States. high tensions between and the United already the up heated sanctions,it EU of was taking oil to Syria and it was violation 1, in Gibraltaronclaimsthat the tanker rines seizedIran’soilsupertanker, Grace their impact on the global economy. have been objecting the U.S. policies and impact on Iranian oil buyers that for long showing teeth haven’t and had the intended threats Washington’s with along or atsea.” 1 mustnotbeallowedoff-loadedinport heading to on the Adrian Darya oilsanctions.The illicit international breaking and globe, the destabilizing paign to stop Iran from funding terror, ed that“Allhandsondeckinthecam Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). thatithadlinkstoIran’spretext Islamic even issuedawarrantforitsseizureonthe had government U.S. the supertanker, prevent this from happening. Mike Pompeo who had done their best to tional Security Advisor John Bolton and Na U.S. like officials U.S. the to shock on Monday. agency news Tasnim told Rabiee tion,” ya) willberth. Idon’tknowitsdestina atwhichcoastit(AdrianDar determine ed now. doesn’t knowwherethetankerishead Adrian Darya, hasbeensoldandIran to name its changed now has which 1 spokesman, the cargo aboard the Grace termined bythebuyer. the vessel is heading to a destination de 2 million-barrel cargo has been sold and supertanker’s the that Iranannounced sanctions, Iranianoil tankerwouldface the with dealing anyone that warnings N oil buyers scare awayIranian and threatsnotto Washington’s plots president.ir When in early July, British Royal Ma- Earlier on Sunday, Bolton had tweet “The ownerofthepurchasedoilwould According to Ali Rabiee, a government But clearly all the campaign’s efforts thereleaseofIranian Soon after great a as came cargo oil the Selling No change in Iran-U.S. relations No changein Iran-U.S. relations Thestorybehind apiracy Gibraltar court, despitealltheU.S. Iranian supertankerGrace1bythe of release the after 10 days early 4 4 without removal ofsanctions Timesjournalist ARTICLE Ebrahim Fallahi countries permission fromother Iran needsnot Govt. launchesproject tobuild110,000 affordablehousingunits 3 WWW.TEHRANTIMES.COM ------Pages role tohelppreventfurtherescalationandtension, stability overthepastyears.” of Resolution 1701, which established calm and violation a and sovereignty Lebanon’s against tack on Lebanon as a “dangerous act, an attack on Tuesday, Hariri described therecentIsraeliat Lavrov Sergei Minister Foreign Russian sovereignty. Russia against further violations of Lebanon’s try, delivering a warning to the regime through “dangerous” drone incursion into the Arab coun al-Hariri has strongly condemned Israel’s recent Saad Minister Prime —LebaneseTEHRAN capacity,” director general for safeguards at the in ashortperiodoftimeitsuraniumenrichment the JCPOA.” maintain to best their do certainly will partners of Democracies, alsobelievesthat“European and non-proliferationatFoundationforDefense of Iran.” limitedandwillnotmeettherequirementsbest the economic benefits foreseen in INSTEX are at Tehran Times that “It appears at this stage that tional Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), tells the director general for safeguards at the Interna TEHRAN — OlliHeinonen,theformerdeputy EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW By Javad Heirannia ISNA/ Peyman Shahsanaei Price40,000Rials Economic benefits foreseen in INSTEX will not meet notrequirements benefits meet Economic will foreseen inINSTEX of Iran: Heinonen He added that Lebanon is counting on Russia’s “Iran is technically in good position to ramp-up Speaking in a telephone conversation with conversation telephone a in Speaking Heinonen, nowasenioradvisoronscience 1.00EURO Hariri delivers warning to Israel through Russia Macron’s deceit back atTrump’s bullying, Iranian youthwill hit 4.00AED - - - 39thyear the need for respecting international law and law international respecting for need the carried by the Russian Foreign Ministry. tegrity and stability of Lebanon,” in a statement to the sovereignty, independence, territorial in Hariri’s office read. with unpredictableresults,” astatementfrom to seriously escalate the situation in the region, the issuance of Resolution 1701, and threatens stable situationthatprevailedonthebordersince a civilian populatedareastrikesablowtothe it must stop violating Lebanon’s sovereignty.” as well as to “send clear messages to Israel that required by the JCPOA, no major changes have important calandriahasbeendestroyedas enrich uranium to various levels. Though the for installation. These can be configured to and requiredelectroniccontrolsystemsready and necessaryfeedwithdrawalsystems, centrifuges of various types, cascade piping gas thousand ten over are There capacity. short periodoftimeitsuraniumenrichment technically in good position to ramp-up in a action topreventthis? JCPOA. Will Europe takes effective and convincing a third step to reduce its obligations under the Heinonen: totheTehranTimes. IAEA tells The statement added the Russia emphasized Moscow, in return, “reaffirmed its commitment A: First, we need to recognize that Iran is “Hariri stressed that Israel’s attack against attack Israel’s that stressed “Hariri with interview the of text the is Following

Iran hasannouncedthatitwillimplement 3 No.13472

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AUGUST Women West AsiaChampionship Iran makehistory at 28,2019 - government wants to prevent any escalations, any prevent to wants government ments under JCPOA? commit- Iran’s reducing to and Russia community. which requiresthesupportofinternational whole region,” a statement by Hariri’s office said. the and Lebanon on repercussions dangerous Lebanon. not to initiate any action of aggression against Israel pressure to Council Security Nations summer of2006. the aggression Israel launched against Lebanon in 1701, the economic benefits Iran is seeking. a say,buttheyarenotlikelytobeableprovide members of the UN Security Council, they have and willnotmeettherequirementsofIran. benefits foreseen in INSTEX are at best limited form. It appears at this stage that the economic value and credibility of the JCPOA in its current obligations by Iran will raise questions about the of reduction any but JCPOA, the maintain to domestic workshops. to manufacturenecessarycomponentsin drawings design existing the use can one yet beendonetothereactorcore. Therefore, ntd ain Scrt Cucl Resolution Council Security Nations United See page2 See According to Press TV, Hariri said that the that said Hariri TV, Press to According “If Israel’s aggressions escalate, this will have On Monday, Hariri called upon the United European partnerswillcertainlydotheirbest A: As parties to the JCPOA and permanent love fromhermother andfamily. and appreciation of lack the valuedespite own her prove to tries She 1930s. the in world in Europe during the Great Depression adult confusing the comprehend to tries extraordinary and creative little girl, who name,an same isabout ca’s novelofthe prominent Latvian writer Vizma Belsevi- Iranian of on Monday. Festival for Children and Youth in the central ofthe32ndcompetition InternationalFilm Latvia was named best film in the official — TEHRAN By Samaneh Aboutalebi By Samaneh

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10 4 ------I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y POLITICS AUGUST 28, 2019

There will be no bilateral No change in Iran-U.S. relations talks with U.S.: Zarif POLITICAL TEHRAN — Iranian Foreign Minister Mo- without removal of sanctions: Rouhani deskhammad Javad Zarif said on Tuesday that POLITICAL TEHRAN — Iranian Pres- because of your frowning and remarks, it’s there will be no bilateral talks with U.S. deskident Hassan Rouhani said because of our beliefs, morality and fatwa “In my visit to , I announced that there will be no meeting on Tuesday that there will be no change in issued by Leader of the Islamic Revolution between the Iranian and U.S. presidents as long as the United Iran-U.S. relations without removal of all [Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei],” he said. States return to the 5+1 group and implement the JCPOA [the sanctions and change of the wrong path that French President Emmanuel Macron said 2015 nuclear deal]. There will be no bilateral talks even then,” Washington have taken. on Monday that preparations were under he told reporters in Beijing before departing to Tokyo. “If someone just seeks to take photo with way for a meeting between Rouhani and U.S. He added, “The Trump administration has violated agreements Hassan Rouhani, it is not possible unless they President Donald Trump. that were signed after long talks. What is essential is implemen- remove all the cruel sanctions and respect the “What I hope is that in coming weeks, tation of the agreements that were reached in the past. We have Iranian people’s rights,” he said in a speech based on these talks, we can manage to see seen no action by the United States in this respect.” aired live on state television. a summit between President Rouhani and French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that He noted that Iran has continued talks President Trump,” Aljazeera quoted him preparations were under way for a meeting between Rouhani with remaining parties to the 2015 nuclear as saying. and U.S. President Donald Trump. deal, known as the JCPOA. ‘Principles of foreign policy have Zarif made a surprise visit to Biarritz, France, where the G7 He added, “Our path is clear. We will return not changed’ leaders were meeting on Monday. if they return to their commitments. We seek Rouhani also said that principles of Iran’s The visit came only hours after sources said French President to settle issues and solve problems through foreign policy have not been changed and the Immanuel Macron had been given mission by his G7 counterparts logical ways.” country seeks “constructive” and “compre- to engage in talks with Iran. “Change of our behavior towards those hensive” interaction with the world. He said that in his visit to Biarritz, France, he held meetings who have imposed sanctions on the Islamic He added that Iran has never sought ten- and discussed how to preserve the JCPOA. Republic of Iran and launched economic sion and welcomes cooperation. “In the past years, Iran has met its commitments under the terrorism will start when they repent. They “We are ready to move within the frame- JCPOA. After the U.S. withdrawal from the deal and the Europeans’ should return to their commitments and work of international law and national in- inaction, Iran decided to take actions based on paragraph 36 of change the wrong path they have taken. terests and security. We have chosen a path the deal. Now, we are holding talks to return to previous situa- They should serve the interests of the world named empowering Iran,” he added. tion and to see how Europe can fulfil its commitments,” he said. and the international security. They should He also said, “Washington has the key to with the regional countries.” He added, “Wherever negotiation and Trump abandoned the nuclear deal in May 2018 and returned recognize the Iranians’ rights and respect positive developments in relations between Elsewhere, Rouhani said that Iran has defense are needed, we will do it. We stand the previous sanctions and imposed new ones. the revolution and the Islamic system,” the two countries, to have security in the never sought to build weapons of mass killing. against bullying. Our final goal is Iran’s So far, Iran has taken two steps in reducing its nuclear commit- he said. region and to be able to have better relations “This policy of ours has not been adopted greatness.” ments: increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium beyond the 300 kilograms allowed under the JCPOA and enriching nuclear fuel to the purity level of 4.5 percent as the Europeans missed a 60-day deadline to devise a concrete mechanism to protect the Iran to take 3rd nuclear step on September 6: FM country from the U.S. sanctions. POLITICAL TEHRAN — Iran’s foreign minister has Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, U.S., Britain, Under the agreement, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium desksaid the country will begin suspending more France, and ) on July 14, 2015, reached a conclusion to 3.67 percent. of its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal between over the text of the JCPOA. Rouhani said on August 14 that Tehran will start the next step Tehran and world powers on September 6. The accord took effect in January 2016 and was supposed of reducing nuclear obligations after the second 60-day deadline. “The third phase (of limiting our nuclear undertakings) to terminate all nuclear-related sanctions against Iran all The third step can include installation of more centrifuges, will start on September 6,” Mohammad Javad Zarif said at once, but its implementation was hampered by the U.S. especially advanced ones. in an interview with the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper policies and its eventual withdrawal from the deal. Rouhani has described Iran’s moves in reducing nuclear published on Tuesday. Zarif went on to say that the EU has promised to under- commitments step by step as a “wise” decision. The first phase started on May 8 and the second phase on take 11 commitments under the deal, including investment, Officials in Tehran have insisted if the remaining parties to the July 7. Tehran has rowed back on its nuclear commitments civilian airplanes, transportation, and the return of European JCPOA compensate sanctions effects Iran will reverse its decision. twice in compliance with articles 26 and 36 of the 2015 deal, countries to Iran. Zarif said on August 21 that if the Europeans fully honor their known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). “We are not asking for any of these as preconditions for the commitments to the nuclear deal, Iran will immediately reverse He added that Iran would reconsider its upcoming decision full implementation of our commitments. We only want to its decision in scaling down its obligations. if it reaches an agreement with Europe and the European sell our oil and receive the money. We have suffered hundreds “Even if the United States does not return to the nuclear deal, side starts implementing it. of billions damage. Our economy is suffering. Our currency Iran will return to the first stage in several hours… on the condition According to a Persian translation of the interview has lost 75 percent of its value. Europe has limited itself to that the European side fully implements its obligations,” Zarif published by Tasnim, Zarif noted that the JCPOA is based only making an announcement that it supports the JCPOA. said in a speech at the Stockholm International Peace Research on two principals. “One of them requires Iran to ensure But here people are losing their jobs and their incomes.” Institute (SIPRI). that its nuclear program follows peaceful objectives exclu- On May 8, 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump pulled sively. The other requires the international community, The EU has promised to his country out of the nuclear accord. the other parties [to the deal] in particular, to guarantee undertake 11 commitments…. Following the U.S. withdrawal, Iran and the remaining that Iran’s economic relations with the rest of the world parties launched talks to save the deal. Iran jails 3 on espionage, is normalized.” We are not asking for any However, the EU’s failure to ensure Iran’s economic cultural infiltration charges “Iran has upheld its commitments and the International of these as preconditions interests forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commit- Atomic Energy Agency has ratified this issue 15 times, five for the full implementation ments, including an unlimited rise in the stockpile of en- POLITICAL TEHRAN — Iran has jailed two people, one on times of which are related to the time after the U.S. quit the of our commitments. We riched uranium. deskespionage charges and the other on charges of JCPOA. But Iran’s economic relations with the world have Spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of working to culturally infiltrate the country and influence people not been normalized. In fact these relations today are much only want to sell our oil and Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi said recently that the against the establishment. worse that they were before the nuclear deal, which means receive the money. country’s enriched uranium stockpile has reached 360 The first one is British dual national, who is sentenced to 10 that the opposite party has failed to implement the deal.” to 370 kilograms. years in prison for spying for Israel, and another two years for receiving illegal payments, the judiciary said on Tuesday. Anousheh Ashouri, a woman with British and Iranian citi- Moscow eyeing further expansion of Israel’s aerial attacks in region proxy zenship, got 10 years in prison for feeding information to Israel’s Mossad spy agency, the Mizan Online website reported, quoting ties with Tehran war against Iran: Analyst judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili on Tuesday. (FNA) — Russian Ambassador to Tehran (Press TV) — A political commentator She was also handed a two-year prison sentence for receiving Levan Dzhagaryan voiced hope that the tells Press TV that Israel has been waging 33,000 euros ($36,600) in illicit funds from Israel and ordered frequent exchange of delegations between a “proxy war” against Iran by escalating to pay the same amount in fines. his country and Iran will result in more its aerial attacks against regional coun- The United Kingdom’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) agreements and further developments of tries, describing the assaults as an election said it was supporting the family of Ashouri following the ruling. Tehran-Moscow ties. stunt by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Our Embassy in Tehran continues to request consular access,” During his Monday meeting with Chair- Netanyahu to win more votes. an FCO spokesman said in a statement. man of the Iranian Parliament’s National “Benjamin Netanyahu is very keen Ali Johari, an Iranian national, was also sentenced to 10 years Security and Foreign Policy Commission to show that he is the leader who can in prison for various espionage offences, including “widespread Mojtaba Zonnour, Dzhagaryan noted that a stand up to Iran, which is how he is de- connections with Mossad... and meeting with various elements number of delegations have been exchanged fining the narrative within those Israeli linked to the Zionists”, Esmaili said, the agency reported. between the two countries and expressed He also expressed satisfaction with the elections,” Jonathan Fryer, author and claiming that they are under attacks Johari had been in contact with operatives in , Laos hope that the two sides would reach final level of political and parliamentary relations broadcaster, told Press TV’s The Debate by Iran,” he said. and Sri Lanka, among other countries, and also travelled to “the agreement and witness the expansion of between Iran and Russia. program on Monday. He added that “Israel, the United occupied lands [Israel]”, the judiciary added. economic ties between Moscow and Tehran. On Sunday, Dzhagaryan said that his “He is, of course, pointing the finger at States and to some extent Saudi Arabia He had been in the process of “getting citizenship from this He further expressed hope the two states country and Iran will link their domestic Tehran, accusing Iran of using so-called and [Persian] Gulf states, particularly the country”, said Esmaili, in an apparent reference to Israel. would deepen mutual cooperation. banking networks in the near future. proxies in different countries, including United Arab ” are “steering the Johari also received two years in jail for accepting illicit funds Referring to the meeting and talks be- In a meeting with Managing Director of Syria and Iraq, and now of course by the situation” in the Middle East.The analyst and was ordered to pay that unspecified amount in fines, said tween parliamentary officials of the two Iran’s International Exhibitions Company attacks on Hezbollah directly in Lebanon further lauded Iran for making diplomatic Esmaili. countries, the top diplomat highlighted (IIEC) Bahman Hosseinzadeh in Tehran, and … Palestinians, widening that front, efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region. The Judiciary spokesman also confirmed that an Iranian ap- that the dialogues between the officials Dzhagaryan reassured that the banking I think a lot of it actually is for his own Israel has a history of targeting an- peals court had upheld a 10-year jail sentence to British Council and MPs of the two at different networks of the two countries will get domestic audience,” he added. ti-Daesh forces in the region, but it has employee Amiri for “cultural infiltration”, adding the latter levels indicate the higher level of friendly connected in a near future, adding that He said that “the Israelis are keen to try to sharply stepped up its acts of aggression was “already serving her term”. ties and significance of deepening of re- financial transactions between Iran and persuade the Americans that Israel is under simultaneously on Syria, Iraq and Lebanon “This person... was identified by us because of her cultural lations between the Islamic Republic of Russia will become much easier since then. the threat from Iran even if …there have never over the past weeks. infiltration in society through arts and her widespread activi- Iran and Russia. Late in June, Governor of the Central been a direct attack on Israel from Iran.” The regime claimed earlier this week ties,” he added. Russian ambassador reiterated that at Bank of Iran (CBI) Abdolnasser Hemmati The political commentator said that that it had launched strikes on an Iranian London-based Amiri was arrested in Iran in 2018. the parliamentary level the two sides witness stressed his country›s interest in expanding the Israeli premier “is playing gamble. site in Syria. That claim was rejected by Mizan Online reported her original sentence on May 13, say- the good relations between the Speakers mutual trade cooperation with Russia and He… needs to portray himself as the both Damascus and Lebanon’s Hezbollah ing she had “made a straightforward confession” after being of the Parliaments, heads of specialized selling its oil with the help of the Northern strongman leader and if you get rid of resistance movement, which is — along arrested by Iranian intelligence and security agencies “more commissions and Iran-Russia Parliamen- neighbor. that man then Israel’s security will not with Iran and Russia — assisting the than a year ago”. tary Friendship Groups. “Russia, in parallel with the Europeans, be guaranteed.” Syrian army in its counter-terrorism At the time, Esmaili said she had been tasked with drawing Expressing dissatisfaction over the has presented a proposal for trade cooper- “It is a high strategy of course because operations. Hezbollah said two of its up and managing cultural “infiltration” projects. current level of trade and economic ties ation with Iran and we are also interested it is alienating not only the Arab countries fighters had been killed in that missile Iranian authorities shut down the British Council more than between two countries, Dzhagaryan said in trade ties with them because Russia can in the region…but also some European strike near Damascus. a decade ago for what Esmaili described as “illegal activities”. that there are relevant agreements between supply many of our needs by purchasing countries as well. Because this Israeli ad- The regime also sent two explo- The developments came amid heightened tensions between two counties, but the level of economic oil from us,” Hemmati said in an interview venturism with drones is being watched sives-laden drones into Lebanon on what Iran and the UK, a major ally of the United States, with the pair ties is not proportionate to the existing with the state TV on June 23. with considerable concerns in some Eu- Hezbollah has described as a “bombing” recently embroiled in a bitter spat over the seizure of two oil capacities. Early in July, Russian Permanent Rep- ropean capitals,” Fryer added. mission this. One of the drone, hit a tankers. “We have provided various facilities resentative to the European Union Vladimir He further said that the recent wave of Hezbollah media facility in a southern An Iranian tanker was seized off the British overseas territory of to Iranian businessmen and there have Chizhov stated that Moscow will ignore air raids on positions of pro-government Beirut neighborhood, while the other, Gibraltar on July 4 on suspicion of allegedly shipping oil to Syria. been many exchanges between busi- Washington’s sanctions against Iran and Iraqi forces, which are said to be linked which appeared to have been sent by That vessel was later released, but Iran continues to hold nessmen and private sectors of the two continue to trade with the Middle East- to the Israeli regime and the U.S., could Israel to search for the first one, went a British-flagged tanker it seized in the Strait of Hormuz on countries which we hope will reach a final ern nation without creating any special remove U.S. forces from Iraq. down in an empty plot nearby after being July 19 for allegedly breaking “international maritime rules”. agreement and we will see the level of mechanisms. Michael Springmann, former American detonated in the air. Tensions had already been strained between the two sides economic relations between Russia and “Our colleagues here [in Brussels] diplomat, joining the show, also said the The assault drew a stern warning from over the fate of the British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Iran improved,” he added. sometimes ask why Russia and China do recent wave of Israeli raids in the region Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Has- who was arrested by Iranian authorities in 2016 as she was Zonnour, for his part, stressed the impor- not create their own INSTEX [Instrument was kind of Israeli proxy war against Iran. san Nasrallah besides Lebanese leaders. leaving Tehran. tance of strengthening the Iranian-Russian in Support of Trade Exchanges]. To that “The Israelis…have been pushing Meanwhile, Tel Aviv is widely reported Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a 41-year-old Thomson Reuters Foun- parliamentary cooperation and announced we answer with the question: why do we this war by proxy against Iran for years. to have been behind positions of Iraq’s dation employee, was later put on trial and is now serving Iran’s parliament readiness to expand the need it? We have already traded and will These attacks are nothing new. They anti-Daesh Popular Mobilization Units a five-year jail sentence for “trying to topple” the Iranian level of friendly ties in interaction with trade without paying any attention to U.S. have been using Lebanese airspace (PMU), prompting condemnations from government. the MPs. sanctions,” Chizhov told Sputnik. to fire rockets and bombs into Syria, senior Iraqi authorities. TECHNOLOGY

