Iran news headlines on Thursday includeassassinationof an Iranian IRGC commander in Lebanon; Iran suggestion to progress in UN atom talks; Iran denial ofshipping arms to Islamist militants in Somalia; rise of oil price after Iran nuclear talks and Iran setting upa natural gas liquid project in the Sirri Island in the Persian Gulf.A senior Iranian commander reportedly killed
An Iranian independent news website is reporting that a senior commander of Irans powerful Revolutionary Guard has been killed in Lebanon
The website mashreghnews.ir says Gen. Hassan Shateri was killed by mercenaries of the Zionist regime, but provided no details about his death.
Iran suggests progress, but no deal, in U.N. atom talks
Iranindicated that some progress was made in talks with the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Wednesday, but that the two sides again failed to finalize an elusive framework deal over the Islamic states disputed atomic activity.
Irans ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Ali Asghar Soltanieh, said a new meeting would be held, without giving a date. There was no immediate comment from the IAEA about the one-day meeting in Tehran.
Iran denies shipping arms to Islamist militants in Somalia
Iranhas denied allegations that it has been supplying Islamist militants in Somalia with weapons, describing the charges as absurd fabrications, according to a letter obtained by Reuters on Thursday.
As the United States pushes for an end to the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia, U.N. monitors following Somalia sanctions are warning that Islamist militants in the Horn of Africa nation are receiving weapons from distribution networks linked toYemenandIran.
Oil rises after new setback in Iran nuclear talks
Oil prices rose on Thursday as fresh tensions over Irans nuclear programme revived global supply concerns, offsetting weaker-than-expected growth data from France andGermany.
Crudefuturesprices had dropped after data showed Europes two largest economies shrunk markedly in the last quarter of 2012, dampening recent optimism over the regions recovery.
Iran starts liquid gas facility in Sirri Island
Iran started a natural gas liquid project in the Sirri Island in the Persian Gulf, to exploit condensate and collect associated gas, the Oil Ministry News website Shana reported.
The Sirri NGL, which came onstream today after being inaugurated by the PresidentMahmoud Ahmadinejad, has the capacity to process 3.5 million cubic meters of associated gas a day into feedstock for petrochemical plants and injection to national gas grid.
The Iran Project is not responsible for the content of quoted articles.
