The Risks of Maximizing Pressure on Iran

by Ali Vaez The U.S. decision on 22 April to end sanctions exemptions for Iran’s remaining oil customers, following on an earlier designation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), significantly escalates the Trump administration’s… Continue Reading

Iran’s Ahvaz Attack Worsens Gulf Tensions

by Joost Hiltermann, Ali Vaez, Elizabeth Dickinson, and Daniel Scheiderman An attack on a military parade in the Iranian city of Ahvaz on September 22, which killed 29 people, dangerously raised tensions in an already volatile Gulf region. Iran accused… Continue Reading

How Iran’s President Rouhani Can Turn Crisis into Opportunity

by Ali Vaez Manifold reasons lie behind Iran’s ongoing protests, but the immediate trigger appears to be widespread disgruntlement over the country’s economic performance, especially cuts in President Hassan Rouhani’s new budget. Neither a revolution nor a political movement, the… Continue Reading