AFP: Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari urged Iran and other neighbouring countries Thursday to refrain from interfering in his country's elections, as representatives met on this month's landmark vote. "The message we're going to give them in this meeting is to refrain from any interference ... that would affect the outcome of this election," Zebari told reporters in Amman. Iraq rejects foreign meddling in elections: FM
AFP: Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari urged Iran and other neighbouring countries Thursday to refrain from interfering in his country's elections, as representatives met on this month's landmark vote. "The message we're going to give them in this meeting is to refrain from any interference ... that would affect the outcome of this election," Zebari told reporters in Amman. Iran's conservative MPs turn to fashion design
AFP: Deputies in Iran's conservative-run parliament have begun preparing designs for what will be a new national costume aimed at stemming the encroachment of Western fashion, a top MP said Thursday. Emad Afroogh, head of the Majlis cultural commission, said MPs have been "meeting with designers to come up with an interesting variety of affordable, nationally inspired designs that will also respond to modern needs." Reporters Without Border condemns mistreatment of cyberjournalists and webloggers
Reporters Without Border: Reporters Without Borders has condemned the mistreatment in prison of cyberdissidents and webloggers after an Iranian committee report concluded that public confessions of two of them, (photo left), were obtained under duress. "We fear that the authorities are succeeding in purging the web of all critical content through brutality, intimidation and censorship," the worldwide press freedom organisation said.
32-year-old man hanged in public in northern Iran
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 06 - A 32-year-old man was hangedin public in the town of Noshahr (northern Iran) yesterday,
after serving five years in prison for murder.
Iraqs DM: Over a million Shiites entered Iraq from Iran
Iran Focus: Baghdad, Jan. 06 - Iraqs Defence Minister Hazem Shaalan scolded Iran on the eve of the meeting by the Foreign Ministers of Iraqs neighbouring countries in Amman and said that over a million Iranians had entered the country to pose as Iraqis in the upcoming January 30th elections. In an interview with the Kuwaiti daily Al-Qabas yesterday, Shaalan repeated his previous assertions and accused the Iranian regime of, interfering (in Iraq) with money, guns, and intelligence.Jordan's King Abdullah defends statement on Shiite "crescent"
AFP: Jordan's King Abdullah II said in comments published here Thursday that his declarations about a Shiite "crescent" were "blown out of proportion" by certain quarters in Iran.
"My statements on the Shiite crescent were blown out of proportion by some in Iran and interpreted to the contrary of my intentions," said the monarch in an interview with Al-Rai Al-Aam newspaper.
Iran Agrees to Inspection of Military Base
New York Times: Iran has agreed to allow nuclear inspectors from the United Nations into a major military complex that the United States has long suspected of being a secret site for nuclear weapons development, officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency said Wednesday.
Paris exhibition: Human Rights Stoned to death in Iran
Iran Focus: Paris, Jan. 06 An Iranian human rights exhibition was opened for the second time in Paris yesterday depicting human rights violations in Iran since the 1979 revolution.
The event was sponsored by some 34 European human rights organisations and will be open to the general public until next week.
Irans East Azerbaijan province home to over 600,000 illiterates
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 05 There are more than 600,000 illiterate people in East Azerbaijan province (northwest Iran), according to the head of Literacy Front of East Azerbaijan.
This figure represents seventeen percent of the provinces population, Mokhtar Mohammadian said.
UN nuclear watchdog to visit Parchin military site in Iran
AFP: The UN atomic agency will visit "within the next few weeks" the Parchin military facility in Iran where the US charges that Tehran is carrying out simulation testing of atomic weapons, the agency's chief Mohamed ElBaradei told AFP Wednesday.
"We expect to visit Parchin within the next few weeks," ElBaradei said.
ElBaradei's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been seeking to visit Parchin since July.
Iraqi defence minister says Iran mainly to blame for Iraq unrest: report
AFP: Iraqi Defence Minister Hazem al-Shaalan took a fresh swipe at Iran, accusing it of being mainly responsible for the deteriorating situation in Iraq, in statements published here Wednesday.
"We have a strong belief that Iran is the main accused in the deterioration of the security situation in Iraq, such as illegal entry, smuggling of arms and means of sabotage," he told Emirati newspaper Al-Bayan.
