Tehran Times

2026-09-16 21:20
By Fardin Molaei

200 nights, one flag

People across Iran took to the streets for the 200th night, protesting U.S.-Israeli aggression

TEHRAN — Night falls differently across Iran.
- With women of such bravery, Iran will always be victorious
- ‘The street belongs to the people’

Qalibaf: US plot along Iran’s western border thwarted

TEHRAN — Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Tuesday that a US attempt to launch security and military operations against Iran from Iraq’s Kurdistan Region during the 40-day war had been thwarted through cooperation with Iran’s partners in the region and a timely response by the Iranian armed forces.
By Mahmoud M. Ravi-Nejad

Iran rules out US talks until conditions are met

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council urged the negotiators not to be distracted by contradictory messages from US president

TEHRAN — Iran has ruled out any negotiations with the United States until its conditions are met, with Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezaei warning Washington that the strategic equations surrounding oil and regional waterways have changed and that attempts to contain the consequences of the conflict will not alter what lies ahead.
UN fact-finding mission holds US responsible for deadly attack on Kuhestak wedding

TEHRAN — The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran has held the United States responsible for a deadly airstrike on a wedding celebration in Kuhestak, Hormozgan Province, warning that repeated attacks causing civilian casualties raise serious questions about Washington’s compliance with international humanitarian law.
US drone strike targets Iranian fishing boats in the Persian Gulf

TEHRAN — In another blatant violation of maritime security and international law, a US drone strike targeted two Iranian civilian fishing vessels in the Persian Gulf waters late Monday, leaving several fishermen missing.
IRGC downs third intruding US drone in 24 hours over Strait of Hormuz

TEHRAN — Iran’s integrated air defense network intercepted and destroyed an intruding US MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle over the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, marking the third American drone brought down within 24 hours.

Politics

130 Iranian lawmakers call for legal process to withdraw from NPT

TEHRAN — A total of 130 Iranian lawmakers have signed a statement calling on parliament to initiate the legal process for the country’s withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), arguing that international mechanisms have failed to protect Iran’s rights, security and peaceful nuclear infrastructure.
Pentagon report puts Iran war cost at $33.4 billion, cites US weapons shortfalls and extensive base

TEHRAN- A newly released US government report has shed further light on the financial and military costs of Washington’s war with Iran, estimating that the conflict had cost the United States $33.4 billion by June 29, while Iranian strikes damaged or destroyed hundreds of structures and dozens of American aircraft across US military facilities in the Middle East.
Iranian FM, Lebanese Parliament speaker discuss regional developments in phone call

TEHRAN — Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke by phone with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday night.

Sports

Iran to face S. Korea in 2026 Asian Games basketball SFs

TEHRAN – Iran’s men’s basketball team defeated Bahrain 79-74 at the 2026 Asian Games on Wednesday to book their place at the Games’ semifinals.
Iran U23 football team start on high at 2026 Asian games

TEHRAN – Iran U23 football team defeated the UAE 3-1 in their opening match at the 2026 Asian games on Wednesday.
Piazza under pressure as Iran’s Olympic path narrows

TEHRAN - Iran’s silver medal at the 2026 AVC Men’s Volleyball Continental Championship should have been celebrated as a positive step. Instead, the defeat to Japan in the final has left head coach Roberto Piazza and the Iranian federation facing a much more complicated question: what exactly is the team building toward?

Culture

“I Want My Music to Carry a Message of Iranian Unity, World Peace,” says Conductor Paniz Faryousefi

TEHRAN– Violinist and conductor Paniz Faryousefi took the podium of the Tehran Symphony Orchestra at Vahdat Hall in November 2025 (Aban 1404), becoming the first woman since the Islamic Revolution to officially conduct the orchestra — a landmark moment in Iran's post-revolution classical music history. She has also recently conducted the Vivo Orchestra in a concert built around works by Iranian composers in August 24, reflecting on what Iran and its people have experienced over the past year, including the Israeli attack on Iran in June 2025 and the subsequent US-Israeli military aggression against the country in 2026.
Iranian journalists discuss ties between cinema, city in Tehran gathering

TEHRAN- A gathering marking Iran’s Cinema Day was held at the City Journalists' House in Tehran on Monday evening, bringing together journalists to share their experiences of covering cinema and discuss the relationship between film, the city and society.
Exhibition of winning works of Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest opens at Art Bureau

TEHRAN – The exhibition of the winning works from the 11th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest opened on Monday at the Iran Photographers House Gallery at the Art Bureau in Tehran.

