Quake Jolts Iran Capital, Sparking Panic

An earthquake near Iran's highest mountain killed at least one person and jolted the capital Tehran early Friday, forcing panicked residents to flee buildings.

The shallow 4.6 magnitude quake hit at 00:48 am local time near the city of Damavand, about 55 kilometers east of Tehran, the US Geological Survey said.

It saw scores of residents of the capital exit buildings for the safety of streets and parks, AFP journalists reported.

Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on Twitter that the tremor claimed the life of one person and injured seven others.

He called on people to "keep calm" and to follow safety guidelines.

The USGS said on its website that the quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres. Its epicentre was south of Mount Damavand, a volcanic mountain which at 5,671 metres (18,606 feet) is Iran's highest peak. 

Iran sits on top of major tectonic plates and experiences frequent seismic activity.

A 5.7 magnitude earthquake that rattled the western village of Habash-e Olya on February 23 killed at least nine people over the border in neighbouring Turkey.

In November 2017, a 7.3-magnitude quake in Iran's western province of Kermanshah killed 620 people.

In 2003, a 6.6-magnitude quake in southeastern Iran decimated the ancient mud-brick city of Bam and killed at least 31,000 people. 

Iran's deadliest quake was a 7.4-magnitude tremor in 1990 that killed 40,000 people in northern Iran, injured 300,000 and left half a million homeless.

In December and January, two earthquakes struck near Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant.

Iran's Persian Gulf neighbors have raised concerns about the reliability of the country's sole nuclear power facility, which produces 1,000 megawatts of power, and the risk of radioactive leaks in case of a major earthquake.

Photo: IRNA

Virus Drives Tehran Cabbies Around the Bend

By Ahmad Parhizi

Usually Tehran's tens of thousands of taxi drivers have to battle maddening traffic but now the coronavirus is driving them around the bend.

Since it first emerged in Iran in mid-February, the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease has claimed 5,800 lives and infected more than 91,000, according to Iran's government.

It has also put the brakes on most forms of transportation, and taxi services have been among the hardest hit in Tehran, a city of more than eight million people.

"So many taxis, but no passengers," lamented 52-year-old Mohammad, pointing to lines of yellow cabs hoping for a ride at Aryashahr station, a transport hub in west Tehran.

The situation was "catastrophic" for the entire sector, he told AFP.

"How can we pay the rent, the water and electricity bills, or even for the car?" his colleague Homayoun, 60, chipped in.

Mohammad is angry at the government and its insistence on respect for the rules of social distancing, which in his view discourage people from taking any form of public transport.

In Aryashahr, most of the drivers have installed transparent partitions for the passenger compartments of their cars to isolate themselves from customers.

In the hope of winning back clients, they also apply copious amounts of disinfectant on their vehicles.

One Last Spray

A driver named Rouhollah was lucky enough to get three customers, and with one last spray of disinfectant on his cab's door handles he was good to go.

No less than 80,000 taxi drivers are authorised to work in Tehran, according to Alireza Qanadan, head of licensing for the municipality.

Those suffering the most from the outbreak were the roughly 2,000 cabbies attached to the capital's two airports and bus terminals providing long-distance connections to other provinces, he said.

"Their revenues have fallen by almost 90 percent" due to the coronavirus, Qanadan told AFP.

In a bid to combat the spread of the virus, the authorities banned inter-city travel at the end of March.

Since April 20, Iranians have once again been allowed to travel between provinces but this has not brought a return to normal for taxi services.

On average, the daily earnings of all drivers in the capital are 64 percent lower than they were before the health crisis, Qanadan said.

Taxis operating in Tehran were suffering from the fact that now "many people use their own cars to get to work for fear of illness", he added.

One commuter summed it up on Twitter. "I always used to take a taxi to work but now, with the coronavirus, I have to take my car and leave home an hour early to find a place to park," Hamid wrote.

The municipality is also encouraging the use of private cars.

In response to the coronavirus, it has lifted restrictions on traffic that had been imposed on central Tehran to combat the city's often heavy air pollution.

Ride-Hailing Hit Too

For the drivers of taxis and ride-hailing services alike, the phased resumption of economic activity allowed in Tehran since April 18 has so far hardly improved their lot.

