Six women have been elected to Tehran’s 5th city council election, registering a record high out of the total 21 members.

The number of female councilors has been doubled in the 5th council elections compared with the previous rounds, in which women’s number was not more than three, Khabaronline reported here on Sunday.

For the first time in Iran’s history six women joined the city council of Tehran in a situation that the total number of members of the council has decreased from 31 in the 4th council to 21 in the 5th.

Shahrbanoo Amani Anganeh, Bahareh Arvin, Zahra Sadrazam Nouri, Nahid Khodakarami, Zahra Nejadbahram and Elham Fakhari gained the 4th, 5th, 11th, 16th, 17th and 19th rankings in the elections, respectively.

Women made up one tenth of the members of the 4th council, while currently they make up about one third of the members.

A number of 10,416 people, including 1,337 women and 9,079 men, had registered for city council election in Tehran province, IRNA quoted the deputy governor of Tehran province for political and social affairs, Shahabeddin Chavoshi, as saying.

According to statists released by the Interior Ministry, a number of 17,885 women, equaling 6.3 percent of the total candidates, have put their names down for the polls all around the country.

The 5th city council election was held simultaneously with the 12th presidential election on May 19.

/ Tehran times /

Archeologists in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan have discovered an ancient cemetery in Dombkouh archeological site.

According to a report available on the website of the Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism, the cemetery, whose graves are scattered across the 430-hectare site, is home to over 5,000 stone graves. Some contain remains belonging to two and three people.

Found in uncommon shapes (cube, square, circle), the gravestones are categorized in nine groups based on their forms.

What has researchers excited is that “a number of graves date back to the third millennium BC, while the ruins are linked to the Parthian Empire (247 BC–224 AD)”, said Morteza Hessari, an archeologist with the research team. / Financial tribune /

A solo painting exhibition ‘Girls of Turquoise Land’ by Iranian painter, miniaturist and calligrapher Behzad Bozorgi, 45, is underway at Vali Art Gallery in north Tehran.

The exhibit opened on May 5 and will run through May 16 on all days except Saturdays from 4-8 pm, Honaronline reported.

It is a showcase of acrylic paintings on canvas, highlighting the rich and ancient Persian school of miniature painting “in a modernistic way.”

The paintings have a particular focus on the rendering of faces. In form and aesthetics, they follow the Persian school, but not in technique.

“I departed from my special interest in Iranian miniature a few years back and decided to adopt a new approach in my paintings,” Bozorgi said.

His new approach includes large dimensions, figures against abstract backgrounds, painterly rendering of calligraphy scripts and stimulant colors. He has deliberately distanced his style from the customary forms and norms expected in Iranian miniature. Where there was once a poetic dance of forms, he now creates a concept of peace and tranquility.

In an introduction to the ongoing exhibit, Bozorgi said: “I have tried to focus on prominent elements of the Isfahan School of Art, to express my perspective in painting and portray a traditionalistic look at the works by the old masters.”

He said he has also tried, through a modern approach with colors and in an abstract atmosphere, to have a new look at the works of the great master of the art, Reza Abbasi (1565-1635), who was the leading Persian miniaturist of the Isfahan School during the late Safavid period.

Vali Art gallery is located at No. 72, Khodami Street, Vanak Square./ Financial tribune /

Over six million foreign tourists visited Iran during the past Iranian calendar year ended on March 20, 2017, bringing eight billion dollars of foreign currencies to the country, an official at Iran’s chamber of commerce announced.

Head of the tourism commission at Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture Ahmad Asghari-Qajari, made the announcement in this southwestern Iranian province on Sunday evening.

Asghari-Qajari said that the number of the tourists had a two million growth compared to the preceding year.

It is predicted that Iran’s tourism industry will flourish after due infrastructure is supplied in that field, the official noted.

Referring to Iran’s tourist attractions, Asghari-Qajari said that the country is among the top ten world tourism destinations.

He noted that efforts should be made to replace reliance on oil industry by tourism.

Iran is the safest country in the world to which the foreign tourists can comfortably travel without being concerned about security issues, the official concluded. / Tehran telegram /

Economic relations between Iran and Japan will enter a new phase after a planned $10 billion credit line is opened, said a senior assistant to the dean of Asian Development Bank Institute in Japan.”Three Japanese big banks, namely the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui Bank and Mizuho Bank, have started interactions in the form of telegraphic transfer—an electronic method of transferring funds—and L/C at sight  with a number of Iranian banks. These banks’ transactions are taking place through Japanese yen, which reduces the risk of transaction,” Farhad Taqizadeh-Hesari was also quoted as saying by ISNA. Taqizadeh-Hesari said Japan’s crude oil imports from Iran witnessed a growth of 130% in the wake of the nuclear deal, while adding oil products to Iran’s export basket to Japan.

/ Financial tribune /

With four medals gold medals, and one silver and two bronze medals Iran has won title at the Asian Senior Wrestling Championships in India.

Ramin Taheri, Hossein Nouri, Mostafa Salehizade and Behnam Mehdizadeh snatched gold medals in the event while one silver was gained by Afshin Biabangard who overcame his Indian opponent 3-1 and the Kirgiz opponent 5-4 on Thursday.

Saman Abdevali and Ali Arsalan won bronze medals to rise the total medals of Iran to seven, which made Iran the champion of the continent for the the 11th time.

Kazakhstan and South Korea stood at the second and third places, respectively.

The Asian Senior Wrestling Championships kicked off in New Delhi, India, on May 10, and will run through May 14, 2017. / Meher news /

Iranian documentary ‘Poets of Life’, directed by Shirin Bargh Navard, will go on screen at the 14th Green Film Festival in Seoul (GFFIS).

Poets of Life is a poetic narration of the life, work and concerns of Shirin Parsi, an environmentalist and social activist in women affairs.

The Green Film Festival in Seoul (GFFIS) is the first film festival in Korea to highlight environment issues.

GFFIS is a festival that seeks to share the hope for a better world where all the lives can be in harmony with environment and nature. Through cinema, the festival hopes to promote ideas of environmental protection and life respect to encourage public awareness and action for positive changes.

/ Meher News /

Twenty-five Iranian films are on screen at the 11th edition of the International Philosophy Film Festival, which is underway in Krakow, Poland.

The motto of this year’s festival is “Cinema, People of the Orient, Dreams and Reality”, therefore it focuses on screening independent Iranian films, the organizers have announced on the festival’s official website.

Among the films are “Vision” by Soheil Amirsharifi, “The Gambler” by Karim Lakzadeh, “Survival” by Masud Hatami, “Delete” by Kazem Molai and “Monolog” by Keveh Qahreman.

The screenings are followed by review sessions attended by Iranian filmmaker Ashkan Ahmadi and Polish film critic Artur Zaborski. /Tehran times /