Reuters: Iranian police will launch a crackdown this week on "indecent Western-inspired movements" such as rappers and satanists, state radio said on Monday.
Iran to crack down on “indecent” Western-style groups
One in four Iranian youths jobless: report
AFP: More than one quarter of young Iranians aged between 15 and 24 are unemployed, a top Iranian statistics official was quoted as saying by the Mehr news agency on Monday.
Total CEO sees short-term Iran South Pars problems
Reuters: French oil major Total said on Monday it was still interested in Iran's huge South Pars gas field but added it could be hard to reach an agreement in the short term.
Hizbullah seizes key areas of Lebanon
The Guardian: Iranian-backed Hizbullah and its opposition allies yesterday escalated their armed takeover of key areas of Lebanon held by the western-backed government, gaining control of the Druze heartlands of Mount Lebanon and clashing with pro-government Sunni fighters in the northern port city of Tripoli.
U.N. and Iran hold talks on disputed nuclear work
Reuters: Iran and the U.N. atomic watchdog began talks on Monday on the Islamic state's disputed nuclear program, which the West fears is a front to build weapons, the official IRNA news agency reported.
Iran hard-liners come out against Iraqi-US deal
AP: Two hard-line newspapers seen as speaking for Iran's clerical establishment called Monday for Iraqis to oppose a strategic framework deal with the United States, Tehran's first public condemnation of the arrangement.
Drive in Basra by Iraqi army makes gains
New York Times: Three hundred miles south of Baghdad, the oil-saturated city of Basra has been transformed by its own surge, now seven weeks old.
Iran sees no emergency OPEC meeting before September
Reuters: Iran does not expect OPEC to hold an emergency meeting before September, a senior Iranian oil official said on Monday, despite rising crude prices on world markets.
Tehran, Damascus ascendant
Washington Times – Editorial: Make no mistake about it, the quick, brutal display of raw military power by Hezbollah in the past six days is a window into the grim future of Lebanon and the broader Middle East: a future in which Iran and Syria are ascendant and have lost much of their fear of the United States and Israel.
FEATURE-Smuggling to Iran rife in dangerous Gulf waters
Reuters: Smugglers pile boxes high on their speedboats, covering them with tarpaulin before zipping off into the sunset on the short but dangerous journey across the strategic Strait of Hormuz from Oman to Iran.
