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khatami leading in primary count

tehran, may 24, irna -- out of the 8,989,065 votes counted so far, hojatoleslam mohammad khatami has secured 6,049,834 and majils speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri 2,498,316, said an official from the interior ministry a short while ago. alireza tabesh who is in charge of the election headquarters of the ministry said that the turn out in the friday elections was unprecedently heavy. immediately after the polls closed at 10:00 p.m., after being extended twice for two hours each time, counting of the votes started nationwide and continues with no interruption, tabesh added. in friday's elections, held to choose a new president to succeed president akbar hashemi rafsanjani whose term ends in august, 33 million voters are eligibe to cast their ballots. the turnout of the elections, one of the most exciting since the victory of the islamic revolution, is expected to be the highest in the history of the islam c republic. more on the friday elections, he said that rule of law and complete security prevailed throughout the country during the polls. he added that the votes counted so far are from 144 towns nd 12,112 polling stations throughout the country. the third on the list is hojatoleslam mohammad reyshahri with 197,427 and the fourth reza zavarei with 177,471.

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khatami ahead of other candidates in greece

athens, may 24, irna -- hojatoleslam mohammad khatami got the highest number of votes cast by iranians in athens in friday's presidential elections, an iranian embassy source told irna. however, the source would not give any figures of the votes, saying that it was "not a normal practice to inform the press about the results before the competent authorities in iran were informed about it." about 200 iranians voted in athens to elect a successor to president akbar hashemi rafsanjani whose term in office will end in august.

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elections-result ... 2 - tehran

hojatoleslam mohammad khatami, one of the main front-runners of the friday presidential elections continues to remain on top as more votes are counted throughout the country. according to the latest figures released by the election headquarters of the interior ministry, out of the total of 14,100,335 ballots counted in 17,592 polling stations of 179 cities, khatami has secured 9,561,517 votes. speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri remains second with 3,746,703 votes followed by reza zavarei 370,806 and mohammad mohammadi reyshahri 318,368. some 102,941 ballots have been cancelled.

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iran rejects u.s. allegations on chemical weapons

united nations, new york, may 24, irna -- the islamic republic friday dismissed as 'thoroughly fabricated '' allegations levelled by u.s. officials on transfer to iran of chemical weapons technolog by chinese companies. iran's permanent representative to the u.n. kamal kharazi told irna friday that washington has once again resorted to baseless claims in an irresponsible manner in connection with the peaceful activities of the iranian chemical industries. u.s. secretary of state madeleine albright told senate appropration subcommittee thursday that the u.s. administration ''will cut off trade with two chinese companies and individuals for at least a year'' on grounds of providing iran with chemical weapons technology. kharazi stressed that such statements, like similar cases in the past, are aimed at depriving the islamic republic from legal right to expand its chemical industries for non-military purposes in accrdance with the articles of the chemical weapons treaty. he concluded that the islamic republic as a signatory to the treaty on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and a victim of these weapons during the iraqi imposed war, rejects all allegations on any plan to produce chemical weapons in iran.

