2

10 Sites Located
For New
Nuclear Plants

Iraq Violence
Claims 25 Lives

12

Serbian Award
For Iranian
Cartoonist

Wheat Purchase
Exceeds 4.8m Tonss 04

Iran Snatches 6 Medals

In Islamic Games 11

License Holder: (IRNA) www.irna.ir Number 4611 Wednesday September 25, 2013 Mehr 3, 1392 Zilqada 19, 1434 Price 2,000 Rials 12 Pages www.iran-daily.com

Obama: Diplomatic
Path Must Be
Tested With Iran

Rouhani Attends UN
Assembly Meeting

EU FMs Welcome
Zarif Stance
Warmly

Compiled by Davood Baqeri

Bilateral Ties, Nuclear Issue,

Syria Crisis Discussed

S President Barack Obama said in a speech at UN

General Assembly on Tuesday that the diplomatic
path must be tested with Iran.
Since I took office, I have made it clear in letters to
the Supreme Leader in Iran and more recently to President
(Hassan) Rouhani that America prefers to resolve our concerns over Irans nuclear program peacefully We are not
seeking regime change, and we respect the right of the Iranian people to access peaceful nuclear energy. Instead, we
insist that the Iranian government meet its responsibilities
under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and UN Security Council resolutions, he said.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Leader has issued a fatwa
against the development of nuclear weapons, and President
Rouhani has just recently reiterated that the Islamic Republic will never develop a nuclear weapon, he added.
These statements made by our respective governments
should offer the basis for a meaningful agreement. We
should be able to achieve a resolution that respects the rights
of the Iranian people, while giving the world confidence that
the Iranian program is peaceful. To succeed, conciliatory
words will have to be matched by actions that are transparent and verifiable. After all, it is the Iranian governments
choices that have led to the comprehensive sanctions that
are currently in place. This isnt simply an issue between
America and Iran the world has seen Iran evade its responsibilities in the past, and has an abiding interest in making
sure that Iran meets its obligations in the future.

Political Desk

oreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif held

his first meeting with his British counterpart
William Hague since President Hassan Rouhani was elected.
Zarif and Hague discussed Irans nuclear energy
program as well as regional developments, including
the situation in Syria and Afghanistan, BBC reported.
During the talks, Zarif censured the illegal sanctions imposed on Iran, saying that the US-led bans
merely target the Iranian nation.
He also described his earlier negotiations with EU
foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton as constructive, expressing hope that the upcoming meeting between Iran and the group of world powers involved in
nuclear negotiations with Iran (the US, UK, France,
China, Russia and Germany) would be a step forward
in resolving the Western dispute over the Iranian nuclear energy program.
The two top diplomats also stressed the need for
the improvement of Tehran-London ties on a stepby-step basis.
The UK shut down its Tehran embassy in 2011
after it was stormed in a protest over British sanctions.

President Vows to Defend Iran Rights

02

02

Opinion

West Must Not Turn Its

Back on Diplomacy

By former president Mohammad Khatami

As Hassan Rouhani, the
president of the Islamic republic of Iran, prepares to
deliver a speech on Tuesday
to the UN general assembly,
advocating constructive engagement with the world,
I reflect on my own experience as president of this great country, and my
attempts to promote dialogue among nations,
instead of hostility.
At my suggestion, 2001 was named the UN
Year of Dialogue Among Civilizations. But
despite reaching a global audience, the message of dialogue barely penetrated the most
intractable political dilemmas, either at home
or abroad.
More than at any other time in history, events
in the Middle East and north Africa have taken
on global significance, and there is a great shift
in the importance of this region. This transformation, which began with Irans 1979 Islamic
Revolution a surprise to many in the international community intensified with the end of
the cold war.
Today the Middle East has become a centre
for new political, social and ideological forces
as well as a site of collaboration and conflict
with powers beyond the region. Almost all the
problems facing the Middle East and north
Africa today have international implications.
Irans nuclear issue is but one of these, and
certainly not the biggest; but in addressing the
Middle Easts other problems, much depends
on the manner in which this one is resolved.
In order to be successful, any dialogue must
use the language of politics and diplomacy.
President Rouhanis platform of prudence and
hope is a practical translation of the idea of
dialogue among nations into the realm of politics. And this is more necessary than ever at a
time when a range of overlapping political crises are threatening global catastrophe.
With the initiative of Rouhani, who enjoys
widespread support from almost all segments
of Iranian society, I hope this country will
succeed in steering a path towards global dialogue.

02

resident Hassan Rouhani has arrived in New York to attend the 68th annual session of the UN General Assembly and deliver a speech before the world leaders.
According to the schedule during this trip I have three
speeches. The first one will be at the United Nations General
Assembly. The second speech will be at the UN Disarmament
Conference and the last one is the meeting of the foreign ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), he told reporters
upon arrival at the John F. Kennedy International Airport on
Monday afternoon local time.
He added that he plans to expound on Irans position on
international issues during his stay in New York. The Iranian
president further noted that he is determined to defend the
rights of the Iranian nation, Press TV reported.
The UN General Assembly opened on Tuesday with an

speech by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Rouhani also attended the opening session of the UN General Assembly late on September 24 make his speech.
Iran Daily will publish the full text of the presidents speech
on Thursday.
On September 25, Rouhani is due to address the special session of the Nuclear Disarmament Conference as the current
chairman of the NAM.
He will also address foreign ministers of the NAM, which is
an international organization with 120 member states. Nearly
two-thirds of the countries of the UN are also NAM members.
In addition, the Iranian president is expected to meet and
hold talks with world leaders, American scholars, US Muslim
leaders, and a group of Iranian expatriates on the sidelines of
the General Assembly meeting.

Iran to Help Turkey Save

Wetlands

Iranians Produce BiofoulingResistant Membranes

Turkish environmentalists will use

the experiences of their Iranian
counterparts for preserving endangered
g
wetlands in their homeland.
07

Iranian researchers from Babol University

of Technology have produced antibacterial
and biofouling-resistant polymeric
membranes by using nanotechnology. 08

Esteqlal Targeting Away

Goals Against FC Seoul

Oil Theft in
Nigeria Rampant

Sports Desk
Coach Amir Qalenoei has targeted an away goal when Iran champion Esteqlal meet South Korean counterpart FC Seoul in the first
leg of their 2013 Asian Football Confederation Champions League
semifinal at Seoul World Cup Stadium on Wednesday.

Esteqlal travelled to Seoul directly from Thailand after eliminating Buriram United 3-1 on aggregate following a 2-1 win in the second leg of their quarterfinal tie last Wednesday.
And with the second leg of the semifinal taking place in Tehran next week, Qalenoei is targeting more away goals as Esteqlal look to add to the Asian Club Championship titles won in
1970 and 1991.

11

In Nigeria, stolen crude oil flows out of the Niger Delta at breathtaking rates, landing in markets around the world.
A new study by London-based think tank Chatham House said
it is not just the Nigerian authorities that are to blame.
At a Niger Delta market, Anna Arube sells black-market gasoline from jerrycans for about 80 cents a liter. She pays the police
about $3 a month not to get arrested. Even so, Arube said, the job
is not without its dangers, All Africa wrote.
They should be careful over this business that we are doing
because there is risk, do you understand? said Arube.
The biggest risk is the flammable nature of her product, but
there is very little risk of authorities clamping down.
Until 2009, militants in the Niger Delta battled the government and oil companies, saying they were fighting for the peoples right to the oil on their land.
Since then, the region has quieted, but oil theft and kidnapping
are rampant.
Endemic Problem
A new Chatham House report said 100,000 barrels of oil are stolen daily from the Niger Delta, about 5 percent of the two million
plus barrels per day output. Some analysts put the total amount of
stolen oil much higher, at 400,000 barrels a day. Foreign Relations
Council Senior Fellow John Campbell, a former US ambassador
to Nigeria, said the problem is endemic.

05

Rouhani to Relay
Iran Message
Of Peace
By Farzaneh Shokri
President Hassan Rouhani will convey the Iranian nations message of peace during his visit to New York to
attend the 68th Session of the UN General Assembly,
said the Foreign Ministry on Thursday.

The president arrived in New York City for the annnual General Assembly meeting on Monday. Rouhani is
sscheduled to deliver a speech to the Assembly on September 24.
te

03

Hezbollah Denies
Receiving Chemical
Weapons From Syria
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah denied on
Monday that his group had received chemical weapons from Syria.
Last month, members of the so-called Syrian National Coalition opposition group accused President
Bashar Al-Assad of transferring chemical weapons to
the Lebanese group to avoid inspection after agreeing
to put them under international control, Reuters reported.
This accusation is truly laughable, Nasrallah said
in a televised speech.
We understand the dimensions and background of
these accusations, and these have dangerous consequences for Lebanon.
We decisively and conclusively deny these accusations which have absolutely no basis in truth.
Syria has agreed to give up its chemical weapons
under a plan agreed by the United States and Russia
after Western powers blamed Syrian government for
a chemical attack that killed hundreds of people in a
Damascus suburb last month, the allegation that the
Syrian government has strongly denied.

09

02

War on Narcotics

Sept. 25, 2013

Drug combat squads have seized more than 240 tons of narcotics in the
first half of the current Iranian year (started March 21), Deputy Police
Chief Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Radan said on Tuesday.

National

Opinion

West Must Not Turn Its

Back on Diplomacy
From Page 1
The opportunity to diplomatically resolve differences between Iran and the west, including the impasse over the nuclear issue, presented itself many
years ago during my presidency. That opportunity
was missed, for reasons that are now public knowledge.
To understand why, one only needs read the memoirs of Jack Straw, then British foreign secretary, or
Mohamed ElBaradei, then secretary general of the
International Atomic Energy Agency or indeed the
memoirs of Rouhani, who was then the chief negotiator of the Iranian nuclear delegation.
More than a decade ago, although agreement appeared possible, diplomacy failed. After 9/11, the US
initiated costly wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with
Iraq invaded on the false pretext that it was developing weapons of mass destruction. It is no surprise
that, in this political atmosphere, diplomacy with Iran
ended in failure.
Israel, too, sabotaged the chance for the west to
reach an agreement with Iran, by injecting skepticism
and doubt at the time. On the eve of Rouhanis speech
at the UN, Israel has again begun a campaign to discredit him because it fears the end of tension between
Iran and the west.
Those who are trapped by bitter experience make
every effort to disrupt the progress of diplomacy
once again. These people fail to realize a simple point
about the relationship between domestic and foreign
policy.
President Rouhanis government was elected by a
society seeking positive change, at a time when Iran
and the wider region was desperately in need of prudence and hope.
This vote was not limited to a specific political
camp; as well as many reformers, many political
prisoners and a significant body of conservatives had
a share in Rouhanis victory. For the first time there is
an opportunity to create a national consensus above
and beyond partisan factionalism one that may address the political predicaments of the country, with
an emphasis on dialogue and mutual understanding
globally.
Explicit public support from the supreme leader of
the Islamic republic provides Rouhani and his colleagues with the necessary authority for a diplomatic
resolution of a number of foreign policy issues with
the west, not just the nuclear issue. A peace-seeking
Iran can contribute as a willing partner not only to
solving its own differences with the global powers,
but also to overcoming some of the regions chronic
political disputes.
But it requires a degree of courage and optimism
from the west to listen to the voices of the Iranian
people who have been painfully targeted by unjust
sanctions, which have threatened the very fabric of
civil society and democratic infrastructures.
Failure now to create an atmosphere of trust and
meaningful dialogue will only boost extremist forces
on all sides. The consequences of such a failure will
be not only regional, but global. For a better world
for the Iranian people and the next generation across
the globe I earnestly hope that Rouhani will receive
a warm and meaningful response at the United Nations.
Iran today is different from the Iran of years ago,
and the consequences of the Islamic Revolution are
still playing out. Our positive and negative experiences of the past 16 years have added another dimension to the reforms that Rouhani is conducting at both
domestic and international levels; they have enriched
the Islamic republics democratic capacities and added, I very much hope, to the experience of the international community.
The Iranian peoples vote for Rouhani and his
agenda for change has provided an unrivalled and
possibly unrepeatable opportunity for Iran, the west
and all local and regional powers.
With a foreign policy based on dialogue and diplomacy at the heart of the Middle East, we can imagine a better world for the east and the west including the diplomatic resolution of Irans nuclear
issue, which is utterly feasible if there is goodwill
and fairness.

Iran Daily felicitates Saudi

Arabia on its National Day.

EU FMs Welcome
Zarif Stance Warmly

From Page 1
Hague welcomed recent statements from Iran
aimed at easing concerns about its uranium enrichment work.
Last week President Hassan Rouhani said he
was ready to restart stalled talks on the issue after
stating that his country would never seek to build
nuclear weapons.
Open to Better Relations
Hague said those statements should be matched
by concrete steps by Iran to address the international communitys concerns about Irans intentions.
He added, The United Kingdom does not seek
a confrontational relationship with Iran and is
open to better relations.
The United Kingdom welcomes President
Rouhani and Foreign Minister Zarifs recent statements about Irans wish to improve its relations
with the outside world.
Hague stated that he and Zarif have now asked
our officials to do further work on improving bilateral ties.
Relations between Iran and Britain hit an alltime low in November 2011, when the two countries shut down their diplomatic missions as a
result of Britains key role in the imposition of a
new set of western sanctions against Iran and its
repeated meddling in Irans domestic affairs.
Iran recalled all the staff and closed its embassy
in London after Britain recalled its diplomatic
mission in Tehran due to massive protests at the
British embassy by students who demanded ties
be severed with London.
Hague said that as well as Irans nuclear program, his discussions with Zarif took in the conflict in Syria, human rights and bilateral relations
between the two countries.
He said, We talked about the need for peace in
Syria, where Iran could play a constructive role,
including by supporting the Geneva framework
for a negotiation between (President Bashar) Assad and the opposition.
And while welcoming recent announcements
on the release of some political prisoners, I raised
our concerns about human rights in Iran.
The Iranian minister further warned against the
danger of chemical weapons falling into the hands
of extremist Takfiri groups operating in Syria,
which has been the scene of deadly unrest since
March 2011.
MoU With Italy
In a Monday meeting in New York, Zarif and
his Italian counterpart Emma Bonino signed a
memorandum of understanding (MoU) to help
improve the situation in war-torn Afghanistan.
The two sides expressed determination to expand bilateral cooperation on regional and international issues, particularly the situation in Afghanistan.
Under the MoU, Tehran and Rome agreed to
fight drug trafficking and cooperate in reconstructing Afghanistans devastated infrastructure.
The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 as part of Washingtons
so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the
Taliban from power, but insecurity remains across
the country.
During the meeting on Monday, Zarif and Bonino further stressed the need for the expansion of
Tehran-Rome relations in all areas.
The two diplomats also discussed the latest developments in Middle Eastern countries, including Syria and Iraq.

