Flight JT 610 was headed for Pangkal Pinang, in the Bangka Belitung Islands, when it lost contact and is believed to have ended up under water.
The plane was a new type of aircraft and it is unclear what caused the crash. Lion Air is Indonesia’s largest low-cost carrier.
“The plane crashed into water about 30m to 40m deep,” Search and Rescue Agency spokesman Yusuf Latif told AFP news agency. “We’re still searching for the remains of the plane.”
Items believed to belong to passengers have been found in the water, including ID cards and driver’s licences, the search and rescue agency said on Twitter.
“We don’t know yet whether there are any survivors,” the agency’s head, Muhmmad Syaugi, told reporters.
“We hope, we pray, but we cannot confirm.”
At an earlier news conference, officials said the plane had been carrying 178 adults, one infant and two babies, as well as two pilots and five cabin crew. However, there are conflicting reports on the exact number of people on board.
The head of Indonesia’s disaster agency, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, has tweeted images which he said showed debris and personal belongings that came from the aircraft and had been found floating in the sea.
Debris was also seen near an offshore oil refinery operated by state-owned energy firm Pertamina, an official from the firm said.
Lion Air said in a statement that the pilot and co-pilot were experienced, with more than 11,000 flight hours between them.
Three of those on board were trainee flight attendants and one was a technician.
At least 20 employees from Indonesia’s finance ministry were on board, the BBC has learned.
A spokesperson for Indonesia’s finance ministry Nufransa Wira Sakti said they worked at the finance ministry offices in Pangkal Pinang but had been in Jakarta for the weekend. They routinely took this flight.
The news was announced by Iranian Minister of Science, Research and Technology Mansour Gholami on Sunday.
According to Gholami, the Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) at its 25th session named March 14 the International Day of Mathematics for the role of mathematics in advancing other sciences, especially in understanding major social, environmental issues including climate change, and the destruction of biodiversity.
The Iranian minister said the purpose behind naming March 14 as the International Day of Mathematics is to widely publicise the activities in the field of mathematics.
He further noted that in UNESCO’s document the scientific achievements of late Iranian mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani and three other female mathematicians are hailed.
According to the minister, the document emphasises the constructive role of women in the development of math and calls them role models for women and girls in all societies.
The 14th day of the third month of the year has been chosen as the International Day of Mathematics on the basis of number Pi (3.14).
The Islamic Republic of Iran was elected a member of the UNESCO’s 58-member Executive Board in 2015.
Maryam Mirzakhani was an Iranian mathematician and a professor of math at Stanford University. Her research topics included Teichmüller theory, hyperbolic geometry, ergodic theory, and simplistic geometry.
On 13 August 2014, Mirzakhani was awarded the Fields Medal, the most prestigious award in mathematics. Thus, she became both the first woman and the first Iranian to be honoured with the award. She died of breast cancer in July 2017 at the age of 40.
This marks a turning point in Iran’s contemporary history as supplying oil used to be a privilege at the hand of the government before and after the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Now, it seems a dramatic development is unfolding in Iran’s economy which is mainly dependent on oil revenue.
Many believe that the new development is one of the byproducts of the US sanctions which are aimed at reducing Iran’s oil exports to zero. The US is set to re-impose its second round of unilateral sanctions on November 4.
Now, for the first time over the past seven years, Iran has managed to sell its crude oil through Iran Energy Exchange (IRENEX). On Sunday, a total of 280,000 barrels of oil was sold through the IRENEX at a rate of $74.85 per barrel.
According to the latest report by IRENEX, the country has already put up for grab a shipment of one- million barrels of crude oil.
“Today, four Iranian firms provided a trading code to take part in the transaction run by the International Circle of the Iran Energy Exchange after depositing ten percent of the whole shipment price into the banking account of the Central Securities Depository of Iran,” said Fariba Akhavan, Chief Operating Officer at Central Securities Depository of Iran, as quoted in a report by Fars News Agency.
