Polo was invented and first played in Iran thousands of years ago. The original name of polo was Chogan which is a team sport played on horseback. Yesterday, a symbolic polo match was played at Shohada Sport Complex in Tehran, in preparation for its inclusion in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Larijani held a meeting with his Afghan counterpart in the Russian capital, Moscow, on Wednesday on the sidelines of the first meeting of Eurasian parliamentary speakers.
During the meeting, the senior Iranian official condemned a recent terrorist bomb blast in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul and expressed his condolences over the deaths of tens of people in the tragic event.
Larijani, elsewhere in his remarks, pointed to the recent advances by the Afghan army in its anti-terror military campaign, and underlined the need for other regional countries to help in the fight against the inauspicious phenomenon.
The first conference of the Eurasian states’ parliament speakers, titled Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation in the Interests of Joint Prosperity of the Counties in the Eurasian Region in the 21st Century, opened in Moscow on Tuesday. Speakers from 19 countries are attending the meeting.
Hundreds of Iranian pilgrims were killed last year in a deadly crush in Mina, Saudi Arabia, during the Hajj pilgrimage. Earlier, two Iranian teenagers were harassed in Jeddah Airport. After the recent severance of ties between Tehran and Riyadh, Saudi authorities are now refusing to co-operate with Iran and even setting conditions for Iranian pilgrims who want to go on Hajj pilgrimage this year. Alef news website discusses the question of whether it is in the interest of Iranian nationals to go on the pilgrimage despite all the troubles caused by the Saudi government.
An Iranian delegation led by Saeid Ohadi, the head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organisation, visited Saudi Arabia on April 12 to hold talks with the Arab country’s officials and prepare the grounds for Iranian people’s major pilgrimage during this year’s Hajj.
Based on routine procedure, the two countries should have made the required arrangements for the current year’s Hajj pilgrimage at least two months ago, but the meetings were held this month after a delay of almost 60 days, due to deteriorated ties between Tehran and Riyadh.
Speaking on Monday, April 18, about the results of his five-day negotiations with the Saudi Hajj ministry, Ohadi said that both sides raised their concerns during the several meetings held.
“Our emphasis was more on ensuring the security of Iranian pilgrims, given the incidents that took place last year [including the deadly Mina crush],” he said at the time.
He further noted that the visa problem persisted. “Saudi Arabia has yet to propose a specific solution to the issuance of visas [for Iranians] … Iran wants [pilgrims] to obtain visas inside their own country,” Ohadi added.
Earlier, on Sunday, Iran’s Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati said that Saudi Arabia had been stonewalling in pursuing Iran’s presence in this year’s Hajj pilgrimage.
“In the past few months, they [the Saudis] have refused to even issue visas for Iranian Hajj officials to visit [Saudi Arabia] and negotiate; the visas were issued in a third country, for the first time ever. Although we stated that the Swiss embassy is taking care of Saudi Arabia’s interests in Iran and can issue visas for Iranian pilgrims, they say the visa should be issued in a third country, which is not plausible for us,” Jannati told reporters on April 17.
“Although we have lost four months for making the required arrangements and signing certain contracts in Saudi Arabia, we will do our best to arrange this year’s Hajj pilgrimage,” he added.
Given the above-mentioned remark and the situation described by Iranian officials, the Saudi Arabian government seems unwilling to co-operate with Iran and facilitate this year’s Hajj for Iranian pilgrims.
There is no doubt that the issuance of visas in a third country would cause a lot of problems for Iranian pilgrims (who are mostly middle-aged and elderly) in purchasing tickets and making other arrangements.
Taking the pilgrims’ age into account, it seems necessary for the host country to do its best to facilitate the spiritual trip, but this year, given the problems already caused by Riyadh, it is unlikely that the trip will occur without tension.
The Saudi government has not even taken any appropriate measures in reaction to last year’s incidents (the sexual harassment of two Iranian teenagers in Jeddah Airport, and the Mina crush, which killed 464 Iranian pilgrims). Therefore, Iran is not sure whether its pilgrims can have a safer and better trip this year.
The Saudi government has even reportedly set conditions for Iranian pilgrims, including a ban on any gatherings in public places, as well as praying noisily. These conditions undoubtedly demonstrate the limitations Saudi officials are trying to put on Iranian pilgrims in a bid to put them under pressure and deprive them from Hajj.
Although the Wahhabi regime ruling the Arab country has always taken a hard line on the Shiite-majority Iran and its nationals, the new king, Salman, and his family have adopted very hostile policies against Iran since they came to power in 2015.
