Friday,
August 7, 1998
* FBI blames Iran for anti-Jewish bomb in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal
Bureau of Investigation told Argentina on Friday it believed Iranian embassy
officials were involved in the bombing of a Jewish centre in Buenos Aires
in 1994, which killed 86 people. FBI officials handed Interior Minister
Carlos Corach the findings of 40 agents who travelled to Argentina earlier
this year to investigate the bombing, which blew apart the country's largest
Jewish community centre, known as AMIA, in the heart of Buenos Aires ...
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TEXT
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* U.S. eases immigration rules to boost `Wrestling
Diplomacy' with Iran
WASHINGTON (Washington Post) - After having warmly
welcomed a U.S. wrestling team to Tehran, Iranians were incensed when a
dozen of their own wrestlers landed in Chicago last April only to be promptly
fingerprinted and photographed at the airport by immigration officers.
In a little-noticed regulation published July 17 in the Federal Register,
Attorney General Janet Reno, who oversees immigration officials, allowed
exemptions for "certain nonimmigrants" from four countries [including
Iran] "when such action is deemed to be in the interest of foreign
policy or national security."... FULL
TEXT
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* MKO accuses Tehran of killing Kurdish dissident
in Iraq
NICOSIA, Aug 6 (AFP) - Agents sent by Tehran have
killed a member of the Iranian Kurdish opposition at a base in northern
Iraq, Iran's biggest armed opposition faction, the People's Mujahedeen,
said Thursday. Mohammed Heidari of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran
(KDPI) was gunned down late last Friday at a party base in Iraq and died
the following day, the People's Mujahedeen said in a statement received
here ... FULL
TEXT
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* UK, Iran discuss ways to improve relations
LONDON (IRNA) - Ways to improve bilateral relations
were discussed at a first meeting between british foreign office minister
derek fatchett and iran charge d'affaires in london gholamreza ansari here
wednesday afternoon. the foreign office described the talks as "useful"
on a start of a more constructive relationship. the need was to develop
political dialog and practical cooperation on matters of mutual interest
as well as addressing issues of concern, a spokesman said... FULL TEXT
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* Egyptian official: wide horizon open for cooperation
ATHENS (IRNA) - Egypt's new head of interests section in tehran, minister
plenipotentiary mohammad rifah al-tahtawi, has expressed optimism over
the future of egyptian-iranain relations. in statements made to egyptian
newspaper al-shaab published friday, the egyptian diplomat said both egypt
and iran were exerting efforts to build confidence and to explore horizons
and scope for cooperation between them... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran plans big presence at Asian games
TEHRAN (Hamshahri) - Iran will send 400 athletes
and "staff" to the Asian games which will be held this December
in Malaysia... FULL
TEXT IN PERSIAN
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Thursday
August 6, 1998
* Nehzat-e Azadi online
The Freedom Movement, founded by the late Mehdi Bazargan, and one of
the few opposition groups inside Iran, has gone online. The site is under
construction but you can read their latest statements... CLICK
HERE
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* Iran-Oman military cooperation no threat to anyone: Khatami
TEHRAN, Aug 5 (AFP) - Iranian President Mohammad Khatami pledged on
Wednesday that military cooperation between Iran and Oman posed no threat
to other countries. "The military cooperation between Iran and other
countries in the region, notably Oman, only serves to bring peace and security
to the region, especially the Strait of Hormuz," Khatami said... FULL TEXT
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* Arab officer sees no threat from Iran missile
TEHRAN, Aug 6 (Reuters) - A senior Gulf Arab military official said
on Thursday that Irans recent testing of a medium-range missile posed no
threat to security in the region, Tehran radio reported. ``Not only is
the missile not a threat to regional countries, it would actually improve
security in the region,'' Omani Air Force Commander Brigadier-General Mohammad
bin Mahfouz al-Aredhi was quoted as saying by Tehran radio as he ended
a visit to the Iranian capital.... FULL
TEXT
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* Closing diplomatic missions to save money
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran plans to close some of its diplomatic missions
abroad as part of a plan to reduce government spending, the Tehran Times
reported Thursday. Missions would be closed in countries ``which do not
have friendly relations with Iran and those which do not have significant
economic cooperation with our country,'' the English-language paper quoted
Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Mohammadi as saying... FULL
TEXT
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* Shell says pursuing upstream assets in Iran
LONDON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Shell is determined to establish a foothold
in Iranian oil exploration and production and is taking an active interest
in Irans recent upstream tender, a senior company official said on Thursday.
``We are determined to pursue a position in one of the major oil and gas
countries in the world,'' group managing director Phil Watts told reporters
after the company announced interim results.... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran to boost exports, improve foreign exchange
TEHRAN, Aug 5 (Reuters) - A senior Iranian official said on Wednesday
Iran planned to encourage non-oil exports and improve the countrys foreign
exchange system in the first phase of the countrys economic recovery programme.