For more information, find below a detailed report by Fars News Agency on Sunday’s transactions:
Local Time: 14:00
Iran Started supplying crude oil through IRENEX
Local Time: 14:15
Three oil purchasers expressed their preparedness to take part in the transactions including a multi-national firm. A growing number of applicants have rushed to register their names to participate in the transactions. The trend has temporarily made CSDI’s website out of reach.
Local Time: 14:50
Finally two proposed prices were registered by the participants for purchasing a one-million-barrel shipment. At present the highest proposed price for a 35,000-barrel shipment stands at $62.4 for each barrel. Another proposed price stands at $61.85. Now, we should wait and see if the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) would lower its base price ($79.15) or not in response to the current demands.
Local Time: 15:00
The NIOC decreases its base price to $74.85 per barrel. Now, the number of applicants has increased considerably and at least 8 applicants have registered their names. The applicants offered their prices ranging between $61.85 and $69.82 per barrel.
Local Time: 15:10
One of the applicants offered to purchase eight 35,000-barrel shipments at $74.85 per barrel and bought them. Two other applicants called for a 35,000-barrel shipment at $65.55 and $68.56 but failed in its bid.
Local Time: 15:23
Three Iranian brokers of Parsian Bank, Refah Bank and Khobregan were agents of the firm which purchased 8 shipments of the Iranian crude oil through IRENEX.
Local Time: 15:27
Khobregan Saham affiliated with Oil Industry Pension Fund purchased 140,000 barrels of crude oil through IRENEX. The two other brokers – Parsian and Refah – managed to purchase the remaining 140,000 barrels of oil.
Local Time: 15:28
Given the successful transactions made through IRENEX, Iran managed to break the spell and sell its crude oil through the exchange after seven years. Reports say supplying other one-million-barrel shipments will keep going next weeks in one single shift.
Local Time: 15:30
Reports say private companies with no affiliations to governmental organizations are the purchasers of Iran crude oil.
In the World Cinema section of this year’s AFI festival, the features films “3 Faces” by Jafar Panahi and “The Pig” by Mani Haqiqi will represent the Iranian cinema.
Besides, the Spanish-language film “Everybody Knows”, the latest work by Asghar Farhadi, will be shown as the special section of the event.
“3 Faces” and “Everyone Knows” were first unveiled at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival where Asghar Farhadi’s latest work was screened at the opening ceremony.
“The Pig” by Haqiqi was also first featured in the competition section of the 2018 Berlin International Film Festival.
The short film “Darkness” directed by Saeed Jafarian and produced by Rambod Javan has also been accepted to be screened at the AFI film festival.
“Darkness”, which was first featured at the Cannes Film Festival, was later invited to the Toronto International Film Festival as well.
Last year, the short film “Negah” (Look) directed by Farnoosh Samadi won the award.
The American Film Institute (AFI) is a US film organisation that educates filmmakers and honours the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States.
AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. It is one of the best American festivals, and is said to be one of the most important film festivals in the world, approved by the Academy Awards.
The clothes displayed at the fair were designed for marking Ashura, a special occasion in the Shiite Muslim community.
In this exhibition, dubbed “Ashura Clothing”, Iranian fashion designers and clothing companies put on display their latest designs for the occasion of Arba’een, the fortieth day after Imam Hussein’s martyrdom, which is annually marked with a march towards the Iraqi city of Karbala. This year, Arba’een has fallen on October 30.
During the lunar months of Muharram and Safar, Muslims dress in black as a symbol of grief for Imam Hussein’s martyrdom. The demand for these clothes in Iran used to be supplied by foreign firms, mostly from China. However, the products offered in such exhibitions are going to meet the country’s domestic needs.
Aside from the cultural aspect of localizing the supply of Ashura clothing, there is also an economic aspect to it. Iranian cultural authorities put the revenues earned from domestic supplies at 2.5 billion dollars during the past year.
As millions of Muslims from across the world are going on foot to visit the holy shrine of Imam Hussein in Karbala as part of the Great March of Arba’een, some special clothes have been designed to help marchers endure walking for such long distances.
