Newspapers in Iran
In Iran, 29 newspapers are published, most of them in Tehran. However, the
overall newspaper edition is limited (28 newspaper excl. Per 1,000 residents,
2000). The largest daily newspapers are the Toraat ('Information', founded in
1925), with an edition of 500,000 copies, and Kayhan ('Universum', founded in
1941), with an edition of about 350,000 copies. The Islamic Republican Party had
Jomhuri-ye Islami as its main body for the dissolution of the party in 1987. The
constitution basically guarantees freedom of the press within the framework of
Islam's basic values. After 1985 there has been a liberalization in the view of
the press, but in 1987 the two largest newspapers were placed under the
supervision of religious authorities.
The national news agency IRNA (Islamic Republic News Agency), like
radio and TV, is state-controlled. Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
(IRIB) broadcasts radio in three national channels and television in five. Radio
channel Radio Quran contains a reading of the Qur'an. In addition,
there are regional radio and TV broadcasts in local languages. There are 281
radio and 163 TV receivers per 1,000 residents (2000).
Culture
Iran has historically had a rich and
prosperous cultural life. The oldest imaging art you
have found is a whole 8,000 years old. There are small
unburned clay figures representing animals and humans.
Persian miniature painting from the 1300s has a high
reputation. Hand knotted rugs have long been the
country's foremost cultural export and are still used
today in cultural and religious contexts. Prior to the
1979 revolution, many Iranians listened to Western
music, both classical and modern. Today, Western singing
is in most cases prohibited.
The folk music in the country is varied and reflects
the ethnic diversity. In religious ceremonies and as a
singing companion, lute is often used. Other popular
instruments are string instruments, clarinet, drums and
cymbals. Minorities such as Kurds, lures, Turkmen and
Azeras have preserved their musical traditions.
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Countryaah:
Latest population statistics of Iran, including religious profiles and major languages spoken as well as population growth rates in next three decades.
One of the country's most impressive buildings is the
Palace of Persepolis, which was built during the
so-called Akemenid era (549–331 BC). Today, only the
ruins are left, but you can still imagine how majestic
Persepolis was. On UNESCO's World Heritage List, you
will find several of the pearls of Islamic architecture,
the bazaar in Tabriz, a 2,500-year-old irrigation system
in the city of Shushtar and Armenian monastery.
Persian literature is the result of ancient
traditions. The roots of Iranian mythology, with kings
and heroes, can be found in the sacred writings of the
Zoroastrian religion, written in verse almost 1,000
years before Western times. From mythology, today's
historical epics have emerged. Firdawsi's chronicle of
the fate of Persia through the ages, Shahname from the
year 1000, is still central to the national feeling. In
the west, astronomer Omar al-Khayyam's work Rubaiyat
from the 12th century is probably best known.
The country's most celebrated writer in modern times
was the poet Ahmad Shamloo, who passed away in 2000.
Several of his poetry collections, including
All-Comprehensive Love and Poems at Night,
are translated into Swedish. Another poetess was another
poet, Forough Farrokhzad (1935-1967). She also made, in
1962, a well-publicized documentary, The House is
Black, about a leper colony.
During the last Shah's time, Western customs spread
in the cities, but since the Islamic Revolution of 1979
they have been strongly opposed. Artists have had a hard
time working. When Mohammad Khatami, president until
2005, was Minister of Culture from 1982 to 1993, he was
criticized for being too liberal, and for not risking
facing a distrust vote. Several of the films that
Khatami encouraged have achieved success abroad.
Director Abbas Kiarostami shared the Gold Palm in Cannes
in 1997 for the movie Taste of Cherry. His film Ten,
which came in 2002, also attracted international
attention.
Under Ahmadinejad's regime in 2005–2013, the cultural
climate was characterized by strict Islamic
conservatism. Officials at the Ministry of Culture who
had "failed to protect Islamic values" in literature and
film were forced to quit and books that could be sold
under the Khatami regime were banned as well as foreign
films. State radio and TV were ordered to stop playing
western and "decadent" music.
Film directors Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof
were sentenced in 2010 to six years in prison for
"counteracting the Iranian system". Panahi was
prohibited from working with film and traveling abroad
for 20 years. The judges were appealed and Rasoulof got
his sentence cut short by a year, while the verdict
against the more famous Panahi was upheld. Nevertheless,
both have succeeded in defying the professional ban and
making new films. Panahi has received international
awards for the films The White Balloon, The
Circle, Women offside and Taxi Tehran. At
the Berlin Film Festival 2020, the first prize
Guldbjörnen went to Rasoulof's film There is no
evil. The film criticizes the death penalty. The
director was not allowed to leave Iran to receive the
award.