In separate meetings on Monday, Zarif also discussed bilateral ties and other regional issues with
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and the
foreign minister of Switzerland, Didier Burkhalter, Turkish foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu .
The Iranian diplomat also met with EU foreign
policy chief Catherine Ashton and the foreign
ministers of the Netherlands, Australia, Britain,
Switzerland, Japan, Turkey, Oman, Slovakia,
Croatia, Georgia and Bulgaria.
During the meeting with Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans, Zarif said Iran and the
Netherlands enjoy deep historical relations.
In political, economic and cultural areas, there
are many grounds [for cooperation] that we can
negotiate, Zarif told the Dutch minister.
Timmermans, for his part, praised Irans glorious history, culture and civilization, stressing that
the Netherlands is interested in the continuation of
political negotiations between the two countries.
The two ministers also exchanged views on different regional and international issues including
the situation in Syria and Afghanistan as well as
the condition of minorities in Europe.
In another meeting, Zarif and Slovak Foreign
Minister Miroslav Lajcak held talks on the different grounds for further Tehran-Bratislava cooperation, calling for the expansion of bilateral relations between the two countries in all spheres.
The Iranian foreign minister also held a separate meeting with his Croatian counterpart Vesna
Pusic.
The two described Tehran-Zagreb ties as close
and significant and called for the further expansion of relations between their countries.
During the talks, Zarif underlined Irans significant role in ending the crisis in Bosnia during the
Balkan wars in 1990s.
They also exchanged views on the latest developments in the Middle East and the situation in
Afghanistan.
Purposeful Nuclear Talks
In a meeting with Ashton, the Iranian foreign
minister said Tehran is ready to conduct purposeful negotiations within a specific timeframe to resolve the impasse over the Iranian nuclear energy
program.
He said the nuclear energy issue can be resolved
if the current realities of the Islamic Republic are
taken into consideration.
Zarif added that the timeframe of the nuclear
negotiations should be determined based on a realistic perspective.
The top Iranian diplomat pointed to the deep
mistrust between the [negotiating] sides, and
stressed the existence of political will to resolve
the nuclear issue.
Confidence-building and allaying concerns are
the first main step in that regard, he added.
Zarif, however, emphasized that the legal right
of the Iranian nation to peaceful nuclear technology and uranium enrichment cannot be denied.
Following the meeting, Ashton praised the talks
with Zarif as good and constructive.
Ashton added that Zarif will join the foreign
ministers of China, France, Germany, and Russia
and the US secretary of state as well the UK foreign secretary in a meeting, expected to be held
on Thursday, to discuss Irans nuclear energy program.
Iran is falsely accused by the United States, the
Israeli regime and some of their allies of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy
program.
Tehran categorically rejects the allegation.

10 Sites Located for

New Nuclear Plants
Head of Irans Nuclear Safety Center Naser Rastkhah said on
Monday that more than ten sites have been located for the construction of new nuclear power plants in the country.
Geological studies have been conducted in various regions of
the country for the construction of new atomic power plants. A
number of potential sites have been identified for the launch of
new nuclear power plants in the country, and preliminary surveys
have been carried out in order to select the construction site of
these plants, Rastkhah told reporters on the sidelines of the ceremony to mark Irans official taking over of the first unit of the
Bushehr nuclear power plant from Russia, Press TV reported.
He also described the selection of sites as one of the most significant subjects concerning the construction of atomic power
plants, adding that disregard for this issue and other miscalculations led to an irreversible disaster in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japans Fukushima Daiichi nuclear
power plant on March 11, 2011.
The first unit of the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power plant
was handed over to Iranian experts on Monday during a ceremony which was attended by Iranian and Russian officials.
The Bushehr nuclear plant is the worlds safest, the head of
the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Ali Akbar Salehi said during the ceremony.
He reassured Irans neighbors over the safety of the plant and
said Tehran is ready to answer any questions in this regard. Bushehr nuclear power plant became officially operational in September 2011, generating electricity at 40 percent of its capacity.
The 1,000-megawatt plant, which is operating under the full
supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),
reached its maximum power generation capacity in August 2012.
Iran and Russia have assured the international community that
the plant is fully compliant with high-level safety standards and
the IAEA safeguards.
The United States, Israel, and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. Iran rejects the allegations.

MP: Turkey Position

On Iran Realistic
A senior lawmaker said on Monday that recent statements by
Turkish President Abdullah Gul about Irans key role in Syria
shows Ankaras realistic view of Tehran.
The Turkish presidents remarks about the Geneva 2 meeting
[on Syria] were real and without Irans presence the session will
bear no result, Chairman of the Majlis National Security and
Foreign Policy Commission Alaeddin Boroujerdi said, Press TV
reported.
Addressing reporters in New York on Sunday, the Turkish
president said it would be unrealistic to hold any discussion
about the ongoing crisis in Syria without the presence of Iran.
Frankly, its unrealistic to talk about Syria without Iran. There
has yet to be a common understanding with Iran, but you cannot
exclude it, Gul stated.
The legislator reiterated that Turkey, as a friend country to
Iran, can act successfully to resolve the ongoing crisis in Syria by
adopting a proper stance.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March 2011. A
very large number of the militants operating inside Syria are reportedly foreign nationals.
In a recent statement, the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees said the number of Syrian refugees, who have fled
the countrys 29-month-long conflict, reached two million.
The UN refugee agency further said some 4.2 million people
have also been displaced inside Syria since the beginning of the
conflict in the Arab country.
On May 7, Russia and the US agreed in the Russian capital
Moscow to convene an international conference on Syria, which
will serve as a follow-up to an earlier Geneva meeting held in
June 2012.
The Syrian government has already announced that it is ready
to take part in the peace conference without any preconditions in
an effort to help end over two years of deadly turmoil in the country.

Obama: Diplomatic Path...

From Page 1
Obama said that he had directed Secretary of State John
Kerry to pursue a diplomatic effort along with other nations to
resolve disputes over Irans nuclear program.
We are encouraged that President Rouhani received
from the Iranian people a mandate to pursue a more moderate course. Given President Rouhanis stated commitment to
reach an agreement, I am directing John Kerry to pursue this
effort with the Iranian government, in close coordination with
the European Union, the United Kingdom, France, Germany,
Russia and China. The roadblocks may prove to be too great,
but I firmly believe the diplomatic path must be tested. For
while the status quo will only deepen Irans isolation, Irans
genuine commitment to go down a different path will be good
for the region and the world, and will help the Iranian people
meet their extraordinary potential in commerce and culture;
in science and education.
We are also determined to resolve a conflict that goes back
even further than our differences with Iran: the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis.

03

Felicitation

Sept. 25, 2013

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif extended a message to his

Saudi counterpart Saud Al-Faisal felicitating him on the Arab Kingdoms
National Day, which falls on September 23.

National

Tehran Raps Raid on

Russian Syria Embassy
Iran has condemned the recent terrorist attack against the Russian embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus.
Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Monday slammed the attack by
extremist and terrorist groups against the Russian embassy,
Mehr News Agency reported.
Three people working at the embassy were wounded when
a mortar shell struck the compound of the diplomatic mission
on September 22.
Militants have targeted the Russian embassy several times
since the beginning of the unrest in Syria more than two years
ago.
Earlier this month, Russias embassy in Damascus was also
hit by a mortar shell. No casualties were reported.
On June 4, one civilian died and several others were injured
near the embassy building in Damascus by shellfire from militants operating inside Syria.
Amir-Abdollahian praised Russias attempts in resolving
the Syrian crisis and said Moscows role is based on a focus
on political and democratic solution.
The official censured the countries that advocate military
intervention in Syria. He said the support those countries provide for terrorist and Takfiri groups constitutes a serious danger for the whole region and the world.
Turmoil has gripped Syria since March 2011, and tens of
thousands of people, including large numbers of Syrian security forces, have been killed in the unrest.
The Syrian government says the chaos is being orchestrated
from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large
number of the militants are foreign nationals.
Damascus blames western countries and some of their regional allies including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey of
arming the opposition and fueling the crisis in the country, as
reports indicate that a large number of insurgents fighting the
Syrian government are foreign nationals.
Several international human rights organizations have accused the foreign-sponsored insurgents of committing war
crimes.
Iran has repeatedly expressed opposition to any foreign intervention in Syrias internal affairs, stressing that inclusive
dialog and national reconciliation as well as free elections are
key to settlement of the unrest in the Arab country.
In a recent statement, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the number of Syrian refugees, who
have fled the countrys 29-month-long conflict, reached two
million.
The UN refugee agency further said some 4.2 million people have also been displaced inside Syria since the beginning
of the conflict in the Arab country.
Diplomats Abduction in Yemen
Amir-Abdollahian also called on Yemen to redouble efforts
to secure the release of abducted Iranian diplomat Nour Ahmad Nikbakht.
Nikbakht , an administrative staff member of the Iranian
Embassy in Sanaa, was on his way to work from his home
in the citys diplomatic quarter on July 21 when unidentified
gunmen blocked the road, forced him out of his vehicle and
abducted him.
Amir-Abdollahian said Monday that the reports indicate
that the diplomat is in good health, adding that joint efforts by
Iran and Yemen are under way to secure his release.
He thanked the Yemeni governments effective efforts but
called on the countrys officials to increase efforts to immediately solve the issue of the abduction.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry has already summoned the
Yemeni charg daffaires twice to express Tehrans grave concern over the fate of the diplomat and to remind Sanaa that it
is responsible for Nikbakhts safety.
In late August, Iran also dispatched a delegation to the Arab
country to pursue the case of the diplomat after the Yemeni
Foreign Ministry announced on August 14 that it had no clues
as to the whereabouts of the abducted Iranian diplomat.
On July 21, Irans former Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi
slammed the inhumane abduction of the Iranian diplomat in
Sanaa, urging the Yemeni government to take serious measures to secure his release.

Speaker: Syrian
Situation Changing
Positively
Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said that situation in Syria is changing in a positive way due to the constant resistance of the Syrian people and its government against enemies and their terrorist
agents.
In a phone conversation with his Syrian counterpart Mohammad Jihad al-Laham on Monday, Larijani hailed resistance of the people and government of Syria against vicious
plots and inhuman moves of the terrorist groups inside the
country, IRNA reported.
The people of Syria will be the final winner of the resistance, Larijani stressed, voicing Tehrans opposition to any
military or bullying solution to the Syrian crisis. Only diplomatic solutions can put an end to the ongoing crisis in Syria.
The Syrian speaker, for his turn, briefed Larijani on latest
developments in his country, appreciating Tehrans support
for Damascus in regional and international scenes.
The top Syrian parliamentarian also hoped for finding a
peaceful solution to the crisis.

Rouhani to Relay
Iran Message of Peace

Marziyeh Afkham

From Page 1
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham
said at her weekly press conference that the message
of the Iranian nation, to be relayed by President Rouhani, is one of peace based on constructive interaction
with other countries.
On September 25, President Rouhani is due to
address the special session of the Nuclear Disarmament Conference as the current chairman of the NonAligned Movement (NAM).
The president will also address the foreign ministers of the NAM member states, that constitute nearly
two-thirds of the countries of the UN.
Afkham added that during his speeches, Rouhani
will elaborate on the stances of the Islamic Republic on the recent developments in the region and the
world as well as the important incidents that have affected security, peace and peaceful coexistence at the
international level.
Germany Elections
Referring to the victory of German Chancellor
Angela Merkels party in federal elections, Afkhan
expressed hope that both Iran and Germany can take
realistic measures to have constructive interaction.
The outcome is seen as a remarkable personal
victory for the chancellor, who steered her Christian
Democrats (Christian Democratic Union) to their best
result in more than 20 years, winning 311 seats in the
630-seat parliament.
FMs UN meetings
Commenting on the meeting between Foreign
Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and British Foreign Secretary William Hague in New York, Afkham
said it was constructive and provided an opportunity
for the two officials to discuss bilateral, regional and
international issues. The meeting, arranged at the request of the British Foreign Office, was held at the
UN headquarters in New York City on Monday.
In this meeting, the bilateral relations and resumption of ties were reviewed and the two top diplomats
agreed to study the different dimensions and the way
of doing so through meetings to be held between their
deputies on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting, Afkham said.
Afkham said that the Iranian and British foreign
ministers have also discussed the Syrian crisis, and
added, International topics and the Syrian issue were
raised at this meeting, and given Irans special and
influential status in regional issues, Zarif explained
Irans views about the Syrian issue.
On November 27, 2011, a large majority of Iranian
MPs voted to downgrade diplomatic ties with Britain.
It was a response to Britains sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran, over an alleged non-civilian side to
Irans nuclear energy program.
The move followed a demonstration in Tehran outside the British embassy during which the UK flag
was pulled down.
After the incident, condemned in Iran, Britain withdrew its diplomatic staff from the country on November 30 and asked Irans diplomatic delegation in London to leave within 48 hours.
Referring to the upcoming talks between Zarif and
the foreign ministers of China, France, Germany, and
Russia, and the US secretary of state as well as the UK
foreign secretary on September 26, Afkham said that
the meeting, scheduled for Thursday, will mark the
beginning of a new period in the nuclear negotiations.
Possibility of Rouhani-Obama Meeting
Responding to a question on whether Iran would
welcome a potential meeting between Rouhani and
his American counterpart Barack Obama on the side-

lines of the UN General Assembly session in New

York, Afkham said Iran is not after a meeting per se,
but has frameworks for the pursuit of its interest.
This meeting should take place on an appropriate
occasion, the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said,
adding, however, that in Irans view, no such occasion
has arisen yet. The comment comes amid media speculations that President Rouhani and President Obama
may meet on the sidelines of the annual UN meeting,
which would be the first such meeting since Irans Islamic Revolution of 1979.
On September 19, White House spokesman Jay
Carney talked about the possibility of a meeting between Obama and Rouhani in New York.
In an interview with the American channel NBC,
the president did not rule out the possibility.
Iran-IAEA Talks
Commenting on the new round of talks between
Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) over the countrys nuclear energy program,
which is scheduled to be held in Vienna on September
27, Afkham said the Islamic Republic is after positive interaction with the Agency.
We merely seek to exercise our rights based on
the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT); we want joint
cooperation with the International Atomic Energy
Agency, said the diplomat.
Earlier this month, IAEA Chief Yukiya Amano said
the UN nuclear supervisory body favors constructive
cooperation with new Iranian government in view of
resolving the Tehrans nuclear issue.
Amano said that the IAEA remains committed to
working constructively with Iran, under the countrys
new government, to resolve outstanding issues by
diplomatic means.
He called on Tehran to allay concerns about the nature of its nuclear energy program.
He also asked Iranian authorities to provide access
to the Parchin military site outside the Iranian capital.
Crisis in Syria
Afkham touched upon Rouhanis recent announcement, published in an op-ed in the Washington Post
on September 19, that Tehran is ready to broker talks
between the Syrian government and its opposition
coalition.
The Islamic Republic of Iran, prior to this [opinion
piece] had always stressed [the necessity for] adopting
a diplomatic approach and using a political solution to
settle the crisis in Syria, and Mr. Rouhanis article was
based on this framework, she said.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since
March 2011. According to the United Nations, more
than 100,000 people have been killed due to the foreign-sponsored violence.
Turkish Allegations
The spokeswoman further rejected a Turkish daily
report alleging that Tehran has promised the world
powers to prevent Syrian President Bashar Al-Assads
nomination in the 2014 election in exchange for the
removal of the sanctions by the West.
The report is completely unfounded, Afkham
said. Her remarks came after the Turkish Zaman
newspaper claimed that Iranian President Hassan
Rouhani has vowed to prevent President Assads candidacy in 2014 presidential election in Syria quid pro
quo the US and other western states relief of embargos against Tehran. Commenting on the future relations between Tehran, Riyadh and Cairo, the Iranian
official stated that the Islamic Republic has always
stressed the need for convergence and cooperation
among Middle Eastern countries in line with the interests of the region.

