President Obama's Nowruz Message - Today, I want to extend my best wishes to all who are celebrating Nowruz in the United States and around the world. On this New Year's celebration, friends and family have a unique opportunity to reflect on the year gone by; to celebrate their time together; and to share in their hopes for the future. 03/20/10
Old year becoming New Year... - The memory of the first people who joyfully celebrated the coming of a lovely blossoming spring after months of a cold harsh winter is lost in the fog of obscurity. -A. J. Cave 03/20/10
Iranian Politcal Detainees To Go On Hunger Strike - Iranian political dissidents, incarcerated in section 350 of Evin Prison have announced that they will go on a hunger strike starting the first day of the New Year. Iranian New Year starts on March 21. Detained journalist, Issa Saharkhiz informed his family about the strike through a phone conversation.-Zamaneh 03/20/10
EU Confronts Iran on Satellite Jamming - European Union nations are calling for Iran to stop jamming international satellite broadcasts and censoring the Internet. -VOA 03/20/10
Ahmadinejad proposes referendum on subsidy reform plan - Ahmadinejad has offered holding a referendum on implementing the subsidy reform plan as he believes implementing the plan in its current form will put the vulnerable families in hard economic condition. -MNA 03/20/10
Iran's opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard issue Norouz messages - Mir Hossein Mousavi in a video message for the Persian New Year and the Norooz called the New Year the year of Patience and Perseverance on the rightful and legal demands of the Iranian nation and emphasized: "The New Year is the year of resistance on these rightful and legal demands and we do not have the right to give up and back off from these demands as that would be a betrayal to the nation... 03/19/10
The end of 1388 - As this Iranian year comes to an end I have been wondering about all that has happened and what we have been through. For Iran in general and also for ourselves it was an event filled year, although not one we would wish to be repeated. This year has been one of the driest that I remember, yet we managed not to have any water shortage -Syma Sayyah, Tehran 03/19/10
A New kind of Hope - Happy New cycle of life on our gorgeous lively Earth, marked with the beginning of spring, this allegedly green season! -Roya Monajem, Tehran 03/19/10
Introduction to AKSbazi.com - Too many images representing Iranians are created by and for news Media who are inevitably influenced by either stereotyped pre-conceptions or their governments and their agendas. AKSbazi.com is a response to a need by Iranians to re-define their own image... 03/19/10
2010 Census Forms Are On Their Way To Your Homes - All Iranians / Iranian-Americans, regardless of immigration / citizenship status, are encouraged to complete the form completely and respond to question #9 by marking "some other race" and writing in "Iranian" or "Iranian-American". 03/19/10
Senior member of Iranian reformist party arrested - Iran continues pressuring the opposition with persistent arrest of dissidents. Yesterday, Hossein Marashi, spokesman for the Executives of Construction Party, was arrested and transferred to Evin Prison. -Zamaneh 03/19/10
Call To Release Iran's 'Blogfather' For Norouz - The mother of a controversial, well-known blogger, Hossein Derakhshan, who is often described as Iran's "blogfather" because he helped popularize blogging in Iran, has called on the head of Iran's judiciary to release her son for the Iranian New Year, or Norouz, marked on March 21. 03/19/10
Iranian authorities impede gathering at cemetery - Heavy presence of Iranian security forces around the Khavaran Cemetery impeding families of executed dissidents of the 1980s from entering the site has been reported to Zamaneh. 03/19/10
Hardline cleric urges people to partake in joyous activities - The very podium that was used in January to commend and promote the execution of political dissidents, today informed worshippers that the authorities have taken various forms of initiative to make Nowruz a happy occasion for all and the public is expected to collaborate with these efforts. -Zamaneh 03/19/10
Clinton Urges Russia to Delay Launch of Iran's Nuclear Power Plant - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Russia for talks on a wide range of international issues, including how to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. On Thursday, she urged Russia to delay starting up the nuclear plant that it built for Iran at the port city of Bushehr. -VOA 03/19/10
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Iran protests: Is Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei winning? - With Iran protests largely shut down, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has declared "victory." But as Iranians evaluate the past year during Norouz celebrations this weekend, he knows he's lost legitimacy, say close observers. -Scott Peterson, CSM 03/19/10
