IranSource

Sep 27, 2021

Are vaccines and Afghanistan routes back to US-Iran engagement?

By Barbara Slavin

How to get the Ebrahim Raisi administration to engage with the United States—directly or through intermediaries—is the question.

Iran Middle East

IranSource

Sep 23, 2021

With the US out of Afghanistan, Iran jumps on the opportunity of joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization

By Jonathan Fulton

Even if Iran’s full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is stalled, the US exit from Afghanistan changes the regional landscape.

Afghanistan China

IranSource

Sep 22, 2021

Iran ‘won’ the war with Iraq but at a heavy price

By Barbara Slavin, Abbas Kadhim

More than four decades after the beginning of a dreadful war that shaped the lives and worldview of a generation, Iraq and Iran seem to have put the past behind them and moved to a new relationship. But the road ahead is not without landmines. The balance of power is too lopsided in Iran’s favor to allow for a healthy alliance and Iran’s continued estrangement from the US makes Baghdad’s balancing act even trickier. The Iranians may be enjoying their triumphant short-term position, but the long-term consequences could be calamitous.

Iran Iraq

IranSource

Sep 21, 2021

Iranian children are being punished based on their parents’ religion and beliefs

By Hamed Farmand

In practice, Iran’s discriminatory law affects almost all aspects of minority children’s lives, such as safety and well-being and access to health and education.

Human Rights Iran

IranSource

Sep 16, 2021

Iran’s environmental woes could be Raisi’s Achilles heel

By Javad Heiran-Nia and Mahmood Monshipouri

Among the challenges encountered by the Islamic Republic of Iran, climate change looms as one of the most serious, disrupting, and even life-threatening issues facing both rural and urban populations. This threat has worsened at a time when Iran is politically polarized, ideologically fractured, and economically embattled.  

Energy & Environment Iran

IranSource

Sep 8, 2021

Iran’s new president has blood on his hands

By Nasser Mohajer and Kaveh Yazdani

Iran’s new President, Ebrahim Raisi, played a key role in the execution of some 5,000 political prisoners and was part of the “Death Commission” responsible for the 1988 massacre.

Human Rights Iran

Article

Sep 7, 2021

The global war on terrorism wrecked relations with Iran

By Barbara Slavin

The most fundamental strategic error of the George W. Bush administration following the September 11, 2001, attacks was launching a “Global War on Terrorism” that failed to distinguish properly between those responsible for the 9/11 attacks and other US adversaries.

Iran Middle East

IranSource

Sep 1, 2021

An escalating Israel-Iran conflict could sink the JCPOA

By Sina Azodi and Mohsen Solhdoost

Rising tensions between Israel and Iran have reached an alarming stage in recent weeks. What used to be a shadow war of covert operations, sabotage, and proxy conflict is turning into a more direct military confrontation between the long-time regional adversaries.

Iran Israel

IranSource

Aug 24, 2021

Iran’s new face to the world—Hossein Amir-Abdollahian—is no Zarif

By Sina Azodi

In short, unlike his predecessor who was distrusted and often marginalized by the IRGC, one should expect more collaboration between what Zarif dubbed “diplomacy and the battlefield.”

Iran Middle East

IranSource

Aug 20, 2021

Iran spent years preparing for a Taliban victory. It may still get stung.

By Borzou Daragahi

Iran’s relatively sanguine stance toward the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan demonstrates, above all, the strides Tehran has made in improving its relations with the armed insurgent network that was once considered a mortal enemy of the Islamic Republic. 

Afghanistan Iran