Azeri and Iranian NUMOV 2016 confab Mahdavikia: Zidane is Cannes to 21112defense chiefs discuss 4 on Iran to Kick off the best player I’ve screen “Maman

NATION Karabakh conflict ECONOMY tomorrow in Berlin SPORTS played against ART& CULTURE Soori’s Case”

WWW.TEHRANTIMES.COM I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y Top judge: Any move to undermine missile program is a ‘betrayal’ 2

12 Pages Price 10,000 Rials 37th year No.12520 Tuesday APRIL 5, 2016 Farvardin 17, 1395 Jumada Al Thani 26, 1437

International politics Assad: Iran of Middle East is Iran’s annual petchem helping bewilderingly complex: to find a Bruce Hall exports rises to 19m tons EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ECONOMY TEHRAN — Iran lion-ton increase compared to its chemicals were produced by the use of solution to By Javad Heirannia deskexported 19 million preceding year, according to an official 80 percent of the capacity of domestic tons of petrochemical products during with Iran’s National Petrochemical Com- plants,” Alimohammad Bossaqzadeh, TEHRAN — Rodney Bruce Hall, a professor of inter- Syria crisis the past Iranian calendar year of 1394 pany (NPC). the NPC’s control manager told the Sha- By staff and agency national relations at the University of Macau, says, “The (which ended on March 19), a 2.5-mil- “Yesteryear, 46 million tons of petro- na news agency on Monday. contemporary international politics of the Middle East is 4 Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has bewilderingly complex.” said that a solution to the Syrian cri- In an interview with the Tehran Times, Hall says, “This sis should be found by the country’s complexity is exacerbated by the fact that this schema is people, however “friends can come to state-centric and presumes states to be unitary, and not you from abroad to help, as it has hap- politically divided regarding societal preferences towards pened today: from Russia and Iran.” domestic and international outcomes.” “Another thing is, if this or any oth- Following is the full text of the interview: er crisis should happen in any country, Has the political logic dominating the Middle East the first thing any statesman should in recent years been Hobbesian, Lockean, or Kantian? know is that the people are the coun- A: My interviewer poses this question in the terminology try’s defenders. And when choosing a of my colleague at Ohio State University, Alexander Wendt. plan of action to resolve the crisis it is Wendt has argued that “anarchy is what states make of it,” Tabriz feels necessary that it meets the customs that the settlement of security disputes among states has and traditions of the nation, its his- grown up as a practice oriented around a convention. Why tory and its essential aspirations. The is there fisticuffs in professional ice hockey in the West? Be- winter in spring solution cannot come from overseas. cause it’s allowed. Why do states settle disputes with armed Friends can come to you from abroad conflict? Because theythey generatedgenerated a See page 9 to help, as it has happened today: convention over thee centuriescenturies toto do from Russia and Iran. However, if there so. However, the ppresumptionresumption of is no internal will and good relations “anarchy” in the internationalternational sys-sys- between the people and the state, it tem (or in a regionalnal ssystemystem such is impossible to find a solution,” Assad as the Middle East)t) presumes told Sputnik in an exclusive interview a Hobbesian logicic on published on Sunday. interstate interactionction Syria has been torn by a civil war whereby all states re-re- since 2011. As a result of the war, 13.5 flect negatively onon million Syrians have been left in need measures by otherer of humanitarian assistance, accord- states to enhancee Azin Haghighi ing to UN figures. Over 6.5 million their security. are internally displaced, while 4.8 See page 9 Mehr/ million have fled the country among hostilities. 2 French orchestra Saudi Arabia acts to slow Iran’s oil exports Former Yemeni to perform in Tehran Saudi Arabia has taken steps to slow powers, Iran was allowed to resume ers will have sailed from Iran’s Kharg Is- president sacks Iran’s efforts at increasing oil exports, crude exports to Europe and other des- land for Europe, said shipbrokers, with ARTTEHRAN – The Alliance Orchestra under the premier over desk banning vessels that transport Iranian tinations. only 12m barrels booked to sail. baton of Iranian-born French maestro Pejman crude from entering their waters, ac- Since the lifting of sanctions, Iran has Iranian vessels carrying the country’s ‘failures’ Memarzadeh will perform at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall on April 20. cording to traders and shipbrokers. managed to sell only small volumes of crude are restricted from entering ports in Pieces by Bach, Gioacchino Rossini, Pablo de Sarasate, There is significant Iran already faces insurance, financing crude to Europe, including barrels to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, according to a progress in Yemen Tchaikovsky, Brahms and and legal obstacles despite the lifting of Spain’s Cepsa, Total of France and Rus- circular sent by a shipping insurance com- Beethoven will be performed sanctions linked to its oil industry in January. sia’s Litasco. pany to its members in February. negotiations:Saudi Arabia’s at the concert. Under a nuclear deal with world By mid-April, only about eight tank- (Source: Financial Times) deputy crown Prince The orchestra is also scheduled to give perfor- Yemen’s fugitive former President Abd mances in the Iranian cities of Ban calls for a world free of Rabbuh Mansur Hadi has dismissed Isfahan, Kerman and Shiraz. his Prime Minister Khaled Bahah due Also a cellist, Memarza- mines, unexploded ammunition to the “failures” of his self-proclaimed deh founded the Alliance government. Orchestra in 1995 in order to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Mine action is an investment in hu- In a Sunday statement, Hadi said the strengthen relations between Ki-moon has called for a world free of manity. It helps nurture peaceful socie- decision to fire Bahah was made “due Pejman Memarzadeh the East and West. the threat of mines and explosive rem- ties, where those in need can receive aid, nants of war. and refugees and internally displaced to the failures that have accompanied The full text of his message reads: persons can safely return home, and the performance of the government Russia says Iran confirms Mine action is critical for an effective children can go to school. It provides the during the past period in the fields of humanitarian response in conflict and safe space to undertake development economy, services, and security.” participation in Doha meeting, post-conflict situations. This is a central and reconstruction activities, and lay the Bahah’s government has “failed to not to freeze oil output so far message of the International Day for foundations of sustainable peace. ease the suffering of our people, re- Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine The first-ever World Humanitarian solve their problems and provide their needs,” Hadi added. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday that Action. Summit will convene in Istanbul next This is while some Yemeni sources Iran has confirmed its participation in a Doha meeting on April Yet in far too many places around the stroyed. This has enabled the delivery of month. My report in advance of the say a behind-the-scenes power strug- 17, however, it planned to join the oil output freeze agreement world, new or re-emerging conflicts are food and water and the safe movement Summit highlights the unacceptable gle has been the real reason behind only after its output rises to 4 million barrels per day. creating yet another legacy of explosive of those fleeing fighting. impact of mines and explosive rem- Bahah’s dismissal. On March 29, Bloomberg had quoted a person familiar hazards, such as landmines, cluster mu- Even in the extremely challenging nants of war on civilians. It also stresses The head of Yemen’s deposed gov- with Iran’s policy as saying that the country will attend talks nitions and improvised explosive devic- context of Syria, mine action actors are the need for States to become parties ernment, which still proclaims itself the with fellow OPEC members and Russia in Qatar without join- es. I am particularly concerned about achieving some important life-saving re- to, and implement and comply with, rightful authority and is based in the ing their proposal to freeze crude oil production. the use of explosive weapons in popu- sults. Last year, more than 2 million Syr- relevant international humanitarian in- southern city of Aden, has appointed Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh will attend the discus- lated areas. ians received risk education in schools struments. Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr as the new sions in Doha, said the person, who asked not to be identified The United Nations is working to and communities, and more than 5,400 I am pleased that, in December 2015, prime minister, and General Ali Mohsen as the talks are private. Iran will maintain its policy of regaining alleviate the suffering of affected com- people received physical rehabilitation the General Assembly unanimously al-Ahmar as the new vice-president. market share lost during years of sanctions so won’t accept limits munities in high-risk environments. In services. Since August 2015, 14 tons of adopted a resolution underlining the Bahah, who held both posts before on its output, the person said. Most OPEC members, including South Sudan, for example, more than unexploded ordnance have been de- need for mine action to remain at the his removal from office, has now been Saudi Arabia, have said they will go to the meeting. half a million people have received risk stroyed. But millions of Syrian people top of the international agenda, espe- named an adviser to Hadi. Zanganeh says Iran will continue increasing its oil produc- education over the last 12 months; 14 continue to face this deadly threat every cially in humanitarian crises. On this In- A source close to the former gov- tion and exports until it reaches the market position it en- million square meters of contaminated day. There is an urgent need for in- ternational Day, let us work together to ernment said the shake-up could joyed before the imposition of sanctions. land have been cleared; 3,000 km of creased support as well as full, sustained advance the goal of a world free of the undermine UN-brokered peace Iran’s oil exports have surpassed 2 million barrels per day road was made safe; and 30,000 mines and unhindered access for all mine ac- threat of mines and explosive remnants talks between Yemen’s warring par- following the lifting of sanctions under its nuclear deal with and explosive remnants of war were de- tion activities. of war. (Source: UN org) ties, scheduled to start in Kuwait on world powers, Zanganeh said on Sunday. Iran has doubled April 18. exports since its nuclear accord took effect on January 16. ISIL executes 15 of its own members for spying “Bahah was in favor of a political Iran, an OPEC member, has the world’s fourth-largest oil settlement and the appointment of Ali reserves but its exports were long hampered by sanctions The Islamic State in Iraq in connection with the killing ain-based monitoring group assault. Al-Nusra is con- Mohsen is a victory for the hard-line over its nuclear program. It has moved ahead with an in- and the Levant (ISIL/Daesh) of senior ISIL command- said. sidered the second-largest wing,” the official, requesting anonym- crease in exports despite global concerns over a supply glut terrorist group has killed 15 er Abu Hija al-Tunisi in a A founding member and terrorist group operating in ity, told Reuters. that has pushed oil prices below $40 a barrel, from more than of its own members in the Wednesday airstrike. spokesman for the al-Nus- Syria. In early 2015, Hadi resigned from his $100 a barrel in mid-2014. (Source: agencies) largest execution the ter- Following the air raid, ISIL ra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra), Syria has been gripped rorist group has carried out arrested 35 of its members Abu Firas al-Suri was killed by foreign-backed militancy post as the president of Yemen and lat- TEHRAN TIMES against its elements in Syria, in Raqqah, according to the during a Syrian or Russian since March 2011. According er fled to Aden and then to Saudi Ara- bia. However, he rescinded his resigna- Iran’s Leading International Daily a report says. observatory. raid on a village located in to the so-called Syrian Ob- The so-called Syrian Ob- In a separate develop- the province’s northwestern servatory for Human Rights, tion one month after submitting it. Advertising Dept servatory for Human Rights ment, a senior leader of the region, said the observato- at least 270,000 people have He fled to Saudi Arabia along with said on Sunday that the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra ry. been killed in the conflict. most of his officials and declared Aden Te l : 021 - 430 51 450 terrorists were executed Front was killed in an air- It added that Suri’s son Some reports, however, put as their new capital. However, they near Syria’s northern city of strike in Syria’s northwestern and 20 other foreign mili- the death toll at as high as spend most of their time in the Saudi [email protected] Raqqah over spying charges province of Idlib, the Brit- tants were also killed in the 470,000. (Source: agencies) capital, Riyadh. 9 I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y NATION 2 AAPRILPRIL 55,, 20162016 http://www.tehrantimes.com/international

MEDIA MONITOR Top judge: Any move to undermine Parliamentarians defend Iran’s missile capability missile program is a ‘betrayal’ POLITICAL TEHRAN – Iran’s Judi- Larijani also said questioning the country’s desk TEHRAN – Iranian parliamentarians issued a state- ciary Chief Sadeq Amo- defense capabilities and the system’s ideals ment on Monday expressing their support for the li Larijani said on Monday that any effort to and principles is not “fair”. country’s missile program, condemning any meas- undermine the country’s missile capability will He expressed hope that the Iranian people ure that would undermine national security, Press constitute an example of “betrayal”. and officials would take step on the “path of TV reported on Monday. “Undermining and questioning missile, unity and solidarity” given the guidelines set security and military achievements under the by the Leader. PRESS TVPRESS “Undoubtedly, the military strategy of the Islamic Republic is [based on] the policy of deterrence,” the pretext of freedom of expression are betrayal Abbas Araqchi, deputy foreign minister for 154 MPs said in their statement. of the country and ideals of the Islamic Re- legal and international affairs who played a key The Iranian lawmakers described as “a joke of public of Iran,” the top judge said during a role in negotiating a nuclear deal with great the history” that “the U.S. on the one hand con- meeting with senior Judiciary officials. powers in July 2015, also told a TV program stantly threatens Iran with military aggression and He urged the country’s attorneys to coun- late on Saturday that Iran’s missile program is a on the other hand asks Iran to withdraw the policy ter against any acts and moves in this respect. “national and defense” issue which the Islamic of expanding its defense and missile [capability].” The remarks by the Judiciary chief fol- Republic will not negotiate or compromise on it. lowed a statement by the Supreme Leader on In comments posted on his tweeter last Iran will never seek (to build) unconventional example for the Islamic countries, has posed The Islamic Republic Wednesday who said, “If the Islamic system month Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad weapons,” Dehqan asserted. a serious danger against the Western he- pursues technology and negotiations with- Zarif also said if Iran had missiles former Iraqi Elsewhere, in his remarks Larijani said Iran will gemonic governments and they resort to any system accepted JCPOA out defense power, then this will be a retreat dictator Saddam Hussein may not have invad- not compromise on its national interests and will method and instrument to undermine the sys- with its good and bad in the face of threats from other insignificant ed the nascent Islamic Republic in 1980. not accept foreign interference at any cost. tem,” Larijani said. aspects: Motahari countries.” Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan also The Islamic Republic of Iran will resist “ille- He said that the hegemonic governments Iran has repeatedly said that its missile said recently that Iran’s missiles were designed gitimate demands” of the hegemony, he added. are well aware of the fact that the Islamic sys- TEHRAN – The Islamic Republic system in gener- program is just for defensive purposes. to carry only conventional warheads. “And “The Islamic Republic of Iran’s, being an tem will not compromise on its values. al has accepted the JCPOA with its good and bad points, MP Ali Motahari has said. “We should not represent the good sides to be- Assad: Iran helping to find a solution to Syria crisis long to a part of the system and the bad sides to IRNA relate to Dr. Rouhani and Mohammad Javad Zarif,” 1 national law or morality in politics at present. Anything Moscow proposes to put off discussions about he told IRNA on Monday. In his interview Assad also said that the West can’t be can happen anywhere on our planet.” Assad’s fate, Ryabkov said, adding the issue should The late Imam Khomeini prevented division by trusted is the most important lesson Syria has learned He stressed that during the war Syria “endured inhu- be decided later by the sides involved in the Syrian accepting Resolution 598 and now the same be- during five years of civil war. mane suffering” which he wouldn’t wish on any other conflict. havior should be followed, he said in reference to a “The most important lesson we have learned, but state. Iran and Russia have been helping the Assad gov- ceasefire that ended the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. I suppose we knew it all along, is that the West is The country faced “terrorist aggression, which was ernment while the West and its regional allies like Sau- not honest. Western countries are dishonest,” Assad accompanied by atrocities in their essence and form, di Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have been supporting the stressed. unprecedented in recent decades, and maybe even in militants. Iran has deployed The U.S., EU and their allies “are pursuing a policy far the past centuries,” he lamented. The power vacuum in Syria opened the door for en- special army removed from the principles of international law and the Russia’s RIA news agency on Monday quoted Russian try of terrorist groups like Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda and United Nations” and because of that “it is impossible to Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying that later Daesh into the country. forces in Syria rely upon the West to solve any issue,” he said. demands for Assad to step down restrict perspectives Some regional Arab states like Qatar and Saudi Ara- He added, “We live in a world where there is no inter- for political settlement in the country. bia have been openly helping al-Nusra Front. TEHRAN – Iranian Army’s elite forces, named the 65 Nohed Airborne Brigade, has deployed a group of Iran, Azerbaijan and Turkey to hold Rafsanjani: Strengthening missile its commandos in Syria to provide advisory support for President Bashar al-Assad’s Army in fight against trilateral meeting power is ‘essential’ terrorist groups, an Iranian commander said. POLITICAL TEHRAN – Iran, POLITICAL TEHRAN - Ayatol-

