کشته و زخمي شدن بيش از 40 ايراني در انفجارهاي روز عاشورا در کربلا

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Summary of Iran Stories in Today's BroadcastsBehnam NateghiTuesday, March 02, 2004 Tens of Iranians Die in Mortar Blasts in Karbala and Najaf • At least 40 Iranians were among the victims of the mortar blasts that shook Karbala and Najaf today, as million of Shiites from Iraq, Iran and other countries gathered for their annual mourning festival. Polish officers in Karbala arrested two suspects, including an Iranian, according to a Polish source on the scene. (Peyman Pezhman) • The blasts could have been planned by Sunni terrorists to incite civil war in Iraq, and the presence of Iranian extremists, who arrived in Iraq along with thousands of pilgrims, could buttress the extremists Iraqi Shiites in their demand for an Iran-style Islamic republic in Iraq. (Fariba Mavedat) • The people, even those who may not have deep Islamic beliefs, come out to watch the processions of chest beaters, Tehran-based independent journalist Arash Qavidel tells Radio Farda of the numerous processions held during the festival to commemorate the death of the Shiite's third Imam. (Farin Asemi) • Behzad Yaghmaian, New York-based economy professor and author of Social Change in Iran, published by New York University Press, tells Radio Farda that in his book he has devoted a chapter to the Tehran youth's subversion of religious mourning ceremonies into a cheerful, city-wide co-ed party. (Behnam Nateghi, New York) • A foreign ministry spokesman blamed the coalition forces for the blasts that killed 149 Shiite mourners in Karbala and Baghdad. The interior ministry said the victims were martyrs. (Fariba Mavedat) IAEA Says Iran Cooperates on Nuclear Disclosures • Iran's cooperation with the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was moving “in the right direction,” IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei said in Brussels today. Pakistan has been asked to submit to the IAEA samples of the equipment it sold to Iran, so that Iran's claim could be verified that traces of highly enriched uranium had already been on the equipment when Iran bought them second-hand from Pakistan. (Alireza Taheri) Special Report: Government's Budget • The Majles approved the 115 trillion-rial spending budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Sixty percent of the budget has been set aside for the state enterprises. The budget bill forecasts an annual growth rate of 7.5 percent, and will spend 40 trillion rials on direct subsidies. The gasoline price hike by 100 rials to 800 rials per litter (nearly 40 cents per gallon) was a hot topic of discussion in the Majles. Tabriz MP said the government imports gasoline at the cost of 1,700 to 2,200 rials per liter. Boston University's economy professor Bahman Dadkhah tells Radio Farda that despite the price hike, gasoline is still too cheap in Iran, which leads to over consumption and air pollution. He also finds the budget inflationary, for its reliance on price hikes and salary increases, and says it is too reliant on the oil income. Tehran-based economist Ali Rashidi tells Radio Farda that the budget is astounding, since it foresees an increase in expenditures 25 percent greater than the GNP. Another weakness of the budget bill is that is not based on real incomes. Taxation, import duties and other forms of income provide only 35 percent of the income, while 65 of the budgeted expenses will have to come from oil income, and foreign debt. The decision to use oil income surplus account to pay for the budget deficit wipes out the country's defense against a drop in the oil prices below the forecast. (Fereydoun Zarnegar) Reformists Shelve Elections' Complaints • Head of major reformist political organizations agreed last night to shelve their complaints about the February 20 Majles elections, in which they lost the majority after the Guardians Council banned 2,500 from standing. Ayatollah Hashem Hashemzadeh Harisi, a spokesman of the reform faction, and head of the presidential constitution compliance monitoring board, said in the name of public interest and to protect the society from potential tensions, his board will not issue any report on the elections. (Amir Armin) • Zahra Eshraqi, grand-daughter of leader of Islamic revolution Ayatollah Khomeini said in an interview with the German weekly Focus that she would have received more votes than her husband deputy Majles speaker Mohammad-Reza Khatami. She says because in a New York Times' interview she criticized the strict enforcement of women's Islamic headgear in some government offices, the Guardians Council banned her from standing in the elections. (Shahram Mirian, Cologne) Officials Disagree on Use of Surplus Income • The Majles approved a bill permitting the government to use the foreign exchange deposit account to pay for the deficit. The account, which holds surplus oil income, had been set up to cushion the impact of sudden falls in the oil price. The ministers of economy and industries objected to the bill, and the central bank government has not voiced his support for it. Some economists warn that the move may increase the inflation rate. (Fereydoun Khavand, Paris) Municipal Workers Sweep Street Children • The municipal workers began a sweep of Tehran streets to remove the so-called street children, caught begging or peddling. Most of these children have homes and parents, and have been forced to the streets by their parents, director of the non-governmental organization society for defense of children Dr. Shiva Dowlatabadi tells Radio Farda. The municipal government implemented a similar sweep six months ago to no avail, she adds. Without proper supervision of families and safeguards to keep the children in school, these efforts could only help in collecting more data, she adds. (Shireen Famili) Turkey-Iran Gas Price Dispute • Turkish energy and natural resources minister Helmi Guler visited Tehran to bargain with the Iranian authorities on the price of natural gas Turkey imports from Iran through a pipeline. The project was delayed five years, and began operations in December 2001, but in June 2002, Ankara complained that Iran's gas was too expensive, and cut off Iranian gas imports. Since then, negotiations on new terms have been going on. Iran-Turkey increased 90 percent in 2003 to $2.38 billion. Iran exported $1.85 billion worth of goods, mostly oil and gas, to Turkey, and imported $524 million from Turkey, according to Turkish government. (Fereydoun Khavand, Paris) Israel Eavesdropped on Iran-Pakistan Nuclear Deal, New Yorker Says • Israeli intelligence eavesdropped on talks between Iran and Pakistan about Pakistan's assistance in Iran's nuclear program, the New Yorker's writer Seymour Hersh reported last night. (Jamshid Chalangi) Russia's Iran Policy Stays the Same Under New Prime Minister • Under new the new prime minister Mikhail Fradkov, Russia's policy towards Iran will not change, Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko said today. (Mani Kasravi, Moscow) . در سلسله انفجارهايي که امروز در بغداد و کربلا روي داد، ده ها تن کشته و زخمي شدند. جهانبخش خانجاني، از سخنگويان وزارت امور خارجه جمهوري اسلامي گفت که بين 40 تا 50 ايراني در انفجارهاي کربلا کشته و يا مجروح شدند. شمار کشته شدگان در انفجارهاي کربلا، دست کم 50 تن، و در بغداد بيش از 70 تن گزارش شده است. انفجارهايي که در روز عاشورا کربلا را لرزاند، هنگامي روي داد که چند هزار تن در اين شهر مذهبي، سرگرم برگزاري مراسم عاشورا بودند. اين انفجارها باعث اغتشاش در اين مراسم و بروز خشمي فزاينده از سوي شرکت کنندگان در مراسم عاشورا شد. صداي آژير آمبولانس ها که مجروحان انفجارهاي کربلا را به بيمارستان ها مي رساندند، تا دقايقي پيش در اين شهر شنيده مي شد.