What follows are Mizan News Agency’s photos of the autumn snow in Ahar, located in East Azarbaijan Province, north-west of Iran:
Three Girls Arrested in Tehran for Joyriding Luxury Cars
Head of a police station in southeastern Tehran said the girls were arrested after officers became suspicious of a luxury car and checked its record.
Having checked the records of the Kia Optima, the police found out that the car had been stolen days ago in northern Tehran.
The car owner says some days ago he picked up a girl in northeastern Tehran but she stole the car immediately after he got out of it for buying something.
The police also checked the record of a Hyundai Tucson vehicle and found out the vehicle had been stolen one week ago. The police called the owner who said his vehicle had been stolen in the same way.
During the investigations, the police came to the conclusion that the two vehicles had been stolen by three young girls between 18 and 20 years of age. So, the police began a massive operation to identity and arrest the suspects.
During the operation, the police found out that one of the girls lived in the same uptown area where the vehicles were stolen. The suspects were arrested immediately.
The girls confessed that they stole the vehicles only for fun and going for a joy ride to get familiar with more wealthy men on luxury cars.
Judiciary procedures are underway to put the girls on trial.
Iran Produces Anti-Cancer Drug to Neutralize US Sanctions
Iranian Health Ministry earlier announced that the anti-cancer drug called Busulfan cannot be provided for the patients in the country.
However, Dr Nader Norouzi, a faculty member at the Urmia University of Medical Sciences, has now succeeded in making the drug with a high degree of purity using a simple method.
According to ISNA, the drug, which is exclusively produced by the United States and France, is one of the most expensive anti-cancer medications, which can now be mass-produced inside Iran.
“The Ministry of Health asked the academic centres to produce a total of 160 essential medicines including Busulfan. Thank God after months of efforts, the drug, which is used to treat chronic Leukemia, was successfully produced,” said Dr Norouzi.
Dr Norouzi also said that the price of this drug last year was about 150 USD, but now the price can drop significantly while it is not just produced by some particular countries anymore; therefore, people should not worry about the drug at the time of sanctions.
For a more detailed review of Iran’s achievments in various fields of science and technology, check the book “Science and Technology in Iran: A Brief Review”, released by the Science and Technology Department of the Iranian President’s Office.
The US reinstated sanctions against Iran’s oil and banking industry on Monday, following its withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and pledges that Washington will place maximum pressure on Iran.
Humanitarian supplies are formally exempted from sanctions, but the banking sanctions practically deter any kind of trade with Iran.
In 2011, the last time the US was tightening anti-Iran sanctions, Washington’s pressure led to severe shortages of life-saving medicines and food staples, as foreign banks and companies were avoiding transactions with Iran for fear of being penalized.
Persepolis vs Kashima Antlers Match Breaks ACL Final’s Attendance Record
According to the AFC Website, with tickets for the 78,116 capacity Azadi stadium nearly sold out, the 2018 final match is poised to pass the highest single match attendance set during the 2014 final.
In 2014, 63,763 attended the deciding leg between Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal and Western Sydney Wanderers from Australia at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.
AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said, “From across all platforms and competitions, we are witnessing new benchmarks in engagement in the Continent. For the second straight year, we will witness a new attendance record, which is a testament to our progress in realising our ambitions through the AFC’s Vision and Mission.”
The thrilling race to Asian club glory reaches its peak as Kashima and Persepolis set their sights on a historic maiden AFC Champions League trophy and a record prize purse of $USD4 million.
Despite losing to their Japanese opponents 2-0 in the first leg, the Iranian team will be counting on full-capacity home support to overhaul a two-goal deficit in the final.
Defying the odds and late home goals have become synonymous with Branko Ivankovic’s men this season, who have come from behind to win nearly all their knock-stage opponents, registering one of the tournament’s most memorable comebacks when they overturned a two-goal deficit against Qatar’s Al Duhail to progress into the semi-finals.
A Look at Iranian Newspaper Front Pages on November 10
The top story in all papers today was a tweet by The Guardian’s Iranian correspondent Saeid Kamali Dehghan, in which he said Jamal Khashoggi, the slain Saudi journalist, had been killed for unveiling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s direct role in financing a UK-based anti-Iran TV channel, Iran International.
Also a top story was the ongoing reactions to the new round of US sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic, particularly a social media campaign launched by a group of Iranian celebrities, urging the people of the world to condemn Trump’s anti-Iran bans.
The second leg of the final match of AFC Champions League between Iran’s Persepolis and Japan’s Kashima Antlers, due to be held in Tehran at 18:30, also received great coverage, as the Iranian capital has prepared itself for the big match.
The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:
Aftab-e Yazd:
1- Iranian Artists United against Sanctions
2- The Guardian’s Iranian Correspondent in Danger
3- Three Iranian Women Make History in US Elections
4- Did Trump Win or Lose US Elections?
