Iranian Politics

With the U.S. presidential election approaching, the Trump administration has increased the pace of sanctions designations on Iran. While such penalties are aimed to build economic leverage against Tehran, a pattern has emerged in the recent U.S. actions. The United States is seeking to blur the distinction between Iran’s armed and elected states to document publicly that they are two sides of the same terror coin.

In his short tenure as Britain’s Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab has proven refreshingly clear-sighted on Iran.

Prospective candidates have started positioning themselves for the 2021 presidential election in Iran. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has already hinted at the kind of successor he’d like to see for Hassan Rouhani after eight years of his presidency—specifically a “young and Hezbollah” government.

On May 25, 2000, Prime Minister Ehud Barak ordered Israeli forces out of south Lebanon, ending Israel’s ill-fated 18-year foray into its northern neighbor’s territory. Barak believed the withdrawal would weaken Hezbollah by depriving it of its raison d’etre to continue attacking Israel. But he miscalculated.

Ali Larijani, the longest-serving speaker of parliament in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran, concluded his tenure this week. New members of parliament were sworn during its inaugural session on May 27. An interim speaker and deputy speaker now preside over the legislative chamber until their permanent replacements are selected.

On Sunday evening, an Iranian frigate, the Jamaran, accidentally struck another Iranian vessel, the Konarak, with a Noor anti-ship missile. Initial reports indicate 19 sailors were killed, with 15 injured.

Last week, the U.S.

On Friday, April 24 came news that Iran’s Ayatollah Ebrahim Amini had died at age 95. While Amini wasn’t well-known outside Iran, he occupied an influential perch inside the Nezam.

As former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and U.S.

On January 3, President Trump neutralized the person most responsible for spreading terror across the Middle East – Major-General Qassem Soleimani. As head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF) -- the hand behind Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Houthis, and the Iraqi Shiite militias responsible for the deaths of over 600 U.S.