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IRAN FRONT PAGELatest News and Views From Iran, Middle East and the World

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Home Blog Page 4923

Iran says ready to cooperate with Google

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

Nasrollah Jahangard, Iran’s deputy minister of telecommunications and information technology, has been quoted by local media as saying that negotiations are underway with Google to establish a version of its servers in Iran.

“This is a normal thing in the world and it will be economical for [IT] companies to be closer to their main clients,” Jahangard has told Iran’s Fars news agency.

He added that similar talks are currently being carried out with several other major US and European internet companies.

Jahangard added that Iran is even willing to help internet companies like Google use its facilities by providing services to the countries of the region, as well.

“Iran will of course not interfere in the services of the companies but we want what they present in the Iranian market to be in line with Iranian laws,” he added.

Jahangard further emphasized that some non-American enterprises have reached advanced stages in talks to enter the Iranian IT market, adding that their names will be publicly announced once negotiations with them reach the final stages.

IAEA intelligence failure on Iran nuclear activity

March 1, 2015

Bloomberg Business, a news website, has in a report entitled “IAEA Refusal to Visit Iran Site Flags Intelligence Doubts” quoted a former IAEA official as saying that United Nations inspectors’ reluctance to follow up a tip on Iran’s nuclear program indicates their agency may be acknowledging the flaws in some of its intelligence.

The following is part of a report by Kayhan daily on March 1 on remarks by Robert Kelley, a former IAEA official, on Iran’s nuclear activities and the UN nuclear watchdog’s intelligence as reported by Bloomberg:

More than three years after the International Atomic Energy Agency published reports of high-explosive tests in Marivan, near the border with Iraq, officials still haven’t taken up Iranian offers to visit the alleged blast site.

“Marivan is a classic case of inexperienced analysts swallowing everything they are told,” Robert Kelley, an ex-IAEA director, said in an interview. “The IAEA’s unwillingness to go to the site of one of their two stated unresolved concerns shows they have now recognized their mistake.”

Kelley then talks about the strangeness of raising the case of Marivan and says, “If you look at the single mention of Marivan as the place that the most important alleged experiments were done you immediately smell a rat.”

Resistance-based economy does not mean shutting the doors to outside world

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

More than 100 economics professors and researchers have issued a statement in support of resistance-based economy. The release of the statement was timed to coincide with the anniversary of the communication by the Supreme Leader of the policies of resistance-based economy.

The following are the highlights of the statement published by Ettela’at daily on March 1:

To sustain production and get access to new foreign markets, a targeted external strategy should be placed on the agenda of the economy.

One of the biggest hurdles standing in the way of private investment in small- and medium-size business is the lack of easy access to finances.

More than a decade after the general policies of Article 44 of the Constitution were communicated, there is no desirable change in the public-private sectors’ ratio in sovereign responsibilities.

Iran is still far from a point in which people are given a real role to play in boosting economic activities and reducing rent-seeking and monopolistic efforts.

The economics professors and researchers have expressed gratitude for the Supreme Leader’s resourcefulness in piecing together and communicating the general policies of resistance-based economy.

The difference between resistance-based economy and one which shuts the doors to trade with the rest of the world is that it does not push the focal point of economy overseas.

In resistance-based economy all policies are based on measures to boost national production.

Competitiveness of local products is one major requirement for expansion of non-oil exports.

We have read the letter

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

To spread word on the letter the Supreme Leader has penned for the youth in the West, some Iranians have emailed the letter to the Westerners they are in contact with. One such individual is author Habib Ahmadzadeh.

The following is the translation of a report Hamshahri Javan, a magazine, published in its 496^th issue – out on February 28 – about Ahmadzadeh’s measure.

Habib Ahmadzadeh said, “As an ethical, religious and humanitarian responsibility I sent the letter of the leader to two US pacifists: Phil Wilayto, a Virginia-based antiwar activist and editor of the Virginia Defender, and Michael Berg whose son was beheaded by Alqaeda in Iraq.”

