Persian Press Review

April 17, 2011 - 0:0

This column features excerpts from the editorials, commentaries, interviews, and news articles of the leading Iranian newspapers.

Saturday’s headlines
HAMSHAHRI: Details of changes in gas and electricity prices elaborated
JAME JAM: Sprays of tulip exhibited in Qazvin festival
TEHRAN-E EMROOZ: Pulmonary infections and respiratory disorders, gifts of Arab dust storm
JAVAN: Failure of sanctions as 41 countries participate in Tehran exhibition (16th International Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Exhibition)
KAYHAN: We can not look indifferently to crimes in Bahrain, Salehi tells UN chief
MELAT MA: Negotiation about Gaddafi fate in four corners of the world
KHORASAN: Ayatollah Sistani rejects Saudi king’s request for phone conversation
FARHIKHTEGAN: Continuation of operations until the fall of Gaddafi, NATO announces
TAFAHOM: No change in price of Iran Khodro products
SHARQ: MPs meet maraja’ taqlid (Shia clerics who are regarded as sources of emulation)
QODS: Bushehr nuclear power plant to begin producing electricity in about 6 weeks, Iran’s ambassador to Russia announces
Leading articles
SHARQ in an analysis headlined “Do the Dust Storms End One Day” says dust storm hit Tehran for the first time in the summer of 2009, and this made the cabinet to take the issue seriously and the president sent his female aide (Fatemeh Javadi) to Iraq to investigate the issue closely. The trip by the presidential aide led to the formation of certain expert working groups and exchange of diplomatic travels between Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran but the dust storms reached Tehran two months earlier in 2010. And in 2011 not only dust storms hit Tehran sooner (the first month of the Persian new year which falls between March and April) it also reached northern cities like Tonekabon. The writer says today the density of dust storm in the western city of Ilam has increased 43 times higher than an acceptable level and in the southwestern province of Khuzestan increased 70 times. The writer adds this nightmare can turn more destructive and we should think of a day that Tehranis also experience the same degree of dust storm in Ilam and Khuzestan in the same way that 10 years ago only one province was wrestling with the dust storm but today 20 provinces are being affected.
JAVAN in a news article quotes a top military commander as describing the structural reforms within the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps as constructive. The structural reforms have led to a better coordination of activities by the various units of the IRGC across the country, Brigadier General Hossein Salami told IRNA. He also announced that no further reforms to the structure of the IRGC are underway at this juncture. The IRGC has also drawn up several plans to make the best of the reforms to help improve the performance of the relevant units, Salami stated.