TASNIM Brigadier General Ali Arasteh said in addition to deskAzerbaijan, and Tur- desklah Akbar Hashemi the brigade other units of the Army have also de- key are scheduled to hold their fourth Rafsanjani, chairman of the Expediency ployed forces in Syria, Tasnim reported on Monday. trilateral meeting on Tuesday in the Council, said in a meeting on Monday northern Iranian city of Ramsar. that strengthening the country’s mili- Missile power is The first trilateral meeting of the tary power, especially missile technol- Iran’s redline: countries was held in 2011 in the Ira- ogy, is “essential”. nian northwestern city of Urmia and Rafsanjani said he has always high- military the second and third ones were held in sador to Baku Mohsen Pakaeen has lighted the importance of “upgrading” tus of Velayat Faqih (rule of Supreme 2012 in Nakhchivan and in 2014 in the also announced that the first trilateral missile program as a “defense and de- Jurisprudence) and said Leader of the terrent power”. TEHRAN – Defensive capabilities, including mis- Turkish city of Van respectively. meeting between Iran, Azerbaijan and Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Elsewhere, he highlighted the sta- sile power, are Iran’s redlines, the deputy chief of According to ISNA, Iranian Ambas- Russia will be held in Baku on Thursday. Khamenei should be supported. Armed Forces said on Monday. Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri also said the U.S. non-adherence to its obligations is a “reality” Italy PM to visit Iran next week NASIM that should not be forgotten, Nasim reported on Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi will travel to Iran next Contracts worth an estimated 17 billion euros ($18 bil- Monday. week for a two-day trip that will make him the first major lion) were signed in Rome and Rouhani said he hoped international figure to visit since the lifting of sanctions that would represent only a start, as he pitched Iran as Iranian court delivers against Tehran. a safe base for investors looking to get into a regional Renzi’s office said in a statement Monday that the market of 300 million consumers. death sentence to centre-left leader would visit the Islamic Republic on Iran has said it wants European help to modernize tycoon Babak Zanjani April 12-13, without giving further details of his itinerary. and expand its rail, road and air networks as well as Italy has led the way amongst European countries in seeking investment to boost its manufacturing base, no- re-establishing economic ties to Iran following the lifting tably in the automobile sector. TEHRAN – The Revolution Court has delivered bil- of international sanctions on the country. Italy was Iran’s largest European trade partner before lionaire Babak Zanjani’s death sentence. An accord to lift the sanctions was agreed last year to Italy and France at the end of January, a trip which resulted the impact of sanctions caused exchanges between the The verdict has been issued by the branch 15 of and came into force in January. in a string of major trade and investment deals being signed two countries to collapse. the court. Renzi’s trip follows Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s visit between Tehran and the two European countries. (Source: AFP)

ILNA Zanjani’s lawyer Rasoul Koohpaye Zadeh con- firmed to ILNA on Monday that his client had re- ceived the death sentence. JCPOA has created opportunity for Azeri and Iranian defense chiefs “The delivery process has in fact begun today as the progress: Rouhani discuss Karabakh conflict verdict comes in 318 pages and we should start taking notes, which takes time. When we are taking notes, the POLITICAL TEHRAN – Irani- POLITICAL TEHRAN – In a tele- desk desk verdict is considered as delivered, since which day we will an President Has- phone conversation have 20 days to plea,” the lawyer stated. san Rouhani said on Monday that the on Monday Iranian Defense Minister Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Hossein Dehqan and his Azeri counter- commonly called the nuclear deal, has part Zakir Hasanov discussed the latest Iran says created an atmosphere to tap all the developments in the Karabakh region projectiles land capacities in line with the efforts to de- which became a scene of clashes be- near border village velop the country. tween Armenian and Azeri military A “wise and fast” move towards de- forces on Saturday. from Karabakh velopment and progress is required, country. Dehqan stressed importance of re- them to make a halt to the conflict and TEHRAN – Deputy Governor-General for Political and Rouhani said during a meeting with He also said that Iran is an “influen- solving the conflict through dialogue. settle the crisis peacefully. Security Affairs in Iran’s East Azarbaijan province has the information and communications tial and capable” country in the global He also urged Baku and Yerevan to ex- On April 3, Azerbaijan declared a said three projectiles landed on the vicinity of a village technology minister and the other energy market. ercise self-restraint. unilateral ceasefire with Armenia in the located in the province’s Khoda Afarin County on Sat- high-ranking officials of the ministry. Iran and the 5+1 group - the The Iranian minister stressed that Teh- disputed enclave however the Azeri urday in Azerbaijan-Armenia crossfire. He said that the atmosphere of United States, Britain, France, China ran will spare no efforts to help ease the Defense Ministry said that three of its ISNA The projectiles, Shabestari Khiabani said on hope that has been created after the and Russia plus Germany – reached tension. troopers were killed as the Armenians Monday, damaged a power pole, resulting in pow- JCPOA should not be spoiled. the JCPOA in Vienna on July 14, Also on Sunday Dehqan held sepa- fired mortar shells at Azeri positions er outage in the area, ISNA reported. Rouhani also highlighted the im- 2015. The JCPOA went into effect in rate phone calls with his counterparts and attacked them using grenade He also said the incident did not lead to human loss, portance of maintaining unity in the January 2016. in Azerbaijan and Armenia urging launchers on Monday. calling on Azerbaijan and Armenia to exercise restraint. Syrian parliament Iran-Syria cooperation foils U.S.-Israeli plots: Syria PM speaker hails The Syrian prime minister has highlighted the importance of He further expressed gratitude to the Iranian nation for its “The world’s infidels, global arrogance, Zionists, and some cooperation between Iran and Syria in further strengthening support of the Syrian people. governments in the region have backed Daesh and the Takfiris; Tehran’s support for the resistance front against U.S.-Israeli plots in the Middle East. Amir Khojasteh, the head of the Iranian parliamentary they helped them grow and then sent them to Syria in the Damascus “Iran-Syria all-out cooperation has strengthened the front of delegation, reiterated that the Islamic Republic will continue hope of bringing about the collapse of Syria and the Syrian resistance and perseverance against Zionist-American schemes to stand by the Syrian nation and government in their battle government in a matter of two to three months. But for five TEHRAN – Syrian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Jihad for the region,” Wael al-Halqi said in a meeting with an Iranian against terrorist groups. years now the people of Syria and the government of Syria al-Laham has praised Iran’s supporting role in fighting parliamentary delegation in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Sun- Khojasteh, who is the chairman of the Iranian Parliament’s have resisted and God willing victory is now close,” he said. terrorism in Syria and in the ongoing negotiations to re- day, according to Syria’s official news agency, SANA. Councils and Internal Affairs Committee, said he was confident the The Iranian parliamentarian further criticized the countries solve the five-year-old crisis in the country. Al-Halqi pointed to the historical and strategic ties between Syrian people will emerge victorious in the fight against the ene- that actually created Daesh and caused the death of many Syr- In a meeting with a senior Iranian parliamentary the Islamic Republic and Syria, saying that Tehran-Damascus mies and reconstruct their country without any foreign meddling. ians, adding that the terrorists are now returning home and ICANA delegation in Damascus on Sunday, he said that sup- bilateral ties have played a significant role in strengthening the Earlier in the day, Khojasteh met with Syria’s Parliament causing instability there. ports provided by Iran would also lead to the pro- Syrian nation and the resistance front against unjust economic Speaker Jihad al-Lahham, expressing hope that “victory” would Khojasteh further congratulated Damascus on its liberation gress of Syrian-Syrian dialogue, ICANA reported. sanctions by the West. be close for Syria over the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group. of the ancient city of Palmyra. (Source: Press TV) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y

http://www.tehrantimes.com/international AAPRILPRIL 55,, 20162016 INTERNATIONAL 3

Al-Nusra Front spokesman killed NEWS Ammar Hakim levels by air strike in Syria criticism at Iraqi cabinet

The spokesman for al-Qaeda’s Syrian af- ernment forces and rebels has largely reshuffle filiate, al-Nusra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra), held since February 27, but al-Nusra his son and 20 other fighters have been Front and the Islamic State in Iraq and Head of supreme council of Iraq, Seyyed Ammar Hakim leve- reported killed in air strikes in the north- the Levant (ISIL/Daesh) terrorist group led criticism at the Iraq cabinet reshuffle and the new lineup, east of the country. were not involved in that deal. stressing the recent changes made by Haider al-Abadi are Abu Firas al-Suri was meeting with The cessation has, in fact, analysts say, not right, reported Taqrib News Agency (TNA). other leading fighters in an al-Nusra allowed Russia and the U.S.-led coalition Making his remark stronghold, Kafar Jales, when the raids that has been bombing ISIL to concen- in a press conference happened on Sunday, the Britain-based trate their battle against the fighters. mounted in Bagh- Syrian Observatory for Human Rights On Wednesday, a drone strike near dad, Seyyed Ammar said. ISIL’s de facto capital, Raqqa, killed Tu- Hakim pointed out Sources in the north of the country nisian commander Abu al-Haija, ac- , “parliament mem- told Al Jazeera they believed the raids cording to the Observatory, the latest bers and some po- were carried out by the United States-led in a series of blows to the group in re- litical parties are not coalition operating over Syria and Iraq. cent weeks. that much pleased Other sources told the Reuters news Fifteen ISIL commanders accused of with the new chang- agency the attacks appeared to have the revealing his position have since been es proposing a lot of hallmarks of U.S. drone strikes. executed, the Observatory said, and objections on it.” A U.S. security official said Washington the fate of another 20 men accused of The political face was aware of reports on the killing but collaborating with the US-led coalition is placed stress on the re- had no further information to offer on unknown. cent reforms in cabinet, Sunday. Coalition forces have previously On Sunday, the Syrian army seized adding, “We accept no targeted al-Nusra Front leaders in Syria. ment or Russian fighter jets. Leader Osama bin Laden and his mentor the city of al-Qaryatain, one of the last corruption and incom- The Syrian Observatory for Human Al-Suri, whose real name was Radwan Abdullah Azzam before returning to Syr- ISIL strongholds in central Syria, accord- petent ministers; inas- Rights had earlier said the strikes may Nammous, fought against Soviet forces ia after the uprising began in 2011. ing to state television. much as in the here and now, Iraq is facing great challenges have been launched by Syrian govern- in Afghanistan when he met al-Qaeda A temporary ceasefire between gov- (Source: Al Jazeera) and what we do need is competent and honest ministers so as to tackle the setbacks.” Head of supreme council of Iraq went on to highlight, “it is incumbent upon the parliament members to play an Deportation of refugees from Greece U.S.-Philippine war games begin as active role in sorting out the problems and meeting peo- to Turkey begins China warns ‘outsiders’ ple’s need.” Ammar al – Hakim, on Saturday, reservations on the Under tight security, police on the United States and Philippine troops new cabinet reshuffle, pointing out that ” the method of Greek island of Lesbos have put people began major exercises on Monday as announcing a change of ministerial cabin were not suc- on boats bound for Turkey, the first to China’s state media warned “outsiders” cessful and we have notes on , ” pointing out that we “we be deported under a European Union against interfering in tense South China are working hard to save the government through reform (EU) plan to stem the flow of refugees Sea territorial disputes. steps calculated.” to Europe. The official Xinhua news agen- Hakim stressed ” the need to provide efficiency Witnesses reported seeing two cy gave the warning as Manila and personalities candidate to fill government positions,” boats set sail after police boarded peo- Washington launched the 11-day adding “there is a great political mobility to check ple who had arrived on buses. Balikatan (Shoulder-to-Shoulder) ex- and make sure the candidates names of ministers, “All of the migrants returned are with the continent’s worst refugee crisis ercises with a low-key opening cere- Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philip- they are correct and efficient is it included all the from Pakistan, except for two migrants since World War II, with more than one mony in Manila. pines. components of Iraq . ” from Syria who returned voluntarily,” million people arriving last year. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter is In recent years it has built major Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi of Iraq has presented a list Giorgos Kyritsis, a spokesman for a Under the agreement, designed to to fly to the Philippines next week to structures including radar systems and with the names of candidates for ministries as he works up a government refugee crisis committee, halt new arrivals along the most pop- observe live-firing of artillery and visit airstrips over reclaimed reefs and out- new cabinet lineup. told state TV. ular route through Turkey, all “irregular U.S. Navy ships taking part. crops, sparking international concern it “He presented a list with the names of candidates for min- Kyritsis said 136 people were de- migrants” arriving since March 20 face Some 5,000 U.S. troops are taking could impose military controls over the istries and their CVs who were chosen by a special commit- ported from Lesbos and 66 from the being sent back. Each case is meant to part along with nearly 4,000 Philippine entire area. tee of experts on the basis of professionalism, competence, nearby island of Chios, where riot po- be examined individually. soldiers and 80 from Australia. It has sent U.S. bombers and war- integrity and leadership,” said a statement on the website of lice clashed with local residents hours About 4,000 refugees have been “The... exercises caps Manila’s recent ships on patrol close to the Chinese the Iraqi premier on Thursday. earlier during a protest against the ex- detained on Greek islands since the attempts to involve outsiders in (a) re- construction activity in recent months, Abadi named Nizar Salem al-Numan as a candidate for pulsions. agreement came into effect. gional row,” China’s official news agency infuriating Beijing. oil minister as part of the cabinet reshuffle aimed at combat- The deal to send people back For every Syrian refugee returned, Xinhua said in a commentary. Lieutenant-General John Toolan, ing corruption, state television said. across the Aegean Sea has been fierce- another Syrian refugee will be resettled It cited Japan, which sent a subma- commander of U.S. Marine Corps forc- The premier also named prominent politician Ali Allawi ly criticized by rights groups on ethical from Turkey to the EU, with the num- rine on a visit to the Philippines last es in the Pacific, told reporters in Ma- for the post of finance minister and tagged Sharif Ali bin grounds. bers capped at 72,000. weekend, and Australia. nila the exercises would help the allies al-Hussein for foreign minister, the report added. The AFP news agency on Monday “This is the first day of a very dif- “However, a provocation so improve maritime security and main- Iraqis have been protesting against corruption over the said two Turkish ferries on Lesbos, and ficult time for refugee rights,” Gior- fear-mongering and untimely as such tain regional stability. past months calling for reforms. The administration of Abadi another one on Chios, were to pick up gos Kosmopoulos, head of Amnes- is likely to boomerang on the initiators,” The exercises come ahead of a has failed to deliver on its reform promises. the refugees and that they would be ty International in Greece, told the Xinhua added. decision this year by a United Na- The number of ministers that would be affected by the escorted by police from the EU border Associated Press news agency from “A big country with vital interests tions-backed tribunal on a legal chal- reshuffle is not clear yet. agency Frontex. Lesbos. in Asia, the United States should first lenge by Manila to China’s territorial The Iraqi parliament must vote on any change of the cab- Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala “Despite the serious legal gaps and clarify the targets of its Pivot to Asia claims. inet lineup. has said his country is ready to re- lack of adequate protection in Turkey, strategy, which so far has featured no The Philippines is also preparing The parliament, however, postponed its session for that ceive 500 refugees on Monday and the EU is forging ahead with a dan- more than unscrupulous inconsistency to host U.S. troops at five bases un- matter until April 2. It had been expected to reconvene later Greek authorities have provided 400 gerous deal. Turkey is not a safe third between fear-mongering deeds and der a defense pact born out of U.S. on Thursday. Lawmakers appear divided on the reshuffle, as names, although these numbers country for refugees. The EU and peace-loving words.” President Barack Obama’s plan to a number of parliamentarians have called for changes to all could change. Greek authorities know this and have China lays claim to almost all of reassert American influence in the ministries and others only urge a partial change. The European Union signed the no excuse.” the South China Sea, despite partial Pacific. On March 29, senior Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr met with deal with Turkey in March as it wrestled (Source: Al Jazeera) counter-claims by Brunei, Malaysia, (S0urce: AFP) Abadi ahead of a deadline set for the premier to enact po- litical reforms. The parliament voted on March 28 to give Abadi a three- day deadline by which to present his new government or About 250 Palestinian minors held in Israeli jails: rights group face a vote of no-confidence. A Palestinian human rights body says at least 241 Pales- Al-Rab, Mohammed Ahmed Kmail and Ahmed Rajeh Sadr began a promised sit-in inside Baghdad’s Green tinian children under the age of 18 are currently held in Zakarneh, who were all in their twenties and were earlier Zone on March 27, vowing to continue the protest action Israeli prisons and detention facilities. killed, in the city of Qabatiya in the Jenin Governorate in until the government fulfills its pledges for reforms. The Commission of Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Af- the occupied West Bank at dawn on Monday. He joined his followers at the gates of the area, which is fairs announced in a report released on Sunday that The home of a fourth Palestinian, Bilal Abu Zeid, home to many government offices as well as the parliament 94 Palestinian minors, sentenced on various charges, who has been arrested for alleged involvement in the and foreign embassies. are incarcerated at the Israeli-run Ofer Prison near the attack by the other three, was also demolished on Meanwhile, Iraq’s former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, occupied West Bank city of Beitunia, while the rest are Monday. who is currently the secretary general of the Islamic Dawa being kept in other jails, Arabic-language Palestine al- The three young men had been shot dead by Israeli Party, has reportedly expressed his conditional support for Yawm news agency reported. forces in Bab Al-Amud Gate in the occupied East al- the reshuffle if the changes do not affect less than nine minis- The report added that 22 Palestinian inmates are un- Quds (Jerusalem) Old City over an alleged stabbing and tries. Otherwise, he has stated, the party will not take part in der the age of 16 years and two are in critical condition shooting attack on Israeli forces on February 3. the parliament vote for the reshuffle. after being shot and arrested. Autopsy confirms Palestinian killed by shot to (Source: agencies) The Palestinian human rights body further noted that head six minors are being held by the Israeli authorities under Meantime, an autopsy on a Palestinian youth deter- administrative detention. mines that he was killed by a final shot to his head, a Some Palestinian prisoners have been held in admin- doctor says, confirming his execution-style killing by an Erdogan says no room for istrative detention for up to eight, ten and eleven years Israeli soldier in the West Bank. dialog in Kurdish conflict without any charges brought against them. “After a full autopsy, the fatal wound was in the head,” The Commission of Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Palestinian doctor Rayan al-Ali said on Sunday. remains Affairs also pointed out that in March Israeli authori- “There were several gunshot wounds. All those ties issued fines against minor prisoners in Ofer Prison wounds were in the muscles, the lower limbs, and there hearings that he was defending himself against the Pal- Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Monday the time amounting to 85,000 Israeli shekels (US 22,474 dollars). was a wound in his right lung, but it was not fatal and estinian, even as he could be seen in the video lying for peace talks with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party There are reportedly more than 6,500 Palestinians did not lead to his death,” he added. wounded and motionless on the ground. (PKK) is over and vowed to stamp out the three-decade held at Israeli jails. Hundreds of the inmates have been The Israeli soldier shot Abdul Fatah al-Sharif in the The soldier said he thought the Palestinian was wear- insurgency. apparently incarcerated under the practice of adminis- head on March 24 while he was lying wounded by Israeli ing an explosive belt. However, other soldiers who were Militants must either surrender or they will be “neutral- trative detention, which is a policy under which Palestin- fire on the ground after an alleged stabbing attack in the present at the time of the deadly shooting told the court ized,” Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara that was broadcast ian inmates are kept in Israeli detention facilities without West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron). that the shooter had said before the incident that the live by state TV channel TRT. trial or charge. A Palestinian activist recorded the scene on camera Palestinian “was alive and deserved to die.” The PKK abandoned its two-year ceasefire in July, re- The Palestinian inmates regularly hold hunger strikes and released it through a human rights group. The foot- Tensions have heightened in the occupied territo- viving a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives in protest at both the administrative detention policy age spread online and the soldier was arrested. ries since August 2015, when Israel imposed restrictions since 1984. and harsh prison conditions. Israel’s Supreme Court allowed al-Sharif’s family to on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Since July, almost 400 soldiers and police and sev- Israeli forces destroy homes of slain Palestinians choose a doctor to carry out the autopsy. Mosque compound in East al-Quds. eral thousand militants have been killed, according to Elsewhere, Israeli forces have razed the homes of On Thursday, military prosecutors had reduced the Some 208 Palestinians, including children and wom- government figures. Opposition political parties say four Palestinians, three of whom had been killed in Feb- anticipated murder charge from murder to manslaugh- en, have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces between 500 and 1,000 civilians have also died in the ruary over an alleged attack against Israeli troops. ter. Under Israeli law, manslaughter signifies an inten- since the beginning of last October. Around 29 Israelis fighting, centered in towns and cities in Turkey’s mainly According to the Palestinian Information Center, the tional killing but one that was not premeditated. have also been killed during this period. Kurdish southeast. Israeli forces destroyed the homes of Ahmed Najeh Abu The soldier and his lawyers claimed at the court (Source: Press TV) (Source: Reuters) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 4 ECONOMY AAPRILPRIL 55,, 22016016 http://www.tehrantimes.com/economy