"Before the coronavirus, I used to wait a maximum of 10 minutes to get a passenger, but these days I sometimes have to stand on a street corner for two hours," said Bahram, a driver for Tapsi, an Iranian version of Uber.

Since the Persian New Year holidays more than five weeks ago, the 37-year-old said he had only earned about 12 million rials ($76, 70 euros), less than a third of his usual takings.

Another Tapsi-affiliated driver, Alireza, 49, spoke of a similar drop in income. He said he was getting by for the time being thanks to a loan from the company.

In order to help drivers—13 of whom have died from COVID-19, according to official figures—the municipality had extended their work permits free of charge, Qanadan said.

For the most vulnerable of them, he added, city hall has also distributed sanitary articles and even food.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Airliner Overshoots Runway, Stops in Highway

An Iranian passenger plane overshot a runway as it landed Monday in the southwestern city of Bandar-e Mahshahr, barreling into an adjacent highway without causing casualties, state TV reported.

"Arriving at Mahshahr airport, the pilot landed the aircraft too late and this caused him to miss the runway," the broadcaster quoted the head of Khuzestan province's aviation authority as saying.

This "caused the aircraft to overshoot the runway and stop in a boulevard" next to the airport, Mohammadreza Rezaeia said.

The McDonnell Douglas jet, belonging to Iran's Caspian Airlines, was flying from Tehran's Mehrabad Airport with 135 passengers plus the plane's crew.

State TV reported that all were safe.

A state TV reporter travelling on the plane told the broadcaster that the aircraft's "back wheel had broken off, as we saw it was left on the runway" and said the plane had been moving with no wheels before it ground to a halt.

Iran's aviation authority said "the cause of the incident is being investigated".

The Islamic republic had been planning to upgrade its decrepit fleet after long-standing US sanctions were lifted following the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

But when US President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord in 2018 and reimposed crippling economic sanctions, the treasury department revoked licenses for Boeing and Airbus to sell passenger jets to Iran.

Photo: IRNA

Iran May Seek U.S. Help in Jet-Crash Probe Through UN Treaty

By Alan Levin

Iran has invoked an international agreement to get assistance from foreign investigators—including from the U.S.—in the investigation of Wednesday’s fiery crash of a jetliner near Tehran, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Such a move is common in aviation disasters, and gives the country where the plane was produced the ability to participate. The plane that crashed was a U.S.-built Boeing Co. 737-800.

However, American agencies including the National Transportation Safety Board are weighing whether it is legal to engage with Iranian authorities under the terms of sanctions the U.S. has imposed on Iran. Moreover, they are concerned about the safety of sending people there given the confrontation between the two countries that has led to military strikes on both sides, the people said.

The probe into Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 -- which plunged from the sky minutes after takeoff, killing all 176 people aboard -- is fraught with difficulty and intrigue.

The crash came hours after an Iranian missile attack on two Iraqi military bases in retaliation for an American drone attack last week that killed one of Iran’s top generals. American forces are stationed at both bases.

Under the United Nation’s International Civil Aviation Organization, crash investigations are conducted by the nation in which they occur. In addition, the country where the plane and key components are manufactured are allowed to take part.

Iran notified the UN agency of the accident in the hours after it occurred, according to the people, who were briefed on the matter but weren’t authorized to speak about it and asked not to be named.

The NTSB routinely participates in dozens of crash investigations around the world under the ICAO process, known as Annex 13.

By notifying the ICAO, Iran suggested it might be open to U.S. help in the probe, said the two people. But the Islamic Republic has sent mixed signals, with some officials being quoted as saying they would not allow Americans to analyze the plane’s two crash-proof flight recorders, for example.

American law also prohibits the NTSB from working in Iran because of longstanding bans on conducting business in that country. The NTSB has occasionally assisted in accident investigations there, but had to obtain special permission from the U.S. Treasury. The process of obtaining such approval has at times taken more than a year.

“The NTSB is monitoring developments surrounding the crash of Ukraine International flight 752 and is following its standard procedures for international aviation accident investigations, including long-standing restrictions under the country embargoes,” the agency said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

“As part of its usual procedures, the NTSB is working with the State Department and other agencies to determine the best course of action.”

