A former mayor of Tehran who once served as one of Iran’s vice presidents has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife, after she was found dead in her bathtub Tuesday afternoon, shot several times.

The former mayor, Mohammad Ali Najafi, 67, was arrested on Tuesday and handed over to prosecutors Wednesday morning, according to the state-run news outlet IRNA.

Citing an Iranian prosecutor, the news outlet reported that Mr. Najafi had turned himself over to the police and had confessed to shooting his second wife, Mitra Ostad, 35.

Gun crime is rare in Iran, and Mr. Najafi’s prominent political status has made the crime all the more shocking, raising questions about how the country’s news media covers domestic violence. </s> Iranian TV showed officials bowing and serving tea to the former mayor of Tehran, Mohammad Ali Najafi, after he confessed to killing his second wife. In a report on state TV, a correspondent held up the gun for the camera and counted the bullets inside it. </s> Iranian papers on Wednesday widely covered the shocking case of Mohammad Ali Najafi, the ex-mayor of Tehran and former vice-president who confessed on Tuesday to the murder of his wife Mitra Ostad at her apartment.

Also a top story was the Iranian foreign ministry’s reaction to US President Donald Trump’s softened rhetoric. The foreign ministry’s spokesman said Tehran sees no prospect for talks with the US for now, and that it expects Trump to act rather than talk.

The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:

1- We Haven’t Exchanged Any Message with US: Iran

2- Najafi Confesses to Murdering His Second Wife

3- Iran First VP: Damaging Unity to Serve US Interests

2- Ryabkov to Visit Iran for Talks on JCPOA

3- Iran Says Not after Negotiation with Any US Official

2- Culture Minister: No One Should Speak to Iranians with Coercion

1- Tehran in Shock: A Review of Murder of Ex-Mayor’s Wife

3- Bloody End of Mitra Ostad: Ex-Mayor of Tehran Confesses to Murder

2- Tragic Report of a Murder: Najafi Confesses to Murdering His Wife

3- No Prospect for Talks with US: Iran </s> Najafi’s wife, Mitra Ostad, was murdered at her home in Tehran on Tuesday. Police found her body with several gunshots in her chest.

Najafi has reportedly gone to the Criminal Police headquarters in person and confessed to the murder.

Najafi had resigned from the post of Tehran’s mayor in April 2018, citing failing health for leaving the office.

A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 67-year-old Najafi was elected mayor of Tehran in August 2017.

Affiliated with the reformist political faction, he used to serve as the minister of education and the minister of culture in various administrations.

He also took the helm at Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHTO) during President Hassan Rouhani’s first term, but resigned after six months. </s> Tehran, Iran -- Police on Tuesday arrested a former Iranian vice president and mayor of Tehran after he confessed to shooting one of his wives dead in her home, Iran's state news agency reported. Police detained Mohammad Ali Najafi after he went to authorities and confessed to killing wife Mitra Najafi, IRNA quoted prosecutor Mohammad Shahriari as saying. Shahriari said Najafi and his wife were having domestic problems.

Earlier on Tuesday, Iranian media reported that Mitra Najafi, who is one of Najafi's two wives, had been killed in northern Tehran.

Gun violence is very rare in Iran, especially among the country's political and economic elite.

Najafi resigned as mayor in 2018 after hard-liners criticized him for attending a dance performance by young girls.

In 2013, Najafi, an MIT educated mathematician, worked as vice president in charge of cultural heritage and tourism in President Hassan Rouhani's administration for nearly seven months. Najafi has held many ministerial positions in his career.

Gen. Ali Reza Lotfi, head of Tehran police's criminal investigation department, told state TV that Najafi handed the weapon over to police voluntarily and admitted committing the crime.

Lotfi said Najafi fired five times and two bullets hit the victim. He said the case is under investigation by the police and judiciary simultaneously.

Semi-official news agency Tasnim quoted Shahriari as saying Mitra Najafi was shot several times, including once in the heart. Her body was found in a bedroom on the seventh floor of a residential high-rise in northern Tehran.

Polygamy is legal in Iran, though many criticized Najafi, 67, on social media after he married Mitra, 35. </s> Tehran - A former mayor of Tehran who once served as one of Iran’s vice presidents has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife after she was found dead in her bathtub Tuesday afternoon, shot several times.

The former mayor, Mohammad Ali Najafi, 67, was arrested Tuesday and handed over to prosecutors Wednesday morning, according to the state-run news outlet IRNA.

Citing an Iranian prosecutor, the news outlet reported that Najafi had turned himself over to the police and had confessed to shooting his second wife, Mitra Ostad, 35.

Gun crime is rare in Iran, and Najafi’s prominent political status has made the crime all the more shocking, raising questions about how the country’s news media covers domestic violence.

