Garrett Nada's Blog
U.S. Ends Waiver for Iraq to Buy Iran’s Electricity
Power transmission lines in Tehran on Dec. 18, 2024 (Arash Khamooshi/The New York Times)
On March 8, the United States allowed a waiver to expire that had permitted Iraq to buy Iranian electricity. The move was the latest in the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” campaign to cut off Iran’…
Iran is the Biggest Regional Loser of Assad’s Fall
Among the central factors that led to the ouster of Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad was Iran’s and Russia’s decisions to not intervene yet again to prop him up. Tehran had long used Syria as vector to project influence in the region and marshalled significant resources and manpower to…
Israeli Strike on Iran: Implications
Early Saturday morning in Tehran, Israel carried out what it called a series of “precise and targeted” airstrikes on Iranian military targets. This was the latest in a series of direct exchanges between Israel and Iran in recent months. Israel Defense Forces struck 20 sites, including air defense…
Nasrallah Assassination: The News
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Iran’s most important ally in the Middle East, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Sept. 27, 2024. Israel’s ability to cripple Hezbollah in a matter of weeks called Iran’s longstanding “forward defense” doctrine into question. For decades, the…
Houthi Explainer: Military Arsenal
Iran has smuggled increasingly sophisticated weapons to the Houthis in Yemen since at least 2009. By 2015, the Qods Force, the external operations arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, were sending missile components for local assembly. The weapons – along with training and military advisors – helped…
Houthi Explainer: U.S. Sanctions
The United States has long struggled to deal with Iran’s network of allies and proxies short of military confrontation. Financial sanctions have been an important tool for disrupting illicit activities. Since 2014, the United States has sanctioned at least 13 Houthi officials and dozens of…
Houthi Explainer: Leaders and Goals
What are the Houthis' political views and goals?Since the 2000s, Houthi leaders have issued vague or contradictory statements about Yemen's political future as their religious movement evolved into an insurgency – and, as of 2015, the dominant political and military force in Sanna after ousting the…
Houthi Explainer: Conflict in the Red Sea
What have the Houthis attacked in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since the Gaza war began in October 2023?During the first eight months of the conflict, the Houthis attacked U.S. Navy or commercial vessels more than 190 times, according to the Pentagon. Experts at The Washington Institute for Near…
Houthi Explainer: Ties to Iran
The Houthis are a political movement and militia that emerged out of a religious revival among Yemen’s Zaydi Shiites in the 1990s. They got their name from a powerful tribal clan led by the Houthi family. Since 2004, the Houthis have challenged the Yemeni central government, which has long been…
Pezeshkian: Implications of Win
In a clear challenge to regime hardliners, Masoud Pezeshkian, a reformist and cardiac surgeon, won Iran’s snap presidential election on July 5. The elections were called after President Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash on May 19. The runoff had been considered a tight race, but Pezeshkian…