Iran Primer's Blog
U.S. Sanctions Iranian Commercial Airline
The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced today the designation of Iranian commercial airline Mahan Air pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224 for providing financial, material and technological support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF). Based in Tehran, Mahan Air…
U.S. Imposes New Sanctions for Iranian Plot
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced the designation of five individuals, including four senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) officers connected to a plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States Adel Al-Jubeir, while he…
Challenging the Balance of Power: Ahmadinejad vs. Parliament
Interview with Hosein Ghazian Hosein Ghazian is an Iranian sociologist and former pollster who is currently a visiting scholar at Syracuse University. This is the eleventh in a series on parliamentary elections due in March 2012: How has parliament’s political role—and authority--…
Clinton Blasts Iran's Human Rights
Press Statement Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton The United States is deeply concerned by reports of the Iranian government’s continued repression of its people. Despite statements from Iran’s Supreme Leader and President claiming support for the rights and freedoms of Iranian citizens and…
Death sentence on Christian leader Yousef Nadarkhani
An Iranian court has imposed the death sentence on Yousef Nadarkhani, a 34-year-old protestant preacher, for apostasy after he repeatedly refused to recant his Christian faith. The verdict has generated international condemnation this week. The following are excerpts from the verdict and U.S. and…
"Suffering" in Iran Nearly Doubles to 26%
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Gallup poll reports "suffering" in Iran has nearly doubled, up from 14% in 2008 to 26% in 2011. One factor that may play into this increase is the lack of good jobs, as Gallup finds unemployment in the country above 15% and underemployment exceeding 35%. …
Parliament’s Evolving Role
Interview with Ali Reza Eshraghi Ali Reza Eshraghi was a senior editor at several of Iran’s reformist dailies. He is currently editor of Iran programs at the Institute for War and Peace Reporting and a Rotary World Peace fellow in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of…
Obama on Release of American Hikers
Statement from the President on the Release of Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal I welcome the release of Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal from detention in Iran and am very pleased that they are being reunited with their loved ones. The tireless advocacy of their families over these two years has…
Intelligence on Iran: Reliable?
The following report about intelligence on Iran’s nuclear program was published on Sept. 15 by the Atlantic Council. The link to the full report is at the bottom: For a country that has been accumulating nuclear know-how since the Eisenhower administration, Iran has hardly been…
Clerics Plummet in Parliament
Interview with Yasmin Alem Yasmin Alem is an international development specialist. She is the author of Duality by Design: The Iranian Electoral System published by the International Foundation of Electoral Systems. This is the fifth in a series on parliamentary elections due in…