November 20, The Iran Project � Strong 7.3 magnitude earthquake jolting Western Iran, damages villages; Iranian deputy FM Hossein Jaberi Ansari visit to Syria and Turkey and meeting with senior officials; Iran�s Foreign Minister Mohammad�Javad Zarif travel to Turkey exchanging view with Lavrov, Cavusoglu on Syria and Iranians marking martyrdom anniversary of 8th Shia imam dominated the country�s media outlets in the past week (Nov 13�Nov 19).


 

Politics

Leader�s message on western Iran earthquake�


Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei in a message voiced his deep sorrow over the devastating earthquake that hit western cities of Iran Sun. night, killing at least 200 people and injuring over 1500 others.

Iran president visits quake-hit areas, promises help in reconstruction


Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday morning arrived in Kermanshah Province to visit the areas struck by the Sunday night�s deadly earthquake, which has so far killed 430 people and wounded over 7,000.

Iran says it does not interfere in Lebanese state affairs: TV


Iran said on Monday that it does not interfere in Lebanon and that comments on Sunday by Saad al-Hariri, who resigned as Lebanese prime minister nine days ago, gave hope he would soon return to his country, state TV reported.

IAEA has more inspection powers in Iran: Amano�


The UN nuclear watchdog carries out stronger inspection activities in Iran and knows more about its peaceful nuclear program as a result of the international agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), its chief said in a speech at Harvard University on Wednesday.

Iranian deputy FM meets Syrian President Assad�


Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Jaberi Ansari met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday in Damascus.

Magnitude 7.3 earthquake in Iran-Iraq is the deadliest of 2017


The border region between Iran and Iraq experienced the deadliest earthquake to date in 2017. The 7.3-magnitude earthquake is estimated to have�killed between 530 and 580�people and injured another 7,460.

UK to pay over �400mn debt to Iran Central Bank: Envoy to London


Iran�s�ambassador to Britain says an�outstanding debt owed by the UK�to Tehran will�be transferred to the Central Bank of Iran soon, in what will mark an end to the decades-long legal dispute between the two sides.

Saudi Arabia birthplace of �lethal poison� of Takfirism, says Iran�


A senior Iranian diplomat at the United Nations (UN) says Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of the dangerous ideology known as Takfirism, which is employed by such terrorist groups as Daesh.

Velayati warns Macron not to interfere in Iran�s domestic affairs


Iran�s Leader top Aide Ali Akbar Velayati said in an interview with IRIB, that French president�s interference in Iran�s missile program is not in interest of France and Macron.

US senators call for facilitating relief donations to Iran�s quake victims�


Five American senators in a letter to US Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson urged US to accelerate relief donations process to quake-stricken people in western Iran.

UK debt to Iran, irrelevant to Zaghari case of espionage


Iranian envoy to Londan says that the case of UK government debt to Iran from a 1974 and a 1976 arms deal is irrelevant to the case of British spy in Iran.

Iranians mark martyrdom anniversary of 8th Shia imam


Iranians are commemorating the martyrdom anniversary of the eighth Shia Imam, Ali ibn Musa al-Reza (Peace be upon Him).

Iranian, Russian, Turkish FMs meet in Antalya�


Iranian, Russian and Turkish foreign ministers on Sunday attended a tripartite meeting on Syria crisis.

Zarif urges regional states to strive for stability, peace�


Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif says certain regional states should strive for peace and stability in the region, especially Syria, rather than waging war.

 

Economy

ATR says to deliver 8 more planes to Iran soon�


European plane maker ATR says it plans to deliver eight more turboprop planes to Iran within the next few weeks.

Lukoil says Iran�s NIOC, others eyeing its ISAB refinery�


Russia�s oil giant Lukoil says companies from Iran as well as Azerbaijan and Algeria have voiced interest in purchasing its ISAB refinery in Italy.

FM: US sued to pay $60 bln to Iran


Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tehran and Washington have each sued the opposite party for a sum of $60bln.

Iranian bank denies Israel sanction rumors�


The ties between Bank Sepah of Iran and German state banks are expanding, said head of international office of Bank Sepah of Iran on Saturday.

Iran�s oil exports to India up 88%�


The latest market figures indicate a giant increase in India�s imports of crude oil from Iran throughout October in yet another sign of success for the Iranian oil industry after the removal of sanctions that had decimated its exports for several years.

 

Regional Affairs



Saudi king to relinquish power in favor of son next week: Report�


Saudi King Salman plans to relinquish power in favor of his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, next week, a high-level source close to the country�s royal family says.

Lebanon�s Hariri in Paris, 2 children stay behind in Riyadh�


Saad Hariri, who unexpectedly resigned as�Lebanon�s�prime minister while in Saudi Arabia and was widely known to have been under restrictions there,�has arrived in France, but two of his children have stayed behind in Riyadh.

PM Hariri says will clarify stance on Lebanon after returning home�


Lebanon�s Prime Minister Saad Hariri has said he will announce his position with regard to the ongoing crisis in the country after he returns to Lebanon in the coming days.

Syrian army liberates last ISIS stronghold�


The Syrian border city of Abu Kamal, the last city held by ISIS terrorists in Syria, has been liberated by army troopers.

Russia, Iran, Turkey agree on all issues in Antalya�


Foreign Ministers of Russia, Iran and Turkey Sergei Lavrov, Javad Zarif and Mevlut Cavusoglu at the talks in Antalya on Sunday have reached agreement on all the key issues, the Russian foreign minister told reporters after the meeting.

 

Society

Strong 7.3 magnitude earthquake jolts Western Iran, damages villages�


A massive earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale has rattled west of Iran along the country's border with Iraq, initial reports said a number of villages were damaged. Media reports said several people have also lost their lives in Iran's western areas.

Iran appoints Sunni woman as local governor�


The Islamic Republic of Iran has appointed, for the first time, a Sunni woman as the head of a village in North Khorasan province in the country�s northeast.

Iranian freestyle, Greco-Roman wrestlers rush to help quake-hit people�


Members of the Iran men�s national freestyle and Greco-Roman teams have rushed to aid the victims of the recent earthquake in the western part of the country, which has left at least 500 people dead, hundreds of others injured and dozens of villages destroyed.



FIFA chooses Iranian referee for 2018 World Cup�


Iran�s international football referee Alireza Faghani has been selected by the international governing body of football (FIFA) to judge the upcoming 2018 Football World Cup slated to be held in Russia.

22nd luxury train in Iran with 78 foreign tourists on board�


The Golden Eagle luxury train has arrived in the central Iranian province of Isfahan with tourists from 11 Europe, Asia, and America on board.