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A file photo of an Iranian police force in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan (Photo via Tasnim News Agency)

The public relations manager of Irans Sistan and Baluchestan provinces education department says a local school teacher has been gunned down by unknown assailants.

Akbar Balouchzehi was shot by unknown armed men while walking home from the village's mosque after the Maghrib prayer with his two children in the village of Jalayi Kalag, said Ali Moradi on Saturday.

He added that the teachers two children were also injured in the incident and have been taken to hospital.

Director General of Education in Sistan and Baluchestan Province Alireza Nakha'ee said Sunday that the incident was the result of a "local dispute", IRNA news agency reported.

"Theinformation obtained up to this moment shows the incident was not a terrorist act and was just the result of a local dispute," he said.

The province on the border with Pakistan has seen occasional terrorist attacks carried out by groups linked to Saudi, British and USintelligence services as well as Takfiri elements, according to Iranian authorities.

Last week, a commander with Irans Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) was assassinated by two terrorists in the province. Rouhollah Aali was gunned down by two Takfiri terrorists while traveling to the Kurin district in the city ofZahedan.

He was the commander of the Kurin Battalion of Brigade 110 of the IRGCs Salman Unit, which is assigned to the province.

Last year, an employee of the governors office of the city of Sarbaz in Sistan and Baluchestan was killed by unknown assailants. A few years before that another teacher was killed in the city of Rasak by Takfiri-Wahabi terrorists.

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Local school teacher shot and killed in Iran's Sistan and Baluchestan - Press TV

FAIRBANKS Samaneh Yourdkhani came to America for a familiar reason. The same as other immigrants, my target was very simple, she explained. It was for a financial future. And to get an education because the U.S. has a huge variety of universities and degrees.

Samaneh grew up in Iran and is pursuing a Ph.D. in biomathematics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Having earned her bachelors and masters degrees in mathematics at Irans Semnan University, she had few job prospects in her country other than teaching. America, she said, offers better opportunities for her skills.

I wanted to find an application of mathematics in the real world. In Iran, most courses are very theoretical. But here, for example, in biomathematics you can find many interesting subjects. The relation between genes. Its quite amazing.

Samaneh said that areas of research like biomathematics, which uses mathematics to better understand biological organisms, dont exist in Iran. Most opportunities for graduates in mathematics are found in the academic field. This is why, After my masters degree I taught in universities for six years. And after that I was an educational and research assistant for three years.

Samaneh was born and raised in a small town outside of Tehran, a city she says she loves despite of its crowds and hectic pace. The north of Tehran has mountains, and its very green and beautiful, she said. When she was living in the city proper, every weekend we went out to the mountains.

She said the universities in Iran are quite rigorous compared to American colleges and provide students with a well-rounded education. We have to pass 20credits every semester. About eight or nine courses. But here, I see that students just have two or three courses.

On the other hand, she said in America students are better at studying together, and professors are much more approachable. Private tutoring, which many American students take advantage of, is rare in Iran.

It was in 2009 while working on Qeshm Island near Dubai in conjunction with Canadas Carleton University that she first contemplated going abroad for her Ph.D. My boss tried to get me to go to Canada at Carleton, she said. At that time I couldnt. But after that I was thinking Id go somewhere.

First, however she needed to earn money and learn English. It took me eight or nine years to prepare, she said.

Finally, after clearing all the paperwork, I applied to five universities. Florida, Michigan and Wyoming. And one of them was Alaska. I was admitted by four of them, and one of them was UAF.

Since UAF offered full funding, she chose to come here. However, she said, I didnt have any information on Alaska. I just Googled it and found some pictures of ice and snowy weather. I think we dont have enough information about Alaska on the internet.

Samaneh did have one contact, however. One of my friends was studying at UAF, and he was from Iran. He said that here is a good place to start. Its very quiet, and UAF gives a lot of assistance to students.

Samaneh arrived on Sept. 3, 2015. I came to Alaska without any picture of it. When I was coming from the airport to campus, I was thinking about how beautiful it is here. Everywhere was green. The sky was pure blue. It was fantastic.

In one way, Alaska has been a good fit for her. It always was my dream to live someplace that has 24 hours of daylight, she said. So summer here is amazing for me. I love it. Also, nature is very beautiful here.

On the other hand, she admitted shes not fond of winter. I can tolerate it for two or three months, but not seven months. She said the darkness doesnt bother her and she actually tolerates subzero temperatures well, but the sheer length of winter in Fairbanks exhausts her.

Samaneh has found the people in Fairbanks welcoming and has made many friends, but because she doesnt have a car, getting around town is difficult, especially for someone coming from a country with a modern public transportation system.

I think that Fairbanks is good to live in because its not too big and not very crowded, she said. But I have some problems here. For example, transportation here is not good at all. In Tehran, we have a lot of public buses and taxis and a subway.

Shes also connected with the small but close knit community of Iranians on campus that gets together for dinners and on Iranian holidays. New Years in Iran is the 23rd of March. And so we got together and had a lot of Iranian food and some nuts. When we get together most foods are Iranian, but sometimes we have pizza.

She also has many friends in California, where most of the Iranians living in America are found. I love California, she said. Especially Los Angeles because most immigrant Iranians live in Los Angeles and San Francisco. There are many Iranian shops. In Los Angeles, there is a street nicknamed Tehrangeles. All of the street is Iranian shops and Iranian ice cream and bread.

Samaneh said she would ultimately like to live in L.A. after she finishes her studies, but in the meantime shes enjoying Alaska and hoping to bring her mother here for a visit. Coming from a country where little is known about Alaska, she said the state should do more to reach out to potential visitors.

I think we should advertise this beauty of Alaska to other people. People do not have much information about Alaska. They just think about snowy weather and always the weather is icy. Some people even think that there is no internet here. They think that here it is like a village.

Fairbanks is more than a village for Samaneh. Though it wont be her final destination, its a good stop along her pathway there.

David James is a freelance writer who lives in Fairbanks.Becoming Alaskan is an ongoing series documenting the lives of immigrants in Fairbanks. Feedback and suggestions for future interviews can be emailed to nobugsinak@gmail.com.

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An education in Alaska draws a student from Iran - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

MOSCOW Russia, Syria and Iran strongly warned the United States Friday against launching new strikes on Syria and called for an international investigation of the chemical weapons attack there that killed nearly 90 people.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who hosted his Iranian and Syrian counterparts in Moscow, denounced the U.S. missile strikes on Syria as a flagrant violation of international law. Additional such actions would entail grave consequences not only for regional but global security, Lavrov said.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said the meeting sent a strong message to Washington. Irans Mohammad Javad Zarif emphasized that the participants agreed that unilateral actions by the U.S. were unacceptable.

The U.S. accuses the Syrian government of deliberately launching the deadly chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun on April 4. Russia has alleged that the victims were killed by toxic agents from a rebel chemical arsenal hit by Syrian war planes.

Moscow has warned against putting the blame on Damascus until an independent inquiry is conducted and vetoed a proposed U.N. resolution on the attack, saying it failed to mention the need to inspect the affected area.

Lavrov on Friday expressed skepticism about a preliminary investigation conducted by the U.N.s chemical weapons watchdog. He alleged that its experts failed to visit the site and said it was unclear to Russia where evidence was taken and how it was

In Russias view, the probe conducted by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons should be widened to include experts from many nations, he said.

If our U.S. colleagues and some European nations believe that their version is right, they have no reason to fear the creation of such an independent group, Lavrov added. The investigation into this high-profile incident must be transparent and leave no doubt that someone is trying to hide something.

Lavrov said the U.S. strike on the Syrian base has undermined peace efforts in Syria and reflected Washingtons focus on ousting Syrian President Bashar Assads government.

Such attempts wont succeed, he said.

The three ministers also discussed the beefing up of U.S. forces on Jordans border with Syria, Moallem said. He added that Russia, Iran and Syria have common procedures against any aggression, but wouldnt offer specifics.

Lavrov said Moscow has asked Washington about the purpose of the buildup and received assurances that the U.S. troops were deployed there to cut supply lines between the Islamic State group factions in Syria and Iraq.

We will keep monitoring the issue, since the only possible reason for using military force on the territory of Syria is to fight terrorism, Lavrov said.

Russia has staunchly backed Assads government throughout Syrias six-year civil war. It has conducted an air campaign in Syria since September 2015, saving Assads government from imminent collapse and helping to reverse the Syrian militarys fortunes.