Ceremony Held
To Honor Nelson Mandela
Iran held a ceremony to honor former South African President Nelson Mandela as the man of peace, equality and
freedom.
Foreign ambassadors and high-ranking Iranian officials,
including Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African
Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, attended the event,
dubbed as Commemoration Ceremony of Nelson Mandela, the Man of Peace and Freedom, on Monday, Press
TV reported.
The commemoration was organized by Tehran Municipalitys Culture and Arts Organization and held in Arasbaran Cultural Center.
Mandela is South Africas anti-apartheid icon who led
the country to democracy in 1994.
South African Ambassador to Tehran Archie Whitehead
said Mandela is an individual who took up the struggle
for the liberation of his own people as a result of realizing
the evil that went on around him and who then began to
articulate the position of the African people in terms of the
minimum demands for democracy.
The African hero became South Africas first Black president in the countrys first multi-racial elections in 1994.
He is called Africas elder statesman and is revered across
the world for his role in ending apartheid in his homeland.
The former South African president has received more
than 250 awards over four decades, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize. In recent years, Mandelas health problems
have worried his supporters.
Mandela was taken to hospital on June 8 for lung infection. His lung troubles date back to the 27 years he spent in
prison.
On September 1, Mandela was reportedly discharged
from hospital and returned home, where he was expected to
receive intensive care.

Tunisia Urges Iran Help

On Syria Unrest
Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki has called on Iran to
help find a political solution to the crisis in Syria.
We have to stop this; this is the main problem: find and
reach a political solution. I hope Iran now with President
[Hassan] Rouhani would help, Marzouki said on the sidelines of the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting
on Monday, Reuters reported.
We have to put the pressure on our friends all over the
world, but the nightmare of the Syrian people must stop,
Marzouki added.
The Tunisian presidents call comes as Rouhani said earlier in September that Iran is ready to facilitate talks between the Syrian government and the foreign-backed opposition.
I announce my governments readiness to help facilitate
dialogue between the Syrian government and the opposition,
the Iranian president wrote in an op-ed in the Washington Post
on September 19.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011.
According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people
have been killed and a total of 7.8 million of others displaced
due to the violence.
In a recent statement, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the number of the Syrian refugees
who have fled the countrys 29-month-long conflict has
reached two million.

Mohammad Ali Rajabi

04

Ilam Exports

Sept. 25, 2013

Ilam province exported $416 million worth of goods to Iraq through

Mehran border in the first 6 months of the current Iranian year (started
March 21).

Domestic Economy

Wheat Purchase
Exceeds 4.8m Tons

Bourse, CBI to Sign

Cooperation Deal
Domestic Economy Desk
A new chapter will open in the countrys capital market,
said the head of Securities and Exchange Organization
of Iran.
Ali Salehabadi added, We will soon witness cooperation for promoting the countrys financial system by
signing a joint memorandum of understanding with the
Central Bank of Iran (CBI).
Salehabadi also said some of the fields
of cooperation include clarifying the fate
of suspended banks, revising the Deposit Guarantee Fund plan, accounting the
money withdrawn from bank accounts and
issuing Islamic Treasury bonds, IRIB reported.
Meanwhile, Seyyed Ali Husseini, the
deputy head of Bourse Organization, said base metals
have received 32 trillion rials as finance during March
21-Aug. 22, 2013.
Close to one-third of bourse transactions were conducted online during March 21-Aug. 22, 2013.
Husseini also told the Persian daily Hamshahri that 71
trillion rials of stocks were traded digitally in this period,
which accounted for 30 percent of the entire lot.
Some 210 trillion rials of the transactions were conducted in the bourse in the past five months, he said.
Husseini noted that the significant growth in online
transactions indicates that shareholders are willing to
trade online.
We seek to conduct a huge portion of bourse transactions online. We predict that it will materialize within
five years, he said.

16,600 Quick-Yield Enterprises

In Lorestan
Domestic Economy Desk
Some 16,600 quick-yield enterprises are operating in
Lorestan province, said the deputy head of Cooperatives,
Labor and Social Welfare Ministry.
Hamed Veise Karami said 6.61 trillion rials in facilities
have been allocated to these enterprises since the beginning of the year to March 2006.
He noted that quick-yield enterprises
generated 25,387 jobs in the province,
which ranked first in the last Iranian year
(ended March 20, 2013) in terms of allocating facilities to production cooperatives.
Karami said the facilities were procured
through the resources of Tose Taavon Bank (Cooperatives Development Bank).
He noted that 155 billion rials in facilities were allocated to 91 cooperative units of the province last year.
Interest-free loans worth 630 billion rials have been
allocated to household jobs in the years to March 2012
and 2013, he said.
Karami also said 97 billion rials in self-employment
loans were extended to applicants last year.

Farmers Receive Loans

Translated by Katayoon Dashti
Close to 35 trillion rials worth of loans have been earmarked
for autumn cultivation, said the managing director of Bank
Keshavarzi.
Mohammad Talebi added that Agricultural Jihad Ministry
has launched plans to increase the area under cultivation,
IRNA reported.
He said negotiations have been held with officials for securing the fertilizers required by farmers.
In view of the rise in production costs and fertilizer prices, we seek to ease the procurement of fertilizer by opening
letters of credit for petrochemical companies, he said, noting that this will reduce the costs.
Talebi said the National Development
Fund (NDF) allocated facilities worth 25.7
trillion rials during 2011 and Bank Keshavarzi added 21 trillion rials to it, noting that
these loans were paid to 90,000 projects.
A 7-trillion-rial deal was signed with
NDF in the last Iranian year (ended March
20, 2013), he said.
In addition, negotiations have been held with NDF to receive 20 trillion rials in the current year.
Davar Mahikar, a member of the Board of Trustees of
Bank Keshavarzi, said the bank paid 5.9 trillion rials worth
of facilities for purchasing agricultural machineries last
year.
Mahikar explained that the farmers purchased 45,186
farming machineries such as tractors and combines, Pool
News reported.
Poultry and livestock industries received Bank Keshavarzis loans to optimize fuel consumption, he said, stressing that they currently use modern methods.
On the role of investment in agriculture sector, Mahikar
said based on latest research, economic growth is 0.13 percent for every 1-percent rise in value-added of agriculture
sector while gross domestic product growth is 0.15 percent
for every 1-percent investment in the sector.
In addition, production grew by 0.8 percent in other sectors for every 1-percent rise in agricultural investment.

Translated by Farzam Vanaki

ince the beginning of the harvest

season (mid-July), the government
has purchased 4.8 million tons of
wheat from farmers.
Announcing this, Mohsen Daraei, the
spokesman of Bank Sepahs Guaranteed
Wheat Purchase Plan, put the value of
purchased wheat at 38 trillion rials, of
which 36 trillion rials have been paid to
the farmers, IRNA reported.
Daraei hoped the remaining 2 trillion
rials will be paid in the next two days.
As we are getting close to the end of
the harvest season, wheat harvest has
declined in some provinces. However,
guaranteed wheat purchase is expected
to exceed 5 million tons in the current
Iranian year (started March 21), he
said.
Daraei said figures show the private
sector has purchased over 3 million tons
of wheat.
Since we are at the beginning of the
wheat cultivation season for the next year,
officials in tropical provinces should prepare the grounds in this respect, he said.
He put the next years wheat price at
10,500 rials-10,800 rials, which is 2,500
rials higher than that of last year.
Daraei noted that if we have favorable climatic conditions next year, wheat
production will grow and imports will
decline.
Last year, the government purchased
2.46 million tons of wheat.
Esmaeil Esfandiarpour, manager of the
Wheat Plan of Agricultural Jihad Minis-

try, said this year, supporting wheat growers and increasing production will be prioritized.
Referring to the Cabinets ratification
regarding wheat price before the start of
the cultivation season, he said this will
play a significant role in outlining plans

Iran Building
8 Mini Refineries
Iran has made plans for the construction of
eight small- and medium-sized gas condensate refineries in Asalouyeh, which houses
the giant offshore South Pars Gas Field
along the Persian Gulf coastline.
The refineries will help convert nearly
500,000 b/d of gas condensate to products
of high economic value.
Hojjatollah Fereidouni, director of economic development and investment attraction in Pars Special Energy Economic
Zone, also told Shana news agency that
five financiers have been authorized by the
Oil Ministrys Directorate of Consolidated
Planning.
Three more potential investors are in the
process of getting the permit.
Fereidouni said the refineries will have a
capacity of 10,000 to 150,000 b/d.
With the construction of these eight refineries, byproducts such as diesel, gasoline, naphtha and tar will be produced in
different grades of 40, 50, 60 and 70, he
said.
After getting the environmental impact
assessment (EIA) permit by financiers, the
contract for the construction of these refineries will be signed. These permits have to
be taken into account in the design of the
refineries.
Fereidouni said a large number of financiers had volunteered to construct gas condensate refineries and eight of them were
selected.
In case the private sector is willing to
invest in this project or the petrochemical
sector, it can submit its documents to the
Department for Economic Development
and Investment Attraction in Pars Special
Economic Energy Zone, he said.
Fereidouni noted that mini refineries are
instrumental in converting gas condensates
to oil products.
With the construction of these refineries, the necessary feedstock will be
supplied by South Pars Gas Field for
domestic purposes and products such as
gasoline, diesel and naphtha will be exported, which will earn huge revenues for
the country.
It is forecast that nearly 500,000 b/d of
condensates would be delivered to gas condensate refineries through a pipeline, he
said.

for wheat production.

The official also said this year, the ministry plans to support the production of
other crops.
On the Wheat Plan, he said, We have
not begun the plans implementation yet,
but will gradually do it.

Esfandiarpour said that by implementing the plan, Iran aims to achieve selfsufficiency in wheat production.
Certainly, by determining a reasonable price for wheat purchase, the government can boost the crops productivity,
he said.

05

Hong Kongs GDP Up

Sept. 25, 2013

Hong Kongs overall gross domestic product rose 3.3 percent over a year
earlier in real terms in the second quarter of 2013, accelerating from the
2.9-percent increase in the first quarter.

Economy

Oil Theft in Nigeria Rampant

News in Brief

Iranians Can Participate

In OFID Projects
Economy Desk

A new report said 100,000 barrels of oil are stolen daily from the Niger Delta, about 5 percent of the two million plus barrels per day output.

From Page 1
The heart of the matter is oil theft
is deeply engrained now in the fabric
of the Niger Delta and I would suggest in Nigerian life generally, said
Campbell.
The report said military and government officials, militants, oil executives,
crime rings and communities all profit
from oil theft.
The report adds oil theft in Nigeria
impacts economies around the world as
big-time thieves launder money in for-

eign countries and stolen oil disrupts the

markets. Foreign buyers, it said, should at
least be researching the issue to see what
they can do about regulating stolen oil in
their own countries.
The report also suggests legal
means, like lawsuits and tracking regulation, to stem the flow of stolen oil.
But the report also warns many possible actions the international community could take, like sanctions or
regulating oil sales, could worsen the
situation.

Intl Intervention Unrealistic

Campbell said at this time international
intervention is highly unlikely.
It is unrealistic because for the international community to be involved to
a greater degree in countering oil theft
thats going to require a very close partnership with the Nigerian government.
That is going to require a substantial
political will on the part of the Nigerian
government, said Campbell.
The Nigerian government, he said,
has other things to do and the military is

stretched thin.
The Nigerian government right now
is consumed with a jihadist revolt in the
north called Boko Haram. It also worries
about ongoing ethnic and religious conflict in the Middle Belt. You end up with
questions about capacity, said Campbell.
Nigerian politicians, he added, are
also focused on the 2015 elections, and
any disruption in the flow of oil money,
both illegal and legal, would impact campaigns, making it an issue many people
do not want to touch.

Russia, North Korea Open Rail Link

Russia opened a cross-border freight railroad with North
Korea as part of the Trans-Asian Railroad Project aimed
at accelerating trade by connecting Asia and Europe, in
the event the two conflicting Koreas unite to form a train
network on the peninsula.
Our common objective is for this link and port to be a
pilot scheme for the restoration of a single transport system
in North and South Korea that would link the peninsula to
countries that gravitate to this region, to Europe via Russia,
the head of state-run Russian Railroads, Vladimir Yakunin,
said at the opening ceremony, RT reported.
The 54-kilometer route linking the North Korean port
city of Rajin with the Russian border town of Khasan
was inaugurated by top executives of both countries
state train operators.
Yakunun said the railroad project should ease political

tension between the rival Koreas, which have not technically achieved a peace agreement following the 1950-53
war that divided the countries.
We always work for peace and we hope that this
project will not only promote peace on the Korean Peninsula, but help friendly and peaceful relations between
our countries, he said.
North Korean Railroads Minister Chon Kil-su noted
the project
will promote the joint economic and transport development of the two countries and welfare of their peoples.
The freight railroad will transport coal and import goods
from South Korea and Asian states, said Yakunin.
The terminal at Rajin is expected to handle four million tons of coal a year, including shipments for OAO
Mechel--one of Russias leading mining and metallurgi-

cal companies.
The project was implemented in accordance with arrangements made by Russian President Vladimir Putin
and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in 2000. The reconstruction of the section started in 2009.
A total of 18 bridges and three tunnels measuring over
4.5 kilometers have been constructed or rebuilt.
The route is part of a larger project of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the
Pacific, dubbed the Iron Silk Road.
It aims to connect Russias Trans-Siberian Railroad to
South Korea via the North, creating an integrated freight
railroad network and cutting transportation costs to Europe.
Cargo shipment from Asia to Europe is expected to
take 14 days--significantly shorter than sea freight shipping that takes 45 days.

Indonesia to Boost Bilateral Swap Deals

Panama, Colombia Sign Free Trade Pact

Indonesia will boost bilateral swap agreements to almost $40 billion by signing
deals with China and South Korea and increasing an existing agreement with Japan,
as Southeast Asias biggest economy battles a slumping currency.
The country may sign an agreement with China next month when PresidentXi
Jinping visits Indonesia, Industry Minister Hidayat told reporters in Jakarta after
meeting with the central bank.
It may extend a bilateral swap agreement with China, Bambang Brodjonegoro,
the head of fiscal policy at the finance ministry, said earlier this month, Bloomberg
wrote.
Indonesias rupiah fell to the weakest level since April 2009, extending a slump
thats made it the worst-performing emerging-market currency this year, as a record
current-account deficit and the prospect of reduced US stimulus spurred outflows.
The government will also unveil an easing of investment rules in a few weeks,
Finance Minister Chatib Basri said separately.
The rupiah slid 0.7 percent to 11,528 per dollar as of 12:19 p.m. in Jakarta, after
reaching 11,586 earlier, prices from local banks show.
Indonesia extended a $12 billion swap line with Japan last month as policymakers tried to bolster a rupiah that has fallen more than 16 percent this year, the worst
performance among 24 emerging-market currencies tracked by Bloomberg.
India also reached an agreement with Japan this month to more than triple its bilateral currency-swap line as it seeks to buoy the rupee.

Panama signed a free trade agreement with Colombia, making a step forward to join the
Pacific Alliance.
The agreement was signed by Panamas Minister of Trade and Industry Ricardo Quijano and Colombias Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism Sergio Diaz Granados,
Xinhua reported.
Diaz Granados said the free trade agreement, the negotiation process of which was
launched in 2009, represented an important achievement as the two nations have an annual trade of $2.8 billion.
The agreement will provide clear rules for their trade exchanges and help improve
the business environment, Diaz Granados said.
The minister added that the agreement paves the way for Panama to become a full
member of the Pacific Alliance, a Latin American mechanism for economic and free
trade integration grouping Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.
In the coming weeks, Colombia will present the agreement to the Congress for ratification, said the minister.
The signing of the free trade pact between the two neighbor countries was also hailed
by the Panamanian side as an important achievement.
Quijano said the agreement will allow a deeper economic integration between the two
countries, and it represented a major step for Panama to become a full member of the
Pacific Alliance. Panama is now in negotiations with Mexico in a bid to reach another
free trade agreement, according to Quijano.