NEWS Iran’s light crude oil price Iran’s master plan to ramp up energy exports highest in 3 months Iran, which possesses the second-largest natural gas re- serves in the world, has recently announced its intention to ECONOMY TEHRAN — Average price of Iran’s dramatically increase its energy production. It is also posi- desklight crude oil surpassed $30 in the tioning itself to increase its energy exports, a long-stated week ended on March 25, for the first time in the past goal of its post-sanctions economic program. three months. In January 2016 it was The price hit $36.35 per barrel in the mentioned announced by Iran’s Presi- week, showing a $1.03 growth compared to its preced- dent Hassan Rouhani that ing week, the IRNA news agency reported on Monday. the South Pars natural gas The average price of Iran’s light crude oil stood at field, Iran’s portion of the $30.08 since the beginning of current Iranian calendar enormous Persian Gulf field year (March 20). it shares with Qatar, will The country also sold heavy crude oil at $34.18 per be fully developed and in barrel on average in the mentioned week, showing $1.9 operation by March 2018. growth compared to its previous week. The 24-phase project has Iran’s average crude oil price stood at $27.47 since just surpassed stage 15 and the beginning of new Iranian calendar year. 16, which together will add Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries 50 million cubic meters per (OPEC)’s basket price stood at $35.81 per barrel on av- day (mcm/d) of gas and erage in the week ended on March 25, with $0.63 rise 80,000 barrels per day of from its preceding week. condensate. Last year pro- Iran, once OPEC’s second-largest producer after duction from South Pars in total increased by 15 percent to Saudi Arabia, is seeking to clear space for its gradual 130 billion cubic meters (bcm). Production from the field return to the market now that the sanctions are being could add as much as $4.5 billion in revenue for the Iranian lifted against the country. government, which has indicated that getting South Pars Iran will continue increasing its oil production and fully on-line is a top priority. exports until it reaches the market position it enjoyed The Iranian portion of the South Pars field is roughly before the imposition of sanctions, the Mehr news ter Bijan Zanganeh as saying. oil reserves, Iran possesses the world’s fourth largest 3,700 square and represents the largest accessible source agency reported on Monday quoting Iranian Oil Minis- With holding 157 billion barrels of recoverable crude crude oil reserves. for new gas production. Much of this gas is intended for export in liquid form: Iran has made no secret of its hope to rival Qatar as a major LNG exporter. In late 2015 it an- NUMOV 2016 confab on Iran to kick off today in Berlin nounced plans to build five LNG export plans in the next three years. But, LNG is currently a questionable investment. ECONOMY TEHRAN — 2016 con- men and private sector to meet the visit- Germany during the last 20 years to dem- and is currently witnessing high demand The market remains soft, energy prices are low while new deskference of the German ing Iranian officials and their counterparts onstrate commitment to Iran. in all sectors. supply comes on line. Near and Middle East Association titled in a bid to exchange first-hand informa- Gerhard Schroder, the Former Chan- Various gateways to new business op- Plans set down to construct a pipeline from Iran to Nah-Und MittelOst-Verein (NUMOV), tion about mutual cooperation in the fu- cellor of the Federal Republic of Germany portunities have been opened for Iran as Oman in 2014 have been ongoing, with a lasting agreement with a specific focus on Iran, will start op- ture, according to the IRNA news agency. and Honorary Chairman of NUMOV, has of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action reached last December. eration in Berlin today. NUMOV in particular enjoys a highly recently visited Iran. (JCPOA) inked between Tehran and the In late March, Oman’s minister of oil and gas announced The conference will provide an excel- favorable reputation due to its very posi- As Germans regard, the label “Made in world P5+1 in June 2015 and the country talks were in still in progress to hammer out remaining de- lent opportunity for German business- tive activities as the only organization in Germany” enjoys a top reputation in Iran aims to seize the upcoming chances. tails. The 400km pipeline will stretch from Hormozgan prov- ince in Iran to Sohar in Oman and carry gas both for Omani domestic consumption and export. Iran is bound by its 2014 ‘Germany’s VW close to Pak-Iran pact to prepare FTA agreement to supply Oman with natural gas, a 25-year deal valued at $60 billion. The pipeline once completed will carry Iran auto deal’ ground: PIAF chairman 1 billion cubic feet per day, a deal which Iran’s oil minis- Iran said on Sunday that Germany’s auto which product VW could use to go in Chairman of Pakistan Industrial and extended to up to $7 billion.” ter Bijan Zanganeh has valued at $1.5-$2 billion. Oman has giant Volkswagen is expected to seal a with “but of course we see the potential". Traders Associations Front (PIAF) Irfan He termed the signing of five-year agreed to liquefy 1.5 million tons of Iranian gas for export. deal with an Iranian partner in the near Reuters further quoted a company Iqbal Sheikh said the pact between Strategic Trade Cooperation Plan (2016 The pipeline is to be constructed by Korea Gas Corporation future to invest in the country’s car in- source as saying that VW was consider- Pakistan and Iran would remove non- 2021) as the beginning of a new era, (KOGAS). Reports indicate that KOGAS may sign a memo of dustry. ing a move into Iran with the mass-mar- tariff barriers in bilateral trade and pre- which provides a great opportunity to understanding with Iran and Oman before June 2016 for a Iran’s Ambassador to Berlin Ali Majedi ket Skoda and Seat brands. pare the ground for a free trade agree- the two nations to enhance economic project valued at $1.5 billion. said Volkswagen has been looking into Volkswagen’s last venture in Iran in- ment (FTA). cooperation to new heights. The scheme would allow Iran to increase its natural gas the Iranian car industry for the past year volved its production of the Gol compact Talking to the media here on Sun- Irfan Iqbal Sheikh urged the com- production and enter into the LNG market before complet- and are closer than ever to a final invest- with Iran’s Kerman Khodro before with- day, he said it was remarkable that merce ministry to explore various av- ing its own LNG trains. It also serves Tehran’s long-term goal ment decision. drawing under US pressures. both the countries agreed to work on enues to enhance the bilateral trade of expanding its influence in the Persian Gulf. Ties between Majedi said the company’s manage- Other German automakers including issuing long-term multiple entry visas to $5 billion in five years in accordance the two countries will likely grow stronger, with one Iranian ment have been specifically studying the Mercedes have already started talks to to businessmen and increasing direct with the vision of the top political lead- official predicting bilateral trade to reach $4 billion in five capabilities of several local carmakers form partnerships with Iran Khodro – the air flights to boost the prospects of ership of the two countries during the years. and are now trying to choose between leading Iranian car giant. trade. recent visit of the Iranian president. He Meanwhile, the long-contemplated pipeline from Iran’s only two companies. The media in Tehran reported in mid- Trade in agriculture and mineral termed it a good omen that Iran would southern oil fields to Pakistan is moving closer to becom- He did not name the companies but March that a commercial deal between sectors offered tremendous scope and hold a trade and investment exhibition ing reality. Originally planned in the 1990s and occasion- some reports say they could be Kerman Iran Khodro and Mercedes is imminent. Pakistan and Iran were ideally placed in Pakistan in September this year add- ally referred to as “the peace pipeline,” this project has gone Motor and Mammut Group. In January, the German carmaker said and capable enough to complement ing that private sector of two countries through multiple rounds of negotiation, with both sides Volkswagen announced last Septem- it had signed letters of intent with local each other. The prospects of export of should take the lead in strengthening hesitant to commit to the costs of building the nearly-2000 ber that it is grooming its Skoda brand partners Iran Khodro Diesel and Mam- services are far greater in transporta- the bilateral relations in all sectors. km. long pipeline. for the Iranian market. mut Group to arrange a "comprehensive tion, financial, communication, insur- The PIAF Vice Chairman, Tanveer Since 2010, Pakistan has been under significant pres- "Iran is a very interesting market with re-entry" into the country. ance and IT fields, he mentioned. Sufi, also welcomed the recent trade ties sure from both the U.S. and Saudi Arabia not to carry out great opportunities," VW brand R&D The areas of cooperation include The PIAF chairman said: “We can with Iran and hoped that with re-contin- the project. The pipeline agreement was ratified by Paki- chief Heinz-Jakob Neusser said at the a joint venture for local production of get cheaper oil from Iran and by ex- uation of the banking system the import stan in 2013, and there has been considerable speculation time. Mercedes-Benz trucks and powertrain porting rice to Iran we can get millions export would start and LCs would open on whether the project will act as Pakistan’s energy lifeline. VW will conclude an assessment of components plus the establishment of a in foreign exchange. By formulating a from both sides, which would be ben- Pakistan suffers from regular energy black-outs and is in the country's auto market by the end of sales company for Mercedes-Benz trucks better strategy, we can get our share eficial for Pakistan as exports needed desperate need of greater energy imports. the year, Reuters quoted him as saying. and components, it said then. back in the Iranian market as India has some support for going in upward di- When sanctions on Iran fell in January 2016, progress Neusser said it is still too early to say (Source: Press TV) overcome nowadays. The trade can rection. (Source: thenews.com.pk) on the project was set to continue. In late March, Rouhani visited Pakistan and declared that Iran had finished its por- tion of the massive pipeline, calling on Pakistan to complete its share. Pakistan and Iran have signed an agreement to India’s March Iran oil imports top 500,000 bpd: data increase bilateral trade to $5 billion by 2021. While Pakistan India's Iran oil imports topped 500,000 shipments within the parameters of the Indian refiners shipped in 14.4 percent Reliance had halted Iranian oil imports desires Iranian energy, it hopes to export textiles and agri- barrels per day (bpd) in March, highest in temporary nuclear deal then in force. more oil from Iran at about 251,100 bpd, in 2010 because it was worried that the cultural products. Work on the Pakistani side of the pipeline at least five years, as private refiner Reli- The higher imports by India signals the data showed. The increase was the threat of U.S. sanctions on companies was held up over concerns regarding sanctions against Iran, ance Industries resumed purchases after a Tehran's success in beginning to regain largest annual growth since the 2007/08 doing business with the Islamic repub- but since early March work in Pakistan has begun again in multi-year lay-off, preliminary tanker data market share after the lifting of Western fiscal year, according to Reuters data. lic would complicate its efforts to boost earnest. India, which dropped out of the pipeline plan in obtained by Reuters shows. sanctions targeting its nuclear program. Essar Oil was the biggest importer of market share for its fuels in the United 2009 over cost and security concerns, is also in talks with Indian refiners together imported Iran has said it will continue increas- Iranian oil in March with about 207,400 States. Iran. 506,100 bpd oil from Iran last month, a ing its oil production and exports until it bpd oil, followed by about 130,000 bpd by Last month Reliance imported Foro- Like the pipeline agreement with Oman, the completion jump of about 135 percent from February, reaches the market position it held before Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals zan grade and South Pars condensate of the long-awaited peace pipeline to Pakistan could mark the data showed. In March of last year, the the imposition of sanctions. Ltd and about 90,600 bpd by Reliance, its from Iran, the data showed. an increase in Iran’s regional profile and indicate that it refiners halted imports from Iran to keep In the fiscal year ended on March 31, first shipments in about six years. (Source: Reuters) is delivering on its promises of increasing its energy production and reclaiming its former status as a major energy exporter. (Source: oilprice.com) General Motors Tesla says Model 3 Daimler heir apparent recalling over 1.4 orders top $10 billion sets path forward for million vehicles due in first 36 hours Mercedes JUMP to a fire hazard Iran’s annual petchem General Motors will recall more than 1.41 million Tesla Motors Inc said orders for its new Model 3 At Mercedes-Benz's stand at the New York auto vehicles — all more than a decade old — to fix a electric sedan topped 253,000 in the first 36 hours - a show, there were murmurs: Ola Kaellenius, the poised, exports rises to 19m tons defect that has caused about 1,200 engine fires and fast start for the company's first mass-market vehicle, youthful-looking Swede who runs Mercedes' global previously bedeviled the automaker. which may not begin to reach customers for another sales, has the inside track to succeed Daimler CEO Di- 1 The issue affects several nameplates with model 18 months or more. eter Zetsche. That was while in calendar year 1393 (March 2014-March years ranging from 1997 to 2004, including 1 million Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted on Fri- Similarly, the German business newspaperHandels- 2015) the output stood at 43.5 million tons utilizing 76 per- cars that were fixed for the same issue in two recalls day that the Model 3, which is slated to go into pro- blatt said the 46-year-old Kaellenius is "likely to figure cent of the available nominal capacity. in 2007 and 2009. duction in late 2017, will sell at an average price of prominently" in Daimler's future leadership, especially As Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh announced in GM previously urged people to park those vehi- $42,000, including the price of options and additional after strong sales in 2015. February, Tehran plans to augment the worth of its petro- cles outside until they could get free repairs. features, which would give the initial flurry of orders In February, Daimler extended Zetsche's contract chemical production by about 30 percent to $22 billion by Today, the company said customers have report- an estimated retail value of $10.6 billion. until Dec. 31, 2019. So Kaellenius has more seasoning the next two years. ed at least 19 “minor injuries” in incidents since the That intense interest, fanned in part by a steady ahead of him. On Jan. 1, he will become the board In June 2015, Mohammad-Hassan Peyvandi, the dep- most recent recall was completed. stream of tweets by Musk, could help boost Tesla’s member responsible for group research and Mercedes- uty managing director of NPC, said Iran planned to raise The new recall includes 1.28 million sedans and stock price, which closed Friday at $237.59, up 3.4 Benz Cars development. its petrochemical production to over 180 million tons in a NEWS IN BRIEF coupes in the U.S. percent. course of ten years. I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y http://www.tehrantimes.com AAPRILPRIL 55,, 22016016 HISTORY & HERITAGE 5

