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Prayer Time (Tehran)
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Dawn: 4:26
Sunrise: 6:06
Noon: 13:11
Evening: 20:36
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Weather Guide
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SUN |
MON |
Tehran: |
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High: |
36oC |
37oC |
Low: |
27oC |
27oC |
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Athens |
33 |
33 |
Ankara |
28 |
29 |
Paris |
22 |
25 |
New Delhi |
35 |
36 |
Rome |
29 |
30 |
Riyadh |
45 |
44 |
Frankfurt |
23 |
24 |
Cairo |
35 |
36 |
Kuwait City |
47 |
47 |
Karachi |
33 |
33 |
Copenhagen |
21 |
21 |
London |
20 |
20 |
Moscow |
25 |
26 |
Madrid |
35 |
32 |
Vienna |
26 |
30 |
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Identification
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Published by the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA)
Address:
Iran Cultural & Press Institute, #212 Khorramshahr Avenue Tehran/Iran
Managing Director: Mohammad T. Roghaniha
Executive Editor: Amin Sabooni
Editorial Dept. Tel: 8755761-2
Editorial Dept. Fax: 8761869
Advertising Dept. Tel: 8753119, 8757702, 8733764
Internet Address:
www.iran-daily.com
E-mail Address:
iran-daily@iran-daily.com
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88 Killed In Egypt Car Bombings
Abdullah Azzam Brigades Claims Responsibility
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Egyptian men inspect a destroyed hotel in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik after a bomb attack early July 23. (AFP Photo)
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SHARM EL-SHEIK, Egypt, July 23--A rapid series of car bombs and another blast ripped through a luxury hotel and a coffee shop in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik early Saturday, killing at least 88, a hospital official said. Terrified European and Arab tourists fled into the night, and rescue workers said the death toll could still rise.
The attack, Egypt’s deadliest terror hit ever, appeared well coordinated. Two car bombs, possibly by suicide attackers, went off simultaneously at 1:15 a.m. just more than 2 miles apart. A third bomb, believed hidden in a sack, detonated around the same time near a beachside walkway where tourists often stroll at night, AP reported.
“A total of 88 people had been confirmed dead,“ said Dr. Saeed Abdel Fattah, manager of the Sharm el-Sheik International Hospital where the victims were taken. Among the dead were two Britons, two Germans and an Italian, he added, and Czech officials said one Czech tourist was also killed. Rescue workers were still searching for victims at some attack scenes.
Several hours after the attacks, a group citing ties to Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the explosion on an Islamic website. The group, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Al-Qaeda, in Syria and Egypt, was one of two extremist groups that also claimed responsibility for October bombings at the Egyptian resorts of Taba and Ras Shitan that killed 34. The group also claimed responsibility for a Cairo bombing in late April.
The authenticity of the statement could not be immediately verified.
But a top Egyptian official said there are some indications the latest bombings were linked to last fall’s Taba explosions.
In addition to the 88 known dead, at least 119 others were wounded, the Egyptian
Interior Ministry said.
“At least eight foreigners were among the dead,“ Al-Adli said.
The dead included British, Dutch, Kuwaitis, Saudis and Qataris, one security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was giving information not yet included in the official statement.
Sharm el-Sheik has expanded at a furious pace in recent years, making it a major player in Egypt’s vital tourism industry, drawing Europeans, Israelis and Arabs from oil-producing Persian Gulf nations.
Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak has a residence where he spends the winter, and the town has been the host to multiple summits for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
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Wrong US Approach Made World Insecure
TEHRAN, July 23--Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi here Saturday urged the German Interior Ministry and its spokesman to respect the principles of democracy, noting that the wrong approach of the United States in countering terrorist acts has made the world insecure.
“I recommend them to act with dignity. Politicians should not lose their temper ... They should use the language common in diplomatic literature,“ Asefi was quoted as saying in his weekly news conference by IRNA.
Following allegations made by German Interior Minister Otto Schily against Iranian president-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Asefi urged the German official not to act under the influence of Zionist circles.
A spokesman for Germany’s Interior Ministry, Rainer Lingenthal, in his reaction to Asefi’s remarks, said the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman’s statement is impertinent.
Asefi also recommended Europeans not to use the language of threat against Iran as it would be of no use, but to take the initiative of cooperation.
He was responding to a recent comment attributed to French President Jacques Chirac by an Israeli newspaper. The paper had quoted Chirac as warning Tehran that the European Union would refer Iran’s nuclear case to the UN Security Council.