A Turkish Role Model For Iran? - "It's so pleasant here in Turkey," says Kaveh, a 40-year-old Iranian from Tehran who's visiting Istanbul, just as he has many times over the last 20 years. "You feel free leaving Iran for a week or two." -Abbas Djavadi, RFE 03/19/10
U.S. Licenses Firm to Boost Iran Internet Access, Clinton Says - The U.S. issued a license to a company to boost Internet access for Iranians, though the government in Tehran will likely attempt to block U.S. efforts, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said. -Bloomberg 03/19/10
Photos: Cooking Samanoo for Norouz - Samanoo is a sweet paste prepared for Persian New Year Norouz and is one of the components of the Haftsin. Samanoo is made from germinated wheat prepared for in a large kazan. Traditionally, women take a special party for it during the night, and cook it from late in the evening till the daylight, singing related songs. In Tajikistan and Afghanistan they sing: "Samanoo is boiling and we are clapping, others are asleep and we are playing daf" -Photos by Mohammad Akhlaghi 03/18/10
Iran Offers to Exchange Low-Grade Uranium But on Iranian Territory - The head of Iran's atomic energy agency, Ali Akbar Salehi, is making a new proposal for the exchange of Tehran's low-grade uranium with the West, Wednesday, offering to carry out the exchange at once and on Iranian soil. -VOA 03/18/10
Photos: Renewing the pact with Iran's Green Martyrs - On the last Thursday of the Persian year, groups of people visited the graves of the Green martyrs to show their sympathy and support with their families and make the promise that they will continue their Green path of hope in the new year. 03/18/10
Opposition leader Khatami slams Iranian judiciary - Iranian former president, Mohammad Khatami criticized the actions of the government and the judiciary and demanded the release of all political prisoners. -Zamaneh 03/18/10
Supporting Iranian Prisoners of Conscience - To mark the Persian spring holiday of Nowrouz, Amnesty International has launched a campaign to send messages of goodwill to prisoners of conscience in Iran. The seven cases selected by Amnesty International mirror the "Haft Sin" (seven "s"s) traditionally placed on a Nowrouz table. 03/18/10
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Iran Releases Reformist, Filmmaker, Journalist On Bail - Iranian authorities have reportedly released on bail a top reformist who has been jailed since last June, along with a filmmaker and a reformist journalist. 03/18/10
Interview with Behzad Nabavi's Interrogator - In this interview, published by the Panjere magazine, the interviewee is introduced as a person who has been involved in the interrogation and political prosecution of many prominent and lesser known detainees since Iran's contested presidential election 9 months ago. -Rooz Online 03/18/10
Iran: Karroubi challenges hardliner accusations against opposition - Addressing hardliner accusations, the reform leader asks: "Why is it that the justifications of the Shah (Iran's last monarch) for his actions were wrong but the very logic and content of his words coming form you, is to be considered right?" -Zamaneh 03/18/10
Noam Chomsky on Obama's Foreign Policy, His Own History of Activism, and the Importance of Speaking Out - My favorite newspaper, the London Financial Times, a couple of days ago identified Obama's major foreign policy problem today as Iran. The occasion for the article was Hillary Clinton's failure to convince Brazil to go along with the United States on calling for harsher sanctions and President Lula's insistence that there should be engagement with Iran, commercial relations -Democracy Now 03/18/10
UN chief says Noruz can promote world peace - On the eve of the first International Day of Noruz, the United Nations secretary general expressed hope that "people around the world will draw on this festival's history and customs to promote harmony with the natural world and foster global peace and goodwill." 03/18/10
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Hawaii - ARTafterDARK Noruz - Friday March 26: ARTafterDARK is the Honolulu Academy of Arts' monthly art party organized by a dynamic group of young volunteers dedicated to exploring the arts. 03/18/10
China: Iran Sanctions 'Counterproductive' - China's new Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva says his country does not want Iran to have nuclear weapons. But he says his country is opposed to sanctions against Iran, calling them counterproductive. -VOA 03/18/10
Blogger's death in detention still unexplained one year later - March 18 is the first anniversary of blogger Omidreza Mirsayafi's tragic death in Tehran's Evin prison, a death that could have been avoided if the prison staff had not been negligent. -Reporters Without Borders 03/18/10