Noruz travelers up 67% year on year: official A CLOSER LOOK

TOURISM TEHRAN – The num- ist spots during Noruz holidays, which in- Facts about the Great Wall deskber of Iranians who creased 67 percent in comparison to the of China stayed in lodgings across Iran dur- same period last year,” he said. ing Noruz holidays (March 20-April 1) The head of Road Maintenance and Snaking its way through the Chinese countryside, it is one rose 67 percent in comparison to the Transportation Organization, Davoud of the most impressive pieces of architecture and engi- same period last year, Iran’s tourism Keshavarzian, also made a short speech neering in history – a project that was ongoing for 2,000 chief Morteza Rahmani-Movahhed about Noruz travels. years. announced in a press conference on He said that over eight million Iranians The first walls were constructed during the seventh cen- Monday. used public transportation during Noruz tury BC to protect in- Number of travelers to South Kho- and 60 percent of them used buses. dividual kingdoms in rasan, Kermanshah and Kohkiloyeh-Boy- “Over 820,000 travelers passed the China from warring er Ahmad provinces increased this year, borders of Iraq, Turkey, and Azerbaijan neighbours. When Qin he added. and 33 percent of them were foreigners Shi Huang conquered The number of flights to the who entered Iran,” he said. and united China – be- United Arab Emirates decreased 18 Three million Iranians traveled by air- coming the first Emperor percent and the decrease was 10 plane, an increase of 12 percent in com- in 221 BC – he ordered percent for Turkey. The number of parison to the last year, he added. that the sections of wall internal flights, though, increased 9 About 1.6 million passengers travelled be joined into one great percent, he said. by train during the holidays, he men- defence. “Over 100 million people visited tour- tioned. Here are 5 facts about the Great Wall of China… Myths and leg- ends There are several mis- Bloggers to introduce attractions conceptions about the bulwarks. It is not a single of Qeshm Island wall, but a series of fortifications, some of which run parallel to each other, and there is no truth to the legend that the TOURISM TEHRAN – The Persian Gulf is- logues can apply for the festival until April 8 and Great Wall can be seen from space. deskland of Qeshm will host the first the jury will select 35 bloggers to attend the event. The really great wall bloggers’ travel writing festival from April 25 to 29. The winners will be announced during the clos- If you added up all the branches built throughout the The event is co-organized by Iran Federation of ing ceremony on April 29, which marks Iran’s Per- Great Wall’s history, then its total length would be 13,171 Tourist Guide Associations and Qeshm Free Zone sian Gulf National Day. miles. That is longer than the distance between London and Organization. Qeshm is the biggest Iranian island in the Per- the capital of New Zealand, Auckland. Bloggers who write travel diaries and trave- sian Gulf near the Strait of Hormuz. Solid foundations It is impossible to know how many millions of con- struction workers were used over the millennia to build the walls. Those who died – which could number in the Tomb of Four Kings in Lahijan: Tracing a historical capital hundreds of thousands – were buried in the foundations of the Great Wall. There are two gates. I entered the yard played a very important role in establish- Light the beacons from the right gate where old men were ment of Safavi empire, one of the strong- During the Ming dynasty, watchtowers were developed to sitting on the stairs and staring at my est kingdoms that reunited Iran (Persia) warn of a Mongol invasion. Detachments of soldiers were sta- camera. Though I assume they were star- after centuries of division. tioned in each tower and, if they saw someone approaching, ing at my camera from when I was pho- It is surprising that how the events they would send up a column of smoke to raise the alarm. At tographing Lahijan’s grand mosque on have been connected to each other night, huge bonfires were lit. the side of the square. Upon entering the from past to present and perhaps to A legendary place Chahar Padshahan (Four Kings), I found future. Nowadays, Chahar Padshahan Dozens of legends surround the Great Wall. One of the myself walking on the stone tiles in be- (often called Meydan too) is one of the most enduring is the myth of Meng Jiangnu, the wife of one tween them the green grass had grown. main seven districts in Lahijan’s old city of the builders who died. According to the story, when she Chahar Padshahan consists of two build- and is often crowded in the month of learned of his death, she cried so hard that it caused a section ings. Moharram, only when the special cer- of the wall to collapse. There is a newer structure with blue emonies are being held for the martyr- (Source: History Extra) ceramic artworks similar to that of typical dom of Imam Hossain (AS) Other than mosques in Iran. But the shorter building that, there are few visitors who pay on the left looks much less new and much respect to the tombs or come to hold more Gilani style of architecture: Wooden daily prayers in the mosque. When was the first strike? structure, white plaster walls, clay roof Upon me exiting Chahar Padsha- tiles and ancient cafe house style of paint- han, the sun was almost down. I took With so many monumental construction projects being car- ings here and there. so many photos inside the shrine until ried out, it may not be all that surprising that the first strike Weather in Gilan province is very Chahar Padshahan Mosque (Photo: Madi Jahangir) the key holder of the place told me that was in Ancient Egypt. humid throughout the year. Also in the I am not allowed to do more shooting. I The first documented strike in history is thought to be that past, it was very difficult to bring any con- race and another door inside, to connect gions. The river’s eastern side was called recited Fatiha for the kings and watched held by the craftsmen working on the royal necopolis at Deir struction materials to Gilan due to being the rooms to one another. Four Lahijan’s Biehpish (Gilaki: This side of river) and the over the calligraphic texts and paint- el-Medina, in the mid-12th century BC. locked in the Alborz mountain range great men are buried there, two of whom western side Biehpas (Gilaki: Other side of ings once more. Most of the paintings Although slaves were carrying out much of the work on forcing the people to use the local mate- were the rulers of Biehpish. (1) They were the river). are related to Qajar era but the build- Ancient Egyptian structures, many paid builders and crafts- rials. Stones were too heavy and rare and from Kiyaei dynasty, rulers of a lost king- For a period of time, Sadat-e Kiyaei ing itself was built upon order of Shah men were brought in to make up the workforce. the stone structures could not resist the dom which had Lahijan as the historical ruled the Biehpish area and established a Abbas Safavi. The most amazing parts Under the rule of Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses III, the extreme humidity. capital. government in Lahijan as their capital. Ki- are the tombs themselves, showing off workers grew resentful against their insufficient and late On the other hand, wood was cheap Gilan is historically part of Iran how- yaei rulers were followers of Zaidi branch a type of art that Gilanis are master of: rations, so threw down their tools and stopped work- and plentiful and the clay tiles could ever for the same reason of being locked of Shi’ite Islam whom later reverted to the amazing wooden artworks with so ing. They organised what may have been the first-ever cover the roof, not only protecting the by Alborz mountain range, the local rul- Ithna Ashariyeh Shi’ism, the current dom- much detailing. sit-down protest in history, which they carried out in the building against the shower-like rainfalls ers of the region were not much under inant Islamic sect in Iran. The tomb of the Four Kings is a regu- mortuary. but they were even lighter than stone influence and control of the Iran’s central They are called Sadat for being de- lar shrine similar to many other shrines in The event is recorded in a single papyrus, which details and could be easily replaced if dam- government. scendants of prophet Muhammad (AS) the country. But maybe not, for being a the workers complaining that: “The prospect of hunger and aged. In the ancient time until the Safavi who fled Abbasid oppression against reminder of a great period of Iran’s his- thirst has driven us to this.” Chahar Padshahan however, has a domination of Gilan and long before the Prophet’s household. Under their rule, tory, in which my hometown, the current After negotiations with the local officials, the strik- slightly different structure. The old build- Iran’s provincial divisions into the current they gave asylum, supported and cher- small, peaceful and quite city of Lahijan, ers were eventually granted provisions and agreed to ing is rectangular shape, contains several state, Gilan was divided by the Sefid- ished Shah Ismaeil Safavi, the founder of has once played an important role. return to work. In fact, their wages actually went up. rooms, each has doorways to the ter- rud River into eastern and western re- Safavi dynasty when he was a child and (Source: Dream of Iran) A lucky escape as it could be assumed that a pharoah wouldn’t put up with rebellious subjects in a reason- able manner. PICTURE OF THE DAY Mehr/Navid Mohammadi European (Source: History Extra) colonization caused substantial loss of ON THIS DAY pre-Columbian lineages 1792 George Washington casts 1st presidential veto by the University of Adelaide’s Austral- ian Centre for Ancient DNA (ACAD), re- Chile declares war on Bolivia and Peru, starting the War of 1879 searchers have reconstructed a genetic the Pacific. history of Indigenous American popula- tions by looking directly into the DNA of 1887 Anne Sullivan teaches “water” to Helen Keller 92 pre-Columbian mummies and skel- etons, between 500 and 8600 years old. Start of Sherlock Holmes’ “Adventure of Copper Beeches” 1889 Published in Science Advances (open (BG) access), the study reveals a striking ab- sence of the pre-Columbian genetic line- 1894 Start of Sherlock Holmes’ “Adventure of Empty House” (BG) ages in modern Indigenous Americans; showing extinction of these lineages with the arrival of the Spaniards. 1895 Start of Sherlock Holmes’ “Adventure of 3 Students” (BG) “Surprisingly, none of the genetic line- ages we found in almost 100 ancient hu- 1939 Membership in Hitler Youth becomes obligatory mans were present, or showed evidence of descendants, in today’s Indigenous populations,” says joint lead author Dr 1943 Allies bomb Mortsel Bastien Llamas, Senior Research Asso- World War II: 270 inhabitants of the Greek town of Kleisoura ciate with ACAD. “This separation ap- 1944 pears to have been established as early are executed by the Germans. as 9000 years ago and was completely Winston Churchill resigns as British PM, Anthony Eden 1955 unexpected, so we examined many de- succeeds him mographic scenarios to try and explain Then tallest building, World Trade Center opens in NYC (110 An Iranian family poses for a photo in front of Taq-e Bostan pond in Kermanshah, western Iran the pattern.” 1974 (Source: Past Horizons) stories) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y

6 INTERNATIONAL AAPRILPRIL 55,, 22016016 http://www.tehrantimes.com/international Nagorno-Karabakh: Rehearsal for an upcoming war?

By Can Kasapoglu Russia would pretend to be a could not accomplish separately. exception in this regard would be the peace-mediator, while supporting the Therefore, “arms” on the battle- decreasing oil prices that would affect ecent clashes between Azerbaijan Armenian defense through the back ground compensate for each other’s Azerbaijani military modernization. Rand Armenia in the Nagorno-Kara- door. vulnerabilities, while providing unique On the other side of the border, the bakh region - an occupied Azerbai- Finally, Turkish public opinion would advantages to advance. Azerbaijani National Security Con- jani territory according to four United strongly side with Azerbaijan, and An- In a simplified tactical scenario, cept, which was approved by President Nations Security Council resolutions kara would play a supportive yet cau- tanks provide maneuvering and pro- Ilham Aliyev in 2007, openly states that - have claimed the lives of more than tious role. tection advantage to infantry, while a settlement with Armenia could be 30 from both sides. At the time of writ- Unusual tensions the infantry protects tanks from anti- achieved only under a complete with- ing, Azerbaijan declared a unilateral Apparently, the recent round of tank systems. Simultaneously, artillery drawal of Armenian forces from the ceasefire. skirmishes presents a different case pins down enemy formations while occupied territories and full restoration In military terms, it would be fair to from the “usual” tensions between attack helicopters hunt down enemy of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty. say that Baku and Yerevan would not Azerbaijan and Armenia. tanks to pave the ground for an ar- In tandem, the current military doc- go into an all-out war. Although casualty reports of the mored offensive. trine of Azerbaijan, which was adopted However, a warlike rehearsal two parties’ officials differ, they over- Notably, combined arms opera- in 2010, underlines the right to exert mili- through skirmishes and the trajectory lap on the military equipment that was tions cannot be compared with sniper Armenian artillery position in Martakert, Nagorno-Karabakh. tary force to regain Nagorno-Karabakh. of the recent clashes hinted at what used. Both sides reported helicopters, fire-exchange over contact lines. They military. of the de facto Armenian administra- Thus, Baku’s actions are stemming the next war between Azerbaijan and main battle tanks, and other armored are conducted to achieve decisive and This was a small but critical detail, tion in Nagorno-Karabakh. from the very fact that the Nagorno- Armenia would look like. vehicles with artillery support being destructive results swiftly. Clearly, at as for some time Azerbaijani military Moreover, the Armenian army - Karabakh and occupied territories is- In such a case, the Azerbaijanis involved in the engagements. strategic level, this type of operation analysts have been focusing on dis- mainly relying on conscription and sue remains well beyond realpolitik- would rely on rapid combined-arms From a military standpoint, the aims to change control of terrain. tinguishing the Armenian casualties having severe shortages to finance driven parameters. offensives to achieve decisive results clashes are tantamount to what mod- A key detail about the strategic resulting from the border clashes. In its armament - has been facing sig- Strategic culture swiftly, while the Armenian defense ern doctrines call “combined-arms op- balance in Nagorno-Karabakh came this regard, Azerbaijanis argued that nificant modernization problems in Rather, it constitutes a vital com- planners would attempt to hold on to erations”. The course of action is based into the picture when the Armenian the majority of the Armenian losses recent years. ponent of the Azerbaijani strategic their topographically advantageous on a sophisticated use of different President Serzh Sargsyan announced were from Armenia rather than the lo- Coupled with the manpower prob- culture as the top security agenda and defensive lines and launch small-scale military assets through a simultane- casualties, without specifying whether cal armed elements. lems of the Armenian side, the overall matter of pride for the nation. In other counter-offensives to regain lost posi- ous and synchronized operational way the fallen troops belonged to the lo- Therefore, Baku anticipates a signif- military balance has been shifting in words, the military option is really on tions immediately. in order to achieve what “each arm” cal militia of Karabakh or the Armenian icant decrease in available manpower favor of Baku in recent years. The only the table for Baku. 9

