Qal-e Kord Cave may shed new light on stone-tool evolution

The seventh excavation season at Qal-e Kord Cave could reshape understanding of early human tool-making on the Iranian Plateau. Researchers have identified three technological layers: upper Mousterian-style tools linked to Neanderthals, an intermediate phase, and deeper layers showing simpler, less standardized artifacts. The site may represent a local technological tradition dating to the late Lower Paleolithic and early Middle Paleolithic.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/529240/Qal-e-Kord-Cave-may-shed-new-light-on-evolution-of-stone-tool

Israeli troops shoot children and abduct medical workers in West Bank

Israeli forces and settler militias are rampaging across the West Bank—shooting children, abducting doctors, and marking detainees with numbers on their foreheads. Settlers have besieged families, cut water and power, and blocked ambulances. Over 1,330 attacks since early 2026 have killed 18 Palestinians, wounded 880, and displaced over 2,300.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/529217/Israeli-troops-shoot-children-and-abduct-medical-workers-in-West

Staff strike paralyzes Ben Gurion Airport, halting check-in counters

Cairo agreement on Gaza faces slim chances of success

Israel has outright rejected the 15-point Cairo plan and continues its aggression. With elections approaching, Netanyahu is unlikely to compromise. Key sticking points—disarming resistance, deploying a stabilization force, and managing Gaza—remain unresolved. The US remains biased toward Tel Aviv, and guarantor states lack leverage over the regime. For now, a breakthrough appears distant.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/529218/What-chances-does-the-Cairo-agreement-on-Gaza-have-of-succeeding

Iran: New US sanctions constitute 'economic terrorism' and 'crime against humanity'

🔹The Foreign Ministry condemned new US sanctions announced on the anniversary of the 1953 coup, stating they prove "73 years of enmity" and the US administration's "anti-human, law-breaking, and hegemonic nature."

🔹"Economic sanctions targeting Iran's fundamental human rights constitute 'economic terrorism' and 'crime against humanity'—perpetrators must be tried and punished," the ministry said.

🔹The sanctions come after the failed US-Israeli aggression, the ministry noted: "These measures merely lengthen America's record of crimes but will have no effect on Iranians' resolve to safeguard independence, dignity, and national sovereignty."

New scholarly work sheds light on Achaemenid monetary systems

A major new book, Coinages in the Achaemenid Empire, offers the first comprehensive account of the empire's diverse coinages. Published by Edinburgh University Press, it is the final work of the late Prof. Keith Rutter. The study examines royal, satrapal, and local issues, treating coins as vital evidence for understanding imperial administration and exchange systems across the vast Achaemenid realm.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/529241/Persian-Empire-New-scholarly-work-sheds-light-on-Achaemenid

Seven Western states condemn new Israeli settlement plan in West Bank

🔹The UK, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, and Norway jointly condemned the Zionist regime's decision to publish tender documents for the "E1" settlement project in the West Bank.

🔹In a joint statement on Thursday, they stressed that Israeli settlements in occupied territories constitute a violation of international law and called on Tel Aviv to immediately withdraw the plan.

US announces new sanctions on Iran, Hezbollah, Russia, Cuba

🔹The US Treasury Department imposed new sanctions on individuals and entities linked to Iran, Hezbollah, Russia, and Cuba, continuing its hostile policies against the Islamic Republic.

🔹Three individuals on the list—all Turkish nationals—are associated with Iran, while seven individuals linked to Hezbollah, including one Iranian national, were also targeted.

🎨 New cartoon by Yemeni artist Kamal Sharaf on recent Syria developments

US Treasury chief claims Iran facing 'biggest economic isolation in history'

🔹US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claimed in his latest anti-Iran rhetoric that Washington's hostile policies would force Iran into the "biggest economic isolation in history."

🔹He also called on Iran's allies and other nations to cease engagement with the Islamic Republic's ruling system.

Ghalibaf: Iran and Iraq refused to let Western powers determine their fate

🔹Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaking at the 40-day memorial ceremony for the martyred Leader in Karbala, said history will record that the Iranian and Iraqi nations refused to be footnotes to others' narratives and rejected having their fate decided in Western capitals.

🔹"Every step enemies took to distance us, we took two steps closer," he said, adding that the depth of the two nations' ties is rooted in history, geography, and faith.

🔹Ghalibaf stressed that both countries are now committed to economic development and prosperity, with a clear agenda to enhance security, stability, and remove foreign interference. "Our strength lies in our brotherhood," he concluded.

Iran envoy warns US space ambitions fuel arms race risk

🔹Iran's UN ambassador in Geneva, Ali Bahraini, told the Conference on Disarmament that Washington's push for military dominance in outer space undermines efforts to keep it a peaceful domain and heightens the risk of militarization and weaponization.

🔹The development of US offensive space capabilities—including dedicated space forces and designating outer space as a new warfare domain—could push other nations to develop countervailing capabilities and intensify a dangerous arms race.

🔹Bahraini warned that satellite constellations, commercial satellites, and other space systems must not become tools for hostile actions against other countries or violations of their sovereignty.

🔹He also stressed that voluntary approaches cannot replace a legally binding instrument to prevent an arms race in space, and urged the international community to condemn deliberate US and Israeli attacks on Iran's civilian space infrastructure.

Gen. Ibn al-Reza: We will not allow aggression on Iran's land, security

🔹Acting Defense Minister stated that Iran's defense power is "not for warmongering but for preventing war and aggression."

🔹"We have never been and will never be the initiator of aggression against any country," he emphasized.

🔹"We are not military aggressors, but we will not allow any military aggression on our land, independence, and security."

Iran's defense industry revolution; any threat will face devastating response

🔹Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Major General Ali Abdollahi, in a message to the Acting Defense Minister on Defense Industry Day, stated that what has been achieved in the defense industry is "more than the production of military equipment—it is a deterrence-oriented industrial revolution."

🔹He stressed that Iran's armed forces, with comprehensive, intelligent, and up-to-date readiness across all domains—land, sea, air, defense, space, and cyber—will meet any miscalculation or conventional and modern threats with "revolutionary, crushing, remorseful, and devastating responses."

Ghalibaf: Iran-Iraq economic ties need a roadmap

🔹Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, addressing Iranian and Iraqi business leaders in Baghdad, stressed that developing bilateral economic relations requires a "precise roadmap" that can influence the region and the Islamic world.

🔹He called for using national currencies in trade exchanges to "strike the US dollar's dominance," noting that the era of US hegemony has passed.

🔹Qalibaf emphasized that security and the economy are "two wings of the same bird," and that a resilient economy is essential for enduring sovereignty.

🔹"We are not warmongers, but we will not allow anyone to trample our dignity," he added.