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Iran thwarts multiple aviation security threats, commander says

By
IFP Editorial Staff
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Iran Airport

Referring to one of the most notable incidents, he said that in mid-November last year, during a Tehran–Mashhad flight, an individual with significant physical strength attempted to disarm the head of the onboard flight security guard and even expressed intentions related to hostage-taking.

The attempt was swiftly foiled by security forces during the flight, allowing the aircraft to land safely at Mashhad International Airport without incident.

Brigadier General Mollanouri added that other threats, including bomb threats and similar acts, had also been reported in recent days and months. However, none escalated into a serious crisis due to special preventive measures and timely actions taken by aviation protection forces.

He noted that the cumulative efforts of the Aviation Protection Corps over the years have played a key role in deterrence and prevention against hostile actors.
Despite sanctions and potential restrictions, he emphasized that Iran’s aviation security capabilities remain fully operational.

Mollanouri stressed that thanks to continuous training, specialized aviation expertise, physical readiness, and appropriate equipment, no successful unlawful interference has occurred in Iran’s civil aviation sector over the past 41 years.

He also underlined that Iran’s aviation security operations comply with international conventions, including the Tokyo, Chicago, Hague, and Montreal Conventions.

Syria ministers discuss military collaboration with Putin in Russia: SANA

By
IFP Media Wire
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The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) ⁠reported that Putin’s meeting on Tuesday with Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Asaad Hassan Al-Shaibani and Minister of Defence Murhaf Abu Qasra ‌focused on political, economic and military issues of “mutual interest”, but that “particular emphasis” was on defence.

According to SANA, Putin and the Syrian ministers discussed a range of defence-related matters, including developing military cooperation to strengthen the Syrian army’s capabilities and ‌modernising its equipment, transferring expertise and cooperation in research and development.

“During the meeting, both sides reviewed ways to advance military and technical partnership in a manner that strengthens the defensive capabilities of the Syrian Arab Army and keeps pace with modern developments in military industries,” SANA reported.

The two sides also discussed political and economic issues, including the “importance of continued political and diplomatic coordination between Damascus and Moscow in international forums”, according to the news agency.

On the economic front, the talks addressed expanding Syrian-Russian cooperation, including in reconstruction projects, infrastructure development and investment in Syria.

Putin also reaffirmed Russian “steadfast support” for Syria and its territorial integrity, while renewing “Moscow’s condemnation of repeated Israeli violations of Syrian territory, describing them as a direct threat to regional security and stability”.

The ministers’ visit to Moscow is the latest by Syria’s new authorities since the removal from power last December of the country’s longtime ruler and Moscow’s former ally in Damascus, Bashar al-Assad.

Russia was a key supporter of al-Assad during Syria’s nearly 14-year war, providing vital military aid that kept the Assad government in power, including Russian air support that rained air strikes on rebel-held areas.

Despite al-Assad and his family fleeing to Russia after the toppling of his regime, Moscow is eager to build good relations with the new government in Damascus.

Moscow, in particular, is hoping to secure agreements to continue operating the Khmeimim airbase and the Tartous naval base on Syria’s Mediterranean coast, where Russian forces continue to be present.

In October, Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, visited Russia, where he said his government ‍would honour all the past deals struck between Damascus and Moscow, a pledge that suggested that the two Russian military bases were secure in the post-Assad period.

Putin stressed ‍at the time of al-Sharaa’s visit ⁠that Moscow was ready to do all it could to act on what he called the “many interesting and useful beginnings” discussed by the two sides on renewing relations.

Russian ‌state media on Tuesday quoted the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, as saying that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov would also hold talks with ‍his Syrian counterpart, Al-Shaibani, during the Syrian delegation’s visit.

During a visit to Moscow in July, Al-Shaibani said his country wanted Russia “by our side”.

“The current period is full of various challenges and threats, but it is also an opportunity to build a united and strong Syria. And, of course, we are interested in having Russia by our side on this path,” Al-Shaibani told Lavrov at the time.

 

IAEA’s Grossi playing on enemy’s ground: Iran’s nuclear head

By
IFP Media Wire
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Speaking to reporters on Wednesday on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting, Mohammad Eslami said that no country in history has cooperated with the IAEA as extensively as the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.