Charshanbeh Sorui Tradition Is Great Fun - Charshanbeh Sorui is one of Iran's oldest Iranian New year traditions and it takes place on the last Tuesday evening before the New Year. I remember it was one of those rare happy times that families got together, young and old, men and women came; and especially the children simply loved it. -Syma Sayyah, Tehran 03/17/10
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Defiant Iranians Celebrate Festival Of Fire Despite Ban - Iranians last night openly challenged Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei by taking to the streets for the traditional Festival of Fire, which Khamenei had said has no religious basis and should not be celebrated. -RFE 03/17/10
Photos: Tehran -- Chahar Shanbeh Souri Photographs - While the current Iranian government leaders do not want Iranians to celeberate this fire festival, people from all walks of life continue to do so, as if Iranians come with this fire-jumping gene! 03/17/10
Glory of Persia now shining in homeland - 7,000 years of Persian civilization and history is currently on display in the Glory of Persia exhibition at the National Museum of Iran. The exhibit contains a selection of relics which were previously kept in other countries including Austria, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Spain, France, China and Turkey. -MNA 03/17/10
Iran issues sentences for 86 post-election detainees - Tehran Revolutionary Court has issued 86 sentences for the post-election detainees. The sentences are mostly prison terms and have been sent to the appeals court for confirmation. -Zamaneh 03/17/10
Iranian reformist group issues government failing report card - Iranian reformist group, Mujahedin of the Islamic Revolution issued a statement at the threshold of the Iranian New Year describing the events of the passing year as tragic adding that Ahmadinejad government has deprived people both from freedom and economic prosperity. -Zamaneh 03/17/10
Celebrate Norooz with NIPOC in Irvine, California - Saturday, March 27, 2010 at 6:30 pm, Hilton Hotel, Irvine: Network of Iranian-American Professionals of Orange County Dinner & Dance with PYROOZ on stage, DJ Julius, and Dance by GolSanam 03/17/10
Photos: Chaharshanbeh-Suri in Horand, Iran's East Azerbaijan Province - People in the town of Horand, a town in Iran's East Azerbaijan province near Ahar, and the nearby villages, have added their own flavor to the Chaharshanbeh-Suri tradition. This includes special activities outdoor, games played by the men, etc. -Photos by Ali Hamde Haghdoost 03/16/10
Iran Braces for Fire Festival Crackdown - Iranian officials are warning the opposition not to turn an ancient fire festival this week into a protest against the government. The celebration of Chaharshanbe Soori, Red Wednesday, on the evening March 16 marks the last Wednesday of the Iranian year and is rooted in pre-Islamic Zoroastrian tradition as a rite of the arrival of spring and is thus rejected by the country's ruling Muslim clerics. -Sahar Sepehri, Washington 03/16/10
On the Occasion of Iranian New Year 1389 - Norooz is a relic of ancient times. A memory of old tales and epics, a celebration of rebirth and rejuvenation. Spring has arrived and the previous year with all its events, good or bad, has passed. Renewed hope anticipates new achievements. -Firouzeh Mirrazavi 03/16/10
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Karoubi Accuses Iranian Government of Despotism - In a meeting with one of the youth branches of his National Trust Party, Mehdi Karoubi said that the Islamic Republic has been completely "derailed" and fallen into "despotism." -Zamaneh 03/16/10
Chicago - Nowruz Parade - Saturday March 20: Parade starts at 12 noon From Federal Plaza, Dearborn and Adams heads north to Randolph Street West to (the State Plaza) at Clark and Randolph Street, returning south on Clark to the Federal Plaza. 03/16/10
Iranian opposition leader Mousavi urges supporters to persevere - Iran's opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi declared the coming year, the year of "patience and perseverance" and called on the supporters of the Green Movement to persist in informing the public about the objectives of the reform movement. -Zamaneh 03/16/10
Toronto - Norooz Celebration at Ryerson University - Tuesday March 16: Chahar Shanbeh Soori; Friday March 19: A group of Iranian students at Ryerson with the help of artists from every corner of city are preparing to celebrate Norooz like never before at Ryerson. Traditional Iranian music, pop music, storytelling, Naghaali, dance, and plays. 03/16/10
Iran bans leading pro-reform political party - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's hard-line government said Monday it has banned Iran's largest pro-reform political party in a new strike against an opposition movement that has largely been swept from the streets since last year's postelection turmoil. -AP 03/16/10
