Amnesty Says UK Must Take Legal Action Over Iranian Hostage-Taking

Wray, in a speech delivered at a conference hosted by Boston College, detailed the incident as he warned about the rising threat cyber-attacks sponsored by nation states like Iran, Russia and China pose to companies and US infrastructure.

“We got a report from one of our intelligence partners indicating Boston Children's was about to be targeted, and understanding the urgency of the situation, the cyber squad in our Boston field office raced out to notify the hospital," Wray said.

Wray said officials with the FBI were able to quickly get the nationally renowned children's hospital the information needed to "stop the danger right away" and mitigate the threat.

"Quick actions by everyone involved, especially at the hospital, protected both the network and the sick kids that depended on it," Wray said.

Wray called the incident "one of the most despicable cyberattacks I have ever seen" and was an example of the increasing risks hospitals and other providers of critical infrastructure face from hackers, including state-sponsored ones. The attack put the lives of patients at risk.

"If malicious cyber actors are going to purposefully cause destruction, or hold data and systems for ransom, they tend to hit us somewhere that's really going to hurt," Wray said.

Iran has been repeatedly accused of cyber-attacks against the West, Israel and rival Arab countries in the Middle East.

Reporting by Reuters

According to a statement by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), dozens of fighter jets conducted a drill that included "long-range flight, aerial refueling, and striking distant targets" over the Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday night. 

In May, The Times of Israel reported that the drill would simulate a large-scale strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities. The exercise is part of the military’s major Chariots of Fire drills, which involves nearly all branches of the IDF, and has been focusing on training for fighting on Israel’s northern borders, including against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah in Lebanon.

IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi announced last year that he the army had “greatly accelerated” preparations for action against Tehran’s nuclear program, that would include finding ways to strike facilities that are buried deep underground and preparing for an expected retaliation against Israel by Iran and its allies throughout the region

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said Monday Iran must understand that it will pay the price for its terrorist activities and threatening Israelis around the globe, in reference to Iranian threats of revenge for the assassination last week of Revolutionary Guard colonel Hassan Sayyad-Khodaei in Tehran.

He was a commander in Iran’s extra-territorial Qods (Quds) Force reportedly in charge of organizing attacks against Israel.

The Washington Free Beacon cited information obtained by United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI) to reveal a network of Chinese petrochemical refiners, or "teapots," behind the upswing in illicit Iranian crude oil trade, saying they provided the Islamic Republic with at least $22 billion in revenue since President Joe Biden took office.

These Chinese private firms, which are not state-controlled, are primarily responsible for "funding this illicit and uniquely lucrative trade" with Iran, the report said, adding records seen by the UANI detailed at least 40 different shipments of Iranian oil to China dating back to 2019. 

The information about small refiners buying Iranian oil is not new but the details in UANI’s report shed further light on the illicit trade.

"Since the US has in fact sanctioned Chinese state-owned imports in the past, such as Zhuhai Zhenrong, the decision to import Iranian oil via dozens of small unaffiliated ‘non-state' firms helps obscure the Chinese government's role and protect its own big firms from scrutiny, accountability, and attendant sanctions," a brief issued said.

Earlier in the year, Bloomberg said teapot refineries have benefited from Washington’s sanctions on Iran and Venezuela because they bargain for more discounts while other buyers have stopped purchases in fear of the US financial system freezing their assets.

Idaho’s Republican Senator Jim Risch said in a tweet on Tuesday that “The Biden Admin must prioritize efforts to address this egregious behavior, which continues to threaten the US, its partners, and freedom of navigation everywhere.”

On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the "unjustified seizure" of the Greek-flagged vessels, saying, "Iran's continued harassment of vessels and interference with navigational rights and freedoms are a threat to maritime security and the global economy.”

France has also denounced the capture of the oil tankers in Persian Gulf waters, urging the Islamic Republic “to immediately release the crews and vessels."

The European Union also issued a statement on Sunday to express its serious concern to the Islamic Republic following the capture of the oil tankers, and called for transparency, de-escalation and a fast resolution of the issue.

On Friday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized the tankers in helicopter-launched raids in the Persian Gulf about a week after the confiscation of Iranian oil from a tanker held off the Greek coast and its transfer to the US.

Iran said on Saturday that the crew of two Greek tankers had not been detained and are on board their vessels.

Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof said on Tuesday that the signatories of the statement – headlined ‘Lay Down Your Arms’ -- have been threatened and intimidated by the Islamic Republic authorities to rescind their signatures.

"They think cinema is their barracks where they can use militarism to silence the artists' protest against violence,” he said.

In their open letter published on Sunday, a large group of film makers and actors called on security forces responsible for suppressing protests to lay down their weapons. Citizens have been demonstrating since last week against the rulers of the clerical regime.

Without directly mentioning the statement, the Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance warned Monday night, “We will punish those who seek to stand in the way of IRGC and guardians of Iran’s security by releasing worthless statements and delusional remarks.”

In reaction to the letter, Cinema Press website, with links to the security apparatus, quoted an “informed source” as saying that anyone who incites armed forces to rebel, flee, or surrender will face from six months to 10 years of prison.

The ongoing protests began when a 10-story building collapsed in Abadan, in the oil-rich Khuzestan province May 23, leaving 36 people dead while dozens are still missing.