Radiofarda – Qom’s Friday Prayer Imam, Abbas Mousavi Motlaq, says some people are unduly warning that the coronavirus outbreak threatens upcoming Muharram religious ceremonies, and commemorating third Shiite Imam in October. Dismissing coronavirus as a “secular virus,” the mid-ranking clergy reiterated, “With its destructive effects coronavirus is trying to lead religious countries astray, and toward atheism.” The Friday Prayer Imam …

Radiofarda – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said he the fight against Iran’s nuclear program, ballistic missiles and the country’s military presence in Syria has “continued’ in recent days. Speaking at a press conference in Jerusalem on Thursday evening mainly dedicated to his plans regarding the coronavirus crisis the Israeli Prime Minister said the details of the actions …

Radiofarda – Controversy surrounding reports of an Iranian airliner being intercepted by U.S. fighter jets over Syria on Thursday, 23 July continued on Friday with many questions raised that have yet to be answered. Some of the questions asked include: Have the Iranians tried to provoke U.S. forces by flying over their base in Tanf at the border with Jordan? If the …

VOA – A short-circuit on a power line sparked a brush fire in an eastern neighborhood of the Iranian capital Tehran on Friday, police and the fire department said, denying there had been an explosion, the semi-official news agency ILNA reported.  The deputy chief of Tehran police Hamid Hadavand told the agency that the fire had been put out, while a fire department spokesman said there was no report of …

Al-Monitor – A top Ukrainian diplomat said today that the black boxes from the Ukrainian passenger flight shot down in Iran in January indicate “illegal interference.” Ukraine is now waiting for talks with Iran regarding Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, according to Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister. “Black boxes from #PS752 were read out and deciphered successfully. The transcript confirmed the fact of …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – A prisoner, sentenced to qisas (retribution in-kind) for “premeditated murder” was executed in Qazvin Central Prison (Choubindar) on July 14, making him the second person to have been executed in Qazvin Prison that day. According to Iran Human Rights, on the morning of Tuesday, July 14, a 21-year-old prisoner on death row was executed in …

Iran Human Rights (IHR) – Civil activist, Zartosht Ahmadi-Ragheb, currently being held at Fashafuyeh Prison in Tehran, has entered the 38th day of his hunger strike and is in a worrying physical condition. According to Iran Human Rights, there is a growing concern for Zaratosht Ahmadi-Ragheb’s physical health as he continues his hunger strike in protest to his detention. On …

Radiofarda – Revolutionary Guard and the Judiciary in separate statements Thursday announced that the Intelligence Unit of the Guards has arrested several officials of an industrial company in Alborz Province and has shut down fifty real estate agencies in various cities of Yazd Province. The statement clearly presented the IRGC Intelligence Organization as an arm of the Judiciary. The public …

Radiofarda – Figures released by Central Bank Of Iran (CBI) show that during four days since July 18, it injected $921 million into the foreign exchange market to boost the country’s currency against the U.S. dollar. Since March, Iran’s rial fell by nearly 70 percent and reached 260,000 against the dollar. Three years ago, before the United States pulled out …

Radiofarda – Spain’s El Mundo on Thursday reported that the Economic and Fiscal Crime Division of the Spanish Police (UDEF) has announced that between 2012 and 2015 the media company belonging to Pablo Iglesias, the leader of the leftist, anti-corruption Podemos Party, received more than nine million euros from Iran through other companies. El Mondo said evidence gathered by the …