Collateral Damages of Smart Sanctions on Iran - This time, the warmongers' silly season found its apogee in U.S. neo-conservative Daniel Pipes' advice to Obama to "bomb Iran," which appeared shortly after Tony Blair, having outlined why he helped invade Iraq, remarked ominously, "We face the same problem about Iran today." -Ali Fathollah-Nejad 03/16/10
Iran Tries To Stifle Women's Voices - The Iranian regime marked International Women's Day on March 8 in telling fashion: it prevented Iran's most prominent female poet, Simin Behbahani, from traveling to Paris to attend a Women's Day event. Ms. Behbahani planned to read a poem and speak about feminism, but her passport was confiscated at Tehran's international airport.-VOA 03/16/10
US House of Representatives Passes Historic Norooz Resolution - Washington, DC - The National Iranian American Council applauds the passage moments ago by the House of Representatives of H.Res.267, the Norooz Resolution, and commends Representative Mike Honda (D-CA) for championing this historic resolution. 03/15/10
Six More Execution Sentences for Iran's Ashura Day Detainees - Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi, Tehran's Prosecutor-General announced that Iranian judiciary has issued execution sentences for six of the Ashura Day detainees. Tehran Prosecutor's Office had announced earlier that it has issued execution sentences for eleven Ashura Day detainees who have been accused of "enmity with God" (Moharebeh). -Zamaneh 03/15/10
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Why Is Iran Releasing Some Postelection Detainees? - The Iranian authorities in recent weeks have begun to release some of the former officials, activists, and intellectuals detained in last year's post-election unrest. Those released in recent days include former Deputy Interior Minister Mostafa Tajzadeh, activist Abdollah Momeni, and student leader Mehdi Arabshahi. -Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE 03/15/10
Photos: Assailants attack Iranian opposition leader's home - Fatemeh Karroubi announced that her husband, opposition leader Mhedi Karroubi is under threat and pressure because of blowing the whistle on the "dirty crimes" that took place following the elections and claimed that if the pressures persist, she will have to "publicize many more issues" which have so far remained unsaid. 03/15/10
GOING AGAINST THE GRAIN: CALLING A SPADE, A SPADE - In the case of Iran, my belief has been that the nation's spiritual centers of gravity would have retreated to their traditional seminaries in Qum and Mashhad, once the transition from dictatorial monarchy to some form of a federalist republic, albeit under Islamic tenets, was consolidated. That would have set Iran as a role model for other autocratic or dictatorial client regimes in the region to emulate. -Kam Zarrabi 03/15/10
How Iran's Regime Claims Legitimacy - Leaders see themselves as a righteous minority - granting them the right to govern, according to their Shia beliefs. The Iranian government's violent suppression of the opposition over the last nine months is not just based on a determination to avoid a possible fall of the regime but also has deep-seated ideological roots. -Raha Tahami, Tehran 03/15/10
Asia Minor Then -- and Turkey Now... - The history of Asia Minor dates back to human settlements of the Neolithic times of over 10,000 years ago, followed by 1,650 BCE when the Hittites , settled in an area in present day southwestern Turkey-the former Anatolia. The Hittites emigrated from the area east of the Black Sea and southwest of the Caspian Sea in today's Iran. -David N. Rahni 03/15/10
Iranian fire festival denounced by Supreme Leader - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei described the ceremonies connected with the fire festival on the last Wednesday Eve of the Iranian year "void of religious roots and cause of great harm and corruption." 03/14/10
Photos: Burned Dreams - Tragic Story of Shirazi Schoolchildren Narges and Her Friends - On November 25, 2006, Narges and her friends suffered severe burns at an elementary school in Shiraz, central Iran, when a portable heater they were using to keep warm fell on the ground and a fire spread in the class. The students only exit route had been blocked by the fire. -Photos by Faramarz Mir-Ahmadi 03/14/10
Statement by Iranian Women for International Women's Day - On the threshold of March 8th, we announce loud and clear that we will remain by the side of the people and the Green activists. We will also continue our independent efforts and will not sit still until we achieve our aspirations and demands, because we are countless. Signed by a number of women activists in Iran. 03/14/10
