Iran's Grieving Mothers Not Deterred by Armed Suppression - A year and a half after the mothers of victims of the presidential election protests in Iran formed the group Grieving Mothers (aka Mothers of Laleh Park), they are now under growing suppression. -Fereshteh Ghazi, Rooz 01/1/11
Sinaii family members show off talents in art - Filmmaker Khosrow Sinaii together with his art-loving family members are displaying their artworks for the public in a group exhibition that opened on Friday December 31 at Tehran's Rah-e Abrisham (Silk Road) Gallery. 01/1/11
Iran's quest for peace - The date - January 6, 5 B.C- As the kneeling servant put a final buff on his master's soft, leather boots, the master, a young man aged about 25, rose to his full height. Placing his tall, serrated felt cap on his head, the young man, Hormizdah (who is known to Western tradition as Caspar), gazed into the distance. -Tahereh Ghanaati, Press TV 01/1/11
Iran denies altercation between Ahmadinejad and Guards chief - According to a leaked US cable, General Mohammad Ali Jafari, head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards slapped Ahmadinejad in early 2010 while the country was dealing with the aftermath of disputes over the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. -Zamaneh 01/1/11
Iranian NGOs request Cyrus Cylinder show extension - A number of Iranian cultural NGOs have asked that the showcase of the Cyrus Cylinder be extended for about three months at the National Museum of Iran (NMI). The artifact was loaned by the British Museum on September 10, 2010 to the National Museum of Iran for a four-month show that ends on January 10. -MNA 01/1/11
Family Of Detained Iranian Journalist Allowed First Visit - Nazanin Khosravani, who was detained on November 3, had had no contact with her family since the arrest, except for a brief phone call to her mother during which she was able to say she was being held in solitary confinement in Branch 209 of the notorious Evin prison located outside of Tehran. -RFE 01/1/11
Iran revamps education system to strip out Western influence - Iran is overhauling its education system to rid it of Western influence, the latest attempt by the government to fortify Islamic values and counter the clout of the country's increasingly secularized middle class. -Thomas Erdbrink, Washington Post 01/1/11
'Daily Show'-type satire finds an audience in Iran, and a big enemy - Operating out of Voice of America's Persian News Network, Kambiz Hosseini and Saman Arbabi have started a weekly program, "Parazit," that has drawn comparisons to Jon Stewart's "Daily Show" for its satiric take on Iran's news of the day. -Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post 01/1/11
For Jafar: A New Year's Wish for Two Artists Imprisoned in Iran - I've named this piece For Jafar as a tribute to both the unjustly imprisoned Jafar Panahi and HBO's brilliant documentary For Neda, which took us beyond the political and social symbolism of Neda Agha Soltan's tragic needless death and straight to Neda's heart and life as told through her family, friends and the relics of Neda's left behind... -John T. Simpson, Big Hollywood 01/1/11
Iran assumes OPEC's presidency - Iran has officially taken over the presidency of the Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries (OPEC) for the first time in the past 36 years. -Press TV 01/1/11
Iran Reaches Self-Sufficiency in Blood Plasma Production - Iran announced on Saturday that it has reached self-sufficiency in producing blood plasma, which is the base material for producing a wide range of blood products. -FNA 01/1/11
Security in Iran's Sistan-Balouchestan province to be handed over to locals: IRGC chief - "Security is important for the development of infrastructure in the region and we have taken measures in cooperation with people, specially tribes and ethnic groups in southeast of the country," Jafari, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps said during his trip to Zahedan, the capital city of Sistan-Balouchestan province. 01/1/11
How U.S. Laws Can Affect Your Personal Affairs in Iran - The current economic and political instability in Iran is causing many Iranian-Americans to sell properties in Iran they did not sell before moving to the United States, be it offices, farmland, factories, or even former family homes. A number of others are going through Iranian courts to reclaim properties that were seized by the government after the revolution. -Farhad R. Alavi 12/31/10
Iran says opposition leaders want to be arrested - Heydar Moslehi, Iranian minister of intelligence says the "leaders of sedition" wish to be arrested because they want to become "heroes." 12/31/10
..