Economy

‘Iran has agreements with BRICS members for cooperation in various fields’

TEHRAN- Iran’s Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance said at the Supreme Council of the Stock Exchange meeting: At the BRICS summit, we received very good feedback both from the heads of member states and in the meetings held with the countries present at this summit, very useful grounds for cooperation in various economic fields were understood and agreed upon.
Northern ports; driver of Iran’s trade development with Eurasia

TEHRAN- CEO of Mazandaran Free Zone Organization Amin Ofoghi stated: The Mazandaran Free Zone, whose establishment began last year, is considered a valuable gift from the 14th government to the people of Mazandaran Province and has created new hope in the province.
Special working group formed for Chabahar-Zahedan railway operation

TEHRAN- The Deputy Minister of Transport and Urban Development announced the formation of a working group to monitor and follow up on the operation of the Chabahar-Zahedan railway and described this rail project as a golden page in the country’s development history.

Society

RoboCup IranOpen competition 2026 underway

TEHRAN – Tehran is playing host to the 20th edition of the RoboCup IranOpen competition, which started on Wednesday and will wrap up on Friday.
GFEAI 2026: science minister warns AI potential to become an invisible dictatorship

TEHRAN – Science, Research and Technology Minister Hossein Simaei-Sarraf has warned that the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in data analysis could pave the way for a shift from data control to human control, potentially giving rise to what he described as “an invisible dictatorship.”
Deputy youth minister remembers Minab schoolchildren at IYF in Russia

YEKATERINBURG, Russia – Alireza Rahimi, Iran’s Deputy Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs and Chairman of the Supreme Council of Youth, began his address at a meeting of youth ministers from countries participating in the International Youth Festival (IYF) in Yekaterinburg by remembering Iranian schoolchildren killed in recent attacks.

Tourism

8 most attractive deserts in Iran for travelers

TEHRAN - Iran's deserts offer far more than endless stretches of sand. Their appeal lies in the contrast between silence and vast open landscapes, unusual geological formations, traditional villages, wildlife and some of the country's clearest night skies.
Ancient iron-smelting site discovered in Hyrcanian forests of northern Iran

TEHRAN – Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient metal-smelting site in the forested highlands of Sowme’eh Sara in northern Iran, a find that could shed new light on the history of metallurgy in the western Alborz Mountains.
Tehran, Tashkent discuss ways to expand tourism ties

TEHRAN - Iran’s Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri and Tashkent’s ambassador to Tehran, Fariddin Nasriev, have discussed ways to expand tourism and cultural cooperation, revive historic Silk Road links and strengthen ties between the two countries during a meeting on Monday.

International

War on Iran the greatest error in U.S. history

NORTH CAROLINA - Probably half of U.S. citizens have been plunged into misery by the fact of the U.S.-Zionist war on Iran and support for Israel…even among those blindly ignorant of history and foreign countries and most everything else and whose weak primary complaint is the cost of gasoline.
Bal al-Mandab battle: Trump watches on

TEHRAN – Why has the United States not intervened militarily to try to stop the advance of the Yemeni Armed Forces and prevent them from establishing full control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait?
‘NAZA’ documentary confirms AI mass murder in Gaza, triggers ‘treason’ charges

TEHRAN — An 80-minute Israeli documentary exposing the systematic, algorithmic murder of Palestinian civilians in Gaza has triggered a severe political breakdown inside the regime.