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March
(in chronological order, most recent articles on top)
Wednesday, March 31, 2004OPEC CUTS PRODUCTION BY ONE MILLION BARRELSVIENNA, Austria 31 Mar. (IPS) As decided last February in Algeria, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its 130th meeting in the Austrian Capital on Wednesday lowered its production by four percent, or one million, down from its 24.5 millions barrels per day, beginning Thursday, in a move that kept crude oil prices near 13-year highs. By Safa Haeri.
FIGHTING CONTINUES IN TASHKENT, UZBEKISTANTuesday, March 30, 2004 TASHKENT, 30 Mr. (IPS, with Esmer Islamov of EurasiaNet) Gun battles and bombings continued for a third straight day in Tashkent, the Capital of Uzbekistan, the Central Asia's most populous nation of 24.500.000 inhabitants. The broad scope of the violence, the full extent of which is difficult to determine due to government press restrictions, suggests that the episode may be a homegrown insurgency, rather than a strike by international terrorists. By Safa Haeri.
WHO RULES IRAN?Monday, March 29, 2004 Westerners often meet with assorted officials who, they are led to believe, run Islamist Iran. They don't.
Chris Patten, the British politician who handles part of the European Union's foreign policy, complains that when talking to Iranian officials, he has the feeling that they are "messenger boys." Long before him, Roland Dumas, France's foreign minister in the 1980s, had reached a similar conclusion. By Amir Taheri.
ENSAFALI HEDAYAT’S OPEN LETTER TO THE IRANIAN NATION, OFFICIALSSunday, March 28, 2004 TEHRAN, 28 Mar. (IPS) In a new open letter to the Iranian nation and its leaders, detained journalist Ensafali Hedayat paints a gloomy picture of the conditions of his life in prison and harangues President Mohammad Khatami for his total indifference towards the fate of Iranians abused by the Judiciary and other organs of the Islamic Republic. By Safa Haeri.
IN AN UNPRECEDENTED MOVE, ARAB SUMMIT WAS POSTPONED SINE DIESunday, March 28, 2004 TUNIS, 28 Mar. (IPS) The Arab world suffered one of its most humiliating defeat after Tunisia, the country that had hosted the Summit of the Arab League, due to start on Monday, abruptly cancelled the meeting, after Arab foreign ministers preparing the meeting’s resolution disagreed to endorse some proposals aimed at reforming the political structures of most Arab governments and regimes. By Safa Haeri.
IRAN INAUGURATED NEW URANIUM PROCESSING FACILITYSaturday, March 27, 2004 TEHRAN, 27 Mar. (IPS, with Ali Akbar Dareini of The Associated Press) As international nuclear inspectors arrived in Tehran for inspecting Iran’s atomic facilities, Iran inaugurated a plant for processing uranium ore into gas, a step prior to enrichment of uranium, in the central city of Isfahan, Iranian nuclear officials said Saturday. By Safa Haeri.
DEMOCRACY OR ISLAMOCRACYFriday, March 26, 2004
By Dr. Mehdi Mozaffari*
PARIS 26, Mar. (IPS) "It is astonishing that each time claims on freedom of speech, free elections and gender equality strongly arises, Arab and Muslim leaders immediately resort to counter attacks, considering these claims to be in contradiction with their culture and identity. What they are saying is actually that despotism and repression is more conform to Islamic and Arab values than democracy and liberty", according to an Iranian scholar in Denmark. By Dr. Mehdi Mozaffari.
IRANIANS ASPIRE FOR SECULARITYThursday, March 25, 2004 PARIS, 25 Mar. (IPS) According an Iranian scholar, the last elections proves that the present clerical regime of Iran, being not reformable, has reached its end. By Safa Haeri.
IRAN CONDEMNS THE KILLING OF SHEYKH YASINETuesday, March 23, 2004 TEHRAN, 23 Mar. (IPS) Like all other governments in the world except the United States, Iran condemned strongly Israel for the assassination, on Monday, of Sheykh Ahmad Yasine, the spiritual leader of the Palestinian movement HAMAS, describing it as a "state terrorism" and calling on the Palestinian resistance organisations to continue their struggle against the Jewish State and its "brutal policies". By Safa Haeri.