I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 IRAN IN FOCUS 3 Lawmakers pushing to ban Zarif meets Japanese FM

POLITICAL TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Minister Mo- dialogue with U.S.: MP desk hammad Javad Zarif met on Tuesday with POLITICAL TEHRAN – Iranian talks will take place as long as the Americans Taro Kono, the Japanese foreign minister, in Yokohama, . desk lawmakers are signing a have not returned to the JCPOA.” The officials discussed relations, latest developments in im- statement that denounces and bans any kind “Also those mediators who sometimes plementing the 2015 nuclear deal and also situation in the Middle of talks with the United States, according to deliver messages – they have been told East and Persian Gulf region. MP Ahmad Alirezabeigi. that first the sanctions must be lifted, our Alirezabeigi said on Tuesday that the state- money transfer facilitated, and the rest ment is a reaction to remarks by President of our conditions met. There is nothing Hassan Rouhani regarding negotiations, wrong with negotiations if it’s done from Mehr reported. the position of power, wisdom and national According to the statement, the MP interest.” said, holding talks with the U.S., under President Hassan Rouhani said on Tues- the current circumstances and given the day that the United States should lift all U.S. pullout from the nuclear deal, would its cruel sanctions against Iran and begin be detrimental to the interests of the Ira- respecting the nation’s rights as a “first nian nation and thus is condemned and step” towards dialogue. prohibited. He stressed that the Islamic Republic Tensions started to build up between will not engage in any negotiations for the the U.S. and Iran after U.S. President Don- mere sake of photo ops. ald Trump withdrew Washington from the “We seek to resolve issues and problems According to The Mainichi, Zarif underscored the need to 2015 deal, officially known as the Joint in a rational way but we are not after photo engage in bilateral and regional consultations, saying that Iran Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in ops. For anyone wanting to take a picture and Japan “both have a special interest in the security of the en- May 2018, and imposed sanctions against with Hassan Rouhani, this is not possible” ergy market as well as security and stability in the Persian Gulf.” Tehran in a bid to put maximum pressure unless that party chooses to set aside all Kono said, “We are worried about tensions in the Middle East, on the Islamic Republic. the oppressive sanctions and respect the and we hope to make some diplomatic efforts to ease tensions.” The Trump administration has also made Iranian nation’s rights, the president said. Zarif was in Beijing on Monday and met with Wang Yi, the empty calls for talks, but the Islamic Republic Rouhani made the remarks a day af- Chinese foreign minister, and discussed relations and interna- maintains that as long as the sanctions are ter French President Emmanuel Macron tional developments. are behaving as if President Rouhani is going in place and the U.S. refuses to return to the that no talks will take place as long as the expressed hopes for a meeting between During the meeting, Zarif called for more cooperation between to hold talks with Trump today,” Kavakebian JCPOA, negotiations will be meaningless. U.S. refuses to return to the JCPOA and “our the Iranian president and his American the two countries. said, according to Mehr. Addressing Tuesday’s session of the par- money transfer has not been facilitated.” counterpart Donald Trump in the next “Iran and China can cooperate in various areas of science, “This is not true. Our condition is that no liament, MP Mostafa Kavakebian reiterated “Some of our colleagues in the parliament few weeks. technology, economy and also security,” he said. Wang for his part attached importance to expansion of rela- tions and cooperation. Iran not needing permission from other countries: minister He described the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA, as important achievement of diplomacy and symbol of multilateralism. POLITICAL TEHRAN – Iran does not need permission On May 8, 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew desk He rejected unilateralism and noted that China is determined from other countries in order to make deci- the United States from the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the to preserve the JCPOA. sions, Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi said on Tuesday. JCPOA, despite the objection of its European allies. Zarif plans to visit Malaysia on Wednesday. “Certain countries have more military equipment and fa- Europe, which is expected to protect Iran’s interests under cilities than Iran, but they do not have the status of the Islamic the JCPOA, has failed to do so because of U.S. pressures. Iran in terms of deterrence and independence,” Alavi said, Tehran argues that Europe has done nothing to salvage the Mehr reported. JCPOA because they lack the willpower do to so and they do not “They cannot make decisions without a permission from want to pay the price of confronting the U.S. to save the deal. Iranian youth will hit back at the U.S.,” he added. Trump has undermined the independence and dignity of Alavi said a country’s dignity is not limited to its defense other U.S. allies as well. Trump’s bullying, Macron’s power, but it is the independence and morale of that nation For instance, he said last year that Saudi Arabia and its king deceit: ex-nuclear negotiator that brings dignity and political will to that country. would not last “for two weeks” without U.S. military support. He also said many of the European countries do not have “We protect Saudi Arabia. Would you say they’re rich? And POLITICAL TEHRAN – Former chief nuclear negotiator independence of will and cannot make decisions themselves I love the king, King Salman. But I said ‘King – we’re protecting deskSaeed Jalili says Donald Trump’s bullying and and need to be in coordination with the U.S. before making you – you might not be there for two weeks without us – you Emanuel Macron’s deception will be responded to by the Iranian decisions. have to pay for your military,’” Trump said. youth’s national faith. Jalili made the remarks while referring to the unveiling of the domestically-built missile defense system, dubbed “Bavar-373” (faith), ISNA reported on Tuesday. Not all problems to be solved through diplomacy: ex-envoy “The only response to this maximum pressure of Trump POLITICAL TEHRAN – Former Irani- demands under Barjam (nuclear deal) are met.” pose vehicle aimed at facilitating legitimate and small gestures of Macron is the great faith of the Irani- deskan Ambassador to Norway U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned trade between Europe and Iran. an nation and the efforts of this land’s children and nothing Alireza Farajirad says no all of the country’s the nuclear deal, also referred to as the Joint The European Union announced on June else,” he said. problems will be resolved through diplomacy. Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in 28 that INSTEX has gone into effect. The comments came after President Macron said that G7 “Because of our current circumstances, May 2018 and returned the previous sanctions “The Iranian side has announced that if leaders had agreed to a joint action on Iran with the aim of there’s this need to increase interactions with and imposed new ones. INSTEX does not work and the performance of defusing tensions and opening a new negotiation with Tehran. other countries, including the small European So far, Iran has taken two steps in reduc- the European sides to Barjam does not satisfy “We agreed on what we wanted to say jointly on Iran,” Reu- countries,” Farajirad said, Mehr reported on ing its nuclear commitments: increasing its Iran, we will take the third step” in reducing ters quoted Macron as saying on Sunday. “There is a message Tuesday. stockpile of enriched uranium beyond the commitments to the deal, Farajirad said. from the G7 on our objectives and the fact that we share them “Of course we must bear in mind that with 300 kilograms allowed under the JCPOA In an interview published on Sunday, the is important, which avoids divisions that in the end weaken increasing activities in the field of diplomacy, and enriching nuclear fuel to the purity level former ambassador said the implementa- everybody.” no all of our problems will be resolved,” he said. of 4.5 percent. tion of INSTEX is under U.S. pressure. “So The former envoy also pointed out that Euro- Under the agreement, Iran was allowed the more the European countries invest on pean countries have taken positive steps in the to enrich uranium to 3.67 percent. INSTEX, the more difficult for the U.S. to aftermath of Iran’s reduction of its commitments Farajirad said it is still early to judge the Pointing to Europe’s trade mechanism, sanction countries.” to the 2015 nuclear agreement. performance of the European side, adding, “We Farajirad said INSTEX is being implemented. He also said talks with the European coun- “This matter has created hopes about the know that taking positive steps by Europe does INSTEX – the Instrument in Support of tries to preserve the JCPOA are proceeding future,” he stated. not guarantee that Iran’s rightful requests and Trade Exchanges - is a European special pur- positively. U.S. military presence brings nothing but insecurity to Persian Gulf: Iranian experts TEHRAN (Press TV) – Iranian experts say the U.S. military an important element for security in the region. I think the buildup has brought nothing but instability and insecurity problem is that these Arab countries suffer lack of political to the Persian Gulf region, supporting Tehran’s initiative wisdom badly. Is it really hard to see that the U.S. has brought for collective regional cooperation as the sole way to ensure tensions, war and insecurity in Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan “Everyone wants to avoid a conflict, Donald Trump was safety in the strategic waters. and anywhere it has set foot so far? You don’t have to be a extremely clear on that point.” Hossein Kanani Moghadam, secretary of the Interna- genius to understand that the security of your neighbors Earlier, a French official said the French president had shared tional anti-Zionism Association, told Press TV’s Iran Today bring security for you,” he added. details of the plan to ease tensions with Iran during his working program that foreign intervention does not contribute to ‘Israel cannot join PG coalition’ lunch with President Donald Trump at the G-7 summit. regional security. Meanwhile, Eurasia expert Bahram Amirahmadian cast The official, who was speaking anonymously in accordance “Cooperation between neighboring countries always helps doubt on Israel’s ability to join a U.S.-led naval mission with the French presidency’s customary practices, said France increase security. The presence of foreign forces does not purportedly aimed at protecting shipping lanes in the Per- has been working for several weeks on the plan, the Associated help much in this regard. It is not hidden to anyone that sian Gulf. Press reported on Saturday. these foreign countries send forces only because they want “Israel is not even capable of properly managing the lands The diplomat said France and the United States share the same to gain some benefits and take the control of the natural it has occupied such as the Golan Heights, the West Bank interests, which he claimed to be preventing “a nuclear-armed Iran.” resources there,” he said. or Gaza. Now, how can Israel — while being surrounded by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday He also supported Iran’s call for regional countries to countries which are either allied or friends with Iran — join met with Macron in Paris to discuss the implementation of the jointly work to maintain security in the Persian Gulf. the U.S.’s coalition in the Persian Gulf? Hezbollah has several nuclear deal, which is also known as the JCPOA. “Iran has repeatedly suggested that the Arab states of times proved that Israel is too fragile and weak,” he said. “France presented some suggestions to Iran on how to im- the Persian Gulf should join hands and shoulder responsi- Amirahmadian also stressed Iran’s right to stop Israel plement the JCPOA and the steps that both sides need to take. bility for the security of the Persian Gulf and do not allow in the Strait of Hormuz. We also presented some suggestions on how to fully implement foreigners take over. Unfortunately, however, they have let “According to the international convention on maritime the JCPOA,” Zarif stated. countries like the U.S. to build military bases all over their law, which identifies the right of the ships to pass the Strait Trump has adopted a maximum pressure policy against Iran lands and use their air space under the pretext of security, of Hormuz safely, Iran can any time claim that ‘Israel is our since he walked away from the JCPOA. The policy includes sanc- which have brought nothing but tensions and insecurity in enemy and intends to use the Strait of Hormuz to attack their soil. tions on Iran’s economy, especially its oil exports, and bans on the region,” Kanani Moghadam said. us.’ Iran is allowed to stop Israel based on this claim,” he “In addition, they (the Americans) want to take control of top Iranian figures and organizations. He further emphasized that the U.S. — which has already said. “As a result, Israel can in no way join this so called the huge oil reserves in these countries and this way control suffered defeats in its plots for Syria and Iraq — is currently coalition or enter the Persian Gulf. At best, it can only give the oil price and oil market according to their will. This is not after military occupation of other countries but rather information aid.” while the Americans have decided to reduce their presence wants obedient self-proclaimed governments. The United States has been trying to persuade its allies in this region and instead put the UK and some other EU IRGC member assassinated “Since the Munich Security Conference in 2002, the U.S.’s into joining an international coalition with the declared countries in charge of the affairs on their behalf,” he said. in northwestern Iran strategy has been to pursue hybrid warfare. In such warfare, aim of providing “security” for merchant shipping in the U.S. anti-Iran threats ‘bogus’ the war is not limited to the military forces anymore and Strait of Hormuz — through which about a fifth of all oil International affairs analyst Abdollah Moradi pointed POLITICAL TEHRAN – A member of the Islamic Revolution other types of wars come to help defeat the enemy such consumed globally passes —and other strategic Middle out that the U.S.’s military threats against Iran are “bogus” deskGuards Corps (IRGC) has been assassinated as information war, economic war, political war, attempts Eastern shipping lanes. as Tehran is capable enough to confront Washington. in the town of Piranshahr in West , a local to provoke the protesters against a government, attempts Washington has accused Iran of having a role in a series Since escalating its sanctions, he added, the U.S. has official announced on Tuesday. to create terrorist groups, and the list goes on. The U.S. of attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and the been threatening Iran with military action in an attempt Ali Torabi, Piranshahr’s governor, said that IRGC member government seems to have lost interest in military inter- Sea of Oman, a claim Tehran has strongly rejected. Tehran to harm its economy. was shot dead in Esteqlal (Independence) avenue in the Kurdish vention,” he said. has warned that such sabotage operations may be part of a “Ill-thought moves such as putting Iran’s IRGC (Islamic town near the Iraqi border, according to Fars. ‘Arab states should trust Iran, not U.S.’ general ploy to target Iran amid increasing regional tensions. Revolution Guards Coprs) on the list of ‘terrorist groups’ In July three IRGC servicemen were killed in an ambush on International relations expert Diako Hosseini, in turn, ‘U.S. spreads Iranophobia to sell Arabs more and sending warships to the Persian Gulf were to make the outskirts of Piranshahr, Mehr news agency reported at the said that regional countries should realize that they cannot arms’ their threats more believable. But when Iran shot down time. More clashes have taken place in other areas of West Azer- trust the West, especially the U.S., for their own security. Iranian lawmaker Mohammad J. Jamali also said the their drone, the Americans came to the understanding that baijan province. “The Arab states to the south of the Persian Gulf need U.S. is spreading Iranophobia in a bid to sell more weapons we (Iranians) have both the capability and the courage to In early August another two IRGC servicemen were killed in to raise awareness of the fact that Iran is not a threat but and get Arab states’ permission to build military bases on confront the U.S. militarily,” he said. the Maku region close to the Turkish border. I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 4 ECONOMY AUGUST 28, 2019 Govt. launches project to build STOCK MARKET TEDPIX 278469.7 IFX 3704.23 110,000 affordable housing units Sources: tse.ir, Ifb.ir ECONOMY TEHRAN – Iranian “new towns” such as and , deskPresident Hassan Rou- respectively located in the west and east of hani officially launched the government’s the city. National Action Plan for Construction and According to Iran’s Minister for Transport CURRENCIES Supply of Housing on Tuesday, inaugurating and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami, USD 42,000 rials a project for constructing 110,000 affordable the government is hoping to complete the housing units. new units by April 2021. EUR 46,631 rials Speaking in the inauguration ceremony While the ministry will provide the land GBP 51,294 rials which was held in Tehran, Rouhani also issued for the new developments, it will only su- directives for the start of construction oper- pervise construction, enlisting private sector AED 11,437 rials ations in several other including construction firms who will bid for contracts Khorasan Razavi, South Khorasan, Isfahan, that entitle them to receive state loans and Source: cbi.ir Hormozgan and Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari. subsidized building materials. The National Action Plan for Construction As reported, the government’s investment and Supply of Housing aims to construct in construction will help create new jobs 400,000 small and medium-size apartments across the country and is expected to boost COMMODITIES (70-100 square meters in size) across the wages among laborers. Brent $58.73/b country and particularly in Tehran, where Providing housing to low-income families housing prices have risen most sharply. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (1stL) and Minister of Transport and Urban De- could also help alleviate economic hardship, WTI $54.23/b Of the total number of homes, about half velopment Mohammad Eslami (2ndL) attended the opening ceremony of the National especially if government’s assistance can help OPEC Basket $59.67/b will be constructed in Tehran’s suburban Action Plan for Construction and Supply of Housing in Tehran on Tuesday. inflation-hit renters become homeowners. Gold $1,532.45/oz Silver $11.78/oz Over 2,600 agricultural projects to be inaugurated this week Platinium $863.45/oz 1 The projects covered a variety of areas including According to Deputy Agriculture Minister Abbas Keshavarz, Sources: oilprice.com, Moneymetals.com water and soil subdivisions, livestock and poultry as well the country’s self-sufficiency rate in wheat production has as gardening and crop production projects. increased from 65 percent in the Iranian calendar year of 1392 According to the ministry’s report, nearly 19,000 projects (March 2013-March 2014) to 105 percent in the past year. have been inaugurated in various areas of the country’s ag- In the past forty years, since the Islamic Revolution, Iran 34 industrial units ricultural sector since August 2017 up to date. has witnessed a remarkable improvement in various sectors Last week, the Agriculture Ministry published a report and the agriculture industry has been one of the areas in inaugurated in Tehran on development of the country’s agricultural sectors in the which the country has undergone huge development. Province past six years. Revolutionizing the agriculture industry through imple- Based on the released data, Iran’s total agriculture pro- menting billions of dollars’ worth of development, research ECONOMY TEHRAN – On the occasion of the Government duction in various sectors including horticulture, livestock, and educational projects across the country has been one of deskWeek (August 24-30), 34 industrial units were poultry and aquaculture reached 122 million tons in the the main reasons for the significant improvements in this inaugurated in different areas of on Tuesday, past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20, 2019), a sector in recent years. IRNA reported. 3.3 percent rise compared to the figure for March 2013. The recent heavy rainfalls across the country have also The units were inaugurated by President Hassan Rouhani As reported by IRNA, the country’s total agricultural created a good condition for the country’s agricultural sectors Hojjati said the country is expected to experience a signif- through video conference in a ceremony participated by Industry production stood at 97 million tons in the Iranian calendar to witness a rise in production. icant increase in agricultural production due to sufficient Minister Reza Rahmani. year of 1392 (started in March 2013). Earlier in June, Iranian Agriculture Minister Mahmoud rainfalls this year (March 2019-March 2020). The minister said that these units create jobs or 1,500 people. Tehran, Yerevan stress expansion of banking ties Iran to hold pavilion at 2 intl. ECONOMY TEHRAN – In a meeting official noted that the president has positive deskin Yerevan on Tuesday, Ira- attitude toward Iran and has called for increas- exhibitions in Uzbekistan nian Ambassador to Kazem Sajjadi and ing mutual trade between the two countries. Governor of Central Bank of Armenia Arthur Iran and Armenia have been taking all ECONOMY TEHRAN – Iran’s Trade Promotion Organiza- Javadyan stressed the need for expansion of necessary measures to boost the level of their desktion (TPO) is planning to open Iranian pavilion banking ties between the two countries, IRNA economic relations to match their positive at two of Uzbekistan’s most renowned international exhibitions reported. political relations. which are due to be held in early October and early November. In the meeting, the officials pointed to In early May, the two countries signed a As announced by the TPO portal, Iran will have pavilion in the holding banking seminars and symposiums memorandum of understanding (MOU) in 7th edition of Uzbekistan’s International Exhibition of Building as important and effective instruments for Tehran to expand economic cooperation, Equipment and Materials (BuildExpo Uzbekistan 2019) which is transferring the two sides’ knowledge and especially in the field of energy. due to be held during October 02-04 and the country’s 18th Annual experience in order for expansion of mone- The MOU was signed by Iranian Energy International Exhibition of Agriculture (Agri Tek Uzbekistan tary and banking relations. Minister Reza Ardakanian and Armenian 2019) which is set to be held on November 06-08 in Tashkent. Reiterating his country’s readiness for Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan at the The Iranian pavilions will aim to bolster the presence of Ira- development of all-out relations with Iran, end of the 16th Iran-Armenia Joint Economic nian companies in target markets, establishing mutual relations Javadyan stated “Development of banking Committee meeting. relations between Armenia and the Islamic Based on the MOU, the two sides agreed to with the foreign companies participating in the exhibitions, and Iranian Ambassador to Armenia Kazem Sajjadi (1stR) and Governor of Central Bank Republic of Iran is on Yerevan’s agenda and I complete the construction of Iran’s third elec- ultimately promoting a successful and sustainable presence in of Armenia Arthur Javadyan (middle) met on Tuesday in Yerevan to discuss expansion hope that the authorities of the two countries will tricity transmission line to Armenia by 2020 in the regional markets. of economic ties. show greater impetus to enhance the transfer order to increase the country’s electricity exports of experiences from both sides.” of trade with their national currencies. two countries’ banking systems,” Hervik Yari- to Armenia to over 1000 megawatts (MW). Back in July, head of Iran-Armenia Joint “We have proposed to the Armenian pres- janian said. Tehran hosted the 16th Iran-Armenia Joint 14 renewable power plants Chamber of Commerce had announced that ident that the two sides establish a financial Mentioning his recent meeting with the Economic Committee meeting which was held go operational across Iran the two countries are discussing the possibility institution which would operate outside the Armenian President Armen Sarkissian, the during June 30-July 2.

