Several ambassadors and envoys of foreign countries to Iran on Monday attended a Tree Planting Ceremony in ‘Shahre Aftab (Sun City) International Exhibition Center’ in southwest of Tehran, and planted a number of trees on the occasion of National Week of Natural Resources.
On Wednesday, the six-nation [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council ([P]GCC) issued a statement dubbing Hezbollah a terrorist organization. The bloc – comprising Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait – claimed that Hezbollah’s moves in the region are against international values and moral and human principles.
In a Monday statement, 222 members of Iran’s Parliament (Majlis) denounced the Arab bloc’s offensive move against Hezbollah which they also described as an insult to the Lebanese government and nation.
It added that the lawmakers, as representatives of the great Iranian nation, “once again expressed their all-out support for Lebanon’s Hezbollah and its brave leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah.”
“Lebanon’s Hezbollah is the symbol of resistance against the Zionist regime [Israel]. In the absence of Hezbollah, the Zionist regime would continue its occupation of southern Lebanon and Takfiris allied with this regime would violate Lebanon’s territorial integrity just like in Syria,” the lawmakers said.
The Iranian lawmakers emphasized that Hezbollah as well as Palestinian resistance movements, Islamic Jihad and Hamas, have stood up against the massive and brutal offensives by the global arrogance, especially the US and Israel.
They said the [P]GCC labeled Hezbollah a terrorist organization under Saudi pressure.
However, countries like Oman, Kuwait and even Qatar should not follow Saudi Arabia and stand against other Muslim states, the legislators’ statement added.
It said these countries are expected to throw their weight behind Hezbollah as the symbol of resistance against Israel.
The [P]GCC’s decision to blacklist Hezbollah has been met with opposition and criticism.
Algeria refused to classify the movement as a terrorist organization. Palestinian resistance movement, Islamic Jihad, also praised Hezbollah as a resistance movement, which has a history in the struggle against the Zionist entity as well as in supporting the Palestinian cause. Iran, Syria and Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement have also slammed the move by the [P]GCC.
Ettela’at:
1. Iran 9-month economic growth at 7%
2. Terrorist blast kills 60 in Iraq’s Hillah
3. Nation chose moderation: Rouhani
4. Official calls for limiting “admin-archy”
5. Oil scam culprits sentenced to death
6. Tehran has 25 times more salons than bookshops
Afkar:
1. Iran safest transit corridor in region: Minister of Roads
2. Iran calls on US to act more on JCPOA implementation
3. Enemies target Iranian national interests in regional conflicts
Asrar:
1. Rouhani: Nation responded to hardships with Feb 26 election turnout
2. Admin has curbed recession: Official
3. 5,000 street kids in Iran
4. They [foreign enemies] are seeking to bring war to Iranian borders: Mohsen Rezaei
5. Death sentence for corporate mogul
Arman-e Emrouz:
1. Judiciary Chief rules out hunting as religiously forbidden
2. DOE chief calls for preventing environmental crimes
3. Execution for billionaire
4. Admin seeking to decrease cash handouts: Spokesman
5. Government offenses under Ahmadinejad
Ebtekar:
1. Report: Suggestions for 10th Parliament
2. Hopes high for improved conditions next year
3. Babak sentenced to death
Iranian Judiciary Spokesman Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejei announced on Sunday that the billionaire Babak Zanjani and two accomplices in the oil scam case have been sentenced to death for “corruption on earth”.
4. Around Iran in 13 days – Suggestions from Ebtekar for New Year holidays
Etemad:
1. Forbidden words
Addressing his last press conference on Sunday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said he was ready to say the unsayable.
2. Hezbollah chief: Resistance doesn’t need Arab armaments
3. Reformist Aref eyes 40 runoff seats in parliament [to gain majority in parliament]
Emtiaz:
1. Iran gateways not open to imported drugs
2. Tourism deputy issues ultimatum to over-chargers
Iran:
1. Rouhani: JCPOA II, admin, nation’s resolution to develop Iran
2. Water, environment, pension funds: future challenges for Iran
3. Punishment no solution for preserving environment
4. Iran eyes 6% economic growth: Rouhani aide
Payam Zaman:
1. Rouhani says hopeful of next parliament
2. No decisions for pilgrimage yet
3. Iran produces 0.3m cars with Iranian brands
Javan:
1. Uprising in ISIS capital in Syria
Hosban:
1. NIDC in talks with Asian, EU firms
2. Health minister speaks openly to traffic police
Hemayat:
1. Judiciary ready to convene courts on environmental crimes
2. Nasrallah: Without resistance, Lebanon would be Israeli colony
3. Chinese firm sanctioned for dealing with Iran
4. Iran closes prison in [northern city of] Amol
Khorasan:
1. 1st Iran oil cargo calls at European port
Resalat:
1. Rouhani: Nation displayed trust in leader, admin [in elections]
2. Politician calls on admin to retaliate for US failure to fulfill JCPOA promises
3. Zarif: Hezbollah defends Lebanon against Zionists
Roozan:
1. Ayatollah Yazdi: I endorse election outcome
The ayatollah failed to win enough votes in the Feb 26 Assembly of Experts election.