Irans State Security Forces murder youth
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 05 A young man was killed by agents of Irans State Security Forces (SSF) in the town of Sanandaj (western province of Kurdistan) after he came to the aid of a young woman being assaulted by the SSF agents earlier this week.
Risks of appeasing Iran's mullahs
Washington Times: Iran's increasing meddling in Iraq and its defiance in its nuclear weapons program pose the greatest challenge to peace and security in Iraq and the whole Middle East, as we enter 2005. By sending thousands of Revolutionary Guards and intelligence agents into Iraq, as well as spending hundreds of millions of dollars to recruit mercenaries and enlist support among destitute and impoverished Iraqis, Tehran is hell-bent on steering the Jan. 30 elections in its favor. Over 500 nurses demonstrate in southern Iran
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 04 - A demonstration was held today by over 500 nurses in Shiraz (capital of the southern Fars province in Iran).
The majority of nurses from both public and private hospitals in Shiraz took part in the demonstration which was held from day-brake in Faculty of Medicine in the University of Shiraz.
Homeless man eaten by wolves in Iran
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 04 - A homeless man was eaten alive by wild wolves in the village of Vali-Asr, near the town of Torbat Heydariya (northeast Iran), Sunday evening. Witnesses at the scene said that they phoned emergency services for help and attempted to fight off the wolves until police arrived but failed as the police did not show up.
Two killed by Irans State Security Forces: deputy
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 04 - A member of Irans Majlis (parliament) today admitted to the systematic use of excess force by security forces against citizens. Fakhroldin Heydari, a Majlis deputy from the town of Baneh (northwest Iran) revealed that two individuals in his constituency were shot and killed by aggressive security forces in the past month alone and a number of others were badly wounded.Iraqi Defence Minister: Talks with Iran out of the question
Iran Focus: Cairo, Jan. 04 Iraqs Defence Minister Hazem Shaalan rejected the idea of direct dialogue with Iran yesterday, saying that Iran had no interest in dialogue and only sought to destabilise Iraq. Speaking to reporters after a meeting with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abu Al-Gaith, Shaalan also hinted that Iraq should postpone its January 30th general election if Sunni groups who have threatened to boycott the election were willing to participate in one set for a later date.Students demonstrate in Iran University
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 04 - Students from the University of Tabriz (northwestern Iran) have continued their protest on campus following the deans decision to suspend two student union spokespersons.
The demonstration by a large number of students started Monday morning.
$6 billion black-market imports in Iran
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 04 - The head of Irans Office to Combat Smuggled Goods estimated that nearly $6 billion of all foreign imports come from the black-market every year and hinted at widespread government corruption as the cause.
Irans elections: conservatives and hardliners dominate
Iran Focus Analysis: Tehran, Jan. 03 Candidates set to stand in Irans June 17th presidential elections are seen by many Iran experts as right-wing extremists loyal to hardline Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Several of them, including former heads of Irans Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), have announced their candidacy for president. GCC wary of Iran nuclear activities
UPI: Officials of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council said Monday they see no justification for Iran's nuclear program and are skeptical about it.
GCC Secretary-General Abdel Rahman Attiya was quoted in the Saudi daily al-Watan as saying, "Saudi Arabia and the other GCC countries can't find any justification for such nuclear activity which poses great dangers for all the peoples in the Gulf region."
Angry residents blockade Irans roads
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 03 - Angry residents in Tehrans 17th district blockaded the main freeway on Saturday protesting against the unsafe conditions which regularly result in fatal accidents.
Protesters stopped all traffic flowing on the Javaneh freeway between the 17th and 19th districts in the Iranian capital.
Iranian terrorists kidnapping Iraqis in southern province: sources
Iran Focus: Baghdad, Jan. 02 Iranian agents are systematically kidnapping Iraqis for ransom in the southern Iraqi province of Missan, local residents say. Iranian terrorist agents kidnap Iraqis on the Ozeys route and take them to Iran, demanding large ransoms for their return, a local Iraqi said.
Four million drug addicts exist in Iran
Iran Focus: Tehran, Jan. 02 An Iranian official in charge of combating drugs in Iran stated that there are presently more than four million drug addicts in the country. Moussalreza Servati, a member of the Iranian Majlis Social Committee,said yesterday, At the start of the revolution we had perhaps 150,000 addicts, but presently we are facing four million addicts.
