Biden’s approval rating declines amid delta variant surge

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September 7, 2021

In a new Washington Post/ABC News poll, 52 percent of respondents said they approve of the way Biden is handling the pandemic, which is down from the 62 percent of adults who gave him positive marks in late June.

The drop comes as the delta variant, which is more contagious than previous versions of COVID-19, is spreading rapidly throughout the US and is now the dominant strain in the country.

Biden’s overall approval rating has also dropped since June, according to the new survey, falling from 50 percent to 44 percent.

Part of that decrease can be attributed to the situation in Afghanistan, pollsters noted.

Thirty percent of adults questioned said they approve of the president’s handling of the situation in Afghanistan, while 60 percent said they disapprove.

While a majority of those polled support Biden’s decision to withdrawal US troops from Afghanistan and end America’s war, a large percentage of respondents disapprove of the way he handled the mission.

Twenty-six percent said they support the withdrawal and approve of Biden’s handling of the situation, while 52 percent said they support the withdrawal but disapprove of Biden’s handling.

Seventeen percent said they oppose the withdrawal overall.

Source: The Hill

Next round of Iran-Saudi talks to be decided soon: Envoy

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 7, 2021

“Iran calls for honest and brotherly relations with Saudi Arabia on political, economic and cultural fronts,” Iraj Masjedi was autoed by Al-Masaaleh as saying.

“Talks are ongoing, but have not produced tangible results yet,” he added.

The Iranian ambassador to Iraq has also expressed his gratitude to the Baghdad government for acting as an intermediary between Tehran and Riyadh, reported the source.

He said Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi had a key role in the mediation, and that Tehran appreciates Baghdad’s move to set the stage for negotiations.

The top Iranian diplomat reportedly underlined that all differences between Iran and Saudi Arabia should be resolved through talks.

Iran and Saudi Arabia have had no diplomatic relations following the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran in January 2016 after Saudi Arabia executed Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

The two countries have held three rounds of talks.

Reciprocal ties between the countries have been strained over several geopolitical issues such as Riyadh’s relations with Washington, Saudi war on Yemen as well as oil export policy.

Iranian Doctor Loses Life to Covid After Visiting “24k” Patients

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 7, 2021

Doctor Abdoljalil Ghiadi, a physician from Yekkeh Soud village in Raz and Jargalan, ran a three-member medical team since the breakout of the pandemic to visit patients with little access to medical care.

Raz and Jargalan is one of the underprivileged areas lying on the border areas of North Khorasan province. The province is facing a dire need for physicians.

Dr. Ghiadi was sent there for his medical internship some thirty years ago. But he refused to leave after the completion of his internship period so that he could provide medical care to the locals.

He lost his life to the coronavirus at the age of 56 on Monday, after being hospitalized at the ICU section of a medical center in the provincial capital Bojnourd.

Iran FM: US main culprit in violating JCPOA

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 7, 2021

main culprit behind violating the agreement.
He was speaking on Monday at his first session with foreign ambassadors to Tehran.

The foreign minister however noted the European troika is also partly to blame for the situation of the deal also known as the JCPOA.

Amir Abdollahian said the European troika- Britain, France and Germany- failed in sticking by its side of the JCPOA and couldn’t prevent the US from violating the deal.

Referring to the stalled talks in Vienna over the Iran nuclear deal, he added that Tehran believes talks for talks’ sake will not be useful.

Amir Abdollahian described Iran’s foreign policy as balanced, active, dynamic and smart, adding Iran’s priority is its neighbors and Asia but it will expand ties with the rest of the world including Arab and Islamic countries, Africa, Latin America, Europe and the West. On Afghanistan, He said Iran is in touch with all countries involved and wants a broad-based government in Afghanistan with the participation of all Afghans.

He voiced concern over the developments in Afghanistan as well as the growth of terrorism and drug trafficking there.

The foreign minister also said the Islamic Republic is pursuing a program that aims to vaccinate more than 4 million Afghan refugees in Iran against Covid-19.

Iran Records a Trade Surplus of $1.2bn Last Month, China largest client

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 6, 2021

Spokesman for the customs administration Rouhollah Latifi said Iran exported $3.2 billion of non-oil products between July 23 and August 22. Latifi said this is a 54 percent growth compared to the previous year, but a nine percent fall compared to the previous Persian calendar month.

Latifi further said China has been the largest client of Iran during the July 23 to August 22 period, importing over $1.5bn worth of products, equal to 45 percent of Iranian exports.

Iraq, the UAE, Turkey and Afghanistan were the other largest importers from Iran, with purchases of $346mn, $285mn, $184mn and $127mn , respectively.

The spokesman also said $2.05bn worth of products were cleared from Iranian customs administration over the one-month period, which is a 26 percent fall compared to the same period last year.

Latifi explained that the lion’s share of the imports were from the UAE, China, Turkey, Germany and Switzerland, from where Iran bought $711mn, $476mn, $281mn, $105mn and $33mn worth of imports, respectively.

Latifi also touched on goods transited through Iran in the 31-day period. He said Iran was a transit route for 974-thousand tons of foreign goods in the period, which is a 94 percent growth, year on year.