The state broadcaster IRIB news aired footage of Najafi on Tuesday, taken at a police station in Tehran, in which he sips tea with officials apparently unhandcuffed. Later in the video, while answering a reporter’s questions, Najafi smiles and talks casually about the circumstances of the shooting, which he appears to imply had been an accident during a marital dispute.

Najafi told the news outlet that he had suggested divorce to his wife several times, but that she would not allow it. He also described increasing fights with his wife that had led the pair to live separately.

Another clip, also posted by IRIB and widely shared on social media, shows the same reporter who interviewed Najafi handling the gun that was said to have been used in the attack, removing the magazine and handling the bullets one by one.

The video clips outraged some observers on social media, who said the images showed a comfortable relationship between Najafi and police officials, who treated him with deference, and neglect on the part of reporters who handled potential evidence.

Najafi resigned as mayor last year, citing illness, but many believe he was forced out by hard-line opponents. He was criticised for attending a dance performance by young girls at an event to celebrate International Women’s Day.

His resignation came months after he married Ostad, who is the second of his two wives, according to The Associated Press. Polygamy is legal in Iran, but many hard-liners criticized Najafi for marrying Ostad, three decades his junior.

Najafi has held several prominent ministerial positions in the Iranian government and served as vice president for cultural heritage and tourism under President Hassan Rouhani from 2013 to 2014. </s> IFP has taken a look at the front pages of Iranian newspapers on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, and picked headlines from 11 of them. IFP has simply translated the headlines and does not vouch for their accuracy.

Iranian papers on Wednesday widely covered the shocking case of Mohammad Ali Najafi, the ex-mayor of Tehran and former vice-president who confessed on Tuesday to the murder of his wife Mitra Ostad at her apartment.

Also a top story was the Iranian foreign ministry's reaction to US President Donald Trump's softened rhetoric. The foreign ministry's spokesman said Tehran sees no prospect for talks with the US for now, and that it expects Trump to act rather than talk.

The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:

1- We Haven't Exchanged Any Message with US: Iran

2- Najafi Confesses to Murdering His Second Wife

3- Iran First VP: Damaging Unity to Serve US Interests

2- Ryabkov to Visit Iran for Talks on JCPOA

3- Iran Says Not after Negotiation with Any US Official

4- US' Goal Not Negotiation with MP

2- Imam Khomeini's Grandson: We Can't Deny the Truths

2- Culture Minister: No One Should Speak to Iranians with Coercion

1- Tehran in Shock: A Review of Murder of Ex-Mayor's Wife

3- Bloody End of Mitra Ostad: Ex-Mayor of Tehran Confesses to Murder

2- Tragic Report of a Murder: Najafi Confesses to Murdering His Wife

3- No Prospect for Talks with US: Iran </s> The former vice president of Iran and mayor of Tehran, as well as a confidant of President Hassan Rouhani, turned himself into authorities Tuesday, telling them that he killed one of his two wives.

Mohammad Ali Najafi allegedly murdered Mitra Najafi seven hours before walking into the police station, Iranian news outlet Radio Farda reported. The outlet reported that he appeared calm after confessing, and was filmed shaking hands with the police chief.

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Prosecutor Mohammad Shahriari was quoted by the Iranian Students’ News Agency, or ISNA, as saying that the former official, who is 68, told police he and the victim, 35, had been having marital problems.

Najafi resigned as mayor in 2018 after hard-liners criticized him for attending a dance performance by young girls. He had also been criticized for marrying his much younger second wife, with the controversy helping doom his political career. Polygamy is legal in Iran.

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Najafi told police in his confession that Mitra had constantly threatened to reveal his secrets -- which were not described -- and ruin him, Radio Farda reported.

Gun violence is very rare in Iran, especially among the country's political and economic elite.

Gen. Ali Reza Lotfi, head of Tehran police's criminal investigation department, told state TV that Najafi handed the weapon over to police voluntarily and admitted committing the crime.

Lotfi said Najafi fired five times, hitting the victim twice. He said the case is under investigation by the police and judiciary simultaneously.

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Mitra's body was found in a bedroom on the 7th floor of a residential high-rise in northern Tehran, according to the semi-official news agency Tasnim.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s state TV says the Tehran city council has accepted the resignation of Mayor Mohammad Ali Najafi who resigned last month after hard-liners criticized him for attending a school performance in which girls were dancing.

Tuesday’s report says 15 of the 21-member council voted in favour of accepting the resignation. Najafi was summoned by prosecutors in March to explain his presence at the school performance on the International Women’s Day.

Najafi, a U.S.-educated 65-year-old technocrat who came into office in August promising to fight corruption, submitted his resignation in mid-March, but the council rejected it at a meeting on Sunday.

Iran’s general prosecutor, Mohammad Jafar Montazerim, then urged Najafi to disregard the rejection and resign for a second time.
Former Tehran Mayor Mohammad-Ali Najafi is arrested after confessing to the murder of his wife.