Biden Allows Iran to Access Another $10 Billion Amid Gaza War

In a document disclosed by Tehran's Jamaran news website, Mahmoud Abbaszadeh-Meshkini criticized the "weakness in playing a central and effective role" in addressing the Gaza conflict. He expressed the expectation that Iran’s Foreign Ministry, being the "most powerful country in the resistance axis," should have convened an urgent meeting with members of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Tehran.

Taking issue with the performance of Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Meshkini, who sits on the Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, asked: "How is it that until recently, the goal was to eliminate the Zionist regime, but now the discourse has shifted."

It appears that he is referring to the fact that Iran has recently twice accepted the two-state solution.

100%

As part of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Palestine would be an independent state alongside Israel. There are still disputes over the border between the two states, and the Palestinian and Arab leaderships are demanding that Israel withdraw from territories it occupied in 1967, which is rejected by Israel.

Iran's public position, however, has always been to annihilate Israel as a state, rejecting a two-state agreement.

On October 27, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution calling for a "humanitarian truce" in Gaza. Back then, Iranian hardliner outlets attempted to justify Iran's vote in favor of that resolution, which also advocated a two-state solution.

“Did Iran vote for the two-state solution? Although some have expressed doubts regarding Iran's position towards Palestine and the formation of an independent Palestinian state following the recent resolution of the General Assembly, Iran's position remains strong,” Fars News wrote last week.

The paper then cited the Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations as saying that if they hadn’t voted, it would have been “playing into the hands of the Zionist regime”.

“The Arab League presented this resolution to the United Nations General Assembly, but it was never discussed,” he explained according to Fars News.

More recently, in a summit of Islamic and Arab states in Riyadh, in which Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi also participated, a statement was released that also referred to the two-state solution.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said Tehran had always expressed “reservations” in the past about some of the provisions approved during the Riyadh summit.

Hardliners in the regime still call for the destruction of Israel and claim they are eager to go and fight in Gaza, while the top leadership has been cautious so far, avoiding any direct involvement.

100%

Referring to the war in Gaza, General Mohammad-Reza Naghdi, a deputy commander of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, IRGC, said on Tuesday that while it’s true they have not sent any troops to Gaza, but that does not imply that nothing is being done.

“We eagerly await the order to deploy to Gaza,” he said rhetorically.

As more of a symbolic gesture, 150 members of the parliament have volunteered for deployment to Gaza, and the regime claims to have registered 6 million volunteers ready to join the war in Gaza.

The move to impeach Amir-Abdollahian resembles another attempt at posturing by hardliners.

With the next parliamentary election around the corner, this could also be a sign that hardliners such as Meshkini, who is sanctioned by the EU and UK, are appealing to extremists for their votes.

Former Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told centrist news website Entekhab that "opposition to national interests is in the nature of some of Iran's hardliners." He had disclosed earlier that hardliners sent letters to Khamenei to encourage him to intervene in the Gaza war.

Zarif said on social media that "In several interviews over the past week, I tried to explain Israel's warmongering objectives and its inhumane treatment of Palestinians over the past 70 years. Unfortunately, some of my statements were fragmented before publication and then used selectively. At times, hardliners used my statements to further their own political game."

Last week, it was reformist journalist Sara Massoumi who first reported Zarif's speech during a meeting with reformist politicians in Tehran. Massoumi quoted Zarif as having said: "If Iran is dragged into the Israel-Gaza war, nothing is going to happen to any of Iran's state officials! The bombs are going to fall on the people."

Elsewhere in the speech Zarif asked: "So far who has suffered from the sanctions? Those who make several millions of dollars, or the poor people?"

100%

Zarif posted a video of his statement on YouTube and X, and called on viewers to see for themselves that those who accuse him of not having any concern for Palestinians were wrong or biased in their judgement. He also reiterated his call for Islamic and national solidarity in support of Palestinians.

Nonetheless, his critics continued to attack him on social media. "Congratulations Mr. Zarif! Your video clip is being used by Israeli and European channels with the caption 'Former Iranian Foreign Minister says Gaza has nothing to do with Iran.' Once again you backstabbed Iran among the Resistance groups and countries."

