject of conversation was Iran, as well as "relations" in general, the former official said.