Dark clouds of flies hover over decaying vegetables, cloth rags, mattresses, plastics, broken tables, medical x-rays and greasy car parts. All around scavengers are loading their baskets with aluminum tins, glass bottles and plastics of every variety. Scavenging is not optimal because 40% of the recycling is still not recyclable, it’s too dirty to be processed. It’s also not a ... Read More »
BBC News: Drone footage reveals the extent of damage to Gaza City caused by the recent conflict with Israeli that lasted 50 days, until a ceasefire was brokered. Between 8 July and 27 August, more than 2,100 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip, along with 66 Israeli soldiers and seven civilians in Israel. Recently Israeli Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz ... Read More »
Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to give Persian lessons to its diplomats in 2015. The Israeli news channel i24news, which airs its programs in Arabic, English and French, announced the news on December 26. ynetnews reorted that the Foreign Ministry officials were not sure if the workers would be interesting in learning Persian, considering that at most they would ... Read More »
Queuing for bread offers a good opportunity for Iranians to vent political frustrations and exchange rumors with strangers. Such conversations are common in Iran’s bakeries, where people from all walks of life spend long periods of time crushed close together in long, tight lines. The intimate surroundings offer a rare opportunity to vent political frustrations and exchange rumors with strangers. Although ... Read More »
A recap of Iranian Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) types fielded on the Iraqi battlefield against ISIL. Photo appearing on social media week of 09DEC14 claiming to depict Iranian-built SBIG/DIO Hadid HM-20 122 mm MLRS in use with Peshmerga forces in Iraqi Kurdistan. Forty-tube launcher system fires Arash-series rockets. Older platform at left utilizes Mercedes-Benz NG 2626; right platform the newer MAN HX series. ... Read More »
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will hike military spending by more than a third in the next fiscal year despite presenting a “cautious, tight” budget to parliament on Sunday in response to falling oil prices and punishing sanctions arising from the country’s disputed nuclear program. According to Tasnim News Agency, dated 07DEC14: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani submitted to the parliament the ... Read More »
North Korea launched a travel website on Monday that is decidedly more strange than it is inviting — particularly since the country currently has a ban on international tourists entering the country due to fears of the Ebola virus! The site, dprktoday.com, offers an animated tour through the customs and culture available in the so-called hermit kingdom. A short film ... Read More »
Iran’s oil exports to Asia fell below 1 million barrels per day in October to the lowest level in a year. Iran exported 877,888 bpd to China, India, Japan and South Korea, its biggest buyers, Reuters reported today. Iran exported an average of 1.1 million bpd to Asia in January-September this year. Seasonal demand fluctuations could have been the cause ... Read More »
Newsweek writes… To help Iraq fight ISIS Iran sent their military mastermind, Qasem Soleimani, leader of the Quds Force, whom many military leaders regard as an excellent, and highly strategic commander. While usually secretive, Soleimani allowed himself to be photographed last September on the battlefields of Amerli, clearly sending a message to the West that Tehran was very present. [Read ... Read More »
North Jersey website reported today that a substitute teacher at Manchester Regional High School was arrested and charged with assaulting a 16-year-old male student, authorities said. Linda Hardan, 21, was arrested Friday for an incident that allegedly occurred in Wayne on Thursday, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes said in a news release. Hardan apparently transported the juvenile – not ... Read More »