Eslami added that the most extensive and stringent inspections in history have been carried out on Iran’s nuclear industry, noting that there has not been a single report in which IAEA inspectors stated that Iran had deviated from its safeguards obligations.

Referring to a meeting of the UN Security Council held the on Tuesday night, he said the role and pressure exerted by the United States on Iran’s nuclear industry over the past 25 years have now become fully clear.

He added that Washington has explicitly stated in its National Security Strategy document that it does not pursue its interests through international organizations and continues to rely on coercion and the “law of the jungle.”

The head of the AEOI stressed that the statement and references made at Tuesday’s Security Council meeting were completely unprofessional and unlawful.

Emphasizing that UN Security Council Resolution 2231 about Iran’s nuclear deal (JCPOA) has expired, Eslami said China and Russia—both permanent members of the Security Council with veto power—have also stated that the demand by three European countries and the United States, carried out under the leadership and support of the Zionist current, is invalid and unenforceable.

Paya (Tolou-3) satellite marks Iran’s leap into a new generation of Earth imaging

By
IFP Editorial Staff
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Iran Satellite

With a mass of about 150 kilograms and dimensions of roughly 1.2 × 1 × 1 meters, Paya is classified as a mini-satellite and is the heaviest indigenous satellite Iran has so far prepared for launch.

It carries two imaging sensors capable of providing five-meter resolution in black-and-white and 10-meter resolution in color.

By using artificial intelligence-based image processing algorithms, the effective accuracy of the images can be enhanced to around three meters.

For the first time in Iran’s satellite program, mirror-based imaging technology has been employed, making Paya the most advanced domestically developed imaging satellite to date.

Compared with previous Iranian satellites, which were mainly nano- and micro-satellites, Paya offers major improvements in image quality, imaging duration, coverage area, and data transmission rates.

Equipped with a space propulsion subsystem similar to that used in the Chamran-1 satellite, Paya can perform orbital maneuvers and corrections, ensuring an operational lifespan of at least three years.

More than 80 percent of its components and subsystems are locally produced, largely with contributions from Iran’s knowledge-based and private sectors.

US slashed Ukraine aid by factor of 77 since 2024: Report

By
IFP Media Wire
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According to an article on Tuesday, Washington’s assistance to Kiev dwindled by a factor of 77 from January through October 2025 compared to the previous year. The dramatic decrease has translated into territorial losses and diminished military capabilities for Ukraine, the publication reported.

While some European NATO member states, such as the UK, France, Germany, Sweden and Norway, significantly increased the extent of their aid to Ukraine over the same period, their combined contributions proved insufficient to offset the sharp decrease in US assistance, according to ZN.UA.

Since returning to the White House in January 2025, US President Donald Trump has made cutting foreign assistance a priority, temporarily freezing new aid and slashing over 90% of USAID programs. The Republican firebrand has argued that Washington should be spending the money at home rather than abroad, including in Ukraine.

Earlier this year, Trump also shut down USAID, an agency that had long served as Washington’s primary funding channel for political projects abroad and through which billions of dollars in assistance had been provided to Kiev.

By contrast, the EU doubled down on shoring up Kiev financially, pledging last week to issue a €90 billion loan backed by the bloc’s own budget. Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic opted out of the scheme. The move came after member states had failed to agree on a controversial plan by the European Commission that envisaged stealing the Russian central bank assets immobilized in the EU.

 

US allies dissatisfied with WH’s foreign policy shift: Survey

By
IFP Media Wire
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The Public First survey was conducted earlier this month among 10,510 adults in the US, Canada, the UK, France, and Germany, with at least 2,000 respondents in each country.

It found that a majority of Canadians and pluralities in Germany and France believe the US is a “negative force” in the world.

Near-majorities in the three countries also said Washington tends to create more problems for other countries than it solves. In the UK, views were more mixed, although sizable shares still expressed skepticism about US reliability and global behavior.

Americans, however, rated the US more positively. More than half said it is a positive force globally and can be depended on in a crisis, while nearly half said Washington supports its allies around the world.