Report: 'Mossad behind assassinations in Iran' - Mossad conducted the assassinations "with the help of the CIA and MI6," The Jerusalem Post reported, citing independent French weekly Le Canard enchaine. 12/31/10
Iran, India resolve oil trade dispute - Iran said an oil trade dispute with India had been settled by changing the currency for payments, deputy oil minister Ahmad Khaledi was quoted as saying by Fars news agency on Friday. 12/31/10
Afghans Feel Pinch Of Iranian-Border Fuel Blockade - Thousands of fuel tankers and trucks carrying compressed-gas cylinders used for cooking and heating were stranded after Iranian officials imposed a blockade on the Afghanistan-bound deliveries because they claim such supplies would help NATO forces. -RFE 12/31/10
Art Gallery: Works of four young Iranian women titled Closed - Henna Art Gallery is pleased to present the Works of four Young Iranian women: Mina Anooshei, Mahsa Tehrani, Naeeme Naeemaee and Elham Sadeghi. Their paintings reflect their own personal lives while being deeply poetic and internal. 12/30/10
More Senior Iranian Clerics Lambaste Government - Ayatollah Ali Mohammad Dastgheyb, a member of the Assembly of Experts, said during a meeting on December 28 with the family of jailed reformist politician Mostafa Tajzadeh the current regime is neither a republic nor Islamic, according to the opposition Kaleme website. -RFE 12/30/10
Iranian film community rallies in support of sentenced filmmakers - A group of prominent members of the Iranian film community visited the head of judiciary, Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani to express their concern about the heavy prison terms that were recently handed to their two colleagues, filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof. 12/30/10
..
Poll: Vast Majority of Americans Oppose Attacking Iran - An example of a serious half-blessing, a new Angus-Reid poll released today showed that the vast majority of the American public, some 70 percent, believe the false claims that Iran has a "nuclear weapons program," but the vast, vast majority oppose the idea of attacking Iran over it. -Antiwar.com 12/30/10
Four sentenced for attacks on reformist mosque in Shiraz - The special court for the clergy has prosecuted Mohammad Bagher Valadan, as the leader of the attackers, and sentenced him to five months in prison, three years of exile from Fars Province and 74 lashes. On the other hand, the general court has accused three of Ayatollah Dastgheib supporters in connection with the attacks and sentenced them to two years in prison, four years exile and 10 years ban from cultural activities. -Zamaneh 12/30/10
The Phantom Menace - Fantasies, Falsehoods, and Fear-Mongering about Iran's Nuclear Program -Dissident Voice 12/30/10
Iran Remains Key Foreign Policy Issue for Obama - One of the central foreign policy questions facing the Obama administration is how to persuade Iran to end its uranium enrichment program. -VOA 12/30/10
Iran: Khamenei says emboldening enemies was great sin of 2009 seditionists - Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has said that the "great sin" of those who provoked the post-election sedition in 2009 was the fact that they emboldened the enemies. The only way to deal with the enemies is to frustrate them, Ayatollah Khamenei added. -MNA 12/30/10
..
Guilty Verdict for Former Israeli President - An Israeli court has convicted former President Moshe Katsav on two counts of rape and sexual harassment. The Iranian-born politician could face a prison sentence ranging from four to 16 years on the rape conviction. -VOA 12/30/10
AZERBAIJAN: Feud over ban on Islamic head scarves fuels fears of Iranian meddling - A full-blown ideological war appears to have erupted between Iran and the secular government in neighboring Azerbaijan after Baku earlier this year banned the wearing of Islamic head scarves, or hijabs, at schools in the Caucasus nation by introducing a standard school uniform that prohibits traditional Islamic dress. -LA Times 12/30/10
Participate in the Nowruz Commission Logo Contest - In 2010, the Nowruz Commission was established as a multi-cultural not-for-profit organization for the purpose of promoting Nowruz, a time-honored ancient Persian tradition celebrating the arrival of a new year. 12/29/10
Photos: Tehran air quality falls to dangerous levels - Air quality in Tehran has reached warning levels while some Iranian media report that air pollution in some parts of the capital has already created emergency conditions. 12/29/10
Iranian lawyer tried for not covering hair in video message - Iranian jailed lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh was tried for the charge of "failure to adhere to the Islamic dress code (hijab)" and sentenced to five days in prison after she protested to the court proceedings. -Zamaneh 12/29/10
Photos: Ali Davari's sculptures from old car parts - Ali Davari was born in Tehran in 1957 and is a retired technician from Iranian Airlines (Homa). Saba Art and Cultural Institute exhibitioned his metal sculptures in the form of birds and humans. Davari also participated in the beautification of Tehran sculpture symposium in Barg Gallery. 12/29/10
Ashoura mud-rubbing Ritual in Bijar, Kurdistan Province of Iran - Ashoura is a period of intense grief and mourning. The word ashura simply means tenth in Arabic language, the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar. One ritual is the Kharrah Mali, or mud-rubbing, in which devotees roll in mud, dry themselves by a fire. 12/29/10
Iranian opposition demands healthy elections - Former Iranian president, Mohammad Khatami charted the conditions necessary for the participation of the reformists in the next parliamentary elections in the coming year. -Zamaneh 12/29/10
Kiarostami thrilled by favorable response to his short docs - The screening of three short documentaries by acclaimed filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami received a favorable response from a great number of people in the audience upon its screening Tuesday at Tehran's Mellat Cinema Complex. 12/29/10
..
