** IRAN DAILY
--Leader: Hajj can foil plots of arrogant powers against humanity
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the annual Hajj rituals can foil all the plots of the arrogant powers and the Zionists against humanity.
In a Tuesday message to the 2023 Hajj pilgrimage, the Leader said the rituals can render ineffective all the plans of the arrogant powers and Zionism aimed at the moral downfall of humanity at the present time and the future, Press TV reported.
Ayatollah Khamenei added that the arrogant powers and Zionists are targeting unity and spirituality with their acts of enmity and sabotage at this juncture in time, more than in the past.
--Judiciary must ensure people’s peace of mind: Leader
The Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei called on the country’s judiciary to act with discipline and principle when it comes to protecting the peace of mind of Iranians.
Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with a group of Iranian judiciary officials on Tuesday on the occasion of the anniversary of the June 28 terrorist attack, as well as Judiciary Week in Iran.
“The fact that some individuals get on people’s nerves using cyberspace or otherwise frighten them and disturb their psychological security is against the requirements for restoring public rights,” he added.
--Putin praises Russian troops for putting down mutiny
President Vladimir Putin praised members of Russia’s military and security forces in a ceremony on Tuesday as he sought to reassert his authority following an aborted mutiny by mercenaries led by Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
A jet linked to Prigozhin arrived in Belarus from Russia, believed to be carrying the mercenary boss into exile, three days after he abruptly called off his mutiny with his fighters bearing down on the capital, Reuters reported.
** KAYHAN INTERNATIONAL
--Unity, Spirituality Life-Giving Message of Hajj
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Tuesday the annual Hajj rituals can foil all the plots of the arrogant powers and the Zionists against humanity.
In a message to the 2023 Hajj pilgrimage, the Leader said the rituals can render ineffective all the plans of the arrogant powers and Zionism, targeting unity and spirituality with their acts of enmity and sabotage.
The Leader said the U.S. and other arrogant centers are strongly opposed to unity among Muslims, understanding among Muslim nations and countries, and commitment to the religion of the younger generation in these nations.
--NYT: Western Arms Fail to Make a Dent in Ukraine
Three weeks into a counteroffensive critical to Ukraine’s prospects against Russia, its army is encountering an array of vexing challenges that complicate its plans, even as it wields sophisticated new Western-provided weapons, the New York Times reports.
Not least is a vast swath of minefields protecting Russia’s defensive line, forming a killing field for Ukrainian troops advancing on the open steppe of the south, it said.
--Kerry Admits U.S. Invaded Iraq Based on Lie
The U.S. special ambassador on climate change and former Secretary of State John Kerry recently admitted on French television that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was based on a lie, but refused to admit it was a war of aggression.
Veteran French journalist Darius Rochebin confronted Kerry on French TV channel LCI over U.S. condemnations of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine and its leader Vladimir Putin.
“But you, the Americans, you committed the crime of aggression in Iraq,” Rochebin said. “These countries of the Global South say, should we judge George Bush? Why isn’t Bush judged in the same way?”
“No,” Kerry shot back.
** TEHRAN TIMES
--Iran says will neither ‘forget nor forgive’ perpetrators of gas attack on Sardasht
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian says Iran will “neither forget nor forgive” the perpetrators of the chemical attack on the border city of Sardasth in northwestern Iran in 1987.
“…I like to insist and clarify that the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran will neither forget nor forgive the perpetrators of this crime,” Amir Abdollahian said in a message on Wednesday as Iran is marking the 36th anniversary of the tragedy.
Iraqi warplanes dropped chemical weapons on the city of Sardasht and surrounding villages on June 28, 1987. Over 100 people were killed and thousands more were exposed to chemical agents in the bombardments.
--Tehran takes Canada to top UN court for breaching Iran’s state immunity
Iran has launched legal proceedings at the UN’s top court against Canada for breaching the Islamic Republic’s state immunity by designating the country a sponsor of terrorism under “false and wrongful” allegations, Press TV reported.
A statement by the Iranian government’s website said Tehran wants the International Court of Justice to compel Canada to stop violating the Iranian government’s immunities as a sovereign state in Canadian courts and avoid repeating such breaches of international law in the future.
Iran's filing to the court also demands compensation from Canada. It said the violations began in 2012, when Ottawa listed Iran as a terror sponsor under “false and wrongful” allegations and then seized property and assets belonging to the Iranian government.
--World must ensure tragedies such as Sardasht are not repeated: OPCW
On the anniversary of the chemical attack on the Iranian border city of Sardasth in 1987, The Hague-based Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) issued a statement insisting that the international community must provide assurances that tragedies such as Sardasht will not happen again.
In the chemical attack on the northwestern city in Iran’s West Azarbaijan Province more than 100 people were killed and thousands more were exposed to mustard gas agents whose agonies are still continuing.
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