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press-headlines

saturday newspaper headlines
tehran, may 24, irna -- the following headlines appeared in tehran's newspapers saturday morning:
tehran times:
-unprecedented turnout in elections
-guardian council to consider election complaints
-focus: u.s.: give up your cards
-ciller says elections can solve crisis
-afghan shias repulse taleban onslaught
-russian minister fails to sway duma on nato deal
iran news:
-huge turnout in unprecedented presidential voting
-syria sees israel behind turkish incursion
-hizbolah radical leader calls for civil disobedience
-police, students clash at istanbul protest...turkey's ciller hit by resignations, wants polls
-demonstrators in kashmir shout anti-indian slogans as they march to the martyrs' graveyard in srinagar, may 21
-one-year-old kim nam-soo draws as his mother with 13 other north korean defectors sit during a press conference in seoul, may 22 kayhan international:
-leader casts vote...'no one can substitute rafsanjani'
-massive turnout at polls nationwide
-ayatollah kashani in friday sermon: people's turnout a response to call of islam
-thousands of kashmir gov't staff strike to protest rights abuses
-yeltsin appoints nucler chief as new defense minister
-turkish kurds break into u.n. geneva hqs.
-inter-tajik peace talks opens in tehran
-valayati talks with cnn...iran's foreign policy to remain unchanged
-voting a religious duty - rafsanjani
-over iran arms trade...china rejects u.s. sanctions
-aqazadeh in beijing
-oldest couple cast vote
iran:
-massive turnout in elections...revolution leader: no one can substitue rafsanjani
-iran's news, photos on internet
-president: possibility of error in election virtually nil
-guardian council to consider election complaints
-provisional friday prayer leader: next president should meet requirements of the masses
iran daily:
-in festive atmosphere: voter turnout unprecedented...more than 90 percent of eligible voters expected to participate
-perspective: the people's verdict
-ankara dispatches more troops to iraq
-the next government must have a solid economic program
-irna goes on the internet
jomhuri eslami:
-unprecedented turnout in elections
-leader: we expect the next president to consider himself servant of the nation
-armed forced to renew allegiance to imam khomeini, martyrs of imposed war
-president expresses hope the next president will fully implement semi-finished development projects
-u.s. statesmen, western media admit disgraceful failure of washington in its anti-iran policies
salam:
-massive turnout in presidential elections
-revolution leader: we expect the next president to consider himself servant of the nation
-primary result of elections to be announced today
-president: possibility of error in elections virtually nil -amnesty international criticizes violation of human rights in germany
-syria says israel behind turkish incursion into northern iraq
abrar:
-leader casts vote
-742 trillion cubic meters reserves, 8 billion cubic meters of export, iran to meet europe's gas requirements
-ground will be paved for investment
-taliban sustain heavy blow by hizb-e-wahdat
-by-elections conducted in isfahan, natanz, zanjan and tarom-olia
-vote counting started
hamshahri:
-unprecedented turnout in presidential elections
-revolution leader: we expect the next president to consider himself servant of the nation
-president expresses hope with the election of the next president, semi-finished development projects would be fully implemented
-hojatoleslam khatami: whoever is elected should continue the trend of reconstruction effort
-hojatoleslam nateq nouri: candidates, their supporters should support the person who will gain the majority votes
-hojatoleslam reyshahri: the prime task of the next president is to strengthen the country's management system
akhbar:
-primary result of the election will be announced today
-velayati: iran will not resume critical dialogue with europe
-armed forces to renew allegiance to martyrs of beit-ul-moqaddas operations
-turkey, a second algeria
-china rejects u.s. sanctions
-tajikistan peace talks opens in tehran
kar va kargar:
-revolution leader: no one can substitute rafsanjani
-who will substitute commander of reconstruction?
-taliban sustained heavy blow in northern, central afghanistan
-ayatollah emami-kashani: next president should meet requireemnts of the masses
-kurdish turks break into u.n. geneva hqs.
kayhan (arabic):
-revolution leader: my attitude towards anyone who emerges victorious from the ballot boxes as the president will be the same as that towards mr. hashemi rafsanjani during the past eight years
-large number of foreign journalists give coverage to massive turnout of people in elections
-velayati: what happened in germany on mykonos issue, is a great catastrophe for the german judicial system
-inter-tajik peace talks opens in tehran
-central asian republics express concern over recent developments in afghanistan

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kargozaran thank nation, provincial officials say turnout heavy

tehran, may 24, irna -- members of kargozaran-e sazandegi (servants of construction), in a statement issued here saturday morning said that the unprecedented participation of people in the friday presidential elections was a sign of their commitment to islam, the revolution, the islamic republic system and the leadership. the statement added that the heavy turnout in the seventh presidential elections is a source of pride, honor and prestige for supporters of islam and iran and is a cause of disappointment for the enemies. meanwhile, reports from various parts of the country indicate that the turnout in the elections has been unprecedentedly high. governor general of northern province of mazandaran, ali asghar geranmayeh-pour, told irna last night that despite unprecedented participation of the provincial people in the elections, there has been no single incident in the process of polling in some 2,646 polling stations throughout the province. governor general of the eastern province of kerman, morteza bank, also said the turnout has been very high. he said that it is predicted that number of votes cast throughout the province will be 40 percent higher than the sixth presidnetial elections. the sunni friday prayer leaders of the city of gonbad, in northern iran also described the turnout as the heaviest in the past 18 yeas and praised the enthusiasm demonstrated by the people in the elections. reports from abroad said that a large number of iranian nationals residing in various countries including germany, the u.s. and the united arab emirates (uae) cast vote in the seventh presidential elections to elect a successor to president akbar hashemi rafsanjani who will step down in august after eight years in office.