Ahmadinejad insists Tehran is ready to cooperate with 5+1 - "Iran is ready to talk with the 5+1 group (the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France, and Germany) about cooperation in Istanbul, Brazil and Tehran," Ahmadinejad told a gathering of people in Karaj on Tuesday. 12/29/10
Three Iranian political prisoners released from Evin - Three Iranian detainees, Hadi Heydari, a journalist and Mohammad Shafii and Alireza Taheri, two political activists were released yesterday from Evin Prison. Fatemeh Arabsorkhi, another activist who was arrested at the same time still remains in custody, according to opposition websites. -Zamaneh 12/28/10
Grave Business in Iran - In the cemeteries of Tehran, each gravestone tells a story. One grave has an expensive headstone engraved with an image of the deceased or religious symbols, while another is marked by a simple slab. A soldier killed in the war with Iraq is commemorated for his courage, whole people executed for their political beliefs are remembered only by a few broken pieces of stone. -Farshid Alyan 12/28/10
Photos: Metro Construction in Tabriz, Iran - The construction of part of the phase1 of Tabriz metro is nearing completion, and with the expected arrival of the wagons, the metro will become operational. -Photos by Mahsa Jamali. 12/28/10
Muslim-American Rapper Bridges Faith and Music - Where else but in the heart of New York City could one find a Muslim, American, Irish-Iranian rapper? His name is Cyrus McGoldrick. He says he tries to channel all of the cultures that he's been a product. When he steps on stage he does so by assuming the role of Raskol Khan. -VOA 12/28/10
..
Child Foundation settles dispute with U.S. Government - Almost three years ago, the US government began an investigation into whether our organization violated sanctions and breached the terms of our tax-exempt status. Earlier this year, the government told us that they intend to bring charges against the Foundation. 12/28/10
Tajiks, Afghans To Be Dismissed From Iranian School In Dushanbe - Tajikistan's Education Ministry has ordered an Iranian school under supervision of the Iranian Embassy in Dushanbe to dismiss all Tajik and Afghan pupils, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports 12/28/10
Over 625 Iranian physicians apply for self-defense equipment - More than 625 physicians have registered to receive self-defense equipment, an official at the Islamic Republic of Iran Medical Council (IRIMC) announced on Monday. The move came after two physicians were shot in Tehran in Septemer. -MNA 12/28/10
Iran arrests family of man sentenced to death - Family of Habibollah Latifi, Iranian Kurd student whose death sentence was only halted yesterday, were arrested in later hours of last night along with a number of other activists who had campaigned to halt the execution. -Zamaneh 12/28/10
Underground Politics in Tehran - Since its launch 12 years ago, Tehran's underground rail network has proved a success, alleviating traffic congestion and pollution in this city of 13 million. The prestige attached to this feat of construction has resulted in a political power-struggle for control over it. -Babak Kermani 12/27/10
..
Iranian judiciary comments on recent arrests - Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA) reports that Dowlatabadi maintained today that the journalists detained in connection with Shargh newspaper have been arrested on security charges adding that they "were involved in activities that are not connected with journalism." 12/27/10
Novel: Conquest of the Persian Garden - Inspired partly by 'Bijan and Manijeh', Ferdowsi's epic romance, 'Conquest of the Persian Garden' is the story of two people from vastly different cultures who fall in love despite established loyalties and the chaos of Iran's Islamic Revolution. 12/27/10
Iran's Intelligence Minister Admits Hacking Into Opposition E-Mail - Moslehi was quoted by Iranian news agencies, including ILNA, as saying that e-mails were the most important tool of communication between opposition members during last year's postelection protests and that the Intelligence Ministry could break into them and defeat " the enemy." -Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE 12/27/10
Iranian Doctrine of the Caspian Sea - Iran is planning to define its Caspian Sea Doctrine. The concerned doctrine has several components which are designed to answer the views of the Iranian government in the various fields starting from the legal regime of the Caspian Sea and extending to the environment, shipping, and flying over, exclusive economic and fishing areas, joint ventures in the economic activities and the security of the region. -Bahman Aghai Diba 12/27/10
Natural factors added to threats to historical Shush Castle - Natural environmental factors have been added to the perils threatening the Shush Castle, a historical monument that is a storehouse of many ancient Iranian inscriptions and artifacts. 12/27/10
..
