Member of Board of Directors of Engineering and Technical Services Exporters Association Farzin Mahdyar said on Tue. that Islamic Republic of Iran enjoys high capability of exporting $25 billion worth of technical and engineering services.

He made the remarks during his weekly press briefing and pointed to the problems facing export of technical and engineering services especially in some neighboring states and added, “currently, total technical and engineering services delayed in neighboring Iraq stand at $1.8 billion which has created serious damages to the Iranian exporters of technical and engineering services financially.”

He went on to say that Islamic Republic of Iran in carrying out technical and engineering services in countries such as Commonwealth Independent States (CIS) and also Iraq, adding, “in this regard, Iraq has enjoyed high potential and capability for cooperating with Iran in the field of export of technical and engineering services which can lead to the enhanced cooperation jointly in relevant issues.”

Turning to the incentive export packages of the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran (TPOI) provided for exporters of technical and engineering services, he added, “it should be kept in mind that Iraq is Iran’s largest target market, so that suitable condition should be provided for Iranian exporters to export their technical and engineering services to this country.” /MNA/

Iran on Tuesday unveiled three new precision-guided smart bombs, in a ceremony with Defense Minister Brigadier-General Amir Hatami, according to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Website.

The unveilings come amid tensions between Iran and the United States along with Britain in the Persian Gulf.

The new air-to-air missiles revealed by Tehran are called the “Yasin” and the “Balaban” as well as a new series of the “Qaem” missile and were developed jointly by the ministry and Sa Iran (Iran Electronics Industries).

According to the Mehr news agency, the Yasin is a smart missile with folding wings that can be fired from a range of 50 kilometers (30 miles) of its target from manned or unmanned aircraft.

The Balaban smart bomb is guided by hybrid inertial navigation system (INS)/Global Positioning System (GPS) guidance and sensors to boost its precision capabilities and is equipped with folding wings and can be mounted under an aircraft.

The Qaem optic smart bomb meanwhile is a heat-seeking missile equipped with heat and cylinder seekers that allow the bomb to hit within 50 centimeters of a target. Similar to the Balaban, it can be installed on various kinds of unmanned aerial vehicles such as fighter jets and helicopters.

Hatami hailed the missiles’ launch as “another significant achievement of power and dignity for the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

“It shows that despite the viciousness and conspiracies of the Great Satan America and its mercenaries, the Defense Ministry will not hesitate for a moment to defend the Islamic Republic and to expand security,” Fars quoted him as saying.

The three missiles were unveiled two days after deputy military chief Brigadier General Mehdi Rabbani was quoted by Fars as saying that the country’s missile range was continuing to increase.

“For at least the next 10 years, no regional or trans-regional country is able to counter or fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran in ground warfare,” he stated, adding that “our missile power also deters any regional and extra-regional acts of aggression, and the range of the missiles is also increasing constantly.”

Also on Tuesday, Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani warned that all U.S. bases in the region are within range of an Iranian strike if any war were to break out.

“It may be the case that some regional countries and the Zionist regime have devised such plans against Iran, but they know well that if they inflict any minor damage to Iran, they will receive our firm response as all American bases in the region will get stuck. And if they have a little bit of rationale, they will not enter a war with Iran,” he stated.

Despite new U.S. sanctions on Iran are meant to pressure Tehran over its influence in the region and its ballistic missile program, Tehran is continuing to improve its missile capabilities, defending the program as being purely defensive. / Tehran Times /

The fifth breast milk bank in Iran was established in the city of Shiraz during a ceremony on the occasion of World Breastfeeding Week, an annual celebration which is being held every year from August 1 to 7.

According to studies, breast milk is the best choice for infants and increase their IQ nine notches in comparison with babies who do not consume human milk, the head of Iranian Scientific Breastfeeding Promotion Society, Farid Imanzadeh, said during the ceremony.

He also pointed to emotional links between infants and mothers during breastfeeding, saying, thee breast milk bank is for mothers who cannot feed their babies and provides them with sterilized breast milk.

The bank collects breast milk of volunteer mothers and keeps them after pasteurization and sterilization for infants who cannot be fed with breast milk, he explained.

The first breast milk bank was established in the city of Tabriz, northwestern Iran, in 2016.

Other Iranian cities namely Ahvaz, Mashhad, and Isfahan are also equipped with breast milk banks.

In recent years, mothers tend to use the formula for their newborns, but the health ministry promotes breastfeeding nationwide, the deputy health minister said during the ceremony.

Alireza Raeisi said that breast milk prevents several diseases and is one of the best foods for newborns.

The health ministry plans to prescribe a formula for newborns suffering from diseases or mothers who cannot feed their infants, he said.

“Recent statistics released by the health ministry show 14% growth of breastfeeding in comparison with previous years and we anticipate more growth in the coming years.”

Meanwhile, neonatologist Ali-Akbar Sayyari said breast milk contains several antibodies and is sterile. Breast milk is nutritious enough for a baby after six months of age.

No other diet is recommended during breastfeeding for mothers, he said.

World Breastfeeding Week 2019

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) website, the WBW encourages breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. It commemorates the Innocenti Declaration signed in August 1990 by government policymakers, WHO, UNICEF and other organizations to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

This year, WHO is working with UNICEF and partners to promote the importance of family-friendly policies to enable breastfeeding and help parents nurture and bond with their children in early life, when it matters most. This includes enacting paid maternity leave for a minimum of 18 weeks, and paid paternity leave to encourage shared responsibility of caring for their children on an equal basis.

Breastfeeding promotes better health for mothers and children alike. Increasing breastfeeding to near-universal levels could save more than 800,000 lives every year, the majority being children under 6 months. Breastfeeding decreases the risk of mothers developing breast cancer, ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. It is estimated that increased breastfeeding could avert 20,000 maternal deaths each year due to breast cancer. / Tehran times/

Iran Greco-Roman team claimed the title of the 2019 Cadet World Championships on Sunday night in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Reza Saki from Iran, a 2019 Cadet Asian silver medalist, defeated Russian Stepan Starodubtsev, who was second at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, for the crown at 71 kg.

Starodubtsev led, 1-0, at the break, but just moments into the second period, Saki scored on a four-point arm throw. He held onto the lead for the remainder of the bout, winning gold with a 4-1 victory.

For the title at 51 kg, Saeid Esmaeili used a first-period takedown to give him an eventual 2-1 win over Elmir Aliyev from Azerbaijan. It was both wrestlers’ first World Championships.

To open the night, 2019 Cadet Asian champion Samatbek IZIMGALI (KAZ) spent only 59 seconds on the mat to claim the gold medal at 45 kg, defeating Asadbek BAKHRAMAOV (UZB) by fall.

Iran had previously won two gold medals in the opening day.

Amiireza Dehbozorgi had defeated Ziya Babashov from Azerbaijan 3-1 in the 48kg final bout and Shahrokh Mikaeili emerged victorious over Armenian Razmik Kurdyan in the 110kg final.

Securing two individual champions on Sunday, Iran won the team title with 148 points, followed by Azerbaijan with 123 points and Russia with 99 points. / Tehran times/

Iran national basketball team defeated Jordan 82-70 in a friendly match on Saturday.Mehran Shahintab’s team will meet hosts Russia on Sunday.Iran will also participate at a tournament in China, where they will face Nigeria, Montenegro and Poland from Aug. 19 to Aug. 25.

Iran have been drawn with world’s second-ranked Spain, Puerto Rico and Tunisia in Group C of the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

The competition will be held in China from 31 Aug. to 15 Sept.The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup will be the 18th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup for men’s national basketball teams.

Rescheduled from 2018 to 2019, this edition will be the first FIBA Basketball World Cup since 1967 that will not occur in the same year as the FIFA World Cup, but a year following the latter.

Also, the group stage will expand from 24 to 32 teams. The top eight teams, including Japan as the hosts of the 2020 Summer Olympics (and the top two teams from each of the Americas and Europe; and the top team from each of Africa, Asia and Oceania) in this competition will qualify for the men’s basketball event in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo./  Tehran times /

The 8th International Conference on Nanostructures (ICNS8), slated for April 2020 in Tehran, is calling for paper submission on a variety of topics on nanotechnology.

