An old song about the city of Tehran praises it for being “always full of light”. But this isn’t how most Tehranis are experiencing their city this week. Like other parts of Iran, the city is going through government-organised electricity cuts. Its long highways have gone dark and every home has received a schedule for power cuts. Neighbourhoods have to do without electricity for several hours during daytime.
Despite being energy-rich, Iran is no stranger to electricity cuts, although they are nowhere as common as in countries such as Lebanon, Pakistan or South Africa. This is why many Iranians are reacting with considerable anger. In the city of Shahriar, a baker who had lost much of his products to a power cut, protested by dumping his stock of spoilt sourdough on the streets. A shopkeeper in Zabul voiced outrage at his goods going bad due to his fridge shutting off.
This situation would have been controversial under any circumstances but the explanation provided by the government of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has only added fuel to the fire.
The government is framing the electricity cuts as an environmental protection measure, saying that they were the result of power plants being ordered to stop burning mazut, a particularly dirty and low-grade heavy oil, which is used to generate power in only a few countries in the world, including Iran. Announcing the measure, the government’s spokesperson sounded like she was doing Iranians a favour, declaring that “regulated darkness” was better than “producing poison”.
As expected, Dr Pezeshkian’s political opponents, particularly the more extreme, have jumped on this. The research centre at the hardliner-dominated parliament was quick to produce a report that questions the government’s claim that stopping the use of mazut is the real reason for the electricity cuts.
The real reason is Iran’s lacking sufficient fuels such as diesel fuel or even mazut, it said. In other words, it wasn’t that the government didn’t want to burn mazut but that it simply doesn’t have enough of it or other fuels.
Malek Shariati, a conservative MP, made similar claims and said people were being as hurt by electricity cuts as they would be by air pollution. The Tehran daily Hamshahri, went with the headline: “Will our skies become blue only if the lights go dark?”
Placing the blame for Iran’s myriad energy problems on Dr Pezeshkian is absurd. He has been President only since July 28. The previous administration was led by the hardliner president, Ebrahim Raisi. But it’s true that blaming problems on predecessors is a venerable part of the Islamic Republic’s political culture. Raisi himself often blamed the bad hand he had been dealt by the centrist Hassan Rouhani who, in turn, put the blame on another former hardliner president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The truth is that Iran’s electricity problems have been a long time coming. In fact, on the day of Dr Pezeshkian’s inauguration, Tehran was facing power cuts. The presidential office was literally in the dark on that day, an ironic symbol of Iran’s problems.
The Pezeshkian government’s decision to cut electricity in Iranian homes contrasts with the Raisi government’s cutting electricity out of industrial concerns. The latter created less of a hassle in the daily lives of most citizens, but it was arguably more harmful for the country’s long-term economic health.
Vice President, Mohammadreza Aref, made a similar point a few weeks ago when introducing Iran’s new energy minister, Abbas Aliabadi. If the country wants to achieve its goal of eight per cent economic growth, as outlined in its development plan, it couldn’t go through hours of electricity cut at its factories, Mr Aref said.
But Iranians aren’t just upset at the current electricity cuts for the inconvenience of today. They are also worried that this might bode ill for the near future. It’s still only fall and a particularly tough or cold winter could stretch Iran further. Many remember with bitterness how following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, conservative Iranians claimed that Europe was going to face a “tough winter” without regular energy sources from Iran and Russia. Europe was able to avoid a serious crisis in its energy supply but Iran hasn’t been so lucky.
Despite boasting of one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world, Iran doesn’t produce enough energy to warm all its homes, especially since it also relies on gas export for hard currency. Dr Pezeshkian was hoping to sign a deal with its gas-rich north-eastern neighbour, Turkmenistan, to solve this problem but no satisfactory deal has been coming.
More worryingly, it’s likely that when US president-elect Donald Trump takes office in January, he will bring back his policy of "maximum pressure", which would mean a harsher enforcement of sanctions on Iranian oil. If Iran is not able to sell as much oil, it will even have more problems providing the basics for its citizens. The problem will be even worse if Israel attacks Iran’s energy infrastructure, as many have suggested it could. Emboldened by Mr Trump’s election, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu might want to use such attacks to heighten domestic discontent in Iran.
Like most of its problems, Iran’s energy pains also have to do with its international isolation. Among other things, the US-imposed sanctions prevent Iran from accessing the most up-to-date technology for its power plants. Nevertheless, Iranians are clear-eyed about the roots of their problems. In a poll published last month and reported by the Iranian Students' News Agency, a majority of Iranians blamed mismanagement of resources by authorities as the main reason behind the electricity cuts. “Sanctions” and “mismanagement” have been long cited as twin evils bedeviling the country.
Writing on the current crisis, journalist Reza Ghobeishawi warned in Shargh Daily about an ominous example: Cuba, which recently went through significant electricity cuts. Iran, he said, will await a similar fate unless it worked to lift the sanctions and improve its international stature.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
The%20specs%3A%202024%20Mercedes%20E200
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%20four-cyl%20turbo%20%2B%20mild%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E204hp%20at%205%2C800rpm%20%2B23hp%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E320Nm%20at%201%2C800rpm%20%2B205Nm%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E9-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7.3L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2FDecember%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh205%2C000%20(estimate)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
PRISCILLA
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Sofia%20Coppola%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Cailee%20Spaeny%2C%20Jacob%20Elordi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Pieces of Her
Stars: Toni Collette, Bella Heathcote, David Wenham, Omari Hardwick
Director: Minkie Spiro
Rating:2/5
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 592bhp
Torque: 620Nm
Price: Dh980,000
On sale: now
UAE and Russia in numbers
UAE-Russia ties stretch back 48 years
Trade between the UAE and Russia reached Dh12.5 bn in 2018
More than 3,000 Russian companies are registered in the UAE
Around 40,000 Russians live in the UAE
The number of Russian tourists travelling to the UAE will increase to 12 percent to reach 1.6 million in 2023
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEjari%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERiyadh%2C%20Saudi%20Arabia%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYazeed%20Al%20Shamsi%2C%20Fahad%20Albedah%2C%20Mohammed%20Alkhelewy%20and%20Khalid%20Almunif%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPropTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%241%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESanabil%20500%20Mena%2C%20Hambro%20Perks'%20Oryx%20Fund%20and%20angel%20investors%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E8%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.3-litre%20turbo%204-cyl%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E298hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E452Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETowing%20capacity%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3.4-tonne%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPayload%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4WD%20%E2%80%93%20776kg%3B%20Rear-wheel%20drive%20819kg%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPrice%3A%20Dh138%2C945%20(XLT)%20Dh193%2C095%20(Wildtrak)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDelivery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20from%20August%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
%3Cp%3ECreator%3A%20Tima%20Shomali%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0Tara%20Abboud%2C%C2%A0Kira%20Yaghnam%2C%20Tara%20Atalla%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Read more about the coronavirus
Muguruza's singles career in stats
WTA titles 3
Prize money US$11,128,219 (Dh40,873,133.82)
Wins / losses 293 / 149
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
360Vuz PROFILE
Date started: January 2017
Founder: Khaled Zaatarah
Based: Dubai and Los Angeles
Sector: Technology
Size: 21 employees
Funding: $7 million
Investors: Shorooq Partners, KBW Ventures, Vision Ventures, Hala Ventures, 500Startups, Plug and Play, Magnus Olsson, Samih Toukan, Jonathan Labin
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dual%20synchronous%20electric%20motors%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E660hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E1%2C100Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20automatic%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E488km-560km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh850%2C000%20(estimate)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EOctober%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
