German parliament VP urges support for Iran protesters

“Anyone who had money in Venezuela has already taken it out,” Majidreza Hariri said, responding to concerns about Iranian assets worth an estimated two billion dollars.

He added that instability in Venezuela had been evident for at least five to six months, leaving ample time for Iranian funds to be withdrawn, and warned against attempts to use the crisis as a pretext to write off debts.

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  Ex-lawmaker urges action on Iran’s assets in Venezuela, citing Assad's fall

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  US seizure of tanker off Venezuela may squeeze Iran's shadow oil trade

He said Iran-Venezuela Bank has not functioned as an effective commercial bank in recent years as financial transactions between the two countries were not conducted through this bank.

According to Iran’s foreign ministry on Monday, economic and diplomatic relations with Venezuela remain intact in the wake of Maduro’s arrest, and political developments do not automatically alter bilateral ties.

“Relations between states are based on mutual respect and interests,” said spokesperson Esmail Baghaei earlier in the day.

He said Iranian diplomats and citizens in Venezuela are safe and that Tehran continues to monitor the situation closely.

Protesters gathered in the Baghe Sepahsalar area of Tehran on Monday and chanted “Death to Ali Khamenei,” according to a video received by Iran International.

Iran’s ICT Minister Sattar Hashemi said on Monday any decision to limit or cut internet access would depend on conditions, responding to questions about disruptions during unrest.

“Estimates show that more than 10 million citizens, directly or indirectly, have their lives and livelihoods affected by the country’s communications infrastructure,” Hashemi said. “People have demands and protests, but at the same time there is serious concern about damage to businesses if the internet is disrupted or cut, and this concern is completely understandable.”

He said cutting or restricting internet access was “not an absolute or permanent measure” and that decisions were made by taking into account what he described as “security, livelihood and the protection of citizens’ lives.”

As protests continued across Iran for a ninth day, the foreign ministry on Monday accused the United States and Israel of interfering in Iran’s internal affairs and encouraging violence through their public statements.

Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said statements by some American and Israeli officials amounted to interference in Iran’s internal affairs and incitement to violence under international norms and rejected what he described as foreign efforts to present themselves as supportive of the Iranian public.

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Shops were closed in the port city of Bandar Ganaveh in southern Iran as part of what a resident described as a nationwide strike, according to a video received by Iran International.

The video, sent on Monday, showed shuttered businesses across the city, with the resident saying all shopkeepers had joined the strike.