A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on May 12

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May 12, 2015

Comments by President Rouhani on the fight against violence and terrorism and those of Foreign Minister Zarif on the impact of a recent US congressional bill on nuclear talks between Tehran and P5+1 dominated the front pages of Iranian newspapers. Also in the news was a statement by the Tehran mayor that part of Evin Prison is to be converted to a park.

Aftab-e Yazd: Three board members of Mizan Financial and Credit Institute have been arrested.

[It came after the institute said it needed time to be able to pay back the money of depositors.]

Arman-e Emrooz: “Charges against me of being an accessory to murder have been thrown out five times,” said Saeed Mortazavi, a former prosecutor who is now on trial for corruption.

He said the charges which stemmed from alleged failure to supervise Kahrizak Detention Camp have been dismissed by both the provincial criminal court and the Supreme Court.

Asr-e Iranian: Fear of a coup at home has prompted the Saudi King to stay away from a Camp David summit.

Etemad: Iraqi President Fuad Masum is due in Iran on Tuesday.

The Iraqi official is expected to meet with the Supreme Leader, President Rouhani, Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, and Chairman of the Expediency Council Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani during his stay in Iran.

Etemad: An ally of Larijani is expected to square off against Bahonar.

The likelihood of change in the lineup of the Presiding Board of the Islamic Consultative Assembly has increased.

Ettela’at: “The virus of terrorism is spreading around the world; we need to join hands in the face of the virulent virus of violence and terrorism,” President Rouhani said.

The president made the comment at a meeting with the South African minister of international relations and cooperation. “Military invasion offers no solution to domestic problems of nations.”

Ettela’at: “Iran won’t bow to excessive demands [of P5+1],” said Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

The top diplomat’s comments came as his deputy, Abbas Araghchi, praised parliament’s opposition to a motion to halt nuclear talks with world powers.

Hemayat: Part of Evin Prison in northern Tehran will turn into a park.

Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf made the comment at the inaugural of an international flower and plant exhibition in the capital.

Jomhouri Islami: A new round of nuclear talks between Iran and world powers gets underway in Vienna, Austria Tuesday.

It comes as the spokesman of parliament’s Presiding Board threw his weight behind continued nuclear talks despite an earlier motion by some MPs calling for a halt to the talks.

Mardomsalari: Worried Arab leader have snubbed the US.

Leaders of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council have decided to stay away from a Camp David summit.

Roozan: I opted for a self-imposed ban on filmmaking over the past eight years,” said renowned director Rakhshan Banietemad.

In an exclusive interview with the daily, she said she is 100 percent in favor of reforms.

Sharq: Individuals and institutions that played a role in an attack on Tehran MP Ali Motahari [in Shiraz in March] have identified.

The announcement was made by Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli.

UN must act to stop Saudi killing in Yemen: Iran official

By

Emad Askarieh

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May 12, 2015

A senior Iranian official has called on the United Nations to take effective measures to put an end to Saudi Arabia’s airstrikes against Yemen and its killing of people in the impoverished Arab state.

“The United Nations is expected to take effective, clear and deterrent action regarding Saudi Arabia’s aggression and the blatant killing of the defenseless Yemeni people, which are in violation of international regulations,” Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian said in a Monday telephone conversation with Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the UN secretary general’s new envoy to Yemen.

The Iranian official urged the UN and international aid organizations to launch their campaign as soon as possible in a bid to end the ongoing crisis in Yemen.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to carry out any necessary measures in order to send humanitarian aid to the oppressed and defenseless Yemeni people,” Amir Abdollahian said.

The Iranian official’s remarks came as an Iranian cargo ship carrying humanitarian aid to the people in Yemen has set sail for the impoverished Arab country.

Saudi Arabia started its military aggression against Yemen on March 26 – without a UN mandate – in a bid to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and to restore power to the fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, who is a staunch ally of Riyadh.

