Iran
Brawl breaks out in Iraqi parliament over parliament speaker role
Tensions and physical altercations erupted inside the Iraqi Parliament on May 18 due to disputes among political blocs over the election of a new parliamentary speaker
Iran sends military to Belarus for first time since USSR’s collapse
For the first time in over three decades, Iran has officially appointed a new military attaché to Belarus, marking a significant step in the two countries' diplomatic and military relations.
BRICS currency is coming soon, Iranian ambassador
Iran is actively participating in initiatives under Russia's leadership in BRICS, with the two countries working towards creating a single currency for the bloc, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said to local media.
Saudi Arabia’s big AI educational leap
The juxtaposition of artificial intelligence and Saudi Arabia might strike most as an unlikely pair, and even this writer, who has been reporting on the Middle East for over a decade, would have agreed not too long ago.
Iranian cleric warns of security threat from collapsing birthrate
Imam of Yasuj, Ayatollah Seyyed Nasir Hosseini, has issued a stark warning about the security threats posed by Iran's ageing population, urging for a strong national and religious response
TEHRAN BLOG: Controversy over Iran's two-day ‘Dubai’ weekend adoption
Iran’s parliament has approved a proposal to implement a two-day weekend for government employees, marking a significant shift in the country's working week structure after years of debate and opposition.
Heavy floods claim several lives in Iran's second biggest city Mashhad
Heavy floods in the Iranian city of Mashhad have killed several people who were stuck in a submerged car as a torrent of water swept them away.
Russian archaeologists uncover ancient settlement close to the Iraq-Iran border
After several decades, Russian archaeologists have conducted their first fieldwork in Iraq’s Maysan Province, in a sign of growing cooperation between Baghdad and Moscow.
US raises "sanctions risk" concern post India-Iran port contract
The United States has warned of sanctions towards India following its signing an agreement with Iran to operate Chabahar port after several years of delay.
Chinese cars are flooding the Gulf Arabian auto markets
However, in a striking turn of events, the past decade has witnessed the advent of a new contender in the GCC auto market – Chinese car manufacturers.
Iranians cast votes in parliamentary runoff election
Iranians returned to the polls on May 10 for a runoff election to fill the remaining seats in the nation’s parliament, following a strong showing by hard-line politicians in the initial March voting.
Iran’s northern cities hit with golfball-sized hail in epic deluge
Iran’s northern Khorasan and Gilan provinces have been hit by a heavy rainstorm and mega hailstorms in the latest of a string of flooding incidents in the usually arid country
New India-Europe transit corridor set to challenge IMEC, Suez routes
The battle of the corridors is heating up as India promotes a new India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) route that will connect the subcontinent with Europe by traversing the Middle East over land then sea to the EU via Haifa in Israel.
Live fish fall from the sky in Central Iran - video
In what looks similar to some sort of Biblical miracle, large live fish fell from the sky in Yasouj, a city in Central Iran, and were left flapping on the road, a video posted on local social media purportedly shows.
PANNIER: Kazakhstan helping to get wheels turning on Afghanistan railway projects
Growing optimism on ambitions to link Central Asia via Afghan territory to Pakistan’s Arabian Sea ports, the Gulf and Iran.
Saddam-era Iraqi howitzers get delivered to Ukraine
Weapons once belonging to Iraq’s former dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime are now being delivered to Ukraine via the Baltic Sea in the strangest of developments this year in the war in Ukraine.
Kuwait reacts angrily to being cut out of Iraq and Turkey’s transport project
Kuwait witnessed a wave of angry reactions on April 25 after Iraq, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey signed a quadrilateral memorandum of understanding in Baghdad to establish the "Development Road" project, linking Turkey with the Gulf.
Iraq recovers thousands of antiquities, calls for antiquities law reform
Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities has received thousands of returned archaeological pieces following a push by the central government in Baghdad to retrieve stolen assets in the past year.
Iran presses Afghanistan's Taliban to uphold water-sharing agreement
An Iranian environmental official accused the Afghan Taliban of intentionally redirecting overflow waters of the shared Hirmand River to prevent its inflow into Iran’s Hamoun wetlands.
Saudi Arabia eyes 320,000 new hotel rooms to meet soaring tourism goals
Saudi Arabia is projected to have 320,000 new hotel rooms by 2030 as the Kingdom ramps up efforts to accommodate an annual influx of 150mn tourists, both domestic and international.