The State Department issued a statement offering assistance to Ukraine, but notably didn’t mention helping Iran. “The United States calls for complete cooperation with any investigation into the cause of the crash,” the department said.

The aircraft climbed normally until it reached an altitude of 7,900 feet (2,408 meters), then suddenly stopped transmitting its position, according to data from the tracking site FlightRadar24.

The jetliner was equipped with a device that communicated with the airline and it also showed the plane was behaving normally until it stopped transmitting at about the same time, said a person familiar with the data.

The airline said in a statement that the investigation would include representatives of Iran, Boeing, the airline and the National Bureau of Air Accidents Investigation of Ukraine.

Boeing said in a statement “we are ready to assist in any way needed.”

Photo: IRNA

Ukraine Passenger Jet Crashes in Iran, Killing at Least 170

By David Vujanovic and Ania Tsoukanova

A Ukrainian airliner carrying 176 passengers crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday, killing all on board, officials in Iran said. The Boeing 737 had departed Imam Khomeini International Airport before dawn bound for the Ukrainian capital Kiev, semi-official news agency ISNA said.

It slammed into farmland at Khalaj Abad, in Shahriar county, about 45 kilometres northwest of the airport, according to reports on state media.

"Obviously it is impossible that passengers" on flight PS-752 are alive, Red Crescent head Morteza Salimi told semi-official news agency ISNA.

"Out of the 176 people who died, nine were flight crew members and the others passengers," Mohammad Taghizadeh, the deputy governor for Tehran province, told ISNA. Seventy were men, 81 women and 15 children, he said.

"There are currently 500 medical units on the scene" gathering bodies, he added. Emergency services spokesman Mojtaba Khaledi said the vast majority of the dead were Iranian citizens.

Just two passengers and nine crew members were Ukrainian, according to Ukraine's national security council, which is overseeing a crisis team. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed all those on board the plane were killed.

The aircraft was carrying 82 Iranian and 63 Canadian nationals, a Ukrainian minister said. The Boeing 737 was also carrying 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, four Afghans, three Germans and three Britons, Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko wrote on Twitter.

"According to preliminary data, all passengers and crew members are dead," he wrote on Facebook.

The Red Crescent said teams were being assisted by soldiers and firefighters in the effort to recover bodies.

"After six o'clock (0230 GMT) this morning we were informed that a passenger plane crashed in the vicinity of Shahriar," said Shahin Fathi, the head of its search and rescue unit.

"All operational teams were dispatched to the area," he told state television. "Unfortunately... we haven't found anyone alive."

The crash was likely to have been caused by "technical difficulties", Press TV said, quoting Ali Khashani, spokesman for Imam Khomeini International Airport.

The Ukrainian airline whose plane crashed outside Tehran on Wednesday, killing over 170 people, said the Boeing 737 was built in 2016 and checked only two days before the accident.

"The plane was manufactured in 2016, it was received by the airline directly from the (Boeing) factory. The plane underwent its last planned technical maintenance on January 6, 2020," Ukraine International Airlines said in a statement.

"The plane caught fire after crashing," said Press TV, state television's English-language news broadcaster.

A video aired by the state broadcaster appeared to show the plane already on fire, falling from the night sky.

American airline manufacturer Boeing tweeted: "We are aware of the media reports out of Iran and we are gathering more information." The Ukrainian president warned against speculation about the causes of the crash.

"I ask everyone to keep from speculating and putting forth unconfirmed theories about the crash," Zelensky he wrote on Facebook, as he cut short a vacation in Oman and flew back to Ukraine.

Aviation expert Stephen Wright said he doubted the airliner had been downed by an Iranian missile but said the evidence suggested something "catastrophic" had taken place.

"There is a lot of speculation at the moment it has been shot down - I think that is not going to be the case at all," he said. "The aircraft was climbing... it was going up in the right direction, which means that something catastrophic has happened.