The poll comes as Trump has reshaped US foreign policy since returning to office, pursuing a more nationalist and transactional approach. His administration has emphasized stricter border controls, rolled back climate-related commitments, and moved to revoke a number of ideologically driven policies both at home and abroad.

Meanwhile, a newly released US National Security Strategy has criticized European governments for what it has called a loss of cultural confidence and warned of “civilizational erasure.” Trump has described Europe as “decaying” and led by “weak” people.

Western European officials have publicly downplayed Washington’s criticisms while stressing that it remains a key ally.

 

Libyan army chief killed in plane crash near Ankara

By
IFP Media Wire
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The crash on Tuesday killed everyone on board.

The other victims were four high-ranking Libyan military officials as well as three crew members.

Turkish officials told Al Jazeera that initial investigations have ruled out sabotage and instead point to a technical failure as the cause of the crash.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah confirmed al-Haddad’s death in a statement on Facebook, saying the “tragic accident” took place as he and his delegation were returning home.

“This great tragedy is a great loss for the nation, the military establishment, and all the people,” he stated, adding, “We have lost men who served their country with sincerity and dedication and were an example of discipline, responsibility, and national commitment.”

Al-Haddad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a crucial role in the ongoing United Nations-brokered efforts to unify the country, which has been divided since 2014 following the NATO-backed revolt that toppled and killed longtime ruler, Muammar Gaddafi.

The four other officers who died in the crash were General Al-Fitouri Gharibil, the head of Libya’s ground forces; Brigadier General Mahmoud Al-Qatawi, who led the Military Manufacturing Authority; Muhammad Al-Asawi Diab, an adviser to the chief of staff; and Muhammad Omar Ahmed Mahjoub, a military photographer with the chief of staff’s office.

The Libyan delegation was in Ankara for high-level defence talks aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries, according to Turkish officials.

Dbeibah’s UN-recognised Government of National Unity (GNU) in Tripoli announced official mourning across the country for three days. The GNU statement said that all state institutions would fly flags at half-mast, while official ceremonies and celebrations would be suspended.

Turkiye’s Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya said on X that al-Haddad’s plane took off from Ankara’s Esenboga airport at 8:10pm local time (17:10 GMT) en route to Tripoli, and that radio contact was lost about 40 minutes later.

He added that authorities found the plane’s wreckage near the Kesikkavak village in Ankara’s Haymana district.

Yerlikaya noted that the Dassault Falcon 50-type jet had made a request for an emergency landing while over Haymana before all communication ceased.

Burhanettin Duran, the head of the Turkish presidential communications office, said the plane notified air traffic control of an electrical fault and requested an emergency landing. The aircraft was redirected back to Esenboga, where preparations for its landing began.

The plane, however, disappeared from the radar while descending for the emergency landing, Duran added.

Security camera footage aired on local television stations showed the night sky over Haymana suddenly lit up by what appeared to be an explosion.

Turkish Minister of Justice Yilmaz Tunc said that the Ankara chief prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into the incident.

In a statement to Al Jazeera, a Turkish official stated that “initial reports from the investigation rule out any sabotage to the Libyan Army Chief plane crash”.

The initial cause is technical failure, the official added.

According to the GNU, Libya will send a team to Ankara to work with Turkish authorities on investigating the crash.

Walid Ellafi, the GNU’s state minister of political affairs and communication, told the broadcaster Libya Alahrar that it was not clear when a crash report would be ready.

He said the jet that crashed was a leased Maltese aircraft and that officials did not have “sufficient information regarding its ownership or technical history”.

Eastern Libya commander Khalifa Haftar issued a statement expressing his “deep sorrow over this tragic loss”, while the House of Representatives in Benghazi offered their condolences to the families of al-Haddad and his delegation.

Al-Haddad had been the army’s chief of general staff since August 2020, and was appointed by then-Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj.

Turkiye’s ‌Ministry of National Defence had announced the Libyan chief of staff’s visit ‌to Ankara earlier this week, saying ⁠he had met his Turkish counterpart, Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, Turkish Minister of National Defence Yasar Guler, and other Turkish military commanders.