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khatami takes lead abroad

tehran, may 24, irna -- reports from a dozen foreign countries, where votes have been counted, indicate that except for bulgaria where speaker hojatoleslam nateq nouri has won, hojatoleslam mohammad khatami, a former minister, is the winner in most of the other countries. in new york and new jersey, khatami secured 83.5 percent of the votes with 354 out of the total of 424 votes followed by nateq nouri with 54 votes, hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshah i six and reza zavareie four votes. in canada, out of 1,022 votes cast, khatami secured 81.9 percent of the votes with 837 followed by hojatoleslam nateq nouri with 100 votes, reyshahri 50 and zavareie 17. in syria out of the total of 3804 votes, khatami secured 2,166, nateq nouri 1,272, reyshahri 188 and zavareie 67. khatami is also the winner in japan, germany, austria, italy, india, mexico, venezuela and colombia. results from bulgaria indicate that out of the total 97 votes, nateq nouri gained 46 votes, khatami 27 followed by zavareie four and reyshahri two.

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election results update, khatami continues lead

tehran, may 24, irna -- according to unofficial reports the presidential contender hojatoleslam mohammad khatami enjoys a clear lead oover his rival majlis speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri. unofficial figures indicate that till 11:30 local time (07:00 gmt) out of the trotal of 15,367,108 votes counted in 18,779 polliing stations khatami has secured 10,389,372 votes. naterq nouri, remains second with 4,118,869 votes followed by reza zavarei with 404,014 and hojatoelslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri with 342,394 votes.

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khatatmi remains on top with almost half of votes counted

tehran, may 24, irna -- the latest ballot counts put former minister hojatoleslam mohammad khatami, 54, leading the other three presidential contenders of the friday elections. of the total of 16,366,531 votes counted from 20,501 polling stations in 202 citiest till 12:30 p.m. saturday, khatami has gained 11,013,899 votes, or 67.3 percent, according to the latest official figures released by the election headquarters of the interior ministry. speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri, 54, remains second on the list with 4,428,421 votes or 27.06 percent followed by reza zavarei with 431,732 or 2.64 percent and hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri with 371,438 or 2.27 percent, added the report. meanwhile 121,141 votes have been declared void. results continue to pour in from provincial cities and towns on the ballots cast yesterday. turnout in the friday elections, one of the most exciting held in the past 18 years, was very high.

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khatamti maintains lead

tehran, may 24, irna -- ther former minister of culture and islamic guidance hojatoleslam mohammad khatami, continues to maintain a clear lead in the friday presidential elections. according to the latest figures released by the election headquarters of the interior ministry at 13:40 hours saturday, of the total of 17,644,586 votes counted in 212 cities, khatamti has secured 11,713,679 votes followed by majlis speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri 4,964,866, reza zavarei 448,699 and hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri 387,954. of the total, 129,388 votes have been declared void. immediately after polls closed last night, after being extened for four hours, counting of the ballots started throughout the country to decide a successor to president akbar hashemi rafsanjan whose term in office will end in august. the turnout is said to be the highest in the history of the islamic republic.

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nouri congratulates rival on landslide victory before results out

tehran, may 24, irna -- majlis speaker hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri, one of the front-runners in the presidential elections has congratulated his rival, hojatoleslam mohammad khatatmi, on the landslide victory even before complete results of the friday polls are out. the majlis speaker wished the future president of the islamic republic all the success and expressed his readiness for full cooperation. he also thanked the nation and praised them for their massive turnout in the elections. he said the unprecedented turnout in the friday elections is another victory for the islamic republic and and renewal of allegiance with the leader of the islamic revolution, ayatollah ali khamenei. the speaker's statement, broadcast on tehran radio in the main news bulletin at 2:00 p.m., came unexpectedly since the full results of the elections have not been released officially. however, according to the votes counted, khatami is clearly ahead.
in his letter, nateq nouri said that the massive turnout of the people in the 7th presidential elections was in response to the call by the leader and the prestigious ulema to implement the constitution and to guarantee the right to vote of the nation. ''this broad national presence'' which he termed as a renewal of allegiance with the supreme leader of the revolution, ayatollah ali khamenei, '' will serve as a strong backing to resist the enemies of islam and islamic republic.''
congratulating the nation, the supreme leader and khatami himself, the majlis speaker expressed hope that the nation will witness the consolidation of the pillars of the sacred islamic system, commitment to the principles set by the late founder of the islamic republic imam khomeni and overall development of the country through implementation of the approved laws and plans under khatami's adminisration.
''we all strive to serve the nation and islam,'' he said while pledging to work with the future president.

