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Elite Have Special Responsibility
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Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei at a gathering of elite in Yazd on Wednesday.
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Yazd, Jan. 6--Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei here Saturday recommended the elite to continue their valuable efforts in promoting development of the country and helping resolve existing problems.
The call came during his address to a large group of elite in this central province. The group included prominent figures from the scientific, cultural, economic and industrial, religious, agricultural, and artistic spheres, IRNA reported.
Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated that the elite shoulder special responsibility when it comes to sustainable progress and development of the Islamic state.
Prior to the leader’s speech, several experts presented their views on different issues and offered suggestions to help develop the province and the country at large .
The leader arrived in Yazd on Wednesday to get more acquainted with the problems of the key province and one of the most ancient regions of Iran.
He wrapped up the four-day visit on Saturday.
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Talabani Wants Border Talks
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Jalal Talabani
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BAGHDAD, Iraq,
Jan. 6--Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said Saturday his country wants further talks with Iran regarding border demarcation issues.
Addressing a joint news conference with Kurdistan Regional Government President Masoud Barzani, he said the two Middle East nations must study the details mentioned in the 1975 Algerian Accord, KUNA reported.
Tehran and Baghdad are presently discussing issues related to border demarcation that were not outlined in the historical accord, which focuses on use of the regional waterway (Arvand Roud).
The accord, which clarified the point where the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers meet, was publicly annulled in 1980 by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
After the fatal decision the ousted despot ordered the invasion of the newly-born Islamic Republic--a western-backed war that lasted eight years and killed a million people on both sides.
Currently an Iraqi delegation is in Tehran to review aspects of the Algiers document.
Earlier President Talabani said he had been “misquoted“ regarding some statements on the status of the Algiers Accord that Saddam had signed along with the former Shah of Iran in the presence of the late Algerian Leader Houari Boumedienne.
Talabani confirmed that the settlement over disputed territories between the two neighbors is valid under international law. “I do not advocate the cancellation of the agreement. I call for enhancing relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq and I believe we have many mutual interests,“ the president was quoted as saying.
Talabani noted that the key accord was rejected at a time “we stood against the dictatorial regime because it was signed between ... the then Shah of Iran and Saddam Hussein.
Press reports last week quoted Talabani as saying that the Algiers agreement was invalid. Tehran responded with are urgency and demanded clarification from Baghdad. The Iranian press also took a strong stance against the Iraqi leader and many opinion pieces in the print media expressed shock over the development. The outcry was vocal especially in light of the fact that Talabani is considered a close friend of Iran and a respected politician who commands respect among the Iranian people and statesmen.
Talabani’s office soon issued a statement saying “The current agreement is valid and no single party has the right to cancel or tear it up. This is a fact known by the president.“
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Political Parties Will
Oversee Majlis Vote
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The Majlis elections are scheduled for March 14.
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TEHRAN, Jan. 6 -- Two representatives from each political party will monitor the upcoming Majlis elections, the Election Headquarters said Saturday.
Political parties and their supporters are preparing for the general elections to the 290-member parliament scheduled for March 14, Presstv reported.
“A special desk for political parties has been set up at the Interior Ministry’s Election Headquarters to monitor the executive process of the vote,“ Ali-Reza Afshar, head of the headquarters told reporters.
“Several political parties have insisted on being present at the headquarters to help the electoral process,“ he was quoted as saying.
Afshar referred to the possibility of using electronic ballot counting systems, and said if the ministry succeeds in implementing the plan in Tehran, the results of the vote would be announced within 24 hours.
Electronic systems could probably be set up in 13 cities with more than three seats in the parliament.
It is reported nearly 1,400 prospective candidates have so far registered for the vote across the country.
The headquarters said Sunday, the second day of registration, that 1,363 individuals have already signed up for the elections through its special website.
Of this number, 120 are women. A total of 287 have registered from the Tehran constituency. The capital has 30 seats.
Religious minorities in Iran have five seats in the
Majlis for which elections are held every four years.
Iran’s fully elected legislature can fire ministers through the no-confidence motions and can also impeach the president of the republic for misconduct and/or incompetence.
Although the bulk of legislation is proposed by executive branch of government, the lawmakers may also propose laws as and when they deem necessary.
In addition to approving the national budget and medium and long-term development plans, the chamber also is responsible for accepting or rejecting Iran’s membership in international treaties and conventions, and agreements with foreign countries.
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Speaker Condemns Israel
Int’l Silence Shocking
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Gholamali Haddad-Adel
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TEHRAN, Jan. 6--Majlis Speaker Gholamali Haddad-Adel Sunday condemned the recent atrocities of the Zionist regime against the oppressed Palestinians.
Addressing an open session of the Majlis, he slammed the US support for the Zionist state and the silence of the international community in the face of non-stop Israeli atrocities in the occupied territories, Presstv reported.
The Zionist regime has killed dozens of Palestinians in recent months and another teenager was killed Sunday in the latest Israeli military operation in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.
“It is surprising that international circles remain silent over the murder of defenseless Palestinian children and the unacceptable obstacles in the way of Palestinian Hajj pilgrims wanting to return home,“ he complained.
Haddad urged international bodies and human rights advocates to help put an end to the ongoing lawlessness of the Tel Aviv regime.
Israel’s new wave of criminality ahead of the US president’s visit to the region is a product of Washington’s unsparing support for the usurper state, the senior lawmaker told the chamber.
The illegal Zionist regime should understand that any increase in its inhuman acts will be responded with stronger and more powerful resistance the Palestinian people, he added.
Ploys such as the so-called peace conference in Annapolis that brought together scores of American western and Arab allies is doomed to fail, the TV website quoted him as saying.