What follows are photos of this exhibition, which was wrapped up on October 26 at Vahdat Hall in central Tehran:
Seyyed Hossein Mousavian, a senior fellow at Princeton University and a former Iranian diplomat, maintains that Saudi Arabia was forced by the White House to admit that Khashoggi had been killed in its consulate in Turkey as the US was under huge international pressure over its ally’s crime.
Seyyed Hossein Mousavian
According to Mousavian, the US will not sacrifice its lucrative business with Saudi Arabia over the Khashoggi case, but will finally have to accept the removal of the ambitious crown prince as a compromise.
Mousavian made the comments in a recent interview with Khabar Online news agency, the full text of which follows:
Q: What is your analysis of Khashoggi’s death? Some believe that the murder was intentional and carried out with the main goal of tarnishing Saudi Arabia’s face in the world.
A: It’s not a correct hypothesis. The mainstream media and reliable sources in the US and Europe have no doubt that a team of Saudi commandos had been dispatched by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Istanbul to carry out the murder. It is not clear yet whether or not the order of Khashoggi murder was issued earlier or not. There is a possibility that the team was assigned to merely kidnap Khashoggi but he was killed in clashes with the team’s members. Then the team may have decided hurriedly to dismember his dead body with or without coordination with Riyadh and left Istanbul immediately.
Q: How do you see Saudi Arabia’s confusion in dealing with the case?
A: Saudi Arabia confirmed Khashoggi’s murder for three reasons. First, the Turkish government had key information on the murder and was not ready to bargain over it because this could seriously damage its political and security reputation.
Second, the Washington Post daily was determined to unveil the hands behind the murder and to this end, it had the support of other mainstream media like the New York Times and CNN.
Third, the Turkish intelligence and security apparatus began to leak the details of the murder gradually through Aljazeera TV channel and a number of leading Turkish media. Aljazeera played a key role in provoking the world’s public opinion against Saudi Arabia. Through this scenario, Qatar took a heavy revenge against Saudi Arabia over its isolation plot. Finally, the pressures on the White House forced Trump to send his Secretary of State to Riyadh to urge Saudi officials to accept responsibility for Khashoggi’s murder and vow to punish the perpetrators.
Q: How do you see the future of the US-Saudi relations? Can the US impose sanctions on its regional ally?
A: It goes without saying that the Khashoggi case could hamper the two sides’ relations but they won’t ever sacrifice the ties for such a case. Of course, if Washington comes under pressure, it would sacrifice bin Salman to its own interests but it would never abandon Saudi Arabia as its ally in the region.
Q: How do you assess Turkey’s role in the case? Is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan trying to gain concessions over the case? Shall we say that the US is using Turkey as a proxy to handle the case?
A: Unlike previous cases, Erdogan has dealt with Khashoggi’s murder deliberately. He was angry with bin Salman and Trump. Now he has punished them severely by focusing on the case. But the more sensitive section of the case is still untold. Ankara has information that confirms bin Salman’s complicity in the case. If Ankara keeps disseminating information on the case, Washington will have no way but to topple bin Salman. Otherwise, it has to give big concessions to Turkey.
Q: What is your idea about the international reactions particularly those of Arab states as well as the silence of many others?
A: The Arab world is a dead and useless world and we shouldn’t expect anything considerable from them. Most of the Arab states not only remained silent towards the US decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem-al-Quds but also cooperated with Tel Aviv behind the curtain.
Q: How can Iran take advantage of the current political situation in the region? As we know, Russia has stepped into the fray to drag Saudi Arabia into its court against the US. What is your analysis about the issue?
A: Iran has reacted deliberately. If Iran had rushed to show reactions against Riyadh, the western media would point the finger of blame at our country instead of Saudi Arabia. They would also revive all the accusations they had levelled against us over the past four decades. Today, the Israeli lobby groups in the US are highly active to alleviate Washington’s pressure on Saudi Arabia under this pretext that Iran will gain benefit if Saudi Arabia comes under pressure. I think the fate of bin Salman is at the hand of Washington. Tehran and Moscow will have no say in this issue.