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preface to caspian sea legal regime convention agreed upon

almaty, may 24, irna -- the deputy foreign ministers of the littoral states of the caspian sea wound up their 2-day discussions on the legal regime of the sea here friday by agreeing on the preface to their convention. the preface stresses peaceful use of the sea, equal sovereignty on it, protection of its environment, reasonable use of its resources and the responsibility of governments towards present and future generations. iran's policy in the central asia and the caspian region aims to establish peace and stability inducive to florishment and development of regional economy, noted the iranian deputy foreign minister for euro-american affairs mahmoud vaezi. vaezi who headed the iranian delegation to the meet stressed that peace, stability and tranquility in the region are preconditions for settling the problems of the caspian sea. the sea is a manifestation of peace, friendship and cooperation among littoral states, he added. vaezi said that the sea should not be turned into a scene for rivalries which escalate tension, confrontation of big powers and arms rivalries. he also emphasized codification of a comprehensive and broad-based legal regime which guarantees survival of the caspian sea and secures interests of its littoral states. rejecting the unilateral moves of certain littoral states, the iranian delegation announced since the sea is shared by iran and the former soviet union, therefore, previous agreements between the two countries are still binding and any unilateral measure by littoral states on exploitation of its resources has no legal standing.

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election results in fars province

shiraz, fars prov., may 24, irna -- the elections headquarters in the southern province of fars here saturday announced the votes counted in a number of provincial cities as follows: of the total of 61,383 votes counted in the city of abadeh, hojatoleslam mohammad khatami has secured 44,522 votes followed by hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri with 13,293 votes, hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri with 2,410 votes and reza zavarei with 905 votes. of the total of 85,724 votes counted in the city of mamasani, hojatoleslam khatami has secured 74,443 votes followed by hojatoleslam nateq nouri with 9,958 votes, hojatoleslam reyshahri with 715 votes and zavarei with 357 votes. of the total 112,640 votes counted in the city of kazeroun, khatami has gained 94,650 votes, followed by nateq nouri with 16,074, reyshahri with 824 and zavarei with 647 votes. results continue to pour in from other provincial cities and towns on the ballots cast yesterday.

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iran daily: fridays vote climax of iran's political maturity

tehran, may 24, irna -- the newly-published english 'iran daily' in its editorial saturday, said that fridays vote represented the zenith of iran's political maturity and ushered in a new era in iran since after the 1979 revolution. the electorate in the neighborhood of 30 million many of whom were youth cast their verdict for a better tomorrow and proved their political responsibility and commitment to the nation. although changes will not take place immediately, the future of our domestic and foreign policy should become crystal clear before the year is out. "those who work and live in iran will not be oblivious to the inherent truth of our system. elections don't turn things upside down, nor do elected officials. the bottom line is that here directions don't change, what really does shift is emphasis.'' structures and manpower resources- the two key elements of development are not exchanged for the sake of convenience. ''we hope that the incoming administration will set the stage for attracting and maintaining an efficient task force while ensuring that those who exist the scene remain a bare minimum." continued the daily. it further stated that this year's race was as diverse as it was different from previous times in the political arena. three clerics among the four contenders aired their views on how to enter the 21st century. ''in principle, their election manifestos come close to the wants of the people where they spent a good time of their campaign talking generously about social justice, accountability a healthy economy....but on prime time television, roundtables and official statements they agreed to disagree on ways to achieve the above objectives.'' the editorial concluded, ''as is usually the case, the new chief executive will have lined up the genuine support of his pre-elections political opponents with the massive mandate from the people to continue building a strong and stable islamic republic.''

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khatami sweeps votes of iranians abroad

tehran, may 24, irna -- reports from iran's 94 diplomatic missions abroad, where votes have been counted, indicate that hojatoleslam mohammad khatami is leading the other three presidential contenders of the friday elections. out of the total 43,516 votes counted, khatami has gained 32,933 votes, followed by hojatoleslam ali akbar nateq nouri with 9,555, hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri with 1,087 and reza zavarei with 772 votes. results continue to pour in from another 36 missions of the islamic republic of iran abroad.

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iran daily flays turkish generals for approach towards israel

tehran, may 24, irna -- the english newspaper 'iran daily' saturday criticized the turkish top brass for their attempts to get closer to israel without caring about the attitudes of the muslim world. ''what happened that they have changed so much and lost their pride and made themselves a small and second hand army which seeks identity and prestige by trying to get closer to ... israel,'' said the daily in its viewpoint adding that this land has once been a protectorate of the ottomans. the commentary refuted beliefs of the turkish army that they can be a strong ally of the u.s. through israel saying that by doing so, ankara will not gain anything in the long run. ''they must believe that they can command respect and much more by being among their immediate neighbors, maintain a strong and honorable relationship with them and make their voices heard, rather, than be at the mercy of the u.s., a country almost 8,000 km away from its borders.'' turning to developments in algeria where cancelling the people's vote has brought algiers on the brink of political, economic and social bankruptcy, it said, ''there is need for caution and concern in ankara, before that muslim country's military loses its people's support and respect.'' it concluded, ''turkey's friends obviously prefer to see stability and prosperity in that muslim state. they want to be proud of turkey which is independent and functions according to the wishes f its peoples.''