Singapore Tightens Rules for Hiring Foreigners

Singapore will require many companies operating in the
city-state to consider Singaporeans for skilled job vacancies before turning to candidates from abroad, bowing to
public pressure over a surge in foreigners over the past
decade.
The measures might mean more hassle and paperwork for companies, and it might even lower the longterm economic growth rate, said Michael Wan, an economist with Credit Suisse in Singapore, Reuters wrote.
But I dont think this will necessarily lower Singapores attractiveness to companies because there are
other factors that they take into account--such as tax
incentives, political stability and access to the ASEAN
region.
Starting next August, firms with more than 25 employees must advertise a vacancy for professional or managerial jobs paying less than S$12,000 ($9,600) a month on
a new jobs bank administered by the Singapore Workforce Development Agency for at least 14 days, the Min-

istry of Manpower said in a statement.

Only after that period can the company apply for an

employment pass to bring in a foreign national.

Singapore will also raise the qualifying salaries for
employment pass holders to at least S$3,300 a month, up

from the current S$3,000, starting in January 2014, reducing the competition for entry-level jobs that typically
require tertiary education.
Singapore, a global financial center and the Asian base
for many banks and multinationals, is one of the worlds
most open economies.
Foreigners account for about 40 percent of the islands
5.3 million population and take up many senior- and
mid-level positions as well as most of the low-paying
jobs that locals shun.
The Association of Banks in Singapore, which represents financial institutions operating in the city-state,
said banks will need to adjust their hiring processes to
comply with the new rules.
We need to assess the impact these rules will have, a
spokesman for the association added.
Singapore, Asias main center for private banking as
well as commodities trading, has seen a sharp increase in
foreigners over the past decade.

The Board of Directors of the OPEC Fund for International

Development (OFID) approved seven financial facilities for
conducting infrastructural and development projects in poor
and developing nations during its 144th session in Vienna.
Two of them worth $9.3 million pertain to complementary loans to secure the financial resources of transportation
projects in Ivory Coast and Burundi.
And the remaining five pertain to infrastructural projects
worth $588 million in China, Dominica, Tanzania, Uganda
and Togo.
It is possible for all contracting companies to take part in
tenders held for OFID projects. Therefore, it is a good opportunity for Iranian contractors and suppliers of facilities and
equipments to export their technical engineering services for
infrastructural projects in various nations.
Iranian engineering counseling companies can compete
with foreign companies for rendering counseling services to
the renovation projects of Ugandas hospital and power distribution network in the rural regions of Togo.
Interested companies can refer to www.OIETAI.ir/fa/opec/
plan for further information.
OFID is a multilateral development finance institution established in 1976 by the member countries of the Organization
of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Its objective
is to reinforce financial cooperation between OPEC member
countries and other developing countries, by providing financial support to the latter for their socioeconomic development.

Mazandaran Juice Exports Grow

Economy Desk
Mazandaran fruit juice and concentrate exports grew by 136
percent during March 21-Aug. 22, 2013, said the caretaker of
Mazandaran Industries, Mines and Trade Department.
Morteza Hashempour also told ISNA that
the value of fruit juice and concentrate exports surpassed $4 million during the period.
This is while the figure stood at $1.7 million during the same period of last year.
Mazandaran fruit juice and concentrate is
exported to Armenia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan,
Persian Gulf littoral states as well as Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon.
On the high potentials of the province in producing crops
and processing products, he said extension of bank facilities
to fruit juice production companies will boost exports.
Mazandaran province is in northern Iran. Located on the
southern coast of Caspian Sea, it is bordered by the Golestan,
Semnan, Tehran, Alborz, Qazvin and Gilan provinces. Sari is
the largest and the capital city of the province.

Kyrgyz Legal Protection

For Iranian Entrepreneurs
Bishkek pledged on Monday to provide legal protection for
Irans economic activities and investments in Kyrgyzstan.
The agreement was reached between Iranian Ambassador to
Kyrgyzstan Ali Najafi and Kyrgyz Prosecutor General Aida Salyanova in a meeting in Bishkek, FNA wrote.
During the meeting, Najafi pointed to the considerable activities and investments of Iranian businessmen in Kyrgyzstan, and
stressed the need for facilitating their activities through legal protections.
The Kyrgyz prosecutor general, for her part, pointed to the
presence and activities of more than 100 Iranian companies in
Kyrgyzstan and said these companies play an important role in
the development of Kyrgyz economy.
Salyanova pointed to her last years visit to Iran and voiced
her countrys readiness for exchanging delegations in a bid to get
more familiarized with each others laws and regulations.

Major Currencies
Currency

To USD

Currency

To USD

Turkish
i Lira
i

00.5036
036

Chinese
C
i
Yuan

00.1634
1634

Euro

1.3494

UAE Dirham

0.2722

British Pound

1.6027

Kuwait Dinar

3.5310

Australian Dollar

0.9414

Iraqi Dinar

0.00086

Japanese 100 Yen

1.0120

Saudi Riyal

0.2666

Major Commodities
Crude oil

$103.53

Silver

$21.78

Gold

$1326.50

Platinum

$1426.00

Copper

$7295.00

Wheat

$656.50

06

War Photo Exhibition

Sept. 25, 2013

A photo exhibition titled The Immortals of History, which recalls

emotional moments of the Iran-Iraq war at Tehrans Eyvan Gallery, wraps
up today.

Iranica

Ilam Carpet and Kilim

Light of Truth
By Molana
O love, you brought forth a jug
Filled with the ache that my heart clogs
I wont drink this wine, this drug!
Drink but for my hearts sake!
From this drink, pour me a cup
Wisely his praises I brought up
Bittersweet, pleasing to sup
Like the praises my heart would make.
From the wheel of fortune and fate
Stepped forth a soul so great
I ran forth to demonstrate
The rewards my heart had at stake.
O divine secret, of thee I ask
You for crowds do not unmask.
Praised and thanked me for my task
For my hearts sake, thus he spoke.
I was pleased that my beloveds face
Towards my home its path would trace
And opened up with much grace
The veil covers my heart break.
If love for blood may thirst
Brave warriors are curst
Mountains spontaneously burst
In such place my heart hurts.
O thou bringer of cure
Pleasure and pain you endure
Only in you I am secure that
Thou my heartache. can cure
Every fruit if only tries
My hearts ache can realize
Melancholic face, bloodshot eyes
Streams from the hearts bloody lake.
King of the world put away tears
The pride of Tabriz appears
Light of truth, Shams, now nears
Thy light my heart will wake and take.

Iranian Recipe
Herbal Pilaf
Ingredients
Rice, 425 grams
Butter, 50 grams
Sunflower oil, 4 tablespoons
Mixed dill, coriander, parsley and
mint, 100 grams (chopped)
Lemon juice, 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste
Direction
Wash the rice well and rinse it in a sieve until the water runs
clear. Cover it with water and leave it to soak for two hours. Wash
and rinse again.
Bring a saucepan of water up to a boil, then pour the rice and
salt in it. Cook the rice for about 6 minutes, until its just beginning to soften. Drain and rinse in lukewarm water.
Heat the butter and oil in a heavy saucepan until foaming, then
add half of the drained rice. Cover this with half the herbs, then
the rest of the rice and finish with the rest of the herbs, seasoning
as you go along.
Turn the heat down and make three steam holes in the rice with
the handle of a wooden spoon.
Wrap the lid of the pan in a tea towel and put the covered lid
onto the saucepan (the tea towel stops condensation from falling
back into the rice).
Let the rice cook for a further 20-25 minutes and make sure the
heat is on very low. Empty the rice into a bowl, dislodging the
crispy bits at the bottom.
Break these up and add to the rest of the rice. If you like it rich,
serve with extra melted butter and a squeeze of lemon on top. Persians put saffron in the butter before pouring it over.
Health Benefits of Parsley
Parsley is a Mediterranean herb that lends a sprinkling of color
to your plate. But lets not think of it as just a garnish. After all,
parsley has been around for more than 2,000 years and boasts
time-tested benefits that you should know about.
Parsley is rich in many vital vitamins, including vitamins C,
B12, K and A. This means parsley keeps your immune system
strong, tones your bones and heals the nervous system, too.
It helps flush out excess fluid from the body, thus supporting
kidney function. However, the herb contains oxalates, which can
cause problems for those with existing kidney and gall bladder
problems.
Regular use of parsley can help control your blood pressure.
The folic acid in this herb is like a tonic for your heart.
Parsley essential oil, when massaged into the scalp, may reduce hair loss.
Use parsley daily and youll feel relief from joint pain. Thats
because the herb has anti-inflammatory properties.
Parsley tea relaxes stiff muscles and encourages digestion.
Studies indicate that parsley, especially its essential oil, may
have a role in inhibiting cancerous tumors. In fact, scientists have
billed it a chemo protective food.

Translated by Katayoon Dashti

ome 15 billion rials worth of credits were allocated to Ilam carpet-weavers in the last Iranian year
(ended March 20, 2013), said the head of Ilam Industries, Mines and Trade Department.
Ali Mahdavi added that over 67 percent of the aforesaid credits have been paid to the weavers, Shata News
reported.
Currently, there are 7,500 looms across this western
province, he said.
Last year, 2,000 weavers were entitled to social security insurance coverage, while 9,000 weavers enjoy insurance services.
Embossed Kilim
Embossed kilim is one of the indigenous products of
Ilam weavers. Some 4,000 square meters of embossed
kilim are woven across the province.
With 10,000 skilled weavers, Ilam is well known for
its carpets, rugs and kilims, IRNA wrote.
The world of Ilam weavers is very mysterious, full of
cultural attractions and strange fables.
You can find traces of this culture when you enter their
workshop, hear their chants and see the woven designs
on their frame looms and the quick movements of their
hands.
One of the poems sung by Ilami weavers says: O
weaver girls, knot your secret wish on the woven hairs of
Chehelgis Pari and wait for your lover near the spring.
Chehelgis Pari is famous to inhabitants of Zagros
mountain range.
Old people, who tell sad or happy-ending stories,
transfer their experiences and moral lessons to the
younger generations.
Shahzanan is a story-teller who has been weaving carpets for the past 50 years. She has trained many weavers in her small workshop where many young weavers
work.

I learned carpet weaving at the age of nine from my

mother. The carpet designs and colors have become my
world.
Although Shahzanan suffers from cataract, she still

weaves carpets. She cant imagine the world without the

kilim warp and woof.
According to her, the destiny of a weaver is written in
her woven items.
There are many secrets in the warp and woof of every carpet. The weavers know this common secret, she

Call for Renewing Archeological Deal

With Chicago University
Iranica Desk
The renewal of the agreement between Iran and
the Oriental Institute of Chicago University will
prepare the grounds for the return of Achaemenid tablets to Iran.
Announcing this, Mohammad Beheshti, an
advisor of Irans Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO), said the
scientific and research agreement
was signed before the merger of
Cultural Heritage Organization
with Iran Tour and Touring Organization.
He added that the measure was
taken to boost cooperation between ICHHTO and the Oriental
Institute.
Documentation and translation
of tablets as well as development
of scientific and research cooperation between the two sides were
among the main subjects of the
agreement, he said.
Beheshti noted that the renewal of the agreement, which has been disregarded in the past,
will have a positive impact on the process of returning the tablets.
He noted that the Oriental Institute is willing to return the valuable heritage to Iran and
resume cooperation with the country.
Ahmad Mohit Tabatabaei, the deputy head of
the International Council of Museums (ICOM),
said the return of tablets will help preserve the
reputation of the Oriental Institute.
The Achaemenid tablets comprise an important part of human history and civilization, he
said.
Achaemenid tablets were taken on loan by

the Oriental Institute for further studies during the rule of the former monarchical regime.
Some of these tablets have been returned to Iran
while the more important ones still remain with
the institute.
The artifacts bear a cuneiform script that explains administrative details of Achaemenid

Empire and date from about 500 BC. They are

among a group of tens of thousands of tablets
and fragments loaned to the institute in 1937 for
research.
A group of 179 complete tablets was returned
in 1948 and another group of more than 37,000
tablet fragments was returned in 1951.
Abdolmajid Arfei, a researcher and translator of ancient languages, said in May that the
Persian and English translations of 647 Achaemenid clay tablets will be published in a book
by the end of the current Iranian year (started
March 21).
Arfei noted that he had earlier published another book that includes the translations of clay
tablets that are in Iran.

said.
A blue bead called Dadoo hangs on every loom. According to the weavers, it removes the evil eye.
After the kilims first knot is tied, the bead is hung and
a fowl is sacrificed.
Weavers believe that Chehelgis Pari protects the carpet and helps them.
Dadoo pays a short visit to all kilims and helps weavers to complete the rug soon, Shahzanan said.
Some weavers produce rugs to purchase dowry
(home appliances brought by the bride) and they get
married before finishing the rug.
Ilam province is a tribal region and its handicrafts, especially the embossed kilim, is famous nationwide.
The most important handicrafts of the province include giveh, wickerwork, coarse carpet, silk products,
rug, felt carpet and wooden products.
Like the other provinces of the country, Ilam has its
own special souvenirs like local chewing gum (the gum
of Persian turpentine tree), sweets and candy.
Giveh
Giveh is a type of traditional Iranian shoe that is very
comfortable and suits Iranian climates. In rural and
mountainous areas of Ilam, the use of giveh, which is a
soft, comfortable and durable, is widespread.
It has an old history in Ilam culture and is considered
one of the most valuable handicrafts of Iran.
Giveh is made up of two parts: the sole and the upper
part. The sole is usually rubber or leather, and the upper
part is woven with thread.
Before the arrival of rubber industry, Ilam weavers
would use a kind of wild-bull leather and wool or cotton
thread to make giveh.
Most rich people would also wear them. With the arrival of rubber products, lower class people use this material in the sole of giveh.
The city of Ilam is a major hub of giveh that are produced in workshops and homes.

Sudoku

No. 492

Sudoku was inspired by the table devised by Iranian mathematician

Al-Kharazmi. Fill 99 grid with digits so that each column, each row
and each of the nine 33 sub-grids that compose the grid, contains all
of the digits from 1 to 9.

07

S. Africa Rhino Poaching

Sept. 25, 2013

Poachers have killed a record 688 rhinos in South Africa so far this year, more
than the entire number slaughtered in 2012, according to figures issued on
World Rhino Day (Sept. 22).

