Middle East & North Africa

Tehran, IRNA – The acting deputy director of transportation and traffic of Tehran Municipality has said that the contract to buy 791 metro cars is the largest contract in the history of Tehran’s metro.

Referring to the allocation of $1 billion for purchasing metro cars with the help of the 13th government in Iran, Mohsen Hormozi said that the contract to buy 791 metro cars is the largest contract in the history of Tehran’s metro.

He expressed hope that the first metro cars will be delivered to the municipality of Tehran in the next year.

02 October 2023; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu excluded National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from security discussions attended by most senior Israeli security officials on Sunday, it has been reported. Ben-Gvir’s position includes authority over the police, but this was not a reason for Netanyahu to invite him to the meeting.

"Ben-Gvir has a habit of making problematic proposals"

02 October 2023; MEMO: The Chairman of the Sudanese Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, on Saturday said that there are some who want to “swallow” Sudan.

According to the Arab World Press (AWP), Al-Burhan expressed his determination to end the ongoing war in Sudan and put an end to what he described as the “cancer” that has afflicted the country.

He stressed that no one could reject peace, but “it must be a peace that preserves the dignity, pride, and sovereignty of the country.”

03 October 2023; MEMO: Former Mexican diplomat Andres Roemer, who has been accused of sexual abuse and rape, has been arrested in Israel ahead of his possible extradition, authorities said yesterday, Reuters reported.

Roemer, a former consul general to San Francisco, became embroiled in one of Mexico’s most prominent #MeToo cases after a woman publicly accused him of sexual abuse, prompting others to present similar allegations.

03 October 2023; MEMO: Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said that countries seeking to normalise relations with Israel “are betting on a losing horse”, state media reported on Tuesday.

"The definite position of the Islamic Republic is that countries that make the gamble of normalisation with Israel will lose. They are betting on a losing horse" Khamenei said, Reuters reports.

03 October 2023; MEMO: Five Danish opposition parties announced, on Tuesday, that they will mobilise as many of their MPs as possible to oppose the government’s bill to criminalise defaming religious symbols, including the Muslim holy book, Quran, Anadolu Agency reports.

The bill is expected to be moved for voting during the current parliamentary session, which begins on Tuesday after the autumn recess.

03 October 2023; MEMO: Christians face “persecution” by illegal Israeli extremist groups amid government inaction, the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Jerusalem said on Tuesday, Anadolu Agency reports.

“We feel persecution against our community and religion,” WCC coordinator in Jerusalem, Youssef Daher, told Anadolu.

"There is a Jewish Israeli persecution, encouraged either by police negligence or by statements made by Israeli cabinet ministers" he added.

RIYADH, Oct 3 (NNN-SPA) – The China-Arab States Publishing Cooperation and Exchange Forum was held yesterday, in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh.

Under the theme of “Deepening China-Arab Publishing Cooperation and Exchanges, Promoting Mutual Learning between Chinese and Arab Civilisations,” publishers from China and Arab countries reviewed their cooperation in translation, publishing, copyright trade, book fair platforms and online publishing.

TEHRAN, Oct 3 (NNN-IRNA) – Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, said yesterday, the country has always supported the return of the Nagorno-Karabakh region to Azerbaijan.

He made the remarks at a weekly press conference in the Iranian capital Tehran, when commenting on Iran’s positions towards the latest developments in the Caucasus region.

Kanaani said, Iran has repeatedly and clearly announced that, it supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and Armenia, but does not approve of settling disputes through making geopolitical changes.

GAZA, Oct 3 (NNN-WAFA) – The Israeli army arrested 13 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in Sept, a non-government Palestinian organisation said, yesterday.

In a press statement, the Palestinian Prisoner Club (PPC), said, “11 Palestinians were arrested by Israeli armed forces, while they were trying to pass the eastern fence separating Gaza from Israeli cities.”

The other two Palestinians were fishermen arrested while fishing in the Gaza Sea, the PPC added, without giving the reasons for their arrest.