Iran announced here on Friday that it would grant a one-billion-dollar loan to Iraq. According to a report by the Mullahs' Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance, the loan paid in the form of credit is a further measure by Iran to help reconstruction of Iraq. Yesterday though, Iran's Housing Minister Mohammad Saeedi-Kia said since funds for the quake-stricken city of Bam has been delayed, reconstruction projects will be postponed till September 21, 2007, "three years" after an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale leveled the central city of Bam on December 26, 2003, leading to the death of more than 43,000 Iranians.

Reconstruction Bam "no"....Reconstruction Iraq "yes"

Speaking in a meeting with Iraq's Minister of Finance Bayan Jabr, Iran's Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Davoud Danesh Ja'fari said the loan is aimed at assisting the Iraqi government with the reconstruction of that country in areas of mutual interest. The Iraqi side has undertaken to use Iranian experts and contractors for the execution of that country's infrastructural projects which should be specified through earlier coordination with Iran," he said.

For his part, the Iraqi finance minister reminded that the agreement followed the rather lengthy negotiations between the two countries' heads of state, and added, "No doubt, the two sides' negotiations would not have reached a conclusion if it were not for the strong support of the Iranian (mullahs) and Iraqi senior officials."

Jabr appreciated the mullahs' regime for its sincere cooperation and industrious efforts in this regard.

He also pointed out that according to the agreement, the credit would used for the construction and completion of power plants, roads, hospitals, schools, and some other infrastructural possibilities, the very same 'needs' were supposed to be provided to Iranians in earthquake ruined city of Bam.

The Iraqi finance minister and his accompanying entourage arrived here in Tehran on Monday and attended talks with Iran's first Vice-President, Cooperation Minister and Foreign Minister prior to the meeting with Danesh Ja'fari.

Earlier during a visit to Tehran by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Iran announced that it would give the Baghdad government a $1 billion line of credit.

The financial arrangements were revealed on the third and final day of Talabani's meetings here with Iran's political elite, including the Iranian President.

At the meeting, Ahmadinejad made clear that Iran would support Iraq's government in setting a timetable for US troops to leave the country.


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© Iranian.ws

Lidt om jordskælv og bam:(Kilde :REUTERS/IRIB/Iranian TV )

Bam Citadel Devoured by Savage Earthquake
strong quake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale jolted the city of Bam in Kerman Province Friday morning.

Witnesses at the scene said that a large part of the Bam Citadel, a tourist attraction, has been destroyed as the result of the quake.

The state TV reported that about 100 percent of the world’s largest mud brick buildings have been destroyed in the city. The report also said that about 65 percent of the historical city has been destroyed.

Located in southeastern Iran, 200 kilometers south of Kerman, the ruined city of Arg-e-Bam has been made entirely of mud bricks, clay, straw and the trunks of palm trees.

The city was originally founded during the Sassanid era (224-651 B.C.) and while some of the surviving structures date from before the 12th century, most of what remains was built during the Safavid era (1502-1722).

During Safavid times, the city covering six square kilometers, was surrounded by a rampart with 38 towers, and had between 9000 and 13,000 inhabitants.

Bam prospered because of pilgrims visiting its Zoroastrian fire temple (dating to early Sassanid times) and as a commercial and trading center on the famous Silk Road.

Upon the site of the Zoroastrian temple, the Friday Mosque of the city was built during the Saffarid dynasty (866-903) and adjacent to this mosque is the tomb of Mirza Naeem, a mystic and astronomer who lived three hundred years ago.

Bam declined in importance following an invasion by Afghans in 1722 and by another invasion by invaders from the region of Shiraz in 1810. The city was used as a military base until 1932 and then completely abandoned. Intensive restorations had been carried on the historical monument 1953.

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Teksten for nogle af billederne her under og i min billede samling om bam:

* A relative carries two young brothers
A relative carries two young brothers who were killed when their home collapsed following an earthquake in Bam, Iran, December 27, 2003. International rescue workers hacked desperately through flattened debris for survivors and cemeteries overflowed in Iran's ancient Silk Road city of Bam after an earthquake that killed more than 20,000 people. REUTERS/Caren Firouz

*BAM, Iran (Reuters) - International rescue workers were scouring flattened debris for survivors in Iran's shattered ancient Silk Road city of Bam on Saturday, after a violent earthquake killed more than 20,000 people.

President Bush, who once branded Iran part of an "axis of evil" for allegedly developing weapons of mass destruction, and other world leaders rushed to offer whatever help they could to the Islamic Republic.

President Mohammad Khatami has admitted Iran cannot cope on its own. The official IRNA news agency quoted Iran's Interior Ministry as saying assistance would be welcome from every corner of the globe other than Israel.

Swiss rescuers with sniffer dogs were the first foreign team to start hunting for trapped survivors, Iranian television reported.

The predawn quake on Friday also injured about 30,000 people, state television said. The quake measured 6.3 on the Richter scale and struck when many people were still asleep.

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 *The quake flattened most of the city of Bam
The provisional death toll from a devastating earthquake in southeastern Iran has risen to 20,000, with at least 30,000 injured, the Interior Ministry says.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/12/26/iran.quake/index.html

*Over 70% af byen Bam ligger i ruiner
A video image from IRIB Iranian Television shows a street scene in Bam, Iran, December 26, 2003, following a devastating earthquake. A powerful earthquake struck the ancient Silk Road city of Bam in southeastern Iran on Friday, killing 'thousands' and razing many buildings, state television said. Iranian television said about 70 per cent of the buildings in Bam, a popular tourist destination some 1,000 km (600 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran, had collapsed in the earthquake which measured 6.3 on the Richter scale. (IRAN OUT, NO SALES) REUTERS/IRIB/Iranian TV

*Bam er ramt af jordskælv

A video image from IRIB Iranian Television shows a street scene in Bam, Iran, December 26, 2003, following a devastating earthquake. A powerful earthquake struck the ancient Silk Road city of Bam in southeastern Iran on Friday, killing 'thousands' and razing many buildings, state television said. Iranian television said about 70 per cent of the buildings in Bam, a popular tourist destination some 1,000 km (600 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran, had collapsed in the earthquake which measured 6.3 on the Richter scale. (IRAN OUT, NO SALES) REUTERS/IRIB/Iranian TV

*Lejetøjet blev skiftet ud med medicine
Five year old Iranian quake victim Mohammed Bameri plays with his medicines inside a tent at a medical camp near Bam airport near the city of Bam, which was leveled by Friday's devastating earthquake, December 29, 2003. Iran's supreme leader vowed to return the ruined city of Bam to its former glory, as rescuers held out little hope of finding more survivors in the rubble of the quake that killed up to 30,000 people. REUTERS/Fatih Saribas