Society

Iran to Help Turkey

Save Wetlands

Miankaleh Wetland, Mazandaran province

Translated by Atefeh Rezvan-Nia

urkish environmentalists will

use the experiences of their
Iranian counterparts for preserving endangered wetlands in their
homeland.
Announcing this, Mohsen Soleimani, the head of the national project
called Preservation of Wetlands in
Iran, said Iran has achieved great successes in preserving wetlands during
the past few years, IRNA reported.
Iran was able to revive its wetlands
and lagoons in the past few years, he
said, adding that Iranian environmen-

talists are ready to exchange experiences with Turkish counterparts to

help them preserve their wetlands.
Turkey is home to thousands of
hectares of wetlands, but has lost
many of its lagoons and wetlands due
to mismanagement.
Soleimani noted that the Turkish
environmentalists called for expansion of ties with Iranian counterparts
after they became familiar with the
countrys successes in the management of environment.
Iran has participated in a number
of international environmental exhibitions in the past couple of years to

display Irans environmental achievements, he said, adding that in a recent

environmental exhibition, which took
place in Turkey, Turkish environmentalists expressed interest in promoting
environmental ties with Iran.
The official explained that Turkey
has a number of wetlands, some of
which are on the verge of drying up
unless immediate actions are taken.
Burdur Wetland is one of Turkeys
wetlands, which is at grave risk of
complete drying up, Soleimani said,
adding that the wetland needs emergency assistance for its revival.
The international conference on

saving the worlds wetlands was held

in Burdur in Turkey between Sept.
16-18 with the participation of representatives from France, Greece, Turkey, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Jordan,
Iraq, Kenya and Iran.
The impact of the drying up of
wetlands on humans, the effect of
dam-building policies on drying up
wetlands, wetlands water supply and
effective ways of saving wetlands
were discussed at the conference, he
said.
Soleimani said Irans new publications regarding environment and ecosystem were displayed at the event.

HIV Infections Declining

treatment by more than 10 million.
Society Desk
New HIV infections among adults and children were
estimated at 2.3 million in 2012, a 33-percent reduction
since 2001.
These infections among children have been reduced to
260, 000 in 2012, a reduction of 52 percent since 2001.
AIDS-related deaths have also dropped by 30 percent
since the peak in 2005 as access to antiretroviral treatment expands, a press release issued by Tehrans UN Information Center said on Monday.
By the end of 2012, 9.7 million people in low- and
middle-income countries were accessing antiretroviral
therapy, an increase of nearly 20 percent in just one year.
In 2011, UN member-states agreed to a 2015 target of
reaching 15 million people with HIV treatment. However, as countries scaled up their treatment coverage and
as new evidence emerged showing the HIV prevention
benefits of antiretroviral therapy, the World Health Organization set new HIV treatment guidelines, expanding the total number of people estimated to be in need of

Vision and Commitment

Not only can we meet the 2015 target of 15 million
people on HIV treatment--we must also go beyond and
have the vision and commitment to ensure no one is left
behind, said Michel Sidibe, executive director of UNAIDS, in Geneva on Monday.
Significant results have also been achieved toward
meeting the needs of tuberculosis (TB) patients living
with HIV, as TB-related deaths among people living with
HIV have declined by 36 percent since 2004.
Despite a flattening in donor funding for HIV, which
has remained around the same as 2008 levels, domestic
spending on HIV has increased, accounting for 53 percent of global HIV resources in 2012. The total global resources available for HIV in 2012 was estimated at S18.9
billion, $3 billion to $5 billion short of the $22 billion to
24 billion estimated to be needed annually by 2015.
As well as outlining new global HIV estimates, the
2013 UNAIDS Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic reviews progress on ten specific targets that were set by

United Nations member-states in the 2011 UN Political

Declaration on HIV and AIDS.
The report finds that progress has been slow in ensuring
the respect of human rights, securing access to HIV services
for people most at risk of HIV infection, particularly people
who use drugs, and in preventing violence against women
and girls--a key factor in vulnerability to HIV.
Concerted Efforts
Gender inequality, punitive laws and discriminatory
actions are continuing to hamper national responses to
HIV and concerted efforts are needed to address these
persistent obstacles to scale-up of HIV services for people most in need.
According to the 2013 UNAIDS Report on the global
AIDS epidemic, in 2012, an estimated:
* 35.3 million [32.2 million--38.8 million] people globally were living with HIV
* 2.3 million [1.9 million--2.7 million] people became
newly infected with HIV
* 1.6 million [1.4 million--1.9 million] people died
from AIDS-related illnesses.

Human Activities Heating

Planet

12% of Deaths Related

To Neurological Diseases

Scientists are more certain than ever that greenhouse gases from human activities
are heating the planet, the head of the UNs climate panel says.
Rajendra Pachauri made the statement in an interview with BBC News.
The panel is due to deliver its latest report on the state of climate later this week
in Stockholm, Sweden.
Its last report was criticized after an
error on glaciers unveiled other flaws,
but Prof. Pachauri said procedures had
been reformed and strengthened.
He also dismissed suggestions of a
slowdown in global warming.
Theres definitely an increase in
our belief that climate change is taking place and that human beings are
responsible, he told me.
I dont think there is a slowdown
(in the rate of temperature increase). I
would like to draw your attention to the World Meteorological Organization, which
clearly stated on the basis of observations that the first decade of this century has
been the warmest in recorded history.
And I think the rest will be brought out by the report itself when its released.
Prof. Pachauris insistence that warming has not slowed hints at a focus of debate
this week in Stockholm:
Global temperatures have not been increasing as fast as scientists predicted and
several governments insist that this puzzle is properly addressed in the final summary.
The draft says a doubling of carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere
above pre-industrial levels (expected by mid-century) is likely to result in a temperature rise globally of between 1.5 and 4.5 degrees Celsius.

Neurological diseases are a huge burden on sufferers, their families and societies,
and responsible for 12 in every 100 deaths, President of the 2013 World Congress of
Neurologists Eduard Auff said at the events opening press conference in Vienna.
Between 4.5 and 11 percent of the total disease burden of humanity is due to
neurological diseases, said Auff who
also heads the Department of Neurology at the Medical University of Vienna,
Xinhua reported.
Werner Poewe, the head of Neurological Clinic at the Medical University of
Innsbruck, said about 30 percent of all
diseases were diseases of the brain. He
said in 2010, 35.6 million people worldwide suffered from dementia, which is
expected to rise to 100 million people by
2030.
The number of sufferers of other neurological diseases such as Parkinsons
disease is also expected to rise considerably over the same time-frame.
Poewe said a problem with neurological diseases is that the diagnoses are often made too late, often not before the onset
of symptoms. By this time, the disease can already be at an advanced stage, making
an early intervention to delay onset and progression difficult.
A project to use ultrasound brain scans on the three million people in Austria of
ages over 50 could result in some 750,000 showing suspect signs of disease and
make earlier interventions more effective.
The congress, which began on Monday, brings together around 8,000 medical
professionals from 127 countries and ends on Thursday.

Women
Pension for Women B
Breadwinners
After 10 Yrs.
Yrs
Society Desk
Women breadwinners above 55 years, who have paid insurance premium for 10 years, can get pension, based on a
new ratification by Irans Parliament to improve the livelihood of these people.
Announcing this, Salman Husseini, the deputy head of
Zanjans State Welfare Organization, said women breadwinners are sole providers who usually face many challenges, Poolnews reported.
State Welfare Organization is making efforts to reduce
their difficulties and provide them with a better life, he
said.
Women breadwinners can benefit from
the facilities offered by State Welfare Organization, including insurance coverage,
which is offered to women above 55 years
of age.
Women breadwinners above 55 years
who have just begun to pay insurance premium can receive pension till the end of their life, only if
they pay insurance premium for 10 years, he said.
Husseini noted that women unable to pay the premium
can seek the help of State Welfare Organization for making
the payment.
State Welfare Organization has agreed to pay 45 percent
of the premium for needy women, he said, adding that
Irans Subsidies Organization will also pay 55 percent of
the premium.
Husseini noted that the plan to pay insurance premium
for women breadwinners is aimed at strengthening the
foundation of families and preventing financial problems.
Improving womens status in society and supporting
equal rights for them have been on the agenda of all organizations, which defends the right of women in Iran, he said,
adding that women deserve to have a comfortable life as an
elderly or when they are unable to work.
Pointing to the insurance of housewives, Husseini said
low-educated and unemployed housewives between 18-50
years can also opt to receive housewife insurance.
Husseini said 990 women breadwinners are receiving
pensions in Zanjan province.

Nations Must Better Report

Female Labor Data
Christine Lagarde said the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) will push countries to publish more data on female
participation in the labor market to draw attention to policies that could boost growth from Italy to Egypt.
Getting more women to join the labor force is a topic Lagarde, the IMF managing director, says she raises in every
meeting with government officials.
Some countries dont provide statistics on the number
of women accessing the labor market or working part-time
and the fund can use its yearly appraisal of countries economies to weigh in, she said, Businessweek reported.
We will actually encourage countries to report on gender issues, Lagarde said in a telephone interview, while
adding that the fund cannot make it compulsory.
Focusing on the other half of humanity
does not hurt growth and economic development, quite to the contrary.
The global female labor force participation has stalled around 50 percent for two
decades, reflecting a lack of progress toward gender equality in markets also characterized by lower wages and limited access
to senior positions for women, according to a report by the
funds staff released today.
That shows in the US, about 60 percent of the increase
in employment for women from 2009 to 2012 were in jobs
that pay less than $10.10 an hour, compared with 20 percent for men, according to a study by the National Womens
Law Center using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Women Boost Growth
Getting more women to participate in the workforce
would boost growth in both developed and developing
economies, according to the fund, at a time when world
expansion remains sluggish amid a slowdown in emerging
markets.
The report lists measures that range from tax credits for
low-wage earners to better access to affordable childcare
for countries to adopt.
While the IMFs influence is strongest in countries it
lends to, Lagarde said it wont systematically attach gender
measures to the money.
If and where we see inappropriate principles or discriminatory issues, we can always raise those as part of our discussions with policymakers in the context of programs, but I
would not say that its one of the lead key items, she said.
Lagarde said she brought up female participation at a
recent conference in Italy and at the Group of 20 nations
meeting in Russia.
Lagarde has said she once walked away from a job interview at a law firm in Paris after being told she would never
become a partner because of her gender.
Now at the head of a male-dominated institution, she is
experiencing challenges making the management ranks
more balanced at the IMF.

08

Dementia Risk

Sept. 25, 2013

Blood tests identify Parkinsons disease patients with the greatest risk of
developing dementia. A genetic mutation leads to early onset of Parkinsons
and severe mental decline in about 4 to 7 percent of Parkinsons patients.

Science

Worlds First Waterproof

Interchangeable Lens Camera
In the past, underwater photography usually meant using one or two types of gadgets: a waterproof camera
that sacrificed image quality due to size, or placing an
interchangeable lens camera in unwieldy, bulky, waterproofing housing.
According to Dvice, both choices are not exactly ideal or convenient for ocean-loving photographers, which is probably the
reason why Nikon decided to create the worlds first waterproof
interchangeable lens camera to work submerged underwater up
to 50 feet, the Nikon 1 AW1, that fuses function with innovation.
Housed in a compact, non-slip rubber-grip,
reinforced stainless steel body, the AW1 can
survive a fall from 6.5 feet; great for especially clumsy folk.
The AW1 has a 14.2-megapixel CMOS sensor, ISO 120-6400, and a high-speed continuous shooting rate of about 15 fps on autofocus
and 60 fps full resolution photos on locked. Nature-loving
photographers will also appreciate the addition of a built-in
GPS, compass, virtual horizon display, altimeter and depthgauge.
Features
The camera display screen can be optimized for use in
bright outdoor settings, so you no longer need to hand-shade
the screen and squint anymore. A built-in, manual and rotatable pop-up flash that supports i-TTL flash control is also ready
for underwater action.
The buttons on the camera are also more widely spaced and
contain a control-lock function to prevent accidental buttonpressing.
This makes it easier to use in extreme environments,
for example, when using bulky insulated gloves in the
Swiss Alps or when taking pictures while maxing out on
a motorcycle (certainly not recommended, but hey, to
each his own).
A new Underwater creative mode that makes it easy for anyone to enjoy underwater photography has been added. Users
can choose from three underwater options: Standard, Scuba,
and Close up.
Whats more, colors can be viewed and adjusted using the
live view display to achieve desired colors. A number of functions convenient for underwater photography have also been
added, including Underwater options for white balance and
auto distortion control.
Nikons 1 AW1 begins shipping next month for $799.95
with one 11-27.5mm lens, or both lenses (11-27.5mm and
10mm) for $999.95.
Color selection is straightforward with a choice of black,
white or silver, but additional rubber skins can be had for
$36.96 in black, khaki or orange.

Chocolate Good
For Your Health
Chocolate is one of peoples most favorite foods, not
only because it is tasty, but also because its really
good for your health.
According to LiveScience, the most recent evidence
of this comes from an August study in the journal
Neurology.
Researchers found that chocolate may help older
people keep their brains healthy and their thinking
sharp. Study participants who drank two cups of cocoa daily for 30 days showed an 8.3-percent increase
in blood flow to the brain, and they improved their
scores on memory and thinking tests.
This new finding is promising, but its not the only
health benefit that seems to come as a result of eating
chocolate. Here are three more reasons why its smart
to keep chocolate in your diet.
1. Heart Healthy: Daily chocolate consumption
may reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in some
high-risk patients, according to a 2012 study in the
journal BMJ.
2. Potentially Slimming: If youve always thought
of chocolate as a fat-inducing food, you may want to
reacquaint yourself with this tasty treat. One study
found that people who eat chocolate regularly are
more likely to be thinner than those who dont. People in the study who admitted to eating chocolate five
times per week or more had a lower
BMI (Body Mass Index) than those who
ate chocolate less frequently, according
to the 2012 study published the journal
Archives of Internal Medicine.
3. Appetite Control: Chocolate contains filling fiber, which is a natural appetite suppressant. So, if you give in to that chocolate craving, you
may end up eating fewer calories than if you tried to
avoid chocolate.
Although there are many reasons to enjoy chocolate,
its also important to be smart about your consumption. Here are some tips for choosing high-quality
chocolate, so you can retain all of its nutritional goodness.
The darker the chocolate, the better for your health.
Pure chocolate is actually quite bitter, which is why
it is almost always combined with other ingredients
in a chocolate bar. But the chocolate part of that bar
is what contains the good stuff: fiber, magnesium and
antioxidants.
Get creative with cocoa. If you dont like the idea of
eating a dark chocolate bar or drinking cocoa regularly, you have some other options. Try sprinkling powdered cocoa in your oatmeal or cold cereal.

Why Is Language Unique

To Humans?

10 Basic Types of Smell

Identified

New research published today in Journal of the Royal Society Interface suggests that human language was made possible by the evolution of particular psychological abilities.
Researchers from Durham University explain that the uniquely expressive power of
human language requires humans to create and use signals in a flexible way, Physorg
said.
They claim that his was only made possible by the evolution of particular psychological abilities, and thus explain why language is unique to humans.
Using a mathematical model, Dr. Thomas Scott-Phillips and his colleagues, show
that the evolution of combinatorial signals, in which two or more signals are combined together, and which is crucial to the expressive power of human language, is
in general very unlikely to occur, unless a species has some particular psychological
mechanisms. Humans, and probably no other species, have these, and this may explain why only humans have language.
In a combinatorial communication system, some signals consist of the combinations of other signals. Such systems are more efficient than equivalent, non-combinatorial systems, yet despite this they are rare in nature.
Previous studies have not sufficiently explained why this is the case. The new model
shows that the interdependence of signals and responses places significant constraints
on the historical pathways by which combinatorial signals might emerge, to the extent
that anything other than the most simple form of combinatorial communication is extremely unlikely.