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over 500,000 tons of construction materials exported last year

tehran, may 24, irna -- some 533,000 tons of construction materials were exported from the country last year, ending on march 20, it was announced here saturday. aziz mirzaian, director general of the mines and metals ministry for construction materials added that the figure showed an increase of 40 percent compared to the year 1374 as well as a rise of 584 percent compared to 1368, the beginning year of the first economic development plan. the government's revenue, with regards to exports of construction materials, stood at rls 25 billion in 1375, indicating a rise of 45 percent and 1,098 percent compared to 1374 and 1368, respectively, mirzaian said. over rls 1,045 billion was allotted to the extraction of construction materials throughout the country last year, he concluded.

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khatami garnering more than 68 pc of votes, vote count continues, final results due saturday night

tehran may 24 , irna -- the iranian radio and television said in a report at 19:00 hours (14:30 utc) saturday that hojatoleslam mohammad khatami had garnered 15,490,659 of the total ballots of 22,726,364, according to the latest results of vote count. the figure was based on the counting of votes dropped into 27,036 boxes in 238 towns and cities friday. final result of the vote count to be published later saturday night. the following being the update of the vote count until 19:00 hours local time.
total votes counted ........................ 22,726,364
votes for hoj mohammad khatami: ............ 15,490,659
votes for hoj nateq nouri : ................ 5,946,885
votes for zavarei: ......................... 613,914
votes for rayshahri: ....................... 495,604
h

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reyshahri sends congratulatory message to khatami

tehran, may 24, irna -- the presidential contender, hojatoleslam mohammad mohammadi reyshahri sent a message to hojatoleslam mohammad khatami for his election as the next president of the islamic repubic of iran. the message read that undoubtly people's unprecedented turnout in the voting was the result of their deep belief and confidence in the holy system of the islamic republic of iran and of their sincere respect for the leadership of the country. he said the desirable political atmosphere prevailing in the country thanks to the wise leadership of the leader of the islamic revolution ayatollah seyed ali khamenei played the key role in the people's massive turnout in the election. although the final results of the vote count has yet to be released saturday night, of 22,727,364 votes counted until 19:00 hours local time, khatami has garnered 15,490,659 votes. elsewhere in his message, reyshahri expressed hope that hojatoleslam khatami would concentrate his efforts on realizing the values of the islamic revolution and administering justice under sacred ideals of the late imam khomeini and guidelines of the leader of the islamic revolution, ayatollah seyed ali khamenei.

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undp adopts first country cooperation framework for iran

united nations, new york, may 24, irna -- the annual session of the executive board of the united nations development programme (undp) adopted the first country cooperation framework (ccf) for iran, it was announced in new york on thursday. the undp has envisaged the cooperation a three-year period.
''the first ccf will increase the focus on sustainable human development (shd) and the follow-up to the international conferences, harmonize the undp cooperation with the government's development plan and the programs of cooperation of the united nations children's fund (unicef), the united nations population fund (unfpa) and provide a planning tool by which to maximize resource moblization from the non-undp sources.''
in line with the overall objectives of iran's second five-year development plan, the undp cooperation will focus on: (a) supporting economic adjustment and improved social policies and (b) promoting protection of the environment. addressing the session of the executive board, iranian ambassador in charge of economic affairs bagher asadi welcomed the undp report as factual, balanced and well-drafted. he drew the attention of the executive board to the report's assertion that notwithstanding being a highly disaster-prone country and very exacting circumstances and formidable tests of endurance over the past two decades, the islamic republic of iran enjoys great potential for economic propsperity. asadi emphasized the two sides practical commitment to continue a well-founded and solid process of development cooperation and called for closer coordination in order to fine tune the undp's priority programs and projects with those of the country in various sectors. he further added that the sheer size of the iranian economy and its ever-burgeoning potential and expanding activities calls for a higher level of the undp core funds.

