Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Iran claimed Sunday that it had reached its goal of running 3,000 centrifuges for uranium enrichment, a much higher number than recently estimated by the United Nations' atomic agency. If true, the accomplishment might allow Iran to produce enough nuclear material for a bomb within a year, military experts have calculated.

TEHRAN - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday denounced as unjust the supervisory electoral body's disqualification of his top aide from next month's presidential poll and said he plans to appeal to the nation's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Ahmadinejad spoke a day after the powerful Guardian Council, which vets candidates, barred the outgoing president's confidant, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, and former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of the nation's most illustrious political figures, from the June 14 election.

As leaders of 192 nations gather at the United Nations this week, there is one question on nearly everyone's mind: How do you say that name? To begin with, there is Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (ahh-mah-dee-nee-ZHAHD, according to the Voice of America, http://names.voa.gov), who captured headlines during his visit to New York this week. His multisyllabic name has bedeviled broadcasters and other world leaders since he was elected president two years ago.

TEHRAN - The run-up to Iran's June presidential election took a dramatic turn Saturday with last-minute candidacy announcements by two controversial political figures: former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, top aide to outgoing incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. In the final moments before the five-day registration period expired, Rafsanjani and Mashaei arrived via separate entrances at the Interior Ministry, where all would-be candidates were required to sign up by 6 p.m. Saturday.

"The Green Wave" tells its deeply moving story three ways, using animation, on-camera interviews and extensive documentary footage to show us a moment in history that reveals more about itself each time it is examined. That moment is the tumultuous, controversial 2009 presidential election in Iran, when the spirit of reform as symbolized by the color green ended up stained with the blood of demonstrators savagely attacked by forces loyal to the ruling regime. Although a 3-year-old election may sound like old news, "The Green Wave" has considerable contemporary relevance.

While some in the press press the president about coffin nails, and the 24/7 infotainment machine has moved on to celebrity obits and sex scandal, much of the world is still focusing on the Iranian election. Beirut's Bleibel (Hassan Bleibel) artfully reduces Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to a ballot-box padlock, while Moscow's Tunin (Sergei Tunin) frames him followed by fatal footsteps. Nairobi's Gado (Godfrey Mwampembwa) initiates him into an inauspicious gathering of the suspicious.

TEHRAN - Iranian presidential candidates began registering Tuesday for the national election next month to choose a successor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Although there has been considerable political suspense over who will run, voter enthusiasm has appeared lukewarm as many Iranians are focused on economic survival in a nation battered by Western sanctions. About two dozen potential presidential hopefuls have emerged publicly so far. Office-seekers must register by Saturday to be considered for inclusion on the ballot.

TEHRAN - The reform movement that took to the streets to protest alleged vote-rigging in Iran's last presidential election has been crushed. The supreme leader has made it clear that such behavior will not be tolerated this time. But that doesn't mean the maneuvering to replace Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in an election set for June 14 has been without intrigue. Ahmadinejad, who was reelected in the disputed 2009 balloting, is barred by law from seeking a third term and is publicly promoting a trusted aide to replace him. It is far from clear, however, whether the president's preferred successor will even be allowed to run. For much of the outside world, the incumbent remains the defiant face of the Iranian theocracy.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wanted to send his onetime protege Mahmoud Ahmadinejad an unmistakable message: You're replaceable. The Iranian president had been skipping Cabinet meetings, apparently over Khamenei's decision to overrule his firing of the country's intelligence chief. So Khamenei asked a conservative lawmaker to begin assembling a caretaker Cabinet, just in case the president resigned or had to be removed, said an Iranian official close to the politician. Ahmadinejad eventually returned to work.

A reformist challenger to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad criticized the hard-liner's denial of the Holocaust, saying it has served Israel's interests and pushed Iran deeper into international isolation, a newspaper reported Saturday. Moderate cleric Mehdi Karroubi is one of two reformist candidates hoping to unseat Ahmadinejad in the June 12 presidential election.

