TEHRAN –On the occasion of Government Week (August 24-30), a total of nine tourism-related projects are scheduled to come on stream in West Azarbaijan province, northwest Iran, the provincial tourism chief has said.The projects include a hotel, traditional accommodation center, travel agency, tourist complex, and hydrotherapy center in different cities across the province, Jalil Jabari said on Thursday.The projects are estimated to generate 70 job opportunities upon their completion, the official added.West Azarbaijan embraces a variety of lush natural sceneries, cultural heritage sites, and museums including the UNESCO sites of Takht-e Soleyman and Qareh Klise (St.

Thaddeus Monastery), Teppe Hasanlu, and the ruined Bastam Citadel.The region was home to several ancient civilizations.

According to Britannica, it was conquered by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC and was named Atropatene after one of Alexander’s generals, Atropates, who established a small kingdom there.

Ultimately, the area returned to Persian (Iranian) rule under the Sasanians in the 3rd century CE.The provincial capital of Urmia, also spelled Orumiyeh, lies just west of Lake Urmia on a large fertile plain that yields grains, fruits, tobacco, and other crops.

The population is mainly Azeri Turkish, with Kurdish, Assyrian Christian, and Armenian minorities.

The remains of ancient settlements are scattered over the plain, as are traces of the ancient kingdom of Urartu.ABU/AM