Zarif, in return, told Entekhab that the accusations were part of a factional polarization attempt to poison the mood in the society." Zarif had said in an earlier interview on Telegram that "Israel dreams of getting Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah involved in the Gaza war.”

In another statement, Zarif accused Iranian hardliners of boosting Iranophobia and Islamophobia in the world with their behavior. He added that Iran has been eliminated from the international scene as many big powers do not like to engage with Tehran. He added that none of the powerful world players, particularly Russia want Iran to be able to play any part on international scene.

He further referred to the controversy about the use of Iranian drones in Russia's war against Ukraine and accused Russia of letting down Iran by getting the drones from Tehran and then disclosing Iran’s involvement in the war.

Last week, former President Hassan Rouhani had also warned against Iran becoming involved in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Rouhani addressed the ongoing conflict in Gaza, warning that regime’s role in flaming the conflict was putting Iran at risk. He emphasized the potential consequences of its direct, or indirect involvement through proxies, warning that "a mistake, a wrong decision, or an imprecise action could drag the flames of war towards us."

The United States announced its third round of sanctions since the October 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel. The measures target key Hamas officials and the mechanisms through which Iran provides support to Hamas and its ally Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), another militant group.

US State Department in announcing the sanctions particularly focused on the financial and military support by the Iranian regime to Hamas and other militant groups.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement highlighted that “Iran’s support, primarily through its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, enables Hamas and PIJ’s terrorist activities, including through the transfer of funds and the provision of both weapons and operational training. Iran has trained PIJ fighters to produce and develop missiles in Gaza while also funding groups that provide financial support to PIJ-affiliated fighters.”

Britain added six new designations to its counter-terrorism sanctions list, including four individuals linked to Hamas, an update to the UK government website showed.

"The United States will continue to work with our partners, including the U.K., to deny Hamas the ability to raise and use funds to carry out its atrocities," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.

100%

"Hamas’s actions have caused immense suffering and shown that terrorism does not occur in isolation. Together with our partners we are decisively moving to degrade Hamas's financial infrastructure, cut them off from outside funding, and block the new funding channels they seek to finance their heinous acts."

Israel vowed to wipe out Hamas after the militant group's fighters burst across the fence around the Gaza enclave on October 7 and rampaged through Israeli towns killing civilians. Israel says 1,200 people were killed and around 240 were dragged back to Gaza as hostages in the deadliest day of its 75-year history.

There are also thousands of casualties in Gaza as a result of Israeli attacks, although there is no independent estimate of the exact numbers.

FINANCES TARGETED

Since the terror attack, Washington has imposed three rounds of sanctions on Hamas. It has targeted the group's investment portfolio and issued an alert to financial institutions on countering Hamas financing while senior officials have discussed the group's access to funds on trips abroad.

Hamas is designated a terrorist group by Israel, the United States, the European Union, Britain and others.

Washington's action on Tuesday specifically targeted Mahmoud Khaled Zahhar, a senior member and co-founder of Hamas, the PIJ's representative to Iran and the Damascus-based Deputy Secretary General of PIJ and leader of its militant wing.

Lebanon-based money exchange company Nabil Chouman & Co was also targeted, along with its owner and founder. Treasury said Hamas uses the company to transfer money from Iran to Gaza and accused it of having transferred tens of millions of dollars to the group.

Washington's move freezes any US assets of those targeted and generally bars Americans from dealing with them. Those who engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions.

US Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo told Reuters last week that efforts to cut off Hamas funding would increasingly focus on facilitators in third countries, and that it would take coordination with allies and partners to shut off those avenues. His recent trip to Europe centered on fostering more cooperation in this area.

The Washington Free Beacon reported Monday that the Biden administration is set to approve a sanctions waiver that will allow Iran to access at least $10 billion in previously frozen funds held in Iraq. The acutely contested decision comes just a month after the Tehran-backed Islamist group Hamas launched an attack on Israel that left 1,400 mostly civilians dead. 

The waiver -- which would extend the sanctions relief first issued in July and set to expire Tuesday, November 14 -- allows Iraq to transfer frozen electricity payments into Iranian-owned bank accounts in Europe and Oman. 