The official Iranian News Agency IRNA also quoted Deputy President Mohammad
Ali Najafi, who also heads the Plan and Budget Organisation, as saying
that certain services ``would be entrusted to the private sector and to
the cooperatives.''... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran exiles deny link to man arrested in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Aug 5 (Reuters) - An exiled Iranian opposition group on
Wednesday denied a report that a man arrested in Argentina suspected of
links to anti-Jewish bombings was one of its members. An Argentine judge
told Reuters on Tuesday that police were investigating an Iranian man who
was found with photos of demonstrations organised by local Jewish group
Memoria Activa.... FULL
TEXT
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* Strong earthquake hits western Iran
TEHRAN, Aug 6 (AFP) - An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale
rocked a region in western Iran, the official IRNA news agency said Thursday.
The quake hit suburbs of the towns Mehran, Saleh-Abad and Abdanan in Ilam
province late Wednesday. The tremor was the latest in a series recorded
in different parts of Iran over the past few days. A day earlier, a 5.2-degree
quake struck the Bojnurd region of northeastern Khorassan province, causing
some damage. The walls of a shrine and several houses crumbled ... FULL TEXT
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* A Conversation between an American and an Iranian woman
The forthcoming VIS a VIS: Beyond the Veil (premiering Thursday, August
27, 1998 at 10 p.m. ET on PBS; check local listings) brings together two
women, one in suburban Washington, D.C., the other in Teheran, for an intense
and moving exchange over four days. Deborah Whitley and Sima Daad share
the same profession, both are high school English teachers, but ideologically,
each is formed by her own country. Sima Daad embraces and defends the ideology
and policy that governs the Islamic Republic of Iran, while Deborah Whitley
comes from a liberal American background. In the course of eight days of
intense and moving exchange, they confront and explore manyof the profound
social and political differences that have kept their countries at odds...
FULL TEXT
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Wednesday
August 5, 1998
* U.N. nuclear agency reacts to U.S. vote
VIENNA, Austria (AP) - A vote in the U.S. Congress to reduce contributions
to a U.N.-affilated nuclear agency will not seriously affect the Vienna-based
agency's operations, a spokesman said Tuesday... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran says victims of Iraqi chemical arms file case
TEHRAN, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Iranians wounded by Iraqi chemical weapons
in their 1980-88 war have lodged a complaint against the weapons' users
and suppliers, including several Western governments, an Iranian military
official said in remarks published on Tuesday. ``A group of victims have
filed complaints to international bodies calling for condemnation of perpetrators
of these crimes and their accomplices, as well as demanding compensation
for their sufferings,'' said Mohammad Baqer Nik'khah ... FULL
TEXT
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* Saudi Arabia "not worried" by Iranian missile test
TEHRAN, Aug 4 (AFP) - Saudi Arabia is not concerned by Iran's recent
missile test, Saudi Prince Turki ibn Abdallah, son of Crown Prince Abdallah
ibn Abdel Aziz, said on his arrival in Tehran Tuesday. "Saudi Arabia
has no worries on this subject," Prince Turki said. "Iranian
officials' statements on the topic have been very positive."... FULL TEXT
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* Saudi crown prince's son in Tehran for private visit
RIYADH, Aug 4 (AFP) - Saudi Prince Turki ibn Abdallah, son of the Crown
Prince Abdallah ibn Abdel Aziz, began a private visit to Iran on Tuesday,
an Iranian diplomat based in Riyadh told AFP. The one-week visit will include
a meeting with Iran's President Mohammad Khatami and former president Ali
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the diplomat said ... FULL
TEXT
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* Policewomen return to Iran for first time since 1979 revolution
TEHRAN, Aug 4 (AFP) - Policewomen officially rejoined Iran's police
force on Monday for the first time since the 1979 Islamic revolution, a
Tehran daily reported Tuesday. Policewomen went to work in the Caspian
Sea province of Mazandaran on Monday, the Jomhuri-Islami newspaper reported.
Iran's police force inaugurated a training centre for policewomen last
month... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran to allow weddings in mosques: television
TEHRAN, Aug 4 (AFP) - Iran's religious authorities have decided to let
young couples marry in mosques for a nominal fee in order to cut mounting
wedding expenses, state television said Tuesday. The decision, a first
for Iran, is also intended to bring young people closer to religious sites
and to encourage them to marry "without worrying about the expenses
incurred with wedding ceremonies," the television said, citing a religious
official who manages mosques... FULL
TEXT
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Tuesday
August 4, 1998
* House votes to block IAEA funds for Iran
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Alarmed by Tehran's test
of missiles capable of striking Israel and Saudi Arabia, the House of Representatives
voted Monday to stop funding International Atomic Energy Agency work to
help Iran build two nuclear reactors. The legislation passed 405 to 13,
a margin large enough to overcome President Bill Clinton's expected veto.
