Iran Hopes Contacts with Saudi Arabia Will Come to Fruition: Zarif
“Iran is ready, and has always been ready, for close ties with Saudi Arabia,” Zarif told reporters in Damascus on Wednesday.
“We have had contacts with Saudi Arabia and we hope these contacts will come to fruition through greater cooperation between Tehran and Riyadh for peace and stability in the region, particularly in Yemen which is suffering from great humanitarian catastrophe,” he added.
Iran Elections 2021: Ahmadinejad Signs Up to Run for President
Ahmadinejad visited the Interior Ministry along with five companions, including his advisors and former ministers, in order to sign up.
Outside the building, clashes were reported between his fans and the Interior Ministry personnel.
The former president’s registration comes as the Guardian Council is expected to bar him from running once again. He had been disqualified by the Council earlier in 2017.
Several conservative figures, including former IRGC Construction Base commander Brigadier General Saeed Mohammad, former defence minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan, deputy head of IRGC Quds Force for economic affairs Brigadier General Rostam Qassemi, and vice-speaker of Iran’s parliament Amir-Hossein Qazizadeh Hashemi have already signed up to run for president.
However, most of them usually drop out in favour of the conservative candidate who is expected to win the biggest number of votes.
On the reformist camp, however, Mohammad Javad Zarif has once again told reformist leaders that he will not run for president even though he is believed to have the biggest chance, among the left-wingers, to convince people to vote.
Zarif in Damascus to Discuss Palestine Developments
During the visit, the Iranian Foreign Minister will hold meetings with high-ranking Syrian government officials as well as Syria-based leaders of Palestinian groups in order to discuss the latest developments in the occupied Palestine.
Iran Blasts Israel’s Racist Crimes, Reiterates Call for Referendum in Palestine
“Attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque, killing of worshippers, and religious desecration are the biggest proof of the racist and criminal nature of this usurping regime, which has always been the main cause of undermining the security, calm, and stability of the region,” Zarif said in a tweet in Arabic.
“I hereby stress that the only fair solution to the Palestine issue is referring to the will of the real children of this land and holding a referendum,” he added.
Iran, Algeria Discuss Promotion of Mutual Cooperation
In the phone call, the two sides congratulated each other on the Eid al-Fitr, and discussed the latest regional and international developments.
They also expressed pleasure with the good relations between Tehran and Algiers, and underlined the reinforcement of bilateral cooperation in various fields as well as the exchange of the two countries’ delegations.
Iran Elections 2021: Registration of Hopefuls Officially Begins
The Iranian election officials started registering the hopefuls at 8:00 a.m. local time at the headquarters of the Interior Ministry in Tehran.
The presidential hopefuls will have until Saturday to turn up at the venue and hand in their credentials.
The registration is the first phase of an electoral process that will climax on the Election Day and end after all ballots have been counted
According to the timeline of the presidential elections, the whole process will take under 40 days.
On May 26-27, the approved candidates will be announced.
Then the campaigning will begin from May 28 to June 16.
No candidate will be allowed to do any campaigning on June 17, one day before the polls are opened for a single day.
According to the election headquarters, there are 59,310,307 eligible voters across the country, 1,392,148 of whom are first-time voters.
Tehran has the highest number of eligible voters (9.8 million).
There were 64,000 polling stations during last elections, but that number has increased by 10% this year.
Chief Negotiators of Iran, E3 Hold Four-Way Meeting in Vienna
Expert-level meetings were also held both bilaterally and within the framework of the three working groups.
During the Friday meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission, the participants decided that the negotiations and consultations continue intensively and in a faster pace. Hence, several continuous meetings are held every day at different levels among Iran and the P4+1.
Iran, Turkey Discuss Latest Developments in Jerusalem al-Quds
In this phone call, the two foreign ministers also agreed that, should the UN Security Council fail to make an effective decision against the usurping Zionist regime’s aggression in its today’s meeting, Iran and Turkey would pursue the issue within the framework of the mechanisms of the United Nations General Assembly and the extraordinary meeting of the Executive Committee of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
Zarif and Cavusoglu also stressed the need for close consultations between Tehran and Ankara in this regard.
Hamas Chief Calls Zarif to Brief Him on Jerusalem Tensions
During the phone call, Haniyeh also asked Foreign Minister Zarif for Iran’s support for the Palestinian people’s resistance.
The Iranian foreign minister, in turn, reaffirmed Iran’s solidarity with the oppressed people of Palestine, and condemned the usurping and brutish Zionist regime’s measures against the fasting people of Palestine as well as its attack against Al-Aqsa Mosque and martyring and wounding defenceless worshippers.
Zarif reiterated Iran’s all-out support for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and the Palestinian cause.
He also briefed Haniyeh on his consultations with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on supporting the Palestinian people’s resistance at the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