In July, the Biden Administration announced that some of Iran’s frozen funds in Iraq will go to Oman, acting as a conduit to release the money for purchasing non-sanctionable goods under US supervision. Iraq owes Iran around $11 billion for imports of gas and electricity, but US banking sanctions prohibit dollar transactions with Iran. In June, the US agreed to make $2.7 billion available for Iran’s humanitarian needs.

The Trump administration first allowed Iraq to import electricity and gas from Iran, but only on the condition that the payments were kept in an escrow account in Baghdad. The Biden administration continued to issue that waiver, and then broadened it in July so that Iraq could move more than $10 billion outside the country, enabling Tehran to draw on the funds for its budget and humanitarian needs. In late October, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran reportedly discussed expediting Iran's access to the funds with his Omani counterpart.

In September, Washington released about $6 billion of Tehran’s frozen funds in South Korea as well as five Iranians from US prisons in exchange for five Iranian-Americans held hostage in Iran. The US-Iran agreement led to criticism of the Biden administration, as many called the scheme the largest ransom payment in history.

In October, Hamas waged its bloody war against Israel. The Iraqi waiver renewal has sparked concerns that such financial support could indirectly aid Iran's proxies. The Biden administration insists that, like the $6 billion held in Qatar, Iran can only use the $10 billion for non-sanctioned purposes. However, critics argue that since money is fungible, the access allows Iran to free up cash in other places for illicit activities.

In a US State Department briefing on Monday, spokesman Matt Miller declined to comment on the reports, saying he would not talk about “social media speculations.”

The news has prompted reactions by US lawmakers who were already pushing for tighter enforcement of sanctions on Tehran. Republican lawmakers in Congress argue that even though the money was allocated for humanitarian purposes, it helps the Islamic Republic regime divert funds into US-designated terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. They made this argument when they pressured the Biden administration to halt its $6 billion ransom payment to Iran.

Worried over the decision, Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) renewed his call on Congress Tuesday to pass his proposed Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act (S.2210), supported by 41 senators. The bill can mandate a congressional review of actions to terminate or waive sanctions imposed with respect to Iran. Representative Jim Banks (R-IN) also urged a similar motion at the House, where over 100 Republican lawmakers cosponsored the Maximum Pressure Act to codify the Trump administration’s maximum pressure campaign on Iran into law. 

"The world is living in a post-October 7 world, but the White House is still running an October 6 policy toward Iran," Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and sanctions expert who previously served on the White House National Security Council, told the Washington Free Beacon.

"Why should Iran have any access to more than $10 billion after sponsoring one of the worst terrorist attacks against American citizens and the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust? It would make more sense to freeze all of these accounts and keep every penny out of Tehran's hands."

In testimony before Congress late last month, Goldberg advised Congress to lock down the $10 billion as punishment for Tehran’s role in supporting Hamas’s war on Israel. He said Tuesday that the decision to release Iran’s money in Iraq is a “massive sanctions relief for Iran. It is NOT like previous waivers. It is NOT what the Trump administration did.”

In an interview with Fox News, Kirby stated that in spite of over 40 attacks being carried out on US facilities in Iraq and Syria since the war in Gaza broke out, "We don't seek a conflict with Iran right now".

The US was fast to defend Israel's right to defend itself after the Hamas invasion on October 7, which saw 1,400 mostly civilians killed and around 240 taken hostage to Gaza. The US has vowed to support Israel militarily and since deployed two carriers and thousands of forces to the Middle East as Iran's proxies began to step up action not only against Israel but against US targets.

Kirby mentioned retaliatory strikes, of which so far there have only been three, aimed at deterring further attacks on US military bases in the region. He emphasized that the focus is on inhibiting the capacity of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to support their proxy groups.

Responding to questions about why President Joe Biden hasn't ordered a direct attack on Iran's key military infrastructure, Kirby stated that the government is currently focused only on targets that hinder the IRGC's support for proxy groups.

When asked about potential actions and whether Biden is waiting for American casualties before taking substantive action, Kirby emphasized the readiness to take retaliatory strikes to protect troops and facilities. He concluded, "We are not looking to escalate, but if they continue to attack our troops and put their lives in danger, we will continue to take action to protect them."