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Broad Strategic Outlook Vital for US to Avoid Iran Confrontation - The current US approach to Iran is undermined by the lack of a broader strategic outlook and the singular emphasis on the nuclear issue, according to panelists at NIAC's March 10th conference, "Iran at a Crossroads: Assessing a Changing Landscape." 03/14/10
Rafsanjani urges openness in Iran's national broadcasting organization - Head of Iran's Expediency Council, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani urged Iran's national broadcasting organization, Seda va Sima, not to operate in the form of "a gang" or else it would lose the trust of the public. He added that Seda va Sima needs to assume a more "national" approach and pay more attention to people. -Zamaneh 03/14/10
Military Commanders' Plan for Iranian Universities - Yahya Rahim-Safavi, the former commander of the Islamic Passdaran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and current advisor to ayatollah Khamenei said in remarks published yesterday that he is worried about the lack of enough forces beholden to the supreme leader in universities -Bahram Rafiee Rooz Online 03/14/10
Iran: Indict or Free Filmmakers - Iran's Judiciary should immediately clarify the reasons behind a raid on the home of film director Jafar Panahi as well as the legal basis for detaining him and two of his colleagues, Human Rights Watch said on Friday. 03/13/10
Iran: Election Law Change Mooted - Proposals are emerging for electoral reform in Iran following last year's disputed presidential election that could weaken the power of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but hardliners could stop it in its track. -Ali Kheradpir, Paris 03/13/10
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Foolad Mahan wins AFC Futsal Club Championship - Foolad Mahan of Isfahan beat Qatari Al Sadd and won the title of the first edition of the AFC Futsal Club Championship on Friday night. 03/13/10
Iran-U.S. Trade Doubles In January - Trade between Iran and the U.S. almost doubled in January 2010 compared to December 2009. ISNA news agency cited the latest U.S. Census Bureau report as stating that trade between the two countries hit $37.3 million in January. 03/13/10
Iran: Students urge university president to help release their peers - Two thousand students of Sharif University have written a letter to Saeed Sohrabpour, President of Sharif University, urging him to demand the release of their peers, Mehdi Kelari, Kohyar Godarzi and Tara Sepehrifar. -Zamaneh 03/12/10
With 52 journalists in jail, Iran hits new, shameful record - The number of journalists in jail rose in February as a relentless media crackdown continues in Iran. Authorities are now holding at least 52 journalists in prison, a third of all those in jail around the world, according to the latest monthly survey by the Committee to Protect Journalists. 03/10/10
Heavy Bails: Releasing Prisoners or New Hostage Taking by Iran's Judiciary? - News of Abdollah Momeni's release on the heavy bail of approximately $800,000 makes it appear that the Judiciary is setting ransoms and not bails. In fact most of the political prisoners released on bail over the past few months appear to be hostages of the judicial system due to the unreasonably high bail amounts they have had to post. 03/10/10
Norouz national festival held in Tehran - Norouz, meaning new day, is celebrated on 21 March, the day of the vernal equinox, by more than 300 million people worldwide as the beginning of the new year. It has been celebrated for over 3,000 years in the Middle East, the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and other regions. -Photos by Rauf Mohseni 03/8/10
Photos: Cleaning the House to Greet Norouz - The arrival of the Persian New Year also means a fresh start. Cleaning and dusting the house in advance of arrival of Norouz is one of the important customs for the people. Following photos show the people in Tehran engaging in house cleaning. A big part of this is washing the Persian carpets. 03/6/10
Exhibition: Tehran-New York - March 05-Apr 01, 2010 at Leila Taghinia-Milani Heller (LTMH) Gallery in New York: TEHRAN - NEW YORK will explore synergies and differences among the works of 40 well-known and emerging contemporary Iranian artists living in Iran and the U.S. 03/5/10
Persian Garden of Geneva - The desire to enrich the City of Geneva's cultural and botanical patrimony by giving it a ''Persian Garden'' was born three years ago. Particularly suited to Geneva's international role and reputation, the Persian Garden symbolizes peace and harmony. 03/4/10
Winners Announced: 2nd Annual Farhang Foundation Short Film Festival - Farhang Foundation and Society of Cinema and Arts are proud to present the winners of the 2nd Annual Farhang Foundation Short Film Festival. First Prize goes to Yar e Dabestani - My Grade School Friend 03/3/10