"It could be a bomb or it could be some sort of catastrophic breakup of the aircraft." Wright, a professor of aircraft systems at Tampere University in Finland, said the aircraft was quite new and not one of the the MAX models fitted with anti-stall systems that have been linked with two other recent crashes.

The crash came shortly after Iran said it fired missiles at Iraqi bases in revenge for the killing of one of the Islamic republic's top military commanders in a US drone strike on Friday.

Following the missile strikes, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was banning US-registered carriers from flying over Iraq, Iran and the Gulf after rocket attacks on US forces in Iraq.

"The (FAA) issues Notices to Airmen tonight outlining flight restrictions that prohibit US civil aviation operators from operating in the airspace over Iraq, Iran and the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman," it said in a statement.

"The FAA will continue closely monitoring events in the Middle East." Iran launched the missiles after a US drone strike killed Qasem Soleimani, a hugely popular figure who headed the foreign operations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed "severe revenge" for the assassination and declared three days of mourning following the assassination which shocked the Islamic republic.

The assassination of Soleimani set off an escalating war of words between Iran and the US.

In Tehran, President Hassan Rouhani on Monday warned Trump to "never threaten" Iran, after the US leader issued a US strike list of 52 targets in the Islamic republic.

Photo: IRNA

'Million-Strong' Homage for General Brings Tehran to Standstill

By Amir Havasi

Downtown Tehran was brought to a standstill Monday as mourners flooded the Iranian capital to pay an emotional homage to Qassem Soleimani, the "heroic" general killed in a US strike.

Young and old were packed shoulder-to-shoulder in the streets, including women dressed in black-clad chadors and others wearing loose-fitting hijabs.

Soleimani, one of Iran's most popular public figures, was killed in a US drone strike on Friday near Baghdad international airport. He was 62.

His assassination drove up tensions between arch-enemies Washington and Tehran, which has vowed "severe revenge".

"He was a hero. He defeated Daesh," said a woman in her 30s, referring to the Islamic State group.

"What America did is definitely a crime," said the woman who only gave her surname as Mohammadi.

"I'm here to mourn his martyrdom. There must be a response but we don't want war. Nobody wants war," she told AFP.

State television said it was a "several million-strong" turnout.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has vowed "severe revenge" for the US attack, presided over prayers for the slain general.

He appeared to cry beside the flag-draped coffins containing the remains of Soleimani and five other "martyrs" killed in the strike.

The streets of Tehran were so full of people that many were unable to emerge from underground metro stations, semi-official news agency ISNA reported.

"There are large crowds at metro stations but as there is also a huge crowd at the street level, it isn't possible to evacuate passengers," metro chief Farnoush Nobakht was quoted as saying.

The sheer number of mourners left many people stuck in sidestreets around Enghelab (Revolution) Street, the main route of a procession to a ceremony at Tehran University.

'Crushing Response'

It was silent in one alley until a child who climbed a tree to see if the street ahead had opened uttered "Death to America".

People within earshot soon joined in and loudly chanted the same phrase.

Chants of "Death to infidels," "Death to seditionists" and "Death to al-Saud"—a reference to the Saudi ruling family—were then heard.

But most of the anger was directed at Tehran's arch-enemy Washington and US President Donald Trump.

One man said he had come to the capital with his wife and child before dawn from Karaj, a city about 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of the Iranian capital.

"Our message to America is we will hit you. We'll make you pay for the blood you spilled," said Mehdi Ghorbani.

"America should know they started this, but we will end it," he told AFP.

A group of teenagers stood in a circle holding banners, one reading: "Haj Qasem's shoe is worth more than Trump's head".

Other mourners called for US forces to be driven out of the region.

"We must give a crushing response," one of the mourners told AFP.

"We must target whatever military base they have in the region. We must attack all that are in the range of our missiles," said the 61-year-old businessman who gave his name as Afkhami.

"Americans being thrown out (of Iraq) is not enough."

Photo: IRNA

Mourners Pack Iran Cities as Top General's Remains Return

By Amir Havasi

Mourners flooded the Iranian cities of Ahvaz and Mashhad Sunday, weeping and beating their chests in homage to top general Qassem Soleimani who was killed in a US strike in Baghdad.