Rooyesh Mellat:
1. Eyes can get cancer
2. Urmia lake water intake doubles
Shargh:
1. Oil scam culprits sentenced to death; figure behind the case shall not be forgotten
2. “John Kerry and I understand each other”: Zarif
3. Judiciary spokesman: Reformist president’s house arrest not real
Shahrvand:
Iran Red Crescent hold major maneuver to prepare for New Year holidays
President upbeat about moderate election wins
Saheb Ghalam:
1. $200bn investments needed for 8% economic growth annually: economist
2. No rise in water prices
Kaenat:
1. Forex market stable despite oil shocks: Rouhani aide
2. Iran plans to build power plants on Persian Gulf coasts
Kayhan:
1. IRR28,580bn ($9.46bn) of cars imported in 11 months
2. Resistance beats ISIS, US takes credit: report
Asia:
1. Joint Venture; Iran ready for all kinds of co-operation: Rouhani
2. Major Turkish holding eyes Iran presence
3. METRO prepared to open branch in Iran
Abrar-e Eqtesadi:
1. Iran in talks with Russia, China, EU to supply drilling rigs
2. Economic council seeking to sign deal with Airbus
3. Iran to sell biggest liquid oil storage terminal
4. Iran, Germany to revive ties
“The Islamic Republic of Iran emphasizes on honoring commitments regarding Palestine,” Zarif said in a Sunday address to the extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on the issue of Palestine and the holy Quds, held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
“Although (Iran) knows the pressures that have been imposed on it in recent decades have been the result of our support for the cause of Palestine, it will keep up that policy,” he underlined.
The top Iranian diplomat also described the issue of Palestine as the centerpiece of the OIC, calling for serious attention to the organization’s “raison d’être” without being distracted by any other issue.
Zarif further stressed the need for Muslim unity and practical action to end the occupation of Palestine in an organized manner.
The minister then condemned the Israeli regime’s policy of Judaizing the holy city of al-Quds (Jerusalem), saying Tel Aviv is pursuing expansionism in disguise.
“Israel’s continuing brutal occupation (of Palestine) has violated the basics of international law on human rights,” he added.
Zarif finally deplored the United Nations Security Council’s inaction on the Israeli atrocities, which he said continue to threaten the international peace and security.
Zarif arrived in Jakarta on Sunday morning to participate in the OIC meeting.
Indonesia is the first destination of his tour of six countries, which will later take him to Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand.
Arash, which was founded in 1999 by Arash Farboud, presented their first new model in eight years at the Geneva Motor Show. The new generation Arash car has developed significantly, compared to the model from eight years ago.
The body of the car is made from carbon fiber, and the body panels are reinforced with carbon plastic. In addition to the fact that it is a hybrid car, the greatest advance is in terms of its power. It has an impressive acceleration time, going from 0-60 mph in just 2.8 seconds.
This supercar is the most powerful hybrid car in the world, with its impressive 2080hp. It is worth nearly €1m.
According to a report on Sunday by IraqiNews.com, Daesh terrorists have moved the stolen pieces to their stronghold in the Syrian city of Raqqa.
The museum of Mosul University locates some 405 km north of Baghdad.
The spokesman of Kurdistan Democratic Party in Nineveh Saeed Mamousini said in a press statement obtained by IraqiNews.com, “ISIS militants took these pieces to the city of Raqqa in Syria, in order to sell them later.”
Meanwhile, British national daily newspaper, Guardian, has referred to Daesh attack on the Iraqi priceless statues and artifact as a move which “threatens to upend millennia of coexistence in the Middle East.”
“The birthplace of human civilisation … is being destroyed”, said Kino Gabriel, one of the leaders of the Syrian Military Council – a Christian militia – in a telephone interview with the Guardian from Hassakeh in north-eastern Syria.
In a five-minute video, which was released by the “press office of the province of Nineveh [the region around Mosul]”, a Daesh representative speaks to the camera, condemning Assyrians and Akkadians as polytheists, justifying the destruction of the artifact and statues, it noted adding that Daesh terrorist took control of Mosul last summer in a lightning advance that led to the eviction of thousands of Christians and other minorities from their ancestral homelands in the Nineveh plains, amid reports of forced conversions.
