Iran’s Ahmadi takes silver at World Taekwondo Championships

TEHRAN – Soroush Ahmadi from Iran claimed a silver medal at the World Taekwondo Championships in Manchester, England on Sunday.

RIPI to produce a wide range of downstream catalysts

TEHRAN- Iran’s Research Institute of Petroleum Industry (RIPI) has it on the agenda to produce various types of catalysts used in the oil industry’s downstream operations, Shana reported quoting an official with the institute.

NPC calls for accelerating completion of prioritized projects

TEHRAN - The managing director of Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) has stressed the need for accelerating the completion process of prioritized petrochemical projects across the country, Shana reported.

Pompeo fails to sway allies on Iran in awkward surprise visit

TEHRAN - U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo made scant progress persuading European Union counterparts to take a harder line toward Iran during a quick visit on May 13 to Brussels, with the EU standing behind the nuclear accord abandoned by Washington -- and warning of a potential military conflict.

Iran win Karate 1-Series A Istanbul

TEHRAN - Iranian karatekas topped the medal table of the Karate 1-Series A Istanbul on Sunday.

$2.3m earmarked for fighting locusts in southeastern Iran

TEHRAN – Iranian parliament, known as Majlis, has allocated a total budget of 100 billion rials (nearly $2.3 million) to fight desert locusts which have penetrated into 6 provinces in southern and southeastern Iran, head of agriculture comittee of Majlis has said.

Azar oil field’s total output reaches 20,000 million barrels

TEHRAN – Cumulative oil extraction from Azar oilfield has reached 20 million barrels since it began operation in March 2017, IRNA reported on Sunday.

U.S. to blame for obstructing drug war: Iran

TEHRAN - Hossein Maleki, head of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Department of International Cooperation for Countering Terrorism and Extremism, said on Sunday that the U.S. should be blamed for obstructing fight against drug trafficking.

Expert enumerate measures to counter U.S. hostile actions

TEHRAN - Hossein Sheikholeslam, an expert on international affairs who served as deputy foreign minister and ambassador for years, has said that internal integrity is a deterrent element to counter the U.S. hostile actions.

MPs call for impeachment of oil minister

TEHRAN – A number of lawmakers have initiated a motion to impeach Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh for mismanagement and harming the country.

Naqdi hails IRGC as a successful model in Islamic world

TEHRAN – Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the newly-appointed deputy coordinator of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), has hailed the IRGC as a successful model in the Islamic world, saying other countries want to have an organization like the IRGC as well.

Housing foundation, Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam join hands in rebuilding flood-hit houses  

TEHRAN —Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam also known as Setad-e Ejraiy-e Farman-e Hazrat-e Emam and Islamic Revolution Housing Foundation have agreed upon collaborating to reconstruct and rehabilitate flood-stricken houses, Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam announced in a press release on Sunday. 

Fossils, stone tools of enigmatic human species found in Iran

TEHRAN – A team of Archaeologists has recently excavated stone tools and a fragment of a fossilized skull, which are attributed to Homo sapiens, from a cave in western Iran. The cave has also yielded weapon fragments crafted by Neanderthals.

Iranian arrivals in Turkey drop by 20 percent in 2018: envoy

TEHRAN – Iranian visits to Turkey fell some 20 percent in 2018 in comparison to a year earlier, Ankara’s ambassador to Tehran has said.

Iran seeks return of 1,300 stolen artifacts

TEHRAN - Iran earnestly seeks the return of some 1,300 historical relics, which have been previously smuggled out of the country, tourism chief said on Saturday.

Aref will run for Majlis presiding board elections: lawmaker

TEHRAN – A member of the pro-reform Hope faction’s presiding board in parliament has announced that Mohammad Reza Aref, chairman of the faction, will run for the Majlis presiding board elections.

Fadavi got new post due to his experiences: general

TEHRAN – Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi was named the deputy chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) due to his operational experiences, director of the Supreme Leader’s Military Office said on Sunday. 

By Faranak Bakhtiari

Iran facing population decline; is it possible to reverse the trend?

TEHRAN – Many demographers believe that Iran’s population has started to decline more sharply, one point to consider, however, is that Iran’s population growth rate is similar to today’s world average but substantially lower than its peak a few decades earlier.

1.5 tons of narcotics seized in Sistan-Balouchestan

TEHRAN – Sistan-Balouchestan’s police forces have seized 1.5 tons of opium in Zahedan city, according to provincial police chief Mohammad Ghanbari.

TPO to hold 1st meeting of Iran-neighbors joint economic committees

TEHRAN- Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) will hold the first meeting of the chairmen of the country’s joint economic committees with its neighboring countries on Monday, Mohammadreza Modoudi, the acting head of TPO, announced.

Barham Salih says Iraq will stand beside Iranians in difficult times

TEHRAN – Iraqi President Barham Salih said on Saturday that Baghdad will stand beside the Iranian government and people in difficult times.

By Mehdi Sepahvand, Editor at The Tehran Times

U.S. airline call serving ‘psychological warfare’

TEHRAN - A recent call by the United States administration to American airliners to avoid flying over the Persian Gulf is a tool of psychological warfare, according to Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Judiciary chief urges support for entrepreneurs

TEHRAN - Ebrahim Raeisi, the Judiciary chief, said on Sunday that all officials are duty bound to support businessmen and entrepreneurs.

Europe unwilling to pay the price to save JCPOA: MP

TEHRAN – Chairman of the Majlis Nuclear Committee Mojtaba Zonnour said on Sunday that while European countries are capable of preserving the Iran nuclear agreement, they are not willing to pay the price for saving it.

Iran not looking for war but ready to fight back: IRGC chief

TEHRAN – The Islamic Republic is not looking for war with any country but is ready to counter any threat posed by the enemies, chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Sunday.

Saudis, other Arab states okay U.S. troop deployment in Persian Gulf: report

(Press TV) - Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf Arab states reportedly gave the green light to the U.S. deploying its troops and warships to the region to counter what they claim “imminent threat” from Tehran.

Ex-CIA chief Brennan and top nuclear deal negotiator Sherman to brief Dems on Iran: AP 

TEHRAN - Former CIA director John Brennan and top negotiator of the Iran nuclear deal, Wendy Sherman, will brief Democrats on the situation in Iran amid the Trump administration’s heightened tension with Tehran.

Royal Mail resumes service to Iranians

TEHRAN - Royal Mail, Britain’s top posting service company, has restored its services to the destination of Iran, according to Iran’s ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Turkey wants removal of barriers in trade with Iran: Turkish envoy

TEHRAN- Turkish ambassador to Iran said his country wants the barriers in the way of trade with Iran to be removed, IRNA reported.