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news sources: mazar-i-sharif falls, general dostum escapes

tehran, may 24, irna -- following the news on the fall of the general dostum's base in sheberghan 140 km east of mazar-i-sharif in afghanistan on saturday, the latest reports indicate that the general fled from afghanistan. according to reports from pakistan, general dostum has flied to tashkent, uzbekistan, aboard a helicopter.

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hoj. khatami has 20,078,187 votes in iran poll

tehran, may 24, irna -- presidential candidate hoj. mohammad khatami has led all his rivals with 20,078,187 votes in the final vote-count here saturday. he was followed by his other rival hojatoleslam nateq nuri who garnered 7,242,859 votes.
the figures are based on the reading of votes in 33,178 polling stations of 264 towns and cities throughout iran. the following is the results of the final vote-count in the seventh presidential election in iran.
candiate number of votes
-------------------- ----------------
hoj. mohammad khatami 20,078,187
hoj. ali-akbar nateq nuri 7,242,859
zavarei 771,460
ray-shahri 742,598
meanwhile, as many as 240,966 votes were discarded for being invalid.

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leader says election result is victory for all

tehran, may 24, irna -- in a message that was read on the iranian radio and television (seda -va-sima) seconds after the final results of the polling here saturday night, the leader of the islamic revolution, ayatollah seyed-ali khamenei, said the results of the presidential election was a victory for the nation. he said all presidential candidates, and the entirety of the nation for that matter, should feel as happy amd as victorious as president-elcet hojatoleslam seyed-mohammad khatami for a well-disciplined election that had added to the national prestige. the leader of the islamic revolution congratulated hojatoleslam khatami for his victory saying the presence of the rank and file of the irnaian people at polling boxes friday had been a "historical epic". he said the peaceful presidential election in iran friday had ensured the nation against their enemies for years to come. ayatollah khamenei said the national participation at the polling friday had proved to the world that on the arena of political struggle the people of iran are as solid, as mature, and as well-disciplined as they had been on the arena of military struggle. the leader prayed to god for helping the president-elect carry out the duties of his office, and reminded him of his duty to thank god and to devote himself entirely to his tasks. the leader of the islamic republic also addressed himself to president-elect hojatolelslam seyed-mohammad khatami calling on him to consider the office to be entrusted to him as a divine trust with responsibilities that had to be carried out in pursuit of his divine satisfaction.

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iran strongly denies u.s. allegation on iran's chemical weapon program

united nations, may 24, irna -- iranian permanent ambassador to the united nations kamal kharrazi in new york today categorically denied the charges levelled by the u.s. on the existence of any chemical weapons program in iran. speaking in an interview with irna, kharazi said, ''once again, the american officials have resorted in a very irresponsible manner, to unfounded allegations in connection with the peaceful activities of iranian chemical industries. the comments made by the u.s. secretary of state and her spokesman on the so-called transfer of chemicals that could be used in chemical weapons to iran by chinese companies are totally fabricated.'' kharrazi said, ''such comments are designed, inter alia, to deprive iran of its legitimate rights to develop its civilian chemical industries in accordance with the provisions of the chemical weapons convention. as a signatory to the chemical weapons convention and as the vivid victim of these deadly weapons during the iraqi-imposed war (1980-1988), the islamic republic of iran categorically denies the the u.s. charges in this respect, he said.

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president receives new venezuelan, indian ambassadors

tehran, may 24, irna -- the newly appointed indian and venezuelan amassadors to iran submitted their credientials to president akbar hashemi rafsanjani in separate meetings here on saturday. venezuelan ambassador lindorfdeon rodriguez told the president that relations between iran and venezuela were at a high level and that his country was for further expansion of bilateral relations in future. rodriguez considered cooperation between iran and venezuela in the areas of energy and oil as an important factor for promotion of bilateral and regional cooperation, saying that his country attached special importance to iran because of the latter's rich cultural and historical background. he said that iran enjoyed a high position among other regional countries for her model people and moral and humanitarian traits. president for his part welcomed expansion of bilateral relations and cooperation, especially in the areas of oil and energy, saying that such kind of cooperation would be effective in preserving regional peace and stability and in broadening bilateral ties. the president called venezuela as one of iran's favourable trading partners. meanwhile, india's new ambassador sidharth singh termed cooperation between tehran and new delhi in the areas of economy and commerce as "good and important", saying that iran and india could have extensive cooperation in various fields given their cultural and historical commonalities. singh said that exchange of visits by iranian and indian officials over recent years indicated the importance attached by iranian and indian officials to expansion of bilateral relations. singh said the views shared by iran and india on many international subjects, including their views on disarmament, world trade, non-aligned movement and environmental subjects, could prove helpful in restoration of regional peace and sability. president rafsanjani in reply expressed satisfaction with expansion of tehran-new delhi relations and cooperation, saying that iran and india can make use of their potentialities for improving their political, economic, cultural and technical cooperation.