ECONOMY TEHRAN – Head of Iran’s Renewable Energy deskand Energy Efficiency Organization (known as SATBA) said 14 new renewable power plants started operation Washington’s plots and threats not to scare away Iranian oil buyers in nine different provinces during the Government Week, IRIB 1 Immodestly after the seizure, Iran’s Foreign Min- Gibraltar incident. reported. istry announced that seizing the oil tanker was the same The U.S. aimed to increase psychological and economic According to Seyed Mohammad Sadeqzadeh, with a total as stealing because the sanctions imposed by UK or the pressure on Iran through expanding its disruptive actions capacity of 160 megawatts (MW), the mentioned projects include European Union do not apply to other countries and UK into every possible point of the Islamic country’s economic a wind farm and 13 solar farms. was not allowed to force them on Iran. activities. When Bolton heard of the UK seizing Iranian oil tanker However, nearly 40 days after Grace 1 was seized, the on America’s Independence Day, his joy was unconfined. Gibraltar court ordered it to be released in mid-August. “Excellent news: UK has detained the supertanker Grace This verdict put an end to the elaborate game which was I laden with Iranian oil bound for Syria in violation of EU designed by Bolton and Mike Pompeo, and carried out by sanctions,” he Twitted. the Britain government. Although at first glance it seems that Bolton was sur- According to Refinitiv Eikon shipping data carried by prised by the news but the reality was that Bolton’s national Reuters, the Adrian Darya 1—currently west of the island of security team was directly involved in manufacturing the Crete in the Mediterranean—is no longer heading for Turkey. China’s industrial profits bounce back in July Profits at China’s large industrial firms recovered in July, However, with significant escalation in trade war tariffs posting year-on-year growth of 2.6 percent, following a over the past week, producers and exporters can expect The official noted that over 4.45 trillion rials (nearly $106 decline of 3.1 percent in June. tougher times ahead. million) plus €107 million has been funded for completing the As per scmp.com, July’s growth was largely powered The slight bump in the profitability numbers was tel- mentioned projects. by the private sector, where industrial giants posted a egraphed in July’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI), “These 14 power plants went operational in East Azarbaijan, Tehran, Hamedan, Zanjan, Yazd, Kerman and Fars provinces,” 11.4 percent rise in their profits. which – while remaining in negative territory at 49.7 – the Energy Ministry’s news portal (known as PAVEN) quoted However, the broader picture shows that across the was an increase on the 49.4 figure in both May and June Sadeqzadeh as saying. board, China’s industrial giants remain in relatively weak and better than analysts’ expectations. Putting these power plants in operation has created more than condition. The PMI survey showed that manufacturers and factory 1,270 jobs in the mentioned provinces across Iran. For the year-to-date to July, total industrial profits owners in China remained downbeat about their prospects, The deputy energy minister put the current capacity of re- were down 1.7 percent, largely due to a long-term slump as the pressures of the trade war with the United States newable power plants in the country at about 760 MW, adding in the profitability of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). continued to mount. that currently the construction is ongoing for another 32 plants In the January to July period, SOE profits stood at 1.09 Later this week, the PMI – a gauge of sentiment among to supply an extra 380 megawatts of renewables to the national trillion yuan ($151.5 billion), a decrease of 8.1 percent on factory operators, with 50.0 being the demarcation line power grid. the same period in 2018. between expansion and contraction in manufacturing According to PAVEN, currently renewable power plants have Again, the private sector outperformed the state-sector, activity – will be released for the month of August. created 43,450 job opportunities across the country and the with private sector profits up 7 percent over the first seven so far this year, smelting down 25.1 percent, motor ve- While many U.S. buyers will doubtless have engaged volume of private investment in this sector has exceeded 124 months of the year, to 884.91 billion yuan ($123.7 billion). hicles down 23.2 percent, and manufacturing down 3.4 in front-loading, that is advance buying of goods before trillion rials (over $2.95 billion). Those industries to have performed well from January percent – a batch of numbers suggesting that all is not new tariffs kick in on September 1 and December 15, It said the bulk of electricity generation from renewables, to July include ferrous metals – including the sorts of well with China’s industrial economy. respectively, the consensus is that China’s manufac- around 85 percent, came from solar and wind plants, adding steel used in bridge and skyscraper construction – which In a statement accompanying the July figures, the turing outlook will remain in contractionary territory. that biomass accounted for only one percent of the total output. jumped 232.1 percent on a year earlier, perhaps indicative National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) pointed to a large “As we believe the economy will continue to face Renewables, including hydropower, account for just six per- of infrastructure stimulus from Beijing filtering into the increase in profits in the electrical machinery sector, which strong headwinds, especially from the U.S.-China trade cent of the country’s total energy generation, versus natural gas’ real economy. jumped 30.8 percent. tensions and a worsening property sector, we expect 90 percent share. The year-to-date numbers were also positive for the Chinese exports to the United States Beijing to maintain its easing policy stance in the sec- Overall, in the next five years, Iran is aiming for a 5,000 MW food industry, which posted profit growth of 14.6 percent, ond half (of 2019). increase in renewable capacity to meet growing domestic demand July was the second full month in which tariffs on $250 and machinery, up 15.6 percent. The worst is yet to come,” wrote analysts from Jap- and expand its presence in the regional electricity market. billion of Chinese exports to the United States were at However, oil processing profits are down 50.6 percent the higher rate of 25 percent. anese bank Nomura in a note. I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 SPECIAL REPORTS 5

A Glance at Performance and Activity of IMIDRO Salient measures taken by IMIDRO in Attracting New Financial Resources, Developing Explorations, Activating Small-Scale Mines and Supporting Domestic Production

Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development By launching this plan, IMIDRO managed to and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), according generate employment for 600 and 1800 people both to the notification of the minister of Industry, Mine directly and indirectly. and Trade, is responsible for executing and following Salient Measures Taken by IMID- up 33 strategies. RO in Line with Developing Mines and According to the latest monitoring measures con- Mineral Sector ducted, about 33 percent of operational programs of • Following up and conducting feasibility studies the roadmap has been materialized. on 300,000 km, In the current year in 1398 (started March 21, 2019), • Planning for commissioning $3.5 billion worth IMIDRO launched $3.5 billion worth of projects in of mineral project in different areas of country, cooperation and collaboration with the private sector. • Activating development and expansion plans as It is predicted that IMIDRO will create 10,000 new well as attracting more than 1,200 billion tomans worth employment opportunities before the termination of of resources from private sector for the completion the current year (to end March 20, 2020). of the aforementioned projects. Last year, IMIDRO launched 19 mineral projects, •Following up setting an Exploration Fund in stock costing more than $2 billion. This number of project • Signing and sealing MoU with industry, mine and generated 3,600 and 22,800 employments directly trade organizations of provinces in line with definition and indirectly. of development plans, About 66 projects, costing $6 billion, were put • Launch of 27 research and applied projects is into operation as of the 12th government until a year underway. Line with Operating Roadmap in Min- jectives have been specified by 2021 Vision Plan, total (March 21 – June 21) include as follows: earlier i.e. from 2014 to 2018, total of which have been • Compilation of macro risk report related to the ing and Mineral Sector of which was notified to the relevant units. According • Introducing 15 mines and identified potential launched with the cooperation and collaboration of mining and mineral industries chain (domestic and The roadmap of the mining and mineral sector has to the latest monitoring made, about 33 percent of to the investor, the private sector. foreign) and sending it to the Ministry of Industry, 72 notified strategies, in which, IMIDRO is responsible the operational programs of the roadmap has been • Visiting seven provinces and identifying small- Increasing situation of mines in gross domestic Mine and Trade for implementing and following up 33 strategies. In realized up to the present time. scale mines product (GDP) is the result of such achievements in Measures Taken by IMIDRO in line with implementation of these strategies, 145 ob- Highlights of Measures Tak- • Conducting feasibility studies in four provinces of such a way that according to a report of Statistical the country including Fars, Kerman, East Azarbaijan of Iran (SCI), Iran’s share of mine has hit from en in IMIDRO in Line with Realizing Roadmap: and Isfahan. 1.3 percent in 2017 to 1.4 percent in current year. Production Growth in 1st Four In line with implementation of strategies of de- 1- Joint project in the field of aerial geophysics velopment and empowerment, IMIDRO plans to with the Geological Survey of Iran (GSI) is underway, Months of Current Year attract capital and increase participation of private 2- Necessary measures have been taken in order According to the statistics released in the first companies in implementation of projects in such a to increase annual capital of the Fund. four months of the current year (March 21 – July way that IMIDRO attracted more than 1,200 billion 3- Attracting the participation of private sector for 21), total production volume of concentrate of iron tomans in the past seven months. Attracting over 1,200 nine affiliated units and/or exploratory zones with the ore, sponge iron, steel ingot, steel products, copper billion tomans worth of new resource for mining and strategic objective and completion of semi-finished anode and cathode registered a 3, 12, 4, 9, 21 and 22 mineral sector during sanctions is thinkable. projects (POTAS KHOR and BIYABANAK complex, etc.) percent growth respectively as compared to the same In line with supplying raw materials for macro 4- Calling for attraction of participation of private period of last year. A.Saeedi development programs, IMIDRO has considered the sector in Titanium Project of Kahnouj, new plan for the discovery mines on a land area as 5- Signing and sealing contract in the rail and large as 300,000 square kilometers. road in Sangan. Given the current year named after by the Lead- 6- Loading and unloading jetties of Persian Gulf er of the Islamic Revolution as “Boosting Domestic Special Economic Zone according to the bylaw ap- Production”, IMIDRO eyes cooperating with private proved in Investment Committee, companies. Identifying, reviving and activating small- 7- Project for reviving and activating small- and scale mines is of the other part of activities of IMIDRO medium-sized mines of the country is underway with which has started since last year. Conclusion of coop- 19 percent physical progress. eration agreement with scientific and academic centers 8- A MoU has been inked with the aim of devel- is of the other salient measures taken by IMIDRO. oping exploratory activities. Development Plans: Activation of Small Mines: IMIDRO inaugurated Jajarm aluminum project Physical progress of the plan by the end of Tir (July (Phase 1), costing $131 million, in the beginning of 21) stood at 19 percent. The major activities done by the current year (started March 21, 2019). IMIDRO in the first three months of the current year

Sustainable Development

Daily & Up-to-Date Production 1398.3285 Favorable Service

Public Relations Dept. of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company (NIORDC) Refining and Distribution, on the Growth and Development Track At the condition that economy of the country is eration officially during the Government Week with the production capacity of 300 tons/day grappling with sanctions imposed by US against in the current year (started March 21, 2019), with the aim of removal of destructive envi- Iran, oil refining industry of the country has the most important of which are as follows: ronmental effects of sulfur particles in the used its maximum capabilities and potentials, - Construction of a 20-inch pipeline in Naeen, air and reducing environmental pollutants benefitted from nine oil refineries along with Kashan, Rey is one of the projects that will caused by transport of sulfur, construction of the largest gas condensate refinery in the world be launched during the Government Week. loading jetties and also construction of 230-V including Persian Gulf Star Refinery (PGSR). Increasing production capacity for transfer- substation and also 230/33 V substation in With increasing its refining capacity and ring oil products as much as 150,000 barrels order to create sustainable electricity for the conveying it to the range of 2.3 million barrels of oil per day (bpd) and transferring produced refinery as well as supply of electricity for the of oil per day (bpd), NIOPRDC has taken giant products at Bandar Abbas and Persian Gulf Star newly-established units. strides in relevant field. refineries, as much as 200,000 barrels of oil In Abadan Refinery, project for supply of Halting gasoline imports as a strategic fuel per day have been highlighted in this project. water required in this refinery from Bahman- in the consumption market since last year up to Abadan/Ahvaz/Arak and Rey pipeline are shir River is ready for operational in order to breakdown) is one of the important processes the present time has created this opportunity of the other project that will be put into opera- supply inlet raw water to the refinery due to with high added value in the refining industry. for policymakers of this industry for exporting tion by the National Iranian Oil Refining and the drop of quality of raw water of Arvandrud Given the dire need of the country to gaso- these consignments to the world markets. In The refining capacity of the company in- Paving Suitable Ways for En- Distribution Company (NIORDC). With the and preventing repair and maintenance costs line and apply of over 1,500 ton/year catalyst this regard, NIOPDRC exported 3,000 tons of creased in a way that this company abled to try of CNG aim of development of pipeline as long as 425 en route. needed in FCC Unit of Abadan Refinery and gasoline to the international markets via Iran refine 1,800,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) What is of paramount importance here is km, this project will provide the daily transfer Implementation of plan for reorganizing 6000 tons in RFCC Unit of Shazand Energy Exchange dubbed “IRENEX”. in 2012, showing a considerable hike in the this that increase of gradient of consumption of about 240,000 barrels of oil produced in Mahshahr Export Port is one of the other projects Khomeini (RA) Refinery of Arak, a trilateral Attaining this international achievement field of refining oil products. is in tandem with the increase of production. Abadan and Imam Khomeini (RA) refineries. that started with the aim of construction of pri- agreement was inked between National Ira- in the current specific and extraordinary con- But as of 2012 and with elapse of about 6 One of the strategic policies for reducing This project has been constructed within vate 132-KV electricity line, updating available nian Oil Refining and Distribution Company dition is indebted to the measures taken by the years, the refining capacity of the country ex- consumption of gasoline is to propel the market the framework of two sectors including con- installations, renovating and increasing pro- (NIORDC), Vice Presidency’s Technology and National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution periences its highest jump within the 40 years. towards consumption of Compressed Natural struction of new pipeline in Abadan and Ahvaz, duction capacity of tanks, ability of loading and Innovation Cooperation Center and “BEHDASH” Company (NIORDC) over the past years. Finally, the refining capacity of the company Gas (CNG) as a substitute fuel and of course, with the 26-inch diameter, as long as 135 km unloading oil products, equipping new jetties, Chemical Company. It should be acknowledged that various hit 2,300,000 barrels of oil up to the current a clean fuel. as well as new pipeline in Arak and Rey, with dredging and capability of berthing 80,000- Of the salient achievements of this project, it projects have so far been implemented in Iranian month of Mordad (August 21, 2019), In this regard, consumption of CNG started the diameter of 26 inch, as long as 290 km. ton vessels, export of fuel oil, gas condensates, can be referred to attaining technical knowhow this field, the most important of which are as showing a considerable half a million barrels in 2005 as much as 2.3 million cubic meters. Of the other projects that would be put into gasoline and oil gas, import of gasoline and oil and knowledge of industrial production of cat- follows: increasing refining capacity, trans- of oil per day (bpd). With the elapse of more than a decade, the daily operation by Isfahan Refinery during the Gov- gas, exports of various types of fuel. alyst, optimal use of resources available in the ferring product through pipeline, operation As a strategic product, production capacity of consumption of CNG hit 20.9 million cubic ernment Week in the current year, it should Transferring Technical, Kno- country for manufacturing catalysts, designing, of gasoline production plans, distributing oil gasoline in the fuel basket of the country stands meter/year in the last year (ended March 20, be referred to as follows: whow, Knowledge and Producing manufacturing and commissioning RFCC/FCC products in metropolises, launching Field Smart at 115 million liters in the current situation. 2019), the issue of which is a significant jump Construction of wastewater treatment plant Refinery Catalyst catalysts’ production line in the country. Card System, implementing Survey Plan, etc. Of total gasoline produced in the same for the National Iranian Oil Refining and Dis- in Shahinshahr in order to transfer and treat Breakdown of semi-heavy cut catalyst (vacu- Currently, construction operation of this pro- Implementing the aforementioned plans period, 75 million liters of which is produced tribution Company (NIODC). sanitary wastewater in this city, use of water um gas oil) and also heavy cut catalyst (petroleum ject is underway with 95 percent physical progress have created a sea change in supplying and according to EUR-4 and 5 standards. Most Important Projects emitted from the aforementioned wastewater residues) to lighter and mid-distilled products which will be put into operation in near future. distributing fuel. The current daily production capacity of oil Ready for Operational during Gov- as raw water of the refinery, construction of (especially gasoline) using the FCC (Catalytic In the end, it should be noted that the sce- The Company managed to realize most of gas in the country stands at 125 million liters, 50 ernment Week Solidification Unit and Sulfur Granule Unit Breakdown) and RFCC (residue cut catalyst nario ahead of the oil industry has severely its objectives in the 11th and 12th governments million liters of which observes requirements Many refining projects have been officially affected the refining manifest of the country dubbed ‘Hope and Prudence’. of EUR 4 and 5 standards. put into operation over the past year in the with several positive events such as comple- Significant hike in imports and exports of Taciturnity and Calmness Return to presence of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, tion of construction of three-category phases five main products of the refineries has been Megalopolises the most important of which can be referred to in the Persian Gulf Star Refinery and taboo of considered as a solid evidence for the said claim. Pollutions in macro especially in capital the projects for boosting and promoting qual- import broke. According to the imports volume A glance at refining statistics over the past Tehran has been turned into one of the most ity of gasoline and oil gas produced in of gasoline since Oct. 2018, the gasoline imports 40 years, it can be concluded that a basic jump highlighted news that was published from according to EUR-5 standard, plan for the volume reached to zero level. has so far been created in the statistics of pro- various media. Since 11th government up to production of base oil and lubricants of this Reduced imports and increased production duction of oil products. the current government, production of euro refinery in current year, project for increase of gasoline has currently hit about 115 million The report put the daily refining capacity products has increased in the fuel basket of the of production capacity and improvement of liters per day relying upon the gasoline leverage of the company in 1978 at 1,175,000 barrels country. The production capacity of gasoline quality of gasoline, oil gas in Bandar Abbas of the country i.e. Persian Gulf Star Refinery. of oil per day (bpd), the rate of which reaches and oil gas products that has reached ‘zero’ Refinery and 3rd phase of Persian Gulf Star Therefore, the company owes this success to to 751,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) after 12 since the outset of the 11th government has Refinery (PGSR) in Feb. 2019. the projects that were put into operation with the years i.e. in 1989. not been hit 50 and 75 million liters per day. The following projects will be put into op- logical and wise management of the company. A.Saeedi I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 6 SPECIAL REPORTS AUGUST 28, 2019

Mining Operations GOLGOHAR Mining and Industrial Company has put the mining operations of more than 120 million tons in the current Iranian calendar year in 1398 (started March 21, 2019), showing a 24% growth as compared to the same period of last year. The below diagram shows that mining operations of the company in the recent years.

Production Operations GOLGOHAR Mining and Industrial Company managed to produce 27.3 million tons of concentrate and conglomerate in the past Iranian calendar year in 1397 (ended March 20, 2019). In the current year (started March 21, 2019), the company plans to produce 27.5 million tons of various types of product including 15.5 million tons of concentrate and 12 million tons of conglomerate. If objective of this issue is realized, the company will witness one percent growth as compared to the same period of last year, and consequently, the company can maintain its status in the nationwide. In the first four months of the current year (March 21 – July 21), the company managed to produce 9.6 million tons of various types of product in a way that 35 percent of program of the company has realized ahead of scheduled date. The below diagram shows the growth production trend of the company in recent years.

Sales of Products The company has planned to sell 15.5 million tons of its products both in domestic and foreign markets. In case of realization of this issue, the company will witness a 4% growth as compared to the same period of last year. It should be noted that the company managed to sell approx. five million tons of products in the same period. The diagram below shows the sales trend of products in tonnage in the recent years. (according to million tons)

Regional Outlook and Development Projects

With the coordination made in this regard, GOLGOHAR Mining and Mineral Company and also its subsidiary units should produce 24 million tons of concentrate, 21 million tons of conglomerate and also 5.5 million tons of steel products by 2021. With the realizing of this effect, GOLGOHAR region’s status will promote in the nationwide level in a way that this region will be turned into a leading steel production hub in the country. Hereunder are a number of development projects that have been inaugurated or would inaugurate in the current year: - Launch of Smelter Line No. 1 of JAHAN FOOLAD Company of Sirjan Company with the production capacity of 1.2 million tons / year, - Launch of Steam Unit from the first phase of power plant of GOHAR Energy Sirjan with the production capacity of 160 megawatts, - Crushing Unit No. 2 of GOLGOHAR Mining and Industrial Company with the production capacity of 15 million tons/year, - Launch of pelletizing factory with the production capacity of 5,000,000 tons / year, etc.

Social Responsibilities The company has invested 18,900 billion rials worth of investment in activities related to the social responsibilities. In this regard, GOLGOHAR Mining & Industrial Company and its subsidiary units have not ignored to deal with the issues of staffers, personnel and environment. In general, the company has taken effective steps to materialize most of its objectives. In this regard, the company has compiled and formulated the below projects in the recent years in line with realizing objectives of social responsibilities: - Construction of GOLGOHAR Hospital as the most equipped and specialized hospital in southern part of country, - Completion of construction operation of GOLGOHAR Stadium, - Participating in construction of urban sewage network system in Sirjan through policymaking and constructing urban sewage network - Construction of wastewater treatment plant in Sirjan, - Participating in construction of Sirjan-Kerman Railway - Helping quake-hit people in Kermanshah province and survivors in Zemestanyourt Mine - Helping flood-hit people in the beginning of the current year

DAY Insurance Co. Registers 41% Growth in DPS

The Annual Ordinary General Assem- billion rials as well. It should be noted that dividend of bly of DAY Insurance Company (Public In this session, widely circulated paper legal shareholders of the company is Joint Stock Company, PJS) was held on “DONYA-E-EQTESAD” Persian Daily was payable according to the announced Thursday July 18, 2019 in the presence selected for publishing advertisements scheduled program through the website of 99.84 percent shareholders, manag- of the company. In addition, FATER Au- of CODAL in due date. ing director, members of the Board of diting Institute and BEHMAND Auditing The Ordinary Annual General Assem- Directors and representatives from the Institute were introduced as main legal bly meeting of DAY Insurance Company Central Insurance of the Iran (CII), syn- inspector and alternative respectively. was held on July 18, 2019, in which, 50 dicate of Iranian insurers and Securities In this regard, dividend of real sharehold- rials dividend per share was paid to the and Exchange Organization (SEO) for ers of DAY Insurance Company was paid. shareholders of the company in cash. mulling over the financial statements of Dividend of real shareholders of the For further information, sharehold- the company closing to March 20, 2019. company, leading to the Fiscal Year ers of the company can get in touch According to the Public Relations Dept. Closing on March 20, 2019, was paid with the exports in Stocks Affairs De- of the company, in this meeting, after the by branches of DAY Insurance Company partment through Telephone No. 021 deployment of the Board of Directors in less than a month after organizing – 2313 (Ext. 1363). and hearing well-documented remarks 2019), this issue indicates a considerable the Annual General Assembly meeting of the auditor, financial statements of 125 percent growth of investment. on Mordad 26, 1398 (August 17, 2019). DAY Insurance Co. (P.J.S) the company for the fiscal year closing It should be noted that an important In case of completion of their per- Balance SheetFor the Fiscal Year Closing March 21, 2019 on March 20, 2019 were approved with part of investment of company has taken sonal data in the website of the company (Revision Presented) the majority of attendees in the Annual after out of profit gained from selling addressed at: www.dayins.com and/or Assets Note Mar. 20, 2019 Mar. 20, Liabilities and Note Mar. 20, 2019 Mar. 21, 2018 General Assembly meeting. stocks of investee companies. sending the form completed to the Stock 2018 Owner’s Equity Million rials Million Million rials Million rials DAY Insurance Company received It should be noted that DAY Insurance Department, real shareholders of DAY rials profitability growth in the fiscal year clos- Company succeeded, moreover covering Insurance Company can receive dividend Cash balance 3 411,184 160,568 Liability to the 13 7,302,530 2,496,618 ing on March 20, 2019, so that financial losses accumulated over the past years, of their stock by referring to the branches insurers and performance of this company in the past in creating cumulative profit worth 152 of the bank across the nationwide. representatives year (ended March 20, 2019) led to the Short-term investments 4 1,153,469 902,653 Liability to 14 21,380,882 12,542,546 realization of net profit, valued at 1.028 DAY Insurance Company (PJS) insurers and billion rials (equal to 411 rials for each reinsurers Dues from insurers and 5 32,136,583 17,184,747 Other accounts and 15 1,224,299 1,095,714 Consolidated Profit and Loss TurnoverFor Fiscal Year Closing on March 21, 2019 share), showing a significant 41 percent representatives payable documents growth as compared to the last year’s Note March 21, 2019 March 20, 2018 Other accounts and 6 1,363,183 1,992,168 Payable tax 16 0 0 corresponding period. Million rials Million rials receivable documents Finally, with the approval of the Issued insurance premium 26 35,871,854 23,358,603 Demands from 7 58,981 33,229 Payable divided 17 8,819 13,357 Decrease (increase) in insurance premium reserves 18 (10,234,921) (7,412,223) Assembly, 50 rials dividend per share Revenues of insurance premium 25,636,933 15,946,380 reinsurance insurers (DPS) was appropriated to shareholders. Transferable reinsurance premium 27 (29,954,591) (18,820,957) Share of reinsurance 8 24,791,928 13,367,777 Reserve of 18 20,226,329 9,991,409 The gross profit of insurance activities Increase (decrease) of reserve of transferable reinsurance premium 18 10,869,113 7,296,003 insurers from technical insurance premium Cost of transferable reinsurance premium (19,085,478) (11,524,954) of the company (without considering the reserves Revenue of insurance premium for preserving share 6,551,455 4,421,427 Long-term receivables 9 91,980 83,033 Reserve of 19 8,720,023 6,808,755 Payable damage 28 (23,947,869) (7,404,607) revenue of investments) hit 1.038 billion deferred damage rials, showing a considerable eight percent Decrease (increase) of reserves of damage 19 (2,272,293) (6,157,045) Cost of damage (26,220,162) (13,561,652) Long-term investments 10 1,939,628 776,798 Reserve of 19 472,722 111,697 hike as compared to the same period of Damage received from reinsurance insurers 29 17,404,511 4,254,896 unexpired risks last year. This issue is significant and Increase (decrease) in reserve of deferred damage for transferable 19 555,038 4,981,767 Invisible on intangible 11 75,599 70,459 Other technical 20 463,676 281,726 reinsurance assets reserves eye-catching according to the represent- Damage for reinsurance insurers share 17,959,549 9,236,662 ative of the Central Insurance of Iran Cost of damage for share of preserving (8,260,613) (4,324,989) Tangible fixed assets 12 858,203 662,345 Insurance premium 21 163,920 13,217 due to the current economic situation Cost of commission and fee of interests 30 (285,300) (347,263) of coming years of the country. Income of commission and fee of reinsurance interests 31 3,240,496 1,669,165 Staff end-service 22 33,747 23,213 Income (cost) of commission and fee for interests of share of 2,955,196 1,321,902 reserve In this respect, DAY Insurance Com- preserving Total liabilities 59,996,947 33,378,251 pany can be considered as one of the Decrease (increase) of other technical reserves 20 (181,950) (122,259) Share of Fund to Supply Physical Damages 32 (65,508) (78,173) Owner’s Equity: most successful companies in insurance Other incomes and insurance costs 33 39,704 (260,258) Capital 23 2,500,000 2,500,000 industry of the country. Net of other insurance costs (207,754) (460,690) (2,500,000,000 Increasing profit caused by investment Income of investment out of technical reserves 34 444,720 177,591 share each worth made by the company is of the important Gross profit of insurance activity 1,483,003 1,135,241 1,000 rials) Income of investment out of other resources 34 162,093 92,804 Legal Reserve 24 87,331 35,918 factor behind growth of profitability of General and administrative costs 35 (624,653) (505,368) the company in the past year (ended Operating profit 1,020,444 722,677 Capital reserve 25 144,029 41,202 Other incomes and non-insurance costs 36 7,823 8,510 Cumulative (loss) 152,431 (721,595) March 20, 2019). Net profit before taxation 1,028,267 731,186 profit Accordingly, profit gained by invest- Net profit 1,028,267 731,186 Total owner’s 2,883,791 1,855,525 ment of company hit from 270 billion Base profit for each share: equity Operational 39 408 289 rials in 1396 (March 20, 2018) to 608 Non-operational 39 3 3 Total assets 62,880,738 35,233,777 Total liabilities and 62,880,738 35,233,777 billion rials in 1397 (ended March 20, 411 292 owner’s equity

I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 SPECIAL REPORTS 7

Highlights of Measures Taken by Ministry of Industry in Line with Realizing Objectives of 7-Group Programs of Ministry in “Boosting Domestic Production” Year

- Setting up 141 specialized desks for meters with the participation of 223 com- companies and startups, observing modern Increasing Chain Stores to export target countries / provision of panies. This exhibition was held with the technologies. 3,500 in Current Year 79 executive packages for activation of aim of deepening domestic production and Compiling Export Promo- In this field, development of chain small- and medium-sized enterprises attaining evermore self-sufficiency. tion Programs to 15 Neighbor- stores from 3,200 in 2017 to 3,500 in (SMEs) / relaunch of 321 industrial units Conclusion of 202 MoUs ing States 2019 is of the salient achievement of in flood-hit areas / increasing chain Inked between Suppliers and Considerable measures were conducted the ministry. stores to 3,500 branches in current year Knowledge-based Companies in the field of promotion of export of nonoil Of the other measures taken in this regard, A number of 202 Memoranda of Under- goods, the most important of which is com- it should be referred to: managing supply In line with realizing objectives of the standing (MoUs) were signed and sealed pilation of new imports instruction versus and demand for the products offered in Iran motto of “Boosting Domestic Production” between domestic suppliers and knowl- exports as well as compilation of export pro- Mercantile Exchange (IME), liberation of in the current Iranian calendar year in 1398 edge-based companies on the sidelines of motion programs to 15 neighboring states. ceiling of competition of products offered (started March 21, 2019), the Ministry of organizing Domestic Production Exhibition. Conclusion of 22 Industri- in stock market, managing exports of min- Industry, Mine and Trade has embarked on It should be noted that contract for domes- al and Trade Agreements with erals, compiling program for empowering compiling and executing its programs in seven tic manufacturing of 35 parts in automotive Iraq guild unions and distribution network for basic goods, etc. topics with a focus and special emphasis industry, valued at 740 billion tomans, was In this field, Ministry of Industry, Mine zones across the country, identifying about on the development of domestic production concluded on the sidelines of the exhibition. and Trade concluded 22 industrial and trade Targeting for Activating 300 promising areas available to minor and and also promotion of export of products to Prohibition of Registration agreements with neighboring Iraq. Signing 150 Small-Scale Mines major investors are of the salient measures the target countries. In this comprehensive of Order for Producing about and sealing Preferential Trade Agreement In the field of development of mines and taken by the ministry in this regard. report, the highlights of measures taken by 1400 Unnecessary Goods (PTA) between Iran and Eurasian in Astana mineral industries, the plan for activation Increasing Extraction of the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade are The prohibition of registration of order of Kazakhstan, conclusion of 22 industrial of small- and medium-sized mines was Mines to 460mn Ton in 2018 presented according to the main topics of pro- of about 1,400 unnecessary products was of and trade agreement with Iraq, signing and taken into consideration in various parts It should be noted that the volume of grams as mentioned in above. Furthermore, the other measures taken by the Ministry sealing a cooperation agreement between of the country with the aim of activating 150 extraction from mines increased from 440 the upcoming measures of the ministry will mines with the ability of generating 3,000 of Industry, Mine and Trade in mid-2018 disadvantaged areas of the country such Iran and KRG as well as setting permanent million tons in 2017 to 460 tons in 2018. be notified to public in subsequent reports. job-seeking people directly in less developed in order to manage import and support do- as production of paper from calcium car- exhibition in Iraq, total of which paved suit- Injection of 4,000 Billion According to SHATA, correction and and underprivileged areas of the country in mestic production. bonate in Fars Province, bioethanol fuel in able way in the field of promotion of export Tomans Liquidity to Parts Man- amendment of the law on “maximum use the current year. Relaunch of 321 Industrial Kohgilouyeh and Boyerahmad province and of nonoil products. ufacturing Industry of Country of potential of production and services capa- Setting Up 141 Specialized Provision of 97 Executive bility of the country” was one of the important Units in Flood-Hit Areas also Kermanshah province, relaunching of Injection of 4,000 billion tomans worth But in line with supporting production Packages for Activating Small- tools for the development of domestic pro- 321 industrial units in flood-stricken areas Desk for Exporting Products to of liquidity to the parts manufacturing in- and also production units in other provinces and Medium-sized Mines duction in line with promoting production of the country. Export Target Countries dustry of the country has been cited as the of the country, the ministry carried out the In this regard, seven provinces of the and depending domestic production which Also, attaining technical knowhow and In this period, 26 trade and economic other salient measure taken by the ministry following projects: preparing the necessary country studied for activation of small- and was seriously followed up in the Ministry of knowledge of production in industrial scale of delegation were exported to export target in this regard. infrastructures for implementation of devel- medium-sized mines. Industry, Mine and Trade. various types of membrane, water treatment markets. In this regard, 141 specialized desks Identifying active platforms in the field of opment project for producing garments and In this regard, the complementary list of modules and commercializing it, setting up were established for exporting products to Identifying about 400 “Crowd Funding”, studying projects related clothing in rural areas with 18 projects in five prohibiting purchase of foreign products with membrane production unit in Ilam, setting target countries. Promising Zone in Mineral Sec- to the mineral and industrial sector, following provinces of Gilan, Ardebil, Chaharmahal and similar domestic production was provided up and launching bio implant production Construction of bus manufacturing fac- tor up creating provincial holdings, selecting Bakhtiari and Kermanshah, ground-break- and notified. centers in the cities of Shiraz, Kermanshah tory jointly in cooperation with AZAR MASH Introducing 15 mines and mineral po- target provinces and relevant industries in ing ceremony for construction operation of Commissioning TAVAN- and Tehran are of the salient measures taken Company of Republic of Azerbaijan and Iran’s tentials identified to investor or partner, each province are of the other salient meas- investment projects in less developed and in line with supporting knowledge-based privately-funded Company of “OGHAB” in continuation of operations in exploratory ures taken by the ministry. By A.Saeedi IRAN Website southern part of Baku, provision of plan for Launching a system for registering ca- promotion of export for handwoven pability and announcing the requirement of to 15 neighboring states, identifying and in- economic enterprises at the following inter- troducing reliable companies in export target net address of ‘tavaniran.ir’ is of the other countries and introducing to exporters are important cases in this field. This website of the salient measures. can presently access to the public. ------Organizing Exhibition of Domes- Winning Two Ranks by tic Production Opportunities and Production Export Guarantee Fund of Iran Boom with Participation of 223 Companies (EGFI) Organizing the Exhibition of opportunities The Ministry of Industry, Mine and of domestic production and production boom Trade obtained top ranks in this field, with the aim of domesticating requirements the most important of which are as fol- of the country [including automotive and lows: winning top rank in the union of spare parts industries, mineral industries, Export Guarantee Funds of the Islamic telecommunications, oil, gas, petrochemical, Countries dubbed AMAN, winning in- home appliances and maritime industries) ternational rank in the Trade Union of is one of the salient measures taken by the Guarantee Funds of Islamic Countries Ministry of Industry. This exhibition was in the position of member of the Board held on a land area as large as 11,000 square of Directors of the Union. I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 8 ADVERTISEMENTS AUGUST 28, 2019

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PRIVATE PARKING LOT Jahan Hotel (Exelsior) – Rahimzade Alley – Taleqani Crossroads – Valiasr St. Tell: 66476855 I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 SCIENCE 9 How much oxygen does the Amazon rain forest provide? The plight of the Amazon has received wide- make much sense,” Allison Mills, Associate zonia is not a big source of oxygen because global scale, the main location for this is by 0.005 percent—hardly at all. how much it produces? Mills says that spread attention over the past week or so as Director of Research Communications at trees respire, just like animals. Trees use at the bottom of the ocean, where some “This is scientifically detectable and very tropical vegetation is responsible for reports surfaced that — which hosts Michigan Technological University, told up most of the oxygen that they produce of the organisms sink to the bottom when interesting and useful, but practically it is about 25 percent of the oxygen that is around 60 percent of the world’s largest Newsweek. though photosynthesis.” they die and are buried in the sediments.” negligible,” she said. “The drop is due to the produced by photosynthesis on land, via tropical forest has experienced a significant “There are many, many reasons to In photosynthesis, plants capture and Essentially, this means that the net burning of fossil fuels (mostly) and rough- trees, shrubs, grasses and other plants. spike in the number of wildfires this year. be concerned — nay, terrified —by the store solar energy, using it to convert car- effect of the Amazon rain forest on the ly 10 percent is due to biomass burning The “Amazon is, generously, half of Amid this coverage, many media out- resurgence of and burning bon dioxide in the air into sugar molecules amount of oxygen in the global atmosphere associated with deforestation worldwide. the tropics — and certainly somewhat less lets, charities, celebrities and even world of Amazonian forests, but a risk to the which they use for food, producing oxygen is “virtually nothing,” since the photosyn- If Amazon deforestation were half of all — so that means, at most, 12 percent of leaders repeated the claim that the Amazon world’s oxygen supply is not one of them.” as a byproduct. thesis to produce new plant matter is (al- deforestation—it’s probably not quite— the oxygen produced each year from land produces 20 percent of the world’s oxy- In fact, the world’s oxygen levels are ac- “There is a net release of oxygen while most) balanced by microbes decomposing then just 5 percent of the overall 0.005 photosynthesis comes from the rain forest. gen supply. The implication here is that tually quite stable and are not dependent on the tree is growing and storing carbon dead plant material, according to Mills. percent net decline in oxygen would be However, photosynthesis on land is only the destruction of the rain forest poses a rain forests, which use up as much of the gas in its wood, but when the tree dies the The “amount of oxygen in the atmo- due to Amazon deforestation.” about half of global photosynthesis — the threat to this oxygen supply. as they produce in the long run, according wood rots, removing the same amount sphere is 20.95 percent, and it is not So if we lost the entire Amazon forest — other half is in the ocean. So, at most, 6 But is this true? Experts say the real to Philip Fearnside, a professor at Brazil’s of oxygen from the air to form carbon changing very much,” she said. “From it would only change atmospheric oxygen percent of the oxygen from photosynthe- figure is actually smaller, and furthermore, National Institute of Amazonian Research. dioxide (CO2) from the carbon in the this perspective, the Amazon could burn up — which is thought to weigh 1.2 million sis comes from the Amazon,” Mills said. this way of thinking is misleading given The Amazonia surface wood,” he said. and blow away and the amount of oxygen gigatons in total — by a small amount, “Keep in mind that even the gross flows the true nature of the Amazon’s effect on “It was a surprise to see the claim that “A net release of oxygen occurs only if in the atmosphere would not be much much less than 1 percent. of oxygen from photosynthesis are very global oxygen levels. 20 percent of the world’s oxygen comes the carbon sequestered through photosyn- affected—CO2 is another story though.” But even if the Amazon has a very small small, compared to the very large amount “I have seen this 20 percent all over from Amazonia surface on mainstream thesis is buried in a place where it cannot Mills notes that since 1990, the level effect on the overall level of oxygen in the of oxygen in the atmosphere.” the place on social media, it doesn’t really media, Fearnside told Newsweek. “Ama- combine with oxygen to form CO2. On a of oxygen in the atmosphere has dropped Earth’s atmosphere, can we still estimate (Source: newsweek.com) Scientists just took a huge step towards saving the northern white rhino Right after our story was published, the in- is all that remains of an entire subspecies – The hope and aim is to artificially egg-harvesting success last week – a “I was here five years ago when we of the team, Jan Stejskal from the Dvr ternational team of scientists were trying to the last northern white rhinos on the planet. inseminate the harvested eggs with world-first never previously attempted found out Fatu and Najin would not be able Králové Zoo in the , told save the northern white rhino from extinction But even now, with just two females left, cryo-preserved sperm taken from two with northern white rhinos – the research- to reproduce naturally, and we realised National Geographic. announced another significant victory. there is vibrant hope to keep this critically male northern white rhinos who are now ers are undaunted. we’d need to pursue artificial means,” one (Source: sciencealert.com) Of the 10 eggs harvested from the fe- endangered animal alive, researchers say deceased, Suni and Saút. males Najin and Fatu, seven were success- – after scientists announced on Friday Then, if everything goes to plan, the fully matured and artificially inseminated that they have successfully harvested resulting embryo could be transferred to a using a technique called ICSI (Intra Cy- eggs from the mother and daughter pair. surrogate mother from the other subspecies toplasm Sperm Injection). The accomplishment represents a pivotal of white rhinoceros – the southern white The researchers and conservationists step forward in a desperate and ambitious rhino – who could carry the foetus to birth. will now have to wait to see if the fertil- bid to prevent the northern white rhinoceros A southern white rhino female is ised eggs create viable embryos that can from fading irretrievably into extinction. necessary, the researchers say, because be transferred to a southern white rhino “We were able to harvest a total of 10 Najin and Fatu – who live at the Ol Pejeta surrogate mother. oocytes – five from Najin and five from Conservancy in Kenya – are thought to For more background and detail, see Fatu – showing that both females can still have health issues that would prevent our earlier story on this ambitious, on- provide eggs and thus help to save these them carrying a pregnancy themselves. going effort to save the northern white magnificent creatures,” says animal re- Of course, for everything to work out as rhino below: production expert Thomas Hildebrandt envisaged, it will require a lot of experimental There are only two of them now: Najin, from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and artificial reproduction science to go right. and her daughter, Fatu. This small family unit Wildlife Research in Berlin. Despite the challenges, after the

