Iran the news again...................

[Soldier4Christ]

The Sandinista government's hope for Corinto is a $100 million upgrade and two new wharfs, to then be connected by the dry canal to Monkey Point. This scheme, Navas explained, would enrich Nicaragua by drawing Venezuelan oil and shipping business from the Panama Canal, Costa Rica and El Salvador.

The dry canal has been around on paper for nearly 100 years. But it found new life in a drive by Venezuela's Chávez to wean his country's huge oil industry from loathed dependence on U.S. refineries, transportation and markets.

This comes as good news on the streets of Corinto's many barrios and at City Hall, where Mayor Ernesto Mendez adorns his office walls with Chávez posters and Sandinista propaganda.

Many of the town's 18,000 people live with no electricity or plumbing, and depend on the port for meager sustenance. Alphonso Jose Estrada, who spent 30 years working at the port, wishes the Iranians the best of luck.

"Even the U.S. is accused sometimes of being terrorists," he said. "Just because the Iranians are coming here doesn't necessarily mean they're going to cause terrorism. We'll see more ships. That's going to mean more jobs."

That's a much-shared sentiment in a town where the port is so decrepit that only a ship or two a week docks.

One recent evening, word went out over an invisible grapevine that a ship was coming. Hundreds of men wearing yellow hard hats converged in waves of bicycles to vie for shifts as stevedores or forklift operators. The pay: a precious $8 per 12-hour shift.

After an hour or two of anxious waiting, only a few dozen were picked, the rest consigned to pedaling home with bad news. Many who land one or two shifts a month welcome any plan — by anyone — to bring more.

Some of the bicyclists stopped long enough to talk about the Iranian proposal but wouldn't give names, for fear of not getting selected to work.

"It's a bad friend," one young bicyclist said of the Iranians. "But if the bad friend builds the port, then they're a good friend!"

A land rights clash

Feelings about the Iranian promises mostly break a different way at Monkey Point, on Nicaragua's other coast. The Rama and Creole here mostly live on Nicaragua's political margins, subsisting on fish and jungle animals in isolation. Time is still told by sun and tides.

Because of their separateness, a more contrarian streak prevails that may, in the end, prove more than just an irritant to the Ortega government's partnership with the Iranians. Many Monkey Point young men fought with the Contras against Ortega's Sandinistas. They've been feeling rebellious again since the helicopters came.

The Monkey Point community wants legal rights to roughly a half-million acres where generations have lived. Twice in the past 10 years, people there have resisted development proposals.

Pearl Watson, the self-styled community president who travels the globe raising awareness, said the community made substantial progress under previous governments, including a new law under which it can stake a formal claim. That's why Watson said people felt especially pained when the Iranians and Venezuelans showed up with another port proposal that did not seem to recognize all that had gone before.

"They don't want to tell the people nothing; they just want to show up and do what they want," Watson said in her office in the bustling coastal town of Bluefields, a 30-mile boat ride from Monkey Point. "Our people don't like the way the government is imposing development on us, with no guarantees of how the people will benefit."

Lately, she's been reaching out to human rights organizations to help fight Ortega, and considering filing a case in international courts if the port idea progresses before their land boundaries are decided. A successful campaign could throw quite a wrench in the Monkey Point plans.

But the fear of forcible removal by their old enemies, the Sandinista Party, if all this fails is palpable where jungle and beach meet. Frustration is on the rise. Lately, some of the young men have begun talking about reminding the Sandinistas that this same community once fought with the Contras, that they might not have turned in all the weapons.

"It gonna be total destruction for us if them build it down here," said Rupert Allen Clear Duncan, the community leader who confronted the helicopter delegation. "Here we have a beautiful life, man. We never find us living anywhere else."

[Soldier4Christ]

This would give Iran a military strategic advantage against the U.S. that would not be good at all for us.