According to IRNA, Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani said that respect for animals should be taught to people from their childhood.
“If we want to make the preservation of the environment into a popular culture, all government organizations must fulfil their duties. If not, it will be impossible to act judicially by appointing guards for everyone,” said the official while addressing an environmental conference in Tehran on Sunday.
He said that respecting animal rights must be taught at an early age, and that the Department of the Environment (DOE), as the custodian of preserving the environment, must make it a public issue.
The Persian New Year, or Nowrouz, is celebrated on the Spring Equinox, and heralds a period of new life and growth. In the weeks leading up to it, a traditional character called Haji Firouz makes his appearance in the streets. Dressed in red, with a black face, and playing a drum, he spreads the news that winter is ending and spring is coming.
On the final Wednesday of the year, known as Chaharshanbe Suri, ceremonial fires are lit and fireworks are let off all over the country.
Here are some photos of Haji Firouz street performances capturing the spirit and tradition of both celebrations.
Text by IFP, photos from YJC:
President Rouhani made the remark in the capital, Tehran, on Sunday, addressing Iranian and foreign reporters in a presser.
On the election day, the Iranians once again “showed their trust in their establishment, their leadership, and their administration and went to the polls and once again amazed the world,” President Rouhani said.
Iran held its 10th parliamentary and 5th Assembly of Experts elections on February 26 with an overall turnout of 62 percent nationwide. At least 33 million out of the 55 million eligible voters took part in the polls.
Rouhani hailed the participation as “historic glory.”
The government made efforts to hold “legal, free and fair” elections, and did its utmost to “return hope to the society,” he noted.
He said whatever action was taken concerning the elections, including the rejection of some of the hopefuls’ eligibility to run in the polls, “was within framework of the law and this means political maturity.”
“Among all the factions, parties, and groupings, it was mostly moderates who were chosen and this means that our people have opted for moderation,” the Iranian president said of the results of the elections.
After the introductory remarks by President Rouhani, the floor was turned to the reporters.
Sanctions removal and oil
One reporter asked how the country was availing itself of the opportunities provided following the removal in January of the nuclear-related sanctions against the country.
President Rouhani said the Islamic Republic has increased its oil output to 1.4 million barrels per day following the removal of the bans, adding, “We’ll be selling two billion barrels of oil per day next year.”
A little bit of lingering fear
Asked whether the other side to the July 2015 deal that enabled the lifting of the sanctions has been completely fulfilling its commitments, the Iranian president acknowledged that “some private institutions, some banks, [for instance] a bank that has already been fined for working with Iran, they are still a little bit afraid” of renewing business with Iran.
He, however, said this does not mean that the agreement has not led to renewed international banking and insurance cooperation with Iran.
The agreement, he said, has led to the cost of the foreign exchange flow needed for production and export to decrease by 10 percent and the cost of maritime transportation to drop by 25 percent.
On Yemen
Amid the West’s criticism of Iran’s provision of humanitarian aid for Yemen and its silence on Saudi Arabia’s unabated bombing of the impoverished nation, Rouhani said, “Iran’s altruistic assistance to Yemen is to continue and will not be disrupted… The Saudi government unfortunately continues its ruthless bombing, and great powers do not pay attention to this issue.”
Saudi Arabia launched its military aggression against Yemen in late March last year in a bid to bring fugitive former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a Riyadh ally, back to power and undermine Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement.
On Wednesday, the six-nation [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council issued a statement labeling Hezbollah a terrorist organization. The bloc, comprising Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, claimed that Hezbollah’s moves in the region are against international values and moral and human principles.
Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Firouzabadi said on Sunday that the Arab bloc’s blacklisting Hezbollah as a terrorist body was a strategic mistake and a very hasty and impulsive measure which runs counter to the interests of Muslim nations.
“Hezbollah is the son of the Lebanese nation,” he said, adding that the movement has done a lot for the Arab country.
The Iranian commander added that the GCC’s move was in line with Saudi Arabia’s proxy war to prepare the ground for the US and Zionists to achieve their ominous objectives in the region.
He, however, emphasized that despite efforts by Riyadh and its regional allies, the move would fail to change Hezbollah’s role in establishing power balance in the region.
The GCC decision to blacklist Hezbollah has been met with opposition and criticism.
Algeria refused to classify the movement as a terrorist organization. Palestinian resistance movement, Islamic Jihad, also praised Hezbollah as a resistance movement, which has a history in the struggle against the Zionist entity as well as in supporting the Palestinian cause. Iran, Syria and Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement have also slammed the move by the GCC.
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