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Panama Papers: Mossack Fonseca COMMENT Oil could soon see $50, leak reveals elite's tax havens here’s why: RBC analyst Oil hit its lowest level in nearly a month last week, but one of Wall Street's top commodities analysts says a recovery is on the way in A huge leak of confidential documents has known Vladimir Putin since they were teen- 2016. revealed how the rich and powerful use tax agers and is godfather to the president's On CNBC's "Futures Now", global head of commodities strat- havens to hide their wealth. daughter Maria. egy at RBC Capital Markets Helima Croft predicted that oil will re- Eleven million documents were leaked On paper, Mr Roldugin has personal- bound following a scheduled meeting between OPEC and non- from one of the world's most secretive ly made hundreds of millions of dollars in OPEC members on April 17th in the Qatari capital. companies, Panamanian law firm Mossack profits from suspicious deals. "We spent an entire year with [Saudi Arabia and Russia] saying Fonseca. But documents from Mr Roldugin's everything was fine," explained Croft. They show how Mossack Fonseca has companies state that: "The company is a "Their decision to come out and even mention a freeze was helped clients launder money, dodge sanc- corporate screen established principally to a catalyst for the rally" that recently pulled crude to within view of tions and evade tax. protect the identity and confidentiality of $40, Croft said. "As we look towards the April 17 meeting, I don't The company says it has operated be- the ultimate beneficial owner of the com- think Saudi Arabia would even show up in Doha if there wasn't yond reproach for 40 years and has never pany." going to be an agreement." been charged with criminal wrong-doing. Iceland connection Speculation over a potential accord between cartel members The documents show links to 72 current Mossack Fonseca data also shows how has whipsawed global energy markets. According to a statement or former heads of state in the data, includ- Icelandic Prime Minister Sigmundur Gun- from Qatari energy minister Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada, ap- ing the Icelandic Prime Minister, Sigmundur nlaugsson had an undeclared interest in his proximately 15 producers representing 73 percent of global oil out- Gunnlaugson, who had an undeclared in- country's failed banks. put will meet to discuss the possibility of a production freeze. For terest linked to his wife's wealth and is now Mr Gunnlaugsson has been accused of now, Iran remains the OPEC wild card, because Tehran is seeking an facing calls for his resignation. hiding millions of dollars of investments in increase of exports following the lifting of sanctions earlier this year. The files also reveal a suspected bil- his country's banks behind a secretive off- However, oil analysts say the market remains oversupplied, lion-dollar money laundering ring involving shore company. keeping a cap on crude prices. Croft told CNBC that could easily close associates of President Putin. Leaked documents show that Sigmun- change if the world's largest oil producer takes action in the near Gerard Ryle, director of the Internation- eficial owner… and therefore his name will Mubarak, Libya's former leader Muammar dur Gunnlaugsson and his wife bought off- term. al Consortium of Investigative Journalists be disclosed to the bank. Since this is a Gaddafi and Syria's President Bashar al-As- shore company Wintris in 2007. "If Saudi Arabia freezes at their January levels, and that holds (ICIJ), said the documents covered the day- very sensitive matter, fees are quite high." sad. He did not declare an interest in the through the summer, that's an effective cut of several hundred to-day business at Mossack Fonseca over Ms Olszewski did not respond to the BBC's Russian connection company when entering parliament in thousands of barrels a day," noted Croft. the past 40 years. questions. It also reveals a suspected billion-dollar 2009. He sold his 50% of Wintris to his wife In terms of gauging the market, Croft sees a "quiet period" tak- "I think the leak will prove to be prob- In a statement, Mossack Fonseca said: money laundering ring that was run by a for $1 (70p), eight months later. ing effect, wherein U.S. oil, or West Texas Intermediate, will likely slip ably the biggest blow the offshore world "Your allegations that we provide structures Russian bank and involved close associates Mr Gunnlaugsson is now facing calls for to $35 ahead of the meeting. has ever taken because of the extent of the supposedly designed to hide the identity of of President Putin. his resignation. He says he has not broken "In the next couple of weeks, we think [oil prices] will drift a little documents," he said. the real owners, are completely unsupport- The operation was run by Bank Rossiya, any rules, and his wife did not benefit finan- bit lower," she said. "We've had so much short-covering and I don't The documents also shed light on how ed and false. which is subject to US and EU sanctions fol- cially from his decisions. think there's very much left of that [since] we remain over-supplied Mossack Fonseca offered financial services "We do not provide beneficiary services lowing Russia's annexation of Crimea. The offshore company was used to in- and the fundamentals remain soft," said Croft. designed to help business clients hide their to deceive banks. It is difficult, not to say The documents reveal for the first time vest millions of dollars of inherited money, In the long-term, Croft noted that getting oil back to $50 per wealth. impossible, not to provide banks with the how the bank operates. according to a document signed by Mr barrel will take time, but is doable assuming major producers con- One wealthy client, American million- identity of final beneficiaries and the origin Money has been channelled through Gunnlaugsson's wife Anna Sigurlaug Páls- tinue to struggle with their supplies. aire and life coach Marianna Olszewski, of funds." offshore companies, two of which were of- dóttir in 2015. "We still expect a recovery to $50" by the fourth quarter, the was offered fake ownership records to hide The data also contains secret offshore ficially owned by one of the Russian presi- Mossack Fonseca says offshore compa- analyst said. "One thing we are watching is mounting supply dis- money from the authorities. This is in di- companies linked to the families and as- dent's closest friends. nies are available worldwide and are used ruptions coming out of places like Nigeria and Northern Iraq. If rect breach of international regulations de- sociates of Egypt's former president Hosni Concert cellist Sergei Roldugin has for a variety of legitimate purposes. those continue to mount [that could] bring the re-balance into signed to stop money laundering and tax "If we detect suspicious activity or mis- Q3. So we are watching those supply outages. If that eats into our evasion. conduct, we are quick to report it to the overhang, [we may] get a recovery in Q3 to the 50's as opposed An email from a Mossack executive to The files also reveal a suspected billion- authorities," it said. "Similarly, when author- to Q4." Ms Olszewski in January 2009 explains how dollar money laundering ring involving ities approach us with evidence of possible From there, Croft added that the move from $50 to $60 per she could deceive the bank: "We may use close associates of President Putin. misconduct, we always cooperate fully with barrel will be harder, because of the need to work off the inventory, a natural person who will act as the ben- them." (Source: BBC) which is typically a slower process. (Source: CNBC)

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NEWS IN BRIEF Global tiger population may double Electric fork simulates salty flavors with electric currents by 2022, say scientists The global population of tigers is currently Tigers proliferate rapidly Who needs salt when you have electricity? That’s the proposition less than 3,500, which is indeed a worri- According to the study, tigers also "pro- of the “electric flavoring fork” created by a researcher in Japan some figure. More than 90 per cent of the liferate rapidly where prey and sheltered to make meals more palatable for people who need to stick to territory which was once covered by the habitat are abundant, as demonstrated low-salt or no-salt diets. big cats is not under the forest cover any- by tiger recovery in Panna National Park, The prototype fork, developed by Hiromi Nakamura of Re- more. It was feared 10 years ago that tigers India." The tiger being a solitary animal kimoto Lab at the University may go extinct one day. However, fortu- required forested habitats that are larger of Tokyo, comprises a handle nately, In India and Nepal, the population than 30 sq km large for survival. that houses a rechargeable of tigers has increased if we talk about the Achieving the goal would need "main- battery and electric circuit, ac- past decade. And now, in a good news, the taining the existing habitat, including cording to Nikkei Technology. number of tigers could rise to double in the ecological connectivity among source When a user places the head forest cover that is remained, a paper pub- populations." of the fork on their tongue, lished in the international journal Science The researchers used tools such as they can press a button on the Advances has claimed. Google Earth Engine and Global Forest handle to deliver one of three In 2010, a meeting of 13 tiger range Watch to analyze habitat loss to the tiger. levels of electric current, which countries was held in Russia, in which a Sumatra was the most affected. As per their replicates varying degrees of target was set to double the number of ti- estimation, $750 billion need to be invest- saltiness. gers by 2022. Representatives of these 13 ed in infrastructure over the next decade. Spices like pepper and countries will meet again in New Delhi this "Large roads are mortality magnets for ti- garlic help the fork to deliver month and a review of progress on the tar- According to the study, tigers also "proliferate gers." saltiness rather than sour and get will take place. rapidly where prey and sheltered habitat are Authors also noted the successful ef- metallic tastes, according to The authors of the scientific study abundant, as demonstrated by tiger recovery in forts of conservation managed by commu- Nikkei Technology. mapped the forests across 76 landscapes nity in Nepal and India, the two countries “When I increased current level by using a rotary switch on that have maximum tigers with the help Panna National Park, India." that have registered a rise in tiger popula- the back of the fork, a metallic taste started to become stronger of satellite technology between 2001 and shrunk at the pace which was thought. The involve agricultural expansion and infra- tion. than the salty taste,” wrote the online publication’s reporter, who 2014. It was found that the forests had not factors that lead to shrink in tiger territory structure development. (Source: News Nation) was eating salt-free tonkatsu (pork cutlet). “On the other hand, it is reportedly difficult to emphasize a sweet taste or juicy flavor.” The prototype fork, which is not waterproof, was created for less than $18, not accounting for the cost of the fork. The de- NASA astronauts train on Orion spacecraft for trip to Mars vice’s rechargeable battery lasts six hours per charge. This isn’t the first time Nakamura has shown how electric- Astronauts began training on the Orion spacecraft to pre- beyond low-Earth orbit (LEO). The United States has not ity can simulate saltiness and sweetness: In 2012, she showed pare for an eventual trip bringing spacefarers to Mars. The possessed a means of bringing people into space since the off the application of electricity to affect tastes at the Computer test crew donned full spacesuits in order to fully test the retirement of the space shuttle program in 2011. The last Human Interaction Conference in Austin, Texas, and brought an vehicle and their own ability to interact with control systems vehicle capable of bringing human occupants beyond LEO earlier version of the “electric flavoring fork” there. The latest it- while wearing their full gear. was the Saturn V, which was retired in 1973. eration is less unwieldy than a prototype shown earlier this year The Orion spacecraft is designed to be NASA's next Mission planners at NASA are confident they will be able and is the result of six years of development. space delivery system, capable of lifting human payloads to safely land a human crew on the Red Planet in about 20 (Source: Digital Trends) to orbit, and well beyond the Earth. This vehicle is the cor- years. The vehicle has undergone a single test flight so far, nerstone of the American space agency's quest to send in 2014, when an empty capsule completed two orbits of people to the Red Planet. the Earth to test critical safety equipment. "Engineers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in “NASA's Orion spacecraft is built to take humans farther Houston are evaluating how crews inside a mockup of than they've ever gone before. Orion will serve as the ex- Ancient floodstones sought to the Orion spacecraft interact with the rotational hand ploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide controller and cursor control device while inside their emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the help predict climate change Modified Advanced Crew Escape spacesuits. The con- destinations," NASA officials wrote on their website. space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space trollers are used to operate Orion's displays and control Four astronauts return velocities,” NASA officials report in an overview of When it comes to predicting climate change, most scientists use system, which the crew will use to maneuver and inter- The Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (Orion MPCV) is the upcoming spacecraft. state-of-the-art supercomputers to model future trends. act with the spacecraft during missions to deep space designed to carry a crew of four astronauts to destinations (Source: Tech Times) But researchers at the University of Sheffield are hoping to gather information that is a little closer to home. Scientists are hunting for ancient floodstones which record Waistline could predict heart disease Screening mammography is not a the high level of water going back hundreds of years. Thousands of homes and buildings across Britain have better than weight perfect test for breast cancer: study plaques marking unusual periods of high tide and flooding. Now Shieffield University has launched a project to record When it comes to heart health, new re- Younger white women are most likely their locations and information to help make more accurate pre- search adds to the argument that a pear- to get immediate breast reconstruction dictions of which areas are at risk of flooding. shaped body, which is heavy in the hips, when they have a mastectomy for breast Most flooding records only go back 150 years, but flood- may be better than an apple-shaped cancer, while rates are lower for those stones often record water from much earlier. Even Roman exam- body, which carries more weight around over age 45 and those who are not white, ples have been found. the belly. according to a new study. Sheffield University has launched the UK Coastal Floodstones A study of diabetes patients found “We know that breast reconstruction Project and is asking the public to record the locations. that increasing waist size appears to be is thankfully gaining momentum, though A new initiative led by Ph.D. student Greg Rushby from the a stronger predictor of serious heart dis- historically the numbers were very low,” University’s Department of Geography, is inviting members of ease than body weight or body mass in- said lead author Dr. Paris Butler of the the public to record the locations of floodstones across the dex (BMI, the weight-to-height ratio). University of Pennsylvania Health System country to assist scientists in making more accurate predictions “We have known that abdominal obe- in Philadelphia. of which urban and rural areas are at risk of flooding. sity is more linked to coronary athero- Past research hinted that some breast Ph.D. student Greg Rushby, who is leading the project, said: sclerosis [plaque buildup in the arteries] The researchers evaluated the heart cancer patients aren’t being referred to likely to get immediate reconstruction, “Floodstones are often found on the side of buildings or long- than other forms of obesity,” said Dr. Brent function of study participants by using plastic surgeons if the primary physician even though they were not more likely lasting structures such as bridges and walls. Muhlestein, a study author and co-direc- echocardiography — a type of ultra- didn’t think they were healthy enough, to have surgical complications within 30 (Source: The Telegraph) tor of research at the Intermountain Med- sound. They noted that left ventricular he said. But race is not an independent days, the researchers found. ical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City. function got progressively worse as waist predictor of surgical complications, so More than half of women under age “We found that left ventricle heart sizes got bigger, with heart decline even- women of every race should be referred 45 had immediate reconstruction, com- function got worse with progressive waist tually leveling off at 45 inches of waistline. to plastic surgeons equally, he said. pared to 11 percent of those aged 65 and circumference. The relation between left The study authors noted that the link “We eliminated the misconception that older. About 35 percent of white women A baby's BMI may predict ventricle function and waist circumference between waist circumference and re- these operations were less safe in women had immediate reconstruction, compared early obesity remained highly significant, even after ad- duced heart function was independent of of color,” Butler told Reuters Health. to 33 percent of Latina women and 24.6 justing for body weight,” Muhlestein said. total body weight and BMI. Undergoing mastectomy percent of African American women, ac- The left ventricle is the heart’s primary Dr. Sarah Samaan, a cardiologist and “No woman, unless critically ill, should cording to the results in the American Pediatricians usually start monitoring kids for obesity risk at a pumping chamber, and abnormal ven- physician partner at the Heart Hospital at undergo mastectomy without consulta- Journal of Surgery. 2-year-old's well-child visit, but a new study shows severe obe- tricular function is a common cause of Baylor in Plano, Texas, said these results tion with a plastic surgeon,” Butler said. “It’s great that there’s been increased sity is predictable as early as six months old. The authors recom- heart disease, including congestive heart support previous research indicating that Researchers used national surgery use in immediate breast reconstruction, mend children start being screened for the condition as babies. failure, the study authors noted. fat in the abdominal area is much more datasets to study more than 48,000 but there are disparities,” said Dr. Amy Al- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Center researchers found that Waist circumference risky than fat elsewhere in the body. women who had mastectomy only, or derman, former director of the cosmetic measuring body mass index (BMI) - which doctors can calculate For this investigation, scientists meas- “Abdominal fat produces a wide range mastectomy with immediate breast re- surgery program at the University of using a child's height and weight and then plotting the num- ured waist circumference, total body of inflammatory substances, and is more construction between 2005 and 2011. Michigan in Ann Arbor and now in private bers on a graph - in babies as weight and BMI in 200 men and women highly correlated with heart disease, high Overall, immediate reconstruction rates practice in Atlanta, Georgia. young as 6 months, could pin- with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Diabetes blood pressure and diabetes than other rose from 26 percent of women in 2005 For many older women, breast recon- point the children most likely can raise heart risks, but patients did not types of fat,” said Samaan, who was not to 40 percent in 2011. struction may not be a top priority, said Al- to go on to develop obesity. start the study with any symptoms of involved with the study. Women of minority race, over age 45, derman, who was not part of the new study. The study, presented at heart disease. (Source: MicroCap Magazine) or with a diabetes diagnosis were less (Source: Daily Star Gazette) the national Endocrine Society meeting in Boston, is the first to show that weight gain during the baby years differs in those India and China will suffer severe water stress by 2050, says study who eventually go on to de- velop obesity, the authors said. Parts of Asia are likely to suffer severe water stress by the “There is a whole range of plausible outcomes, and of freshwater resources in terms of quantity and quality." To learn more about early middle of this century, according to a new study by sci- when we think about water resources, it has to do with While natural phenomena such as drought can cer- predictors of obesity, they entists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). human demands as well as climate change.” tainly cause water stress, says Dr. Schlosser, unrestrained analyzed electronic records The study considered major developing nations – no- Four variables economic growth and the ballooning emissions that ac- of children under the age of tably India and China – and modeled their water-use tra- Specifically, the researchers looked at four key vari- company it have "very direct effects on water demand." 6, including 783 lean children jectories if no action is taken to restrain either growth or ables: population growth, economic expansion, natural Most people think of fresh water as endlessly available, and 480 severely obese chil- anthropogenic climate change. climate fluctuations, and carbon emissions from hu- but when demand consistently outstrips supply, aquifers – dren. The youngsters were from varying economic backgrounds. Under such circumstances, the researchers found that man activity. nature's underground water-storage tanks – can become The authors reported that the body mass index ratings in chil- both countries had a roughly one-in-three chance of en- They then made predictions about the impact of eco- completely drained. dren who become severely obese by age 6 began to differ from tering a "water-stressed phase," defined as one in which nomic expansion and population growth alone, human- "When you look at emerging economies such as India children who remain normal weight as early as 4 months of age. water usage exceeds surface-water supplies. induced climate change alone, and then both together, and China, this puts them into a category of water-stress "We found in this study that growth patterns differ at 6 “This is not simply a case of saying that climate change focusing on how these factors affected water stress. that’s unsustainable, one might even argue unacceptable,” months of age in kids who become severely obese," said the is going to affect everything adversely everywhere,” says As defined by the European Environment Agency, "wa- says the professor. “It’s a place you really don’t want to be study's lead author Dr. Allison Smego, a fellow in the division of co-author Adam Schlosser, deputy director at MIT's Joint ter stress occurs when the demand for water exceeds the in – withdrawing water at a rate where supply cannot be Endocrinology at Cincinnati Children's. Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, in available amount during a certain period or when poor replenished.” (Source: CBS) a telephone interview with The Christian Science Monitor. quality restricts its use. Water stress causes deterioration (Source: The CSM) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y http://www.tehrantimes.com/international APRIL 5, 2016 WORLD IN FOCUS 9