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Iran, Qatar launch new Russian people shipping route unaware of 1 As unilateral U.S. sanctions against Iran snapped back, pressuring the country’s limited foreign currency reserves, the Islamic Republic is increasingly paying at- tention to marine travel as a major way of boosting its tourist attractions underdeveloped tourism sector. in Iran: expert TOURISM TEHRAN — Head of “In the past years, government offi- deskthe Iranian Tour Opera- cials in charge of tourism have attempted tors Association believes that a majority of to establish tourism links between Iran potential Russian travelers are unaware of and Russia, but [their plans] have failed vast tourist attractions that exist in every because [a majority of potential] Russian corner of Iran. travelers do not know Iran.” Ebrahim Pourfaraj told ILNA in an inter- “If they knew Iran, they would definitely view published on Tuesday that “Attracting have traveled to our country. During these tourists needs to be present among people years we saw thousands of Russian tourists A total of 1,759,749 Iranians traveled abroad in the first and introducing Iran to the Russian society.” traveling to Turkey but not coming to Iran.” quarter of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21- “The fact is that Iran’s political and eco- In June 2017, Iran tourism body empha- June 21), indicating a 6.5% decrease compared with the nomic relations with Russia are considered sized the need to achieve a reasonable balance same period last year. as good, but this has nothing to do with in the two-way tourist exchange with Russia. attracting tourists because it is directly In the same year, Iranian President Hassan connected with the Russian people. It is Rouhani and his Russian counterpart Vladimir the Russian people who must choose Iran Putin inked a visa-free agreement for certain Thailand’s July foreign as their destination,” he explained. tourist groups. Based on the agreement tour He said that tourism fairs offer ample groups of 5 to 50 people heading to Russia tourist arrivals rise 4.7% y/y opportunities in order to make visitors ac- from Iran or vice versa are granted a visa-free quainted with new tourism destinations. stay of up to 15 days. Thailand saw a rise of 4.72% in July from a year earlier, Iran is scheduled to participate in the In- The 2019 Travel Risk Map, which shows after rising 0.89% in tourist arrivals in June, the tourism ternational Trade Fair for Tourism & Travel, the risk level around the world, puts Iran which will be held in Moscow from September among countries with “insignificant risk”, ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. Toranj Food Complex, a traditional touristic restaurant, in Isfahan, central Iran The 3.33 million tourists in July spent about 167.3 billion 10 to 12. “Such an event opens up a suitable a category where the UK, Denmark, Swit- baht ($5.47 billion), up 3.11% from a year earlier. opportunity to highlight Iran’s attractions zerland, Norway, and Finland are placed in. such as bazaars, museums, mosques, bridges, es, towers, and mansions, of which 22 being among Russian people,” Pourfaraj said. Iran boasts hundreds of historical sites bathhouses, madrasas, mausoleums, church- inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. 226 tourism, handicrafts and cultural heritage projects inaugurated The projects, worth about 22.180 trillion rials (about [Nearly] 7.8 million foreign nationals visited Iran $520 million), have generated 2,645 jobs across the coun- over the past [Iranian calendar] year [ended March 20], try, IRIB reported. Mounesan added. In this regard a ceremony was held in Tehran’s Wisteria Earlier this month, the official announced “during the first Hotel, which was attended by acting tourism minister three months of this year (March 21-June21), the number Ali-Asghar Mounesan, several government officials and of tourists arriving in the country increased by 40 percent.” private sector investors. “Medical tourism is one of the most important fields of Visitors from China, Thailand’s biggest source of tour- TOURISM TEHRAN — Iranian President Hassan Among the project were 31 three- to five-star hotels which Iran’s travel sector and an [average] spending of $2,400 ists, rose 5.81% in July from a year earlier, after dropping deskRouhani on Tuesday inaugurated 226 added 5,229 beds to the country’s hospitality sector. per tourist indicates its importance,” he noted. 7.1% in June. projects in the fields of tourism, handicrafts and cultural The volume of investments in tourism projects shows The Islamic Republic has set its goals to exceed its yearly Foreign tourist receipts make up about 12% of Thailand’s heritage through video conference on the occasion of the that this sector has drawn attention of investors, Mounesan, medical travelers to around 2 million in [calendar year] 1404 gross domestic product. ($1 = 30.60 baht) Government Week (August 24-30). who doubles as vice president, noted. (March 2025-March 2026). Thailand will extend until April next year a measure that waives fees for visas on arrival issued to tourists from 18 countries, as it looks to stimulate growth in tourism to spur a CT scan reveals ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Indonesia to close giant lizard island slowing economy, the prime minister said earlier this month. The waivers are part of a $10-billion (8.3 billion pounds) was murdered – potentially by his wife leaving guides, villagers in the lurch stimulus package to boost growth, including a debt mor- atorium for farmers, loans for smaller businesses, and The mystery surrounding an ancient Egyp- Almost every day 20-year-old Rizaldian more money for low-income earners. tian pharaoh’s death was solved thanks Syahputra puts on his blue uniform, laces (Source: Reuters) to a CT scan proving that his throat had up his high boots and leaves his wooden been slit open. house on stilts for a job many nature-lovers The gruesome end of Usermaatre Ram- would envy. ROUND THE GLOBE ses III has been brought to light again by But by next year, he may no longer be the new Channel 5 show “Egypt’s Great employed. Treasures”. Syahputra works as a wildlife guide at Abbey of St Gall Ramses III is thought to have reigned as Komodo National Park on the eastern In- the second Pharaoh of the 20th Dynasty of donesian island of Komodo, taking visitors The Abbey of St Gall is located in the town of St Gall in the ancient Egypt from around 1186 to 1155 BC. around the park on foot to get up close to north-eastern part of Switzerland, and largely owes its present His death was often debated amongst the leathery Komodo dragons, the world’s appearance to the construction campaigns of the 18th century. experts because scriptures stated that one largest living lizard species. A World Heritage, the Abbey of St Gall is an outstanding of his wives and high ranking officials had The Indonesian government plans to example of a large Carolingian monastery and was, since the tried to assassinate him in a plot referred close the island to the public from Jan- to as the Harem Conspiracy. plot to assassinate her husband. uary next year in a bid to conserve the Ramses’ wife Queen Tiye and her son “Now, we know all about this because rare reptiles. find a middle ground on the solution, not Pentaweret were heavily implicated in the it’s recorded on a papyrus that’s now in The scheme also involves moving about closing the whole island but just a certain plot because Tiye is said to have wanted Turin and this historical event is known 2,000 villagers off the island. Author- area.” to put her son on the throne. as the Harem Conspiracy.” ities are holding talks with community More than 176,000 tourists visited However, a confusion of accounts She went on to explain that some scrip- leaders on how to relocate the residents, Komodo National Park, a conservation and no obvious wounds on the mummy tures state that the plot was foiled, the Josef Nae Soi, deputy governor of the area between the islands of Sumbawa and of Ramses III meant that archaeologists culprits sentenced to death and Ramses province of East Nusa Tenggara, told Flores, in 2018. The whole area was named could never confirm whether the murder III disappeared from the history books. Reuters recently. a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. plot had been foiled or not. A disappearance like this is often linked It is hoped that closing the island to About 1,700 Komodo dragons are es- This mystery was laid to rest when to a death by natural causes so when ex- tourists will cut the risk of poaching and timated to live on Komodo island. Other experts noticed that the mummy’s neck perts discovered that the murder plot had allow a recovery in the numbers of the islands in the national park that are home was heavily bandaged and a CT scan soon been a success they were very surprised. animals’ preferred prey, such as deer, to more than 1,400 of the giant lizards, such revealed that Ramses III had a deep and Ahmed Samir, a curator at the Egyptian buffalo and . as nearby Rinca and Padar, will remain wound across his throat. Museum, explained in the documentary: The island could reopen after a year, open to tourists. 8th century until its secularization in 1805, one of the most The wound was so deep in fact that it “After we made the CT scan we found that but the plan is to make it a premium tourist Villagers who have lived on Komodo important cultural centers in Europe. cut right back to the neck vertebrae. he had been assassinated by cutting his destination, Soi said. island for generations are unsurprisingly It represents 1200 years of history of monastic architec- The narrator of the Channel 5 show, throat. Syahputra, who says he enjoys his opposed to the idea of having to leave. ture and is a typical and outstanding ensemble of a large Dr Bettany Hughes, explained: “Ramses “He could not survive it because it’s big job because of his passion for nature and “We have been living as one for years Benedictine convent. Almost all the important architectural was a man with lots of enemies. He had to enough to cut the neck and to make the conservation, shares the fears of many with this village,” said resident Dahlia, periods, from High Middle Ages to historicism, are represented fight off invading armies from the Middle King die within a few minutes.” others on the island who rely on tourism who gave only one name. in an exemplary fashion. Despite the diversity of styles, the East to defend Egypt. A subsequent CT scan found that Ramses for a living. “The graves of my father and ancestors conventual ensemble gives the impression of overall unity, “But the real trouble came from within III’s left big toe had also been chopped off “The closure is definitely something are here. If we move, who will take care bordered on the north and to the west by edifices of the town the kingdom, his wife, Queen Tiye, wanted by an axe shortly before he died. that makes us unhappy,” he said. of those graves?” of St Gall that are, for the most part, intact. her son on the throne, so she hatched a (Source: The Sun) “If we really have to do it, I hope we can (Source: Reuters) It is an impressive architectural ensemble comprising dif- ferent buildings regrouped around the main square of the abbey: The west side includes the ancient abbatial church This hypersonic airliner would take you from Los Angeles to Tokyo in under two hours (the present cathedral), flanked by two towers and the ancient In the almost two decades since the retirement of the supersonic universities and research organizations, would fly faster still. from Los Angeles to Tokyo in about an hour and 45 minutes. cloister, which today houses the abbatial Library; located Concorde airliner, jet-setters have had to make their peace with With its needle-sharp profile and advanced powerplants, “We want to go to Mars but still we have huge distances on the east side is the “Neue Pfalz”, the present seat of the planes that poke along at about 500 miles an hour. But with Stratofly would hit speeds of up to Mach 8 — about 5,400 [separating us] here on Earth,” says Nicole Viola, a professor canton authorities. help from new materials and advanced engine technologies, miles an hour — and reach altitudes of more than 98,000 feet, of aerospace systems design at the Polytechnic of Turin in The northern part of the square is composed of buildings faster-than-sound air travel may be poised for a comeback. far above the operational ceiling of conventional airliners. Italy and the project coordinator of the Stratofly consortium. of the 19th century: the ancient arsenal, the Children’s and Scientists and engineers on both sides of the Atlantic are At that heady altitude, there’s little turbulence or bad With hypersonic flight, she adds, “it will be so much easier Guardian Angels’ Chapel and the former Catholic school. developing airliners that would slash the time now required weather. Experts say passengers would experience smooth to travel to distant destinations.” Integrity for long flights. The planes would not only fly faster than flights and see the curvature of the Earth — though the view By flying at altitudes beyond the reach of conventional The property comprises the entire monastic ensemble with conventional airliners but also the vaunted Concorde, whose would likely be visible through weight-saving window-like airliners, Viola says, Stratofly might also help ease the con- the archives of the Abbey as well as the Abbatial Library and top speed was Mach 2.04, or a bit more than twice the speed video screens rather than actual windows. gestion that is expected to be an increasing problem as the all the restructuring developments over more than 1200 years, of sound (1,354 miles per hour at cruising altitude). “It would be like going to space,” says Michael Smart, population swells and more and more people take to the skies. and consequently retains all the necessary elements to express Some researchers are working on a new generation of a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Technological challenges its Outstanding Universal Value. supersonic airliners, capable of speeds between Mach 1 and Queensland’s Centre for Hypersonics in Brisbane, , Later this year, the Stratofly consortium plans to begin Authenticity Mach 5. Others are dreaming bigger. who is not involved in the Stratofly project. wind tunnel tests of the engine components. But it will take The property reflects an architectural development span- Last year, Boeing unveiled a design for a plane capable of Shrinking the globe many years to bring Stratofly to life. The key technologies ning several centuries, and bears witness to well-preserved reaching Mach 5, the low end of a realm known as hypersonic While the Concorde was used primarily for transatlantic might not be ready until 2035, Viola says, with another material and original substance, with a continuous religious, speed. And the Stratofly MR3, a 300-passenger airliner under flights, Stratofly would likely be reserved for longer journeys. decade needed before flight tests are completed and the cultural and public function. development by a European consortium that includes the German It could zip from New York City to Sydney, Australia, in about plane is ready to carry passengers. (Source: UNESCO) Aerospace Center, the French Aerospace Lab and eight other three hours, according to the consortium, or make the trip (Source: NBC News) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 HEALTH 11 More of any physical activity How to teach your kids to live a healthy lifestyle tied to longer life By Calah Alexander Research clearly shows that increasing phys- The studies had categorized physical As with most areas of parenting, the first step is to show them ical activity, regardless of intensity, relates activity as light, moderate, or vigorous and what it looks like. to a significantly lower risk of dying. Even had estimated the amount of daily time Five years ago, our family lifestyle was not healthy. We ate light exercise, such as walking, can make a spent doing each. dessert every night and spent so much time in front of the TV difference. The researchers give examples of light that weekend movie nights increasingly became an extensive Even taking a simple walk can make a physical activity as walking, washing dishes, search for something we *hadn’t* already seen. difference to a person’s longevity. and cooking. Sure, I fed my kids token greens with dinner — sometimes. Researchers came to this conclusion after Moderate activity includes mowing grass, I took them to the park — sometimes. But those were supple- analyzing data from published research that brisk walking, and vacuuming, while dig- mentary additions to our unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle. A had involved the use of wearable trackers to ging, jogging, and carrying heavy weights lifestyle that was making all of us unhealthy, lazy, and miserable. measure the physical activity in adults who are examples of intense physical activity. Those might seem like harsh words, but I chose them be- were middle-aged and older. The team arranged the results into quar- cause they’re true. They were true then, however much I tried A recent BMJ paper gives a full account ters, ranging from the 25% most active to to ignore it or excuse it away as “survival mode.” of the systematic review and meta-analysis. the 25% least active participants. After my youngest child Isaac was born, I reached the end The analysis also reveals that sitting for Of the participants, 5.9% (2,149 indi- of my rope. I was tired of my kids fighting over the remote, more than 9.5 hours per day is linked to a viduals) died during the followup. The re- tired of my clothes not fitting, and tired of feeling so dang significantly higher risk of early death. searchers used these deaths to calculate tired. Perhaps most importantly, I was desperate for some The findings largely confirm those of the risk of death for the most to the least sort of meaningful connection with my family. So I signed us previous studies on links between physical active participants. all up for taekwondo. activity, sedentary behavior, and longevity. Any level of activity makes a Yes, all of us — me included. In case you’re wondering, According to the researchers, most health difference the local taekwondo school didn’t offer adult classes at that guidelines about minimum levels of exer- After adjusting the results for factors point, so I took the kids’ class. The little kids’ class, with the cise have relied mainly on studies that used that could influence them, the team found 6- to 10-year-olds, who were all more coordinated and far self-reported levels of activity. that any level of activity — whether it was more conditioned than I was. That first class was humiliating, The researchers note that their new in- light, moderate, or vigorous — related to but afterwards my kids were bubbling with excitement. They vestigation is significant because they only a significantly lower risk of death during talked about taekwondo until they went to sleep and picked included those studies that measured physical the followup. it right back up in the morning. They loved that I was doing activity using accelerometers. These wearable a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate or Institute of Public Health, both in Oslo, The 25% most active participants had a it with them, and embarrassment aside, I loved it too. So we movement sensors can track the amount and 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week. Norway. Yates is a professor of physical 60–70% lower risk of death compared with kept going. intensity of activity during waking hours. While the guidelines mention light ac- activity, sedentary behavior, and health at the 25% least active. There were around Sedentary behavior and light tivity as a good start to reaching this level the University of Leicester in the United five times more deaths in the least active exercise and beneficial to health, the emphasis is Kingdom. compared with the most active group. The team also wanted to clarify the effect mostly on moderate and vigorous activity. What the researchers analyzed In addition, sitting for a total of 9.5 of sedentary behavior. The guidelines advise Does this mean that light activity has less For their study, Prof. Ekelund and col- hours a day or more, not counting time people to spend less time sitting, but they impact on health and longevity, especially leagues set out to examine links between spent sleeping, was linked to a statistically do not specify how much sitting is harmful. for adults in their middle years and older, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and significant raised risk of death. Another question that the new study than moderate and vigorous activity? risk of death in middle-aged and older adults. The researchers suggest the findings clarifies is the contribution of low intensity “Answering these questions [has] huge Their analysis included data on a total reinforce that any level of physical activity activity. relevance for health promotion,” state two of 36,383 adults of minimum age 40 years — even light exercise that is within reach Research on physical activity in mid- of the authors of ths new study, Ulf Ekelund and average age 62 years. of most people — is beneficial. dle-aged and older adults and lifespan suggests and Thomas Yates, in an accompanying The data came from eight studies that They observe that the effect sizes in their that it is never too late to start exercising. BMJ opinion article. had tracked activity using motion sensors results are about double the size of previous For example, the United States govern- Ekelund is a professor at the Norwegian for up to 1 week and had followed the partic- studies that have relied on self-reported data. ment’s physical activity guidelines recommend School of Sport Sciences and the Norwegian ipants after that for an average of 5.8 years. (Source: Medical News Today)

Within six months, our family life had completely transformed. Food swaps to try if you It takes years for heart to We spent evenings at taekwondo, Monday through Friday. On Saturday nights we would often go up to the empty want healthier skin recover from smoking gym to practice, or take turns using the new punching bag Besides sun exposure, the main culprit When you stop smoking, your heart in our garage. for skin damage and premature aging is starts to right away, but a full When we did watch TV, it was often old seasons of American something called advanced glycation end recovery can take as long as 15 years, a Ninja Warrior — after which, inspired, we would go to the products, aka AGEs. These AGEs (appro- new study suggests. playground and lache across the monkey bars or pretend the priate name, huh?) are formed when fat “The benefit of quitting smoking cannot big slide was the warped wall. We quickly learned that eating or protein combines with sugar in our be overstated -- the cardiovascular sys- granola bars and ice cream would make us feel horrible at bloodstream. tem begins to recover quickly, with some taekwondo, so we started eating more nutritiously. The kids Sweet potato fries physiologic changes happening within embraced smoothies and scrambled eggs, and I picked up the habit of eating the proverbial apple a day. In short, we French fries may be tasty, but they aren’t hours,” said lead researcher Meredith fell into the habit of healthy living almost as a side effect of exactly the best choice when it comes to Duncan, of the division of cardiovascular our newfound hobby. healthy skin — as both fried foods and salt medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical can be harmful for the body in the long-term. ation, which can damage collagen and During an average follow-up of 26 Since then, we’ve moved across the country and taken a Center in Nashville, Tenn. Foods fried in oil at high temperatures elasticity. years, more than 2,400 participants hiatus from taekwondo. Duncan and her team found that within release free radicals, which can speed up the For a healthy skin swap, try using had a heart attack, stroke, heart failure My kids are in various sports and I work as a personal five years after quitting, your risk of heart aging process and cause cellular damage avocado or olive oil in its place. You or died from heart disease. Of these, trainer, so you’d think we’d have this healthy lifestyle thing to the skin. can spread these on a sandwich or use disease is significantly lower than that nearly 1,100 were heavy smokers, the down. Not so, my friends. Living a healthy lifestyle isn’t a one- Instead of regular old fries, reach for them to top toast or a baked potato — of people who continue to puff away. researchers found. and-done deal — there’s no magic switch that, once flipped, oven-baked sweet potato fries. Sweet po- the possibilities are endless, and you’ll But it takes 10 to 15 years before your Dr. Gregg Fonarow, director of the stays that way. tatoes are rich in anti-aging copper which reap the benefits from their anti-aging risk is similar to that of someone who Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center Like all things, a healthy lifestyle is a balancing act. aids in the production of collagen. Did we antioxidants. never smoked. in Los Angeles, said nearly every study of As I’ve learned over my 14 years of motherhood, if you want mention they’re delicious, too? Fruit with honey and yogurt Experts have long thought that an former smokers finds that their risk for to teach your kids anything, you have to start by showing them. Poultry Consuming too much sugar, especial- ex-smoker’s risk of heart attack, stroke, heart events is lower than that of those So feeding your kids kale chips while you binge on Doritos in Processed meats — like hot dogs or pep- ly added sugars, can lead to a number of heart failure or death from heart disease who continue to smoke. the pantry isn’t going to get you very far. peroni — often contain very high amounts health issues. But the sweet stuff can also returns to normal within five years. “It’s never too late, from a cardiovas- If you want to teach your kids to live a healthy lifestyle, of sodium, sulfites, and saturated fat. All really accelerate the aging process of skin Given this new finding, Duncan said cular risk standpoint, to stop smoking,” you have to figure out how to live one yourself. Luckily, while of these have been shown to dehydrate the by damaging collagen. doctors should consider that heavy smok- he said, no matter how much you smoke it might not be effortless, living a healthy lifestyle is actually skin and cause inflammation. When craving that after-dinner dessert, ers who stop will have a higher-than-nor- or how long you’ve done so. pretty simple. You just have to make sure you get enough of what you need, and keep everything else for special occasions. Leaner swaps like grilled chicken and try satisfying your sweet tooth with fresh mal risk for heart problems for at least Fonarow pointed out that smoking is fruit and yogurt (preferably Greek, which It doesn’t have to be overwhelming, y’all — you don’t need baked turkey are packed with amino acids a decade. a leading cause of heart attacks, strokes, is higher in protein) drizzled with honey. to go into Whole 30 mode and throw out half your pantry. that are important to the natural forma- “Full recovery may take several years, heart failure, peripheral vascular disease tion of collagen. They’re also a delicious . Instead of focusing on what not to do (or eat), have an abun- so today is a great day for current smokers and premature death. “Quitting signifi- source of lean protein, which will keep you Sprouted wheat bread to quit smoking, and make a doctor’s dance mentality. cantly lowers this risk,” he said. If you want to increase your health, you need more of these satiated all day long. Nix the refined and processed carbs appointment to plan for successful long- if radiant skin is your goal. Researchers But the length of time when the risk is 3 main things: Plus, BBQ chicken burgers or tur- term cessation and to discuss other steps have foundTrusted Source a potential link reduced to the same level as people who More sleep key-stuffed zucchini pizza? We dig it. toward heart health,” she said. Olive oil or avocado between spikes in blood sugar — which never smoked has been estimated to be Sleep is magical. If you don’t get enough sleep — even for For the study, her team collected data Margarine is a processed spread that refined carbs can cause — to higher AGE anywhere between two and 20 years, he said. one night! — your body starts to crash. You can’t think clearly on nearly 8,800 men and women who took looks and tastes like butter, but is made levels in the body. It’s usually pegged at five years, he added. because your neurons aren’t firing efficiently. Your immune part in the Framingham Heart Study, a from vegetable oils and marketed as a Instead, reach for antioxidant-rich This new study among heavy smokers system takes a nose dive. Your metabolism slows down. Your heart-healthy alternative. sprouted grain breads that contain no long-term, ongoing study of factors that doubles that time. muscles react less quickly, and you lose strength and cardio- However, it’s often high in trans fats. added sugars. contribute to heart disease. “It is best to never start smoking,” Fon- vascular function. Now compound those effects over a week, One study on rats found that an increased They’re hearty and make a filling ad- Among the study participants, nearly arow said. “For those who do smoke, it is or a month … is it any wonder you’re cranky, tired, and it’s intake of trans fatty acids from the kinds dition to your breakfast or lunches. Your 2,400 were heavy tobacco users, meaning important to completely quit as soon as hard to get up from the couch? Making sleep a priority is the of vegetable oils used in margarine can skin will thank you. they smoked at least one pack of cigarettes possible.” easiest, most effective way to reset your family’s lifestyle. make skin more vulnerable to UV radi- (Source: healthline.com) a day for 20 years, or an equivalent. (Source: Health Day News) More sunshine We spend way too much time indoors, full stop. Not only does this negatively impact our bodies (think Vitamin D de- ficiency, crashing immune system), but it also takes a toll on Optic nerve stimulation to aid the blind our psychological state. We’ve evolved to respond to external Biomedical Engineering. patterns, without seeing light directly. Reti- the stimulation, because they kept on seeing stimuli — the wind, the sun, the cold, the grass under our feet. “We believe that intraneural stimulation nal implants, a prosthetic device for helping something different. Moreover, they prob- Depriving ourselves of those stimuli literally starves our brains can be a valuable solution for several neu- the blind, suffer from exclusion criteria. For ably have limited selectivity because they of what they need to develop and function properly. And if roprosthetic devices for sensory and motor example, ½ million people worldwide are recruited superficial fibers.” you decide to take a walk or go for a run once you’re there? function restoration. The translational poten- blind due to Retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic Intraneural electrodes may indeed be the Bonus points for more exercise! tials of this approach are indeed extremely disorder, but only a few hundred patients answer for providing rich visual informa- More water, more nutrients promising,” explains Silvestro Micera, EPFL’s qualify for retinal implants for clinical rea- tion to the subjects. They are also stable and Making healthy food choices doesn’t have to be complicated, Bertarelli Foundation Chair in Translational sons. A brain implant that stimulates the less likely to move around once implanted especially at the beginning. Keep it simple — drink water, more Neuroengineering, and Professor of Bioelec- visual cortex directly is another strategy in a subject, according to the scientists. Cuff water, and only water. Eat food from the earth — anything that tronics at Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, who albeit risky. A priori, the new intraneural electrodes are surgically placed around the grew in or out of the ground, that walked on the grass or swam continues to innovate in hand prosthetics solution minimizes exclusion criteria since nerve, whereas intraneural electrodes pierce in the ocean. If you want baked goods, make them yourself, or for amputees using intraneural electrodes. the optic nerve and the pathway to the brain through the nerve. buy them from the person who did. Just eliminate the whole Blindness affects an estimated 39 million are often intact. Together, Ghezzi, Micera and their teams factory-processed factor, and you will drastically increase the Scientists from EPFL in Switzerland and Scuo- people in the world. Many factors can induce Previous attempts to stimulate the optic engineered the OpticSELINE, an electrode nutrient density in your family’s food. la Superiore Sant’Anna in Italy are developing blindness, like genetics, retinal detachment, nerve in the 1990s provided inconclusive array of 12 electrodes. In order to understand Another way to present this to your kids is to tie it back to technology for the blind that bypasses the trauma, stroke in the visual cortex, glaucoma, results. EPFL’s Medtronic Chair in Neuro- how effective these electrodes are at stim- faith. Explain that your family is going to show gratitude to eyeball entirely and sends messages to the cataract, inflammation or infection. Some engineering Diego Ghezzi explains, “Back ulating the various nerve fibers within the God by using the gifts he’s given us as human beings. Sleeping brain. They do this by stimulating the optic blindness is temporary and can be treated then, they used cuff nerve electrodes. The optic nerve, the scientists delivered electric enough, enjoying the sunshine, and eating the fruits of the earth nerve with a new type of intraneural electrode medically. How do you help someone who problem is that these electrodes are rigid and current to the optic nerve via OpticSELINE are ways we can glorify God by appreciating and enjoying his called OpticSELINE. Successfully tested in is permanently blind? they move around, so the electrical stimu- and measured the brain’s activity in the visual creation — just as we were created to do. rabbits, they report their results in Nature The idea is to produce phosphenes, the lation of the nerve fibers becomes unstable. cortex. (Source: aleteia.org) sensation of seeing light in the form of white The patients had a difficult time interpreting (Source: Science Daily) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 12 SOCIETY AUGUST 28, 2019