[Shammu]

Women excluded from sports in the name of Islam

Tehran, 19 Dec. (AKI) - The vice president of the Iranian Olympic Committee, Abdolreza Savar, has announced new rules to fight what he defines as the sport's "subjugation to western customs and practices"

In a memorandum sent to all sporting federations, Savar, who is in-charge of the "proper behaviour of male and female athletes" said that "severe punishment will be meted out to those who do not follow Islamic rules during sporting competitions" both local and abroad.

The memorandum also said that "no male coach can train or accompany the athletes when they travel abroad."

"If female trainers are not found, our female teams will not participate in international competitions," said Savar.

Iran's athletes are considered among the best in the Middle East, but due to severe restrictions imposed by the government, women are sometimes excluded from competition and prevented from fully exploiting their potential.

An example of this is the Iranian volleyball team, which has not been able to qualify to any international competition, as it does not have a trainer.

"In volleyball there aren't any female trainers capable, and the Olympic committee does not allow us to employ males to train the female team," said Saiid Derakhshandeh, president of the Iranian Voleyball Federation.

Iran's voleyball team was once considered to be among the best in Asia.

The memorandum also referred to new rules regarding the attire worn by the athletes, saying that if these rules are not followed, the athletes will be severely punished and will not be able to participate in future national or international competitions.

Savar also made reference to a Tae-Kwon-Do competition held on the island of Macau, in China when a male referee grabbed and raised the arm of a female Iranian player who had won a tournament.

He said that Iran's sportswomen will not participate at the next Olympic games, in any discipline, where there will be any sort of physical contact with the referee, if it is a man.

Iran's objective, says Savar "is not just to win medals, but to promote Islamic culture, and thus we have decided to inaugurate an exhibition dedicated to Islamic values during the Olympic games in Beijing" in 2008.

Other women in Iran have also been prevented from pursuing their sporting activities.

Iranian rally car champion driver Laleh Seddigh was banned for 12 months from participating in any race. She is a good driver too!!

She was accused of having tampered with her car's engine during her last race in Iran.

In a telephone interview with Adnkronos International (AKI) Seddigh says "It's a conspiracy, I did not commit any irregularities. They simply want to exclude me from racing because I'm a woman."

Seddigh, known as the "Schumacher of the East", in reference to the now retired seven-time Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher.

"They probably did not appreciate the fact that I am a woman and at the same time the most famous racecar driver in the Middle East," she said. "They would prefer to see a woman with a frying pan or an iron in her hand."

Women excluded from sports in the name of Islam

[Shammu]

Internet Cafes Shut Down In Drive Against Un-Islamic Behavior
By Farangis Najibullah

 Police in Tehran have raided more than 430 Internet cafes and other shops during the first days of the latest campaign against what they say is inappropriate and un-Islamic conduct.

Iranian state media quote the police as saying that in the past few days, they have closed down 25 Internet cafes and given warnings to 170 cafe owners for "using immoral computer games and storing obscene photos," and for the presence of women without "proper hijab" on the premises.

At least 23 people -- including several women -- have been detained for similar reasons.

The owner of one of the Tehran Internet cafes that was inspected and temporarily closed down by police, who gave his name as Hessam, told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that police started questioning him when they found some family photos -- with a female member of the family among them -- on a computer.

"We had a few family photos in our system. They asked, 'Who is this girl that is sitting close to you?'" Hessam said. "Just because of those private photos, they closed this place for three or four days. [The police pressure] has reached that level! It has become a headache, a problem for everybody. We don't know what to do."

Independent Information

The Internet, and Internet cafes, have become increasingly popular in Tehran and other Iranian cities in recent years.

According to official state figures, 60 percent of the country's population has access to the Internet. However, independent sources say that figure is exaggerated, given the fact that many Iranians villages do not even have electricity. International estimates say that some 20 percent of Iranians have access to the Internet.

Most of the customers at Internet cafes are young people who come to play computer games, check their e-mail, or take part in website chat rooms and blogs.

Some Iranian journalists describe the latest campaign as an attempt by the authorities to limit access to a major source of alternative news and information and restrict Iranian's intellectual and social freedom.