In 2012, divorce drama Nader and Simin were
awarded - a separation, directed by Asghar
Farhadi, an Oscar for best non-English-language film. In
2017, Farhadi received her second Oscar for
Forushande (distributed internationally as The
Salesman).
In May 2012, cartoonist Mahmoud Shokraye was
sentenced to 25 whips for a cartoon by a Conservative MP
depicted as a footballer. The court considered that the
drawing violated the politician, who was criticized for
interfering in sports matters.
An example of how female artists are countered was
given in May 2019, when singer Negar Moazzam performed
solo to the audience
2016
November
Video leads to jail
November 27th
Ahmad Montazeri, son of one of the leaders of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, is
sentenced to six years in prison for publishing a 1988 video recording in which
his father, Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, is seen appealing to high-ranking
judges not to execute mass executions of political opponents. Ayatolla Montazeri
lost his position as Iran's second highest leader when he opposed the decision
of Ayatolla Khomeini to execute thousands of members of the resistance movement
People's Mujahedin. It is unclear how many were executed in 1988, but Amnesty
International has estimated that there were about 5,000.
1,000 Iranian soldiers killed in Syria
November 22
More than 1,000 soldiers who have been part of Iran's forces in Syria have
been killed, says the head of the Iranian Martyrs Foundation, which provides
financial support to the families of dead soldiers. As late as July, it was said
that 400 Iranian soldiers had been killed. Many of the soldiers included in the
Iranian Syrian forces are Shia Muslims from Afghanistan and Pakistan, among
others. Half of those killed in August were Afghans.
Trump's election victory in the US worries about Iran
November 9
Following Republican Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election,
Secretary of State Zarif urges him to stick to the international agreement on
the Iranian nuclear program. "Every American president must understand the
reality of today's world," Zarif says. President Rohani keeps in mind that the
agreement is not reached with a single country or government, but agreed in a
resolution in the UN Security Council and that no single government can change
that. In the election campaign, Trump has said, among other things, that he
wants to tear down the Iran deal as one of his first measures, and reinstate
sanctions on Iran.
New female vice president
November 5
President Rohani appoints Zahra Ahmadipour as Vice President and Head of the
Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Heritage. She is the third woman in the current
government.
Spoiling penalty for former prosecutor
November 2
Tehran's former chief prosecutor Said Mortazavi is sentenced to trespassing
for wasteful use of public funds from the time he was head of the social
authority. He'll get 135 whips. Mortazavi, who is close to former President
Ahmadinejad, became notorious for ordering the closure of dozens of reform
advocates and for imprisoning journalists. He was suspended from the
Prosecutor's Office in 2010 after Parliament held him responsible for the deaths
of at least three protesters during the protests against Ahmadinejad's
re-election in 2009.
October
Requirements for fewer executions
October 30th
Justice Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi says the many executions do not have
the deterrent function the legislators intended. He suggests reducing the number
of executions and considering alternative penalties. The minister claims that
the entire judiciary agrees with him. According to the UN, Iran carries out
almost 1,000 executions a year. A bill on reduced use of the death penalty has
been presented to Parliament but has not yet been debated.
Positive report from the IMF
October 3
The IMF says after a visit to Iran by a delegation that the Iranian economy
is recovering quickly after the sanctions were lifted. Oil production and
exports are almost back to the same levels as before the international sanctions
were introduced, and other parts of the economy are doing well. The IMF praises
the government's "wise" economic policy that has kept inflation down, and growth
is expected to be at least 4.5 percent throughout 2017.
September
Khamenei noble Ahmadinejad
September 26th
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has urged former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
not to stand in the 2017 presidential election, reports Iranian media. Ayatolla
Khamenei must have told the controversial president that it is not in his own or
the country's interest that he try to get re-elected, as it would create a
dangerous crack within the country. The day after, Ahmadinejad says he should
respect "the will of the great revolutionary leader" and not stand up.
UN: Iran follows nuclear agreement
September 8
UN agency IAEA says Iran is following the agreement it signed in 2015 with
the six major powers to limit its nuclear material stockpiles. But the report
also says that Iran has started manufacturing centrifuge rotor tubes, which can
be used to enrich uranium. This is allowed, but according to the IAEA only in
limited quantities. Calls are being made, the IAEA writes.