FAO highlights great potential of Illegal trade of unique Persian genetic improvements in aqua- culture for better food security horned viper banned Wider, appropriate and long-term application of genetic im- ENVIRONMENT TEHRAN — Illegal office in Iran set out to send a proposal provement in aquaculture, with a focus on selective breeding, desktrade of spider-tailed to the Convention Secretariat to add spi- will help boost food production to meet a projected increase horned viper, a unique species of viper der-tailed horned viper on the Convention’s in demand for fish and fish products with relatively little ex- endemic to western Iran, has been banned list and thus prevent its illegal trade in tra feed, land, water and other inputs, according to a new by the Convention on International Trade early March. FAO report titled The State of the World’s Aquatic Genetic in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Appendix I includes species threatened Resources for Food and Agriculture. Flora (CITES), Hamid Zohrabi, deputy with extinction; trade in specimens of these Department of Environment (DOE) chief species is permitted only in exception- has announced. al circumstances. Appendix II includes Being pushed toward extinction through species not necessarily threatened with poaching, the spider-tailed horned viper extinction, but in which trade must be has been discovered in 2006. The ven- controlled in order to avoid utilization omous snake has a unique tail that has a incompatible with their survival. bulb-like end bordered by long drooping So, any trade of the species is permitted scales that give it the appearance of a spider, only with the CITES’s permission, and all which is waved around and used to lure 183 member parties are obliged to con- insectivorous birds to within striking range. trol the ports and prevent the trade of The 18th meeting of the Conference this viper, Zohrabi said, ISNA reported of the Parties to the CITES CoP18 took on Tuesday. place in Geneva, Switzerland, from 17- There is no accurate statistics of spi- 28 August 2019, through which Iran’s There is no accurate statistics of spider- der-tailed horned viper population due Aquaculture is lagging far behind terrestrial agriculture proposal to add rare spider-tailed horned tailed horned viper population due to lack to lack of precise studies to determine - both crops and livestock - in terms of the characterization, viper on the Convention’s Appendix II the number of species, but it is spotted domestication and improvement of its genetic resources for food have been accepted. of precise studies to determine the number in the province of Ilam and is also found production. The report concludes that we have the opportunity Following the CITES mission designed of species, but it is spotted in the province in the provinces of Kermanshah and to significantly enhance sustainable aquaculture production to protect endangered species against ille- of Ilam and is also found in the provinces Lorestan. through the strategic management and development of some gal trade, and based on the international Spider-tailed horned viper was declared of the more than 550 species currently used in aquaculture. demand for such illegal trade, the CITES of Kermanshah and Lorestan. endangered by the DOE in November 2018. According to this new FAO report, we are still largely farm- ing wild fish, with 45 percent of cultured species being little different from their wild counterparts. Extinguished fire reignites burning Traps picture 10 Persian in The report stresses the potential for sustainable production gains through the genetic improvement of farmed aquatic forest southwestern Iran resources. Unleashing the potential of aquaculture According to FAO, a growing human population is expected to drive an increase in fish consumption of approximately 1.2 percent per annum over the next decade. Production of fish and fish products is estimated to reach over 200 million tonnes by 2030. Given that production from the world’s capture fisheries has stabilized at about 90-95 million tonnes per annum, with nearly a third of marine fish stocks being overfished, there is little scope for additional production in the foreseeable future except through loss and waste and efficiencies management. The expected growth in demand for fish and fish products therefore needs to be largely met from aquaculture. In this context, the responsible and sustainable use of aquatic genetic resources will be essential to fulfil this role. Numerous technologies are available to improve aquatic genetic resources with FAO recommending a focus on well-de- signed, long-term selective breeding programmes, which can ENVIRONMENT TEHRAN — While has been burnt in the fire. ENVIRONMENT TEHRAN — Camera conservation-related decisions, typically increase productivity of aquatic species by 10 percent per deskefforts have been Measures prevented the spread of desktraps have succeeded because protecting these species indi- generation. made to put out the wildfire erupted fire but partially continued in some in taking photos of 10 Persian leopards rectly protects the many other species FAO and Iran cooperation for aquaculture ge- in northwestern Arasbaran forest, it areas, he lamented, adding, “If we inhabiting in National Park, lo- that make up the ecological community netic improvement reignited and burnt the forest, head of have been provided the facilities on cated in southwestern Kohgiluyeh and of its habitat, such as Persian . In this framework, FAO in Iran in coordination with the Ira- East Azarbaijan’s disaster management the first day fire started, it would not Boyer-Ahmad province, the provincial Species conservation can be subjec- nian Government is funding the project “Genetic Improvement organization has announced. have been reignited.” department of environment chief, has tive because it is hard to determine the of Rainbow Trout in Iran” aimed at creating a national strain Wildfire swept through protected Hamid Zohrabi, deputy chief of the announced. status of many species. With millions of of rainbow trout. This project provides technical and strategic areas of Dizmar village, in Varzaghan department of Environment, also said Camera traps are remotely activated species of concern, the identification of assistance to Iran in implementing an integrated and sustainable , last week. Although the mas- that there is a doubt about whether and equipped with motion sensors or selected keystone species, flagship species management system for selective breeding of rainbow trout. sive fire was put out but it has been the fire caused intentionally to own infrared sensors, which capture wild or umbrella species makes conservation Many wild species are under threat reignited hours later. parts of the forest, several suspects animals on film. decisions easier. The report notes that all farmed species still have wild Since yesterday, fire swept through have been arrested, but investigations “Since less than a year, cameras have The Persian leopard is listed as En- relatives in nature but many of these wild species are under two villages in Khoda-Afarin county, are still ongoing. been installed in protected areas of the dangered on the International Union threat and are in need of targeted and prioritized conservation. ISNA quoted Mohammad Baqer Ho- He went on to explain that although province as well as Dena National Park, for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red According to the report, the most depleted wild relatives narbar as saying on Tuesday. the burnt lands are not in a position which captured photos of the Persian List; the population is estimated at fewer of cultured species are Russian sturgeon, huchen, beluga Forces are still operating trying to where the offenders intended to own, leopards,” Mehr quoted Mohsen Ja- than 871–1,290 mature individuals and sturgeon, Atlantic salmon and brown trout. spray water on areas susceptible to it is clear that fire have been started farinejad Bastami as saying on Sunday. considered declining. Strengthening policies and cross-sectoral ap- spontaneous ignition by helicopter, deliberately. The photos show a male, a female and According to the Department of Envi- proach he added. Arasbaran is a large mountainous an immature leopard, while more time ronment, 156 leopards have been killed Food and nutrition security depend on a diverse and healthy Despite efforts made to extinguish area stretching from the Qusha Dagh and expertise is required to investigate in Iran from 2005 to 2014, nearly 20 food basket, of which aquatic food is an important component. the fire, rising temperatures, winds, massif, south of , to the Aras River other recorded images, he noted. leopards a year. Studies indicate that Therefore, aquatic genetic resources should be included in impassable ways in the area and human in East Azarbaijan province. The region Since past years, many Persian currently there are less than 500 leop- broader food security and nutrition policies. involvements have prevented the long is confined to Aras River in the north, leopards have been photographed in ards nationwide. (Source: FAO) lasting flames to be fully extinguished, Meshgin Shahr county and Moghan this valuable biosphere, but spotting Persian leopards are mainly threatened he lamented. in the east, Sarab county in the south, 10 leopards at the same time, whose by poaching, depletion of their prey base Davar Namdar, head of provincial and Tabriz and counties in images also testify to their health and due to poaching, human disturbances, forests, range and watershed manage- the west. fitness, is a unique and rare event in the habitat loss due to deforestation, fire, WORDS IN THE NEWS ment department, said that 300 hec- Arasbaran protected area measures area, he highlighted. agricultural expansion, overgrazing, and tares of Arasbaran forests have turned 78,560 hectares with a circumference As an umbrella species, the leopard infrastructure development. Indonesian President and into ashes. of 134 kilometers. The altitude varies plays an important role in the population In Iran, primary threats are habitat Australian PM Meet He went on to note that rangelands, from 256 meters in the northern part dynamics of other species, especially their disturbances followed by illegal hunting forests, and lands covered with oak, horn- to 2,896 meters which is the highest prey, he concluded. and excess of livestock in the leopard hab- (August 10, 2001) beam, cotoneaster, crown of thorns, as elevation in southern part of the area, In conservation biology, Umbrella itats. The leopards’ chances for survival In Indonesia, President Megawati Sukarnoputri and the Australian well as rare and valuable Juniper species according to the UNESCO website. species are species selected for making outside protected areas appear very slim. Prime Minister John Howard, have signed a joint communiqué promising to develop strong relations between the two countries. This report from Richard Galpin. ENGLISH IN USE Throughout this visit Prime Minister Howard has stressed the need for a fresh start in relations with Indonesia. It was he who LEARN NEWS TRANSLATION two years ago ensured that Australian troops played a leading role in the international intervention force which took control of East Timor after it voted for independence from Indonesia. 2 billion tons of soil erodes annually Relations then hit an all-time low. But now it seems that both فرسایش ساالنه ۲ میلیارد تن خاک در ایران he and Mrs Megawati want to put the past behind them. In a in Iran: expert کارشــناس محیــط زیســت و گیــاه شــناس گفــت: ســاالنه ۲ میلیــارد تــن خــاک در ایــران بــه دلیــل ,communique signed on Monday Mr Howard reaffirmed Aus- Iran loses 2 billion tons of soil per year as a result of land use changes tralia’s commitment to Indonesia’s territorial integrity, and rainfed agriculture, and overgrazing, Hossein Akhani, environmental تغییــر کاربــری زمیــن، کشــت دیــم و چــرای بــی رویــه فرســایش م ی شــود. .support for its economic recovery بــه گزارش خبرنگار حــوزه محیــط زیســت گروه اجتماعــی باشــگاه خبرنــگاران جــوان، حســین .But there are still sensitive issues. There’s particular concern in and botanical expert has announced Australia over reports of human rights abuses, committed by “Sometimes, to support agriculture, land use changes permits are issued, آخانی اظهــار کــرد: : برخــی زم انهــا بــرای حمایــت از کشــاورزی اجــازه تغییرکاربــری بــه زمیــن while being unaware of its dire consequences on the soil,” he lamented, YJC داده م یشــود، امــا غافــل از ایــن هســتیم کــه بــه دلیــل ناپایــداری خاک دههــا برابرخســارت ناشــی the Indonesian security forces in Aceh and Irian Jaya as they try to crush the separatist movement there. In the communique reported on Saturday. از آن را بایــد تحمــل کنیــم. there’s specific mention of the need for the Indonesian govern- “Iran is responsible for the loss of 10 percent of the world’s total soil erosion وی بیــان کــرد: ایــران ده درصــد کل فرســایش خــاک جهــان را دارد و ایــن بــه دلیــل کشــاورزی ment to focus on dialogue, greater respect for human rights and per year due to unsustainable agriculture, overgrazing, destruction of ناپایــدار، چــرای بــی ریــه، از بیــن بــردن شــبکه هیدرولوژیــک )منابــع تامیــن کننــده آب از طریــق implementing regional autonomy in these provinces to natural reservoirs (interconnected sources of water supply such as rivers resolve the separatist problem peacefully. crossing the mountains),” he said, regretting, humans with uncontrolled شــبکه رودخانــه و زیــر زمینــی کــه هــردو بــا هــم در ارتبــاط هســتند(، انســان بــا دخال تهــای بــی Words interference, such as damping numerous wells have led to the collapse رویــه از جمله ســد ســازی و حفــر چــاه منجــر بــه بــر هــم خــوردن ایــن ارتب اطهــا شــده اســت a fresh start: a new beginning of these connections and prevented water from reaching some regions وباعــث نرســیدن آب بــه مناطــق مختلــف ایــران شــود. .an all-time low: the worst level ever reached. of the country to put the past behind them: to forget the past and concentrate on the future. communiqué: an official statement or announcement. territorial integrity: the land a country (Indonesia) controls PREFIX/SUFFIX PHRASAL VERB IDIOM seen as a united, connected whole. “extra-” Piddle around A cut above separatist: a person or group who favors separation from a larger unit: e.g. so as to achieve political independence. Meaning: beyond Meaning: to waste time doing things that are not Explanation: someone or something that is a cut Implementing: putting a plan into action For example: We’ve made extraordinary progress important above the others is better or of higher quality regional autonomy: government of the regions by the regions as a society in that regard. For example: We should stop piddling around and For example: The articles in this magazine are a cut themselves. get busy. above the others. (Source: BBC) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 WORLD IN FOCUS 13

Iraqi bloc calls for U.S. troop Twins of Resistance: Twins of Martyrdom

1 The two young men could painstakingly go beyond this withdrawal after Israeli air raids ordeal of attending different universities and getting separated. They had been together for so long, became true brothers, studied together, had ups and downs and held special spot in each other’s 1 Israeli also launched a similar by any side but U.S. officials have said Israel hearts. However, Distance made no difference and was not for attack against Hezbollah in Lebanon, which was behind at least one of the attacks. the faint of Hassan and Yasser’s spirits as they had occasional Beirut called a “declaration of war”. The Shia groups have blamed the attacks meetings from one time to another. The movement said late on Monday that on Israel but hold its ally the U.S. ultimately the drones were carrying explosives. responsible. The Shia group, meanwhile, held a funeral Iraqi Lawmaker Ahmed al-Asadi said procession in Baghdad for the commander the parliament would hold an emergency killed on Sunday. meeting in the coming days “to discuss “There is no greater God but God!” the this issue and take the appropriate de- mourners shouted as they marched behind cisions.” a banner with the words “Death to America” Separately on Monday, Iraqi President and “Death to Israel.” Some trampled on an Barham Saleh hosted a meeting with Prime American flag as they marched. Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Parliament The Pentagon issued a statement Mon- Speaker Mohamed al-Halbousi and PMU day denying responsibility for the recent leaders regarding the aerial assaults. attacks and promising to cooperate with A statement issued after the meeting Iraqi investigations. described the attacks as a “blatant act of “We support Iraqi sovereignty and have aggression” meant to drag the PMU away repeatedly spoken out against any potential from its role of eradicating remnants of the actions by external actors inciting violence Daesh Takfiri terrorist group. in Iraq, “ Pentagon spokesman Jonathan R “These attacks are a blatant, hostile act After strenuous attempts, the friends succeeded to fi- Hoffman said. protect their democracy.” military bases and a weapons depot suspected that target Iraq,” it said, adding, “Iraqi sov- nally reunion and move to Imam Hussein University (AS) “The government of Iraq has the right Anger is mounting in Iraq following a spate of belonging to Iran-backed militias. ereignty and the well-being of its people in Tehran, where they regained their cheerful souls, it is to control their own internal security and of mysterious air raids that have targeted The drone attacks have not been claimed are a red line.” like no time has passed at all. They emerged victorious and miles failed neither to drive a wedge between their extraordinary spiritual closeness nor to shake such divine sturdy ambition they had. The two young men returned to Lebanon and joined the Erdogan in Russia for Syria talks with Putin same unit in the resistance, as they had firmly insisted to work at the same position and to never apart. Hassan and Yasser’s TEHRAN — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has of Erdogan but said he’s also very worried about the move- impenetrable bond could never rip apart as both were obvi- arrived in Russia for a meeting with his Russian counter- ments of the rebels against Russian forces,” Vaessen said. ously far too invested in each other and committed to a lofty part, Vladimir Putin, about the situation in northern Syria, Turkey has been a vocal opponent of Syrian Presi- cause: Martyrdom. where both the countries have strategic interests. dent Bashar al-Assad and backs rebels fighting for his removal. It is outstanding to be around such courageous company The meeting was set up after a phone call between Er- “Russia is kind of impatient with how Turkey has re- that forces courage and willpower to seep into your soul. A dogan and Putin in which the Turkish president described sponded since that deal that was signed a year ago in Sochi friend says that he had recently asked Hassan if he is going to the situation in Idlib as a humanitarian disaster and a threat where they promised to reign in the rebels,” she added. take part in Ziyarat al-Arbaeen this year. ‘’He just laughed,’’ he to national security in Turkey. After his arrival, Erdogan was shown around at an air- notes. For silence is the sign of acceptance, yes they will both The two leaders are expected to hold a news conference show, where Putin showed the Turkish leader the latest attend the sacred rituals this year after they had long been later on Tuesday. military technology. sincere companions of the Hussein of their time, i.e. Sayyed Despite signing a deal a year ago to create a de-escalation “Erdogan has been shown around in this expo [by Putin], Hassan Nasrullah. zone near the rebel-held stronghold of Idlib, tension between and he was shown the latest Sukhoi fighter yet. It seems like Hassan and Yasser were resting together in a house in Damascus, the two countries has risen in the last two weeks after an Putin is in a selling mood but it’s not so clear if Erdogan is on the night of the Zionist treacherous assault. As they vowed to air raid by the Russian-backed Syrian military targeted a in a buying mood,” Vaessen said. never part, martyrdom failed to separate them and instead, as Turkish convoy passing through Idlib province. Ankara’s purchase of the advanced S-400 missile sys- they long yearned, united their dedicated souls forever, beyond Both countries are unhappy with their policy regard- tem is a factor in keeping the relationship between the two words, beyond distance, beyond time! ing Syria, Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen said. countries on track. The U.S. has said the S-400 system will not integrate “Erdogan wants Putin to reign in the Syrian forces. Presi- That purchase has created a rift between Turkey and into existing NATO systems and has threatened Turkey dent Putin’s spokesperson said he understands the concerns its NATO partners, especially the United States. with sanctions because of the purchase, Al Jazeera reported. Economic benefits foreseen in INSTEX will not meet Trump denies he wanted to nuke hurricanes requirements of Iran: TEHRAN — U.S. President Donald Trump “fake news,” in his latest swipe at the media. bombs be used. less to say, this is not a good idea,” it said. Heinonen Monday denied an Axios report that he wanted “The story by Axios that President Trump The idea of bombing hurricanes is not a The U.S. is regularly pummeled by hurri- to drop nuclear bombs on hurricanes before wanted to blow up large hurricanes with new one - and was originally proposed by canes. In 2017 one named Harvey became the 1 they made landfall in the United States, calling nuclear weapons prior to reaching shore a government scientist in the 1950s under strongest hurricane to make landfall in 12 years. In your opinion, will the third phase of reducing it “ridiculous.” During a briefing, Trump asked is ridiculous. I never said this. Just more President Dwight Eisenhower. Twitter lit up with reactions to the Axios Iran’s commitments in the JCPOA be dangerous? Will if it would be possible to disrupt hurricanes FAKE NEWS!” he tweeted. Since then it has continued to pop up, story, with many users appearing shocked. Iran’s case go to the United Nations Security Council after forming off the coast of Africa by dropping The White House declined to comment on even though scientists agree it would not “Not ‘The Onion,’” one user wrote, referring third step of reducing its commitments? a nuclear bomb in the eye of the storm, a the report earlier, but Axios quoted a senior work. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric to the satirical news publication known for A: There are three avenues to have the UN Security report on the Axios website said Sunday. administration official as saying Trump’s Administration has a page dedicated to the outlandish headlines. Council engaged. One option is just go directly to the UN According to an anonymous source, the “objective is not bad.” concept. “During each hurricane season, “What could possibly go wrong?” an- Security Council, and a second is the route of invoking the news website said that attendees left the Axios said the president had previously there always appear suggestions that one other asked. conflict resolution process of the JCPOA. At this stage, de- hurricane briefing thinking, “What do we made a similar suggestion in a 2017 conver- should simply use nuclear weapons to try Many tweets also included the hashtag pending on the reduction of commitments by Iran, both of do with this?” sation, asking a senior official whether the and destroy the storms,” the NOAA said. #ThatsHowTheApocalypseStarted. them are difficult. A third option is an IAEA resolution on Axios did not say when this conversation administration should bomb hurricanes to Not only would a bomb not alter a storm, According to AFP, democratic presidential Iran’s non-compliance under the safeguards agreement. took place. prevent them making landfall. the winds would quickly spread radioactive hopeful Kamala Harris weighed in as well, The atomic archives found in Teheran strongly indicate But Trump slammed the story, calling it Trump did not specify in 2017 that nuclear fallout over nearby land, NOAA added. “Need- tweeting, “Dude’s gotta go.” that Iran could be in breach of its obligations in declaring facilities designed and constructed for nuclear weapon related purposes in early 2000’s, which should have been included in the declarations made to the IAEA. Can the United States impose new sanctions on Iran Sanders, Biden and Warren in three-way lead for Democratic bid after the third step in reducing Iran’s commitments under JCPOA? TEHRAN — Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Massachu- Biden also lost support among those who don’t have a A: The United States has already shown its pre- setts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President college degree (down 17 points) and those under the age paredness to impose strong sanctions and additional Joe Biden top the Democratic field for president in 2020, of 50 (down 15 points). sanctions will likely be imposed unilaterally. But the with no clear leader, according to a Monmouth University Biden, Sanders and Warren all have similar favorable fact that the original implementation parameters will poll released. ratings -- around two-thirds of registered Democrats and be substantially compromised with Iran’s reduction of The three candidates are bunched together, each re- leaners have a positive opinion of the candidates, but Warren its commitments, one can also expect the U.S. to seek ceiving about the same amount of support (Sanders 20%, has a much lower unfavorable rating than the other two (13% international support in its actions, for example through Warren 20% and Biden 19%) from registered Democrats find the Massachusetts senator unfavorable, compared to the UN Security Council. and Democratic-leaning independent voters. a 25% for Biden and 24% for Sanders). The only way out from the stalemate is, in my view, a They’re followed by California Sen. Kamala Harris (8%), Additionally, Warren’s favorability has gone up slightly new/improved agreement, which will address the defi- New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker (4%), South Bend, Indiana, since May, while Sanders has remained steady and Biden ciencies of the JCPOA. Every day spent in saying that the Mayor Pete Buttigieg (4%), businessman Andrew Yang has slipped. JCPOA cannot be amended, is a day wasted. (3%), former Housing and Urban Development Secretary On the subject of health care, more than half (58%) of Julián Castro (2%), former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (2%) and Democratic voters say it’s very important that they nominate author Marianne Williamson (2%). All other candidates someone who supports “Medicare for All,” and another half received 1% or less in the poll. (53%) want to allow people to either opt in to Medicare or Hariri delivers warning to Since Monmouth’s June poll, Sanders and Warren have her one debate qualifying poll. Williamson, who has said keep their private coverage over getting rid of all private gained slightly (up 6 and 5 percentage points), while Biden she has met the donor threshold, would need three more insurance (22%). Israel through Russia has lost significant support (down 13 points). The Monmouth University Poll of registered Democrats polls to qualify. His remarks came during a meeting with French, A CNN poll conducted by SSRS, out last week, found and Democratic-leaning independent voters was conduct- 1 Biden’s decline comes mostly from registered Democrats Chinese, U.S., Russian and British ambassadors to Lebanon. Biden with 29% support, while Sanders and Warren were ed by telephone August 16 through 20 among a random and Democratic-leaning independent voters who consider Separately, Lebanese President Michel Aoun said Israel’s lower (15% and 14%, respectively). sample of 800 adults in the United States. Results in this themselves moderate or conservative, down 18 points since recent drone strikes in Lebanon amounts to “a declaration of The results don’t impact who has qualified for the de- release are based on 298 registered voters who identify as June. Meanwhile, Sanders and Warren have gained 10 per- war” against the Arab country, vowing that Lebanon will defend bates in September, with the Wednesday deadline fast ap- Democrats or lean toward the Democratic Party, which centage points each among those voters, an area that isn’t its sovereignty against the Israeli aggression. proaching. This is Williamson’s first poll hitting 2%, giving has a +/- 5.7 percentage point sampling margin of error. considered strong for either of the very liberal candidates. “What happened was similar to a declaration of war, which allows us to resort to our right to defending our sovereignty,” Aoun’s office quoted him as saying during a meeting with the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Yan Kubish British opposition parties unite to try to force PM to seek Brexit delay on Monday. The Lebanese Resistance Movement, Hezbollah, said Mon- TEHRAN — Opposition parties said they Parliament returns from its summer “We are going to come together and May to seek an extension to Britain’s EU day that Israel had sent two drones into Lebanon on a bombing would try to pass a law which would force break next week and is preparing for a do the right thing by our country,” said membership. mission on the weekend. Prime Minister Boris Johnson to seek a delay battle with Johnson, who has vowed to Anna Soubry, leader of The Independ- They also managed to change legislation According to Hezbollah, the first drone had fallen on a building to Britain’s departure from the European take Britain out of the European Union ent Group for Change party. “We are to require parliament to be sitting for several housing Hezbollah’s media office in Dahieh suburb. The second Union and prevent a potentially chaotic no- at the end of October with or without an up against a prime minister who has no days in September and October, making it drone, which appeared to have been sent by Israel to search for deal exit at the end of October. exit agreement. mandate for this and I think he has no harder for Johnson to shut down parliament the first one, had crashed in an empty plot nearby after being The United Kingdom is heading towards Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn hosted regard for parliament.” to pursue a no-deal, something he has not detonated in the air, it added. a constitutional crisis at home and a show- talks with opposition parties on Tuesday The opposition parties are seeking ruled out doing. Following the drone raids, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbol- down with the EU as Johnson has pledged where they agreed that passing a law to force to repeat what they did earlier this year The pound hit its strongest since July 29 lah’s secretary general, vowed in a televised speech that fighters to leave the bloc in 66 days without a deal the government to seek a delay to Britain’s when lawmakers seized control of the against the dollar and euro after the parties of the movement would counter any further violation of the Leb- unless Brussels agrees to renegotiate the EU departure would probably have the most parliamentary agenda to pass a law presented a united front on Tuesday, Reu- anese airspace by Israeli drones, warning the Tel Aviv regime to Brexit divorce. support. forcing Johnson’s predecessor Theresa ters reported. immediately halt such breaches. I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 14 WORLD SPORTS AUGUST 28, 2019

