Covering topics ranging from security and politics to business and society, IranSource draws on written analysis and multimedia content to inform a broader public conversation about Iran from an array of angles and perspectives.

It aims to identify the challenges, opportunities, and policy conundrums facing the US-Iran relationship and present a range of options to address them.

Editor: Holly Dagres

The views expressed in IranSource are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

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United States designates Iran’s IRGC a foreign terrorist organization

IranSource
Nov 20, 2024

2025 will be a decisive year for Iran’s nuclear program

Diplomatic deadlines and regional factors will force Iran to decide soon whether to strike a deal or seek a nuclear weapon. Either choice will have major ripple effects.

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United States designates Iran’s IRGC a foreign terrorist organization

IranSource
Nov 20, 2024

How to wrestle with an ayatollah 

By
Khosro Sayeh Isfahani

If one looks closely, the ancient Persian sport of wrestling might have answers to understanding how to contain Iran

Civil Society
Freedom and Prosperity

United States designates Iran’s IRGC a foreign terrorist organization

IranSource
Nov 1, 2024

How the death of Abdul Malik al-Houthi could impact the Houthis and Iran

By
Emily Milliken and Caitlin Miller Hollingsworth

While Abdul Malik al-Houthi is still alive today, his death in the near term would impact the Houthi’s ability to operate and widen a leadership vacuum within Iran’s Resistance Axis.

Conflict
Iran

Content

IranSource

Apr 8, 2019

United States designates Iran’s IRGC a foreign terrorist organization

By Holly Dagres

The Trump administration on April 8 designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a foreign terrorist organization—the first time a country’s military has received such a status.

Iran United States and Canada

IranSource

Apr 8, 2019

Silicon Valley preaches diversity and inclusion while excluding Iranians

By Mahsa Alimardani and Roya Pakzad

Soheila has a monthly routine. At the beginning of each month, she opens the Asan Pardakht app on her iPhone to make gas, phone, and water payments. But on this day, the bill paying application gives her the notification: “Unable to verify app.”

Iran

IranSource

Apr 5, 2019

Something fishy is going on between Iran and China (and Pakistan)

By Fatemeh Aman

Two of Beijing’s close allies, Iran and Pakistan, have been increasingly impacted by China’s growing appetite for fish, both for domestic consumption and to supply its processed fish industry. Stricter regulations in Pakistan and an internal political fight in Iran could make it harder for China to expand its fishing industry into their waters.

China Iran

IranSource

Apr 4, 2019

Which biblical Iranian character are you?

By Thamar E. Gindin

Those of us who use social media as a means of procrastination are familiar with the “Which… Are You?” tests. These quizzes are obviously not exact.

Iran

IranSource

Apr 2, 2019

Sanctions propel Iran in the global race for terminator-like AI

By Mahmoud Pargoo

While US-reimposed sanctions have severely damaged the Iranian economy, one sector is still thriving: emerging technologies. The latest success story is the Artificial Intelligence-powered navigation app BALAD which hit a record 1.2 million downloads within a few days of its launch in March.

Iran

IranSource

Apr 1, 2019

Iran-North Korea relationship reflects failed US policies

By Mintaro Oba

Before he was Iran’s Supreme Leader, then-President Ayatollah Ali Khamenei visited North Korea in 1989—a trip that included a ride on the Pyongyang subway and a motorcade ride past throngs of cheering North Koreans. It was intended to send a strong message: North Korea and Iran, driven by mutual enmity toward the United States, were becoming close friends.

Iran Korea

IranSource

Mar 30, 2019

Iran’s Hurricane Katrina moment

By Borzou Daragahi

Iranian authorities barred international journalists from covering the disastrous floods that have stricken most of the country’s provinces and caused death and mayhem during the normally festive two-week Nowruz holidays that follow the Iranian new year.

Iran

IranSource

Mar 29, 2019

Nowruz floods in Iran anger many but reasons are complex

By Holly Dagres

The Iranian new year, Nowruz, is supposed to be a time of joy and celebration when Iranians visit family and go on vacation in other provinces. But for many this year, it was a time of sorrow and loss. Heavy rains, first welcomed in the drought-stricken country, turned into catastrophic floods. Twenty-eight of Iran’s thirty-one […]

Iran

IranSource

Mar 28, 2019

Environmental challenges plague Iran and the rest of the Middle East

By Masoud Mostajabi

In the wake of record floods in Iran that have killed more than two dozen people, new attention has focused on the environmental challenges facing the Middle East. The issues facing the region are complex and reflect a number of factors, according to experts who spoke on March 27 at the Atlantic Council. Among them are climate change, water scarcity, mismanagement, […]

Iran

IranSource

Mar 20, 2019

Supreme Leader shuffles Friday prayer leaders in Iran

By Mahmoud Pargoo

On March 13, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed a young cleric, Habibollah ShabanI Mowathaqi, as the Friday Prayer leader of Hamadan, west-central Iran. Mowathaqi, 41, replaces prominent Ayatollah Ghiyath al-Din Taha Muhammadi, who is 73. The change was the latest in a series that started about two years ago. The most important so far has […]

Iran
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