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rafsanjani congradulates yemeni counterpart on yemen's national day

tehran, may 24, irna -- iran's president akbar hashemi rafsanjani cabeled a message on saturday to his yemeni counterpart ali abdullah saleh congratulating him, the yemeni government and nation on yemen's independence day and on anniversary of unifcation of two yemens. in a part of his message, the president expressed hope that thanks to the great and lofty ideals of islam, deep rooted and amicable relations between the two countries at bilateral, regional and international levels would further expand

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khatami leads in beijing, dhaka

beijing, may 23, irna -- of the 211 votes casted in beijing and shangai, seyed mohammad khatami got 113, nateq nouri 62, mohammd rey shahri 27, and seyed reza zavarei 7. while in bangladesh, of 53 votes, khatami received 25, nateq nouri 22, rey shahri 2 and zavarei 1. three ballots were blank.

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khatami ahead of other candidates in malaysia

kuala lumur, may 23, irna -- out of the 206 votes casted in malaysia, 152 votes went to seyed mohammad khatami, 38 to ali akbar nateq-nouri, nine to mohammad mohammadi rey shahri and four to seyed reza zavarei. two votes were cancelled and one was blank

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iranians in sarajevo, beirut take part in presidential election

sarajevo, may 23, irna -- iranians living in bosnia-herzegovina showed up in the single polling station set up by the iranian embassy in sarajevo on friday. the iranian voters came from other bosnian cities to sarajevo to cast their votes in the ballot box. bosnian interior minister mohammad zhilic who had attended the iranian embassy to express his sympathy over the quake disaster in northeastern iran said that the election being held in iran is a sign of democracy practiced in other parts of the world. another report from beirut said iranians living in lebanon have turn out in large numbers for the presidential election. the compound of the iranaian embassy is full of iranians coming to cast their votes to the ballot-box. people have come from nabatiya and ba-albac to the single polling booth at the iranian embassy in beirut and the turnout of voter is so heavy that the deadline for voting is expected to be extended. about 5,000 iranians are living in lebanon.

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iranians turn out en masse in elections in merv

tehran, may 23, irna -- the staff of iranian companies operating in turkmenistan and other iranians residing in merv went to polling stations on friday to vote for their candidate of their choice. according to iranian consulate in merv, a large number of people has rushed to the polling stations, resulting in a shortage of ballots. iranian lorry drivers stopped working and queued in front of the consulate to elect their next president

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residents of persian gulf islands vote for next iranian president

kish island, hourmuzgan prov., may 23, irna -- residents of this persian gulf island have had a massive turnout in the 7th presidential election on friday. the residents of kish, lavan, hendurabi and those working on oil rigs in the persian gulf queued at polling stations from early hours of friday. some polling booths ran out of ballots and requested for some more. oil workers and experts had an active presence at the polling stations. eight hours after opening of the polling booths, there are still long queues at the polling booths on the iranian islands and oil platforms.

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iranians living in turkey queuing at polling stations

ankara, may 23, irna -- iranians living in turkey have formed long lines in the front of the iranian embassy here since early voting hours on friday to cast their ballots in the 7th presidenial election in iran. reports coming in from istanbul, erzurum and trabzon indicated that the people had formed queues at the polling stations in those cities, eargerly waiting for their turn to cast their votes. an official at the iranian consulate in istanbul said that the long lines of people indicated their sense of responsibility towards deciding the destiny of their country.

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iranians cast votes for next president

moscow, may 23, irna -- iranians residing in russia, armenia and ukraine went to polls early in the morning to vote in iran's next president. polling stations are open in moscow, saint petersburg and astrakhan in russia, yerevan in armenia, kiev, odessa and kharkov in ukraine and minsk in belarus. according to iranian ambassadors to the countries, iranian residents' turnout had been unprecedented. iranian ambassador to moscow mehdi safari said that the number of voters was so high that two separate centers had to set up to accomodate voting. in yerevan, polls opened 08:00 in the morning (local time) and some 200 iranians, workers from iranian institutes, unviersity students as well as merchants stood in long lines to cast their votes. a number of iranian armenians, residing in armenia, were also seen among the voters.