"Death to America," they chanted as they packed Ahvaz's streets and a long bridge spanning a river in the southwestern city to receive the casket containing Soleimani's remains.

As Shiite chants resonated in the air, people held portraits of the man seen as a hero of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and for spearheading Iran's Middle East operations as commander of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force.

In the northeastern city of Mashhad, scores took to streets around the Imam Reza shrine and, addressing the US, chanted "Be afraid of your own shadow".

Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike Friday near Baghdad airport, shocking the Islamic republic. He was 62.

The attack was ordered by President Donald Trump, who said the Quds commander had been planning an "imminent" attack on US diplomats and forces in Iraq.

In the face of growing Iraqi anger over the strike, the country's parliament was expected to vote Sunday on whether to oust the roughly 5,200 American troops in Iraq.

Soleimani's assassination ratcheted up tensions between arch-enemies Tehran and Washington and sparked fears of a new Middle East war.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed "severe revenge" and declared three days of mourning.

But Trump warned late Saturday that America was targeting 52 sites "important to Iran & Iranian culture" and would hit them "very fast and very hard" if the country attacks American personnel or assets.

In a series of saber-rattling tweets, Trump said the choice of 52 targets represented the number of Americans held hostage at the US embassy in Tehran for more than a year starting in late 1979.

'Terrorist in a Suit'

Iran's top diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted that "targeting cultural sites is a WAR CRIME".

For Iran's army chief, Trump's threat was an attempt to distract the world from Soleimani's "unjustifiable" assassination.

"I doubt they have the courage to initiate" a conflict, said Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi.

Iran's communications minister, Mohammad Javad Jahromi, branded Trump a "terrorist in a suit" and said in a tweet that he is "like ISIS, like Hitler, like Genghis (Khan)! They all hate cultures".

US-Iran tensions escalated in 2018 when Trump unilaterally withdrew from a landmark accord that gave Tehran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

A year on, Iran began hitting back by reducing its nuclear commitments with a series of steps every 60 days, the most recent deadline passing on Saturday.

Its foreign ministry spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said Tehran would finalise the fifth step in a meeting on Sunday night, noting the nature of its move was altered by Soleimani's killing.

On Sunday, thousands of mourners dressed in black gathered in Ahvaz.

Crowds massed in Mollavi Square with flags in green, white and red—depicting the blood of "martyrs".

"A glorious crowd is at the ceremony," said state television.

In Tehran, deputies chanted "Death to America" for a few minutes during a regular session of parliament.

"Trump, this is the voice of the Iranian nation, listen," said speaker Ali Larijani.

Soleimani's remains and those of five other Iranians—all Guards members—killed in the US drone strike had arrived at Ahvaz airport before dawn, semi-official news agency ISNA said.

With them were the remains of Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of Iraq's powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary umbrella group, who was also killed in the US strike.

Soleimani's remains arrived in Mashhad in the afternoon and are due to be flown to Tehran for more tributes on Sunday evening.

On Monday, Khamenei is expected to pray over Soleimani's remains at Tehran University before a procession to Azadi Square.

His remains are then due to be taken to the holy city of Qom for a ceremony at Masumeh shrine, ahead of a funeral Tuesday in his hometown Kerman.

Cyber Attack

In neighbouring Iraq, pro-Iran factions ramped up pressure on US installations with missiles and warnings to Iraq's troops late Saturday.

In the first hints of a possible retaliatory response, two mortar rounds struck Saturday near the US embassy in Baghdad, security sources said.

Almost simultaneously, two rockets slammed into the Al-Balad airbase where American troops are deployed.

Iraq said there were no casualties. The US military also said no coalition troops were hurt.

Photo: IRNA

Smog in Iran Shuts Schools, Universities

Air pollution forced the closure of schools and universities in parts of Iran on Saturday, including Tehran, which was cloaked by a cloud of toxic smog, state media reported.

The young and elderly and people with respiratory illnesses were warned to stay indoors and sporting activities were suspended for the start of the working week in the Islamic republic.

The decision to shut schools and universities in the capital was announced late Friday by deputy governor Mohammad Taghizadeh, after a meeting of an emergency committee for air pollution.