Tehran capital market value hits $84B - Tehran's capital market value stands at 870 trillion rials (some $84 billion), the managing director of Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) said here on Monday. 12/27/10
Tehran: Plant for the Planet - Plant for the Planet is a worldwide tree-planting project initiated by the United Nations Environment Programme in 2006. Until recently, the name of Iran was missing from the list of the countries participating in the project. But this was finally remedied, mainly thanks to the efforts of the Nature Association in Tehran which spread the word through nature clubs and email contact. 12/26/10
Boston Museum of Fine Arts Festival of Films from Iran - January 14-29, 2011 - Supported by the ILEX Foundation, the annual event has become one of the most extensive showcases of contemporary Iranian cinema in the United States. 12/26/10
NIAC Member Profiles: Vahid Jahangiri - The Humanitarian - Vahid Jahangiri has led an extraordinary life. Since his graduation from the University of Baltimore with a Bachelor's degree in International Management, he has dedicated his life to improving the human condition in places where most people would never even think of traveling. 12/26/10
Photos: Isfahan Covered by Smog - "Fuel inefficient cars and motorcycles which are produced by the domestic manufacturers don't conform to international environmental standards and are the main culprits for the air pollution," according to Hossein Hassani of the Majlis Health Committee 12/26/10
Congressional Gridlock Blocks Progress on Iranian Single-Entry Student Visas - NIAC, has led advocacy efforts in Congress, the White House, and the State Department to win a multiple-entry visa for Iranian students, and has worked with Iranian Americans and student groups on a grassroots campaign in this regard. That campaign led the Senate to include the reporting requirement for Iranian students as part of a larger Iran Engagement Report in the NDAA. 12/26/10
Let the Swords Encircle Me: Iran--A Journey Behind the Headlines - Based on more than thirty extended reporting trips to Iran, including the turbulent aftermath of the disputed June 2009 election, Scott Peterson's portrait is the definitive guide to this enigmatic nation, from the roots of its incendiary internal struggles to the rise and slide of Iran's earthshaking 1979 Islamic Revolution. 12/26/10
Photos: Iranian Crocodile Lady: Elham Abtin - Even with all limitations, Iranian women play an active role in the society in many fields including environmental sciences. Elham Abtin is one of the best examples. Abtin, an environmental expert, works at the center for crocodile breeding and research center in the city of Chahbahar in southwestern Iran. -Photos by Mohsen Rezaei 12/25/10
Intelligence Minister: "Not all Iranian expats support the opposition" - "All Iranians who live outside of the country are not in the opposition. The number of Iranian expatriates who are opponents of the system is limited, but foreign intelligence agencies have provided facilities and equipment to them to help them make their voices widely heard," Moslehi said at a conference on Iranian expatriates' achievements held at Tehran's Shahid Beheshti University on Saturday. 12/25/10
..
