Getting Out of Iran’s Way
The election of Ebrahim Raisi shows Iran's lack of interest in peace with the West—and the perils of pulling out of the Middle East altogether.
Guardian Council
In Ebrahim Raisi, Iran’s clerics have groomed and promoted their ruthless enforcer
This month, Iran held the most boring — and most consequential — presidential election in its history. Boring because the election was rigged virtually from the start. What made it consequential is...
Op-eds
Ali Larijani, Iran’s Rejected Hardliner
It wasn’t supposed to end this way. On May 15, Ali Larijani, the former speaker of Iran’s parliament, registered to run for president. Ten days later, the Guardian Council – an unelected, 12-member...
Insights
Iran’s Leading Presidential Candidate Has Committed Crimes Against Humanity
Even the prison guards were horrified. In the summer of 1988, at the behest of Iran’s then-supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the regime executed thousands of political dissidents incarcerated...
Op-eds
Khamenei is Iran’s most important voter, and he wants more extremism, not less
Elections have consequences, even in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Nobody knows this better than Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the country’s most powerful person and most important “voter.” Through...
Op-eds
Why the Coming Iranian Elections Will Challenge the Biden Administration
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei seems inclined to promote a candidate who will quash dissent over someone who could work with the West.
Op-eds
Why America Should Hope the Regime in Iran Collapses
Advancing the collapse of the Islamic Republic will not bog the United States down into another Middle Eastern war or cost further blood and treasure. It can be done by maintaining sanctions on the Islamic Republic and its officials and by beginning a policy of maximum support of the Iranian people.
Op-eds
Iran, Terrorism Finance, and Money Laundering: A Status Update Before FATF Meets Next Week
When the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) convenes its plenary next week, while not formally on the agenda, buzz on the sidelines will concern Tehran’s constant push to be removed from the FATF blacklist....
Insights
To meet the Iran nuclear challenge, the IAEA must remain apolitical
World powers should not restore the nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA, but should hold the Islamic Republic accountable for violating its international nuclear non-proliferation obligations.
Op-eds
Parsing Iranian Responses to the Killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh-Mahabadi
2020 has proven to be a tough year for the Islamic Republic of Iran. It began with the killing of its most important general and terrorist mastermind, Qassem Soleimani, and now appears to be ending...
Op-eds
The IRGC runs for high office in Tehran
It’s not every day that a former hostage-taker and a man essential to the founding of a designated terrorist organization throws his hat into the ring for president, not even in the Islamic Republic of...
Op-eds
Iran Threatens to Repudiate Key Nuclear Verification Agreement
The Iranian parliament, or Majles, ratified a motion on Tuesday directing the government to stop implementing a key nuclear verification agreement called the Additional Protocol (AP). While Iran has already...
Policy Briefs
Tehran Can Afford to Fight COVID-19 Even Without Sanctions Relief
The Iranian government is leading an international campaign to pressure the United States to lift sanctions. American and European negotiators of the ill-fated Iran nuclear deal, along with dozens of pressure...
Insights
Coronavirus and voting boycott: A new low for Iranian regime
The past few days have been terrible for the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Feb. 21 parliamentary elections were boycotted by a majority of the population, with credible reports that just 19% of the population...
Op-eds
Torture TV
The Case for Sanctions on the Islamic Republic of Iran’s State-Run Media
Monographs
U.S. Sanctions Five Members of Iran’s Guardian Council
The Trump administration on Thursday sanctioned five officials who sit on Iran’s 12-member Guardian Council, which screens parliamentary and presidential candidates to ensure their fidelity to Iran’s...
Policy Briefs
FATF Reimposes Countermeasures on Iran for Failing to Meet Anti-Money Laundering Standards
Today, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) followed through on its October 2019 commitment to re-impose due-diligence countermeasures on Iran if Tehran failed – as it has since 2016 – to complete...
Policy Briefs
Why Does The Islamic Republic Of Iran Hold Elections?
This week, the Islamic Republic in Iran will hold an unfree and unfair election for the 290 seats in its national parliament, the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Over the last four decades, on average, the...
Op-eds
Iran’s hardliners look to consolidate control in parliamentary election
The narrowing of Iran's political spectrum will be demonstrated on Friday in parliamentary elections dominated by hardline candidates. Driving the news: An estimated one-third of sitting parliamentarians...
Op-eds
Remember, Iran’s Terror Network Is Global
“They are warriors who have no borders… They are warriors who show their presence wherever needed.” That’s how Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described the Qods Force, the special...