According to the latest UN figures, the Saudi military campaign has so far claimed the lives of over 1,400 people and injured close to 6,000, roughly half of whom have been civilians.

Cheikh Ahmed, for his part, said Iran plays an important role in regional developments and added that the UN is trying to hold consultations with Tehran to find solutions to regional woes.

The envoy added that the UN has concentrated its efforts on the establishment of a lasting ceasefire in Yemen, national dialog in the country and the dispatch of relief aid to the Yemenis.

Asia refiners renew Iran crude purchase deal

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Emad Askarieh

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May 12, 2015

Asian refiners buying Iran’s crude oil have renewed their contracts for the purchase of oil from the Islamic Republic, a top official says.

Mohsen Ghamsari, director for international affairs at National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), said Chinese, Indian, South Korean, Japanese and Turkish refiners have all extended their oil purchase contracts with Iran.

Ghamsari was reacting to media reports that Japanese oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan Co has not renewed its annual crude purchase contract with Iran for the fiscal year that started in April.

Major refineries in China, India, South Korea, Japan and Turkey are currently buying a total of 1 mb/d of crude oil from Iran.

China is the largest buyer of Iran’s crude oil, importing 400,000 b/d from Iran. India comes second.

Oil buyers in Asia are preparing to purchase more crude oil from Iran amid hopes of a long-awaited nuclear deal to ease sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd. in India and Cosmo Oil Co. in Japan are among the refiners hoping for Iran sanctions relief.

Iran is currently exporting around 1 mb/d of oil, due to US-imposed restrictions, while it has potential to supply up to 4 mb/d.

Iran and P5+1 of global powers – the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany – reached mutual understanding on the parameters of a comprehensive agreement over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program in Lausanne, Switzerland, on April 2. The two sides have agreed to finalize a comprehensive deal on the nuclear program by the end of June.

A final nuclear deal would result in the lifting of sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic.

At the beginning of 2012, the US and European Union (EU) imposed sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors with the goal of preventing other countries from purchasing Iranian oil and conducting transactions with the Central Bank of Iran.

On October 15, 2012, the EU foreign ministers reached an agreement on another round of sanctions against Iran.

Iran’s nuclear chief undergoes successful surgery, in stable condition

By

Emad Askarieh

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May 12, 2015

Director of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi has undergone successful surgery on Monday.

“Mr. Salehi’s physicians said that he is now in stable conditions and he will be moved to the recovery unit any time,” AEOI Spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said early Tuesday.

AEOI chief was hospitalized after he complained of digestion problems and he had to undergo intestine surgery.

Iran, South Africa keen for closer economic ties

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Emad Askarieh

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May 11, 2015

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane explored avenues for the promotion of Tehran- Pretoria ties in diverse areas, economy in particular.

During the meeting in Tehran on Monday, Rouhani said there is good ground for boosting cooperation between the two countries at bilateral and multilateral levels.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to further increase consultations and mutual cooperation,” the Iranian president said.

Tehran is willing to expand economic relations with Pretoria, he stated, adding that the ties should develop with a good momentum.

The South African minister, for her part, emphasized that the two countries should use the “good political relations” for boosting economic ties.

“Today, we are conveying the message of goodwill, solidarity, partnership and extensive cooperation between South Africa and the Islamic Republic of Iran,” she said.

Expansion of relations with African nations in all political, economic and cultural fields is top on the agenda of Iran’s foreign policy.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who took office in August 2013, has repeatedly stressed his government’s interest in boosting relations with the African states.

Iran rejects UN human rights report on executions

By

Emad Askarieh

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May 11, 2015

Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected as “downright lie” a recent report prepared by the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, Ahmed Shaheed, and Christof Heyns, the UN rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.

The report on the alleged unreported executions in Iran or the execution of political prisoners is a downright lie, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham said on Sunday, stressing that such untrue claims run counter to the professional responsibilities of Shaheed and Heyns.