Q: How do you see the future of this international controversy? How can it be ended?
A: This is not just a murder. The earlier mistakes by bin Salman like his war on Yemen, taking Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri as hostage, putting sanctions on Qatar and arresting tens of Saudi prince have cast doubt on his ability to serve as the Saudi king. Now, the murder of Khashoggi serves as putting a match to a barrel of gunpowder. Khashoggi was one of the main contributors of Washington Post and his murder shocked the world. So, all mainstream media in the US and the world have been mobilized to overthrow bin Salman.
This comes as the US national interests require that Saudi Arabia remains its main ally. So, the issue has become more complicated. It seems that, at the end of the day, bin Salman may be toppled and the US won’t go further.
Leader of Iran's Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei meeting the head and staff members of Iran's Passive Defence Organization on October 28, 2018. / Photo by Leader.ir
The Leader stressed that in face of the complex methods of enemies’ attacks, passive defence measures must be taken seriously.
Speaking in a Sunday meeting with the officials of the country’s Passive Defence Organization, Ayatollah Khamenei said such type of defence should be scientifically accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive to foil any kind of penetration.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution once again underlined the increasing importance of passive defence in confronting the emerging threats of enemies.
Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated that the officials in all sectors must pay close attention to passive defence measures adding that if the country’s decision-makers do not understand the significance of this issue, and the passive defence does not develop satisfactorily, the country will be subjected to some inevitable threats.
Therefore, he added, the military and non-military bodies in various sectors of the country ought to fully cooperate with Passive Defence Organization.
Qassem Mohebali said it is just a speculation, but given the role Oman plays in Iran-West relations, it can be assumed that Netanyahu probably travelled to Oman to discuss Iran rather than other issues.
It was quite surprising to see the Israeli prime minister visiting Muscat and being welcomed by the king of Oman, he noted.
“Oman has always tried to play the role of Switzerland in the region over the past decades. Therefore, Muscat has always been impartial in regional issues and tried to mediate between countries.”
“They were not part of the Saudi coalition against Yemen and did not take a stance against Yemenis. The Omanis also did not follow Saudi policies regarding Iran and Qatar and maintained their ties with Tehran and Doha,” underlined Mohebali.
On the other hand, Oman has always played a mediating role between Tehran and the West, especially Iran and the United States, as well as Iran and Britain, he went on to say.
“The Omanis have moderate policies on the Palestinian issue to reduce conflict and advance negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,” he said.
“On the other hand, this trip can be linked to recent developments in the region, in particular the case of Jamal Khashoggi. However, all these are speculations, because Saudi Arabia and Qatar next to Jordan play a greater role in the Palestinian issue. Therefore one can assume the main topic on the agenda has been the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Mohebali, who once served as the Iranian foreign ministry’s director general for the Middle East, said one can link the visit to Tel Aviv’s normalization of ties with Arab countries, but Oman will not play a special role in the case, and issues of the Arab world.
He pointed out that if Netanyahu was to talk about the issue of Palestine and other issues in the Arab world, he would choose other Arab destinations.
Netanyahu visited the Persian Gulf state of Oman on October 26 and met with Omani Leader Sultan Qaboos. Omani state media and Netanyahu’s office shared the news of the visit after he returned home.
The rare visit was not publicised beforehand and came days after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met Qaboos on a three-day visit to the country.
Earlier this year, Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi made a rare visit to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The top story in all papers today was the Iranian Parliament’svote of confidenceto the four ministerial picks introduced by President Hassan Rouhani for the ministries of labour, roads, trade, and economy.
Several papers also covered the remarks made by Central Bank of Iran (CBI) Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati about the establishment of Iran-Europe payment channel, which will help Tehran bypass the US sanctions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Oman was also a hot topic of debate among Iranian papers today.
The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:
Abrar:
1- Underground ISIS Band Busted in Moscow
2- Pompeo: Iran Fighting against Saudi, UAE through Proxies
Aftab-e Yazd:
1- Tractor Sazi Fans Chant Slogans Calling for Women’s Presence in Stadiums
Stadiums Waiting for You Shining Stars
2- All Four Ministerial Picks Receive Vote of Confidence from Lawmakers
Arman-e Emrooz:
1- Iran Strongly Criticizes Sultan Qaboos
Oman Shouldn’t Be Deceived by Tel Aviv’s Political Game
2- Return of Iran-EU Payment Channel
3- Parliament Endorses Rouhani’s Ministerial Picks Even despite People’s Opposition
Ebtekar:
1- Rouhani’s Cabinet Completed by Parliament’s Saturday Night’s Votes
2- Sultan Breaks His Habit: A Review of Israeli PM#’s Important Visit to Muscat
Etemad:
1- Impossible Ceasefire: Gaza Getting Used to Bloody Weekends
Ettela’at:
1- Human Rights Bodies Widely Condemn US Airstrikes on 2 Mosques in Syria
2- Central Bank Governor: Iran-Europe Payment Channel to Be Established in Brussels
Hamshahri:
1- Former Envoy to Damascus: Syria Reconstruction Economic Chance for Iran
2- Tunnel to Bypass US Sanctions to Be Unveiled Next Week
Iran Chief Banker: Details of Iran-EU Payment Channel to Be Finalized in Brussels
Jame Jam:
1- Parliament Gives Green Light to Government
Javan:
1- Rouhani: People Can’t Accept that We Use Sanctions as Excuse for Our Incapability
2- Iranian Women More Leading than What We See in Iranian Films: French Female Politician
3- US Backs Off from Cutting Iran’s Access to SWIFT
Ka’enat:
1- Iran Shines at South Korea Invention Festival
Kayhan:
1- Highlights of Bibi’s Visit to Muscat: Will Oman Betray Palestinian Cause?
2- Human Rights in European, American Style
West: Khashoggi’s Murder Terrible, but No Reason for Stopping Arms Sales to Saudis!
3- Iran Foreign Ministry Denies Holding Talks with US in Oman
Resalat:
1- Rouhani: We Should Stand Together to Bring US to Its Knees
Sazandegi:
1- Secret Visit Disclosed
Purpose of Netanyahu’s Muscat Visit beyond Normalization of Ties with Arabs
Addressing the conference, the Iranian minister said the Islamic Republic has established over 18,700 health centres across the country over the past four decades, and at least 29,000 people are working in the centres offering services to the public.
As the new head of the conference’s panel on economic impact of primary healthcare, Hashemi said Iran began to establish its first health networks in the remote villages but spread them later step by step covering urban areas and big cities.
“The networks played a key role in preparing the ground for decreasing death tolls from diseases as well as infant and pregnant women mortality. They also provide most people with a direct access to healthcare like vaccination and prenatal care,” he noted.
The Iranian minister underlined that the healthcare networks significantly reduced health costs across Iran.
Irregular expansion of my-pharm-blog.com, lack of active systems for offering healthcare services, growing number of patients with non-communicable diseases, rapid advance in new technologies, expensive drugs and aging populations all and all led the country towards a dire situation which required the Iranian government to adopt appropriate measures and develop deliberate plans particularly in the urban areas, he added.
He also referred to the Health Development Plan which is being implemented in Iran and said over 21,000 people have been recruited in urban areas within the plan to fight non-communicable diseases which are deemed as the main reason for most fatalities in Iran and the world.
“From 3 to 5 people recruited in the plan are working under the supervision of family doctors. We have already begun to outsource our medical services by further involving private sector in this area. Private sector can contribute significantly to the health section.”
The Iranian minister underlined that all plans are developed in a way to offer cheaper services with higher quality and efficiency.
“Iran believes primary healthcare can have many positive economic results. The care not only meets the public’s needs but also prepares the ground for further participation of the public in the health area. Meanwhile it strengthens the health system and creates a balance between the society’s needs on the one hand and the specialists on the other, promoting the health services across the country.”
“The Pig” by Haqiqi was also first featured in the competition section of the 2018 Berlin International Film Festival.