The thousands of aromas humans can smell

can be sorted into 10 basic categories, US scientists say.
Prof. Jason Castro, of Bates College, and
Prof. Chakra Chennubhotla, of the University
of Pittsburgh, used a computerized technique
to whittle down smells to their most basic essence.
They told the PLoS One journal they had
then tested 144 of these and found they could be grouped into 10 categories.
The findings are contentious, as some believe there are thousands of permutations.
Prof. Castro said, You have these 10 basic categories because they reflect important attributes about the world--danger, food and so on.
If you know these basic categories, then you can start to think about building
smells.
We have not solved the problem of predicting a smell based on its chemical structure, but thats something we hope to do.
He said it would be important to start testing the theory on more complex aromas,
such as perfumes and everyday smells.
In reality, any natural scent was likely to be a complex mix--a blend of the 10 different categories, he said.

Iranians Produce
Biofouling-Resistant Membranes
I

ranian researchers from Babol University of Technology have produced

antibacterial and biofouling-resistant
polymeric membranes by using nanotechnology.
The thin film nanofiltration membranes
have been produced by using silver nanoparticles, Fars News Agency reported.
In addition to their antibacterial properties, the membranes are resistant to biofouling and can be widely used in water
and wastewater treatment industry.
Biofouling decreases the performance
of the system in water purification equipment. The problem has a greater effect on
the desalnation of seawater. Therefore,
the strengthening of membrane structure
against bacteria can reduce maintenance
cost.
Polymerization in the interface of the
aqueous monomer of m-phenylenediamine and the organic monomer of trimesoyl chloride is the common method
to produce the thin layer nanofiltration
membranes. In this research, silver na-

noparticles were deposited on the base

membranes before the polymerization of
the two monomers.
The transference of silver nanoparticles and their movement to the inner layer
of the membrane are among the most important characteristics of the produced
membranes.
In addition, the membranes synthesized
through the new method have smoother
surface in comparison with the membranes synthesized through the common
method. Both samples showed promising
results in biofouling investigation test.
Moreover, nanoparticles stay longer
in the structure of the nanofilters synthesized through the new method.
Results of the research showed an increase in the performance of the membrane and a 100-percent decrease in
biofouling. These properties happen due
to the release of nanoparticles or ions
caused by nanoparticles on the surface of
the membrane or in the media to prevent
bacteria from sticking to the surface.

Results of the research have been published in Biofouling: The Journal of Bio-

adhesion and Biofilm Research, vol. 29,

pp. 537-548.

Iranian Helps Improve Monitoring of Schizophrenia Patients

A team of researchers, along with Iranian
researcher Farhad Daneshgar, has designed a new model to improve management of patients with schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is a potentially debilitating mental illness affecting a persons
thought processes, perception, language
and sense of oneself. Globally, 7 out of
every 1,000 are affected, accounting for
24 million patients, ISNA reported.
Significant risk factors for the illness
in males is serious problems during birth
or fetal hypoxia while increased cerebral
ventricular size in both infancy and adulthood due to embryological defects can
underlie the condition in other patients.
However, it is a multifaceted illness
that occurs through a combination of biological factors as well as socioeconomic
conditions, such as severely traumatic ex-

periences in childhood.
Writing in the International Journal of
Advanced Intelligence Paradigms, Subhagata Chattopadhyay of the Camellia Institute of Engineering in Madhyamgram
Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and Farhad
Daneshgar of IKI-SEA, Bangkok University, Thailand, explain how they have
applied and validated a collaborative
management approach and an associated
analytical tool called the Awareness Information Net (AIN) to assist in maintaining awareness capabilities among various
people involved in the management of
patients with schizophrenia.
Although treatable with modern drugs,
relapse and dropout from treatment are
common and the suicide risk among people with schizophrenia is much higher
than in the general population. However,

patients can be rehabilitated if their symptoms and circumstances are monitored

and treated appropriately from earliest
childhood.
In particular, if the warning signs of
emerging symptoms of risk to the patient
and others are detected early through
management, many problems can be
avoided or their impact lessened, Redorbit reported.
The team suggests a collaborative approach is most effective. As such, they
are developing and testing a system for
monitoring patient behavior and spotting
problems so that carers, experts and the
patient themselves can become involved
or intervene in treatment in a timely manner.
The ultimate goal of the current study
is to develop the conceptual foundations

for an automated workflow management

system for a collaborative management
process for schizophrenia, the team
says.
Schizophrenia can paralyze the socioeconomic status of an affected person and
its occurrence is almost inevitable given
strong vulnerabilities.

iPad Cover That Digitizes Your Doodles

Many people are now using an iPad or
other brand of tablet as a tool for writing
notes and drawing sketches.
Doing so makes a lot of sense, as the
form factor is built with such tasks in
mind, Gizmag wrote.
It isnt perfect, however, and some of
us are resistant to the move from physical to digital. If that describes you, or you
simply need a physical copy of your work
as well as a digital copy, then the iSketchnote could be just the ticket.
The iSketchnote is an iPad cover that
lets you mimic your physical doodlings in
the digital realm. This could be the perfect crossover product for those individ-

uals who prefer to use pen and paper to

draft ideas, but who would love a digital
copy of the end result. The iSketchnote
can also be hooked up to a PC or Mac via
USB, so those who dont own an iPad will
still be able to use the product.
An array of sensors hidden at its core
enables the iSketchnote to capture every
pen stroke made on a piece of paper or
notepad placed on the cover. Any paper can be used, and the pens are simple
ballpoints which work in unison with the
cover thanks to a ring-shaped magnet being embedded in them. The iSketchnote
can even detect the color and tip of the
pen being used.

Once you have finished doodling you

can save the digital copy of your work,
watch an instant replay of your scribbling
being committed to paper, or share it via
social media sites.
Having spent two years working on
the product, the team behind iSketchnote
is hoping to raise the funds necessary to
bring their vision to reality via a Kickstarter campaign. The campaign video
showing members of the team explaining
the thinking behind iSketchnote is embedded below.
A pledge for the complete iSketchnote
pack, consisting of one iPad cover and
three pens, is $149. There is also a ver-

sion available for the iPad mini at the

same price.
If all goes well, a production version is
expected to be available in May 2014 at
a retail price of $189. Developers eager
to build an app for the platform can gain
early access to the API by paying $199
for their edition of the iSketchnote.

09

Saudi Religious Police

Sept. 25, 2013

A Saudi motorist died and a passenger was injured on Tuesday when

a religious police vehicle crashed into their car during a hot pursuit in
Riyadh, a newspaper reported.

Middle East

Damascus Car Bombing Kills Seven

A deadly blast rocked south Damascus on Tuesday, state
television reported, with a monitoring group putting the
death toll from what it said was a car bombing at seven.
State television said in a breaking news alert that there
had been dead and wounded in the terrorist explosion
in the Tadamun neighborhood, without immediately giving any further details, AFP reported.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a car
bomb had killed at least seven people and wounded 15,
some of them critically.
Tadamun is largely controlled by rebels fighting to
overthrow President Bashar Al-Assad.
But the blast took part in part of the neighborhood that
is still under the control of the Syrian army.
The bombing came as the UN General Assembly was
due to meet with much of the focus expected to be on the
bloody conflict raging in Syria.
130K Militants in Syria
The American Pentapolis Agency of statistics said in

a report that the number of dead Arabs in the ranks of

the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) is increasing and
cleared that a number of fighters of foreign nationalities
in Syria are from 49 countries from the five continents of
the world.
It added that there are at least 130 thousand non-Syr-

ian militants in Syria, some are Arabs and others from

non-Arab countries.
The statistic is as follows: Tunisia 1902 dead Libya
1807 dead Iraq 1432 dead Palestine 1002 dead
Lebanon 828 dead Egypt 821 dead Saudi Arabia 714
dead Yemen 571 dead Morocco 412 dead Algeria
273 dead Kuwait 71 dead Somalia, 42 dead Oman
21 dead Bahrain 19 people 9 dead Emirates Qatar 8
killed Sudan 3 dead Mauritania one dead.
The statistic conducted by the US Agency was confined to the numbers of dead Arab militants without
the any statistic on the number of foreign dead militants.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March
2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their
regional allies--especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey--are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
According to the UN, more than 100,000 people have
been killed and a total of 7.8 million of others displaced
due to the violence.

Iraq Violence
Claims 25 Lives
F

ighting between security forces and militants

killed 25 people in Iraq
on Tuesday, as the UN warned
that sectarian attacks threaten
to force more Iraqis from their
homes.
Violence in Iraq has reached
a level this year not seen since
2008, when the country was
emerging from a brutal sectarian conflict, AFP reported.
Militants attacked two police stations and a local officials house in the towns of
Rawa and Aana near the highway to Syria in Anbar province, killing seven police and
the officials brother, officers
and doctors said.
Deputy Interior Minister Adnan Al-Assadi told journalists
a large group of militants had
attacked Aana, seeking to take
control of security positions.
Security forces killed six of
the militants, Assadi said, adding that SWAT units were deployed to the area. Separately,
soldiers battled militants in the
Hamreen area north of Baghdad, killing four, while two
soldiers were killed and nine
wounded, officers said.
A helicopter pilot was
wounded by gunfire in the
operation, during which two
militants were arrested and
weapons seized, army Staff
Lieutenant General Abdulamir
Al-Zaidi said.
Two officers said a helicopter had been shot down, but
Zaidi insisted that it was able
to return to base. Militants,
including those linked to AlQaeda, frequently target security forces and other government employees, and security
forces have carried out major
operations against them in recent months.
Attacks in Nineveh province

News in Brief
Relatives of Lebanese Hostages
Protest Outside Turkish Embassy
Families of the nine Lebanese hostages held in Syria briefly protested at the Turkish Embassy in Lebanon Thursday, and threatened to increase pressure on Turks to gain the release of their
loved ones.
We will harass all Turks in Lebanon. They can leave the country if they dont like our move, a spokeswoman for the relatives
Hayat Awali said, the Daily Star reported.
She said relatives will continue such protests against Turkish
groups in Lebanon until the return of the kidnapped men from
Syria. The families claim Turkey has a role in preventing the
release of the kidnapped Lebanese because of the countrys ties
with rebel groups in Syria.
Around fifty of the relatives, mainly women and children, gathered outside the embassys headquarters in Rabieh and chanted
against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, calling
for the release of their family members who have been held for
over a year. Protesters, who were around 200 meters away from
the embassys offices, said they brought tires to burn outside the
embassy and that they are waiting for more relatives to join the
protest.
We will cut the road to every Turkish tourist in Lebanon,
Awali said. We will prevent Turkish citizens from entering Lebanon every time a Turkish plane touches down in Beirut.
Security sources told The Daily Star that the relatives received
phone calls from security officials urging them to end their protest and leave.
Police and the Lebanese Army deployed along the road leading to the Turkish Embassy after they received notification that
the relatives intended to stage a sit-in outside the premises.
The relatives then tried to protest outside the Turkish Cultural
Center and Turkish Airlines headquarters in Downtown Beirut
but security forces urged them to leave.
Eleven Shiite Lebanese were abducted in the region of Aleppo, north Syria, in May last year. Two of them were released last
summer.

Israel Army, Palestinians

Clash in Al-Khalil

in Iraqs north also killed three

people on Tuesday, while violence in Babil province, south
of Baghdad, killed two. Meanwhile, the UN Refugee Agency said it was increasingly
concerned about the situation
in Iraq, where recent waves of
sectarian violence threaten to
spark new internal displacement of Iraqis fleeing bombings and other attacks.
This year, bombings and
rising sectarian tensions have
displaced some 5,000 Iraqis, with people mostly fleeing from Baghdad into Anbar
and Salaheddin governorates,
as well as causing displace-

ment within Diyala and Nineveh governorates, UNHCR

spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said in a statement.
There are already more
than 1.13 million internally
displaced people... inside Iraq
who fled their homes to escape intense sectarian violence
from 2006-2008, the statement said.
The Tuesday violence came
after four days of attacks that
have raised the specter of a return to the all-out Sunni-Shiite
conflict that peaked in 20062007 and killed tens of thousands of people.
A bombing against Sunni

mourners in Baghdad on Monday killed 15 people, while

another at a Sunni funeral the
day before killed 12. Those attacks were preceded by bombings targeting Shiite mourners in the capital on Saturday
that killed 73, and two blasts
at a Sunni mosque north of
Baghdad in which 18 died on
Friday. Prime Minister Nouri
Al-Maliki said on Monday
that attacks in Iraq aimed to
reignite sectarian strife and
divide the country.
And the United Nations
warned of the danger of revenge attacks after the Saturday blasts. Retaliation can

only bring more violence, and

it is the responsibility of all
leaders to take strong action
not to let violence escalate further, said Gyorgy Busztin, the
UNs deputy special representative for Iraq.
On Tuesday, the cabinet
agreed to allocate an aircraft
to transport people wounded
in recent attacks out of the
country for treatment, Malikis
website said. With the latest
violence, more than 630 people have been killed this month
and over 4,450 since the beginning of the year, according to
AFP figures based on security
and medical sources.

Hezbollah Denies Receiving Chemical Weapons From Syria

From Page 1
Israels commander on the frontier with Syria,
Major-General Yair Golan, said this month that Hezbollah sought precision ground-to-ground rockets,
anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles from Syria in return for helping Assad, but as far as we can tell it
did not want his chemical weapons.
Nasrallah called for a political solution in Syria
and urged Sunni powers Turkey, Saudi Arabia and
Persian Gulf Arab countries that have backed the
rebels to review their positions.
A gamble on a military resolution and on military
success is a losing and destructive gamble, he said.
The intervention of Hezbollah fighters in Syria
has raised fears among some Lebanese that the small
Mediterranean country could become engulfed by

its much larger neighbors conflict, which has killed

over 100,000 people.

Rocket and bomb attacks have hit Hezbollah

strongholds in the Bekaa Valley and in the capital
- the worst of which was a car bomb that killed 20
people in southern Beirut last month.
Nasrallah accused a radical Sunni group working in the framework of the Syrian opposition
of carrying out the attack. He said the group had
Lebanese and Syrian members but did not name
it.
Earlier on Monday, Lebanese security forces replaced Hezbollah forces at checkpoints in the southern suburb which the Shiite group had set up after
the car bomb.
Nasrallah said the group welcomed the deployment of the security forces and urged residents to
cooperate with them.

Israels forces fired rubber bullets at stone-throwing Palestinians in clashes in the southern West Bank city of Al-Khalil
Monday, as troops hunted for the suspected killer of an Israeli
soldier.
The security forces also fired stun grenades and Palestinian youths threw several petrol bombs as tension flared in the
aftermath of both Sundays killing and the death of another
Israeli soldier in a separate incident just days earlier, AFP reported.
The killings have cast a pall over peace talks relaunched
last month after a three-year hiatus, with Israeli ministers calling on the government to
reconsider its decision to negotiate with the
Palestinians.
The United States condemned both attacks,
which it said undermine efforts to establish
the positive atmosphere the parties need to
progress in peace negotiation.
Israels army said Sunday that 20-year-old Sergeant Gabriel Koby died in hospital after sustaining gunshot wounds in
Hebron.
A military spokeswoman said on Monday that most of the
roadblocks used to seal off the city the previous night were removed by morning and the army was searching in a more specific manner. The army had apprehended two Palestinians for
holding hunting rifles, but that they were not connected to Sundays incident. The shooting took place close to the volatile Cave
of the Patriarchs--sacred to both Jews and Muslims--during the
week-long Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which began on Thursday
and has seen thousands of Jewish visitors to the biblical city.
Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu ordered the resettlement of the disputed Machpela
house, a Al-Khalil structure near the Cave of the Patriarchs
from which he had removed 15 Jewish settlers last year.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Malki on Monday
accused Israel of unfairly holding the Palestinian leadership
responsible for what happens in the West Bank, in an interview with Voice of Palestine.

