إيران

Radio Free Iraq was established through legislation last October and operates in conjunction with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) as a nongovernmental organization funded wholly by the U.S. government. The goal of Radio Free Iraq is to broadcast accurate and balanced information focusing on human rights, democratization, free expression, and

For the last two weeks, the major Iranian newspapers have been full of reports about official contacts between the U.S. and Iranian governments. These reported contacts include a U.S. request that Tehran hand over individuals now in Iran whom the U.S. government believes are responsible for the deaths of nineteen

Buoyed by its recent antiterrorism successes in facing down Syria and capturing Abdullah Ocalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), Turkey now turns its sights on Iran. A series of Turkish-Iranian security meetings tomorrow through Friday will focus on Tehran's allegedly growing support to anti-Turkish organizations. In trying to

Iran's complexities often lead it to surprise observers. The most recent surprise came not from the hardliners of the regime, but from the most active part of Iran's nascent civil society-students. Who Are These Students? Because of a quota system designed to purge the student body after the Islamic revolution

To be taken by surprise by events in Iran has become almost routine. The election victory of Mohammed Khatemi in May 1997 came as a surprise. Now, with the student demonstrations during the past week, Iran has once again surprised us with perhaps the biggest challenge to the Islamic regime

Two threads have run through the Iranian government's attitudes toward the current crisis in the Balkans. The first is Iran's self-perceived role as leader of the Islamic community. This sentiment has existed since the 1979 revolution, and it was reinforced in 1997 when Iran assumed the leadership of the fifty-five-member

Introduction Muhammad Khatami's surprise victory in the May 23, 1997, Iranian presidential election generated much enthusiasm at home and much interest abroad. For Iranians, the massive popular mandate -- Khatami received 70 percent of the vote with a nearly 90 percent turnout -- showed their disillusionment with the ruling establishment

Iran has become pragmatic. The pragmatism began not with Khatemi but with the first day of the revolution. As happens with any ideological revolution, there is a significant change between the ideology while in opposition and the policy upon taking power. This bitter reality has forced Iran to deviate from