Afghans to get scholarship and special residency in Iran

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 6, 2021

According to the office of Iran’s vice president of Science and Technology, so far 200 Afghan citizens have been vetted for this purpose.

A human resources official at the office said qualified candidates will be granted 3-, 5- and 10-year residency. Seyeyd Ali Hosseini added that those holding such a residency will be treated as Iranian citizens and enjoy all rights except the voting right.

Hosseini said Afghans who receive the special residency card will be employed as researchers and entrepreneurs at knowledge-based companies.

He noted that people from other countries like France, Spain, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq have received the special residency and they no longer need to extend their visas. Hosseini said some 100 prospective students who contested the Afghan university entrance exams were also identified and 80 students said they were willing to study in Iran for a Bachelor’s degree.

He said after obtaining a Bachelor’s degree, the students may apply for admission to graduate programs but their success in doing so depends on their performance as undergraduate students. That’s, Hosseini said, also the case with PhD candidates.

Iraqi resistance: Saudi Arabia, UAE run Daesh militants

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IFP Media Wire

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September 6, 2021

“The intelligence services of Saudi Arabia and the UAE directly run Daesh elements,” Abu Ali al-Askari said via his Twitter account, adding that “this is obvious to the relevant services”.

He made the remarks after 13 Iraqi policemen were killed and three wounded in a Daesh terrorist attack against a checkpoint near Iraq’s northern city of Kirkuk on Sunday.

In a separate attack on Sunday, at least three Iraqi soldiers were killed and one wounded when Daesh terrorists targeted an army checkpoint southeast of the Iraqi city of Mosul.

“Those who are negligent in this regard are complicit in these crimes … The commanders of Hashd Al-Sha’abi (PMU) must take charge, especially in the northern regions,” Al-Askari stated, using the Arabic name of the Popular Mobilization Units, which is the largest coalition of Iraqi resistance groups that played a key role in Iraq’s 2017 victory against Daesh.

He then cautioned forces of the PMU to beware of the conspiracies hatched by the United States and Israel.

Al-Askari also asked Yemen’s Ansarullah resistance movement to attack Saudi Arabia and target its infrastructure, especially the country’s energy resources, which are the main financial source of sponsoring criminal groups.

In a large-scale operation on Saturday, the Yemeni Armed Forces, run by Ansarullah, used 16 drones and ballistic missiles to hit targets deep inside Saudi Arabia. The attacks targeted vital facilities, including Saudi Aramco facilities in Ras Al-Tanura, Jeddah, Jizan and Najran regions.

Source: Press TV

Tehran City Council Members Thank Taxi Driver Paralympics Coach

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 6, 2021

The taxi driver, Ali Fakhravar, coached the Iranian national weightlifting Paralympics team as they hauled a whopping six medals including one gold and four silvers. That helped Iran get its best Paralympics performance ever in Tokyo with 12 gold, 11 silver and one bronze medals.

Fakhravar, a paralyzed war veteran, works as a taxi driver at the taxi stand of Mehrabad Airport in Tehran.

On Monday, two city council members, Meisam Mozaffar, a former managing director of the Taxi Organization of Tehran, accompanied by Mohammad Akhoundi, a former spokesman for the Physical Education Organization of Iran, paid an unannounced visit to the Merhrabad Airport’s taxi stand.

They praised Fakhravar’s efforts at the presence of his colleagues and handed him flowers and sweets as well as a gift on behalf of the Islamic Council of the City of Tehran.

Iraq Admits No Arbaeen Pilgrims Via Land Borders

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 6, 2021

“As announced by Iraqi officials, travels to Iraq’s shrine cities for the Arbaeen march are only possible by air. Therefore, if people want to take part in these ceremonies, they should only use air travel,” said Valiollah Hayati, the deputy governor for security and law enforcement affairs.

“Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Iraq has imposed a 30-thousand limit on the number of Iranian pilgrims, who seek to participate in the Arbaeen march this year.”

The official said individuals who want to set up Moukebs [temporary pavilions] to serve the pilgrims in Iraq should also go there by air. He added that no such pavilions will also be set up in Iran’s Shalamcheh and Chazzabeh border crossings this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The official also noted that anyone seeking to travel to Iraq by air should take a PCR test for the coronavirus disease 72 hours ahead, and should have a certificate of negative test result to avoid being barred from entry into Iraq.

The Arbaeen march, which bring millions of pilgrims to Iraq every year, was first cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Grapes Harvest and Raisin Production in Kordestan Vineyards

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IFP Editorial Staff

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September 6, 2021

This method is used by gardeners in the village of Dulab in the western Iranian Province of Kordestan.

To produce raisins, gardeners boil wood ash in water, let the water cool down and the ash to settle down. The result is what they call “Khoushab”.

The gardeners then soak the grapes with Khoushab and let them dry on rooftops, under the sun. It takes almost 15 days for the grapes to dry.

The Boulav tradition has its roots in the past and has turned Dulab into a raisin hub in the region. Dulab is a terraced mountainous village, which is located 40 kilometers away from the Kordestan capital of Sanandaj.

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