Statistical Center of Iran (SCI) has announced that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), excluding the oil sector, has registered a growth rate of 0.9 percent in the autumn of the past Iranian calendar year, Mehr news agency reported.

It is while last month the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati had put the GDP growth at 1.2 percent for the mentioned season, which is the third quarter of the Iranian year.

“The country’s economic performance shows that despite maximum pressure imposed by the U.S. sanctions, Iran’s economy has achieved good results in the framework of the production boom strategy outlined by the leader of the Islamic Revolution”, Hemmati wrote in an Instagram post at that time.

CBI put the growth for the country’s agriculture, industry, construction, and services sectors at 7.8 percent, 7 percent, and 1.2 percent, respectively for the mentioned quarter. /T.T/

Hundreds of Iranian artists have launched the nationwide #Moshahonar movement to entertain people who have chosen to stay at home voluntarily to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

In a statement published on Saturday, the artists, including thespians, cineastes, painters, cartoonists and writers, have said that they will produce artworks to showcase on social networks for at least the upcoming 100 days in order to make the stay at home almost tolerable.

“Artists from all fields and across Iran will be with you in your homes to bring the monster of fear, threat, sorrow and misery to its knees,” reads the statement, which has been signed by veteran artists such as Ali Nasirian, Gholamhossein Amirkhani, Hassan Nahid, Parviz Parastui, Nader Mashayekhi and Hushang Kamkar.

Iran has canceled all theatrical and musical performances and shut down movie theaters shortly after some cases of coronavirus were detected in Qom in mid-February. The country also postponed the 33rd Tehran International Book Fair and the 38th Fajr International Film Festival as a result.

Over the past month, Iranian artists individually and in groups have shared their productions online to encourage people and medical staff in the hospitals in the fight against the blight.

Numerous singers such as Reza Yazdani, Ruzbeh Bemani and Hamid Hami and numerous bands like Rastak and Gil-o-Amard have organized online concerts over the past month to entertain people during the home quarantine. /T.T/

Iran has established 95 schools in 43 countries around the world, said an official with the ministry of education.

The schools are run under the supervision of seven offices in the United Arab Emirates; Kuwait; Qatar and Bahrain; Syria and Lebanon and Jordan; Turkey; the Indian subcontinent; and Europe, ISNA quoted Gholmreza Karimi as saying on Sunday.

Currently, 14,027 Iranian students are studying at the overseas schools, he added.

Meanwhile, 14 schools for foreign nationals, 11 schools special for Afghan nationals, 4 international schools, 11 non- government schools, and 9 schools affiliated with embassies are operating in the country, he concluded. / T.T/

Nominated among 5 other players by AFC, Iran international goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand has the chance to become the Asian World Cup Hero.

Beiranvand will vie with with Park Ji-sung (Korea Republic), Sami Al Jaber (Saudi Arabia), Tim Cahill (Australia) and Keisuke Honda (Japan) for the title.

Team Melli and Persepolis goalkeeper Beiranvand was shortlisted for the AFC’s Player of the Year in the men’s category, in mid-December 2019.
Over the years a number of Asian players have produced the goods at the FIFA World Cup, lighting up arenas around the globe and providing incredible moments that have gone down in the Continent’s footballing folklore.

With March’s Asian Qualifiers postponed until later in the year, the-afc.com turns back the clock to highlight the achievements of five Asian players who have shone brightest on the global showpiece.

The winner will be chosen by a panel of experts combined with the results of the public vote.

Carlos Queiroz’s Iran may have exited at the 2018 group stage, but it’s hard to argue the tournament wasn’t a success for Team Melli, while it’s equally difficult to contest that goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand wasn’t their star man.

The Persepolis shot-stopper shone as Iran edged past Morocco 1-0 in their opener and he then produced another string of excellent saves in a narrow 1-0 loss to Spain, when only a fortuitous Diego Costa goal got the better of the big custodian.

A goal down in their third game against Portugal, Iran conceded a penalty to hand Cristiano Ronaldo the chance to all but seal a place in the next round. In a moment Beiranvand would later describe as the biggest of his life, he dived to his left to deny one of the greatest players of all time and keep his country’s hopes alive.

Karim Ansarifard levelled in stoppage time before Mehdi Taremi missed a glorious chance to seal qualification to the Round of 16 for the first time. It was not to be for the Iranians, but Beiranvand departed Russia having left his mark on the world stage.

Now the fans can tell the-afc.com who is their favorite by voting in a poll which ends at 1800 (UTC 8) on April 15.

MNA/

Head of Pasteur Institute of Iran Alireza Biglari announced on wednesday that the country is ready to export domestically-developed coronavirus diagnostic test kits to other countries.

While Iranian knowledge-based companies have started manufacturing kits, assembling lines for mass production of corona test kits have also gone into operation in Iran.

“Some 50 technological firms have announced readiness to produce test kits, of which five were selected and permitted by Pasteur Institute to start production,” Biglari said, “We are now independent from foreigners in manufacturing kits and are able to meet domestic demand.”

“In case of any need we can share our knowledge with neighboring countries under the supervision of WHO,” he added.

On March 9, Secretary of Biotechnology Development Headquarters of the Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology Mostafa Ghanei informed that Iranian knowledge-based companies would put their produced coronavirus test kits to the market next Iranian calendar month, Farvardin (Starting on March 20, 2020).

Since the beginning of entry of coronavirus, into the country, the Biotechnology Development Headquarters of the Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology in cooperation with Food and Drug Administration of Iran and Ministry of Health issued a call that if any knowledge-based company was able to produce a drug and/or kit.

