News and Analysis (1/18/16)

A senior Iran analyst calls the exchange for seven Iranians “a smart move to prove to hard-liners on both sides that even a narrow arms control agreement can produce more positive knock-on effects than coercion and confrontation” …

• Iran Frees 5 Americans, Including Reporter, as Nuclear Deal Is Affirmed (Christian Science Monitor)

… it came on the day “the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency, … determined that Iran has fulfilled the necessary obligations to achieve a broad relaxation of nuclear-related sanctions” …

• ‘Implementation Day’ for Iran Nuclear Deal: What It Means (Christian Science Monitor)

… and one day before Israel, despondent over failing to torpedo the nuclear deal vowed to draw “on U.S. defense aid to prepare for a possible military face-off” with Iran …

• Israel Licks Wounds as Iran Sanctions End, Looks to Future U.S. Aid (Reuters)

… and the Obama administration “imposed fresh sanctions on 11 companies and individuals for supplying Iran’s ballistic missile program” …

• U.S. Prisoners Leave Iran, Arrive in Germany, as Obama Hails Win for Diplomacy (Reuters)

… regarding which an Iranian spokesman notes: “America sells tens of billions of dollars of weaponry each year to countries in the region. These weapons are used in war crimes against Palestinian, Lebanese and most recently Yemeni citizens”:

• Iran Condemns New US Sanctions over Missile Test (BBC)

“The dead included 85 civilians and 50 regime fighters, according to the human rights monitor, … [and the] more than 400 civilians … abducted, all of whom are Sunnis, include women, children and family members of pro-regime fighters”:

• Isis Fighters Abduct Up to 400 Civilians in Major Attack on Deir ez-Zor  (Guardian)

U.S. Officials declined to “identify the missing Americans or say what they were doing in Iraq”:

• US Embassy Says Several Americans Missing in Iraq (AP / abc News)

“What would Muhammad say about the Islamic State group? Is Islam compatible with democracy? Are Muslim women allowed to use contraceptives?”

• Hundreds Attend Islam Q&A Sessions (Albuquerque Journal)

Plaintiffs charge American Airlines cited no “basis of inappropriate or boisterous behavior, … [and no] security issue or threat,” when they kicked four dark-skinned passengers (three Muslims and a Sikh) off the flight”:

• Four Brooklyn Men Claim They Were Kicked Off Flight for Looking too Muslim in Lawsuit (Daily News)

“Islamic State … has accepted allegiances from jihadists in Nigeria, Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and Saudi Arabia, but has yet to formally recognise any radical groups in Southeast Asia”:

• Jakarta Attack Highlights Jostle to Lead Islamic State in SE Asia (Reuters)

“Burkina Faso and Mali have agreed to work together to counter the growing threat of Islamic militants in west Africa by sharing intelligence and conducting joint security patrols, following two deadly and well-coordinated attacks”:

• Mali and Burkina Faso to Share Counter-terror Efforts After Islamist Attacks (Guardian)

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