The following is the responses I got from Wilayto and Berg:

“Thank you very much for sending this message. Although the United States prides itself on “freedom of speech” and the free flow of information, I have not seen these words anywhere else. And the Ayatollah’s words are reasonable, direct and enlightening.
Phil Wilayto (Virginia Antiwar Network)

“Habib. Thank you for sending this wonderful letter from Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, to the youth of Europe and North America. Did you know that my son Nick carried the Koran with him? This brought him under suspicion of the US Army Police who detained him leading to his death in Iraq in 2004. He wanted to know everything about Islam and did just what Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei suggested to the youth – find out firsthand with an open mind. What great advice!
I will forward this around and try to get it published in the newspaper.”
Michael Berg

One of the unique lessons our political and cultural officials should learn from the letter of the Leader in talking to officials of other countries and even our own people is to invite them to develop insight into things. In the absence of insight and understanding, quick approval and acceptance won’t last long.

West, regional allies must review wrong policies: Iran official

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

“Refusal to revise the previous approaches will intensify instability and increase insecurity,” Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said in a meeting with Italy’s Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni in Tehran on Sunday.

Referring to Libya and the ISIL militants’ activities in the North African country, he said foreign military intervention would increase human and material losses, destroy economic infrastructure and escalate crises.

Libya plunged into chaos following the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime dictator, Muammar Gaddafi. The ouster of Gaddafi gave rise to a patchwork of heavily-armed militias and deep political divisions.

On February 15, the ISIL Takfiri group released a video showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya. The Egyptians had reportedly been abducted in the Libyan coastal city of Sirte in two attacks in December and January.

Also in January, alleged ISIL gunmen stormed Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli, killing nine people, including a Frenchman and a US security consultant.

Last month, Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni warned that Libya may turn into a safe haven for the ISIL Takfiri terrorists.

Italy’s stance on terrorism

Gentiloni said terrorism poses the biggest threat to the Middle East and the world.

He called for collective international will to fight terrorist groups in an effective way to help establish peace and stability in the region.

The Italian foreign minister added that Iran plays a very influential and determining role in solving regional problems, particularly in the fight against the ISIL Takfiri militants.

UNESCO pays tribute to world-renowned Iranian Professor Khodadoost

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) paid homage to the renowned Iranian Professor Ali Asghar Khodadoost for his invaluable services to humanity. Professor Khodadoost is a veteran scientist pioneering in ophthalmology.

The United Nations organization on Friday held a ceremony in Shiraz, southern Iran, to celebrate the sublime status of the Iranian professor.

Addressing the ceremony, Head of the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO Mohammad Reza Saeedabadi referred to Professor Khodadoost as a scholarly physician who owes all his success to his beautiful views towards the Almighty, his inventions as well as his love for people.

Highlighting that the professor contributed immensely to production and growth of knowledge by his effective and influential presence in different universities, he said that it is for the first time that UNESCO is honoring a living Iranian figure.

Professor Ali Asghar Khodadoost was born in 1935 in Shiraz.

After graduation from high school, he started teaching at a primary school there.

In 1954, he began his higher education in Shiraz University’s Faculty of Medial Sciences as a top student.

When he completed his six-year studies with distinction he became an intern in the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Department of Shiraz University’s Namazi Hospital till 1962.

In that year he left for the US to complete his specialized studies in the famous John Hopkins University.

He was admitted as the first and only foreign assistant in the Ophthalmology Section of John Hopkins University in 1963 and throughout the next three years of serving as an assistant there, he was praised as the best assistant of the Wilmer Ophthalmology Center.

A large number of Professor Khodadoost’s articles were published in the website of the Pop Medicine and other international scientific periodicals.

In 1968 he got back to Iran and began teaching in Faculty of Ophthalmology of the University of Shiraz as a full professor.

From 1968 to 1980 he traveled back and forth once every six months between the University of Shiraz and the John Hopkins University where in addition to teaching he also pursed his scientific projects.

During the same period he also taught as a guest professor in various countries’ universities, including those of China, Turkey, Syria, Oman, Peru, Ecuador, and Italy.

In 1982 he was appointed as a full professor in the Faculty of Ophthalmology of Italy’s Sicily University and in 1992 he established the Connecticut Ophthalmology Center in Newington where he served as the senior supervisor.

From 1980 onward, the great Iranian ophthalmologist frequently returned to Iran and flew back to US, participating both in hospital treatments of the patients and in academic trainings of young ophthalmologists of the universities of both countries, especially in Tehran and Shiraz.

His fame in the world in addition to publication of several scientific articles and large-scale research projects in various fields is due to the new remedial methods that he has initiated in eye operations.

The eye membrane section of the John Hopkins University is named after professor as Khodadoost Basement Membrane Line.

Iran denounces Egypt court’s ruling against Hamas

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

Iran has reacted strongly after a court in Egypt labeled the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas a “terrorist” organization.

Condemning the verdict, which was issued on Saturday by the Cairo Court of Urgent Matters, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the Iranian deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs, said later in the day that “Hamas is not a terrorist organization.”

“The Tel Aviv regime is the illegitimate and terrorist regime, which is incapable in the face of the resistance, including Hamas and the Islamic Jihad (another Palestinian resistance movement),” Amir Abdollahian said.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns terrorism in all its forms anywhere, including in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Africa, and Europe,” the Iranian official also said.

Following the court’s announcement on Saturday, the Palestinian resistance group released a statement, describing the court’s decision as “shocking and dangerous”.

“The Egyptian court’s decision to list the Hamas movement as a terror organization is shocking and is dangerous, and it targets the Palestinian people and its factions of resistance,” the statement added.

The court had also claimed in a lawsuit on January 31 that the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, was involved in recent attacks against Egypt’s security forces.

Brotherhood part of Egypt’s reality

Amir Abdollahian further said, “The Muslim Brotherhood is part of the existent reality in Egypt.”

Opposing political groups and terrorists “should be distinguished by adopting a realistic perspective and any side that takes terrorist measures would be hated by the entire world.”

The Egyptian opposition party has been designated a “terrorist group”.

Brotherhood-backed Mohamed Morsi was elected president after Egypt’s 2011 revolution that led to the overthrow of former dictator, Hosni Mubarak. Morsi was later ousted in a military coup led by former head of the armed forces and current President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in July 2013.

The Egyptian government has been cracking down on any opposition since Morsi was ousted. Sisi has been accused of leading the suppression of Morsi supporters, as hundreds of them have been killed in clashes with Egyptian security forces over the past year.

Supreme Leader’s message to Western youth translated in 21 languages

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

Supreme Leader’s message to Western youth

Iran’s Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (ICRO) has translated the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution’s message to Western youth into 21 languages.

ICRO’s deputy director said the move is aimed at foiling attempts to distort the content of the letter or marginalize it.

In a letter on January 21, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei introduced a true image of Islam to the youth in Europe and North America and elaborated on the reasons behind the West’s effort to spread Islamophobia.

In the historic letter, Ayatollah Khamenei asked the Western youth to try to gain direct and firsthand knowledge of the religion in reaction to the flood of prejudgments and disinformation campaigns against Islam.

ICRO has translated the letter into languages such as Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Swahili, Turkish, Indonesian, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, Thai and Albanian.

Figures that have done a number on Greek life

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

When talking about the Greek numerals, what crosses anybody’s mind is alpha, beta, theta, etc. which featured in chemistry, math and geometry courses back in school days. The following is the translation of a report on Greek numbers, of different kinds of course, Tejarat-e Farda (Tomorrow’s Trade) magazine published in its 123^rd issue:

In modern-day Greece in the aftermath of a crippling economic crisis, people seem to be dealing with new figures.

25 percent: Since mid-2008, which marked the start of a monetary crisis in Greece, the country’s economy has contracted by as much as 25 percent compared with its heyday.

25.8 percent: According to the figures put out by the National Statistical Service of Greece, 25.8 percent of people are jobless (1.2 million were unemployed in Greece as of October 2014).

Third ranking: Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, has said that Greece ranks third in Europe in terms of the number of people who are at risk of poverty and social deprivation.

23.1 percent: In 2013, around 23.1 percent of the Greeks were at risk of plunging into poverty, according to Eurostat.

33.5 percent or €77 billion: The Bank of Greece says that the volume of outstanding loans – those which remain overdue for more than three months – stands at €77 billion ($89.380 billion).

€70 billion: According to the Bank of Greece, the approximate capital outflow of the country’s banks has exceeded €70 billion over the past five years.

83.9 percent: The value of Greek stocks and bonds has tumbled 83.9 percent since 2008.