Her comments came after the two UN staffers in a May 8 report condemned what they called a sharp increase in executions in recent weeks in Iran, alleging that many executions have gone unreported by official sources, and the names of prisoners have not been published.

Maldivian Shaheed and South African Heyns have also alleged that 98 prisoners “are reported to have been executed” in Iran between April 9 and 26, including at least six political prisoners and seven women.

In reaction, Afkham underscored that the allegation of a rise in the death penalty and “reliance on the estimated figures without any source or sources that are not authentic” nullify such a report.

“It’s a great pity that the trend of the (UN) special rapporteur’s (Shaheed’s) activities suggest that he does not seek credible evidence, and despite the reports and documents issued by Iran, such claims are continuously repeated with quite political purposes,” she noted.

The spokeswoman explained that Iran’s law hands out capital punishment only for “the most serious crimes, including narcotics trafficking”.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran calls on the special rapporteur not to include traffickers, murderers and those who have committed terrorist crimes in the list of the political prisoners,” she pointed out.

What happened in Mahabad was a personal issue: Interior minister

By

Emad Askarieh

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May 11, 2015

Replacing some executive officials is a matter that every government might deal with, but the Interior Ministry has not had and does not have any plan at present to do so, Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli was quoted by Entekhab, a news website, as telling reporters on Monday.

Speaking on the sidelines of a gathering which brought together provincial governors from across the country, the interior chief also said his ministry and the president might decide to change some state executives in the weeks and months ahead.

On the suspicious death of a young woman in Mahabad in West Azerbaijan Province, he said, “What happened in Mahabad was a personal issue. In fact the deceased had an affair with the suspect, who was her suitor. Fearing that her family might learn about their relationship, she tried to leave the hotel with the help of a colleague. Unfortunately, however, she fell to the ground from the third floor and lost her life.”

He added, “Opportunist media tried to turn the personal issue into a political question by resorting to fabrications, claiming that a member of security forces tried to sexually assault her and that the woman jumped off the hotel window to her death to escape rape.”

The interior chief said the suspect is not a member of security forces, rather he is a specialist that often visited the hotel to help its personnel.

Rahmani Fazli went on to say, “The incident turned into a social problem thanks to the media which incited the public, particularly the youth in Mahabad. As a result, a large crowd thronged outside the hotel, shattered its windows and torched part of the facility.”

The interior minister further said, “Unfortunately, 21 police forces suffered injuries when protesters threw stones at them. Police invited demonstrators to stay calm and I extend my gratitude to police [for their restraint].”

Earlier, Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi, the prosecutor general, said that those behind the unrest in the city would be punished.

Tehran flower exhibition (PHOTOS)

By

Fatemeh Askarieh

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May 11, 2015

The 13th International Exhibition of Flowers and Plants opened in Tehran on May 11 with the Tehran mayor and chairman of Tehran City Council in attendance.

Snapshots of the expo released online by different news websites:

International festival of creativity in Islamic arts opens in Iran

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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May 11, 2015

The second International Festival of Creativity and Innovation in Islamic Arts and Handicrafts opened in Tabriz on May 9.

The weeklong festival brings together 35 Islamic countries, said Secretary General of the festival Mehdi Mohammadzadeh, adding out of the 80 artists who have taken part in the event, 18 are Iranians.

Miniature, illuminated manuscripts, calligraphy, pottery, carpet-weaving, drawing, textile printing and glassmaking, wooden, and metal handicrafts are among the arts over which the participants are competing with each other at the event.

Dolls, the victims’ best friends in a Tehran rehab center (PHOTOS)

By

Fatemeh Askarieh

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May 11, 2015

Victims of the social ills are kept in Ehsan House, a charitable institute for protecting social victims. Like other rehab centers, the sufferers there receive treatment and rehabilitation services, but – unlike other places –dolls are also on the menu to ease the loneliness of those institutionalized.

The Islamic Republic News Agency has released the following pictures of the rehab center in Tehran: