Iran thanks Egypt for efforts to bridge gaps in US talks
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian thanked Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Tuesday for Cairo’s efforts to help bridge positions in Tehran’s negotiations with Washington, Iran’s state media reported.
In a phone call, Pezeshkian also said Iran wanted to strengthen ties with Arab countries, especially GCC members, according to the reports.
Al Arabiya, meanwhile, reported that during the phone call with Iran's presdient, Sisi categorically rejected attacks on the sovereignty of Persian Gulf states.
Iran’s internet connectivity was partially restored on Tuesday after 88 days and 2,093 hours of near-total isolation from international networks, internet monitor NetBlocks said.
NetBlocks described the shutdown as "the longest nationwide internet blackout in modern history."
The monitor said it was unclear whether the partial restoration would be sustained.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian discussed regional tensions and bilateral ties in a phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi on Tuesday, the Iraqi prime minister’s office said.
The two sides discussed strengthening cooperation between Iran and Iraq in ways that serve the interests of both countries.
They also discussed the need for continued regional and international coordination to reduce tensions and prioritize dialogue and de-escalation, the statement said.
Rising prices for menstrual hygiene products and persistent social stigma are worsening conditions for women in Iran, with many forced to miss school, reuse disposable products or forgo basic care altogether, the Shargh newspaper reported ahead of World Menstrual Hygiene Day.
The report described how menstruation remains shrouded in shame and silence for many Iranian girls, particularly in smaller towns and poorer communities, where limited education and cultural taboos leave adolescents unprepared for puberty.
One student in a village near Miandoab told Shargh she avoided leaving her classroom during breaks out of fear classmates would notice blood stains on her clothes. Another girl believed she had cancer when she experienced her first period.
“Absence from school is one of the first reactions many girls have when they experience menstruation,” a teacher identified as Nazanin told the newspaper. “The less awareness there is in the family, the more common this behavior becomes.”
Rising costs force unsafe alternatives
Inflation, the report said, has sharply increased the cost of sanitary pads and other hygiene products, particularly affecting women in low-income and marginalized areas.
Somayeh, a 38-year-old worker in a food packaging workshop near Tehran, said long shifts and limited bathroom access often force her to delay changing sanitary products for hours.
“When you have to choose between buying food for your children or sanitary pads for yourself, you choose food,” she said.
Social worker Mahya Vahedi said some women have turned to cloth and other non-hygienic substitutes because they cannot afford sanitary pads, leading to infections and untreated wounds.
“Buying hygiene products has become a luxury for many families,” Vahedi said.
Unlike several countries that provide free menstrual products in schools and public spaces, Iran offers almost no free access to sanitary products in schools, universities or public facilities, the report said.
Debate grows over menstrual leave
The report also highlighted growing debate around menstrual leave policies in workplaces.
File photo of schoolgirls in a classroom in Iran, where rising poverty and the high cost of sanitary products have increased concerns over menstrual health and period poverty among students.
Shima, an office worker interviewed by Shargh, said menstruation remains difficult to discuss openly at work despite the physical pain many women endure.
“How can part of the workforce spend several days each month working through pain and bleeding with no recognition of those conditions?” she said.
Political economy analyst Anisha Asadollahi said menstrual leave has become a point of tension between gender equality demands and Iran’s labor market realities.
Some critics, she said, fear additional labor protections for women could discourage employers from hiring them, citing past labor policies that unintentionally reduced women’s employment opportunities.
But Asadollahi argued recognizing menstrual leave remains important because workplace norms are still built around “the male body as the standard worker.”
“Giving up rights because of fear of discrimination only strengthens unequal structures,” she said.
An Iranian administrative court has temporarily halted implementation of the order creating a special body tasked with managing the country’s internet policy, state media reported on Tuesday.
The court’s industry and commerce panel issued the suspension after complaints seeking to annul the document that established the “cyberspace steering and organization headquarters.”
President Masoud Pezeshkian had earlier created the body and appointed Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref to lead it, asking it to resolve the country’s internet access situation.
On Monday, the body approved returning international internet access in Iran to its pre-January 2026 status.
