IranSource

Aug 16, 2018

Badr Brigade: Among Most Consequential Outcomes of the Iran-Iraq War

By Borzou Daragahi

The burly, graying men in the mismatched camouflage arrived in the late winter of 2003, setting up camp within the green hilly folds of northern Iraq. They were members of the Badr Brigade, a Shia fighting force that had been sheltering in exile inside Iran during the reign of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. They told […]

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Aug 15, 2018

Sixty-Five Years On: Iran Regime Change Advocates Haven’t Learned from Coup

By Paul R. Pillar

The Trump administration’s policy toward Iran aims for regime change. Possibly US President Donald Trump dreams of reaching some bold deal with the current leadership of Iran, but he has not laid out any feasible route to one. The administration’s dominant hope instead seems to be that stepped-up economic pressure will somehow lead disaffected Iranians […]

Iran

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Aug 14, 2018

European Failure to Safeguard Iran Deal Shows EU is Still a Paper Tiger

By Robert Czulda

Just a few weeks ago, it seemed that the Iran nuclear deal could be saved. Now, it is highly likely that, even if the agreement is not formally cancelled, it will soon become a façade without any real meaning. President Donald Trump’s recent threats to block any companies still engaging with Iran from business in […]

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Aug 13, 2018

As Sanctions Return, India Caught between Iran and the United States

By Fatemeh Aman

As the first set of US sanctions against Iran went back into effect Aug. 7, India is applying its negotiations skills—effectively, so far—toward managing relations with both sides.  The United States and its Persian Gulf Arab allies may be able to provide India with enough crude to offset any reduction in India’s oil imports from […]

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Aug 10, 2018

How US Sanctions Impede the Women’s Movement in Iran

By Sussan Tahmasebi

While the world’s attention was on US President Donald Trump’s Twitter war with Tehran the other week, some good news in Iran escaped notice. A group of women’s rights activists arrested in front of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs on International Women’s Day were acquitted, after initially being charged for planning and participating […]

Iran

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Aug 9, 2018

Iran’s Turbulent Future

By Nader Uskowi

The news coming out of Iran these days tells the story of a country in crisis. The economy is sliding towards collapse, even before the first round of US sanctions were reinstated on August 6. Nationwide protests are calling for regime change—a dirty word in Tehran up until recently. The Iranian government and its military […]

Iran

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Aug 8, 2018

Why Iran and the United States Should Negotiate

By Mehran Haghirian

The telephone conversation between Presidents Hassan Rouhani and Barack Obama in 2013, the numerous talks between Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif during two years of nuclear negotiations, and a multilateral meeting last year that included Zarif and then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, demolished many taboos in regard to […]

Iran

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Aug 7, 2018

The Lose-Lose Rut of US-Iran Hostility

By Hamid Zangeneh

The Islamic Republic of Iran has relied on enmity with the United States for its own legitimacy throughout its existence, using it – and the threat of US allies such as Israel and the Persian Gulf littoral sheikdoms — to excuse violence against its own citizens and intervention in regional conflicts. Similarly, the US government […]

Iran

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Aug 6, 2018

Trump and Iran: Nostalgia for Better Bumblers

By John Limbert

It’s a truism that every president makes us nostalgic for his predecessor. In the case of Iran, US President Donald Trump and his men are outdoing the bumbles and fumbles of Reagan, the two Bushes, Clinton, and Obama, while making those earlier presidents appear as far-seeing statesmen. Earlier presidents at least knew Iran was a […]

Iran

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Aug 3, 2018

Keeping Rouhani Honest: Has Iran’s President Fulfilled His Promises?

By Holly Dagres

Today marks the fifth anniversary of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s inauguration on August 3, 2013. Many campaign promises were made during Rouhani’s 2013 and 2017 presidential runs. ASL19, a technology and research group working on freedom of expression and access to information in Iran, has been tracking Rouhani’s full-fledged promises over the years. Similar to […]

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