Now, is it in the interest of Iranian pilgrims to go on the Hajj pilgrimage when Saudis refuse to guarantee their security and safety and even threaten them? This is the question that Iranian authorities should answer.
Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency, Brigadier General Hossein Rahimi said that, anti-narcotics forces recently identified a major drug ring in the city of Iranshahr involved in smuggling various kinds of illicit drugs.
In an overnight operation, the police forces managed to detect the smugglers’ vehicles and chased them at a main road connecting Iranshahr to Sarbaz.
After a while, the traffickers started shooting at police officers, the commander said, adding that they soon realized they could not confront the forces and fled the scene.
General Rahimi went on to say that 1,664 kg of opium were seized from the smugglers’ vehicles in the operation.
In another operation in Saravan, he said, police forces seized 563 kg of opium and 15 kg of morphine in a vehicle.
In recent decades, Iran has been hit by drug trafficking, mainly because of its 936- kilometer shared border with Afghanistan, which produces more than 90% of the world’s opium.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, the Islamic Republic is netting eight times more opium and three times more heroin than all other countries in the world combined.
Extensive excavations have been made at the prehistoric site, said Ghafoor Kaka, head of the excavation team, according to an Iran Daily report.
The unearthed pottery is from the Neolithic and Chalcolithic eras, Kaka added.
Photos were taken of the Sarsakhti site for photogrammetry used in aerial and topographic mapping, he said.
Almost 1,200 ancient sites have been discovered and excavated in Markazi Province in recent years. In addition, Atashkooh Fire Temple, Jam Hill and Qiz Qaleh near the city of Saveh have been registered on the National Heritage List.
Excavation activities at ancient sites including Aveh in Saveh, Meshkin Tappeh in Zarandiyeh, Zolfabad in Farahan, rock-cut reliefs in Tahigh Village in Khomein and Khorheh in Mahallat have been undertaken in recent years.
Managing director of the Iranian company Mohammad Reza Daqiq, said that following the implementation of the project, petrochemical products such as resin phenol and acrylic acid will be produced for the first time in the country.
Noting that the plant will be built using the latest technologies of Germany, Denmark and France, he added that products of the petrochemical unit will be used in the production of nylon, types of wash-ups, paints, aspirin and gasoline additives.
The official also hoped that following the construction Mehran power plant, the need for imports of raw materials of oil and gas downstream industries will be removed.
The project will take 40 months to complete, he said, adding that it will generate direct and indirect 3,000 jobs.
Meanwhile, assistant of CNTIC managing director, Yang Bin told IRNA that the company has been working in Iran since 25 years ago, adding that the company has so far financed lines I and II of Tehran Metro, several cement factories and certain telecommunications projects.
He put the value of Mehran petrochemical unit deal at 1.650 billion euro, saying that the company share in the project is 85 percent with the remaining 15 percent belonging to Iran.
The Leader’s remarks on Wednesday came after the Arab Parliament followed the Arab League and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council in designing Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.
“Let’s suppose a corrupt, sycophantic, hollow regime condemns Hezbollah in a statement with money and petrodollars; to hell with it! How much does it matter?” Ayatollah Khamenei told a group of students in Tehran.
“Hezbollah and its youths are shining as the Sun and are a source of honor for the world of Islam,” Ayatollah Khamenei added.
Saudi Arabia has been leading the campaign against Hezbollah which is credited with driving Israeli troops out of southern Lebanon and defeating them in subsequent wars.
Relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia have been plunged into crisis since Riyadh halted $3 billion in aid to the Lebanese army. Saudi Arabia and its allies in the Persian Gulf have also advised citizens against travel to Beirut.
In his speech, Ayatollah Khamenei also warned against any submission to new Western demands about Iran’s missile defense program and other technologies.
“If we show any leniency toward them, they will begin playing games with biotech, nanotech and scientific issues and make problems,” the Leader said.
Iran reached a nuclear agreement in July to have a raft of sanctions lifted but the country has come under new pressures from the US and its allies over its missile defense program since then.
“One of the most basic motivations which have prompted arrogant powers to square up against us is that a country, without relying on any power, has managed to reach the extraordinarily sensitive nuclear stage,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
The Leader warned of “a covert soft war” being waged by the US against Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei said the US is trying to make Iranian youths lose trust in their officials and embrace the country’s enemies instead.
“The US would like the Iranian youth to lack courage, motivation, hope, activeness, physical and mental capability,” the Leader said.
