TEHRAN: Hundreds of people gathered in southwestern Iran to pay their respects to dozens who died in a building collapse, local media said Monday, as two more bodies were discovered.
The 10-story Metropol building, located on a busy street in Abadan, a city in Khuzestan province, was under construction when parts of it imploded on May 23, in one of Iran’s deadliest such disasters in years.
Two more bodies were discovered under the rubble on Monday morning, taking the confirmed death toll to 31, according to the Red Crescent.
“Residents of Khuzestan wept for the victims” as they gathered on Sunday evening at the invitation of the imam of Abadan, the Fars news agency reported.
Sunday had been declared a day of national mourning by the government.
Hundreds of people shouted to drown out a speech by Mohsen Heydari, a local representative of the committee of experts, the body that selects Iran’s supreme leader.
Others streamed onto a platform used by state television, knocking a camera to the ground, Tasnim news agency said, noting that police called on people to leave the scene to avoid escalating tensions.
The provincial governor had said on Sunday that a total of 38 people were reported as missing in the disaster, indicating that seven now remain unaccounted for, after the new discoveries on Monday.
Night-time protests over the disaster have been a regular fixture in Abadan and elsewhere in the province since Wednesday night, as citizens have demanded local officials be held to account.
Thirteen people, including the mayor of Abadan and two former mayors, have been arrested in connection with the building collapse.
Demonstrations have also been reported in the central Iranian cities of Isfahan and Yazd.
Iran mourns building collapse victims as toll tops 30
https://arab.news/cnbav
Iran mourns building collapse victims as toll tops 30
- Sunday had been declared a day of national mourning by the government
- Hundreds of people shout to drown out a speech by Mohsen Heydari, a local representative of the committee of experts
Qatar joins US-led Pax Silica Alliance to secure semiconductor and critical mineral supply chains
- Doha says participation in alliance will enhance its international partnerships in fields of semiconductors, computing, cybersecurity and digital technologies.
- Qatar is the second Middle Eastern country to join the US-led economic-security coalition, after Israel
LONDON: Qatar joined the US-led Pax Silica Alliance on Monday in a move described as a strategic step to enhance cooperation in advanced technologies and supply-chain security.
The alliance was launched last month in Washington with the aim of securing global supply chains for semiconductors, artificial intelligence technology, critical minerals and digital infrastructure.
Doha said participation in the alliance will enhance its international partnerships in the fields of semiconductors, computing, cybersecurity and digital technologies, helping to boost the country’s technological capabilities and economic diversification efforts, the Qatar News Agency reported.
Ahmed Al-Sayed, Qatar’s minister of state for foreign trade affairs, and Jacob Helberg, the US under secretary of state for economic affairs, signed the Pax Silica declaration during a ceremony in Doha.
Al-Sayed said the world was undergoing a significant transformation driven by AI, rising energy and mineral demands, and rapid technological advancements.
He described the declaration as “a new milestone in the Qatar-US partnership, founded on trust, shared interests, and a unified vision for advancing stability and prosperity.”
He added: “Qatar recognizes that the currency of geopolitical power has changed. Sovereignty is no longer just about protecting borders, it is about securing the supply chains of the artificial intelligence era.”
Qatar is the second Middle Eastern country to join the alliance; Israel signed up in December. Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the UK and Australia have also joined the bloc.
“In a region often defined by its fractures, Pax Silica marks a historic opportunity for the region to shift from political rivalry to economic interoperability,” Helberg said.