Ebtekar:
1- It Takes Time to Start Implementing Europe’s Special Payment Channel: Iran
2- We Shouldn’t Be Too Much Optimistic about Results of US Elections
Etemad:
1- We’ll Continue Doing Business with Iran: South Korea Ambassador
2- Report on London-Based TV Channel: Iran International or Saudi Mercenary?
Ettela’at:
1- US to Regret Imposing Sanctions on Iran: Zarif
2- Beijing Film Academy Grants Honorary Professor Title to Majid Majidi
3- Coming Months to Be Painful for Oil Consumers: Iran
4- Trump Challenged by Democrats’ Win in US Elections
5- All Iranian Athletes Winning Asian, World Medals to Be Exempted from Military Service
Haft-e Sobh:
1- Big Battle of London: Guardian, Kamali Dehghan, BBC Persian, Khashoggi, Iran Intl, Whistle-blowing
2- No Iranian in US Congress: Three Iranian-Americans Win State Seats
3- Hot Fever of Saturday Night: Persepolis vs Kashima
Iran:
1- #Unison_against_Sanctions: Iran Civil Society Call for World’s Support
2- Democrats Win Majority of Seats in US House
3- Black Box of Khashoggi Found as Guardian Correspondent Discloses His Source
Javan:
1- BBC Blowing Up Balloon of Sanctions
2- Reuters: Iran to Survive US Oil Sanctions
3- Iran Intl TV Channel behind Khashoggi’s Murder
Jomhouri Eslami:
1- Energy Clients Back to Line of Buying Iran’s Crude Oil
2- Khashoggi’s Body Destroyed in Acid in Saudi Consul-General’s House
3- 50 European Lawmakers Call for Cessation of War in Yemen
4- Thousands of Americans Hold Rally against Trump in New York, Washington
5- Europe Preparing to Bypass US Sanctions: Guardian
Kayhan:
1- Pompeo: Europe Remained in JCPOA, but Will Support Sanctions!
2- Houses, Hospitals Pounded in Insane Saudi, Emirati Attacks on Hudaydah
3- Democrats, Republicans Two Blades of Scissors of Sanctions against Iran
Sazandegi:
1- Black Box of Iran International TV Channel
* Khashoggi Had Revealed to Guardian Saudi Funding of Channel before Death
2- Cold War in US: Were Midterm Elections a Victory for Democrats?
Shahrvand:
1- Right at 6:30 pm: AFC Champions League Final in Tehran
2- Iranian Celebrities Launch Campaign against Trump’s Sanctions
Shargh:
1- CFT a Source of Controversy among Legislation Bodies in Iran
2- Have You No Shame, Iran FM Asks Pompeo on Yemen
3- Gaining Concession from Trump in Chabahar
4- UK Authorities Aware of Possible Risks Threatening Iranian Correspondent: Envoy
Sobh-e Now:
1- Churchill, Hitler, Trump, and Negotiation!
* Reactions to Darkest Hour Movie after It’s Broadcast by Iran’s State TV
Iran Condemns Australia Terrorist Attack
In a Friday statement, Qassemi said making such hideous and inhumane moves indicates that the cancerous tumour of ISIS is beyond a terrorist group.
“ISIS is a terrorist and inhumane ideology that has spread among many parts of the world and attracted people from various cultures and societies around the globe thanks to years of intellectual, political, financial, and military support provided by certain countries,” he said.
Qassemi also noted that the only way to get rid of the ideology and save the mankind from such satanic thoughts is to really cut all the support offered to these terrorist groups and cults in order to eradicate them.
A man who set a car on fire and stabbed three people – one fatally – in Melbourne died in hospital after being shot by police.
Authorities now say they are treating the attack as a terror-related.
The attacker, 31, was shot after confronting officers on a busy city street, authorities said. He was taken into custody in a critical condition.
The two survivors are in hospital, neither are in a serious condition. The suspect has not been named.
Police said they were “not looking for anyone further at this early stage”.
The ISIS group said on Friday that one of its “fighters” was behind the attack, its Amaq news agency reported.
Trump’s Iran Strategy Dictated by Saudi Arabia, Israel: Expert
The US government has announced the re-imposition of all sanctions against Iran which had been cancelled within the framework of the nuclear deal known as the JCPOA. Donald Trump’s administration officially announced that all sanctions that had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal are re-instated. Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department announced that 700 individuals and entities would be included in the blacklist.
The United States however granted waivers to temporarily allow eight nations to continue importing the Iranian oil after it re-imposed sanctions on Tehran, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday.
