Iran at the Epicenter
REVIEW: ‘Stolen Revolution: Betrayal and Hope in Modern Iran’ by Yeganeh Torbati and Bozorgmehr Sharafedin
Hassan Rouhani
Trump Could End the War Tomorrow. I Don’t Think He Will.
Energy markets breathed a sigh of relief on Monday after President Donald Trump suggested he could declare victory over Iran at any time. “I think the war is very complete, pretty much,” he told...
Op-eds
Who Is Mojtaba Khamenei?
If chosen to succeed his father as Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei will seal the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ dominance over the Islamic Republic.
Op-eds
The Regime’s Reformists Are Back, but Iranians Rejected Them Long Ago
Once more, the Islamic Republic cloaks repression in the guise of reform. The Islamic Republic, which has long banned public dancing, unveiled women, and mixed-gender celebrations, is now projecting an...
Policy Briefs
In Iran, Western journalists prioritize access over truth
Jon Snow, the longtime British broadcaster, once spoke at a London roundtable about his trips to Tehran. Asked how Channel 4 gained such easy access to Iranian officials, he paused and replied, “They...
Op-eds
10 Things to Know About Tehran’s Propaganda Network, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
Israel struck the Tehran headquarters of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on June 16, damaging a key regime media organ. IRIB is far from an independent news channel. Rather, it is a tool...
Insights
Time to Reform VOA and Its Iran Programming: Trim the Fat, Keep the Mission
The Trump administration’s decision to eliminate funding for Voice of America (VOA) represents a missed opportunity to reform and enhance the outlet’s capacity to counter adversarial propaganda.
Insights
The Shadow War
A review of Yonah Jeremy Bob and Ilan Evyatar, “Target Tehran: How Israel Is Using Sabotage, Cyberwarfare, Assassination—and Secret Diplomacy—to Stop a Nuclear Iran and Create a New Middle East” (Simon & Schuster, 2023).
Op-eds
Hezbollah’s Unit 4400
On October 1, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the killing of Mohammad Jaafar Qasir, a high-value Hezbollah operative who commanded the group’s Unit 4400—the body responsible for transporting...
Op-eds
Iran’s House of Cards
The Islamic Republic’s succession games are just getting started.
Op-eds
2040: The year Iran predicts Israel will be destroyed. Now is the time to prepare
The Islamic Republic is developing a comprehensive strategy to bring about Israel’s elimination as a sovereign state.
Op-eds
New Iranian President Praises Hezbollah ‘Resistance’ Against ‘Illegitimate Zionist Regime’
Despite predictions in several Western news outlets that Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, will “soften” the Islamic Republic’s “absolutist foreign policy,” among...
Flash Briefs
Mass Boycott by Voters Persists as Masoud Pezeshkian Wins Iran Presidential Election
At least 50 percent of Iranian voters boycotted the second round of the Islamic Republic’s presidential election on July 5, which resulted in a victory for Masoud Pezeshkian, touted...
Flash Briefs
Why Does Iran Hold So Many Elections?
Constant—and highly stage-managed—elections are a useful tool for Iran's theocratic leadership to remain in power.
Op-eds
The Death of Iran’s President Does Not Bode Well
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has not always seen eye to eye with his country’s presidents. Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani nudged the Islamic Republic too close to the West for the supreme leader’s...
Op-eds
Why the Biden Administration’s Iran Sanctions Waivers Are Futile
The Islamic Republic also has a history of diverting resources intended for humanitarian purposes.
Op-eds
The path that led to Iran’s attack on Israel was one of US appeasement
The Biden administration must begin taking the Islamic Republic’s threat to world peace seriously
Op-eds
Reading the Tea Leaves on Iran’s Other “Election”
The newly “re-elected” Assembly of Experts will play a large part in determining Iran’s post-Khamenei leadership.
Op-eds
Washington Fails — Again — To Gauge Iran’s Nuclear Threat
In sum, while the ODNI’s report paints a picture of a more capable Islamic Republic with an expanding nuclear program, policymakers’ motivation and ability to check this challenge will stem first and foremost from accurately understanding it.
Op-eds
Iran to Hold Parliamentary Elections but May Face Low Turnout
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28 called for mass turnout in Iran’s elections on March 1. Yet even government polling indicates that the majority of...