Badrolsadat Mofeedi, an independent journalist and a campaigner for media rights, told RFE/RL from Tehran that the latest assault on Internet cafes is no surprise. Mofeedi said that "in addition to a crackdown on independent media, every now and then the Iranian authorities put pressure on all other sources of news and information, such as satellite dishes, the Internet, and even bookshops."

In October, several Tehran bookstores were given a 72-hour ultimatum to close down coffee shops that were operating inside their stores. Amaken-e Omomi, a state body that controls retail trade, said that operating a cafe inside a bookshop is an "illegal mixture" of trades.

"Some Internet sites have been filtered. A variety of measures has been taken to restrict the political and social atmosphere for those who are involved in the distribution of the information," Mofeedi said.

'Immoral' Internet

The Iranian authorities say they have blocked access to "immoral websites" such as pornographic sites.

According to Iranian independent journalists, however, many political websites -- including personal weblogs or blogs -- and many independent news sources are blocked with a filter so that Iranians cannot access them. Those sites includes radiofarda.com.

Hassem, the Internet-cafe owner, says the "heavy filtering of the websites has slowed down the Internet in Iran, reducing its speed by almost 50 percent."

The clampdown has coincided with the ongoing police campaign against anyone who violates a strict Islamic dress code.

The police have even installed mobile stations on Tehran's busiest streets to stop women who disobey the dress code, for instance by wearing a hat instead of a head scarf or by tucking their pants inside of their boots.

Isa Saharkhiz, an independent journalist and a member of the Association for Press Freedom in Iran, told RFE/RL from Tehran that enforcing these restrictions -- on everything from dress to the Internet -- has been part of the Iranian government's policy since President Mahmud Ahmadinejad came to power in 2005.

Saharkhiz said the closure of the cafes was partially aimed at preventing young people and intellectuals from getting together, as well as trying to restrict the free flow of information.

"None of these practices brought any results in the past," Saharkhiz says. "No one is able to put barriers on news and information and, especially, no one can shut down the Internet -- in Iran or elsewhere in the world."

Cafe owner Hassem said that no matter how hard the authorities try to block access to websites, young Iranians will succeed in circumventing the filter and find their way to the prohibited sites.

Internet Cafes Shut Down In Drive Against Un-Islamic Behavior

[Shammu]

Women banned from wearing boots

Tehran, 12 Dec. (AKI) - Women have been banned from wearing boots and hats on the streets of Tehran.

Police chief, General Ahmad Radan, announced the ban on Wednesday saying that boots could only be worn if they were covered by pants.

"If boots are not covered by pants that fall to the ankles, they show the female shape and that is therefore in contradiction with Islamic dress code," said Radan.

Iranian women can no longer leave home with their pants pushed inside their boots and they can no longer wear hats without a veil.

"A hat is not an adequate substitute for a veil or a hijab," he said. " If someone really wants to wear a hat, they can put it on the veil."

Feminist Rezvan Moghdaddam told Adnkronos International (AKI) that police should be concerned about drug traffickers than street fashion.

"Instead of being busy with women's hats and boots, the police would be better catching the merchants of death that kill our young people with drugs," she said from Tehran.

"Our cities are infested by delinquents and security forces are only worried about how women dress, all this is really ridiculous."

Generale Radan said decision to apply the Islamic code had come from a committee composed of the Revolutionary Guard, the judiciary, police and officials from the intelligence ministry and the ministry of culture and Islamic orientation.

Women banned from wearing boots

[Shammu]

Top cleric says women without veils must die

Tehran, 19 Dec. (AKI) - A top Muslim cleric in Iran, Hojatolislam Gholam Reza Hassani said on Wednesday that women in Iran who do not wear the hijab or Muslim headscarf, should die.

"Women who do not respect the hijab and their husbands deserve to die," said Hassani, who leads Friday prayers in the city of Urumieh, in Iranian Azerbaijan.