IRANIANS CELEBRATED NEW YEAR IN RELATIVE FREEDOMSunday, March 21, 2004 TEHRAN, 21 Mar. (IPS) For the first time in more than 25 years, Iranians were able to celebrate their age-old, traditional and cherished New Year ceremonies in almost total freedom, as the ruling clerics, most of them opposed to any pre-Islamic symbols of Iranians, had ordered the security and police forces not to prevent people commemorating No Rooz, meaning new day and starting on 20 of March, the beginning of spring time. By Safa Haeri.
Timeline: Iran (BBC NEWS Article)Friday, March 19, 2004
A chronology of key events
By BBC NEWS.
FREE ENSAFALI HEDAYAT, PRESS ORGANISATIONS URGES IRANIAN AUTHORITIESThursday, March 18, 2004 PARIS, 18 Mar. (IPS) Iranian and international press and human rights organizations urged Iranian clerical authorities to free Mr. Ensafali Hedayat, an Iranian independent journalist jailed more than two months ago on unspecific charges. By Safa Haeri.
FIGHTING CONTINUE IS SYRIA BETWEEN KURDS AND SECURITY FORCESWednesday, March 17, 2004 DAMASCUS, 17 Mar (IPS) Bloody clashes between the Kurds and Arab population in the Syrian Kurdish city of Qameshli continued unabated on Wednesday, increasing the number of Kurds killed at the hands of the Arabs, backed by security forces and armed militia of the ruling Ba’th Party to more than 40, according to reliable Kurdish sources. By Safa Haeri.
FIGHTING CONTINUE IS SYRIA BETWEEN KURDS AND SECURITY FORCESWednesday, March 17, 2004 DAMASCUS, 17 Mar (IPS) Bloody clashes between the Kurds and Arab population in the Syrian Kurdish city of Qameshli continued unabated on Wednesday, increasing the number of Kurds killed at the hands of the Arabs, backed by security forces and armed militia of the ruling Ba’th Party to more than 40, according to reliable Kurdish sources. By Safa Haeri.
AFTER MORE THAN FIVE YEARS IN OFFICE, KHATAMI CONCEDED DEFEATWednesday, March 17, 2004 TEHRAN, 17 Mar. (IPS) Iranian President Mohammad Khatami on Wednesday conceded "defeat" to the ruling conservatives and announced that he will withdraw the bills he had submitted a year ago to the Majles aimed at curtailing some powers of the Council of the Guardians in the one hand and giving the president some of its withheld powers on the other. By Safa Haeri.
UNRESTS AND VIOLENCE CONTINUE IN SEVERAL IRANIAN CITIESMonday, March 15, 2004 TEHRAN, 15 Mar. (IPS) Violence and unrest continued in the small Caspian Sea resort town of Fereydoon Kenar for the third strait day with the local population fighting against Law Enforcement Forces and Basij volunteers backed by plainclothes men of Islamic vigilantes. By Safa Haeri.
IRAN WARNED OF RECIPROCITY COUNTRIES THAT ACT AGAINST ITSunday, March 14, 2004 TEHRAN, 14 Mar. (IPS) Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the Iranian regime’s number two man reiterated Sunday that his country was determined to acquire advanced nuclear technologies and no force in the world can stop it on this way. By Safa Haeri.
IAEA RESOLUTION IS "AN UGLY OGRE WITH SHARP TEETH AND BIG HORNS"Saturday, March 13, 2004 VIENNA-TEHRAN, 13 Mar. (IPS) Iran expressed satisfaction on Saturday of what it termed "a defeat" for the United States at the International Atomic Energy Agency, saying that Washington had not been able to impose a resolution of its liking to the Agency’s Board of Directors. By Safa Haeri.
IRAN AND IAEA ADOPT FOR SHOW DOWNThursday, March 11, 2004 VIENNA, 11 Mar. (IPS) As Directors at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) were putting last touches on a compromise draft of a resolution on Iranian controversial atomic programs, both Tehran and Agency adopted a more aggressive and attitude towards each other, with Iran for the first time criticising the Agency’s boss Mohammad ElBradeh’i and accusing the European Union of breach of agreements passed with Iran last October. By Safa Haeri.
GEORGIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR EXPANDED RELATIONS WITH IRANWednesday, March 10, 2004 PARIS, 10 Mar. (IPS) "Georgia has excellent relations with the Iran, an important nation and partner and look forward to expand them into all fields, developing particularly exports and imports", President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia said here in Paris, where is ending an official visit. By Safa Haeri.
IAEA TO PASS A STRONG RESOLUTION ON IRANTuesday, March 9, 2004 TEHRAN-VIENNA, 9 Mar. (IPS) Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Kamal Kharrazi on Tuesday dismissed as "wrong" the allegations made by the UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohammad ElBarade’i that Iran had breached its commitments and warned it will "not accept" being declared as having violated nuclear safeguards agreements or being compared to Libya". By Safa Haeri.
HARD LINERS WANTS THE HEAD OF ALI AKBAR MOUSAVI-KHO’EINIAMonday, March 8, 2004 TEHRAN, 8 Mar. (IPS) Mr. Ali Akbar Mousavi-Kho’einiha, a reformist lawmaker came under strong attacks from the conservatives-controlled media on Monday for his remarks in the Majles on Sunday, criticising the Assembly of Experts for not doing its job properly in controlling the actions and performances of the leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameneh’i. By Safa Haeri.
AUTHORITIES REFUSED IRANIAN WOMEN DEMONSTRATIONSMonday, March 8, 2004 TEHRAN, 8 Mar. (IPS) Iranian Police and security forces, acting on orders from the government of President Mohammad Khatami, prevented Monday violently a meeting of Iranian women that was to celebrate the International Women’s Day. By Safa Haeri.
IRAN KNOCKS AT THE WORLD’S ATOMIC CLUBSunday, March 7, 2004 TEHERAN, 7 Mar. (IPS) Iran on Sunday surprised the international community and above all the United Nations nuclear watchdog that the world must recognised the country as a nuclear power and be admitted into the growing atomic club. By Safa Haeri.
IRANIAN TEACHERS START A ONE-WEEK PROTEST STRIKESaturday, March 6, 2004 TEHRAN 6 Mar. (IPS) Iran’s huge community of teachers went on a week-long nation-wide strike to protest officials "indifference" towards their most basic and urgent demands, starting with payment of unpaid salaries and adjustment of their status with other government employees. By Safa Haeri.
MOBARAK VOICES OPPOSITION TO THE AMERICAN GREATER MIDDLE EASTFriday, March 5, 2004 PARIS, 5 Mar. (IPS) French President Jacques Chirac and his Egyptian guest, Hosni Mobarak agreed on Friday that any initiative aimed at improving life in the Middle East by implementing modern changes must be carried out with the active participation of the concerned people. By Safa Haeri.
SIGNING OF IRAQI INTERIM CONSTITUTION DELAYED ON SH’ITE OBJECTIONSFriday, March 5, 2004 BAGHDAD, 5 Mar. (IPS) Opposition by the five Shi'ite members of the American-installed Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) led to a sine die postponement of the signing of a provisory Constitution that was approved last week. By Safa Haeri.
IRANIAN NGO FILES LABEL AGAINST THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC WITH THE ICCThursday, March 4, 2004 THE HAGUE 4 Feb. (IPS) For the first time, the International Criminal Court accepted a formal accusation against the Islamic Republic filed by an Iranian Non Governmental Organisation (NGO), according to a member of the US-based NGO. By Safa Haeri.
TERRORIST ATTACKS ON SHI’ITES KILLED ALMOST 200 PEOPLE IN IRAQTuesday, March 2, 2004 BAGHDAD, 2 Mar. (IPS) At least between 140 and 200 people, some of them Iranians, were killed and many more wounded after presumed suicide terrorists exploded bombs on Tuesday at a time that million of Sh’ite Muslims were mourning the martyr of imam Hoseyn, their most revered saints killed 680 AD and in Karbala, 120 kilometres southeast of Baghdad and in Kazemeyn, near the capital. By Safa Haeri.
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