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malaysian transport arrives in tehran

tehran, may 23, irna -- malaysian transport minister datuk seri and dr ling liong sik arrived here on friday heading a delegation to organize an agreement for expansion of cooperation with islamic iran in the area of transportation. ling liong sik, in iran, on an official invitation by his iranian counterpart akbar torkan, is to inspect iran's infrastructural transportation installations for transit and dispatch of goods within three-day deadline. he is also to visit mashhad-tajan-sarakhs railroad installations, ports and bandarabbas-bafq railroad networks, tehran's subway and imam khomeini international airport.

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irano-macedonian promotion of relations reviewed

tehran, may 23, irna -- iran's charge d'affaires in skopje mr. sulat in two separate meetings today with the deputy and economic director general of the macedonian ministry of foreign relations exchanged view on promotion of the two countries' bilateral relations. in his talks sulat underlined the need to exchange political and economic delegations between the two countries.

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ukrainian government sends relief for quake-hit people

moscow, may 23, irna -- ukraine's ministry for protection of the population against the consequences of chornobyl dispatched today a humanitarian assistance to iran for the quake-hit people of the khorassan province. a 7.1 jolter hit qaen and birjand areas of the khorassan province last saturday, which resulted in a toll of over 1,500 and thousands of injured victims. the ukrainian relief aid consisted of thousands of clothing items, 200 blankets and some tents. ukraine's president leonid kravchuk had earlier offered sympathies with the iranian president hojjatoleslam akbar hashemi rafsanjani and the brave nation on occurence of killer earthquake.

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iranian ambassador meets greek justice minister

athens, may 23, irna -- iran's ambassador to athens, mehdi khandaqabadi, friday met greek justice minister evangelos yiannopoulos and discussed greek-iranian cooperation, especially in the judicial field. in reference to today's presidential elections, yiannopoulos hoped that the iranian people would elect the best candidate for the iranian nation, an iranian embassy source told irna. the iranian envoy and the greek minister also exchanged views on the recent verdict by a german court in the mykonos case. pointed out that greece adopted an independent position on the issue. greece was the only member in the 15-member eu bloc not to recall her ambassador from tehran in the aftermath of the court verdict, saying it was against the policy of isolating the islamic republic. moreover, yiannopoulos expressed his condolences over the victims of a recent earthquake in the khorasan province of north-eastern iran.

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polling ends in iranian presidential elections

tehran, may 23, irna -- curtains fell on the polling booths at 22:00 hours local time (17:30 gmt) throughout iran, announced the election headquarters this evening. it, however, added, that those who already queued up before the deadline, would be allowed to cast their ballots for the country's seventh presidential polls. because of unprecdented turnout, the deadline, initially set at 18:00 hours, was extended twice --two hours each time. some 33 million iranians are eligible to vote.

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abu dhabi (uae), may 23, irna -- iranians residing in oman flocked to the iranian embassy in muscat to cast ballots for the candidate of their choice in iran's seventh presidential polls. voting started at the iranian embassy in the early hours today.

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iranians in indonesia, philippines cast votes

jakarta, may 23, irna -- iranians living in indonesia and the philippines queued up at the polling stations set up by the iranian missions from early hours in the morning to vote in iran's 7th presidential elections. in the indonesian capital, jakarta, iranians lined up at their embassy to cast their votes. in manila, philippines, a large number iranians turned out to vote.

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brisk turnout by iranians in paris for presidential polls

paris, may 23, irna -- due to the unprecedented turnout of iranians living in france, the deadline for the seventh iranian presidential polls was extended up to 20:00 hours local time this evening. since the early hours today, iranians in paris have lined up at the iranian embassy and the orly airport to cast ballots for the candidates of their choice. some 150,000 iranians live in paris.

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iranians in athens vote in presidential elections

athens, may 23, irna -- about 200 iranian residents of the greek capital voted in friday's presidential elections. the voting time was originally to end at 5 p.m. (local time) but was extended by one hour and-a-half to give more time for the iranians, who live in the athenian suburb, to vote. the voting took place at the iranian embassy. a 10-member committee, made up of five members of the embassy staff and five from the iranian residents in athens, overlooked the procedures of the voting. "everything went smooth. the voting was brisk. it was the largest number of voters that we had till now in the presidential elections here in athens," m. entezari, counsellor at the embassy told irna. the procedure of the voting was simple. any iranian citizen, regardless whether he is living legally or illegally in greece, is eligible to vote. the voter presents his passport to the poll officer who gives him the ballot paper to write the name of one of the four candidates standing for the presidency of the islamic republic. after the voter has cast his ballot, the poll officer stamps the passport of the person that voted.