One-fourth: The National Hellenic Research Foundation (NHRF) says one out of four middle and small businesses in the country has been closed down since 2008. It has also estimated that the number of closed businesses in Greece stands at 230,000.

Nine-fold: Tax payments by the self-employed increased nine-fold in 2014, according to the Greek Parliament Budget Office.

Seven-fold: Tax payments by state employees and retirees have increased 7-fold compared with the amount they paid in 2009, according to the Greek Parliament Budget Office.

23 percent: The Greek Parliament Budget Office says that the value added tax for a number of goods has increased 23 percent. This comes as the average VAT is 2.5 percent in EU countries and 21.5 percent in the Euro zone.

One-hundred thousand: Based on new stats released by the Faculty of Economic Studies and Political Science at Alexandria University, up to 100,000 Greek scientists and researchers have left their homeland for foreign countries.

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on March 1

Emad Askarieh

March 1, 2015

As it has been the case in the past few weeks, the nuclear case continued to dominate the front pages of Iranian newspapers on Sunday. The comments of Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Under-Secretary of State Wendy Sherman were under the spotlight this time. Reformist-leaning newspapers also put on their covers the week-long furlough of Mohammad Reza Rahimi, first vice-president under Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, only less than two weeks after he was imprisoned.

Abrar: A member of parliament’s Agriculture Committee has called for termination of wood import tariffs to protect forests at home.

Abrar: The Italian foreign minister has expressed hope that nuclear talks between Iran and P5+1 will be successful.

Aftab-e Yazd: [Former Vice-President Mohammad Reza] Rahimi, who is serving time for corruption, has been furloughed for a week.

Arman-e Emrooz: “[Former nuclear negotiator Saeed] Jalili was admonished by the Supreme Leader twice,” said Sadegh Kharrazi [a former diplomat].

Asrar: “If MPs are mad at me, they should not make hasty decisions as far as the environment is concerned,” said the director of the Environment Protection Organization.

Asrar: Qom said a big No to hardliners.

It came after senior clerics based in the holy city threw their weight behind President Rouhani’s administration during his recent visit to the central city.

Asrar: Dental care is conspicuous by its absence in the Health Transformation Plan.

Ebtekar: With nuclear talks ongoing, the value of the standard gold coin and foreign currencies [against the rial] continues to plunge.

Etemad: The Expediency Council has slapped a ban on any changes to the election laws for 10 years.

Etemad: Iran has expressed readiness to take over Iraqi ancient artifacts which are in danger [of being destroyed by IS terrorists].

Etemad: Completion of [unfinished] development projects takes ages.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani made the comment as he took a swipe at the previous government for launching development projects without ever finishing them.

Ettela’at: Some 27,000 Iraqi soldiers are to take part in a major offensive to wrest control of Tikrit [from IS militants].

Ettela’at: The Iranian environment chief has blamed excessive dam-building for the environment problems the country is faced with.

Hemayat: The US throws a wrench into the works.

Wendy Sherman has once again said that anti-Iran sanctions would remain in place.

Iran: The Iranian foreign minister has said that removal of sanctions will be on the table of talks next week.

Kaenat: Iran’s presence in the Venice Biennial increases 20 percent.

Kar va Kargar: “Government welcomes competitive production to boost quality,” said First Vice-President Eshagh Jahangiri.

Kayhan: Millions of Yemenis have poured onto the streets in support of their revolution.

Kayhan: A motion to launch an investigation into the workings of the Environment Protection Organization has been submitted to parliament’s presiding board.

Kayhan: Iraqi news sources say that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been taken to Israel for treatment.

Khorasan: The US nuclear negotiator has said that terrorism and human rights sanctions against Iran would remain in place for a long time.

Payam-e Zaman: An Iranian cyclist who is on an overseas tour says he pedals for the cause of peace.

Resalat: “Differences over termination of sanctions remain,” said Foreign Minister Zarif.

Rooyesh-e Mellat: A former Mossad chief has admitted that Israel has been involved in assassinations and sabotage in Iran.

Shahrvand: Over 5,000 hectares of garden has been destroyed within Tehran city limits over the past 20 years.

Sharq: “In administering political affairs, there is no other way than accepting the opinion of the majority,” said the grandson of the late Imam Khomeini.