Now, the question is that what would happen to relations between Tehran and Washington with the return of US sanctions? Would Iran be forced to negotiate with the United States after these sanctions? Or Iran will continue its interaction with the remaining parties of the nuclear deal until the Trump’s term ends?
Khabar Online has conducted an interview with political analyst Vahid Gharavi in this regard. What follows are excerpts of his answers:
The history of Iran-US relations over the past forty years has been full of tension and hostility. In the current situation, especially since the beginning of Trump’s term, and Iran’s emergence as a regional power, new dimensions of such hostility have unfolded. Meanwhile, Washington’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal has increased this hostility.
Iran’s successes in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and, to some extent in Yemen, and the withdrawal of Takfiri terrorist groups, which were supported by Washington and the regional reactionaries, next to the defeat of the Saudi government’s wicked policies in this sensitive area, pushed Riyadh closer to the US. As a result, the anti-Iran policies of Americans took a new form. In fact, the pressures of the Trump administration on Iran and the intensification of sanctions, especially in the oil and gas areas, are now mainly ordered by Saudis and Israelis.
The re-imposition of US sanctions was put on the agenda as of May 2018. One can say there is nothing left to be implemented as of November 4. These days we are hearing that some giant western and even non-Western companies including Chinese oil firms are not willing to cooperate with Iran. Chinese macroeconomic benefits in trade with the United States have even led to a significant reduction in non-oil exports to China, and some Chinese banks have ended their banking cooperation with Iranian parties.
Of course, considering the need for fuel market in winter and the problem of oil price growth, it is not possible to cut down Iran’s oil exports to zero.
As Tehran is dealing softly with the US plan to paralyze the country’s economy, it seriously pursues diplomatic efforts to keep Europeans committed to the nuclear deal.
Over the past few weeks, there have been numerous consultations between the Iranian experts and EU officials in Vienna and Brussels to ensure they fulfill their promises.
Iran-US Row Big Test of Independence for Europe
Undoubtedly, the fulfilment of the European leaders’ promises would encourage Iran to stay in the nuclear deal, and it is very important for the EU. In fact, it is a test of independence for Europe as a powerful political-economic bloc against America’s Trump. This comes as the US president has not only withdrawn from the JCPOA, but also has broken his promises to his long-standing partners in Europe, and, in addition to leaving the Paris Agreement, he has imposed unusual tariffs on European goods to make the split deeper.
Iran No “Saviour” for Iran
According to Iran’s Central Bank governor, during the recent negotiations in Brussels, the financial channel proposed by Europe has been discussed in detail by the parties. Accordingly, the desired financial channel will work to facilitate and remove barriers to monetary exchanges between Iranian and European exporters. Iran’s potentialities and experiences throughout the past years have shown that we are not in a such a grave situation to be saved by Europeans [as mentioned in Khabar Online’s question] because they need to maintain their ties with Iran as well. Iran has never counted on Europe as a “saviour”. Iran relies on its domestic capacities to counter the effect of sanctions.
Naturally, Iran’s potentialities in various fields, of course, along with a clever diplomatic strategy, should resolve the problem of financial exchange between Iran and the European parties. China and Russia are also committed to be loyal to the JCPOA. China and Russia have agreed to satisfy Iran by fulfiling their commitments, especially the political ones. They are trying to fulfil all of their commitments.
One of the ways for the EU to comply with their obligations is, of course, to form a financial channel, which the central bank governor has called a “monetary treaty.” Certainly, finalising and launching this channel could facilitate the process of payment for Iran. This comes as according to a statement by the Foreign Ministers of the JCPOA parties, this mechanism should not be restricted to Europe in the medium and long term because other Iranian economic partners must enjoy its benefits.
US to Moderate Mideast Policies after Khashoggi Case
Political developments after the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul and its repercussions for the Saudi government, and to some extent for Trump as a supporter of Saudis and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, makes me feel that US regional policies would be moderated. It is likely that the anti-Iran project developed by Saudi Crown Prince and Israelis to put excessive pressure on Tehran will be somehow weakened. However, the unpredictable behaviour of Trump could lead to other plots against Iran.
If we pay attention to the remarks made by US Congressmen and some powerful senators, we can understand that there exists a tendency in the US governing body to criticise Trump’s foreign policies in the Middle East; especially the anti-Iran policies that to a great extent are dictated by Saudis.
Iran Praises Guardian Correspondent’s Courage, Warns of Risks He Faces
In a post on his Twitter account, Iranian Ambassador to London Hamid Baeidinejad said, “In a brave move, Mr [Saeid] Kamali Dehghan, The Guardian correspondent, said Saudi journalist Khashoggi revealed to him before his death that Saudi officials were the main sponsors of the [anti-Iran London-based TV channel] Iran International.”