"I do not understand how these women who do not respect the hijab, 28 years after the birth of the Islamic Republic, are still alive," he said.

"These women and their husbands and their fathers must die," said Hassani, who is the representative of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei in eastern Azerbaijan.

Hassani's statements came after two Kurdish feminists in Iran were accused of being members of an armed rebel group and of carrying out subversive activities threatening the security of the state.

It is believed that his statements and the arrests could spark a fresh crackdown on women who do not repect the Islamic dress code in Iran.

Thousands of women in Iran have already been warned this year for their "un-Islamic dress" such as wearing tight, short coats and skimpy headscarves.

Top cleric says women without veils must die

[Shammu]

Top cleric says women without veils must die

You would think they'd be lining up to get off the planet. Have a everybody burn your hijab day. What is death when you aren't allowed to have any sort of life? Islam really kicks itself in the rear end by treating women as they do.

[Shammu]

Iran Rejects Suspension of Uranium Enrichment

TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Iran on Tuesday reiterated its rejection of suspending uranium enrichment.
   
Deputy Head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Mohammad Saeedi said that some people said Iran no longer needs to enrich its uranium after the delivery of the nuclear fuel, but the notion about Iran's suspension of uranium enrichment was an "outdated analysis."

"The issue of the nuclear fuel has nothing to do with the issue of Iran's uranium enrichment activities," he said, adding that delivery of the nuclear fuel was a "success" for the Iranian nation after a long time.

He noted that Iran should adopt a policy that enables the country to produce at least part of the nuclear fuel it needs.

Tehran has decided to build a new 360-megawatt nuclear power plant in Darkhowein in southwestern Khuzestan province, Saeedi said, adding that Iran would seek to build more medium-sized nuclear power plants in the future.

Russia delivered the first shipment of nuclear fuel to Iran on Monday for Bushehr power plant in southern Iran which is being built by the Russian contractor company Atomstroiexport.

A total of 163 main and 17 reserve assemblies of U-235 enriched to 3.62 percent would be delivered for the first loading, the company said in a statement. All the deliveries will be made in several stages over two months.

Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, on Monday also rejected the notion that the delivery of nuclear fuel from Russia to the Bushehr nuclear power plant meant Iran did not require enrichment.

"We are constructing a nuclear power station with the capacity of 360 megawatts and this power station needs fuel," Aghazadeh said.

Aghazadeh said that the power plant is being built in Darkhowein in southwestern Khuzestan province.

"The construction of the power station will last some years. And in parallel to the progress, Natanz enrichment site also needs to be expanded," Aghazadeh said.

Iran Rejects Suspension of Uranium Enrichment

[Shammu]

Iran: Europe will become a Muslim continent, says Khamenei's spokesman
Sat. 22 Dec 2007

Tehran, 21 Dec. (AKI) - Europe will eventually become a Muslim continent, according to a representative of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

"In a dozen years, Europe will be an Islamic continent," said Rasul Jalilzadeh on Friday as he was speaking to the basiji, a voluntary organisation in the capital Tehran.

"The Islamisation of the European continent is imminent and this step favours the arrival of the Mahdi," he said, referring to the 12th imam of Shiite Islam.

Shiites believe that the Imam Mahdi, who disppeared as an adolescent, will return to bring an end to chaos and bring universal justice.

Rasul Jalilzadeh believes that "the Islamisation of Europe is one of the consequences of the Islamic revolution in Iran" in that "the messages and values that this revolution has transmitted to the Europeans, to convince them "to abandon their current faiths and convert to Shiite Islam."

Iran: Europe will become a Muslim continent, says Khamenei's spokesman

[Shammu]

Iran Educates Children to 'Seek Martyrdom'
By Erick Stakelbeck
CBN News Terrorism Analyst
December 19, 2007

CBNNews.com - During Iran's war with Iraq in the 1980s, Ayatollah Khomeini sent thousands of Iranian children directly into minefields.

He promised that they'd see heaven as their reward.