Word war with Saudi Arabia
September 7
The long conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia is taking a new turn in an
escalated war of words for this year's pilgrimage, hajj, which Iran boycotted
after failing to comply with its demands for security arrangements. The war of
words begins with Ayatollah Khamenei accusing the Iranian authorities of murder,
after up to 2,300 pilgrims are believed to have died in panic in 2015. More than
400 of the victims were Iranians. To this, Saudi Grand Muhammad Abd al-Aziz
al-Sheikh responds that "Iranians are not Muslims". Khamenei comments that the
"evil" Saudi royal family does not deserve to administer the sacred sites.
Iranian President Rohani says the conflict is exacerbated by the Saudi
government's support for terrorism and committing crimes throughout the region
by "spilling the blood of Muslims in Iraq,
August
Russian bombing on Iranian base
August 16th
For the first time, Russian flight bombs against Islamic State (IS) positions
in Syria after lifting from an Iranian air base. A spokesman for the US-led
alliance fighting IS says Russia warned of the raids and that the alliance made
sure to leave the airspace open.
Nuclear physicists executed for espionage
August 7th
Nuclear physicist Shahram Amiri is executed after being convicted of
espionage on behalf of the United States. He disappeared during a pilgrimage to
Saudi Arabia in 2008, at a time when the Iranian nuclear research program was
the most contentious. He was later seen in the United States but returned to
Iran in 2010, and was received as a hero after saying he had been kidnapped by
the CIA and forced into the United States. He claimed he resisted the pressure
to "jump off," but he disappeared again from the public shortly after returning
home. The Iranian security service says it is clear that he has submitted
important documents to the United States.
Mass execution of Sunnis
August 2
Up to 20 Sunni men from the Kurdish region in the northwest are executed on
the same day. They are convicted of a large number of murders, kidnappings,
armed robberies and bomb attacks between 2009 and 2011. According to
authorities, they are executed Kurds but they are described as Islamic
extremists rather than Kurdish separatists.
July
Salary pay for public officials
July 26
Following the scandal involving the high salaries of senior civil servants,
the government says that a salary cap of approximately SEK 50,000 should be
introduced, and about 30,000 for executives with politically appointed
positions.
Salary scandal harvests victims
July 2
The entire management of the State Development Fund is dismissed after it
became known that they had salaries in excess of SEK 140,000 a month. This
happens a few days after the Minister of Finance dismissed the CEOs of four
banks after the disclosure of their soaring salaries, at least in the case of
about half a million SEK a month. The statements that the heads of state
corporations and government agencies have in many cases earned more than 100
times as much as ordinary employees have fueled the conservative's criticism of
reform-minded President Hassan Rohani.
June
Continued fighting at Iraqi border
June 28
The Revolutionary Guard is said to have killed eleven members of the oldest
Kurdish guerrilla in Iran, the KDPI, in fighting near the Iraqi border. The
guard must have lost three of his own.
Protest to the International Court of Justice
June 15
Iran sues the United States before the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
to recover about $ 2 billion frozen by US authorities (see April).
For the time being, it is unclear whether the ICJ has the opportunity to raise
the matter.
More Kurds killed
June 15
Another twelve Kurdish guerrillas and three Revolutionary Guardsmen are
reported to have been killed in fighting a few miles from the border with the
autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq. According to the Revolutionary Guard, two
guerrilla associations must have crossed the border to carry out sabotage on
Iranian soil.
Eleven killed in fighting
June 13th
Iranian media reports that revolutionary guards have shot dead five members
of a Kurdish guerrilla group in the northwest, near the Iraqi border. It is the
first clash reported from that area since September 2015. At the same time, five
members of a Sunni militia and a policeman are said to have been killed in a
firefight in the southeastern Baluchistan province.
Iranian assets in Canada are seized
June 11
A court in Canada orders that Iranian assets in the country not under
diplomatic protection be seized. According to the court, the value of the
assets, estimated at the equivalent of more than SEK 100 million, is to be
distributed to the hundreds of relatives of Americans killed in attacks in
Argentina, Israel, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia between 1983 and 2002 and for which
Iran is held responsible. Iran condemns the decision as a violation of the
Canadian government's ambition to normalize relations between the countries.
May
Ultra-conservative leader of the Expert Council
24th of May
Although reform-minded candidates made great strides in the February
elections, the very conservative 89-year-old Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati is elected
chairman of the Expert Council, the Assembly that will appoint a successor to
the country's top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, if he dies within the next
eight years.
