On January 16, 1979, Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, boarded an aircraft at Mehrabad airport in Tehran and flew into exile. Within minutes of his departure the streets of the city were full of people, dancing and singing, hooting their car horns and waving portraits of Ayatollah Khomeini. The clerics rode to power in Iran on a tide of popular support. Now the mullahs must look anxiously out upon the streets they once controlled. ... more

Male teenagers in Iran listen to techno CDs and drink Coke. But there are still street hangings, the penalty for pre-marital sex is 70 lashes and if boys want to meet a girl, they must do so at dawn while the morals police are at the mosque. Roya Ramazani, who returned to Iran after an absence of 22 years, describes a country in cultural confusion. ... more

DONALD RUMSFELD, the American Secretary of Defence, has accused Iran of giving refuge to senior al-Qa'ida and Taliban commanders fleeing allied action in Afghanistan. ... more

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iran may have allowed al Qaeda and Taliban leaders to escape from Afghanistan across its border during the U.S.-led military campaign, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Sunday. ... more

Many U.S. allies were mystified at President Bush's inclusion of Iran in his "axis of evil" last week. After all, Tehran had supposedly been cooperative in the war on terrorism, having condemned the September 11 attacks and offered landing rights for U.S. search-and-rescue missions in Afghanistan. ... more

In pointed remarks that raised questions about future relations between the elected Iranian regime and the United States, Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld has accused the government in Teheran of helping Taliban and al Qaeda fighters flee Afghanistan. ... more

UNITED NATIONS - As President Bush hints at extending the "war on terrorism" to Iran, Iraq, and North Korea, the Arab and Muslim world remains at loggerheads with the rest of the globe over a crucial question: Who exactly is a terrorist? ... more

WASHINGTON Top administration officials sharpened their criticism of Iran on Sunday while defending President George W. Bush's characterization of that country, Iraq and North Korea as an "axis of evil" that could provoke preemptive U.S. action. ... more

WASHINGTON -- In pointed remarks that raised questions Sunday about future relations between the elected Iranian regime and the United States, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld accused the government in Tehran of helping Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters flee Afghanistan. ... more

JACK STRAW was slapped down by President Bush's National Security Adviser yesterday for interpreting the President's "axis of evil" speech as an attempt to win domestic votes. Condoleezza Rice reacted to the Foreign Secretary's comments with scarcely disguised anger, saying: "This is not about American politics, and I assume that when the British Government speaks about foreign policy, it's not about British politics." ... more

Iran warned the United States that any attack against it would be an "irreparable mistake" and denied US claims it was harbouring al-Qaeda members. Foreign ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi also dismissed President George W. Bush's charge last week that Iran is developing weapons of mass destruction. ... more

Tehran, Feb 4, IRNA -- The English-language paper "Iran Daily" in its Media Monitor column on Monday quoted the Persian daily "Norooz" as saying that a look at the history of the past century ... ... more

TEHRAN: It is an oft-repeated fact that Iranians close ranks when faced by external threats. Propaganda and political attacks, by the Americans in particular, cause all factions in the Iranian leadership to unite on a common defensive position. ... more

Iran denied US accusations that it had helped Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters escape Afghanistan as interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai moved to establish his authority in restive provinces. ... more

Madrid, Feb 4, IRNA -- An Iranian delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Ahani in Madrid on Monday started a new round of comprehensive dialogue with the European Union (EU) Troika. ... more

Tehran, Feb 4, IRNA -- Two English-language dialies on Monday commented on the 8th round of comprehensive talks between Iran and the European Union which opened today in Madrid and is chaired by Ali Ahani ... ... more

Kuwait Club of Kuwait, Estighlal of Iran and Nasaf Karsi from Uzbekistan have arrived in Abu Dhabi to begin their last preparations for the quarter-finals of the Asian Clubs Championship, hosted by Al Wahda Club from Wednesday, February 6. ... more

A new round of Iran-EU talks begins today in Madrid. Ali Ahani, Iran's deputy foreign minister for European and American affairs and Migel Nadal, Spain's state minister of foreign affairs, will chair the meeting. ... more

NEW YORK Israel said Sunday that Iran had supplied Hezbollah militants in Lebanon with 8,000 missiles that could hit Israeli cities, and warned Lebanon it would not tolerate any missile attacks from its territory. Citing what he called reliable intelligence information, Shimon Peres, the Israeli foreign minister, made the allegation in an interview with the International Herald Tribune. He also contended that North Korea had supplied Iran with a medium-range missile and that the two countries were cooperating to develop a long-range missile capable of hitting North America. ... more

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran accused the United States on Monday of seeking to "dominate the world" and challenged it to provide proof that Tehran helped Taliban or al Qaeda fighters to escape from Afghanistan. ... more

Iran on Monday warned the US to stop accusing it of supporting terrorism after American Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld claimed it was harbouring al-Qaeda members. ... more

MUNICH (GERMANY) 2 Feb. (IPS) German Defence Minister Rudolf Sharping minimised Saturday an American attack on Iraq and warned that in any case, such an act would be against peace and counterproductive. ... more

It is being said that, following a request by Majlis deputies to visit the Defence Ministry detention centre at Tehran's Jey Garrison and the non-fulfilment of this request, it is expected that the question put to Shamkhani by 60 deputies about the Defence Ministry's detention centres will be discussed on the floor of the Majlis. ... more

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 — A month after United States officials expressed confidence that they had cornered Osama bin Laden in the mountains of Tora Bora, they now acknowledge that they have lost track of the terrorist leader and are increasingly frustrated over the virtual absence of intelligence on his whereabouts. ... more

I HAVE met Jamal Udeen four times in the past fortnight. Although his story that he was a British traveller caught in the wrong place at the wrong time is highly suspicious, I have never been able to quite fathom him. ... more