Removing Iran sanctions with unprincipled views
April 2, 2020, 5:35 am

Removing Iran sanctions with unprincipled views

Perviz Khazai

The Iranian regime with its seven Presidents and two supreme leaders. has had many ups and downs over the past 41 years in regulating its relations with the United States. Iran

Throughout these years, Tehran by secretly negotiating, begging help from appeasers and exerting, pressure with its terrorist acts used all the tools at its disposal combined with lies and secrecy to create opportunities for its influence in expanding the regime’s proxy forces in the region and enhancing the IRGC's capacity for internal repression and export of terrorism. Of course, to a great extent was successful. Tehran has also tried to continue enriching uranium at every opportunity and violating its obligations in order to get closer to build a nuclear bomb. With creating a dozen fictitious crises IRGC tried to maintain its mercenary bases in Syria and Iraq.

The withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon after the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri gave Iran the opportunity to become the first actor in Lebanon's political scene and eventually led to the creation of a Hezbollah terrorist group. In Yemen, in the vacuum of the Arab Spring, Mullah’s regime seized the opportunity to employ the Houthis to dominate the Yemeni capital and its military capability.

An ancient Iranian expression states that when the garden wall collapses, the fruit-pickers (opportunists) arrive. The fruit-pickers, in this case, were the western appeasers that underpinned such achievements for the mullahs.

Iran had an unprecedented opportunity under Barack Obama. It reached a "nuclear" deal with six countries and the US, after which Qassim Suleimani succeeded in expanding its broader regional offensive, and it later became clear that the implementation of the deal empowered Iran with financial resources for its regional offensives. Suleimani and IRGC’s offensives just before sanctions being imposed on them, in its peak, facilitated the annexation of four Arab capitals under Iranian control. The extent of this is obvious that an analyst of Iraq's said: “No issue would be resolved until Qassim Suleimani came to Baghdad”. The most disastrous effect of IRGC+ financial resources was the killing of more than 100,000 and displacement of 6,000,000 Syrians.

Today, Tehran sees a good opportunity to use Coronavirus crises as a pretext to remove the deadly sanctions rope from its neck. Khamenei and Rouhani are now contemplating nothing but using the Coronavirus crises and pressure the international community and force governments to put pressure on the US to lift Iran's sanctions. In line with this game plan, Zarif and Rouhani played innocent and wrote in a letter to the American people that "sanctions have reduced the ability of the Iranian people to fight the virus and even some of our compatriots have lost their lives because of these sanctions." They have called on the American people to "loudly shout" at their government.

But Tehran does not say why Khamenei ordered the censorship of news of the Coronavirus outbreak in Qom for the sake of elections and did not quarantine Qom despite warnings from its Ministry of Health. Khamenei is portraying his regime as a victim of an American-engineered conspiracy, and on the one hand to send its Basij and Revolutionary Guards to the streets under the pretext of an anti-biological warfare maneuver to prevent insurgency and uprising against its rule. On the other hand, he could play the victim role and seize the opportunity to lift the sanctions. Therefore, we can not compare the regime’s reactions to Coronavirus crises with other countries and expect the same.

The Iranian people know very well in their contemporary history that Mirza Ali Asghar Khan Atabak, an opportunist when he saw Nasser al-Din Shah assassinated in Abdul Azim shrine, window dressed his corpse in the carriage and carried to the royal palace to show that the king was still alive. And now to those who want to lift sanctions on Iran, why do you want to show this dying regime alive?

We must ask them why Iran is not willing to accept Doctors without borders, international observers, journalists, missions and international aid to reach the needy people or Iran immediately! Why People's Medical Facilities that belong to the People of Iran should show up in Lebanon and Iraq in the hand of the regime’s proxy forces! Why the Regime Doesn't Release Political Prisoners?! Why Khamenei does not use the Imam's executive headquarters $100 billion currency reserves for the Coronavirus expense?!

And why regime’s television, instead of pointing to the inefficiencies of the relevant organs, is constantly zooming in on people's behavior, blaming the people in the city and condemning their behavior who don't stay home while simultaneously weaving conspiracy theories internationally. Why the regime is planning military maneuvers and mobilization by IRGC? Can Coronavirus be restrained by military maneuvers?

Therefore, lifting the sanctions of the Iranian regime means giving the regime another chance to unleash its terrorist activities and further destabilize the region.

Perviz S. Khazai: is a law graduate and former Apprentice diplomat in French Ministry of Foreign Affairs- in IIAP(ENA)Paris, in United Nations in Geneva- In Red Cross International- In Council of Europe in Strasbourg and International Court of Justice in The Hague 1969-1971. He served as an international law expert of foreign affairs in Tehran 1976-1979. He served as the head of the mission and acting ambassador in Norway and Sweden in 1979-1982. levant

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).

Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.