Cantona to receive UEFA President’s Award Federer survives scare to

Former Manchester United forward Eric Cantona will be presented the 2019 UEFA President’s Award in recognition of his playing career and commitment to charitable causes after it, European progress at US Open soccer’s governing body said on Tuesday. The 53-year-old Frenchman will receive the award in Monaco Roger Federer overcame a brief scare to beat earlier this month, is widely tipped as the on Thursday during the Champions League group stage draw. Indian qualifier Sumit Nagal in his first-round man to put an end to Djokovic, Federer and “This award not only recognizes his career as a player of the match at the US Open. Nadal’s dominance. highest caliber, but also honors him for the person he is,” UEFA The 38-year-old Swiss, who is bidding for «I always try to stay at the same time president Aleksander Ceferin said in a statement. a record sixth title in New York, lost the first a little bit away [from such talk], because “A man who refuses compromise, who stands up for his values, set before recovering to win 4-6 6-1 6-2 6-4. I always say at this moment of my career who speaks his mind and in particular, puts his heart and his Earlier on Monday, world number one I haven’t even been in the quarters of a Slam soul into supporting the causes he believes in.” Novak Djokovic progressed with a straight- yet,» he said. Cantona won four Premier League titles in five years with sets victory over Spaniard Roberto Car- «So that’s the first step to make, and if I United in the 1990s and scored 64 goals for the Old Trafford balles Baena. make this step, then I can talk about bigger club in 143 appearances. The Serb kicked off the defence of his goals and bigger achievements.» The former Auxerre, Marseille, Nimes and Leeds United player title with a 6-4 6-1 6-4 win. Japanese seventh seed Kei Nishikori raced won 45 caps with France and tried his hand at acting and beach Djokovic, 32, has reached the final on into the second round when he took a 6-1 soccer following his retirement in 1997. his past three appearances in New York but 4-1 lead before Argentine opponent Marco Cantona supports the Common Goal initiative, which funds was taken to four sets in his opening two Trungelliti retired with a back problem. soccer charities worldwide, and contributes 1% of his annual rounds last year. «It’s a little bit sad to see. He’s a great salary to the project co-founded by United’s Juan Mata. Djokovic, who has won 16 Grand Slams player,» said Nishikori, who faces 108th- Former captain David Beckham won the award in 2018. and is aiming to close the gap on Federer ranked American Bradley Klahn in the (Source: Reuters) (20) and Rafael Nadal (18), faces Argentine next round. Juan Ignacio Londero in the second round. «I played great tennis from the begin- Federer also lost the first set in his opening ning and I’m happy with the way I played. match against South African debutant Lloyd But honestly, I wanted to play a little more Seven charged over spate of Harris at Wimbledon last month, improving because I was feeling good on the court and PSG burglaries as the tournament wore on and eventually tough and stay with him,» said Federer, who 88 Prajnesh Gunneswaran with a routine I wanted to get a little more confidence.» losing to Djokovic in the final. last won the US Open in 2008. 6-4 6-1 6-2 win. Belgian 15th seed David Goffin overcame Nagal, 22, has never won a tour-level «I wasn’t serving consistently enough. I The 23-year-old, who has reached three Frenchman Corentin Moutet 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-0 Seven people suspected of organizing and taking part in burgla- match and was playing in the main draw of was hitting double faults that usually I don’t consecutive tour finals this year, will face and will take on Cameron Norrie’s conqueror, ries at the homes of Paris Saint-Germain footballers Eric Maxim a Grand Slam for the first time, but tested do. Also I was just hitting too many unforced Bolivian world number 84 Hugo Dellien in Gregoire Barrere,in round two. Choupo-Moting and Thiago Silva were charged in the French his illustrious opponent before losing in two errors. I was in two minds, I guess. round two. Swiss 2016 champion Stan Wawrinka capital on Tuesday, according to judicial sources. hours and 30 minutes. «I was able to clear that a little bit. «I can’t say I’m feeling amazing about reached the second round with a 6-3 7-6 Six men and one woman, aged between 25 and 29, were de- Third seed Federer will meet Damir Dzum- Maybe it’s not a bad thing to go through my game but to win by that score in the first (7-4) 4-6 6-3 win over Italian Jannik Sinner. tained in Paris and the surrounding area last Thursday. Six of hur of Bosnia-Herzegovina in the next round a match like this.» round is great,» he said. «I hope I can con- The 23rd seed will face Frenchman Jeremy those subsequently charged were remanded in custody pending at Flushing Meadows. Russian fifth seed Daniil Medvedev took tinue to play well.» Chardy next. their trial, while the seventh person was released under judicial «I just tried to forget the first set, play just 85 minutes to see off Indian world number Medvedev, who won the Cincinnati title (Source: BBC) supervision. The gang stands accused of stealing items worth hundreds of thousands of euros from the PSG stars. The charges include Same old story for Sharapova as UK’s richest man completes “theft committed by an organized gang” and “participating in a group preparing to commit criminal acts”. Williams proves too strong Nice takeover They are suspected of committing a total of five burglaries in upmarket neighborhoods of Paris. Last December, PSG’s Brazilian defender Silva had up to 600,000 euros ($666,000) worth of items robbed from his home in the plush 16th arrondissement while he was playing a Ligue 1 match against Nantes. Two days later, Choupo-Moting’s home in the city was burgled for the second time in a month -- he had previously been burgled while PSG were playing a Champions League game against Liverpool. Items with an estimated total value of one million euros were stolen from the Cameroon striker’s apartment. The most recent burglary occurred last week, on the night of August 20, when a member of the Saudi royal family reported jewellery and watches at an estimated value of 1.8 million euros stolen from his 6th arrondissement apartment. (Source: AFP)

Aaron Ramsey withdraws Maria Sharapova slipped back into an The five times Grand Slam champion Multi-billionaire Manchester United fan “We have looked at a lot of clubs in the from Wales squad for all-too-familiar routine on Monday as the underwent a small surgical procedure Jim Ratcliffe has completed his takeover of manner we look at businesses in Ineos - Russian came up short for the 20th time for her right shoulder that caused her Nice, as he continues to step up his interest for value and potential - and Nice fulfils Euro qualifier in 22 matches against Serena Williams to miss the Miami Open. in European football ownership. that criteria.” to exit the U.S. Open in the first round. “I missed a lot of this year with my But could a takeover of a Premier League Having foremost ventured into sailing Aaron Ramsey has withdrawn from the Wales squad for the Euro A stone-faced Sharapova was left to shoulder. Just getting the routines back team be next? and cycling, Ratcliffe reiterated to the BBC 2020 qualifying match against Azerbaijan next month. ponder a 6-1 6-1 drubbing that proved and being back in the draws is, you know, Ratcliffe, whose fortune is said to range earlier this year that he was a “tortured Ramsey has not played a full match since injuring a hamstring once again Williams has all the answers it’s tough to talk about after a defeat, from anywhere between £18billion and Manchester United fan.” playing for Arsenal in April. when the pair meet on court. but it’s a long road,” Sharapova said. £21billion, making him comfortably among However, his previous connection to He has made only one appearance off the bench since his “I thought she served really well. “It’s facing an opponent that’s at her the richest men in the UK, has wrapped up the Premier League had been a rumoured transfer to Juventus, in a friendly against Triestina when he Found her spots really well. Didn’t feel stature is extremely difficult in the first the deal shortly after receiving clearance £2billion buyout of Chelsea from Russian played 20 minutes. like we got into too many long rallies,” round of a slam, coming in with the fact to take control of the Ligue 1 outfit. magnate Roman Abramovich. Dylan Levitt steps up from the under-21 squad to replace said Sharapova. “I think the 1-2 punch. that I haven’t played that much.” Last week, France’s competition au- “We made some mistakes at Lausanne, him in the squad. She won a majority of those points.” There is no love lost between the two, thority gave the green light for Ineos - the but we are fast learners, these have been It is understood Ryan Giggs’ management team are concerned Prior to Monday match, Williams led with Sharapova including Williams in chemical giant founded by Ratcliffe two rectified and we are already seeing the about Ramsey’s match fitness after such a long lay-off without Sharapova 19-2 in head-to-head meet- her autobiography in anecdotes that decades ago - to take control of the club, benefits,” Ratcliffe noted. a competitive game. ings. They last met in the 2016 Australian the American described as “hearsay.” which is tucked away in the French Riviera. “Clubs need to be successful off the Wales are fourth in Group E after away defeats against Croatia Open quarter-finals where the American “Sport is very much result-oriented. The deal to buy the club is said to be pitch, as well as on it, and Nice will be and in June. emerged with a 6-4 6-1 win. There’s stories behind the results,” said worth around £90million, according to no different.” They started their campaign with a 1-0 win at home against They were due to meet at last year’s Sharapova. “There’s phases you have various reports. Ratcliffe, who is famously shy and retir- , and desperately need a positive result against Azerbaijan French Open but Williams withdrew to get through in order to get to where Managed by Patrick Vieira, Nice fin- ing, unlike some other British billionaires, at Cardiff City Stadium on 6 September before a friendly against due to injury. you want to go. ished seventh last season and currently told the BBC earlier this year: “We’ve dipped Belarus at the same venue three days later. Sharapova has not taken a set off “This is a very different chapter in sit fourth in Ligue 1 after winning their our toe in the water with football, it’s a very It means Giggs’ side will be without another experienced player Williams since the Miami Open in 2013. my career. It’s not an easy road. It’s opening two matches. different sport. following the omission of long-time captain Ashley Williams from The 32-year-old Russian, who was never been.” Nice will now be part of the ‘Ineos Foot- “It’s quite a complicated sport and world, the squad. Ramsey has scored 14 goals in 58 Wales appearances, banned for 15 months for taking the Williams next faces fellow American ball’ group, which also includes Swiss second so we’re in the process of learning. We but has yet to make an appearance in the current campaign. banned drug meldonium in 2016, strug- Catherine McNally, after the wildcard division outfit FC Lausanne-Sport. haven’t got to where we’ve got to in our (Source: BBC) gled with injuries earlier this year, in- beat Switzerland’s Timea Bacsinszky “It has been quite a long journey get- chemicals and business world by being cluding persistent shoulder problems 6-4 6-1. ting here,” Ratcliffe said as the takeover rash and impetuous and stupid, obviously.” that have plagued her in the past. (Source: Eurosports) was completed. (Source: Manchester Evening News) Sun Yang says ‘facts distorted’ in murky doping test Armed with smartphones, Myanmar e-sports players battle power outages ESports star Myint was on the cusp of victory when the $34.3 million prize pool. ponents with sniper rifles, the action projected onto a large China’s triple Olympic swimming champion Sun Yang on Tues- screens went dark in the Yangon cafe where he competes, But Dota 2 tournaments are rare in Myanmar, he said, screen as spectators cheered. day described as “intolerable” the speculation surrounding him costing him thousands of dollars in missed prize-money making it difficult for him to earn a living from the game. The prize pool for the tournament was around $7,000, ahead of a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) hearing into a and denting his reputation. “The last three years was the hardest period of my career...I an immense sum in a country where the average income is murky missed drugs test. Myanmar’s gaming scene is mushrooming, but frequent lived in a game shop and was also short on food,” he told AFP. less than $1,300 a year. The 27-year-old’s career is in jeopardy after he was accused of power cuts are holding players back in the emerging democracy. …….. Anywhere, anytime Impunity’s country manager Brian Min Sett said the smashing a blood vial with a hammer during an out-of-competition “Every time a black-out happens, we curse out the elec- For gamers, a dingy internet cafe has long been the typi- increasing value of winnings was sign of growth as “our dope test last year. tricity corporation -- and it happens often,” he told AFP. cal venue to battle it out with players from other countries. country doesn’t have many high-prize tournaments.” FINA agreed with Sun that testers failed to produce adequate More than 60 percent of people in Myanmar still live But that has started to change as cheap SIM cards hit Myanmar, like other developing countries, is at “a identification or follow protocol, but the World Anti-Doping Agency without reliable electricity after a political transition in 2010 the markets and smartphone use soars. serious disadvantage” compared to its neighbours, said (WADA) responded by taking the case to CAS. that sought to pull in foreign investment after decades of Mobile penetration stood at just seven percent in 2012, Jeremy Jackson, market analyst for eSports reseach firm “Misguided public opinion has distorted the facts,” Sun, a junta rule. but demand has skyrocketed and the figure now sits at more NewZoo. hero to millions in China but derided as a “drugs cheat” by some That includes getting in on the global explosion in eS- than 80 percent. “Access to stable electricity and internet are crucial when of his rivals, wrote on social media. ports, a billion-dollar industry that will be a medal event in Players competing on mobiles can stay logged on when it comes to competitive gaming,” Jackson told AFP. “My training and my personal life have been greatly disturbed the Southeast Asian Games in November for the first time. local grids go dark. “Undoubtedly, greater smartphone penetration will al- by this and it’s become intolerable.” But Myanmar is at risk of missing out with power cuts, “We can play anywhere, anytime,” said Myint Myat Aung, low more people access to the mobile competitive gaming Sun, a controversial character, was allowed to compete in few personal computers and a dearth of resources to sup- a mobile gamer who competes on PlayerUnknown’s Battle- landscape.” the World Championships in South Korea in July, winning two port travel and competition abroad holding homegrown ground (PUBG) for Singapore-based eSports team Impunity. In a country that has produced few international athletic golds but also becoming a focus of protests from other swimmers. champions back. It is also cheaper. stars, eSports offers players a way into a global community Writing on the Twitter-like Weibo, Sun said that he was look- Myint Myat Zaw, a 21-year-old player also known as “We only have phone bills which don’t cost very much,” and a chance to make a steady salary, especially for those ing forward to giving his account of what happened during the “Insane”, said he has lost about 40 matches due to blackouts, he told AFP. competing in ultra-popular mobile games. now-infamous doping test. making it difficult to earn a slot abroad where cash prizes Last month, Impunity, with more than 400 other teams, “They can make their own living just by competing in “There is something I can’t say, I can’t make the truth public,” are now in the tens of millions of dollars. took part in a PUBG tournament hosted by Samsung Galaxy tournaments,” said Kaung Myat San, co-founder of the HOG he added on Weibo. He plays Dota 2, which in Shanghai hosted its equivalent at a Yangon mall. e-sports center in Yangon. (Source: France 24) of the champions league this weekend, boasting a record Staring into smartphones, players took down their op- (Source: AFP) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y AUGUST 28, 2019 SPORTS 15