Bahrain Convicts
American-Born Protester
A defense lawyer in Bahrain said an American-born man has
been convicted of attacking the police during anti-government
protests in the Persian Gulf country and sentenced to 10 years
in prison.
The case could further strain Washingtons relations with
the strategic Persian Gulf kingdom, home to
the US Navys 5th Fleet. The US has previously criticized measures such as Bahrain
restricting political groups from meeting foreign diplomats.
Sunni-ruled Bahrain has faced more than
30 months of unrest as majority Shiites seek
a greater political voice.
Lawyer Mohammed Al-Jishi says Taqi Al-Maidan was
among four suspects sentenced on Tuesday on charges that include trying to kill a policeman.
The lawyer said the 25-year-old Al-Maidan, an American
citizen, was born in the US in 1988 to a Bahraini mother and
Saudi father.

10

UN Chapter VII

Sept. 25, 2013

A UN Security Council resolution on Syria could mention an article which allows

force or sanctions, a top Russian diplomat said, as Moscow and Washington seek
a compromise on a text backing a deal to rid the regime of chemical weapons.

World

Major Pakistan Quake Kills At Least 33 Rousseff Blasts US Spying as Meddling

A huge earthquake hit
southwest Pakistan Tuesday, killing at least 33
people, toppling scores of
homes and sending people
around the region rushing
into the streets in panic.
The
7.7-magnitude
quake centered in Baluchistan provinces Awaran
district was felt as far
afield as New Delhi and
Dubai, residents said, AFP
reported.
It also injured at least
24 people, said Brigadier
Kamran Zia of Pakistans National Disaster Management
Authority which gave the death toll.
Officials said the tremor at 4:29 pm (1129 GMT) had demolished dozens of houses in Awaran, 350 kilometers (219
miles) southwest of the Baluchistan provincial capital Quetta. Its epicenter was 15 kilometers below ground.
The area is sparsely populated and most buildings are
mud-built. But the US Geological Survey issued a red alert,
warning that heavy casualties were likely based on past data.
A large number of houses have collapsed in the area and
we fear the death toll may rise, said Rafiq Lassi, police chief
for Awaran district.

The provincial government declared an emergency in Awaran and the

military mobilized 200
soldiers and paramilitary
troops to help with the
immediate relief effort.
Television
footage
showed collapsed houses,
caved-in roofs and people sitting in the open air
outside their homes, the
rubble of mud and bricks
scattered around them.
Abdul Qudoos Bizinjo,
deputy speaker of Baluchistans parliament, told Dunya TV there were reports of
heavy losses in Awaran. Damage to the mobile phone network was hampering communications in the area, he said.
Awaran district has an estimated population of around
300,000.
Tremors were felt as far away as the Indian capital and
even Dubai in the Persian Gulf, while office workers in the
Indian city of Ahmedabad near the border with Pakistan ran
out of buildings and into the street in panic.
In April a 7.8-magnitude quake centered in southeast Iran,
close to the border with Baluchistan, killed 41 people and affected more than 12,000 on the Pakistan side of the border.

In Focus
Greek Public Sector
Workers on Strike
Greek public sector workers went on strike for the second
time in a week on Tuesday, shutting schools and leaving hospitals with skeleton staff, as inspectors from Greeces foreign
lenders checked whether the country was meeting its bailout
targets.
Hiring in the civil service has long been considered driven
by political patronage and Greeces creditors have said they
will not dole out any more money unless Athens reforms a
state apparatus accused of being spendthrift and corrupt, Reuters reported.
From municipal police to teachers, workers began a 48-hour
walkout against plans to cut thousands of public sector jobs,
and they were also protesting over the killing of an anti-racism
rapper by a supporter of the far-right Golden Dawn party.
ADEDY, the public sector umbrella union
which organized the walkout, said government efforts to reduce the 600,000-strong
civil service at the behest of the EU and IMF
bailing out Greece was the most merciless
plan to eliminate worker rights.
The government has dubbed the plan a
mobility scheme, meaning workers will
have to find work in another department within eight months
on a reduced salary, or be laid off.
The workers say the government is firing them indiscriminately at a time when Greece in enduring its worst peacetime
crisis and record unemployment.
Blowing whistles and carrying banners reading, No to human sacrifices, thousands of workers marched by the parliament.
Out with the bailouts and the bosses! they chanted. The
government must realize they cant fire people just like that,
said 51-year-old Yiota Papadopoulou, a state high school
teacher who worries about losing her job.

Cambodian MPs Reelect

Hun Sen as Premier
Cambodias parliament reappointed strongman premier Hun
Sen for another five-year term on Tuesday, extending his
nearly three-decade rule as the opposition threatened to mount
fresh protests over fiercely disputed elections.
The controversial move came despite recent mass public
demonstrations and a boycott of parliament by Hun Sens political rivals, who have alleged widespread fraud in the July
polls.
The opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP)
refused to take its seats for the opening session of the lower
house on Monday, saying the kingdom was sliding towards
dictatorship.
All 68 ruling party lawmakers on Tuesday agreed a list of
government members and reappointed Hun Sen as premier
through a show of hands.
The CNRP, which alleges widespread vote irregularities,
has described the legislature as a one-party parliament and
warned of fresh demonstrations in the capital.
There will be mass protests in Phnom Penh and nationwide, party spokesman Yim Sovann said after Hun Sens reelection.
The CNRP will continue to seek truth and justice for the
voters, he added.
The ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) has rejected
the oppositions call for an independent investigation into the
election.
Speaking after his reappointment, Hun Sen blamed the
CNRP for the absence of an opposition in the National Assembly.
We cannot become hostages to any group, he told reporters.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Tuesday

criticized the United
States for spying, using
the opening speech at the
UN General Assembly to
announce Brazil would
adopt legislation and
technology to protect it
from illegal interception
of communications.
Rousseff last week
called off a high-profile
state visit to the United
States scheduled for October over reports that
the US National Security Agency had been spying on Brazil
and Rousseffs email, Reuters reported.
After opening with diplomatic pleasantries and a condemnation of the shopping mall attack in Kenya, Rousseff
launched into a blistering attack on US spying, calling espionage among friendly nations totally unacceptable.
Meddling in such a manner in the lives and affairs of other countries is a breach of international law and, as such, it is
an affront to the principles that should otherwise govern relations among countries, especially among friendly nations,
Rousseff told the annual gathering of world leaders at the
United Nations.

US President Barack
Obama was en route to
the United Nations while
Rousseff spoke. He then
followed Rousseff on the
podium as the first and
second national leaders to
address the General Assembly.
Postponing the state
visit, which as to have
included a dinner at the
White House, was a rare
and diplomatically severe
snub by Brazil. No new
date has been set.
The report by Brazil Globos news program Fantastico on
National Security Agency spying was based on documents
that journalist Glenn Greenwald obtained from former NSA
contractor Edward Snowden. Greenwald, who lives in Rio de
Janeiro, was one of the journalists to first report Snowdens
leaks of classified information on previously secret US telephone and internet surveillance efforts.
Rousseffs state visit was conceived to highlight cooperation between the two biggest economies in the Americas and
Brazils emergence over the past decade as a regional power.
Rousseff said Brazil will adopt legislation and technology
to protect it from illegal interception of communications.

Stop Fuelling
Syria Bloodshed

N Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon appealed
on Tuesday to major
powers to stop sending weapons to all sides in Syria, as he
opened the annual General Assembly summit.
I appeal to all states to stop
fuelling the bloodshed and to
end the arms flows to all parties, Ban told world leaders.
The UN chief also called on
Syrian President Bashar AlAssad and the opposition - and
all those I this hall with influence over them - to work immediately to arrange a second
Geneva conference aimed at
reaching a political solution.
Military victory is an illusion. The only answer is a political settlement, he said.
Bans appeal comes as the
United States and Russia haggle over the language in a Security Council resolution meant to
seal an agreement for Assad to
give up chemical weapons.
US Secretary of State John
Kerry was to meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov
later in the day. Russia is the
Ban Ki-moon
main supporter of Assad, while
the rebels receive support from
Western nations and Sunni Arab monar- resolution would include the article of the
chies.
UN Charter that allows the use of force or
A top Russian diplomat said that the sanctions.

On the same day, the US President

Barack Obama said the UN Security council must agree to a resolution on Syrian

chemical weapons that includes

consequences for the government of President Bashar Assad
if he doesnt meet demands to
dismantle his chemical stockpile.
Obama told his UN audience on Tuesday that failure
to include such consequences
would mean the international
body is unable to enforce such
requirements.
Obama said it would be,
quote, an insult to human reason and the legitimacy of the
UN to suggest that the Assad
government did not carry out a
chemical attack on civilians last
month.
US President Barack Obama
warned on Tuesday that the
United States was ready to use
military force to protect US and
global interests in the Middle
East and Africa. The United
States is chastised for meddling
in the region, and accused of
having a hand in all manner of
conspiracy, Obama told the
UN General Assembly.
But he warned there was
no change in US policy in the
Middle East and Africa and that
Washington is prepared to use
all elements of our power, including military force, to secure these core interests in
the region.

Americans, Briton Among Kenya Mall Attackers

Two or three young American men and a British woman

were among the group of attackers who stormed a Nairobi mall killing more than 60 people, Kenyas top diplomat said.
Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed, interviewed by US public broadcaster PBS, was asked about
reports Americans and Britons were among those to
blame for the carnage, AFP reported.
Yes, Mohamed said. From the
information that we have, two or
three Americans, and I think so far I
have heard of one Brit.
The Briton was a woman, Mohamed said.
Woman. Woman. And she has, I
think, done this many times before,
she told PBS.
The Americans, from the information we have, are young men,
about between maybe 18 and 19, she said, adding they
were of Somali or Arab origin but lived in the US, in
Minnesota and one other place.
So, basically, look, that just was to underline, I think,
the global nature of this war that were fighting, Mohamed added.
Meanwhile, the Kenyan interior ministry announced
that troops were in control of Nairobis Westgate shopping mall, with all the hostages trapped by Islamist gun-

men believed to have been freed.

A government spokesman said the three-day-long
siege was close to being declared over. He said special
forces combing the building were no longer encountering any resistance.
However, Al-Qaeda-linked militants said on Tuesday
they were still holding hostages as Kenyan troops battled
for a fourth day to end the bloody siege at the Nairobi
shopping center.
Sporadic gunfire and a series of
explosions at the upmarket Westgate
mall broke out again at dawn, hours
after officials claimed Kenyan troops
had wrested back control of the
sprawling complex from Somalias
Shabab insurgents.
At least 65 shoppers, staff and soldiers have been killed and close to 200
wounded in the siege, but concerns
are high that the toll may rise, with the Shabab boasting
about countless number of dead bodies still scattered
inside the mall.
The fate of 63 people listed as missing remains unclear.
The hostages who were being held by the mujahedeen
inside Westgate are still alive, looking quite disconcerted
but, nevertheless, alive, the Shabab said in their latest
Twitter message.

However, Kenyan officials have said all the hostages are believed to have been freed, with the interior
ministry saying on Tuesday the assault was very near
the end.
Security sources said one or two militants were barricaded in or around a casino on one of the upper floors
of the complex.
Meanwhile, explosive experts were defusing devices
set up by the militants, police said, adding another dangerous element to the siege, which has now dragged on
for over 72-hours.
Part of the malls rooftop parking also collapsed on
Tuesday, security sources said, following a fierce fire the
day before.
Shabab fighters stormed the crowded mall midday on
Saturday, tossing grenades, firing automatic weapons
and sending panicked shoppers fleeing.
Special forces on Monday killed at least three gunmen
and wounded several in bitter fighting in the part Israeliowned complex, popular with wealthy Kenyans and expatriates.
Three Kenyan soldiers on Tuesday died from injuries
sustained in those gun battles, the army said. Eight others remain in hospital.
Kenyan army chief Julius Karangi said the attackers
were from different countries. Many foreign fighters,
including Somalis with dual nationalities, are members
of the Shabab force.

11

Haye v Fury Rescheduled

Sept. 25, 2013

David Haye will now face Tyson Fury on February 8, 2014 at

Manchesters Phones 4u Arena, following the postponement of their
original date in September.

Sports

Esteqlal Targeting Away

Goals Against FC Seoul
From Page 1
This semifinal has two halves and the
first is in Seoul and the second is in Tehran and we have to have a separate plan
for each one, said Qalanoei.
In this away match our target is to
score and our focus at home in Tehran
will be not to concede.
Seoul is a very strong team and [they]
are very well organized and are strong
both in the defensive line and in attack.
They play with discipline but also we
are Esteqlal and our condition is improving match-by-match and week-by-week.
Qalanoei will be forced into at least
one change from last weeks win over
Buriram with defender Khosro Heidari
suspended.
And with this in mind, the 49 year-old
head coach is wary of FC Seouls attacking power and singled out captain Ha
Dae-sung, Montenegrin international
striker Dejan Damjanovic--who scored
both goals as FC Seoul beat Al-Ahli of
Saudi Arabia 2-1on aggregate in the quarterfinals--and Colombian ace Mauricio
Molina as the main threats.
Our plan is to isolate the midfield
from the attack, added Qalanoei.
We know that Seoul is fast down the
wings and they target their striker and we
will do our best to combat that.
Qalanoei was coach of the Iran national
team at the 2007 AFC Asian Cup when
his team were eliminated at the quarterfinal stage by the South Korea.
There have been many matches held
between Iran and South Korea, he said.

Bale Set for Bernabeu Debut

in Derby Against Atletico
Carlo Ancelotti is confident that Gareth Bale will be match fit
in time for the derby against Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
The former Tottenham man had been included in the starting line-up to face Getafe at the Bernabeu last weekend but
was forced to pull out at the last minute after sustaining an
injury to his left leg while warming up, Eurosport wrote.
While Wednesdays trip to face Elche has
been deemed too soon for the Wales international, coach Ancelotti confirmed in his prematch press conference for that fixture that
Bale will be fit enough for the derby against
Atletico Madrid--with the news relayed via
the clubs official twitter account.
Bale has, of course, already played for the Madrid club and
got on the score sheet in a 2-2 draw against Villarreal.
Having not completed a full pre-season due to the protracted nature of his world record move from Tottenham, Bale was
only fit enough to play 62 minutes in that fixture, but Ancelotti
is now confident that he is nearing match fit.

Bolt Commits to Puma Until

After 2016 Olympics

Sometimes Iran won, sometimes

South Korea won, but the most important thing is the good memories of these
matches.
Andranik Teymourian was a member
of Iran team that clinched qualification
for the 2014 FIFA World Cup with victory in Korea in June, but the Esteqlal mid-

fielder insisted that the rivalry between

the national teams had little bearing on
the semifinal clash.
Its not possible to compare the national team of South Korea and Iran with
the club teams, said Teymourian, who
scored a spectacular stoppage-time winner in Thailand last week.

It is very good that both Seoul and

Esteqlal have some national team players
as these are good players that can help the
game be played at speed and be a better
match.
Like Seoul, we are eager to progress
and we hope to have a good result in this
away match.