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Russia, Iran and Syria strongly warn US against further military action - The Denver Post

Syrian children, wounded in a car bombing that targeted their buses in Rashideen, west of Aleppo, as they were being evacuated from al-Foua and Kefraya as part of a deal between the militants and the Syrian government receive treatment at a hospital in the government-held part of Aleppo on April 15, 2017.

Iran has condemned a deadly Takfiri bomb attack on buses carrying people from two Shia-majority villages in Syrias northwestern province of Idlib.

Iran'sForeign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi made the condemnation on Saturday while offering his condolences to the Syrian government and nation.

Earlier, at least 40 people were killed in the blast, which hit al-Rashideen district on the western outskirts ofAleppo, located some 355 kilometersnorth of the capital Damascus, as buses were stopping at a checkpoint.

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The buses were evacuating residents of Kefraya and al-Foua villages in accordance with an agreement reached between the Syrian government and foreign-sponsored Takfiri militant groups last month.

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The shameful criminal act by Takfiri terrorists in the cowardly attack on buses carrying the people of al-Foua and Kefraya in Syria and killing tens of innocent and defenseless women and children have added to the record of atrocities carried out by terrorists and their supporters, said Qassemi.

He went on to slam those who claim to be supporters of the Syrian nation but refrain from commenting on such actions.

Qassemi further stressed that dividing militants into good and bad by supporters of such groups only serves to embolden terrorists.

Evacuee buses arrive in Aleppo

Later on Saturday, the SANA news agency announced that the final series of buses taking people from the villages of al-Foua and Kefraya have arrived in Aleppo.

Some 15 buses transporting hundreds of civilians arrived in al-Ramousawhere they were put up in a fully stocked temporary housing center.

Before that, several ambulances transporting those injured in the earlier attacks arrived in the city.

A total of 75 buses and 20 ambulances had been scheduled to arrive in Aleppo on Friday, but infighting between the terrorists had halted the convoys departure.

See the article here:
Iran condemns deadly Takfiri bombing of bus convoy in Syria's Aleppo - Press TV

A statement released by "the joint command operation center of Syrian allies," a group that includes Russia and Iran, warned the U.S. against further military actions in the war-torn country, following a missile strike on a Syrian air base last week.

Referring to its defense of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime, the group warned that they would support Syria and its people "with all means that we have."

"The United States crossed red lines by attacking Syria, from now on we will respond to anyone, including America if it attacks Syria and crosses the red lines," the statement read. "America knows very well our ability and capabilities to respond well to them, [and] we will respond without taking into consideration any reaction and consequences."

The statement did not include critical details like what kind of military operation would cross such a red line, or what kind of response would be made on the part of Syria and its allies, but noted that they would work to "liberate" Syria from occupation.

"Rest assured that we will liberate Syria from all kinds of occupying forces, it does not matter from where they came to the occupied part of Syria," the statement warned. "Russia and Iran will not allow the United States to be the only superpower in world."

The statement warned the U.S. that allies of Syria were "closely and deeply following American forces' moves and presence" in the areas of northern Syria and northwestern Iraq, and that they will "consider them [to be] an occupying force."

Russia and Iran have backed Assad in Syrias six-year-long conflict, as has the Shia militia Hezbollah. The United States and other Western countries have thrown their support behind rebels fighting the Syrian regime.

The statement follows heated rhetoric from American lawmakers suggesting that Syrian allies like Russia may have had prior knowledge of the chemical attack that took place in Syria last week, killing scores of civilians, including many children.

Earlier on Sunday, Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said on ABC News' "This Week" that Russia is "complicit" in the chemical attack in Syria.

"Absolutely they're complicit," Schiff told ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos. "Russian intelligence may not be as good as ours, but it's good enough to know the Syrians had chemical weapons, were using chemical weapons."

The question of Russian complicity in the attack also came up in an earlier interview on "This Week" Sunday with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Tillerson said he has "not seen any hard evidence" that Russians were involved in planning or carrying out the attack.

But the secretary of state said when he meets with the Russian foreign minister this week, he will bring up Russia's obligation under a 2013 agreement to ensure the Syrian government got rid of its chemical weapons.

"It agreed to be the guarantor of the elimination of the chemical weapons, and why Russia has not been able to achieve that is unclear to me," Tillerson said. "Clearly they've been incompetent and perhaps they've just simply been out-maneuvered by the Syrians."

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Russia and Iran say U.S. 'crossed red lines' with strike on ...