FYI-I received this from a booking agent's newsletter and wanted to pass it along.



The news from Iran is mixed. As many of you already know, the hunting season this year was cancelled. We are told that powerful protectionist and xenophobic elements in the current administration have put pressure on the Department of Environment to stop hunting, especially for foreigners. The DOE has partially caved to those pressures. After weeks of negotiations, we are told that many of the nature reserves (there are more than 200 such in Iran) will be closed to hunting for a period of 5 years.

The good news is that some dozen reserves, among them several of the country's largest, will be open to hunting next year. Some of these will be leased to private firms for administration. This new management modality should insure that sufficient permits will be available to accommodate all those who were booked this year to hunt in Iran and provide for a stable, if limited, hunting program in the next few years.

Time will tell if the new system is implemented in time for next years' hunting season. Stay tuned for further news.