The Al-Gaffal is an annual long-distance race between crews sailing 60-ft. traditional wooden boats called dhows and takes place in the Persian Gulf, between the island of Sir Bu Nair, near the Iranian coast and the Gulf emirate of Dubai. Photo: Traditional wooden boats, or dhows, compete at sunrise during the Al Gaffal race, a long-distance dhow sailing race, near Sir Bu Nuayr, near Sharjah May 18, 2014. (Photo by Martin Dokoupil/Reuters)

Twenty-four-year-old Maryam Aghayee makes hyper-realistic baby dolls acting as surrogates for some Iranian families who are apprehensive of having more children. “It has been about three or four months since I started this work”, says Maryam in Tehran, Iran on October 7, 2020. “After making my second doll, many orders have been coming in. The second doll was much more realistic than the previous one. After making my second doll, I said that from now on I can take customer orders. I did not intend to start a business from the beginning because it was a hobby, but after the second doll, the demand for these kinds of dolls increased, customers want to have such dolls”. (Photo by Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters)

A period of relative stability has put the Iranian capital No1 on the list of world cities that have achieved biggest improvements in liveability over the past five years, as calculated by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The “most improved” top 10 contains some unexpected names. So, eg, the fourth place: Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Latest ranking: 128; Ranking five years ago: 131; Five-year index movement: 3.8%. Here: A supporter of Ivory Coast president Alassane Ouattara campaigns in a market in the city’s Koumassi quarter. (Photo by Sia Kambou/AFP Photo)

Voters line up to cast their ballots at a polling station in the city of Qom, Iran. Elections for Iran's parliament (Majlis) and Assembly of Experts kicked off on Friday, February 26, 2016. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua via ZUMA Wire)

Women walk on a sidewalk in northern Tehran, Iran, Thursday, January 9, 2020. (Photo by Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)

Girls talk outside the Niavaran Palace in northern Tehran, capital of Iran, March 26, 2024. People visited the Niavaran Palace during the new year vacation of Nowruz, which falls on March 20 this year. (Photo by Xinhua News Agency/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Faithful wearing face mask pray during the Arafah prayer ceremony ahead of Eid al-Adha, at the Tehran university’s mosque in Tehran, Iran, 30 July 2020. Iran will not hold the Eid al-Adha prayers and ceremonies over the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis in the country. (Photo by Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA/EFE)

A woman talks on her cellphone as she walks around Tajrish commercial district without wearing the mandatory Islamic headscarf in northern Tehran, Iran, Saturday, April 29, 2023. More women are choosing not to wear the mandatory headscarf, or the hijab, publicly in Iran. Such open defiance of the law follows months of protests over the September death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the country's morality police, for wearing her hijab too loosely. (Photo by Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)