Today's Iranian leadership is quite unpopular with its growing younger generation -- the Mullahs are attempting to reclaim this group one textbook at at a time.

This is becoming a common scene in Iran. Pro-democracy Protests against the ruling regime. Just last weekend Tehran University students waved signs that said "live free or die."

In some ways, this is the new face of Iran-- 70 percent of the population is under the age of 30. Many of these Iranians are hungry for the kind of freedoms Americans enjoy. But the Iranian government has other ideas.

"Imagine 225,000, 250,000 even 100,000 kids who have been taught to hate America, hate the West, get ready for martyrdom," Shayan Arya said.

Shayan Arya's family left Iran when he was a teenager. He says the government's educational curriculum teaches children as young as first grade to prepare for war and seek martyrdom.

"You are responsible for learning it--you get tested on it, you have to study it, you have to write papers on it, you have to answer to your teachers, he said.

The Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance recently gave CBN News an exclusive look at some Iranian textbooks. All non-Muslims are portrayed as evil -- especially the U.S. and Israel.

A seventh-grade textbook encourages students to "not cease.until the redeeming message of 'there is no god but Allah' is realized throughout the whole world."

These books also teach war between Iran and the west is inevitable. Iranians must either bring about a global Islamic victory or else.

"Victory is not guaranteed, according to the books. It's either victory or collective martyrdom," said Dr. Arnon Groiss.

Eighth grade texts hammer that message home. One section reads "either we shake one another's hand in joy at the victory of Islam in the world, or all of us will turn to eternal life and martyrdom."

"Gradually they build on it so that by 10th or 11th grade, children should be ready to be martyred," Arya said.

Dr. Arnon Groiss has studied Iran's educational system extensively. He views the Iranian curriculum as extreme even for the Middle East.

"If you're dealing with such people, such a regime, that tries to instill in young children or schoolchildrens' minds the idea of global war to the end, this is frightening," Groiss said. "And you will not find this in Syrian textbooks or Saudi Arabian textbooks or Egyptian textbooks."

The radical message of the Islamic Revolution has fallen on deaf ears for many young Iranians. But president Mahmoud Ahamdenijad isn't giving up without a fight.

He says Iran's educational curriculum has become too secular and must be cleansed.

Iran Educates Children to 'Seek Martyrdom'

[Soldier4Christ]

Defense analyst: Oil crisis could propel Europe, Asia to take on Iran sans U.S

Avi Lipkin, an American-born Israeli author and Middle East expert, believes it may be the Europeans and the Asians -- not the Americans -- who will ultimately have to deal with Iran if the radical regime triggers a major oil crisis.

Avi Lipkin used to serve with the Israeli Defense Forces, and he believes his country may be prepared to launch airstrikes against Iran's nuclear weapons program just like it did against Syria earlier this year. But Lipkin says an Israeli air strike could trigger what he calls "stage two": an Iranian retaliation, most likely aimed at shutting down the Straits of Hormuz, which could result in a devastating world economic crisis. And that, he says, would precipitate "stage three."

"The Europeans, the Japanese, China, India, all come [to the U.S.] demanding action -- because within two weeks the world economy collapses without oil, if they shut the Straits of Hormuz," he explains. Lipkin offers his prediction at the response. "George W. Bush will say we've got the Democrats hanging around our necks, we can't really do very much for you; you Europeans and Asians are going to have to do the work this time. And so I believe what we'll see here is an international coalition, and the Ayatollah regime will fall."

Lipkin believes the Iranians are willing to do something desperate in their desire to bring down the West.

[Soldier4Christ]

Russia to supply Iran with new defense

 Iran's defense minister said Wednesday that Russia is preparing to deliver powerful new air defense systems that would dramatically increase his nation's ability to repel an attack.

The S-300 anti-aircraft missile defense system is capable of shooting down aircraft, cruise missiles and ballistic missile warheads at ranges of over 90 miles and at altitudes of about 90,000 feet. Russian military officials boast that its capabilities outstrip the U.S. Patriot missile system.

The S-300 is an improvement over the Tor-M1 air defense missile system. Russia delivered 29 Tor-M1s to Iran this year under a $700 million contract signed in December 2005.

"The S-300 air defense system will be delivered to Iran on the basis of a contract signed with Russia in the past," Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said, according to state television.

Najjar didn't say when or how many of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile defense systems would be shipped to Iran, and Russian officials declined to comment.

The Tor-M1 is capable of hitting aerial targets flying at up to 20,000 feet.

[Shammu]

Russia to supply Iran with new defense

 Iran's defense minister said Wednesday that Russia is preparing to deliver powerful new air defense systems that would dramatically increase his nation's ability to repel an attack.

The S-300 anti-aircraft missile defense system is capable of shooting down aircraft, cruise missiles and ballistic missile warheads at ranges of over 90 miles and at altitudes of about 90,000 feet. Russian military officials boast that its capabilities outstrip the U.S. Patriot missile system.

The S-300 is an improvement over the Tor-M1 air defense missile system. Russia delivered 29 Tor-M1s to Iran this year under a $700 million contract signed in December 2005.

"The S-300 air defense system will be delivered to Iran on the basis of a contract signed with Russia in the past," Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said, according to state television.

Najjar didn't say when or how many of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile defense systems would be shipped to Iran, and Russian officials declined to comment.

The Tor-M1 is capable of hitting aerial targets flying at up to 20,000 feet.

Prophecy is lining up, just as the Bible says.

[Shammu]

Expansion of Iran-China ties to benefit global peace
23 December 2007

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad here on Sunday stressed that expansion of Tehran-Beijing relations would benefit both nations.

While receiving the credentials of the newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to Tehran, Xie Xiaoyan, the Iranian president said, "Such relations will also benefit global peace and security."
He urged the two governments "to make use of the existing potentials in both states to help further expand bilateral cooperation".

Referring to bright prospect of Tehran-Beijing ties, he said, "The two great nations enjoy rich culture and history."
"The common enemies of the two nations are against progress and development of both Tehran and Beijing," President Ahmadinejad noted, urging the two nations to be vigilant and seize all the existing opportunities.

He further voiced Tehran's readiness to boost all-out ties with Beijing.

The Chinese ambassador, for his part, said, "The two countries share identical views regarding several regional and international issues." Such an approach would pave the way for further expansion of bilateral relations, he added.

As to Iran's peaceful nuclear program, the Chinese envoy said, "Pursuance of peaceful nuclear technology is an inalienable right of the Iranian nation."
He called for further expansion of scientific, cultural, educational, political and economic relations between the two states.

Expansion of Iran-China ties to benefit global peace

[Shammu]

Ahmadinejad urges formation of think-tank groups in US
22 December 2007

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Friday in Mina underscored the need for creation of think-tank groups in the US to introduce the facts and logic of pure Islam to the people.

In a meeting with a group of American Muslims, he stressed that the bullying powers are trying to sow discord among different Muslim sects.

He cited Iraq as an example where efforts are made to create discord among different Iraqi tribes and sects. He added that the Iraqi people used to live in peace before occupation of the country.

"The US does not want a powerful and committed Iraq and in fact it does not want a united world of Islam," President Ahmadinejad reiterated.

Referring to efforts made by the arrogant powers to create difference and dispute in Bosnia and Lebanon, he said similar efforts are being made in Sudan and Iraq in order to divide the countries into several sections.

Terming the Zionist regime as the common enemy of all Muslims, Ahmadinejad said, "The account of Jews is different from that of the Zionists."
He further denounced support of the US and certain European states for the Zionist regime.

"Today, the world of Islam shoulders heavy responsibility," he said adding that the pure Islam can answer all requests of the human beings.

President Ahmadinejad wound up his five-day visit to Saudi Arabia and returned home Saturday morning.

Ahmadinejad arrived in Saudi Arabia Monday to perform annual ubgone86 rituals.

Ahmadinejad urges formation of think-tank groups in US