Ansarifard named Iranian weightlifter provisionally suspended general manager of Persepolis for doping violation SPORTS TEHRAN — Persepolis football Tasnim – Iranian weightlifter Mohammad Hosseini has desk club appointed former midfielder tested positive for the anabolic steroid oxymetholone. Mohammadhassan Ansarifard as general manager As a consequence, the athlete is provisionally suspended of the team on Tuesday. in view of a potential anti-doping rule violation, the Inter- Ansarifard has replaced Iraj Arab in the club. national Weightlifting Federation announced. It’s his second stint as general manager in Perse- polis. Ansarifard worked two years at the club as general manager from 2005 to 2007. Ansarifard, 56, is a well-known name for Perse- polis’s fans as he led the Iranian team to their first ever title in the Asian Cup Winners’ Cup as a player in 1991. Persepolis defeated Bahrain’s Muharraq 1-0 in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium, thanks to a his right-footed shot from outside the box. Ansarifard also invited German giants Bayern Munich to Azadi Stadium for a friendly match in 2006. Iran and Persepolis legendary goalkeeper Ah- madreza Abedzadeh was honored by the club with a testimonial game against Bayern, where Felix Magath’s team beat Persepolis 2-1. “I am very happy to be appointed as Persepolis In any case where it is determined that the athlete did general manager, however I know that I have a not commit an anti-doping rule violation, the relevant de- difficult task ahead of me. We want to defend cision will also be published. IWF will not make any further our titles in league and Hazfi Cup and win AFC comments on the case until it is closed, it said. Champions League, that’s why I am here,” An- Hosseini claimed a silver medal by lifting a total of 349kg sarifard told the reporters. in the 89kg in the International Weightlifting Federation “We need fans’ supports to continue our win- (IWF) Junior World Championships held in Fiji in June. ning way. Our team have the potential to win ACL He lifted 157kg in snatch and 191kg in clean and jerk. title. We want to reduce the financial problems in the club and make our fans happy because they deserve it,” he added. Iran to host 4-nation futsal Iran make history at West Asia Mes Sungun humiliated by ElPozo tournament in Mashhad Championship Women Basketball Murcia at Intercontinental Futsal Cup MNA — According to the Iranian football federation, Mashhad will host a 4-nation futsal tournament in early December. According to the federation, Iran, Slovakia, Ukraine, and Belarus will participate in the event which is slated to be held on December 1-4 in Mashhad, northeast Iran. Iran prepare for 2020 AFC Futsal Championship which will be held in Turkmenistan’s Ashgabat from February 27 to March 8, 2020. In the qualifications for the Asian event, Iran have been seeded along with Turkmenistan and Kyrgyz Republic in Group B of Central and South Zones. Two teams from each group of the qualification round will advance to the finals in Ashgabat and because Turkmenistan have already booked a place in the event as the hosts, Iran and Kyrgyz Republic will definitely go the finals. Iran are the most decorated team of AFC Futsal Cham- pionship with 12 titles out of 15 editions of the games. The team defeated Japan in the final of the 2018 edition to claim the trophy. SPORTS TEHRAN — Iran wrote non (88-75) and Syria (68-61) and defeated SPORTS TEHRAN — Mes Sun- Group A consists of PTT Bluewave desktheir name into history hosts Jordan (70-62) in preliminary round. deskgun Varzeqan from Chonburi from Thailand, Argentina’s Club book by winning the bronze medal at the It was Iran’s first medal in the inter- Iran lost to Spanish club ElPozo Murcia Atletico Boca Juniors and Moroccan team 2019 West Asia Championship Women national events. in the 19th edition of Intercontinental Fath Sportif De Settat. PSV will bid for Brighton Basketball Monday night. The Iranian women team participated Futsal Cup underway in Bangkok, Thai- Spain’s Barca Lassa, SC Corinthians The Iranian team defeated Jordan in the competition with Islamic dress code. land on Tuesday. Paulista from Brazil and Chinese club attacker Alireza Jahanbakhsh 71-52 in the bronze medal match in Lebanon defeated Syria in the final The Iranian team were hammered by Shenzhen Nanling Tielang are in Group B. Amman, Jordan. match. ElPozo Murcia 7-0. The FIFA Intercontinental Futsal Cup Edna Issaeian was Iran’s topscorer he Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Mes had lost to defending champions is the international club championships PSV Eindhoven plan to bid for Brighton attacker Alireza with 24 points and 18 rebounds. congratulated the Iranian team on the oc- Magnus Futsal of Brazil 3-1 at Bangkok for futsal. The tournament is similar to Jahanbakhsh this week. Iran suffered two defeats against Leba- casion of winning the medal. Arena on Sunday. FIFA Club World Cup. PSV are in the market for a new attacking midfield sign- ing and are turning to Jahanbakhsh after being blocked by Stuttgart in their bid for Nicolas Gonzalez. Despite the player’s lack of minutes at Brighton, PSV or Hamed Haddadi: Which Asia Cup MVP will shine management believe he will be a different proposition in their shirt. brighter at the FIBA Basketball World Cup A PSV source told De Telegraaf: “Jahanbakhsh was a top player in the Eredivisie. Yi Jianlian of China and Hamed Haddadi of Iran are two points and 6.6 rebounds per contest as China struggled “He knows what is being asked of him and is above all a of the best ever in Asia. It is only fitting that both will be whenever he was absent. different type of attacker than the club has in house.” representing their nations at the FIBA Basketball World Both teams loaded up with fresh new talents for Asia (Source: Tribal Football) Cup 2019, aiming to achieve glory for their countries. Cup 2015, even if the veterans Yi and Haddadi were still Who will leave a bigger mark in China at the World the main men. Yi finally scored his first win over Iran in Cup this year? the Asia Cup this year during the Semi-finals, following Before they head on to make Asia proud, here is how through by a title win and MVP-clinching performance of Al Sadd must fight until the they stack up in the recent decade of FIBA Asia Cup play. 16.7 points and 8.8 rebounds on average while shooting Solidifying their status as the top two players of Asia, Yi 52.9 percent from the floor. end, says Xavi and Haddadi have gone back and forth winning the Asia Having lost in the final four round, Haddadi and Iran Cup MVP awards in the past 5 renditions of the competition. finished in 3rd place with the 7-footer averaging 11.5 points Al Sadd SC head coach Xavi Hernandez remains hopeful Both players were equally as dominant in the first Asia and 7.8 boards per contest. of continuing their 2019 AFC Champions League cam- Cup playing against each other in 2009. They were both Those who thought Haddidi was on the decline had to paign, despite a 2-1 defeat to Al Nassr in the first leg of relatively fresh off their first stints playing in the NBA and him his first MVP award in the Asia Cup as well. quickly reconsider after he dropped jaws with 16.2 points, the quarter-final. it showed in how effective the two stars were. Yi averaged Haddadi also put up remarkable numbers of 15.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and a tournament-high 6.5 assists per game Ali Asad had given the Qataris a 21st minute lead but it 18.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game in his 11.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.9 blocks per game even if in Asia Cup 2017. Iran made it all the way to the champion- was countered by Abdulrahman Al Dossari’s close range very first Asia Cup appearance, but ran into defending MVP Iran fell a bit short that year. ship game once again, but would eventually fall just short strike a minute from the break, before Giuliano sealed and champion Haddadi in the title game. The Iranian big man rallied back in 2013 to get his 3rd of another title. the win for Al Nassr with a fine header in the 72nd minute It was quite easy to crown Haddadi as MVP that year, Asia Cup MVP, recording better offensive numbers with 18.8 It’s clear that after an entire decade of going back and on Tuesday. with outstanding numbers of 15.8 points, 13.1 rebounds, points and 10.0 rebounds per game. His 29-point, 16-rebound forth against each other, Yi Jianlian and Hamed Haddadi The Spain and Barcelona legend admitted that he was and 4.0 blocks per game. performance in the title game against the Philippines was are still two of the biggest stars Asia has to offer. The unsatisfied with his side’s showing in the first half, but even Their paths would not cross in 2011, when Yi led China just the icing on the cake of another grand Asia Cup run. biggest question now: Who will make a bigger impact after making some changes going into the second half, Gi- to his first Asia Cup title. The Chinese star forward led the Yi spent nearly half of the games in Asia Cup 2013 nursing on the largest stage of the basketball world at the FIBA uliano’s goal overwhelmed Al Sadd. team in both points (16.6 points per game) and rebounds an injury, but when he was on the court, he was just as a big Basketball World Cup 2019? “The reason (for the defeat) was that Al Nassr are a strong (10.8 points per game) for a second straight time, earning of a threat as anyone. The Guangdong native put up 17.4 (Source: FIBA) team, and we were not up to the task. We did not play good football, like we did recently,” said Xavi. “We did not control the ball in the required manner. We did not have possession and I’m not happy at all with We’re not satisfied with just one title, says Misao the performance. Kashima Antlers midfielder Kento Misao insists be Asian champions, everyone wants to lift “I remember that the atmosphere at Tianhe since the 2015 Group Stage, Misao believes “In the second half, the two teams matched each other. that the AFC Champions League holders are the title again,” said Misao. Stadium was really overwhelming and the a positive result is essential for the visitors. We managed to impose ourselves on the game but when determined to keep their title defense alive “We know we have a target on us, and that stands were packed with fans,” recalls Misao. “It’s difficult to take control of the game in we did that, we conceded the second goal and this affected ahead of Wednesday’s quarter-final with two- every club in the competition knows we are the “The Guangzhou players, both Chinese an away match as the home side are always us a lot.” time winners Guangzhou Evergrande. holders and tries to analyse us and to beat us. and foreigners, were of a very high level and boosted by their home support, but if we can Al Sadd will now host the second leg in Doha’s Jassim Being among the Kashima number “But our goal, right at the beginning of they were, and are, clearly one of the best get an away goal if would be a big advantage Bin Hamad Stadium on September 16, and Xavi was firm crowned Asia’s kings last year was a highlight this year, was to retain our crown. All our clubs in the Chinese Super League. for us,” he added. that his charges will need to head into the tie with a never- in the career of 23-year-old Tokyo-native players, including me, are trying to make “Paulinho actually didn’t do that much in “You have to think of the series of matches say-die attitude and elevate their performance. Misao, but the 2018 AFC Player of the Year this dream come true.” the two games, but ultimately he scored the as one 180 minutes match. To make that “The second leg in Doha will be a lot different. We must nominee is adamant that neither he nor his Opponents Guangzhou are familiar foes for goals which took them to the next round, so second 90 minutes – the second half of the prepare for it well to maintain our chances of progressing teammates are content to sit on their laurels. Misao and his team. At the 2017 tournament you can see what a dangerous player he is. tie – easier for us, it’s important get a good to the semi-finals.” Their campaign to become the first back- the sides faced off in the Round of 16, in “Although it was a regrettable result for result in the ‘first half’ in China.” “We lost (this game) but we haven’t lost out on progres- to-back champions since Al Ittihad in 2005 what was Kashima’s first appearance in the us, I began to break into the team not long “On the other hand, if we can’t at least sion or on the title. – and, indeed, just the second in the AFC knockout stage since 2011. after the match.“I am sure I’m a better player get an away goal then the second leg is going “I spoke with the players about that in the dressing room Champions League’s history – is set to face In that meeting, Guangzhou’s Brazilian now than I was then and will aim to show to be very tough for us. that there is another match to play in Doha and we have a huge test in the last eight against 2013 and midfielder Paulinho was to be the difference my presence on the pitch this time.” “Although it won’t be easy, it’s key that a chance to qualify, and that we must fight until the last 2015 winners Guangzhou. as he scored in both legs as the Chinese Super While Guangzhou boast an impressive we get a good result in the first leg.” moment.” “No one at our club is simply satisfied to League side took the tie on away goals. home record and haven’t lost at Tianhe (Source: the-afc) (Source: the-afc) Prayer Times Noon:13:06 Evening: 19:56 Dawn: 5:05 (tomorrow) Sunrise: 6:34 (tomorrow) AUGUST 28, 2019 ART&CULTURE I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y www.tehrantimes.com Managing Director: Ali Asgari Editor-in-Chief: Mohammad Ghaderi Editorial Dept.: Fax: (+98 21) 88808214 — 88808895 Latvia’s “Bille” named best at [email protected] Switchboard Operator: Tel: (+98 21) 43051000 Advertisements Dept.: Telefax: (+98 21) 43051450 Public Relations Office: Tel: (+98 21) 88805807 Subscription & Distribution Dept.: Tel: (+98 21) 43051603 Isfahan children’s film festival www.eshterak.ir Distributor: Padideh Novin Co. Tel: 88911433 1 Mehdi Jafari from Iran was crowned Webmaster: [email protected] best director for his acclaimed movie “The Printed at: Jame Jam Bartar Borna - 44197737 23”, about 23 young Iranian volunteers who were held captive during the 1980-1988 Tehrantimes79 Tehrantimesdaily Iran-Iraq war. The movie also received three more No. 18, Bimeh Alley, Nejatollahi St., Tehran, Iran honors, including the awards for best P.o. Box: 14155-4843 Zip Code: 1599814713 film and best screenplay, in the national section of the festival. The winners were honored at the City Center Cineplex during the closing ceremony of the festival attended by Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance Seyyed Abbas Salehi, Iranian cultural officials, cineastes and a large number of children. The Golden Butterfly for best screenplay went to Matthias Pacht from Germany for “The Little Witch” directed by Mike Schaerer. GUIDE TO The film is about a young but nice witch, SPIRITUAL AWAKENING who tries to learn everything there is to know about magic, with the help of her trustworthy The Heart is the book of the eyes. raven, to become the best witch in the forest. “Hacker” by Poul Berg from Denmark Imam Ali (AS) was crowned best feature-length fiction film, while the award for best animated film went to “Jacob, Mimmi and the Talking Dogs” by Edmunds Jansons from Latvia. “Son of the Sea” by Iranian director Abbas Jalali-Yekta won the Golden Butterfly for the Multimedia exhibit to explore best short film and “Cloudy” co-directed by feelings of mourners in Zuzana Cupova and Filip Diviak from Czech received the award for best short animated movie. A winner holds his Golden Butterfly Award during the closing ceremony of the 32nd International Film Festival for The jury granted its special award to Indian Muharram rituals Children and Youth at Isfahan’s City Center Cineplex on August 26, 2019. director Priya Ramasubban for his drama ARTTEHRAN — An exhibition of installation and “Chuskit” about a feisty paraplegic girl in a going to school. Films for Children and Youth (CIFEJ) in the Bragi Thor Hinriksson from Iceland, about deskphotos depicting the feelings of Iranians from remote Himalayan village who dreams of The jury of the International Centre of festival gave its prize to “The Falcons” by a huge football tournament for kids. every walk of life during the mourning rituals for the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (AS) and his companion in Muharram will be at Tehran’s Laleh Gallery. “Heller’s Gradual Homecoming” Anton Chekhov “Swan Song” to echo at Works by prominent published in Persian Tehran theater photographers and artists, including Mehri Rastqadam, CULTURE TEHRAN — German ARTTEHRAN — Iranian Mehdi Yusefi, Mahsa Sadeqi, deskwriter Wolfgang deskdirector Parizad Seif Sabra Reisi, Neda Rahgozar, Bittner’s novel “Heller’s Gradual will stage an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s Ebrahim Baqerlu and Amir Homecoming” (Hellers allmähliche novel “Swan Song” at the Nazerzadeh Shahabi, have been selected Heimkehr) has recently been published in Kermani Hall of Tehran’s Iranshahr Theater for the exhibition opening on Persian by Nilufar Publications in Tehran. Complex on September 1. September 1, which is the first Translated by Kamran Jamali, the 2012 Veteran actor Saied Pursamimi and day of Muharram, the first book is about Martin Heller, who returns Seif herself will co-star in the play, a public month the lunar calendar, the to his hometown as the editor-in-chief of relations team has announced. gallery has announced. a local newspaper after 25 years. A poster designed by Mohammad-Sadeq The curator of the exhibition He soon gets used to his new life, finds Zarjuyan for the play was published on Tuesday. entitled “Ahle Haram” (“The a new love and revives his old friendships The play has been translated into Persian Household”), Mehdi Sarvari, with the local people. Everything seems by Morteza Keramati, Mahmud Behruzian whose works will also be put normal until he finds out about the and Seruj Estepanian. A poster for the “Ahle Haram” on display at the event, said political corruption in the city of which “Swan Song” is about the 68-Year-old exhibition. that the collection is different everyone is aware. Svetlovidov who has spent 45 years acting from the numerous ordinary photos published every year on He takes the risk of facing the powerful on stage. But old age has diminished his the rituals of Ashura, the 10th day of Muharram, the day upon right-wing group that rules over the city. enthusiasm and strength. which Imam Hussein (AS) and his companions were martyred Bittner is well-known for his children’s He is no longer able to perform like he in Karbala in 680 CE. books as well as his novels and essays. Front cover of the Persian version used to, and hence is filled with feelings of He added that the showcase puts its spotlight on spiritual He is also a freelance journalist who has of “Heller’s Gradual Homecoming” being worthless. All alone in the world, there A poster for “Swan Song” by director layers and the Ashura rituals and mourning symbols. received several awards for his work. by German writer Wolfgang Bittner. is not a single person to care about him. Parizad Seif. The photos are scheduled to be published in a book of the same title “Ahle Haram” in the near future. Several discussions will be organized during the exhibition, Busts of film elites set up in Iran Television and which will run until September 18 at the gallery located on Fatemi St., near Laleh Park. Cinema Town ARTTEHRAN — of a number of national film that all those who have made great efforts here are com- deskelites were set up at the Iran Television memorated.” Leader’s book on and Cinema Town in Tehran on Tuesday. “I must express thanks to those whose concern has been Nahj-ul-Balagha published Actors Dariush Arjmand, Jaleh Olov and Jamileh Sheikhi the promotion of the town, and I believe this town has the as well as voice actor Manuchehr Esmaili attended a special potential to be turned into an international site,” he added. CULTURE TEHRAN — Leader of Islamic Revolution ceremony in the town to unveil their busts. Busts of the five stars of “Hezar Dastan”, Ali Hatami’s deskAyatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s book “A In addition, a hand statue of makeup artist Abdollah popular TV series that was filmed in the town during the Description of the Nahj-ul-Balagha” has been published in Eskandari was unveiled at the ceremony. 1980s, were set up in the town earlier. three volumes. The Iran Television and Cinema Town, once named Ghaz- Jamshid Mashayekhi, Ezzatollah Entezami, Moham- The Nahj-ul-Balagha is an anthology of political discourses, ali Cinema Town, represents old Tehran in many historical mad-Ali Keshavarz, Ali Nasirian and Davud Rashidi are sermons, letters and sayings attributed to Imam Ali (AS). movies and TV series. the five actors. Published by the Islamic Revolution Publications, the Actor Dariush Arjmand poses beside his bust after The ceremony was attended by the director of the town, The Ghazali Cinema Town was renamed the Iran Tele- books “Prophecies of the Nahj-ul-Balagha”, “Charter of being unveiled in the Iran Television and Cinema Kamal Feizabadi, and officials from the Islamic Republic vision and Cinema Town following a decision by Abdol-Ali Alevi’s Government”, and “Bright Path of Managers” are the Town on August 27, 2019. (Mehr/Mohammad of Iran Broadcasting. Ali-Asgari, the director of the IRIB, which is the owner of transcriptions of the Leader’s speeches on the Nahj-ul-Balagha Khodabakhshi) Speaking at the ceremony, Eskandari said, “I am happy the site. during various meetings. Harvey Weinstein pleads Leonardo DiCaprio urges government not guilty action on Amazon fires ‘tragedy’ NEW YORK (Reuters) — Former TOKYO (Reuters) — A crisis over Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein burning forest in the Amazon is “incredibly pleaded not guilty on Monday to a new tragic”, actor Leonardo DiCaprio said on indictment as his upcoming criminal trial Monday, urging governments to do more, was pushed back to January, in a case amid growing international outrage over where prosecutors have accused him of the damage to the world’s largest tropical rape and predatory sexual assault. rain forest. Weinstein, 67, entered his plea in a New A record number of fires is ravaging York state court in Manhattan, where his the rain forest, sparking concern because trial was delayed by four months, to Jan. of the Amazon’s importance to the global 6, 2020. He had faced a Sept. 9 trial date. Film producer Harvey Weinstein environment. The rain forest is said to leaves New York Supreme Court Cast member Leonardo DiCaprio waves The new indictment accuses Weinstein produce a fifth of the world’s oxygen. as he arrives for the Berlin premiere of two counts of predatory sexual assault, after his arraignment in his sexual DiCaprio was speaking a day after assault case in New York. of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, Copies of “A Description of the Nahj-ul-Balagha” by Ayatollah stemming from alleged assaults against two Earth Alliance, an initiative he founded in Berlin, Germany, August 1, 2019. Seyyed Ali Khamenei are on display after being unveiled women, in 2006 and 2013. Those charges are to take the stand and answer questions under with philanthropists Laurene Powell Jobs (Reuters/Fabrizio Bensch) at the Darulshafa Seminary in Qom on August 26, 2019. essentially the same as those in the previous oath,” Sciorra’s lawyer, Gloria Allred, said and Brian Sheth, launched a $5-million (Mehr/Mehdi Bakhshi) indictment against Weinstein, and prosecutors in a statement on Monday. emergency fund to help preserve the rain it in hopes of selling the land to farmers forest. and ranchers. The books were introduced during a ceremony held at the moved Monday to consolidate the two cases. Donna Rotunno, one of Weinstein’s “There is a major tragedy going on The government of Brazilian President Darulshafa Seminary in Qom on Monday. Hojjatoleslam Saeid However, the new indictment also comes lawyers, said after the hearing that worldwide because of and Jair Bolsonaro has decided to send in the Solhmirzai, the director of the Office for the Preservation with a disclosure that a third woman will Weinstein would seek to dismiss the new what’s going on in the Amazon, which is military to help fight the fires but was and Publication of Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s Works, be called to testify that Weinstein raped indictment, calling the case “weak.” really the lungs of the earth and vital to criticized for not doing enough sooner. attended the ceremony. her in 1993 to bolster the prosecutors’ case. Once among Hollywood’s most powerful protecting us in the future,” he told Reuters. French President Emmanuel Macron, He said that the leader has put emphasis on the need to Weinstein cannot be charged directly with producers, he has pleaded not guilty to five “We’re trying to perpetuate others to be hosting the G7 summit in Biarritz, said the familiarize people and officials and especially the youth with raping that woman, actress Annabella Sciorra, criminal charges in the earlier indictment, involved, informed and contribute if they leaders of the world’s major industrialized the esteemed teachings of the Nahj-ul-Balagha. because the statute of limitations has run out. including rape and predatory sexual assault. can,” he said, speaking on the red carpet nations were close to an agreement on “His meetings with the government officials and his lessons New York Supreme Court Justice James He could face a life sentence if convicted. at the Japan premiere of “Once Upon a how to help fight the fires and repair the on the Nahj-ul-Balagha have also been mentioned in the third Burke, who is presiding over the case, had The two women in the earlier indictment Time in Hollywood”. devastation. book”, he added. previously ruled that Sciorra could not are among roughly 70 who have accused There have been more than 78,000 “The governments around the world, The Nahj-ul-Balagha (“The Peak of Eloquence”) was compiled by testify because the grand jury that returned Weinstein of sexual misconduct dating forest fires in Brazil this year, nearly double including Brazil, need to work together Seyyed Razi (d. 1015). It has been translated into many languages, the earlier indictment had not heard any back decades. Weinstein has denied the last year’s total. Environmentalists blame to make sure this doesn’t continue,” including English, French, Russian and Spanish. evidence about her alleged rape. allegations and said any sexual encounters “I commend Annabella for her willingness were consensual. speculators who burn vegetation to clear DiCaprio said.