Medical and security officials in Iraq say at least 23 peo- western Baghdad, mortar shells fired by Takfiri militants ple were killed and more than two dozen others injured Bombs, bullets, shells claimed two civilian lives and left eight others wounded. in a series of bomb explosions, a shooting attack and A soldier was also killed and two others injured on shelling across Iraq. claim 23 lives across Iraq Monday, when a roadside bomb went off in Baghdad’s NEWS A security source, speaking on condition of ano- southeastern neighborhood of Arab Jabour. nymity, said five people lost their lives and nine others Separately, five members of the Popular Mobiliza- Tabriz feels winter sustained injuries when bomber detonated his explo- tion Units (al-Hashd al-Shaabi) lost their lives and seven in spring sive-laden vest near a psychiatric hospital in Sadr City, others sustained injuries when a car bomb attack struck the mainly Shia district of eastern Baghdad, on Monday, the town of Tarmiyah, situated about 50 kilometers (30 On Monday, April 4, snow blanketed the northwestern city Arabic-language al-Baghdadia satellite television net- miles) north of Baghdad. of Ardabil. The snowfall, 16 days after the start of the spring, work reported. coalition planes destroy ISIL-occupied Turkish came as a surprise as Iran experienced its warmest winter in Security forces immediately cordoned off the site of consulate in Mosul- ministry the living memory. the attack, and ambulance workers ferried the wounded In another event, aircraft from a U.S.-led coalition on to a nearby hospital. Monday destroyed the Turkish consulate compound in Unidentified armed men also sprayed a Muslim cleric Mosul in northern Iraq which has been occupied by the ISIL Nagorno-Karabakh: Rehearsal with bullets in the capital’s southwestern neighborhood Elsewhere in al-Nasr Wal Salam city, which is also terrorists since June 2014, the Turkish foreign ministry said. for an upcoming war? of Hayy al-A’amel, killing him on the spot. known as al-Hasuah and lies in the Abu Ghraib district of (Source: agencies) 6 At this point, the primary drawback of the Aliyev administration is stemming from the risk of igniting a regional International politics of Middle East is bewilderingly complex: Bruce Hall conflict in which Russia would support Yerevan. 1 In this logic, we are playing a those rules and serve its interests. Realists oped, U.S. public sector debt has been Arab Spring uprisings to be all negative, Russia has a formidable bastion in Armenia equipped with zero sum game and your security can therefore expect that the institutions that paid down to some of the lowest levels in and the U.S. and its allies continue to strategic weapon systems. Furthermore, Moscow and Yere- only come at the expense of my insecu- the hegemon establishes will decay as the a decade or two, and this would enable believe the Islamic State phenomenon is van have recently signed a joint air defense agreement. rity, and vice versa. In a Lockean system hegemon suffers a decline in power rela- the U.S. to finance another major mili- ultimately containable if not eradicable. I From a broader perspective, the Russia factor appears more the game is a mixed motives game. tive to other actors. This analytical frame- tary expansion of the order of the Rea- worry that a larger problem is that with oil complicated than “simply” a military alliance with Armenia. I can reflect positively, negatively or work was largely constructed to explain gan defense buildup should the need be trading at $30 a barrel, and the U.S. large- For a long time, Moscow has been exploiting pro- indifferently to measures by a given the construction and maintenance of the perceived, due to strong challenges by ly enjoying energy self-sufficiency due to tracted conflicts, be it Nagorno-Karabakh or South state to enhance their security. It large- Bretton Woods institutions (the IMF, World others of a magnitude that I do not think new technologies, the U.S. is simply los- Ossetia, to maintain grounds for its military presence ly depends upon whether I regard you Bank, GATT now morphed into the WTO we should expect. It appears to many ing interest in the Middle East. True, the in the former Soviet Union territories, while these de- to be a threat, and ally, or an indiffer- and the international monetary system). I analysts that the U.S. largely retains its Saudis are trying to ruin American shale ployments prolong the protracted conflicts, generating ent bystander in the security arena. In a would argue that the “America in decline” military AND economic “hegemony” and oil and fracking producers with over-pro- a vicious cycle. Kantian system states respond positively argument (and an accompanying body of has the means to maintain it for decades duction, but all that can accomplish is Moreover, although Russia’s lucrative arms sales to Azer- to measures by other states to enhance literature) turns up every 25 years or so. In to come. Joseph Nye has made similar that the U.S. producers go under for a baijan and its military alliance with Armenia might seem con- their security. They presume these other 1987 one of the books near the top of the arguments in his most recent book. time, the U.S. burns cheap gulf oil in the tradictory, such a course of action even bolsters the afore- states to be either allies or indifferent by- New York Times bestseller’s list for weeks Yet one might argue that U.S. “region- interim, and when the price rises again, mentioned situation. standers, thus no threat to their security. and months was a book by a previously al hegemony” in the Middle East has de- U.S. entrepreneurs who bought out the During the clashes, Turkish public opinion showed a I can identify positively with the security obscure Yale University historian called clined in recent years. I can credit that stakes of the failed producers will start up strong solidarity with Azerbaijan due to the shared national of my friends, and wish them to enhance The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers. At assertion, while questioning whether it is production again. The Saudis and OPEC identity. Yet, it seems, Ankara would still avoid a regional war, their security stature. the time Germany and Japan were at the a problem for U.S. security or U.S. “he- have lost their status as the global swing and opt for capacity-building measures to support its ally. In terms of this analytical schema, the peak of their economic power relative to gemony” elsewhere. This relative decline producer in the global oil markets to (Source: Aljazeera) contemporary international politics of the the U.S., whose productivity and competi- in U.S. hegemony in the Middle East has the United States. This is not repairable. Middle East is bewilderingly complex. This tiveness had suffered during the 1970s and three sources in my view: 1) the destabiliz- Without a critical national security con- Former Yemeni president complexity is exacerbated by the fact that early 1980s. The book argued U.S. “impe- ing consequences of the U.S. destruction cern such as energy security to keep U.S. this schema is state-centric and presumes rial overstretch” had doomed it to decline of Iraqi power, 2) the destabilizing conse- attention focused on the Middle East, U.S. sacks premier over ‘failures’ states to be unitary, and not politically and Germany and especially Japan would quences of the Arab Spring revolts, initial- policy to the region will continually suffer divided regarding societal preferences replace the U.S. at the top of the econom- ly welcomed by the U.S., 3) the expansion a likely progressive benign neglect. Ener- 1 The Ansarullah (Houthi) movement took over state towards domestic and international out- ic power charts. This, of course, failed to of the Islamic State into the power vacu- gy poor China has many more reasons to matters after the resignation and escape of Hadi, which had comes. This has never been the case and happen. The Reagan defense build-up um resulting from numbers 1 and 2 above. concern herself with Middle Eastern de- thrown the country into a state of uncertainty and threatened is clearly less so since the Arab Spring rev- was financed rather cheaply, largely with While I believe any U.S. President velopments than does the U.S. on energy a total security breakdown in Yemen, where an al-Qaeda affil- the savings of the Japanese, and resulted that might have refrained from military iate has presence. The destabilization in numerous new technologies with lu- engagement in Afghanistan after Mul- I worry that a larger Saudi Arabia has been waging a ferocious war of Syria, and the crative applications in the consumer and lah Omar declined to assist the U.S. with problem is that commercial sectors. The Japanese bubble locating bin Laden and other al Qaeda on Ansarullah movement continuing fratricidal economy burst and the East bloc and the operatives, I and others strongly opposed with oil trading at fighters and its allied Yem- carnage there, has Soviet Union collapsed by 1991. Never had the second invasion of Iraq and the Sec- $30 a barrel, and eni forces since late March created a vacuum into the international system looked more un- ond (Persian) Gulf War at the onset explic- the U.S. largely 2015 in a bid to return Hadi ipolar, nor had U.S. hegemony appeared itly due to concern about destabilization to power, but it has failed to which the political more dominating. of the region as a consequence. To be enjoying energy self- do so. Nearly 9,400 Yemenis, entrepreneurs and The current round of this academic brutally frank, President George Herbert sufficiency due to including 4,000 women and self-gratifying fad sees a rising China replacing the U.S. Walker Bush (father of President George new technologies, the children, have lost their lives This thinking ignores the fact that the W. Bush) had intentionally left Sadaam in in the war. adventurers of the global economy is lately like an engine power at the end of the First (Persian) Gulf U.S. is simply losing Yemenis, in return, have been carrying out retaliatory Abd Rabbuh Khaled Islamic State are firing on only one cylinder, with persis- War, as a counterweight to other poten- interest in the Middle Mansur Hadi Bahah expanding. tent weakness in Europe and Japan and tial belligerents in the region. The U.S. in- East. attacks on the Saudi forces increasing difficulties with a needed eco- vaded Iraq, destroyed the country, killed deployed in the country as well as targets inside Saudi Arabia. olutions in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and the nomic transition in China. It also ignores hundreds of thousands of troops, and security related, or economic grounds. Early on Monday, Yemeni forces fired a Qaher 1 ballistic ongoing horrors in the Syrian conflict. It un-addressable demographic trends with decapitated the Baathi regime. The U.S. French President Hollande has missile at the Saudi-held al-Naser military base in Yemen’s seemed for a time that Islamicist oriented ageing Chinese and Japanese work forc- did so in part because President George called for a greater role for his coun- province of Ma’rib, killing and inuring a yet unknown number states in the region, including Turkey un- es coupled with inability to replace those W. Bush was surrounded by people tell- try in Syria. Does this mean that the of Saudi mercenaries. der Erdogan, were oriented toward Egypt work forces, along with a number of oth- ing this was the American moment to EU is seeking a stronger voice in inter- Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince: There is sig- under Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood er difficulties. It ignores the fact that the achieve democratic governments in the national structure? nificant progress in Yemen negotiations in a quite Kantian fashion. Unfortunately United States retains at least 11 operation region and effect “regime change.” It is A: The EU clearly has its hands full at in another event, Saudi Arabia’s deputy crown prince said for Mr. Morsi, he confused “ballot-ocra- aircraft carrier task forces complete with in retrospect (and I believe it should have present with the consequences of a ma- the warring parties in Yemen are close to resolving a year-long cy” with democracy, and failed to under- full complements of guided missile cruis- been before the fact) clear that it is rather jor humanitarian crisis due to the escalat- conflict. stand that winning a single election was ers, destroyers, mine sweepers, troop naive to expect a country full of people ing inhumanity attending the Syrian civil “There is significant progress in negotiations, and we have not equivalent to a mandate to create an transports, etc. with which to project with major ethnic and religious cleavag- conflict, and the escalating inhumanity good contacts with the Houthis, with a delegation currently in Islamic state in Egypt. The orientation of power globally. These capabilities will es, people with no history of democratic attending the expansion of the Islamic Riyadh. We believe that we are closer than ever to a political Islamicist states in the region to Egypt un- State. France, in particular, has suffered solution in Yemen. So we are pushing to have this opportunity der General Sisi is more Hobbesian, but I don’t think it’s possible to characterize the loss of 130 innocent lives in the crimes materialize on the ground, but if things relapse, we are ready at the same time more Lockean by “mod- perpetrated in Paris in August of last year “ Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told in erate” Arab states like Jordan, Bahrain, “system” of Middle Eastern international relations by putative agents of the Islamic State. interview with Bloomberg. (Source: agencies) the UAE, and perhaps Lebanon and post- as a whole as Hobbesian, Lockean or Kantian, but France is also obligated, as a core EU Baathi Iraq. Saudi Arabia is now quite only specific dyadic and triadic relations between member, to accommodate large num- Nigeria claims arrest of Ansaru busy with its own war with an Islamicized states that are often less than domestically stable. bers of Syrian and other Muslim refugees Yemen. Meanwhile, aside from Egypt, from the present wave of immigration on Leader Khalid al-Barnawi re-secularized as a post-Mubarak regime humanitarian grounds. With a large ex- under the harsh rule of General Sisi and be unmatched for decades under the institutions, to suddenly spontaneously tant Muslim population from Algeria and The Nigerian army says it his coterie, various parties still contend most optimistic assumptions regarding form themselves into a functioning dem- Morocco as a legacy of its colonial days, has arrested the leader of for power in states that experienced rev- the growth of the military capabilities of ocratic society with the removal of the it has long been unclear how Muslim im- an al-Qaeda linked militant olutions during the Arab Spring. I don’t others. The U.S. also has battle hardened Baathi regime. Iraq has since been and migrants who end up agitating for the group, Ansaru, known for think it’s possible to characterize the “sys- combat veterans who have seen service remains destabilized. The destabilization introduction of sharia in France can be kidnapping and murdering tem” of Middle Eastern international rela- in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere num- of the neighboring Syrian regime, and the integrated into France’s self-consciously Westerners. tions as a whole as Hobbesian, Lockean bering in the hundreds of thousands in- continuing fratricidal carnage there, has aggressive secularism. A new wave of Khalid al-Barnawi was or Kantian, but only specific dyadic and cluding reservists, recallable and deploy- created a vacuum into which the political Muslim immigration presents even larger captured in Lokoja, capital triadic relations between states that are able in a matter of hours to days. entrepreneurs and self-gratifying adven- potential difficulties for French national of the central state of Kogi often less than domestically stable. In short, the rise of China by no means turers of the Islamic State are expanding. and cultural coherence. As Germany un- on Friday, military spokes- Don’t you think that the collapse entails the “decline” of the United States Terror activity sponsored from this base is der Merkel is the voice of an essentially man Brigadier General Rabe of hegemonic system is the main rea- except in relative terms, and the figures now attacking the stability of other states Christian European humanitarianism – Abubakar said on Sunday. son behind the crises in the Middle I cite above leads us to question how as nearby as Turkey and as distant as agitating for admission of the refugees on “He is among those on East? meaningful are these relative terms to in- France, and more recently Cote d’Ivoire. humanitarian grounds, France, already so top of the list of our wanted A: Hegemonic stability theory large- ternational power structures. While some U.S. actions in the region then have, in badly injured by IS violence, might rath- terrorists,” he added. ly argues that the hegemon makes the underlying weaknesses persist in the U.S. my view, certainly contributed to any “lost er naturally, pose the voice of European Al-Barnawi has been one rules for the international system and cre- economy, America’s economic recovery hegemony” that the U.S. suffers there, yet security against perceived threats in the of the three Nigerians listed by the United States in 2012 as ates international institutions that enforce from its 2008 financial crisis is well devel- the U.S. does not regard the results of the region, and act on Europe’s behalf. “specially designated global terrorists.” The U.S. had placed a $5 million bounty on his head. A-Barnawi has “ties to Boko Haram” and “close links to EDBI foreign exchange balance City Bank honored by al-Qaeda,” according to the US State Department. shows 962% growth UN-Habitat for supporting CPI A Nigerian army officer said his arrest was “a huge success and will have a profound effect on counter-terrorism opera- ECONOMY TEHRAN — Do- ed SWIFT activities with more than 120 ECONOMY TEHRAN — United given to Masoumeh Ebtekar, the head of tions in Nigeria and beyond.” deskmestic and foreign brokerage banks, membership in Asso- deskNations Human Settle- the Department of the Environment, for Ansaru is a splinter group of Boko Haram which exchange currency balance of Export ciation of Development Financing Insti- ments Programme (UN-Habitat) has paid selecting Qazvin as the global pilot city for claimed responsibility for the December 26, 2012 attack Development Bank of Iran show 140 tutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP), tribute to Dr. Pourzarandi, the managing the trial implementation of the UN-Hab- on a facility in Abuja, where the army held captured mili- percent and 962 percent growth, re- the singing of a contract with the Rus- director of City Bank, for the bank’s all- itat’s City Prosperity Initiative (CPI). Also, tants. They killed two policemen and freed 40 detainees. spectively, in the previous Iranian calen- sian RFC bank with the goal of opening out supporting of Sustainable Develop- Qazvin Mayor Mas’oud Nosrati was The group also said it was responsible for another attack in 2013 dar year, according to the public rela- letters of credit (LCs) up to €10 million as ment Goals adopted by the United Na- UN-Habitat’s City Prosperity Initiative on a convoy of Mali-bound Nigerian troops in Kogi state. The ter- tions office of the bank. important achievements of the bank in tions General Assembly and contributing (CPI) is a global initiative that enables city rorists killed two soldiers and seriously wounded five others. Addressing a gathering attended by the previous Iranian calendar year. the implementation of UN-Habitat’s City authorities, as well as local and national Boko Haram has so far claimed the lives of over 17,000 branch staff of the bank, Dr. Mohsen Among brokerage banks with which Prosperity Initiative (CPI), the public rela- stakeholders, to identify opportunities people since the start of its insurgency in Nigeria in 2009. The Ashrafpour, EDBI head for communica- EDBI resumed ties, the official named tions office of the bank reported. and potential areas of intervention for violence has also forced over 2.6 million others to flee their tion affairs, named resuming encrypt- ARES, EIH, BCP, KBC, RFC, etc. Also, in the event, a note of citation was their cities to become more prosperous. homes since then. (Source: agencies) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 10 WOMEN AAPRILPRIL 55,, 22016016 http://www.tehrantimes.com/society

FOOD FOR THOUGHT VP puts emphasis on women’s role in resistance economy

WOMEN TEHRAN — The vice president in women deskand family affairs, Shahindokht Molaverdi, here on Monday put emphasis on utilizing women’s capacities in implementing and promoting resistance economy. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an official de- cree in February 2014 called on the government to secure the utilization of the country’s resources, struggle to promote a knowledge-based economy, take efforts to increase energy consumption efficiency and boost domestic production as the requirements for the materialization of the resistance economy. The department of women and family affairs has made im- mediate efforts in solving urgent problems of women in the pre- “We love our mother unknowingly, and only realize how vious years, Molaverdi said, adding, “several agreements have deep-rooted that love is at the ultimate separation.” been signed in this regard.” Guy de Maupassant “We hope that the current year (1395, beginning March 20), to be the year of fulfilling the promised cooperation between the department and other executive organizations,” she added. We also hope for achieving outstanding goals in empower- NEWS ing women and children this year and the coming year, the vice Women-only compartments president noted. in Germany not reaction to New Year attacks Young Muslim women take lead over men in race for degrees

LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) — A German Muslim girls are academically outperforming their male coun- He explained: “This can reinforce their determination to railway company which has introduced women-only com- terparts for the first time, researchers have found. obtain higher education qualifications not only as good as partments on one line said on Thursday the move was not A “new and remarkable” cultural shift will be revealed this those of the majority group but even better, in order to resist a reaction to the New Year sex attacks in Cologne and other week to the British Sociological Association annual conference, the anticipated labor market discrimination preventing them cities but a response to customer requests made earlier in when it hears evidence that more young Muslim women have from achieving a desired job.” December. been gaining degrees at British universities than Muslim men, The findings suggest that the younger generation of Mitteldeutsche Re- even though they have been under-represented for decades. Muslim women in Britain mark a distinct break with the past. giobahn set aside compart- Dr Nabil Khattab of the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies “It is possible that Muslim women who are British-born, un- ments for women, children in Qatar, and Professor Tariq Modood of the University of Bris- like their mothers, have undergone a cultural transforma- and the elderly on trains tol, found that 25% of Muslim women aged 21-24 now have tion,” Khattab said. operating between Leipzig degrees, compared with 22% of Muslim men of the same age. The academics also suggested that the reason why Mus- and Chemnitz in eastern After studying the GCSE results of 6,600 candidates in lims overall were less likely to have degrees and attend an England, the academics also found that average scores in elite university than non-Muslim pupils was due to them Germany last week, with two The academic success of Muslim schoolgirls marks a ‘cul- compartments for the use of school tests at ages 11 and 14 were higher for Muslim girls falling behind at primary school. However, when the data than boys. tural transformation’, say researchers. Photograph: Jamie was adjusted to remove the initial deficit, they found that women and children only. Jones/REX/Shutterstock “Some women wanted to “Muslim girls seem to be outperforming Muslim boys, in secondary schools Muslim pupils performed as well as have a little bit more security,” especially in relation to their school performance,” said Khat- is remarkable when one considers that in 1990 and 1991 Pa- non-Muslim students, and were catching up with them a Mitteldeutsche Regiobahn tab. “This is very interesting, given what we know about the kistani and Bangladeshi men admitted to higher education by the time they took GCSEs. “Once we take the previous spokesman told the Thom- gender gap among Muslims, not only in education but also outnumbered their female peers by more than two to one school performance into account, Muslim students seem to son Reuters Foundation by in the labor market. While older men are more likely to be de- and more than three to one respectively.” be performing as well as the majority group, even in attend- phone from Germany. gree-holders than their female counterparts, younger women Khattab suggested that one possible reason for the ing elite Russell Group universities,” they claim. He said the compartments were in the middle carriage of are more likely to have degrees.” change might be the fact that Muslim women, particularly “At the GCSE level, there was a clear advantage among the train, near the train conductor’s compartment. Khattab explained that the trend for girls to outperform those planning to become economically active after leaving Muslims. This finding is striking, given the well-established ed- More than 600 women in several cities across Germany boys had been well observed among non-Muslim students school, appreciated that they were “likely to face labor market ucational disadvantages among some Muslim ethnic groups, filed complaints ranging from sexual molestation to theft af- for some time. “On the other hand, it is very new among penalties due to widespread stereotypes and racism, perhaps most notably Pakistanis and Bangladeshis.” ter attacks during the New Year weekend, and police inves- Muslims,” he said. “Nevertheless, that it has happened at all more so than Muslim men”. (Source: The Guardian) tigations were focused on illegal migrants from North Africa and asylum seekers. The Mitteldeutsche Regiobahn spokesman said the com- Is France xenophobic about its veiled Muslim women? pany had received requests for dedicated compartments be- fore the attacks took place, and such compartments had only By Dr Noureddine Miladi lim woman’s dress. en “prefer slavery” too? In a similarly arro- an electronic devise to name a few. Adverts been set aside on one line which did not have open carriages In a statement to Monte Carlo and BFM gant fashion Rossignol claims that these which portray women in bikinis are actually where all passengers sit together. The statement made on Thursday 31 March TV, while commenting on the increasing brands of Muslim women’s dress are danger- selling two products. One is the merchandise, Cities in several countries have brought in “women only” 2016 by France’s Families and Women’s trend of selling collections to Muslim women ous “…those same brands, with such Islamic and the second is women’s naked bodies as train carriages, buses and taxis in a bid to stem sexual har- Rights Minister, Laurence Rossignol, added by famous brands such as Dolce & Gabba- collections, give an image of women that part of a consumer culture. assment. fuel to the far right Islamophobic attacks na and H&M, she described Muslim veiled is dangerous for the rights and freedom of Or maybe the French Families and The world’s largest capital, Tokyo, was one of the first to against Muslims. It also provides further women as “slaves who prefer slavery”. Muslim women in France.” (CNN.Com) Women’s Rights minister should have a say introduce women-only carriages on trains, in 2000. Mexico ammunition for the large part of French Although this is out of a free choice she The minister, who has provoked rage and on the alleged ‘sickening sex abuse’ which a City, Jakarta and others followed suit, and some are mulling media which are already notorious for their went further by adding, “There are women exasperation, claims that the hijab “…pro- few French UN soldiers have been recently the idea. negative portrayal of Muslims. It is a con- who choose to wear the hijab. There were motes the shutting away of women’s bodies”. accused of in the Central African Republic. A 2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation survey of 15 of the tradiction in terms for a minster who attacks African Americans too who preferred to be While the minister has been concerned The Al-Jazeera.com reported on Friday 1 world’s largest capitals plus New York found 70 percent of the freedom of dress in democratic country enslaved”!! (theguardian.com) about French women from the Muslim faith April 2016 that the ‘UN and French peace- women questioned felt safer on single-sex transport. like France to, at the same time, head the This is by all means a racist spat which who choose freely to follow the Islamic dress keepers (were) accused of grim abuses in Gender experts expressed concern over its effectiveness, ministry whose raison d’κtre is essentially by modern standards is intolerable. Will the codes, it is remarkable that we don’t hear the restive African nation, including bestiality saying it was a short-term fix, not a way of stopping the har- defending women’s rights. minister dare to make the same inflamma- a critical stance about the exploitation of with children’. The news also reads that ‘A re- assment of women. In the type of liberal democracy which the tory comments about Jewish women who women’s body in advertising campaigns for port by a U.S.-based advocacy group said minister believes in, it seems that every form abide by the codes of conduct described in instance. The modern advertising industry three girls in CAR told UN staff they were of freedom to choose one’s dress, including Judaic scriptures? How about Christian sis- capitalizes on the woman’s body as a mar- tied up and forced to have sex with a dog miniskirts or very tight leggings, which are ters who abide by the teachings of Jesus in keting tool. Sophisticated ads display almost by a French military commander in 2014’ both sexually explicit should be respected, terms of their dress codes? bare bodies in order to sell a product such (Aljazeera.com). RECIPE OF THE WEEK except the liberty to choose to wear the Mus- Do Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant wom- as an expensive car, a watch, perfume or (Source: Peninsula On-line) Strawberry pretzel salad IN FOCUS Mehr/ Damoon Pourne’mati Year of conflict puts "It is a dessert, but isn't too sweet, nor too salty. It is really pretty when you put it in a clear ovenproof dish." 3.4 million women Ingredients: 2 cups crushed pretzels of reproductive age 3/4 cup butter, melted at risk: UN 3 tablespoons white sugar 1 (8 ounce) package A year of conflict in Yemen has left an cream cheese, softened estimated 3.4 million women of repro- 1 cup white sugar ductive age between 15 and 49 years 1 (8 ounce) container in need of humanitarian assistance, the frozen whipped topping, United Nations Population Fund (UNF- thawed PA) has reported, expressing growing 2 (3 ounce) packages concern about the situation. strawberry flavored Jell-O Of them, nearly 500,000 are preg- 2 cups boiling water nant and will give birth within the next 2 (10 ounce) packages nine months. The lack of reproductive frozen strawberries health services and supplies can result Directions: in an estimated 1,000 maternal deaths Preheat oven to 400 de- among 68,000 pregnant women who grees F (200 degrees C). are at risk of life-threatening complica- Stir together crushed tions during childbirth. pretzels, melted butter and 3 “Women and girls lack access to hu- tablespoons sugar; mix well and press mixture into the bot- manitarian aid, including reproductive tom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until set. health services, and are therefore even Set aside to cool. more at risk of unwanted pregnancies, In a large mixing bowl cream together cream cheese and which, in turn, can put their lives at risk,” UN- 1 cup sugar. Fold in whipped topping. Spread mixture onto FPA Country Representative Lene K. Chris- cooled crust. tiansen said in a press release, noting that Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Stir in still frozen strawber- the status of women and girls was already ries and allow to set briefly. When mixture is about the consist- weak in Yemen prior to the conflict as gen- ency of egg whites, pour and spread over cream cheese layer. der-based violence was common at home. Refrigerate until set. Mother’s Day was marked at Kahrizak Charity Foundation in Alborz Province on Wednesday. (UN News Center) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y

http://www.tehrantimes.com/sports AAPRILPRIL 55,, 22016016 SPORTS 11

Iran to start FIVB Volleyball World TENNIS Novak Djokovic sets new records in Miami Open League with Brazil victory against Kei Nishikori SPORTS Iran will kick off the 2016 FIVB Vol- deskleyball World League with a match Novak Djokovic secured his sixth Miami Open title with a 6-3 6-3 against Brazil in Rio de Janeiro. straights set victory over Kei Nishikori. A total of the 12 teams were drawn in 9 pools of 4 Top seed Novak Djokovic continued his domination of men’s teams in Group 1. tennis with a 6-3 6-3 win over Japan’s Kei Nishikori in the Mi- In each pool, all teams will compete in round robin ami Open final in Florida on Sunday, before quickly turning his format. The results of all 9 pools will combine in 1 ranking thoughts to the upcoming clay court season. table. The host and the top five ranked teams will play in The French Open is the only grand slam missing from Djok- the final round. ovic’s otherwise glittering The last ranked team after the Intercontinental Round resume, but he has already could be relegated if the winners of the Group 2 Final Round been installed by the book- can meet the promotion requirements set by the FIVB. makers as odds-on favour- Raul Lozano’s men will face Brazil in Group 1 Week ite for Roland Garros after One at the Arena Carioca 1 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. a magnificent start to 2016. Iran will face USA and Argentina on June 17 and 19 Djokovic dropped serve in respectively. the first game against Nishi- In Week 2, Iran will meet Bulgaria on June 23 in Bel- kori but it was pretty much grade, Serbia. The Persians will play Brazil and Serbia on one-way traffic after that as June 24 and 25 respectively. he outclassed the sixth seed in In July 1, Iran will host Serbia in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium all facets of the game on the in Week 3. hardcourt at Key Biscayne. The Asian best team will face Italy on July 2 and Ar- The 28-year-old Serb took gentina on July 3. 85 minutes to join American The 2016 FIVB Volleyball World League will be the 27th Andre Agassi as a six-time Mi- edition of the annual men’s international volleyball tour- ami Open winner. Djokovic said his first Miami win in 2007 paved nament played from 16 June to 17 July. the way for a career that now includes 63 ATP titles. “It gave The tournament will feature a new format with 36 me a lot of confidence, a lot of self belief that I can finally win teams expected to compete. these big tournaments, finally beat the top players,” he said in a The Group 1 final round will be held in Krakσw, Poland. courtside interview. “Every year I come back to this tournament I get goose bumps from those days. I was still 19 years old and making my way to the top.” Mahdavikia: Zidane is the best player I’ve played against He collected $1,028,300 on Sunday, becoming the sport’s all-time leading money-winner with career earnings approach- SPORTS Former Iranian international Mehdi paring to the other top leagues in the world is its discipline desk ing $100 million. It was his fourth consecutive championship, Mahdavikia admitted that current Real and that’s the main reason why Die Mannschaft is very suc- and a record 28th overall, in the Masters 1000, a series of nine Madrid head coach is the best player he has played against cessful,” Mahdavikia added. tournaments considered the most prestigious other than the in his whole career. “Unfortunately there is not much attention to the grass- four grand slams. “First set was a real battle, but towards the “When I was at Hamburg we faced Juventus twice in roots football in Iran while we have a lot of young talents end of the first set I started serving better... which means a lot in 2000-01 UEFA Champions League group stage. I will never who are capable of reaching world class level. We have matches like this against top players,” he said of his latest victory. forget that match which ended up in a 4-4 draw, I scored Sardar Azmoun and Alireza Jahanbakhsh who came from It was Djokovic’s fourth title of 2016, following victories at once, was awarded a penalty and provided an assist. Zi- Iran youth team and now playing in Europe,” he added. the Australian Open, Qatar and Indian Wells. His only blemish dane was at Juventus then and I would like to say that he is “After 1998 World Cup in France I had a couple of offers on an otherwise perfect record so far this year came in Dubai the best player I’ve played against. He was unpredictable, from Europe. I almost joined Tottenham but there were mi- in February, when he retired during a quarter-final with an eye in my opinion he was a perfect player,” Mahdavikia said. nor issues which blocked this move,” he added. infection. Former Hamburg and Eintracht Frankfurt winger also Mahdavikia is eager to become the Hamburg SV head Djokovic will fly home on Monday to Monte Carlo, where believes that Bundesliga is one of the best leagues in coach in the near future. he will begin his clay court season next week. “I have plenty the world. “I love Hamburg and its fans and it is a dream to be- of energy and lots of motivation for the beginning of the clay “The biggest advantage of German Bundesliga com- come the head coach of this club one day,” he added. court season that ends up, hopefully, with a crown in Paris (in June),” he said. “That’s obviously one of the top goals each year, but I’m not the only one that wants to win that big tro- phy. There are many big events prior to that so I’m hoping I Zobahan seeks victory over Bunydokor in ACL, coach says can build my form.” SPORTS Iran’s Zobahan coach “The main goal of each team is first not important that we don’t concede goals. (Source: Reuters) deskYahya Golmohamma- to concede goals and next to use the op- “On Tuesday, we will play against a high di says that they are going to beat Uz- portunities and score,” said Zobahan coach quality, technical team. We hope that with bekistan’s Bunydokor in AFC Champions Golmohammadi. the backing of our supporters we can put League Group B. “Despite scoring just once, our good in a good performance and achieve our Antonio Conte confirmed as The match will be held in Isfahan’s Fool- defensive performances have helped us be- goal of taking all three points,” Golmoham- ad Shahr Stadium on Tuesday. come one of the favorites [to go through]. It’s madi added. new Chelsea head coach