April
Reformists strengthened in elections
April 29
The second round of the parliamentary elections will also be a success for
reformists and supporters of President Rohani. The final result after the
election indicates that 133 of the total 290 seats in the new parliament are
occupied by reformists, while the Conservative camp controls 125 seats. The
others are independent candidates or representatives of minorities. The number
of female members becomes record high with Iranian measures measured. The newly
elected parliament comprises 17 women against 9 in the outgoing, and the number
of women is just slightly higher than the number of priests amounting to 16. In
the parliament elected after the 1979 revolution, over 160 priests sat. Since
then the number has dropped steadily.
The United States buys heavy water
April 22
The United States will buy 32 tonnes of heavy water from Iran to "help Iran
live up to its commitments" to cut its nuclear energy program, according to the
State Department.
The United States seizes billions
April 20
The US Supreme Court orders Iran to pay nearly $ 2 billion in damages to US
victims of Iranian terrorism. The money should be taken from Iranian accounts
that have been blocked. Among the more than a thousand Americans who receive the
money are relatives of 241 Marine Corps soldiers who were killed when a military
operation in Beirut exploded in 1983 and 19 people killed in an explosion in
Saudi Arabia in 1996. Iran claims the verdict was ordered by US political
leadership in contrary to the basic rule of power sharing. Two of the eight
judges share that view. The Iranian government describes the verdict as "theft".
Financial support is being abolished
April 12
Parliament adopts a law that eliminates monthly financial aid of about SEK
100, which has been paid to 24 million Iranians. The IMF and other financial
institutions have warned of a growing budget deficit unless government financial
support is abolished.
Russian robot defense delivered
April 11
Iranian press reports that Russia has delivered the first part of the
advanced S-300 robotic defense system. Sales were long halted by the
international sanctions against Iran but became possible when the sanctions were
lifted in 2015.
March
Threats from the West about new sanctions
March 30
The United States, France, the United Kingdom and Germany urge the UN
Security Council to consider new sanctions on Iran following the country's
latest robotic test, which, according to the four Western powers, contradicts
previous UN resolutions. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei says "robots,
not negotiations" are the key to Iran's future. Recently, former President Akbar
Hashemi Rafsanjani said that Iran's future is dependent on negotiations, not
robots.
New robot samples
March 8th
Several types of ballistic robots with ranges ranging from 30 to 200
kilometers test shot. According to state media, the robots are fired from
several locations in the country. Similar shootings in January led the US to
impose new sanctions on Iran, just a day after the sanctions on the nuclear
program were abolished.
Billionaire sentenced to death
6 March
Iran's richest man Babak Zanjani is sentenced to death for corruption. When
he was arrested in December 2013, he was estimated to have a wealth of more than
SEK 100 billion. He is convicted of fraud and embezzlement of state funds in
connection with oil sales. He was rich in exploiting a broad network of contacts
to circumvent international sanctions against Iran.
February
Success for reformists
February 28
The reform-minded candidates who support President Rohani make a surprisingly
strong choice. All 30 seats in Tehran accrue to reform candidates from the
so-called Hope list. Several of the former members who most actively opposed
Rohani's approach to the western world are losing their seats. The reform forces
also get a majority of the seats in the Expert Assembly, preliminary 52 out of
88. Both President Rohani and President Rafsanjani are elected, while two of the
dominant Conservative members are eliminated. In Parliament, the Conservative
camp is still the largest but without its own majority. In almost 60 of the
parliamentary constituencies, no winner can be appointed. There, the election
will be decided in a second round on April 29. The turnout is 62 percent.
Legislative elections
February 26th
General elections will be held on February 26. In the parliamentary
elections, 4,844 candidates, including about a tenth of women, compete for the
290 seats. At the same time elections are held for the Expert Assembly, whose
main task is to appoint the country's highest leader. This election is
considered particularly important this time, since Ayatollah Khamenei is 76
years old and it cannot be ruled out that he will die during the new term of the
new Expert Assembly's eight-year term. 159 religious leaders compete for the 88
seats.
Ex-president urges voters
February 21st
Former President Mohammad Khatami calls on voters via social media to vote
for reform-minded and moderate candidates in the parliamentary elections. He
says that a high turnout is needed to defeat the arch-conservative candidates.
Khatami is not allowed to speak in print or e-media because of his support for
the losing reform candidates in the controversial 2009 presidential election
(see Modern History).
Reformistallians are formed
February 15
Politicians working for democratic reform and supporters of President Rohani
say they have decided to work together to strengthen their chances in the
parliamentary elections. According to former Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref,
who is one of the initiators, the collaboration is named Alliance of Reformists
and government supporters. Aref promises that many young candidates, like many
women, will be allowed to stand for the alliance.
More candidates approved
February 2
Following a re-examination of those who wanted to run for office in the
parliamentary elections, the Guardian Council approves another close to 1,500
candidates. The decision is expected to give increased chances for reform-minded
candidates to be elected.