Abrar:
1-Obama: Mosul to be liberated by the end of 2016
2-Zarif: meeting Kerry was needed
3-Customs duty on imported cigarettes increased
Asrar:
1-Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani: No need to worry about future of Revolution
2-Joe Biden: New sanctions against Iran will be counterproductive
3-Health Minister: Diabetes affects school children
Afkar:
1-Parliament Speaker: Governments should join to counter terrorism
2-Explosion in Kabul leaves 27 dead and injured
3-2m new cases of diabetes diagnosed globally each year
Arman-e Emrouz:
1-Rouhani: 3 months since JCPOA, not 30 years
2-Death of footballer Mehrdad Oladi, a new shock
Ebtekar:
1-IRR9,785,529,974,000,000 budget for current Iranian year approved by Parliament
2-Renewed hope: Lake Urmiye water level up 16cm
Ettela’at:
1-President Rouhani in Semnan: JCPOA is Iranian political and legal glory
2-CBI Governor Seif: Banking ties with global financial centers growing
3-Larijani addresses Eurasia Parliamentary Speakers Conference in Moscow: Cooperation should replace competition globally in the world
Etemad:
1-Petrol rationing and cash subsidies for 24m people
2-Zarif-Kerry: discussing challenges facing implementation of JCPOA
Emtiaz:
1-Health Minister: Diabetes Alarm Bell Ringing In Schools
2-18,000 Hectares of Forest Destroyed by Wildfire in Past Year
Iran:
1-Rouhani: 3 months since JCPOA has given relief
JameJam:
1-Amin Tarokh, Iranian film star: Respect your parents while they’re alive
2-Only $3bn of Iranian blocked money has been released
Javan:
1-Supreme Leader: Pluralism is my view
2-Rouhani: JCPOA has brought lots of relief for people
3-Human rights watchdogs close their eyes to Saudi crimes in Yemen, says Washington University Professor in interview
Hemayat:
1-Pressure and sanctions tactics in post-JCPOA
Resalat:
1- White House openly supports terrorism
Obama to veto complaint against Saudi Arabia
2-Saudi dollars worth more than lives of US citizens
Bob Graham: Many pieces of evidence about Saudi role in September 11 attacks
Siasat-e Rouz:
1-Afghanistan relives bloody days
Shahrvand:
1-People are living on rooftops
A shortage of clean drinking water makes life difficult for flood-stricken people
Asr-e Iranian:
1-Iranian airliners are refueled in Europe, Rouhani speaks about results of JCPOA
Kayhan:
1-Rouhani in Semnan: Look how much relief has taken place in 3 months!
2-US message for its allies: Don’t talk about Assad’s departure yet
Mardom Salari:
1-President: Without people’s support, no JCPOA success
Tejarat:
1-Obama has issued orders to 50 states on JCPOA
Asr-e Eghtesad:
1- Iranian Petroleum minister: Accepting oil freeze is tantamount to voluntary sanctions
“Saudi Arabia wants to increase tension with Iran, and this is a plot which the Islamic Republic’s authorities are aware of, and are cautious not to play the game the Saudis want,” Ayatollah Qomi said, according to a report by Arman.
“We have always emphasized having constructive dialogue, easing tension, and promoting unity in the Muslim world, and have always stressed that we have no religious conflict in the region,” he noted.
“We do not consider any of the ongoing developments in the region as a religious issue, including the situations in Yemen, Bahrain, Iraq, or the tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia; all of them are political problems,” Ayatollah Qomi went on to say.
“We have never set preconditions for our own talks (with others) within the framework of the Islamic Ummah’s (society) interests; however, the talks should be real ones, and the other party should show it really wants to talk,” the Iranian cleric added.
Ali Haji Shizari, the Director General for Research and Education of the Iran Handicrafts Organization said on Wednesday that the event is a significant development, which should be considered a great chance to introduce Iran’s rich handicrafts to the world.
He said that the designation of the two cities of Mashad and Laljin as “World Cities of Precious Stones” is another giant step towards improving the status of Iranian handicrafts in the world.
According to the official, Isfahan and Tabriz were announced as World Creative Cities for handicrafts and carpets.
Tabriz is to host the 7th World Crafts Council – Asia-Pacific Region (WCC-APR) on April 27, it was announced.
Participants in the council will attend two specialized workshops, and will also tour Mozafariyeh carpet market in the city of Tabriz.
During the five-day event, the masterpieces of the Iranian craftsmen of East Azarbaijan will be displayed.
© All Content by IFP News ( Iran Front Page ) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