TEHRAN - Iranian presidential candidates began registering Tuesday for the national election next month to choose a successor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Although there has been considerable political suspense over who will run, voter enthusiasm has appeared lukewarm as many Iranians are focused on economic survival in a nation battered by Western sanctions. About two dozen potential presidential hopefuls have emerged publicly so far. Office-seekers must register by Saturday to be considered for inclusion on the ballot.

TEHRAN - The reform movement that took to the streets to protest alleged vote-rigging in Iran's last presidential election has been crushed. The supreme leader has made it clear that such behavior will not be tolerated this time. But that doesn't mean the maneuvering to replace Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in an election set for June 14 has been without intrigue. Ahmadinejad, who was reelected in the disputed 2009 balloting, is barred by law from seeking a third term and is publicly promoting a trusted aide to replace him. It is far from clear, however, whether the president's preferred successor will even be allowed to run. For much of the outside world, the incumbent remains the defiant face of the Iranian theocracy.

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was remembered Friday as a leader who cared for the poor and opposed the dominance of one nation over others during a funeral ceremony that attracted dignitaries from around the world. The Venezuelan national anthem was played by the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra, directed by conductor Gustavo Dudamel. In his funeral oration, Vice President Nicolas Maduro said Chavez, who died Tuesday at 58 after a long bout with cancer, was the champion of the oppressed and "redeemer of our poor and those of all the world.

TEHRAN - Iran will stage its annual show of solidarity and defiance Sunday, a festive day of scripted rallies and fiery oratory marking the 34 t h anniversary of the Islamic Revolution and denouncing "satanic" Washington and its allies. But with a pivotal presidential election approaching in June, the veneer of unity among Iran's diverse political blocs has been wearing thin as average Iranians struggle to cope with a withering, sanctions-driven economic crisis. Even before official candidates have emerged, a nasty spate of preelection infighting has erupted, unveiling an unedifying display of name-calling and mudslinging.

BEIRUT - The mysterious death of a dissident blogger while in Iranian police custody this month has generated a rare torrent of criticism from officials apparently embarrassed by a case that has drawn international condemnation and again shined a spotlight on the nation's poor human rights record. Iranian authorities have echoed calls from such human rights groups as Amnesty International for a thorough investigation of the death of Sattar Beheshti, 35, who died Nov. 3 under still-hazy circumstances after being arrested by Iran's cyber police, according to various accounts.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was able to make more headlines during his trip to New York City. It seems the president, who brought over 100 people with him, made time to do more in the Big Apple then talk about eliminating Israel. Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad's posse shopped around the city, making stops at Costco, Duane Reade and Payless shoes. [ New York Daily News ]. Paris Fashion Week is underway and L.A. Times fashion critic Booth Moore has all the latest from the runways.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad heralded his disputed reelection as "a glorious and fully democratic" event Wednesday in a speech to the General Assembly and avoided mention of Tehran's nuclear program, even as he faces possible sanctions from U.N. nations. Ahmadinejad devoted most of his comments to accusing Israel of "racist ambitions" and to portraying himself as a defender of the poor against unbridled capitalism. Speaking of voters in Iran's June presidential election, which led to violent street protests and widespread allegations of fraud, Ahmadinejad said, "They entrusted me once more, by a large majority, with this heavy responsibility."

Patriotic Persian music blasted from the car that led thousands of demonstrators down Westwood Boulevard one recent afternoon, past Persian restaurants and bookstores. A plane hired by a local Persian TV station streaked overhead, flying a banner proclaiming: "We support freedom in Iran."

"The Green Wave" tells its deeply moving story three ways, using animation, on-camera interviews and extensive documentary footage to show us a moment in history that reveals more about itself each time it is examined. That moment is the tumultuous, controversial 2009 presidential election in Iran, when the spirit of reform as symbolized by the color green ended up stained with the blood of demonstrators savagely attacked by forces loyal to the ruling regime. Although a 3-year-old election may sound like old news, "The Green Wave" has considerable contemporary relevance.

With his now-familiar mix of bombast, politics and theater, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday denounced the United States and its European allies as colonialist "slave masters" intent on wrecking the world economy, prompting dozens of Western diplomats to walk out. As in previous years, Ahmadinejad used his appearance at the United Nations General Assembly to condemn the United States and its allies, accusing them of causing centuries...