The crash occurred a day ‌after Turkiye’s parliament passed a decision to extend the mandate ⁠of Turkish soldiers’ deployment in Libya by two more years.

Ankara has close ties with the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, which it provides with economic and military support.

In 2020, it sent military personnel there to train and support the government, and later reached a maritime demarcation ‌accord.

In 2022, Ankara and Tripoli also signed a preliminary accord on energy exploration.

Turkiye has recently switched course under its “One Libya” policy and ramped up contacts with Libya’s eastern faction as well.

 

Iran to move toward scientific approach to water management

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-
Iran Water Crisis

Speaking in an open session of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Pezeshkian said all provinces, without exception, are facing water stress, citing ongoing tensions among provinces including Isfahan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Khuzestan, and Yazd.

He said continued disputes between provinces are not a solution, noting that such conflicts would not arise if sufficient water resources existed.

The president said citizens who have made sacrifices for the country are now confronting a complex crisis that cannot be resolved through rivalry or fragmented decision-making.

He stressed that the government is committed to implementing scientific recommendations provided by universities and experts, and urged lawmakers to place trust in specialists and academic research.

Pezeshkian argued that science-based decisions, even if they encounter implementation challenges, can be corrected and improved, while non-expert decisions have historically deepened crises.

He added that ineffective laws must be revised, saying repeated legislation since the early years after the revolution has failed to reverse worsening water indicators.

Referring to studies conducted with the participation of experts in water resources, agriculture, irrigation, sociology, economics, and management, Pezeshkian said these assessments show a continuous deterioration of the country’s water situation.

He emphasized that national and international research confirms the crisis affects all provinces and cannot be solved simply by reallocating or redistributing water.

The president also compared the water crisis to air pollution in Tehran, saying both are the result of development that exceeded environmental capacity.

Two Americans killed fighting for Ukraine: Newsweek

By
IFP Media Wire
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The deaths of the US citizens, identified as Brian Zacherl and Ty Wingate, has been confirmed by their relatives on social media, the outlet said in an article.

They were apparently members of the International Legion, which is subordinate to the Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR), it added.

Zacherl’s nephew wrote in a post on Facebook on December 5 that he had been “killed in battle a couple of days ago,” the article read. The mercenary’s wife and two children remained in Kiev, “waiting for conditions to allow the recovery of his body from the battlefield,” according to the nephew.

The mercenary’s father, Brian Zacherl Senior, is a former US marine who also worked for the CIA between 2013 to 2018, RIA Novosti reported after studying his accounts on social media.

Wingate died on December 3 when a Russian drone struck an armored personnel carrier he was traveling in, Newsweek reported, citing his sister. He left behind a pregnant wife, she stated.

There is no official data on the number of US citizens who have been killed since the escalation between Russia and Ukraine in February 2022. According to figures from the Kiev-based Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War, which hosts an exhibition on foreign mercenaries participating in the ongoing conflict, there had been 92 American fatalities as of early September.

The exhibition’s curator, Yury Gorpinich, told the New York Times that “several thousand” US citizens have served with Ukrainian forces so far.

In April, the Kiev government simplified rules for recruiting foreigners into its military as Ukraine struggles to replenish heavy losses suffered on the front line amid mass draft avoidance and desertions.

Over 15,000 mercenaries, mostly from Poland, the US, and Georgia, have taken part in the fighting on Kiev’s side, according to estimates by Moscow. Nearly 6,500 of them have been killed in action as of December 2024, according to Russian figures.

 

Pres. Pezeshkian submits draft annual budget bill to Parliament

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

The budget bill has been drafted for the first time using the “new rial,” following the removal of four zeros from Iran’s national currency.

If fully approved, the move is expected to end years of using extremely large figures and complex calculations in official financial documents.

All revenue, expenditure, institutional allocations, and major budget tables in the draft have been prepared entirely under the new currency framework. This marks the first annual budget to be officially compiled and submitted using the new rial after the completion of the redenomination process.

At the same time, members of the government’s economic team attended Parliament to brief lawmakers on the deteriorating current economic situation. Parliamentary officials have warned that if explanations fail to satisfy legislators, ministers could face impeachment proceedings.

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