President Rouhani arrived in Rasht, the provincial capital of the northern province of Gilan, on Wednesday.
The snapshots of his arrival at the airport by Mehr News Agency on April15:
IS releases daily in bid to recruit youth, promote beliefs (PHOTOS)
As part of their propaganda war, IS terrorists have recently published a daily in Syria’s Aleppo.
Publication of the daily in the region under IS control is, among other things, aimed at recruiting children and spreading misleading beliefs.
The following snapshots by Abna.ir (Ahlu-Bayt News Agency) show the distribution of the daily in an IS-held region on April 12:
IAEA delegation arrives in Tehran (PHOTOS)
A delegation comprised of five experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency, headed by Tero Varjoranta, the IAEA deputy director general and head of the department of safeguards, arrived in Tehran on Wednesday.
Photos of their arrival by the Islamic Republic News Agency (April 15):
A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on April 15
Comments by the oil minister about a wide range of issues, including hikes in natural gas and gasoline production, and about Babak Zanjani, a billionaire who stands accused of siphoning off the country’s oil money, dominated the front pages of Iranian newspapers on Wednesday. Also in the news were projections by the government spokesman about the country’s economic growth in the year ahead.
Abrar: “We won’t allow partisan bias to overshadow cultural activities,” said the minister of culture and Islamic guidance.
Ebtekar: The Outcast!
After failing to win over fellow principlists, [former President] Ahmadinejad seems interested in aligning himself with reformists.
Ebtekar: The Iranian oil minister has reported a 170 million cubic meter increase in natural gas production in the country.
Emtiaz: “Iran will be connected on rail to the Eastern Mediterranean within 20 months,” said the minister of roads.
Ettela’at: “Government favors a cut in interest rates,” said Government Spokesman Mohammad Bagher Nobakht.
Ettela’at: Iran has presented a four-stage plan to end military aggression against Yemen.
The plan made public by the foreign minister entails: a cease-fire, shipment of humanitarian aid, talks between Yemeni groups and formation of a broad-based government.
Iran: Iran has not accepted a verbal Saudi apology.
The spokesman of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has said that as long as the apology does not come through official channels, Minor Hajj pilgrimage would remain suspended.
Jomhouri Islami: “Inflation will slip further this year,” promised the government spokesman.
Kayhan: Sixty-three martyrs of the Scared Defense have returned home.
Qods: New government restrictions for the illiterate
Getting driver’s and business licenses hinges on literacy.
Resalat: “Iran will no longer need to import gasoline later this year,” the oil minister said.
Sayeh: “Iran’s economy will post 4-5 percent growth this year,” said the government spokesman.
Sayeh: Iran’s Persepolis has won the hospitality prize in a poll conducted by tripadvisor.com.
Shahrvand: In case citizens do not cut back on water consumption by at least 10 percent, electricity shortage will be in the offing.
The warning by the Energy Ministry came after a dramatic surge in water levels behind Latian Dam prompted people to forget that they had just gone through a very dry winter.
Iranian bodyguard recalls painful encounter with Seagal
Ahmad Irandoust, an Iranian bodyguard-turned-actor who has been hired in the past by Hollywood celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, has recalled an encounter with US actor Steven Seagal when he was still the bodyguard of a Hollywood figure.
The following is the translation of his story which originally appeared on cinemapress.ir and then printed on April 14 by Haft-e Sobh daily:
I used to believe that martial arts performed by Steven Seagal were just acrobatic tricks, so I invited him to a fight at the backstage of a movie.
Seagal asked for a written waiver to be cleared of all responsibility in case anything happened to me in the showdown.
Immediately after I threw the first punch, I was thrown in the air and landed on the arm, sustaining multiple fractures to my hand.
In spite of the written deal, Seagal paid for the medical costs, apologized to me and said that he never thought that I would land on my arm.
IAEA delegation arrives in Tehran for technical talks
A delegation of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has arrived in the Iranian capital, Tehran, to hold technical talks with Iranian officials.
The five-strong delegation, led by Tero Varjoranta, the IAEA deputy director general and head of the department of safeguards, arrived in Tehran on Wednesday morning.
The IAEA team is scheduled to hold one-day technical negotiations with the relevant Iranian officials within the framework of the implementation of the Framework for Cooperation.
The Joint Statement on a Framework for Cooperation was signed in November 2013 to outline a roadmap on mutual cooperation on certain outstanding nuclear issues between Iran and the IAEA.
Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said on Tuesday that the negotiations between Iranian officials and the IAEA team will end on Wednesday night, adding that the day-long talks between Iran and the UN nuclear agency will focus on the two issues of alleged explosives testing at a site in the western city of Marivan and neutron calculations.
Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI)
He also noted that Tehran has already responded to all of the IAEA’s questions about Iran’s nuclear program.
The IAEA claims that Iran has not yet addressed specific issues such as questions on alleged research activities into explosives testing and neutron calculations.
Iran has rejected the accusations as baseless and repeatedly emphasized its readiness for full cooperation with the IAEA as part of its transparency efforts to help settle the country’s nuclear issue.