The latest casualties brings to 6,035 the number of people killed in the Israeli onslaught against the Palestinians since 2000, the vast majority of them Palestinians.
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Rebel Group Busted
TEHRAN, Jan. 6--Security forces killed several foreign-backed rebels in the western Kermanshah province.
“A gang of saboteurs backed and organized by foreign intelligence services was dismantled last night,“ deputy Kermanshah governor Hojatollah Damyad said, Fars News Agency reported Sunday.
“In last night’s clashes, some of these counter-revolutionary elements were killed,“ he said, adding that the fighting took place in a region between Ravansar and Kamyaran, about 100 km (60 miles) from the Iraqi border.
Damyad said the group, which had been “set up to foment insecurity and discord in the region and hinder the government’s services to the people“ was stopped before it could carry out its plots. He did not elaborate.
Iran’s Kurdestan, Kermanshah and West Azarbaijan provinces, which have substantial Kurdish populations, have been the scene of clashes between Iranian forces and Kurdish terrorists affiliated to the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan, or PJAK.
The banned outfit, which has links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) fighting the Turkish army, has been responsible for a string of deadly attacks in northwest Iran.
Tehran has repeatedly accused the US government of attempting to stir ethnic unrest by supporting a variety of terrorist and banned groups in the border areas, including PJAK and the outlawed Mujahideen Khalq Organization (MKO).
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Police Chief in Muscat
MUSCAT, Oman, Jan. 6-Iran’s police chief arrived here Sunday for talks on ways and means to expand cooperation in fighting illegal drugs.
Brigadier General Esmail Ahmadi-Moqaddam, who doubles as head of Iran’s Anti-Drug Taskforce, is scheduled to meet with Oman’s Inspector General of Police and Customs, Major General Malik bin Sulaiman Al-Mamari, and other senior political, law enforcement and security officials, IRNA reported. The two neighbors already have good cooperation on coast guard communications and curbing illegal entry into each other’s territory.
Ahmadi-Moqaddam is expected to expand the range of cooperation by negotiating with Omani officials on ways of sharing information and experience related to law enforcement and narcotics.
Iran and the Sultanate of Oman have traditionally enjoyed cordial ties both before and after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
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Bewildered
IRAN: In his latest evaluation of the performance of the neocon government in the White House, American contemporary theorist Francis Fukuyama has criticized the Bush administration for failing to implement its Middle Eastolicies. He said the way Bush is implementing America’s foreign policy in the Middle East is not correct. He also criticized the domestic policy of Bush. He said Bush has failed to solve domestic problems such as high taxes, subprime and migration policies. Fukuyama has also lashed out at Bush’s Iraq policy. According to the latest figures released by the Iraqi ministries of defense, interior and health, more than 360,000 civilian Iraqis have been killed in 2007, which indicates a 20-percent increase compared with 2006. During the same period, about 900 American forces were killed, 65 journalists murdered and about three million Iraqis were forced to flee their homes. People in Iraq are currently experiencing lesser instability, blasts, plunder, abduction and other social maladies since the security of some provinces was handed over to Iraqi forces. Yet, in Baghdad, where the security responsibility is on the shoulders of the US-led forces, civilian casualties are increasing. American hawks are bewildered over the policy in Iraq.
Misery
HAMSHAHRI: The international community is getting farther and farther away from security, peace and justice, due to the misconduct of some international players. However, there are still rays of hope. After the collapse of the bipolar system, many hoped multilateralism can help establish peace and justice. They believed that nations will help each other make progress and overcome problems. However, US imperialism and, in other words, unilateralism has only brought misery and calamity upon the whole world, particularly in the Middle East. People of the region are currently experiencing tough times due to the war ravages in Iraq and Afghanistan, and crises in Lebanon and Palestine. Americans should be blamed for spreading misery across the world.
Non-Oil Exports
SIASAT-E ROUZ: Iran’s strategic status in the Middle East has opened up huge opportunities in the country. It has managed to accomplish many breakthroughs in industrial and economic fields in the past couple of decades. Since Iran has vast potentials and capabilities in the field of non-oil exports, the government should adopt new policies to facilitate the same and boost revenues. The government should also help ventures for boosting export-oriented production. In fact, ministries such as agriculture, industries and commerce should use their potentials for boosting exports and intensifying the drive for privatization.
Mechanisms
DONYA-YE EQTESAD: The government’s role in economic systems can be viewed from two angles. First, it is the supervisory role that is and should be crucial as it contributes to healthy economic competition and decent growth rates. In actuality, governments should concentrate on its supervisory role if it wants to promote economic development and improve living standards. This role can be enhanced by enforcing the rule of law, binding regulations and creating the proper climate to ensure that rules are respected without exception. Second, governments have also acted as executors of economic policies and programs. However, results will be much better and sustainable if governments downsize and stop interfering in the economy. When privatization is on track, it helps the government have an overall supervision of the economy, which also contributes to the defense of civil liberties, paves the way for economic stability and trade liberalization, and last but not least, creates the infrastructure needed for a more dynamic economy. It is apparent that Iran’s private sector is saddled with bigger challenges compared to many other countries. Thus, effective support mechanisms must be created to attract and promote private enterprise.
Nat’l Confidence
RESALAT: Boosting national confidence was the main issue highlighted by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei during his five-day tour to the central province of Yazd. The leader had several meetings with people from different walks of life--from ordinary people to the scientific elite of Yazd province. Ayatollah Khamenei said national confidence of the nation has been the leading factor in the victory of the country in the eight-year Iraq-imposed war and the recent scientific breakthroughs in the nuclear energy and biotechnology fields. According to the leader, national confidence is necessary to counter disappointments and military threats by the enemies. The bottom line is that all political parties and people from different strata should help boost national confidence.
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