Criticism against conservative advice
February 1st
Former President Rafsanjani strongly criticizes the conservative Guardian
Council for disqualifying thousands of reform-minded candidates in the upcoming
parliamentary elections. During a public ceremony, Rafsanjani rhetorically asks
the Guardian Council: "Who has decided that you are competent to judge the
others? Who gave you the right to seize all weapons, decide on all Friday
prayers and rule over the state television?" Among those excluded from the
election are Hassan Khomeini, grandson of former Supreme Leader Ayatolla
Khomeini.
January
The supreme leader warns the president
January 19
In its first comment following the ceasefire deal, Iran's top leader
Ayatollah Khamenei urged President Rohani to be on his guard against "fraud from
arrogant countries, especially the United States."
Reform candidates are petitioned for the election
January 18
Ahead of the February parliamentary elections, more than 60 percent of the
registered candidates have been rejected by the election committee, which is
subordinate to the conservative Guardian Council. A spokesman for the
reform-minded camp says that only 30 out of more than 3,000 registered reform
candidates are allowed to stand. President Rohani criticizes the Guardian's
thinning of candidates and says that if only a political direction was allowed
to sit in parliament, one could just as well be ignored in holding elections.
Nine parties regarded as reform-minded urge the Guardian Council to redo the
selection.
Capture exchange with the United States
January 17
In connection with the lifting of the sanctions, the US and Iran conduct a
prisoner exchange. President Obama pardons three Iranian Americans convicted of
sanctions and US prosecutors indict four Iranian citizens. In Iran, five
imprisoned Americans are released. The United States also agrees to repay $ 400
million plus an interest of $ 1.3 billion on Iranian arms purchases that were
paid but never delivered before the countries broke diplomatic relations in
1979.
Sanctions against Iran are lifted
January 16
The EU and the US abolish most financial sanctions against Iran since the
IAEA confirmed that Iran has fulfilled its promises to sharply reduce its
nuclear weapons capabilities. The number of uranium centrifuges has been reduced
by at least two-thirds, Iran has disposed of a large part of its uranium supply,
and the reactor core at the Arak plant, where weapons plutonium could have been
manufactured, has been filled with concrete. The abolition of the sanctions
means that Iran is re-integrated into the world economy and allowed to
participate in the global banking system. The country will immediately have
access to US $ 32 billion, which has been frozen in foreign accounts, and in
total, the settlement is expected to give an inflow to the Iranian Treasury of
about $ 100 billion. Trade with the outside world can resume in normal forms,
which means, among other things, that Iran can start selling its oil on the
world market again. Iran's arch-enemies Israel and Saudi Arabia, as well as
Republicans in the US Congress, are strongly criticizing the country's
re-integration into international cooperation. The sanctions abolished have only
been intended to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. More limited
sanctions imposed as a result of Iran's supposed support for terrorists remain.
And while most sanctions are lifted before the United States new, now as a
result of a test firing in October 2015 by a ballistic robot with the capability
to carry nuclear weapons. These penalties are directed at five individuals and
six companies. More limited sanctions imposed as a result of Iran's supposed
support for terrorists remain. And while most sanctions are lifted before the
United States new, now as a result of a test firing in October 2015 by a
ballistic robot with the capability to carry nuclear weapons. These penalties
are directed at five individuals and six companies. More limited sanctions
imposed as a result of Iran's supposed support for terrorists remain. And while
most sanctions are lifted before the United States new, now as a result of a
test firing in October 2015 by a ballistic robot with the capability to carry
nuclear weapons. These penalties are directed at five individuals and six
companies.
Iran stops imports from Saudi Arabia
7 th of January
After a few days of word war, Iran bans all goods imports from Saudi Arabia.
Iran also accuses Saudi bombers of deliberately attacking the Iranian embassy in
Sanaa, Yemen, where the two countries are indirectly at war with each other.
Saudi execution creates regional conflict
January 1st
Iran is embroiled in a diplomatic conflict with parts of the Sunni world
after a prominent Shiite leader was executed in Saudi Arabia. The execution
triggers strong protests in Iran, where protesters storm the Saudi embassy and
set it on fire. Saudi Arabia interrupts diplomatic relations with Iran and is
quickly accompanied by Bahrain, Sudan and Djibouti. The United Arab Emirates,
Kuwait and Qatar call home their ambassadors from Tehran and downgrade relations
but do not break completely. Iran accuses Saudi Arabia of increasing tensions in
the region, where the two countries have long been on a confrontation course in
Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.
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