Iran Snatches 6 Medals in Islamic Games

Iranian karate practitioners have managed
to take home six medals, including three
golds, at the 3rd edition of the Islamic
Solidarity Games in Indonesia.
On Monday, Iranian sportswoman
Mahsa Afsaneh exhibited an impressive
individual kata performance in the Sriwijaya Promotion Center of the Indonesian
city of Palembang, and overcame her
Egyptian, Malaysian, and Algerian rivals
in her march to the final, Press TV wrote.
She defeated her Turkish opponent,
Bigem Giroglu, in the final competition
to clinch the gold medal.
Hamideh Abbasali claimed Irans sec-

News in Brief

ond gold medal after she overwhelmed

her Egyptian rival Aia Nabil Mousa Ibrahim in the womens kumite +68 kilogram.
Also on Monday, Iranian karateka
Zabihollah Poursheib defeated Atamov
Shahin of Azerbaijan in the mens kumite
+84 kilogram and grabbed another gold
for the Iranian squad.
Pegah Zangeneh also snatched a silver
medal in womens -68 kilogram kumite
after she conceded a defeat against Turkish karate practitioner Merve Coban.
Delaram Dousti raised Irans total
medal count to five after she collected a

silver medal in the womens -61 kilogram

competitions.

Moreover, Nasrin Dousti of Iran

brought home a bronze medal in the
womens -50 kilogram kumite contests.
The 3rd Islamic Solidarity Games
opened in the Indonesian city of Palembang on September 22, and will wrap up
on October 1.
A total of 88 athletes are representing
Iran in the competitions. Athletes from 55
countries are in action across 13 sports.
They are competing in archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, football, karate, swimming, taekwondo, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting
and wushu.

Alonso Fails to
Buy Cycling Team

Malaysian Team Suspended

After Fixing Suspicions

Player Revolt Triggered

Di Canio Dismissal

Former Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonsos

deal to buy cycling team Euskaltel-Euskadi has collapsed.
Alonso, 32, drives for Ferrari in Formula 1 but is a
keen cyclist and initially agreed to a deal for the Spanish outfit in August.
The Basque team may fold at the end of the season
after losing its sponsors, BBC wrote.
For Euskaltel and the team this is sad news after the
hope generated by the initial agreement reached at the
end of August, sponsors Euskaltel said.
We could not reach a definitive agreement. Euskaltel is now obliged, regrettably, to return to the process
of an orderly and responsible closure of the project.
In a statement on
his Twitter account,
Alonso also expressed
regret about the deals
collapse.
Weve tried it until the end but its just
been impossible to
have a cycling team in
2014, he said.
My passion for the sport remains intact so this is only
the beginning of the future. We are going to work on building, if needs be from scratch, a team we can be proud of.
Euskaltel-Euskadi are one of the oldest teams in
world cycling and Alonso was hoping to ensure the
outfit would honor the contract of current riders for the
2014 and 2015 seasons on the International Cycling
Union (UCI) WorldTour.
According to the Spanish newspaper El Periodico,
Alonso and his backers had initially bid six million euros (5.1m) for the teams license and planned to build
the team around current leader Samuel Sanchez, who
won the mens road race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Players and officials of a Malaysian state soccer team

have been slapped with a two-week suspension while
an investigation takes place into possible corruption,
according to a local media report.
The Perak Football Association will ask the police and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission
(MACC) to probe the teams shambolic Malaysia Cup
campaign, the Star newspaper reported.
We suspect elements of sabotage and corruption
had crept into the Perak squad over the last three or
four matches, culminating in the disastrous 6-1 defeat
by Sarawak on Saturday, Perak FA deputy president
Khairul Azwan Harun was quoted as saying after Mondays emergency meeting in Ipoh, Reuters reported.
A Perak FA special task force would also carry out
an investigation and come out with a report within two
weeks, he said.
While the investigations are going on, all the suspended players and officials will be asked not to leave Ipoh.
After a strong start to their Group D campaign, Perak
lost their last three matches to miss out on a place in the
last eight.
There was something fishy going on in the team,
chief coach Azraai said.
I welcome the probe on everybody in the squad, including myself, as we will know if there were unlawful
elements involved, added the coach saying he was let
down by several players.
The suspension follows the arrest last week of the
mastermind of the worlds largest soccer match-fixing
syndicate, believed to be Singaporean Tan Seet Eng.
European police shone a spotlight on Southeast Asia
in February when they announced a Singapore-based
syndicate had directed match-fixing for at least 380
soccer games in Europe alone, making at least eight
million euros ($10.81 million).

Paolo Di Canio was forced out of Sunderland after a

player revolt at the Italians abrasive management style,
media reported on Tuesday.
British newspapers carried detailed reports of how
players, led by former captain Lee Cattermole, went to
club owner Ellis Short to demand his dismissal after an
angry showdown with the mercurial manager, Reuters
reported.
In an angry exchange after Saturdays 3-0 Premier
League defeat at West Bromwich Albion, players told
Di Canio on Sunday they would no longer play for him,
with the Italian telling them to go to the owner if they
wanted him sacked.
Short then fired Di Canio by telephone, with the announcement of his departure made on Sunday night.
Sunderland winger
Adam Johnson complained last week that
constant public criticism from Di Canio
could kill players
confidence.
According to the media reports, Di Canio prohibited
any familiarity between the players and staff and even
banned tomato ketchup and sweet desserts from the
club canteen.
Sunderlands former manager Steve Bruce told Talksport radio on Monday, You cannot manage in the Premier League these days through a fear factor.
Youve got to be able to manage individuals. Manmanagement has become more relevant in my experience than coaching.
Once you get yourself in the Premier League,
theyre all good players and youve got to find a way of
getting it out of them.

Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt has renewed his longstanding sponsorship deal with Puma until after the 2016
Games in Rio, the German sportswear company said on Tuesday.
Bolt has been with Puma for a decade and the renewal of
the contract with the sports most marketable figure is a fillip
for a brand struggling to keep pace with larger rivals Adidas
and Nike, Reuters wrote.
The agreement is likely to take Bolt, 27, through to the end
of his career. Bolt, who has won six gold medals at the last two
Olympics, has said he could retire after Rio or following the
world championships in London in 2017.
I have always been very happy to be a part of the Puma
family, I am proud to represent them and delighted to continue
with them for the years ahead, the Jamaican sprinter said in
a statement.
New Puma CEO Bjorn Gulden, who took the job in July,
had made the renewal one of his initial priorities after the
company cut spending on other sponsorship deals.
Gulden called Bolt a perfect ambassador for Puma.
He will play a crucial role in our future product concepts
as well as brand communications leading towards the Olympic Games in Rio 2016 and beyond, Gulden said.
Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.
Bolt was ranked 40th on the Forbes list of the worlds best
paid athletes, the highest ranking track and field competitor.
He had estimated annual earnings of $24.2 million (15.2 million), the bulk of which came from endorsements.

Murray Recovering
After Back Surgery
British number one Andy Murray has tweeted a picture of
himself in hospital with his thumbs up after minor surgery on
his troublesome back.
The 26-year-old Scot says the first thing he said when he
came round from the operation was, Did I
win?
Murray is unlikely to play again this season, but hopes to begin his pre-season training in Miami in November, BBC wrote.
The world number three underwent surgery
in an attempt to sort out a disc problem in his
lower back.
The injury forced him to pull out of the French Open in
May, although he recovered in time to become Britains first
male Wimbledon singles champion since 1936.
His defense of the US Open was ended in the quarter finals
but he helped Great Britain beat Croatia in the Davis Cup before having surgery.
He is set to miss this years remaining tour events, including Novembers World Tour Finals in London.

Citroen Rules Out

Customer Cars in 14
Citroen has ruled out fielding any privateer DS3 WRCs in the
2014 World Rally Championship.
The decision stems from Citroens dual world championship approach next year, when it will chase both the World
Touring Car Championship and the WRC with factory entries.
Citroen team principal Yves Matton said Khalid Al Qassimi,
key to title sponsor Abu Dhabi, would continue in a third factory entry but ruled out customer cars, AutoSport reported.
We wont run any customer [WRC] cars. We wont run the
car for the guys coming to do one rally or two rallies or something like that, he said.
We will have our three manufacturer cars--including the
car for Khalid [Al Qassimi]--but on some events we will only
have the two official cars running.
Matton admitted there would be logistical challenges coming from the two high profile programs, but said there would
be no obvious difference to the WRC squad.

12

Sept. 25, 2013

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH):

It is your own conduct which will lead you to reward or punishment.

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Ceramics Exhibition Underway

Held in conjunction with the museums 10th anniversary, the
Nasher Sculpture Center presents Return to Earth: Ceramic
Sculpture of Fontana, Melotti, Mir, Noguchi, and Picasso,
1943-1963, from September 21 through January 19, 2014.
This is the first exhibition to explore the phenomenal increase in interest ceramics received from artists of the avantgarde during this period, ArtDaily wrote.
We are experiencing something of a renaissance in clay sculpture, notes Nasher
Sculpture Center Director Jeremy Strick. A
number of younger artists are exploring the
medium, while mid-career artists who work
primarily in ceramic are finding increasing
recognition.
Return to Earth: Ceramic Sculpture of
Fontana, Melotti, Miro, Noguchi, and Picasso demonstrates
that the roots of radical expression in clay go deep into the history of modernism, and that in the immediate postwar years,
key artists produced works that are as extraordinary and surprising as they are little-known.
Responding to a variety of personal impulses and historical circumstances, Lucio Fontana, Fausto Melotti, Joan Mir,
Isamu Noguchi, and Pablo Picasso produced significant bodies of work in fired clay that engaged the material in inventive
and radical ways, and often challenged the traditional boundaries between sculpture and ceramics.
The Nashers exhibition offers an in-depth look at this subject through nearly eighty ceramic works from American and
European public and private collections, ranging in scale from
the intimate to the monumental. In contrast to these artists
work in other media, their pursuit of ceramics has for the most
part received scant attention, particularly in the United States.
World War II imposed significant disruptions and displacements on each of these artists, and clay offered them a way to
reground themselves while moving their art forward.
Fontana, who had sought refuge from the war in his native
Argentina, returned to Italy and began a radically new path in
ceramics and clay related to his burgeoning ideas about Spatialism. Melotti, who stayed in Milan, emerged from the conflagration to become one of the primary proponents of architect Gio Pontis populist agenda making high modernism an
accessible part of everyday life.
Mir, who had returned to France at the outset of the Spanish Civil War, only to be forced back to Spain by German
bombs, longed to establish roots and dreamed of a large studio
in which to pursue his expanding artistic interests and efforts
to move beyond painting.
For Noguchi, who voluntarily spent seven months in a relocation camp for Japanese-Americans in Arizona after the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, ceramics became a medium through
which to explore the Japanese side of his cultural heritage.

Prince Charles Chinese

Portrait Up for Auction
The first ever portrait of the Prince of Wales by a renowned
Chinese artist has been unveiled by Sothebys ahead of a charity sale next month.
Contemporary painter Yan Pei-Mings portrait is expected
to raise up to 300,000 at the auction on October 16.
The proceeds will be split between The Princes Drawing
School and cancer charity the Mimi Foundation, BBC said.
The Prince of Wales did not sit for the black and white portrait, which was based on photographs.
The piece was jointly commissioned by Clarence House and
art collector Myriam Ullens, who founded the Mimi Foundation after her own experiences with cancer.
It currently runs wellness centers for patients across Switzerland, France and Belgium.
The painting is typical of Shanghai born artist Yan PeiMing, who has gained international recognition for his large,
monochromatic portraits.
The portrait reveals the feeling of our time, said Pei-Ming.
It is a look into the human who I want to express as timeless,
universal, eternal, through the use of black and white.
He continued, Prince Charles represents one of the greatest dynasties in Europe and, at the same time, through him, the
pictorial, the written, the expression becomes the very subject
of the painting.
It will be unveiled to the public at a Sothebys auction preview on October 12.
The portrait will be auctioned alongside major donations
by leading artists such as Tracey Emin and Antony Gormley,
which are expected to raise a total of more than 1 million for
the Mimi Foundation.
Ullens, who is a long-time supporter of young Chinese artists said, Having worked with Yan Pei Ming for many years,
this portrait represents the culmination of his career so far.
Im delighted that such a fantastic collaboration has been
realized in honor and support of those fighting cancer.
The 32 other works will be sold across two sales taking
place during the week of the Frieze London art fair.

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Th Thi
The
Third
d Women
W
and
National Production Festival
is underway in Tehrans
Goftogou Park.
(Photo by Amir Hossein Bandi)

Serbian Award for Iranian Cartoonist

t
i t

merous national and international awards including the Special Award of Chinas 2005 Peace Cup
International Cartoon and the first prize of Syria
Cartoon contest in 2006.
Shojaei Tabatabaei also served on the jury of
Turkeys 5th edition of Don Quixote Cartoon
Contest in 2010.
The Turkish artist Omer Cam was named the
winner of Gold plaque of this years Serbian
event and the Silver plaque went to Pawel Kuczynsky from Poland.
The exhibition of Salon of Antiwar Cartoon is scheduled to kick off at the National
Museum of Serbia in Kragujevac on October
20.

ranian cartoonist Massoud Shojaei

Tabatabaei has been awarded at the 17th
Salon of Antiwar Cartoon in Kragujevac,
Serbia.
Shojaei Tabatabaei has been named the winner
for his work The Peace Messenger.
He will receive a 1500 cash prize during the
opening ceremony of the exhibition in October
along with other winners, Mehr News Agency
reported.
Born in 1964, Shojaei Tabatabaei is the current
director of Irans House of Cartoon and a member
of the Asian-Pacific Animation and Comics Association.
He has judged at many events and received nu-

Batumi Film Fest

Honors Keramati
Iranian actress Mahtab Keramati has been honored
at the 2013 edition of Batumi International Art
House Film Festival (BIAFF) in Georgia.
Keramati received the Best Actress Award for her
role in Vahid Mousaians latest film, The Fourth
Child.
The Fourth Child contended for award at the
Competition section of the
eighth edition of Batumi
festival, Press TV reported.
This years winners were
announced during a closing
ceremony that was held on
September 22.
The Fourth Child has
hit a number of movie
theaters in African continent so far.
Produced by Irans
Farabi Cinematic Foundation (FCF), the movie cinematically represents misery of famine and war in
Somalia.
The film chronicles the story of an Iranian nurse
who leaves her country to aid the famine-stricken
people and war-torn country, but shortly thereaf-

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Bandar Abbas

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Kerman

Mashhad

Qom

Classical Music
Festival in Tehran

ter she decided to begin a career in photography

to raise awareness about the human disaster in this
part of the world.
Some parts of the film were shot in the Sahara
Desert in northern Africa, portraying the Battle of
Mogadishu (1993) and depicting the scenes related
to the violence against women and children.
Some local actors star in
Mousaians screen production along with the Iranian
cast and crew.
The actress Keramati is
also a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations
in Iran.
Mousaians
previous
film Golchehreh also won
the Grand Prix award of
Batumi International Film
Festival in 2011.
Established in 2006, the Batumi International Art
House Film Festival screens feature-length films,
shorts and documentaries from around the globe.
The Eighth Batumi Film Festival was held from
September 15-22.

17

Tehran
Te

Tehrans Roudaki Hall will host a festival of classical music on

Thursday.
Solo, duet and trio groups from Iranian educational centers
will be performing during the festival, organized by the House

of Urban Arts.
Pieces by Ludwig van Beethoven, Bernhard Heiden, Franz Schubert, Achille-Claude Debussy, Andr Jolivet, Edward Benjamin
Britten, Alban Berg, Andr Hossein (Aminoullah Husseinov), Mehrdad Pakbaz and several other composers will highlight the repertoires of the groups, according to Mehr News Agency said.
The House of Urban Arts organized a weeklong festival of fusion
music in Tehran in March.

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Kabul

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Stockholm

Tashkent

Tripoli