The administration strongly opposes the move on the grounds that it would
raise the risks of nuclear accidents and would harm U.S. influence in the
nuclear monitoring agency...
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* Publisher found guilty of press violations
TEHRAN, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A court on Monday found
the publisher of a journalists' newspaper guilty of violating press regulations
after the weekly printed a letter attacking Iran's late spiritual leader
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeinei. Justice Department Secretary Saeed Nobari
said a press court found cleric Mohammadreza Zaeri, publisher of the weekly
Khaneh (House), guilty but released him after he paid 20 million rials
($6,700). Nobari said the sentence was relatively light because of Zaeri's
record and an apology to the public... FULL
TEXT
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* BP interested in Iran oil play but wary of
U.S.
LONDON, Aug 4 (Reuters) - British Petroleum said
on Tuesday it was talking to Iran about a number of non-Caspian oil blocks
but would not do anything to attract U.S. sanctions. Richard Olver, BP
group managing director and chief executive for exploration and production,
said the company was interested in oil development projects other than
activities discussed in the Caspian, but it was still ``very early days''
for any projects to materialise... FULL
TEXT
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* Senior MP in Egypt
TEHRAN (Hamshahri) - Senior member of the Majlis is in Egypt trying
omprove ties... FULL
TEXT IN PERSIAN
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Monday
August 3, 1998
* Banned Iran paper keeps publishing
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - A pro-democracy newspaper defied two orders to shut
down and began publishing under a new name Sunday, setting the stage for
a clash with powerful hard-liners opposed to Iran's reformist president.
The paper's editor, Mahmoud Shams, said it was published under the name
Aftab'e Emrooz, or The Sun Today, with the lead story an account of an
attack Saturday on the newspaper's offices by thugs believed tied to ultra-conservative
politicians... FULL
TEXT
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* Iranian leader gives interior minister control of police force
TEHRAN, Aug 2 (AFP) - Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on
Sunday gave new Interior Minister Abdol-Vahed Musavi-Lari expanded powers
by also naming him commander of the police force, the official IRNA news
agency said. Khamenei made the move at the request of Musavi-Lari, who
took over as interior minister late last month after his predecessor Abdollah
Nuri was ousted by parliament ... FULL
TEXT
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* Khatami unveils policies to heal Iran's economy
TEHRAN, Aug 2 (AFP) - President Mohammad Khatami pledged to aim for
a fundamental revamp of Iran's economy on Sunday as he unveiled his policies
to attract foreign investment and fight unemployment and inflation. Khatami,
quoted by state-run radio, warned that the Iranian economy was "chronically
ill." "This will continue to be so unless there's fundamental
restructuring," said the president, who was speaking on the eve of
his inauguration ... FULL
TEXT
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* Khamenei supports Khatami's ambitious economic reform plan
TEHRAN, Aug 3 (AFP) - Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on
Monday gave his full backing to sweeping reforms announced by moderate
President Mohammad Khatami to tackle the country's ailing economy. In a
letter to the president, Khamenei said the policies are "entirely
correct and I approve them." The Iranian leader also called on other
institutions of the regime to help the government in its efforts to rescue
the economy ... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran to offer consular services to dissidents abroad
TEHRAN, Aug 3 (AFP) - Iran said Monday it had started to offer consular
services to dissidents living abroad, in line with new efforts to persuade
Iranian exiles to return home. "All our diplomatic missions abroad
are ready to provide services to Iranians, independent of their political
tendencies," said Mohammad-Ali Hadi, deputy foreign minister for consular
affairs... FULL
TEXT
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* France frees Iranian jailed for Bakhtiar murder ahead of FM visit
TEHRAN, Aug 1 (AFP) - An Iranian jailed in France for complicity in
the 1991 assassination near Paris of Iran's former prime minister Shahpur
Bakhtiar has returned home after being freed early, his family said Saturday.
Massud Hendi, who was convicted to 10 years in jail, returned to Iran on
Friday, said Hendi's brother, Ali-Reza ... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran reveals details of missile
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran revealed details of its newly tested medium-range
missile Sunday, saying the weapon was guided by an Iranian-made system
that gives it great accuracy. The Shahab-3 is 53-foot-long ballistic missile
that can travel at 4,300 mph and carry a one-ton warhead at an altitude
of nearly 820,000 feet, according to Gen. Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, head
of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' air wing ... FULL
TEXT
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* Iran formally invites bids for ``buy-back'' projects
DUBAI, Aug 1 (Reuters) - The National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC) on Saturday
formally invited foreign companies to bid for a string of ``buy-back''
oil and gas projects worth billions of dollars which were announced last
month. It is Iran's largest foreign oil and gas tender since the 1979 Islamic
revolution... FULL
TEXT
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