Short news updates for Thursday, August 9, 1397. Read the most important news from Iran and the world on the eighteenth day of Mordad 97 here moment by moment.
The Swiss government advised its companies to continue their business activities with Iran despite the return of US sanctions against the country. This request comes after Donald Trump, the President of the United States, stated on his Twitter page regarding the official return of sanctions against Iran that "anyone who trades with Iran will not deal with the United States." Fabian Mainfisch, head of the economic secretariat of the Swiss Foreign Ministry, stated that US sanctions will not affect the "legal status" in Switzerland regarding Iran.
Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, criticized the Iraqi government's decision to comply with US sanctions against Iran's nuclear program. The Prime Minister of Iraq announced on August 7 that Baghdad does not agree with US sanctions against Iran but will comply with them to protect its own interests. In response, Mahmoud Sadeghi tweeted that "the Iraqi government owes Iran $1.1 trillion in compensation for direct damages from the imposed war according to Article 6 of Resolution 598." He added, "The Iranian government has delayed demanding this compensation considering the hardships of the Iraqi people; now the Iraqi Prime Minister is cooperating with the unjust sanctions against the Iranian people instead of compensating."
One month of the three months of unpaid wages for workers in the Iranian railway's technical line and infrastructure was paid on August 7, but the workers' "concern" about the "uncertain status" of their remaining claims has led them to continue their protests in various areas on August 9. The strike by this group of workers began on July 19 following a call from the Coordination Council of Workers and Employees of the Railway Technical Line and Infrastructure. They have also blocked railway lines in some cases. According to the statement from the Coordination Council, the workers' demands include "payment of health insurance, full settlement of wages, cancellation of temporary contracts, and the conclusion of permanent work contracts."
The value of the Turkish lira reached its lowest point in the last 10 years. The Turkish currency, which has been declining against the US dollar due to increasing tensions between Ankara and Washington, continued to fall on Thursday. On Thursday, the value of each US dollar reached 5.5575 lira, marking the lowest exchange rate for the lira against the dollar in the past decade.
Recent attacks by the Israeli army in Gaza left several injured. Palestinian officials reported that the latest airstrikes by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip resulted in injuries ranging from eight to eighteen people. According to an Israeli army spokesperson, these airstrikes were carried out after dozens of rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel near the city of Beersheba. Tensions between Israel and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have escalated in recent weeks, raising fears that this tension could lead to a full-scale military conflict. Israel and Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, have fought each other three times so far.
The International Federation of Teachers condemned the prison sentence issued for Mohammad Habibi, a board member of the Iranian Teachers' Association. This organization called on civil activists and trade unions worldwide to protest this ruling and demand Habibi's immediate release. Habibi was recently sentenced to ten and a half years in prison, of which, according to his lawyer, the maximum enforceable term is seven and a half years. He was also sentenced to 74 lashes.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad harshly criticized President Hassan Rouhani, stating that the people do not accept him. The former President of Iran called for the resignation of Hassan Rouhani and the Larijani brothers from the three branches of the Islamic Republic. In a video message, Ahmadinejad severely attacked Rouhani's government, claiming that the people do not accept him. He stated, "The question is, who is responsible for this situation? I have remained silent out of respect for the people's vote. However, five years have passed, and the economy is collapsing. Public trust in the entire system is nearing zero."
The Academy Awards announced that popular and entertaining films will also receive Oscars. The Academy announced on August 8 that from now on, an award for "Best Popular Film" will be given annually to a popular and entertaining film. This decision was made after last year's statistics showed a decline in the number of viewers for the ceremony on television. The Academy has been accused in recent years of only awarding "artistic" films that have a limited audience. With the addition of the "Best Popular Film" award, films like "Black Panther" from the superhero genre will also have a chance to win.
The return of the Achaemenid tablets is awaiting "permission" from the US Treasury Department. The Iranian Labor News Agency, ILNA, reported that the Cultural Heritage Organization is waiting for the US Treasury Department to issue permission for the return of ancient Achaemenid tablets currently held by the Oriental Institute of Chicago. According to Mohammad Hassan Talebian, the Treasury Department informed this organization via email that "necessary measures for the exit of these artifacts will be taken in the coming months." The Achaemenid tablets include more than 30,000 tablets that were sent to the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago by ship in 1935 based on a government resolution and arrived there in 1937. It was supposed that expert reviews and studies on these tablets would be conducted over three years and then returned to Iran. After translating and publishing some of these tablets by American experts, some were returned to Iran in three batches in 1948, 1971, and 2004, but the process of their return was halted due to a legal issue related to a terrorist attack in Jerusalem and implicating Iran in that incident.
Reuters reported on Thursday that due to unprecedented heat in Denmark, wheat production is expected to decrease by up to 40%. This report states that the cause of this event is one of the hottest and driest summers in the country's history. The prolonged heat and reduced rainfall have also harmed agricultural products in several other European countries, including Sweden, France, and Germany.