“I’m not sure about the accuracy of Chirac’s interview as it was reflected by an Israeli newspaper,“ he said. Asked about the recent terrorist acts in various corners of the world, including Iraq, Britain and Sharm el-Sheikh, the Iranian spokesman noted that the wrong US approach in countering terrorist acts has made the world insecure.
“Unfortunately, every day we observe explosions and killings in the world and this is due to the wrong and immature approaches of the United States and their persistence in pursuing their wrong policy for fighting terrorism,“ he said.
Asefi recommended Western countries to not treat Muslims harshly due to these explosions because “these things have nothing to do with Muslims“.
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Lari Tells Officials:
Wait for Presidential Race Truth
TEHRAN, July 23--Interior Minister Abdolvahed Mousavi Lari said on Saturday when the dust settles on the ninth presidential race the truth will become clear for the people, stressing that analysts ignored changes in social strata.
Addressing the meeting of director generals for social affairs from governors general’s offices nationwide, Lari said, “In the past four months, unfairness and lack of piety transcended all norms and standards. Some presidential candidates in their electoral campaigns went as far as to assert that in the past 26 years, no Islamic government existed in the country.“
He noted that in the past 26 years, 26 electoral races have been held without establishing a center that would focus on election-related social considerations.
Stressing that analysts must examine what the people wanted in the ninth presidential race, Lari noted that they ignored changes in the social strata.
“The situation must be scrutinized so that the society realizes what happened while managers are also able to take more realistic decisions,“ he said.
The interior minister emphasized that Iran belongs to all Iranians.
“In the near future, the incumbent government’s tenure will be over. Different indices reveal the country’s development and progress in various domains. Future administrators need the experiences of incumbent administrators,“ he said. Lari also said that in the past eight years, the Interior Ministry spared no efforts to carry out its duties effectively.
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Judicial Report Decries Detention Centers
Civil Rights Violated
TEHRAN, July 23--A judicial official presented a report to Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi on Saturday about the deplorable conditions of civilian rights.
Head of the Committee for Supervising and Inspecting Civilian Rights Abbasali Alizadeh reported the unfavorable conditions of 1,400 inmates in one of the prisons as clear cases of violation of civilian rights.
The use of blindfolds, torture of defendants, long interrogations, imprisonment of a 13-year-old kid in miserable condition for stealing chicken, imprisonment of a 73-year-old woman over financial problems and arrest of a woman instead of her husband convicted of drug-related offenses are some of the cases outlined in the report.
Ayatollah Shahroudi had addressed a circular about observance of civilian rights last year to all judges, judicial officials and prison officials.
The judicial committee, which prepared the current report, comprises representatives from the Judicial Organization of Armed Forces, Tehran’s Military Prosecutor’s Office, State Inspectorate Organization and Disciplinary Preliminary Court for Judges as well as the deputy head of Tehran Justice Department and an official from Supreme Court’s Preliminary Court.
The report outlined that committee members witnessed violation of civilian rights in their inspections of various temporary detention centers, including Evin Prison’s cell number 209, Khazaneh’s Police Station’s prison number 160, Varamin’s Police Prison, Rajaeishahr Prison as well as detention centers of Islamic Revolution’s Guards Corps and Islamic Revolution Court’s prisons.
The committee, which received 143 complaints, reported that a person has been jailed since seven years ago without any verdict.
The committee noted that it encountered various impediments in fulfilling its task. For example, the committee members were not permitted to visit IRGC’s detention centers whose officials said they would not even allow people with higher ranks to visit its detention centers.
The report also revealed that certain prison officials do what they wish without seeking the consent of State Prisons Organization.
The committee also referred to the high suicide rates of female inmates in Rajaeishahr Prison and called for clarifying the reason behind this phenomenon.
According to Shahroudi’s circular, the area of detention centers should not be less than 12 square meters while committee members came across cases wherein inmates were held in cells less than one square meter for eight or nine months.
The report stressed that despite legal restrictions against torture, inmates are tortured and kept blindfolded for extracting confessions.
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Shots Fired at Iran Embassy in Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Iraq, July 23--Unidentified people shot bullets at the building of Iranian Embassy on Saturday morning.
An informed source told IRNA that armed people were shooting at the building from the roofs of adjacent residential complexes.
“The good part is that the shooting, which took place for the third time since the visit of Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari to Iran, did not entail any casualty,“ he said.
The source noted that despite the rapid reaction of the police and the embassy’s guards, the assailants managed to escape.