The IAEA has never concluded in its reports on Iran that there has been diversion in the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program toward military purposes.
On March 2, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano once again verified the lack of any diversion toward non-peaceful purposes in Iran’s declared nuclear material. All Iran’s nuclear activities are strictly monitored by the UN nuclear watchdog.
Iran to accredit 1st woman ambassador: Report
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham is to be accredited as the country’s first woman ambassador in the near future, Mehr News Agency reported on Monday.
She will reportedly head the Islamic Republic’s mission in an East Asian country.
The official has been serving as the ministry’s first woman spokesperson for more than a year.
It is not yet clear who will replace her as spokesperson.
Setting precedent has been Mansoureh Sharifi-Sadr, who served as the charge d’affaires of Iran’s Embassy in Japan during the ambassadorship of Abbas Araqchi, the current deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs. Araqchi had preceded Afkham as the Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson.
Iran, Spain FMs meet in Madrid
Visiting Foreign Minister of Iran Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed issues of mutual interest in a meeting in Madrid on Tuesday with his Spanish counterpart Manuel Garcia Margallo.
The two stressed the need for further Tehran-Madrid cooperation in all fields including energy, tourism, fisheries, agriculture, railways and water management as well as infrastructure sector.
Zarif arrived in Madrid early on Tuesday. He is to depart Madrid for Lisbon, Portugal, later in the day.
The two foreign ministers also exchanged views on latest regional developments particularly the situations in Syria, Iraq and Yemen stressing the need to fight against terrorism.
The Iranian minister stressed the need for resolving the crisis in Yemen through peaceful means including an immediate ceasefire, relief operations, dialogue among Yemeni groups (Yemeni-Yemeni talks) and formation of an inclusive government.
Meanwhile, Margallo welcomed Iran’s solution for the crisis in Yemen.
Reviewing latest developments in the nuclear talks between Iran and the Group 5+1, the Spanish foreign minister hailed positive steps taken during the talks hoping that would lead to reaching a final comprehensive agreement between the two sides.
Strategic weight of world changing to the benefit of Asia: Shamkhani
Secretary of Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said on Tuesday that power of Asia is on upward trend and the strategic balance of the world is changing to the benefit of Asia.
He made the remarks in a meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) national security secretaries. Shamkhani is currently on a visit to Moscow to attend the SCO meeting.
He said that balance of power has undergone a drastic change leading to emergence and shaping of new powers at regional and international levels.
He said that by increasing pivotal role of Asia in trade, politics and world security, strategic weight of Asia has gained momentum.
Shamkhani expressed concern about the threats posed to the international peace and security, calling for collective measures by the international community to thwart the elements disrupting security at national, regional and international level.
He deplored the fact that several governments refuse to discharge their international obligations to support the international campaign against terrorism and to the contrary, they resorted to use of force, violence and military intervention in clear violation of the international law and the internationally recognized standards and formed a coalition against a sovereign state which has set an unlawful precedent in the direction of institutionalization of insecurity.
He criticized the Western governments for applying double standards in the international campaign against terrorism, citing their formula to divide the ominous phenomenon of terrorism to bad and good.
Shamkhani added that the arbitrary use of terrorism and unlawful measures by the international bodies to interfere in other countries affairs through imposing illegal sanctions against the sovereign states with the political agenda of regime change, on one hand, and financial aid for terrorist groups and empowering criminals under the pretext of support for democracy, on the other, are clear evidence for the arbitrary use of terrorism.
Secretary of Iran’s SNSC said that insistence of the world powers on stopping the changing trend of unipolar world and opting for unilateralism, which runs counter to priorities of the international community, has thrown a worrying future in the way of the mankind.
Criticizing the adoption of dual standard of certain governments in confrontation with similar crises in Syria, Yemen, Ukraine and Bahrain, Shamkhani said that compliance with national demands is the solution for current crises in those countries.
He said that President Rouhani’s proposal of War Against Violence and Extremism, which approved by the UN General Assembly, called for world cooperation and coordinated move against these two sinister phenomena.
In another part of his speech, the Iranian senior official presented a number of proposals to overcome security challenges in the region.
Paying attention to the growing public awareness in the region, especially that of the youth and the need to educate them on religious moderate moves, the misuse of cyber space and social networks by the terrorists, special attention to issues like poverty, unemployment, the gap in social classes, ethnical and religious discrimination and narrowing the gap between governments and nations are among necessary measures in the field of management of regional challenges.
He underlined the necessity of creation an effective mechanism in cutting financial sources and harboring terrorists and ending intelligence, operational and military support for terrorists and added that exchange of intelligence experience between countries to confront terrorism and designing an efficient and flexible mechanism to implement preventive plans in this regard is necessary.
Shamkhani said that Iran enjoys precious experience in the field of effective confrontation and control of waves of violence and terrorism in the region, and is ready to share experience and cooperate with Shanghai Cooperation Organization in this concern.
Traditional wrestling (PHOTOS)
Neyshabur, northeastern Iran, played host to a 19th round of national traditional wrestling tournament on April 9.
The snapshots below of the competition have been released online by mashhad, a website:
