TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Villagers in Iran's southern Fars Province continue to preserve the centuries-old craft of reed weaving. The traditional handicraft of Zarqan County has been recognized by UNESCO as one of Iran's registered elements of intangible cultural heritage.
Thousands of mostly young Iranians packed a Tehran shopping mall on Friday to meet an online celebrity, offering a striking glimpse into a Gen Z culture whose stars, communities and reference points remain unfamiliar to many outside it.
From the capital, Tehran, to the holy city of Mashhad, the Iran I saw was a nation of many layers: defiant but also weary, despairing but hopeful.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A cultural-religious program attended by 120 female pilgrims from West Asia was held at the holy shrine of Imam Reza (AS) to commemorate the martyrdom anniversary of Hazrat Ruqayyah (SA) and pay tribute to girl and women martyrs of the Resistance Front.
Jewellery made from BC Iran worn at Odyssey photocall throws spotlight on the trade of rare archeological finds The Odyssey has stormed cinemas, but while its take on the Homeric epic has created ripples among western classicists, it is an actor’s earrings that have made waves further afield. Zendaya, who portrays the goddess Athena in the movie, provoked outrage when she appeared at a London photocall wearing earrings that were allegedly made from Iranian artefacts dating back to the 1st millennium BC. Continue reading...
NASIRIYA (Tasnim) – As the Arbaeen season approaches, thousands of pilgrims have begun walking along long routes near Iraq’s southern city of Nasiriya, making their way toward Karbala to commemorate the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS).
From the capital, Tehran, to the holy city of Mashhad, the Iran I saw was a nation of many layers: defiant but also weary, despairing but hopeful.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian actor Akbar Abdi, whose extraordinary talent, versatility, and unique appearance made him one of the most recognizable figures in Iranian cinema and television, passed away at the age of 66 after suffering cardiac arrest.
Unesco adds West Bank site to endangered list despite Israeli objections The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) has added the archaeological site of Sebastia in the Israeli-occupied West Bank to both the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger. The nomination was made despite objections from Israel, which had urged the committee to reject the bids, during a meeting in South Korea's Busan, after reviewing the nomination on an emergency basis, citing ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. The committee also decided to place five castles in Lebanon’s Mount Amel area on the lists.
Even after the collapse of the cease-fire between the United States and Iran, American universities expect to teach in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, and a new outpost is on track to open in Saudi Arabia.
John Esposito's warning against a clash of civilisations has never been more urgent Submitted by Abdullah Al-Arian on Fri, 07/24/2026 - 09:47 The Georgetown scholar died on 15 July, as US bombs fell on Iran. He spent his career warning that treating Islam as a threat would become a self-fulfilling prophecy John Esposito speaks to Middle East Eye's Unapologetic podcast in August 2025 (Screengrab/MEE) Off John Esposito would occasionally joke that he owed his success to Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran . As one of a limited number of academic specialists on Islam at the time of the 1979 Iranian revolution, Esposito would be called upon time and again throughout his illustrious career to help explain the significance of events in a rapidly transforming region to a mystified American public.
Author of Women Without Men, who paid a high price for shining a light on gender repression in her native Iran When in 1989 Shahrnush Parsipur published Women Without Men, a magical realist novella challenging the sexual and social repressions of women in Iran, she had already spent nearly five years in an Islamic Republic prison. The authorities banned the book, but copies passed privately between Iranian readers and, over decades, it travelled around the world, surviving censorship and its author’s further imprisonment and exile. What made it such a powerful and deeply subversive work, and Parsipur, who has died aged 80, one of post-revolutionary Iran’s most vital literary voices, was its feminist take on women’s right to autonomy over their own bodies, particularly under the Islamic Republic’s gender apartheid regime.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s Science Minister Hossein Simayi Sarraf and Pakistan's Federal Minister for Education Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui agreed to broaden cooperation in higher education, technical training, language education, and academic exchanges.
Chandigarh [India], July 21 (ANI): BRICS Meeting on Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine (TCIM) began in Chandigarh on Tuesday, the inaugural day of the 4-day-long BRICS Health Ministerial Meeting. Delegates from 21 countries are participating in the ministerial meet, focusing on global cooperation in traditional healthcare systems.
Film star promotes Christopher Nolan film epic wearing gold artefacts dating back almost 3,000 years The Odyssey is a story about a Greek king’s long journey home. But a pair of earrings worn on the new film adaptation’s press tour – and their long separation from their homeland – is sparking controversy. At a photocall in London, Zendaya, who plays the goddess Athena in the Christopher Nolan film, wore a pair of earrings fashioned from Iranian artefacts dating back to 700BC.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The head of Iran's Central Headquarters for Arbaeen announced that all border crossings leading to Iraq are fully operational and prepared to facilitate the entry and exit of pilgrims traveling to attend the Arbaeen pilgrimage.
Amid anxiety over how the United States would welcome the world, cities like Lawrence, Kan. , and Boston threw open their doors. The bonds forged are still visible on the streets.
Israeli military closes area around Gaza ahead of settler march, report says Israeli military has declared the entire Gaza periphery region a closed military zone, ahead of a march planned by a right-wing group that seeks to reestablish Israeli settlements inside the territory, Israeli media reported. The March of Thousands, organised by the Nahala settler group, was expected to start from the Yad Mordechai area at 5 pm local time, the Times of Israel reported. The organisers had the goal of “returning home after 21 years,” a reference to the removal of Israeli settlements inside Gaza.
John Esposito, would-be Catholic priest turned renowned scholar of Islam, dies aged 86 Submitted by MEE staff on Thu, 07/16/2026 - 17:43 Esposito's distinguished career path was unexpectedly shaped by a Palestinian academic John Esposito, professor of religion, international affairs, and Islamic studies at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, speaks to Middle East Eye's Unapologetic podcast in August 2025 (Screengrab) Off John Esposito, a world-renowned American author, professor, and scholar of Islam who consistently challenged western stereotypes, died aged 86 on Wednesday, his colleagues at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, announced . A Catholic from an Italian family in Brooklyn, New York, Esposito spent a lifetime studying Islamic life, its laws, and its application to the political sphere around the world. He wrote, edited, and contributed to some 55 books on the subject, most of them confronting what he said were misunderstood and even manufactured narratives on Muslims, in particular in the post-9/11 era.
World Cup 2026 shows Arab unity is alive and well Submitted by Feras Abu Helal on Tue, 07/14/2026 - 15:03 Despite efforts by individual states to break cross-border bonds, this tournament is a powerful testament to regional solidarity A woman waves an Egyptian flag as Palestinians watch the World Cup match between Egypt and Argentina on a giant screen in Gaza City, on 7 July 2026 (Omar al-Qattaa/AFP) On Most debates about the recent World Cup football match between Argentina and Egypt in the round of 16 have focused on the game itself, amid allegations that Fifa favoured Argentina in refereeing decisions. But across the Arab world, the public reactions have reflected local politics. If social media represents a plausible barometer - albeit an unscientific one - of Arab public opinion, it would point to overwhelming support for the Egyptian team, even among those who oppose the regime’s poor human rights record.