Applicants had to introduce themselves in order to meet the demand of the country in the field of rapid diagnosis of coronavirus and treatment of the disease./MNA/

The World Athletics has wished discus thrower Ehsan Hadadi success in his fight against the novel coronavirus infection.

“We’ve received word that Iranian discus thrower @EhsanHadadi has tested positive for Coronavirus. We wish him a full and swift recovery,” the world governing body tweeted on Sunday.

Dr. Ashkan Ordibehesht, the head of the medical committee of the Iranian Athletics Federation, said that Hadadi is being quarantined at his home and his health status is under constant watch, noting that that the recovery is going well.

Hadadi was the first Iranian athlete who collected a medal in the Olympics in the track and field with his silver in London 2012. The 35-year old discus thrower has snatched six gold medals in Asian Championships and five other golds in Asian Games since 2005. He has a training base in the United States but contracted the virus in Tehran./ MNA/

“Coronavirus and the Inhuman, Unlawful, and Unilateral Sanctions of the United States against Iranian People”

Today, the world and humanity are witnessing an unprecedented international threat and growing concern about the number of countries affected by the Coronavirus and its victims. The virus crosses borders every day, threatening all parts of the world. Today’s international situation necessitates, more than ever, the need for national, regional and international efforts and mobilization of all the technical and logistical capabilities to assist countries infected with the virus. Therefore, the need for urgent, effective and comprehensive action to contain this virus is very crucial.

However, it is regrettable that, under these critical circumstances that the Islamic Republic of Iran is at the forefront of struggles to eradicate the virus with the aim of reducing the human suffering caused by the outbreak, the country is systematically subjected to unilateral direct and indirect inhumane sanctions of the U.S.  This approach, which is in sharp contrast to the UN Charter and the World Health Organization Statute, has not only hampered Iran’s intensive efforts to help the affected population and to control the spread of the Coronavirus, but also has negative and undeniable effects on all national, regional and international efforts to contain the virus.

Unfortunately and in quite the ‎opposite way, the U.S. government has continued to actively use ‎sanctions as a leverage to harm the health of the ‎Iranian people. ‎In a globalized world, everyone is considered to be riding on the same boat, and if the boat is damaged for any reason, the health of everyone will be at jeopardy.

The U.S. government has always claimed that food and medicine are not subject to sanctions. However, severe restrictions imposed on financial transactions and continual threats made to corporations in such industries have effectively prevented the usual delivery of medical supplies and equipment, seriously affecting the country’s health sector. The U.S. government is not refraining from bringing any illegal pressure in any sort and shape, creating impediments and escalating sabotage against the Islamic Republic of Iran even at the peak of the current Coronavirus crisis.

This virus recognizes no border and attacks its victims without considering their political affiliations, ethnic and racial backgrounds or belief system. Confronting this virus requires coordinated and cooperative action at the regional and international levels as well as adopting difficult socio-economic measures such as suspending economic activity, providing people with their basic needs, financially supporting the vulnerable and helping them cope with both the economic slowdown and the significant medical burden. Carrying out such measures requires, in turn, economic strength and budgetary resources to the tune of tens of billions of dollars. Under these circumstances, the Islamic Republic of Iran, as opposed to other crisis-inflicted countries, is facing serious impediments and restrictions arising from two years of illegal sanctions as part of the policy of “maximum pressure” and the U.S. government’s systematic campaign of economic sabotage.

The United States has imposed more than 100 sanction measures on the Iranian people and government in the past two years, specifically since 8 May 2018, and added around 1200 Iranian individuals and entities to its sanction lists. These sanctions have specifically targeted principal Iranian economic and financial sectors and, consequently, have inflicted damages of around $200 billion to the Iranian economy whose numerous local businesses have been severely undermined by the Coronavirus breakout. Most foreign nationals and companies, even those from the remaining Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) participant countries, are abiding by these sanctions. These actions represent a flagrant contravention of the principles of human rights and international regulations, including the JCPOA and United Nations Security Council resolution 2231. Regrettably, under such circumstances, it is impossible for even Iran’s private sector to carry out trade in such humanitarian items as food, medical goods and pharmaceutical supplies, which are purportedly not included in the sanction.

Finally, it is necessary to emphasize the critical humanitarian duty of all governments and civil societies, especially the well-known and leading states in humanitarian aid, to make their best effort to exert pressure on the U.S. administration to remove these unlawful and inhuman, unilateral sanctions that have targeted the lives and livelihood of innocent Iranian people as soon as possible in an effort to help contain the pandemic. As it has been aptly said by the Iranian Foreign Minister, “the world can no longer be silent as U.S. Economic Terrorism is supplanted by its Medical Terrorism”.

Saadi Shirazi (1210-1291), a prominent Iranian poet and prose writer, has a befitting saying in a poem in his book, Gulistan:

Human beings are members of a whole         In creation of one essence and soul

If one member is afflicted with pain             Other members uneasily will remain

If you’ve no sympathy for human pain      The name of human you cannot retain

Khorasan Razavi branch of the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA) has launched an international painting contest to promote personal and group health to fight against the new virus, the institute announced on Sunday.

Amid the outbreak of the new coronavirus in Iran and the world, the topic of personal health has received much attention as one of the main factors in transmitting the new virus.

The main topics of the contest are “Health of My Hands” (clothes, toys, food, family, friends, home and city), and “The Hands That Take Care of Me” (father, mother, doctors and health care staff).

Children aged 4 to 18 are asked to upload their paintings on the IIDCYA portal available at paintfest.kpf.ir.

The deadline for the national section is May 20 and the international section is July 15.

Submissions will be judged by a group of painters and book illustrators and winners will be announced on August 5. / T.T/