Kamali Dehghan had tweeted on Friday that Khashoggi, the slain Saudi journalist, had been killed for unveiling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s direct role in financing the anti-Iran TV channel.
“I can confirm that Jamal Khashoggi was killed because of speaking to me on the phone from Istanbul in the morning on 26 September, revealing that London-based Iran International TV was funded by Mohammed bin Salman and Saud al-Qahtani,” he said in a tweet, which he later deleted for unknown reason.
He later posted tweets that suggested he felt threats to his safety, but he deleted these tweets as well.
In his two reports in the Guardian last month, Kamali Dehghan had quoted a source close to the Saudi government as saying Iran International was being funded through “a secretive offshore entity and a company whose director was a Saudi Arabian businessman with close links to bin Salman.”
Khashoggi, an outspoken critic of bin Salman, entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, but never came back. That was the same day when the Guardian’s report on the Saudi funding of the anti-Iran TV channel was published.
Khashoggi Killed for Disclosing Saudi Funding of Anti-Iran TV Channel
In a report on Oct. 2, the Guardian cited a source close to the Saudi government as saying that the anti-Iran London-based TV channel Iran International received an estimated $250m (£192m) from the Saudi royal court each year.
Now the Guardian correspondent, in a Friday tweet, has revealed that his source was Khashoggi, the Washington Post columnist who was assassinated on the same day as the report was published in a premeditated murder in Turkey blamed on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also known as MBS.
Khashoggi, an outspoken critic of bin Salman, entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, but never came back.
The Saudi kingdom, after denying the murder for several days, finally admitted that Khashoggi had been murdered in the consulate during an interrogation by rogue operatives that had gone wrong after diplomatic pressure grew tremendously on Riyadh to give an account on the mysterious fate of its national.
However, Saudi Arabia said that it did not know the whereabouts of the body, which is widely believed to have been dismembered.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later announced the assassination had been ordered at the “highest levels” of the Saudi government.
Iran Pavilions Warmly Received at London Tourism Fair
Foreign tourists and tour operators warmly welcomed Iran’s pavilions during the World Travel and Tourism Market Exhibition in London. This shows that the United States’ anti-Iran propaganda and unilateral sanctions have had no bearing on enthusiasts’ interest in Iran’s history and civilization.
The 39th International World Travel and Tourism Market Exhibit opened on Monday, bringing together those working in the tourism sector from around the world, including a number of Iranian tourism firms. The event opened at London’s international convention and exhibitions centre known as ExCel.
Like previous years, tourists and tourism fans visited the pavilions of some 182 countries from the Middle East, Asia, the United States, Latin America, Europe and Africa.
Based on reports, more than 50,000 participants take part in the exhibit every year.
Agreements worth £3.5 billion were expected to be signed in the tourism sector.
Like in previous years, Iranian tour operators made their presence felt in the exhibit and warmly received tourists and tour operators interested in working in the Iran domain. They put on show symbols of Iranian culture, displaying the grandeur of the Iranian history. They entertained visitors with different types of Iranian sweets and confectionary.
In an atmosphere not affected by political developments, many of those interested in Iran visited the country’s pavilions and inquired about how to travel to Iran as well as the tourist attractions in the country.
“We operate two to three Iran tours annually and we intend to increase its number. Places like mountains and deserts in Iran are attractive to tourists,” says a tour operator.
An author writing about events in the tourism sector, who also visited Iran’s pavilion, said he loved Iran and intended to travel to Iran soon, especially to Isfahan.
“Political developments have had no bearing on tourism activities, and this year I not only met our old customers, but met new customers as well,” said Ebrabim Poorfaraj, the chief of Iran tour operators.
“It’s been years that the US has maintained sanctions on Iran, and the world is well familiar with these games. From this perspective, many customers even do not ask about US sanctions and have got along with this issue,” he added.
Tourism experts believe Iran’s tourism industry will not affected by Trump’s sanctions.
“We attend key international tourism exhibitions each year … Fortunately, there were many enthusiasts interested to visit Iran in previous years, and the experiences that tourists shared on social networks and media all indicated the hospitality of Iranians and the delicious Persian cuisine as well as one of the most empires of the world,” said Hassan Ansari, a tour operator attending the exhibition.
“The high degree of the tourists’ satisfaction indicated Iranians’ good behaviour as well as the security and tranquility in our country, which encourages many tourists to choose Iran as their destination,”
“In addition to the attractions associated with Iranian culture, civilization and empire, there are so many internationally registered historical monuments and intellectual property in Iran that the tourists travelling to the country are usually interested to visit Iran for a second and third time as well,” he added.
“Basically, the companies that have worked with the Iranian market before are keen to continue their cooperation with Iran and would like to be present in the country’s market. The reason is that the tourism potential in Iran is such that they cannot have it in other countries,” he said.