"Due to increased air pollution, kindergartens, preschools and schools, universities and higher education institutes of Tehran province will be closed," he said, quoted by state news agency IRNA.

Schools in the capital would also be closed for a second day on Sunday, Taghizadeh said later.

"Having examined the index of pollutants in Tehran... it was decided for all schools to be closed tomorrow in Tehran province, except for the counties of Firuzkuh, Damavand and Pardis," he was quoted as saying.

An odd-even traffic scheme was imposed on Saturday to restrict the number of private vehicles on roads in the capital and trucks were banned outright in Tehran province, IRNA reported.

The scheme would be lifted on Sunday, but heavy vehicles would still be barred from the city, said Taghizadeh.

Industry to be Halted

But activities would be halted on Sunday for all sand mines and industries in Tehran that contribute to air pollution, he added, without specifying which ones.

Schools were also closed on Saturday in the northern province of Alborz and in the central province of Esfahan, IRNA reported, citing officials.

Other areas where schools were shut included the northeastern city of Mashhad, Orumiyeh city in northwestern Iran and Qom city, south of Tehran.

In Tehran, average concentrations of hazardous airborne particles reached 146 micrograms per cubic meter on Saturday morning, according to air.tehran.ir, a government-linked website.

By mid-afternoon, the index had dropped to 107 after winds blew away some of the pollution hanging over the capital.

The World Health Organization's advised maximum level is 50.

The pall of pollution has shrouded the sprawling city of eight million for days and is only expected to clear on Monday when rain is forecast.

Air pollution was the cause of nearly 30,000 deaths per year in Iranian cities, state media reported earlier this year, citing a health ministry official.

The problem worsens in Tehran during winter, when a lack of wind and the cold air traps hazardous smog over the city for days on end—a phenomenon known as thermal inversion.

Most of the city's pollution is caused by heavy vehicles, motorbikes, refineries and power plants, according to a World Bank report released last year.

Photo: IRNA

Air Pollution Shuts Schools in Iran's Capital

Schools in Tehran were ordered to be closed on Wednesday after the Iranian capital was cloaked in dangerously high levels of air pollution, authorities said.

Governor Anoushiravan Mohseni-Bandpey said kindergartens, preschools and primary schools would be shut in the city and the counties of Gharchak, Pishva and Varamin.

"The air quality index for the city of Tehran still has not passed the unhealthy status for sensitive groups," he was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA.

Average concentrations of hazardous airborne particles hit 133 micrograms per cubic meter in the city and were as high as 150 for 10 districts, he said.

That is far above the World Health Organization's recommended maximum of 25 micrograms per cubic meter on average over a 24-hour period.

Many people were seen wearing face masks to avoid fumes as they waited for buses on the sides of traffic-choked streets of southern Tehran during morning rush-hour.

A layer of thick smog covered Tehran on Tuesday, but it appeared to dissipate in northern areas on Wednesday morning with fewer school buses on the roads.

Air pollution was the cause of nearly 30,000 deaths per year in Iranian cities, IRNA reported earlier this year, citing a health ministry official.

Each winter, Iran's sprawling capital suffers some of the worst pollution in the world through thermal inversion—a phenomenon that traps hazardous air over the city.

According to a World Bank report last year, most of the pollution in the city of eight million inhabitants is caused by heavy duty vehicles, motorbikes, refineries and power plants.

Photo: IRNA

Tehran Gets Third Mayor in 18 Months

Tehran city council on Tuesday elected Pirouz Hanachi, a little-known technocrat, to the politically sensitive post of mayor that has in the past led to Iran's presidency, state television reported.

Hanachi is the third mayor of Tehran to be elected by the city council since reformists swept to power in local polls in May 2017.

The 54-year-old Hanachi was a deputy mayor after the reformists took office in August 2017, having previously served as deputy minister at the roads and urban development ministry.

The interior ministry has to confirm his election, a mostly procedural process.

The reformists have promised transparency in running the city following corruption charges against their conservative rivals who controlled the Tehran council for 14 years.

The post of mayor has changed hands three times in 18 months, starting with Mohammad Ali Najafi who resigned officially on medical grounds amid reports he had been threatened with arrest by the prosecutor's office.