The 8th International Conference on Nanostructures (ICNS8), organized by the Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of Sharif University of Technology, will be held on 20-22 April 2020 in Tehran.

The event is calling for paper submission by November 6th. Topics include: Low-dimensional Nanostructures; Nanobiotechnology and Nanomedicine; Nanosensors and Nanobiosensors; Nanostructures in Magnetism, Electronics, Photonics and Plasmonics; Nanostructures for Water and Environment; Nanostructures for Energy Conversion and Storage; Advanced Fabrication and Characterization Methods; Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Commercialization in Nanotechnology; and Nanosafety Considerations and Regulations.

The conference was founded with the aim of bringing together academics and industrialists from around the world after the timely perception of the need for an opportunity to discuss cutting-edge knowledge in the field of nanoscience.

The event aims to provide an excellent opportunity to forge collaborations between universities, research institutions and companies for the development of nanoscience and nanotechnology both within the country and with international partners.

The scientific program is going to be varied with keynote speeches, invited talks, papers in oral and poster sessions, workshops and technical demonstrations organized for scientific networking, according to the event’s website.

The Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (INST) of Sharif University of Technology founded the biennial conferences on Nanostructures with the special support of Iran Nanotechnology Initiative Council (INIC) in 2006. /MNA/

Russia produced three World champions on the final night of men’s freestyle action to edge out Iran by two points in the team race on Wednesday at the 2019 Cadet World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Winning gold medals at 51 kg, 60 kg and 71 kg, Russia collected 168 team points, while Iran went 1-2 in its gold-medal matches to finish with 166 points.

The first champion of the night for Russia was two-time U15 European champion Mukhamed KHANIEV (RUS). Wrestling at 51 kg, Khaniev defeated Zhakhongir AKHMAJANOV (KAZ), 10-5.

Following up Khaniev’s performance was Arip ABDULAEV (RUS), who is also a two-time U15 European champion, unitedworldwrestling.org reported.

Abdulaev won a crucial head-to-head over Iran’s Erfan Mohammad ELAHI (IRI), 9-6, in the 60 kg finals. The win was critical in helping push Russia past Iran in the team race.

At the very next weight, 71 kg, Soslan TIGIEV (RUS) wrapped up his first World tournament with a Cadet World championship, defeating 2017 U15 Balkan champion Krisztian BIRO (ROU) in a 13-11 shootout.

Iran did win a gold medal at 92 kg as 2019 Cadet Asian champion Soheyl YOUSEFI SANGANI (IRI) outlasted Zagid KARIMOV (RUS), 3-1.

In the 43 kg gold-medal bout, 2018 Cadet Pan American freestyle and Greco-Roman champion Marc-Anthony MCGOWAN (USA) won the first medal of the tournament for the United States with a late takedown over 2019 Cadet Asian champion Ali Mehran ARAB FIROUZJAEI (IRI) for a 3-1 win. / Tehran Times /

Iranian chemistry students received four medals at the 51st International Chemistry Olympiads (IChO 2019) which was held on 21-30 July 2019 in Paris, France.

The 51st IChO was held in Paris where Iranian team consisted of Mostafa Moghimi won a gold medal, Ali Jahromi and Amir Reza Baheri, each received a silver medal, and Amir Ali Ahrabi won a bronze medal among participants from 80 countries.

The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) is an annual competition for the world’s most talented chemistry students at the secondary school level. Nations around the world send a team of four students who are tested on their chemistry knowledge and skills in a five-hour laboratory practical exam and a five-hour written theoretical examination that are held on separate days with the practical examination usually being before the theoretical examination.

Iranian students, including Behzad Saiedi, Arshia Khademi, Mehdi Jafarzadeh and Mohammad Hassan Sharifnia managed to grab 4 silver medals in the 50th edition IChO which was held on July 2018 and jointly hosted by Slovakia’s Bratislava and Czech Republic’s Prague.The 52nd IChO will be held in July 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey.