Short news summary for Sunday, August 19, 1397 (August 10, 2018). Read the most important news from Iran and the world on the 28th day of Mordad 97 here moment by moment.
Latest news
The commander of the Iranian Air Force has changed. Aziz Nasirzadeh has been appointed as the new commander of the Iranian Air Force by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran in a decree published on Sunday, August 19. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Brigadier General Aziz Nasirzadeh as the new commander of the Air Force. Hassan Shah Safi had been in command since 2008. In his appointment decree, the Supreme Leader called for attention to "parts manufacturing," "updating training along with transferring scientific and technical knowledge to the youth," and "considering the livelihood needs of personnel." On the same day, Mohammad Qomi was appointed as the head of the Islamic Propaganda Organization. Before his appointment, Qomi was not well-known in the political space of Iran. His previous positions included being the head of the Sharif Islamic Studies and Research Center and the deputy director of the Institute of Culture and Divine Civilization. Mehdi Khamoushi, a figure close to the Islamic Coalition Party, had been the head of the Islamic Propaganda Organization since 2001.
The impeachment of the Minister of Economy has been announced in Parliament. The impeachment motion against Masoud Karbasian, the Minister of Economy and Finance, was announced in the open session of Parliament on Sunday, August 19, with 33 signatures. Ali-Asghar Youssefnejad, a member of the Parliament's board, stated that this impeachment motion was received by the Parliament's board from the Economic Commission on August 10 and is now being announced. According to the internal regulations of Parliament, Karbasian must appear in the Parliament within 10 days to defend himself. Fluctuations in the exchange rate and their impact on the prices of goods and services in Iran have drawn significant criticism towards the economic team of President Hassan Rouhani.
The suicide of a prisoner in Fashafouyeh has been confirmed. Mostafa Mohibi, the director of Tehran's prisons, confirmed reports about the "suicide" of one of the prisoners in Fashafouyeh prison and the transfer of his body to forensic medicine. According to Mohibi, "this individual, who was convicted of theft, committed suicide in the restroom." Previously, journalist Mehdi Mahmoudian had tweeted that one of the "detainees" from recent protests had committed suicide in Fashafouyeh prison and would reveal his name after confirming the news.
The financial situation of Tehran Municipality is "critical." Majid Farahani, the head of the Budget and Financial Supervision Committee of Tehran City Council, stated that the financial situation of Tehran Municipality is "critical." According to Farahani, "only half of the municipality's budget has been realized, and if we continue like this, out of the 17,500 billion tomans budget, only about 9,000 billion tomans will be realized." He warned that this means only the "maintenance costs of the city" can be covered, and "urban projects" will be halted. Farahani proposed a "reduction" of at least 30% in expenses in Tehran Municipality and a "call for a movement to attract investments" in the city.
Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Mesbah Yazdi sought forgiveness from God regarding the JCPOA. Mesbah Yazdi stated: "We must seek forgiveness and say, 'O God, we made a mistake; forgive us for relying on the JCPOA and negotiating with enemies; forgive us for being hopeful about the Europeans. Some even relied on Russia and China; they too make mistakes.'" Last week, Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, considered the JCPOA negotiations a mistake and crossing red lines.
Zarif linked the U.S. 'Action Group' to the coup against Mossadegh. On the anniversary of the August 19, 1953 coup that led to the fall of Mohammad Mossadegh's government, Iran's Foreign Minister tweeted that the purpose of the U.S. 'Action Group' was to overthrow the Islamic Republic. The announcement of the formation of the 'Iran Action Group' was made by Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, on Thursday, August 10, a group responsible for reviewing and overseeing all U.S. policies related to Iran. Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote in his tweet: "65 years ago on this day, the U.S. overthrew Dr. Mossadegh's government, which was elected by the people, and guaranteed a dictatorship for 25 years. Now the Action Group dreams of doing the same through pressure and misinformation... never again."
The emphasis of Kalantari on the intentionality of the fires in Hoor al-Azim. Isa Kalantari, the head of the Environmental Protection Organization, reiterated the intentionality of the fires in Hoor al-Azim in Iraq. Kalantari stated in a meeting of the Administrative Council of Kerman Province: "It took 13 days for the Iraqis to allow our helicopters to cross the border to extinguish the fire; it is clear that there is intent for the fire not to be extinguished." He said that extinguishing the fire from the ground is impossible due to the presence of landmines.
The suicide of a prisoner in Fashafouyeh has been confirmed. Mehdi Mahmoudian, a human rights activist and member of the Prisoners' Defense Association, tweeted: "Due to reporting the suicide of one of the prisoners in Fashafouyeh, I have been verbally abused and threatened with arrest and assault. But while they were fundamentally denying the news, this news was confirmed by the director of Tehran's prisons."
Makarim Shirazi opposed women's presence in stadiums. Ayatollah Naser Makarim Shirazi opposed women's presence in stadiums. In response to a question about women's presence in stadiums, he said: "The atmosphere in stadiums is not suitable for women's presence, and there is no doubt that the mixing of youth and their freedom leads to many problems from moral and social perspectives; moreover, in some types of sports, men do not have appropriate coverage in front of women; therefore, it is necessary to refrain from attending these events; especially since they can watch these events on media, and their presence is not necessary."
Collaboration of a senior White House lawyer with the special investigator. The New York Times reported that Don McGahn, a senior White House lawyer, is collaborating with Robert Mueller on the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election. After this report was published, Donald Trump tweeted that the declining New York Times had implied in a fake article that since Don McGahn had testified for hours for the special investigator, he had a role similar to John Dean, who caused Nixon's resignation. Trump further wrote that he had allowed Don McGahn to testify for the special investigator.