Radiofarda – President Hassan Rouhani’s chief of staff has said the coronavirus pandemic delayed negotiations on a proposed Iran-China 25-year pact, but probably a final agreement can be reached by March 2021, when the current Iranian calendar year ends. Mahmoud Vaezi who was speaking on state television July 11, also tried to deny rumors about some aspects of the deal, …

Radiofarda – Iran’s deputy health minister issued a warning Saturday that a cheap medication is mislabeled and sold as remdesivir in Iran at extremely high prices. Iraj Harirchi speaking in a television program said a 50-cent medication is relabeled as remdesivir and sold at 1,300 to 1,600 U.S. dollars on the black market. The prices quoted by the deputy minister …

Radiofarda – Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has denied Sunday suing five IRNA directors and journalists for publishing an interview with a senior Army general criticizing the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, IRGC. IRNA is the Islamic Republic’s official news agency, run by President Hassan Rouhani’s administration. A pro-reformist journalist claimed Saturday that security agents confiscated some of the personal effects of the …

Radiofarda – An agreement between the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and an organization controlled by Iran’s Supreme Leader was signed today to develop and expand an exisiting oil field. Shana news agency connected with NIOC reported the deal, without mentioning that the contractor, Persia Oil and Gas Industry Development Company, belongs to Imam’s Executive Headquarters, an organization operating under …

On this day 17 years ago, Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi died under suspicious circumstances after being held in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison for more than two weeks. Kazemi died after being tortured and raped, a doctor who examined her body later revealed. Kazemi was arrested on June 23, 2003, while taking pictures of prisoners’ families outside of Iran’s Evin prison. …

RFL/RE – Iranian authorities say a misaligned missile battery and miscommunication between soldiers and superior officers were to blame for the January downing of a Ukrainian jetliner that killed 176 people.The conclusions by Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization were detailed in a new report released late on July 11.Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 was struck by two missiles and crashed shortly …

RFL/RE -The U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 was backed by most countries in the region, who shared the goal of ousting the extremist Taliban regime and eliminating the allied Al-Qaeda terrorist network.The governments in Tehran, Moscow, and Islamabad readily helped the United States fight the extremist groups.Iran provided crucial intelligence to support U.S. special forces and CIA teams orchestrating …

Iran-HRM – Hossein Reyhani, a young man arrested during the November 2019 protests in Iran, has been sentenced for “corruption on earth”, a charge carrying the death sentence according to Iran’s Islamic Penal Code. Hossein Reyhani has been held in legal limbo at the Greater Tehran Penitentiary since he was arrested in December 2019. In a recent letter from prison, …

VOA – Iran’s economy must stay open despite a rise in the number of coronavirus infections, President Hassan Rouhani said Saturday. He called for a ban on large gatherings, such as at weddings and wakes, to limit the spread of the disease. Iran reported Saturday that in the previous 24 hours, there had been 2,397 new COVID-19 cases and 188 …

Radiofarda 0 Radio Farda has obtained a confidential letter that shows Iran’s IRGC, which holds 49 percent of Khuzestan Steel Mill Company, is attempting to “illegally acquire” the remaining shares belonging to workers. Meanwhile, reports say that the Revolutionary Guard financial holding involved in the case may be transferring its assets to Supreme Leader Khamenei’s office. The steel company is …