Syrian truffle hunters risk lives to make much-needed cash

STORY: Syrian truffle hunters risk lives to make much-needed cash DATELINE: May 18, 2023 LENGTH: 00:03:26 LOCATION: HAMA, Syria CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various inside the truffles market in Hama city 2. various of woman collecting the truffles in Hama countryside 3. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ABDUL AZIZ AL-OQAB, Local resident 4. various of truffles market 5. SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): NAZZAL AL-ADAB Nazzal, Local resident STORYLINE: Many Syrians, who are grappling with poverty after enduring 12 years of conflict, are risking their lives to collect truffles for the lucrative profit they bring. Searching for truffles has become extremely dangerous in the country. IS militants have repeatedly preyed on the fungus hunters while landmine blasts have also killed many. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ABDUL AZIZ AL-OQAB, Local resident "Regional countries consume large quantities of this mushroom, and in Syria, there is difficulty in making a living. So, people started looking for ways to make money and discovered that coll

Iranian military unveils underground tactical airbase

STORY: Iranian military unveils underground tactical airbase DATELINE: Feb. 8, 2023 LENGTH: 00:02:14 LOCATION: Tehran CATEGORY: MILITARY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the Iranian underground tactical airbase 2. various of the Iranian Air Force STORYLINE: The Iranian military on Tuesday unveiled an underground tactical airbase dubbed Oqab-44 (Eagle 44). During the unveiling ceremony, the airbase was visited by Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Baqeri and Army Commander Abdolrahim Mousavi, the official news agency IRNA reported. Located beneath the mountains, the airbase has the capability for the takeoff and landing of different fighter jets, bombers and unmanned aerial vehicles of the Iranian Air Force, the report added. It is also home to different places such as an alert station, hangers for fighter jets and centers for aircraft repair and maintenance, and has navigation and airport equipment as well as fuel tanks, it said. Oqab-44 is one of the several underground tactic