Al-Qaeda Leader Killed In US Drone Strike In Kabul: Biden

The 23-year-old Khalid Mehdiyev, reportedly from the Republic of Azerbaijan, was observed loitering outside the home of Masih Alinejad, a well-known Iranian journalist and women’s rights activist on July 27 and 28.

A sealed complaint filed by a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent at the Southern District of New York on July 29 and seen by Iran International says that the suspect was loitering outside a Brooklyn home, without naming Alinejad, and even tried to enter the residence and looked through the windows. Other reliable information received confirms that the incident happened at Alinejad’s address.

On July 28, as the man left the location after sitting in a Subaru SUV for hours and walking around the building, he was stopped by New York City police (NYPD) for a traffic violation.

The complaint filed does not say if the NYPD was tipped off by federal agents about the vehicle, or the traffic stop was a coincidence.

As the man was detained at a NYPD precinct and questioned, police found a Chinese-made AK-47 assault rifle in a suitcase on the back seat of the car and $1,100 in cash. Mehdiyev first denied that the suitcase and the gun were his, but then changed his story and admitted that the weapon was his, and he was “in Brooklyn because he was looking for someone.”

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“At that point, MEHDIYEV invoked his right to counsel and stated that he would not discuss the matter further at that time,” the complaint filed at court says.

The gun with a round in the chamber, two magazines with more than 60 rounds, had its serial number erased. The police also found two other license plates in the car with different numbers and issued by different states, than the Illinois plate on the vehicle.

Alinejad, who campaigns against mandatory hijab and other rights issues was the target of an international kidnapping plot orchestrated by Iran’s intelligence network last year. She has a considerable following in Iran especially among women with over 7 million followers on Instagram and 373,000 on Twitter.

The clerical regime in Iran does not hide its disdain about the female activist and has banned women from sharing any information or videos with her. State-controlled media routinely castigate her and use labels such as CIA agent to discredit her activism.

Her most recent campaign that elicited the wrath of the Islamic Republic was a call to women to in Iran remove their headscarves on July 12. Many women did and sent their videos to Alinejad or shared it on social media. Regime officials reacted by saying that hijab was their “red line”.

At this point it is not confirmed that Mehdiyev’s target was Alinejad, or if he has any links with Iranian spy networks. In the coming days more revelations might follow. Alinejad also has not yet publicly reacted to the news.

According to a report by the New York Post on Sunday, the federal complaint said the man named Khalid Mehdiyev, 23, was found with the assault rifle, multiple high-capacity magazines and additional rounds of ammunition and a suitcase full of cash as well as two other different license plates when he was arrested after lurking in the area for two days.

Feds said they watched Mehdiyev sitting in a gray Subaru Forester SUV with an Illinois license plate for several hours on Wednesday and Thursday, adding that he ordered food to his car and looked inside of the windows and attempted to open the front door of the residence.

Mehdiyev said he was looking for a new place to live in the Brooklyn neighborhood and tried to open the front door of the residence so he could ask if he could rent a room. Later, he confessed that he had been in Brooklyn “because he was looking for someone,” according to the complaint.

The charging documents made no explicit connection between Mehdiyev and Alinejad but the activist was the target of an international kidnapping plot orchestrated by Iran’s intelligence network last year.

After dozens of Iranian women unveiled in public and sent their videos to the anti-hijab activist in New York, Iran said earlier in the month that sending her footage can lead to up to 10 years in jail.

According to reports, the skirmish is still ongoing in the Shaghalak village in Doust Mohammad Rural District in central Hirmand in Sistan and Baluchestan province. It is not clear what prompted the incident.

Confirming the reports, Meysam Barazandeh, the governor of the border town said that there is no immediate estimate of the number of casualties. 

Unconfirmed reports in social media say at least 10 people were killed during the firefight. Some social media users say most of the casualties are members of the Baluchi ethnicity, a minority people living in Iran’s south-east bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Late in June, at least one Iranian soldier was killed during clashes in the same area. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Naser Kanaani identified the victim as Mohammad Sayyad, saying that he died in line of duty by unknown gunmen at the Milak border crossing and urged the Taliban to punish those behind the incident.

In April, the border crossing Dogharoon was temporarily shut down following a “dispute” between Iranian and Afghan border guards.

There have been some incidents at the border since the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan last year. An Iranian foreign ministry official in January said that the reason for clashes between Iranian forces and the Taliban was lack of professional conduct by the latter.

In a tweet on Thursday, Deborah Lipstadt said, “We denounce this continued, egregious antisemitism,” adding that “This rhetoric is unacceptable – not to mention dangerous – especially from a head of state.”

Calling on the Islamic Republic to end its antisemitic stance towards the world, she said, “It must cease.”

She was replying to a tweet by Khamenei’s official account who said a day earlier, July 27, that described the Western powers as “mafia,” noting that “At the top of this mafia stand the prominent Zionist merchants, and the politicians obey them. The US is their showcase, and they’re spread out everywhere.”

His remarks came as tensions have been simmering between Iran and Israel in the recent weeks with Israel making alliances with the regional countries against the Islamic Republic and Tehran claiming that it has dealt severe blows to Israel without mentioning any concrete event. 

Earlier in the week, Israel’s envoy to the United Nations Gilad Erdan told Iran International that Iran is enriching uranium almost to military-grade, noting that “This is a clear threat to the security of our region and to the whole world. It needs to be addressed by this Security Council, and this Council is silent.”

Talking to Iran International’s correspondent Arash Aalaei on Wednesday, the New Jersey Democrat said, "I have concerns about Iran's actions in numerous parts of the globe, and it is something my team and I work very hard on, and we take very seriously."

Noting that Congress is working on some measures to stop the Russo-Iranian axis in the Ukraine war, Booker said, "We are already making a lot of efforts. The (Senate Foreign Relations) Committee has taken bipartisan stands and will continue to do what is necessary to check the Iranian Russian and terrorist activities." 

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan warned twice in July that Moscow appears to be looking at buying Iranian drones and Russian officers even visited a drone base in Iran’s Kashan to review their options. 

An adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky told Iran International on July 25 that Russia and Iran are allies in the Ukraine war and it won’t be a surprise if Tehran supplies drones to Moscow.

On July 26, an Iranian lawmaker confirmed Russia’s request to buy Iranian drones. On the same day, Iranian Civil Aviation Organization announced that Iran and Russia have signed a new agreement to expand cooperation in the aviation sector. 

On Wednesday, a top official was quoted by Russia's RIA news agency as saying that Iran will soon start accepting payments made with Russia's Mir bank cards, making it the latest country to adopt the Russian-made alternative to Visa and Mastercard.