Ever since Jaafari and his accompanying delegation visited Tehran, the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad has been closely guarded by Iraqi police forces.
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No Gov’t Role for Rezaei
TEHRAN, July 23--State Expediency Council (SEC) Secretary Mohsen Rezaei said on Saturday he will have no role in the new government just as he had no role in past administrations.
Speaking to reporters, he expressed hope that president-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad can meet public demands and fulfill his electoral pledges.
Asked whether President Mohammad Khatami will become a SEC member after his tenure ends, Rezaei said, “The council has not discussed this issue.“
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Iraqi Sunnis Boycott Constitutional Drafting
BAGHDAD, Iraq, July 23--The drafting of Iraq’s Constitution stumbled Saturday when Sunnis drafting the vital document boycotted a key meeting, as Al-Qaeda claimed the recent abduction of two Algerian diplomats in Baghdad.
“None of the Sunni members of the committee attended the meeting,“ Ayad Al-Samarrai, spokesman for the Islamic Party, a leading Sunni faction, told AFP.
The 15 Sunni Arab members of the committee, most of whom were cooped on to the parliamentary committee, announced Thursday they would not attend meetings after two of their number were gunned down in the capital on Tuesday.
While the Sunnis have demanded an international investigation into the killings, their withdrawal could raise questions about the constitution’s legitimacy in the eyes of the disenchanted Sunni minority.
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Working With Iraq
By P. Raouf
Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari and his accompanying delegation this week wrapped up a visit to the Islamic Republic that was billed as a “turning point“ in the often-troubled relations between the two countries before the fall of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
Jaafari and his high-profile team signed several agreements to bolster economic cooperation and assist the mammoth task of post-war reconstruction in the neighboring state.
Iraq is a big market for Iran and its reconstruction plan, referred to as the greatest economic plan in almost half a century, provides the opportunity for our able industrialists and businesses to do their fair share in helping Iraq return to normalcy after years of turmoil and misery.
Estimates suggest the cost of reconstructing Iraq over the next 20 years will be in the region of $300 billion. Bulk of the funding is planned for rebuilding infrastructure including telecommunication, agricultural, industrial, water and electricity, health and education.
With acumen and efficient planning, our government and private institutions with their high technical and executive capabilities can and should find access to a suitable share of the Iraqi economic development program.
Given the interest of foreign firms in Iraq wanting to work with their Iranian counterparts, especially in key reconstruction programs, and Baghdad’s preference to build closer economic ties to Tehran, it can be said that hurdles in the way of Iranian enterprises in the Iraqi market have been largely removed.
Bilateral trade last year reached one billion dollars. In this there is a message for our economic officials that they should move soon to institutionalize Iran’s presence in the Iraqi market to avoid the bitter experience of our lack of cooperation with other neighbors in the recent past.
Iran and Iraq possess vast untapped potentials for bilateral cooperation in important economic areas. Common sense dictates that the first step for tapping such potential lies in each side appointing a commercial attachˇ to their respective diplomatic missions.
Organizing exhibitions can help both sides better assess the other’s market capability and conditions along with export drive.
Given the history of bilateral ties, Iranian officials perhaps are satisfied with the volume of bilateral trade in the past year. However, it must be noted that the volume of Iraq’s trade with Jordan and Turkey is much higher than with Iran. This is while the Jordanian or Turkish markets are not as diverse as ours.
Unlike the Central Asian states and Afghanistan, Iraq has vibrant financial and banking infrastructure that can help lower risks of bilateral trade. Any risks to investments can be removed through guarantee funds or strong insurance cover. A large portion of bilateral trade currently pertains to border markets, which have helped improve the quality of life in the border regions in the two countries. But now it is crucial that both sides move beyond border trade and towards major projects.
Economic agreements between Iran and Iraq in the past few days, including one for transferring oil from Basra to the Abadan Refinery, or the tour by senior Iraqi officials of our important economic and industrial centers including automotive and chemical plants, shows there is larger scope for economic collaboration in the interest of tour two peoples.
Iran is a country with a relatively acceptable economic growth rate, and this indicates we concentrate on new export markets. Iraq has a big population and given its geographical proximity it can serve as gateway for Iranian exports to other countries. Iranian ports can be used for exporting Iraqi products to Central Asia, the Indian sub-continent and beyond.
It is imperative that our economic policy and decision-makers, the incoming government in particular, get their acts together and start building a respectable economic partnership with the people and government of Iraq.
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