Festival of Kindness: supporting children and protecting their right to education

Iran's annual Jashn-e Atefeha (Festival of Kindness) is underway, collecting school supplies and donations for underprivileged students. Held by the Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation, this 35th edition runs for a full week in schools for the first time, under the slogan "A Breeze of Kindness with Students' Charitable Spirit," aiming to ensure financial hardship doesn't keep children from education.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530807/Festival-of-Kindness-supporting-children-and-protecting-their

Blood, Bombs & Billions

The Iran war has cost US taxpayers $38bn in direct combat operations and households $71.5bn in extra gasoline, yet defense and energy giants are profiting massively. RTX and Lockheed Martin reported soaring sales and record backlogs. Trump's oil and gas holdings gained up to $15.5m, while Kushner's firm made over five times its investment in an Israeli financial company tied to the defense economy.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530824/Blood-Bombs-Billions

IRGC: Al-Aqsa Storm marked beginning of the end of Zionism

🔹In a statement marking the third anniversary of the October 7 operation, the IRGC said it "shattered the Zionist regime's security structure" and "demolished the myth of the Israeli army's invincibility."

🔹"Three years on, strategic equations have shifted in favor of the Resistance Axis, while the Zionist regime and its main supporter, the US, are mired in crises and repeated defeats."

🔹It warned: "Any miscalculation or new aggression against Iran will bring a painful and devastating response."

🔹The IRGC honored martyrs Haniyeh, Sinwar, and Deif, vowing resistance continues until "the liberation of Al-Quds."

Putin and Pezeshkian to meet Friday in Turkmenistan

🔹Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a bilateral meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Friday, October 9, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov announced.

🔹The meeting will take place during Putin's visit to Turkmenistan for the CIS Heads of State Summit.

‼️ Exclusive interview:

'Our doors and hearts are always open to Iran': Malaysia's chargé d'affaires tells the Tehran Times

In his first interview in Tehran, Dato' Wan Aznainizam Yusri praises Iranian resilience and Malaysia's principled stance against US-Israeli aggression. He highlights growing trade, BRICS cooperation, resumed direct flights, and the MTCP, which has trained 419 Iranian officials. His message to Iranians: "Our doors and hearts are always open to you all."

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530827/Our-doors-and-hearts-are-always-open-to-Iran-Malaysia-s-charg%C3%A9

October 7, genocide and Yemen

The writer argues Al-Aqsa Flood shattered the Zionist narrative, returned Palestine to the global forefront, and drew the Axis of Resistance into battle. He notes Israel's losses since October 7 exceed all since 1948, and that no force has shown greater sacrifice than Hezbollah, Palestinian fighters, Yemen, and Iran. Now, as the US warns over Bab al-Mandab, a new front is opening in Yemen.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530821/October-7-genocide-and-Yemen

Mudbrick houses: The heritage of traditional Iranian architecture

Iran's earthen architecture—from Yazd's windcatchers and sunken courtyards to Bam's vast citadel—reflects millennia of adapting to harsh climates. Mudbrick use dates to the 8th millennium BCE at Tepe Ganj Dareh. UNESCO cites Yazd as a living example of intelligent desert design. Today, centers like Esfahk are reviving these passive-cooling techniques for a sustainable future.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530775/Mudbrick-houses-The-heritage-of-traditional-Iranian-architecture

🔹Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi held separate meetings with the ambassadors of India (new ambassador), Japan (farewell meeting), and Spain in Tehran.

🔹Discussions covered a range of important regional and international issues, with emphasis on maintaining and expanding bilateral relations based on mutual respect and shared interests

General Abdollahi: Al-Aqsa Storm exceeded Zionist regime's imagination

🔹In a message marking the anniversary of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, the Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces said the operation surpassed the fake Zionist regime's expectations, disrupting enemy calculations and shaking the entity.

🔹He stated that October 7 shifted the Resistance Front's strategy from defensive to offensive, accelerating the decline of the usurping, child-killing regime.

🔹He stressed that the sacrifices of Resistance martyrs—including Haj Qasem Soleimani, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Ismail Haniyeh, and Yahya Sinwar—will continue until the liberation of al-Quds.

Pezeshkian congratulates Putin on birthday; both stress continued strategic cooperation

🔹President Masoud Pezeshkian held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, congratulating him on his birthday and wishing prosperity and growth for the Russian government and people.

🔹The two leaders emphasized the continuation and strengthening of bilateral and strategic cooperation between Tehran and Moscow.

Gen. Naqdi: We will block illegal routes in Strait of Hormuz

🔹IRGC Commander-in-Chief's Advisor Brigadier General Naqdi said the Strait of Hormuz is closed and fully under the Armed Forces' control, and this will continue until Iran's legitimate demands are met.

🔹"The volume of smuggled oil is negligible. Some use small vessels to smuggle oil and transfer it to tankers—soon, the few routes violators have created by blasting rock paths in the Strait will be blocked."

🔹On weapons range: "The limited range of our weapons is not due to technical reasons but our policy. Iran's weapons range is determined by officials' decisions, the Leader's directives, and our needs."

Palestinian flag raised at nationwide protests in France

🔹Nationwide protests in France took on a new dimension as slogans expanded to international issues and support for the Palestinian people.

Army spox: Domestic production sustains Iran's defense reserves

🔹Army spokesman Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia said Iran's continuous production capacity ensures readiness for a long war, with weapons production continuing during conflict so reserves never declined.

🔹"Despite sanctions, Iran relied on domestic production. The sanctions threat became an opportunity for indigenous manufacturing," he said.

🔹"We assumed war might last years, so forces were prepared for both production and sustained combat."

🔹On lessons learned, he said US "stand-off warfare" tactics are now well understood, and Iran has shifted toward long-range strike capabilities while strengthening offensive and defensive systems.

🔹"The enemy's weakness is in a long, attritional war, while Iran's forces have higher resilience."

President Masoud Pezeshkian will travel to Turkmenistan on Thursday to attend and address two summits: the CIS Heads of State Council as a special guest, and the Caspian Sea littoral states' environmental summit.

Baghaei: False flag operations cannot hide criminal nature of US-Israeli wars

🔹Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei published a short video on X documenting seven decades of US and Israeli false flag operations, writing: "False flags are an old craft: manufacture the incident, assign the blame, and harvest the consequences."

🔹He noted that with American and global public opinion weary of the "unlawful war of aggression against Iran," the aggressors have no honest way to justify their war of choice.

🔹"Even a raft made of lies can look like salvation to those who are drowning," he concluded, citing the Arabic proverb "the drowning man clutches at any straw."

From Qeshm to Tabas: Exploring Iran's remarkable geodiversity

Marking International Geodiversity Day, Iran's geological heritage spans salt domes, caves, canyons, and fossil sites. Three UNESCO Global Geoparks—Qeshm, Aras, and Tabas—showcase this diversity, from the Arabian-Eurasian plate collision to the Permian-Triassic boundary. Geoparks link conservation with education, research, and sustainable local livelihoods.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/530847/From-Qeshm-to-Tabas-exploring-Iran-s-remarkable-geodiversity