His successor, Mohammad Ali Afshani, a retiree, now has to step down by December 6 after parliament passed a law banning retirees from holding official posts.

The post served as a political springboard for conservative hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president between 2005 and 2013, although fellow incumbent Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf was unsuccessful in his bids for the presidency.

Despite winning the highest number of votes in last year's polls, Mohsen Hashemi Rafsanjani, son of late ex-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, has repeatedly tried but failed to be elected mayor.

Photo Credit: IRNA

Tehran Mayor Quits After Claims He Was Threatened With Arrest

Tehran's reformist mayor was replaced on Tuesday following claims he was threatened with arrest if he did not step down. Mohammad Ali Najafi, who took power after reformists swept the council elections last May, said he was suffering from unspecified health problems that required extensive treatment.

But his allies say he was under pressure after accusing his conservative predecessors of corruption. Morteza Alviri, a member of the council and a former mayor, said on Sunday that Najafi was summoned one night to the prosecutor's office.

"I'm informed he was summoned, not in a polite manner", Alviri said in a video posted on the reformist Khabaronline website. He said Najafi was woken while in bed.

"I heard he was threatened with arrest," Alviri added. Najafi had attracted criticism from hardliners last month after attending a show at City Hall for Iranian Women's Day in which schoolgirls performed a traditional dance.

Islamic law in Iran prohibits public dancing, and prosecutor general Mohammad Jafar Montazeri said the show included "acts against public morality" and Islamic tradition.

Najafi resigned a few days later, citing health reasons he had not previously mentioned.

The council rejected his decision, prompting the prosecutor general to accuse them of playing "a political game" and calling on Najafi to submit a fresh resignation, which he did on Monday.

The second resignation was approved by the council on Tuesday, and he has been temporarily replaced by a deputy, Samiollah Hosseini Makarm.

Najafi's supporters strongly criticized the prosecutor's involvement, and asked why he was not instead focused on the corruption allegations revealed by the mayor.

Reformists displaced the conservatives for the first time in 14 years in last year's municipal elections.

In January, Najafi presented a report on the previous administration, run by former police chief and presidential candidate Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, saying large sums had been diverted from council contracts into officials' pockets.

The report said thousands were being kept on the payroll in non-existent jobs, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency, and an extra 13,000 added ahead of the election.

"Inside the municipality, there have been many serious financial violations, but no one has been invited to explain these violations," Alviri told Khabaronline.

Photo Credit: Tasnim

French Foreign Minister Visits Iran

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian arrived in Tehran early Monday for talks on the 2015 nuclear deal and Iran's role in the Syrian conflict.

It is the first visit by one of the European signatories to the nuclear deal since US President Donald Trump set an ultimatum that he would abandon it in May if it was not "improved".

Le Drian has made it clear to Tehran that he is no "emissary of Donald Trump", the foreign minister's team have told AFP. The visit was originally scheduled for January but postponed due to a week of violent protests in Iran.

"We want to preserve the nuclear deal because it is working, it's robust and because the Iranians are respecting it," Le Drian's team said. Le Drian, however, has said that without an end to ballistic missile tests by Iran, it will "always be suspected, with reason, of wanting to develop nuclear weapons."

Tehran denies seeking nuclear arms and says its missiles are purely defensive and not up for discussion. Iran has said it "will not accept any amendments in (the nuclear) agreement, be it now or in the future, and it will not allow any other issues to be linked to (it)".

Despite their differences, Iran has welcomed French efforts to re-engage economically and politically with the Islamic republic. Last year, Iran signed a $5-billion gas exploration deal with French energy giant Total, Tehran's biggest since the nuclear accord.

But political differences were on show on Sunday in a call between presidents Hassan Rouhani of Iran and France's Emmanuel Macron.

The French president called for Iran to put "the necessary pressure" on its Syrian ally, President Bashar al-Assad, to stop "indiscriminate" attacks on civilians.

For his part, Rouhani said countries exporting weapons to Saudi Arabia—France being one of the biggest suppliers—must answer for war crimes being committed by that country in Yemen.

Photo Credit: Wikicommons