Italy manager Antonio Conte has signed a three-year contract to My career isn’t over yet, insists Neymar’s €193m release clause could become Chelsea's new head coach. He will begin his role after the end of this summer's European Wayne Rooney be met by Paris Saint-Germain - agent Championship. "I am very excited about the prospect of working at Chelsea Football Club. I am proud to be the coach of the national team of my country and only a role as attractive as manager of Chel- sea could follow that," Conte said in a statement. "I am looking forward to meeting everyone at the club and the day-to-day challenge of competing in the Premier League. Chelsea and English football are watched wherever you go, the fans are passionate and my ambition is to have more success to follow the victories I enjoyed in Italy. 'I am happy we have made the announcement now so everything is clear and we can end the speculation. I will con- tinue to focus on my job with the Italian national team and will reserve speaking about Chelsea again until after the Euros." Italy face Belgium, Ireland and Sweden in this summer's tour- nament. Wayne Rooney insists he “still has a few captain you want to get a strong bond Neymar’s agent Wagner Ribeiro has every player. We’ll see in two years, when Conte had been linked with the Chelsea job since just before years left” at international level despite between everyone and I really feel there said that the Barcelona forward “loves” he will be at the end of his contract.” Jose Mourinho's departure, and speculation has increased in re- the form of his striking rivals. is that at the moment, everyone gets on Paris and believes Paris Saint-Germain When pressed on whether this meant cent months, leading to today's announcement. The Manchester United forward and really well. There isn’t a massive age gap are capable of meeting his €193 million that Neymar would not entertain a move (Source: Eurosport) England captain has been out with a knee from the oldest to the youngest player - I release clause. before his current deal expires, Ribeiro injury since February and has watched think us and Holland were the youngest L’Equipe reported on Monday that said: “That means that if PSG show an in- on as Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy have teams going through qualifying - and I PSG have decided to make Neymar, 24, terest in Neymar, we can discuss it. staked their claims for Euro 2016. think that shows and helps the younger their No. 1 transfer target this summer. “A contract can also be terminated pro- Both scored in the 3-2 friendly victory lads relax around everyone. The Brazil captain has two years to run vided that the release clause is paid. It’s Bayern will not play over Germany last weekend while Vardy “You have myself, Joe Hart, Gary Cahill on his current deal at Barca and his father huge: €193m. But I don’t think that might Lewandowski contract added another in the Three Lions’ 2-1 who are a little bit older and are there to said in February that discussions on an be an insurmountable problem for PSG.” games, says Rummmenigge defeat by Holland on Tuesday. help with anything but we’re all together extension would not start until May. Ribeiro said he had a good relation- Tottenham striker Kane is currently all the time and I think the squad is in a Negotiations have been slowed by ship with PSG sporting director Oliv- top of the Premier League scoring charts very good place right now.” an ongoing court investigation into ier Letang and club president Nasser Karl-Heinz Rummenigge is confident Robert Lewandowski’s with 22 while Leicester forward Vardy is Rooney burst onto the international Neymar’s switch from Santos to Barca in Al-Khelaifi, but that the end of the season long-term future lies at Bayern Munich and refuses to be drawn second on 19 and questions have been scene at Euro 2004, scoring four goals 2013, but the player said in January that was the time to talk with them about a on speculation the Poland international could be on the move. raised over Rooney’s place in Roy Hodg- before a metatarsal injury put paid to his he still had “years” left at the Camp Nou. potential transfer. Recent reports suggest the prolific attacker is close to signing son’s starting XI in France this summer. - and England’s - hopes against Portugal Ribeiro also suggested that a move L’Equipe claims that PSG could offer a contract renewal, but Cezary Kucharski - one of Lewandowski’s However the 30-year-old, England’s in the quarter-finals. in the short-term is unlikely but revealed Neymar a salary of €20m per year to representatives - has previously claimed Real Madrid are inter- all-time record goalscorer, believes he The former Everton striker admits his that if PSG’s interest became more con- tempt him away from Barca. ested in signing the striker. is still capable of performing at the game, and temperament, has changed crete then Neymar would seriously con- The paper suggests that his dream of Bayern have no interest in playing games, though, and re- highest level. since his teenage years. sider the offer. winning the Ballon d’Or could also be a main confident the 27-year-old will stay put. “I’ve still got a few years left, I feel,” He said: “I think I’m a different player “What I can confirm to you is that factor in him changing clubs, in case he “I am not commenting on Lewandowski’s potential renewal,” said Rooney, speaking to the PFA’s 4 The now to what I was then so I don’t com- Neymar has a contract with Barca until is always seen as second best to Lionel club chief executive Rummenigge told Kicker. Player magazine. “I’ll keep trying to, first pare myself - I’m always just thinking 2018,” Ribeiro told L’Equipe. “He feels Messi at the Camp Nou. “We are not joining his agent [in playing] games. and foremost, help the team be success- about what comes next and making good in Barcelona, he’s liked over there The large contingent of Brazilians al- “Taking a look at his contract length gives us reasons to be ful and if I can score the goals to help sure I’m at my best for the summer. I feel and he’s playing for the best team in ready at PSG could help Neymar come relaxed about the future.” achieve that then that’ll be great. I’m a lot more patient now in my play, the world. to terms with moving to a less glamorous Lewandowski’s deal with Bayern runs until June 2019. “Over the last two years my form for when I was younger I could be impa- “It’s no small feat to impose yourself at league, with Ribeiro saying that Lucas The striker has been in superb form for the Bundesliga cham- England has been really good, I’ve scored tient and I’d end up in positions I didn’t such an enormous club. But the prospect Moura has already been urging him to pions this campaign, scoring 36 goals in 40 appearances in all a lot of goals. really need to be in.” of living in a city like Paris and to play for come to the French capital. competitions. “It’s a young team and obviously as (Source: PASport) a club like PSG -- that’s also a dream for (Source: ESPN) (Source: Goal) b

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NEWS IN BRIEF Indian festival honors Cannes to screen “Maman Soori’s Case” Iranian films

ARTTEHRAN — Two Iranian films have ARTTEHRAN — Iranian direc- deskwon awards at the 8th Nashik Interna- desktor Hossein Hejrat’s debut film tional Film Festival (NIFF) in India. “Maman Soori’s Case” will go on screen in the Short Director Soheila Golestani’s debut film “Two” re- Film Corner at the 69th Cannes Film Festival, which ceived the NIFF International Appreciation Award, while will be held in the French city from May 11 to 22. the Best International Short Film Award went to “Three A production of the Northlands International – Colors” by Mojgan Taraneh, organizers have announced UAB Company in Vilnius, Lithuania, the movie tells on the website. the story of a middle-aged woman who provides Golestani wrote the screenplay for “Two” based on home-cooked food for her customers in Tehran. U.S. author Bernard Malamud’s “The Maid’s Shoes”. The Short Film Corner provides the creators of The film tells the story of Bahman, a man who comes short films an opportunity to show their projects to back to Iran years after living in Europe to sell his fa- a massive audience, pitch future projects, and hope- ther’s house. A 40-year-old man helps him pack the fur- fully make many important connections as well. niture and equipment. This collaboration changes their destiny but not in a good way. Iranian documentarian Mahtab Nasirpur and Parviz Parastui, who is also the producer of the film, are main members of the cast for publishes memories of the movie. “Three Colors” is about three women in three differ- captivity in Iraq Mahtab ent social positions. Nasirpur The festival, which ran from March 17 to 20, promotes acts in a ARTTEHRAN — Iranian documen- independent filmmakers and youth talents worldwide. It scene from desktarian and photojournalists has is dedicated to Dadasaheb Phalke, who is considered “Two”. recently published “Hey You” that recounts his the father of Indian cinema. memories of his four-month imprisonment in Iraq by U.S.-led forces during 2003. The book released by Sureh Mehr Publications “Memories for All Seasons” director to make doc on Imam Khomeini’s wife also reveals facts about the U.S. detention camps in the then occupied country. ARTTEHRAN — “Memories for All Sea- “Her days of life with Imam, their lives in Tehran, desk Abutaleb along with his colleague Soheil Karimi sons” director Mostafa Razzaq-Kari- Najaf, Qom and Neauphle-le-Château are among the were detained by the U.S.-led forces while mak- mi plans to make a documentary on Khadijeh Saqafi topics to be covered in the documentary,” Razzaq-Ka- ing a documentary that was to be named “Marsh (1913-2009), the wife of the founder of the Islamic Re- rimi said. Land of the Fairy Tales”. public Ayatollah Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini. “By necessity, much research had to be carried out “A team of four researchers has been working on Imam for this documentary and we are now waiting for the “He” to compete in the project over the past year and the screenplay has Khomeini Oruj Films as the producer to approve the scenario,” now been completed,” Razzaq-Karimi told the Persian and his he mentioned. Swiss filmfest service of MNA on Monday. wife, Razzaq-Karimi is the director of “Memories for All “The documentary is of high importance, because Khadijeh Seasons”, an acclaimed documentary that narrates the it centers on a person who lived with Imam Khomeini Saqafi, in memories of a group of Iranian soldiers wounded by for over 60 years and we need to focus on every detail an undated Iraqi chemical weapons during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq of her life,” he added. photo war. CULTURE TEHRAN — Iranian documen- desk tarian Sam Kalantari’s “He” will PICTURE OF THE DAY Honaronline/Hassan Motahhari go on screen at the 47th Nyon International Doc- umentary Film Festival - Visions du Réel (Visions of Film depicting China’s Reality) - which will be held in the Swiss city from April 15 to 23. shadow over Hong Kong Produced by the Documentary and Exper- imental Film Center (DEFC), the film focuses on wins top Asian award shop-window mannequins made in a factory in Qaleh Hassan Khan, a town between Tehran and HONG KONG (Reuters) — A Hong Karaj. Kong film portraying a dystopian fu- About 200 movies from 49 countries will be ture under Chinese Communist Party screened at the festival. rule won one of Asia’s top film awards According to the organizers, the current edi- on Sunday at a time when Beijing’s tion plans to highlight works by the younger gen- attempts to rein in the city’s dem- eration of filmmakers. ocratic development have stoked growing political tensions. “Ten Years”, a feature-length film Iranian director to take comprising five short vignettes de- “Distorted Memories picting a dark vision of the city in of a Lake” to Croatian 2025 is a surprise hit. It strikes a pub- lic chord nearly 16 months after tens festival of thousands blocked roads across the city as part of an “Occupy Cen- CULTURE TEHRAN — The Iranian short desk tral” civil disobedience movement to film “Distorted Memories of a demand China’s leaders allow full de- Lake” will be screened at the 9th Smaragdni Eco mocracy in 2017. Film Festival, which will be held in Hrvatska Kosta- The low-budget, independent film jnica, Croatia from June 2 to 10. brushed off competition from com- Directed by Seyyed Vahid Hosseini-Nami, the mercial hits like martial arts flick “Ip film predicts the sad fate of planet Earth in 2027 Man 3”. when it will face its warmest year. “Ten Years exposed the fear of “Distorted Memories of a Lake” was produced Hong Kong people (towards China),” by the Iranian Young Cinema Society. said Chow Kwun-wai, one of the five directors who worked on it after win- ning best picture at the Hong Kong Members of director/writer Alireza Jafarimaram’s troupe perform the children’s play “Unlovely Wolves” at Tehran’s Niavaran Cultural Center Film Awards that recognizes film ex- on April 3, 2016. Chris Stapleton scores big cellence across Asia. at Country Music awards British actress Judi Dench picks up record eighth Olivier Award LAS VEGAS (Reuters) — Chris Stapleton, in his breakthrough year, took home more hardware at the Academy of Country LONDON (Reuters) — Veteran Dench told Reuters: “Who wants to laborated with playwright Harvey In her acceptance speech, Gough Music Awards on Sunday, winning Male Vocalist of the Year, Al- film, television and stage actress slow down? No, I want to be em- Fierstein on bringing the 2005 film lamented the lack of diversity bum of the Year with “Traveler” and Song of the Year with “No- Judi Dench picked up her eight ployed. It’s putting the car in the first to the Broadway stage before among nominees - an issue that body to Blame”. Olivier Award on Sunday, a record garage that. You will never get it London, also performed on the overshadowed February’s Oscars. Before success on his own, the bearded, Kentucky-born sing- tally at Britain’s biggest night for started.” night. “I love this industry so much and er wrote or co-wrote six number one hits for some of country’s theater. “Gypsy” picked up four prizes, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”, in- to be given an award is fantastic but biggest stars. His 2015 debut studio album “Traveler” also won a The 81-year-old scooped the Ol- the most awards for a single pro- spired by the blues singer, won best we have a responsibility,” she said Grammy Award earlier this year for Best Country Album. ivier for best actress in a supporting duction on the night, including revival while “Hangmen”, about the backstage. “Thank you everybody and thank you for being so kind to role for “The Winter’s Tale”. best musical revival and best ac- abolition of hanging in Britain in the Robert Icke picked up the best me,” he said after winning best male vocalist. “Ladies and gentlemen, I am ab- tress in a musical for Imelda Staun- 1960s, won best new play. director award for “Oresteia” while In other major awards, Jason Aldean won Entertainer of solutely livid as I had a bet with my ton, who opened the glitzy London Kenneth Cranham beat com- long-running musical “The Phan- the Year. Miranda Lambert won the Female Vocalist of the Year grandson, which I’ve now lost and ceremony in character as Momma petition from the likes of Benedict tom Of The Opera” won the audi- Award and took the stage to perform “Tush” with Keith Urban I’m never going to be allowed to Rose. Cumberbatch, Kenneth Branagh ence award - the sole prize voted and ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons. forget it,” Dench said in her accept- “Gypsy” also picked up awards and Mark Rylance to be named best for by the public. The Country Music awards show held in Las Vegas got off ance speech. for best actress in a supporting role actor for “The Father”, in which he “Nell Gwynn”, which stars Arter- to a raucous start with co-host Luke Bryan performing “Huntin’, “I know everybody says what in a musical for Lara Pulver and best portrays a man with dementia. ton, won best new comedy. Fishin’ And Lovin’ Every Day.” He was later joined on stage by a wonderful time they had doing lighting design. In a category including nominees The awards, celebrating their Blake Shelton, with whom he had co-hosted the awards since something, I can truly say this time “Kinky Boots” picked up three Nicole Kidman and Gemma Arter- 40th anniversary, wrapped up with 2013. that in ‘The Winter’s Tale’, it was an awards, including best new musi- ton, Denise Gough won best actress past winners performing “What I This year, Shelton was replaced by Dierks Bentley. When absolutely memorable time for me.” cal, best actor in a musical for Matt for “People, Places And Things”, a did For Love” from “A Chorus Line”, Bentley came on stage with Bryan, Shelton joined in and said: Asked backstage if she had any Henry and best costume design. rehab drama in which she plays an which won best new musical at the “Good luck tonight boys”. plans to slow her workload down, Pop singer Cyndi Lauper, who col- addict. 1976 ceremony.