Wives of Iranian political prisoners appeal to the clergy - Fakhrosadat Mohtashamipour and Fatemeh Maleki, wives of Iranian political prisoners Mostafa Tajzadeh and Mohammad Nourizad wrote to a number of prominent clerical figures condemning the treatment of their husbands by the Islamic Republic and called on the sources of emulation to demand justice for these prisoners. -Zamaneh 12/25/10
Photos: Rescuers work to free trapped miners in Ravar, Iran - Rescue operations are underway in southeastern Iran to free three miners trapped in the Hejdak coal mine in the Ravar district of Kerman province, an official with the Ministry of Industries and Mines says. -Photos by Khosrow Khaleghi 12/24/10
Son Of Imprisoned Iranian Filmmaker Jafar Panahi Says His Father Still Sees Beauty - The son of famed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, who was sentenced to six years in prison and banned from making movies or traveling abroad for 20 years, says at the time of his father's 2009 arrest he had no thoughts of making a film about opposition activity. -Kristin Deasy, RFE 12/24/10
Iranian Truckers in Silent Strike Following Twenty-fold Hike in Gasoline Prices - Since the official price of diesel oil in Iran was increased twenty-fold by the government news outlets report a drastic decrease in diesel consumption. But according to general Mohammad Royanian, the head of Iran's Transportation and Fuel Management Office, it is business as usual -Ardalan Sayami, Rooz 12/24/10
Pro-Iran War Resolution Fizzles but Further Push for Military Options May Be on Horizon - When 47 Republican House members introduced a Congressional resolution endorsing Israeli military strikes against Iran this past August, the National Iranian American Council's reaction was swift. Within days, NIAC focused significant media attention on the dangerous nature of the resolution -NIAC 12/23/10
Iran's Top Students Opt For Northern American Universities, Official Says - Iran's top students are choosing North American universities to pursue masters' and doctoral degrees, according to a senior Science Ministry official. It's not clear how many such students are at North American universities. -RFE 12/23/10
Iranian activists end their protest in Geneva - Shirin Ebadi and the group of Iranian women activists who started a sit-in outside the offices of the United Nations in Geneva on December 20 to protest against the continued incarceration of their peer, Nasrin Sotoudeh, ended their sit-in today. 12/23/10
Four Young Iranian Activists Detained - The four activists are Hadi Heydari, a cartoonist for Iranian reformist papers; Mohammad Shafiei and Ali Reza Taheri, members of the youth branch of the Islamic Iran Participation Front; and Fatemeh Arabsorkhi, daughter of jailed leading reformist Feizollah Arabsorkhi. 12/21/10
Payvand's Top 10 Flickr Photos of 2010 - This year we have looked over hundreds of photos and here are our top ten photographs posted on Flickr in 2010. It will be fun to see what has attracted viewers in 2010. Participation criteria for the photo selection was to have the word "Iran" in the photo tag or in the description, a high number of views/favorites for more than one photo per photographer, and finally uploaded by the photographer in 2010. 12/21/10
Persian Food Bloggers Give Readers a Taste of Iran - Azita Mehran, Sanam Lamborn and Bria Tavakoli are sharing the Persian food of their mothers and grandmothers with the world. The three Iranian-American women are at different stages of their lives, and they've never met or even spoken with one another, but they have taken on a joint mission. -Jeff Baron, America.gov 12/21/10
..
Economists Say Iran Subsidy Plan A Weapon Of Political Control - A long-awaited radical overhaul of Iran's economy that has seen the scrapping of state subsidies is being used to punish and intimidate opponents of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, analysts say. -Robert Tait, RFE 12/21/10
Tavoos Tenth Anniversary: Tribute to Manijeh Mir-Emadi - On the threshold of the tenth anniversary of Tavoos Art Magazine, the editorial board and colleagues of Tavoos and Iranian Art Publishing like to use the opportunity to introduce the publisher, manager and editor-in- chief of this site after her ten years of relentless activity and venerate her perseverance in maintaining her valuable service. 12/20/10
Iranian Recipes and Memories Connect Bloggers and Readers - Readers might turn to Persian food blogs for the recipes, but they come back for the people. "I started sharing my memories - my positive memories - about Iran, and the more I wrote about the personal connections I had with the food I was posting about, the more people liked it," Sanam Lamborn said of her blog, My Persian Kitchen. -Jeff Baron, America.gov 12/19/10
Persepolis Fortification Archive Project Annual Report 2009-2010 - The Persepolis Fortification Archive is a treasury of information about the languages, society, institutions, religion, and art of the Achaemenid Persian Empire at its zenith, around 500 bc. Its value depends on a combination of complexity (the archive contains detailed information of many different kinds) and integrity (the archive is an excavated artifact, a single, coherent cache of tens of thousands of documents from a single time and place). -Matthew W. Stolper 12/14/10
Graphs: Iran in UNAIDS Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic 2010 - The Islamic Republic of Iran is believed to have the largest number of people who inject drugs in the region, and its HIV epidemic is centred mainly within this population group. An estimated 14% of people who inject drugs countrywide were living with HIV in 2007. 12/6/10
In the Iranian World, a Scholarly Guide to Everything - You can't find an entry for Ehsan Yarshater in the Encyclopaedia Iranica - after all, the printed volumes have reached only up to K, and the online entries for letters farther down the alphabet are incomplete. Besides, at 90, Yarshater is very much alive, and the encyclopedia does not publish entries on living people. -Jeff Baron, America.gov 11/29/10
