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TWI Arabic: اللغة العربية Fikra Forum

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The Basij Resistance Force:

A Weak Link in the Iranian Regime?

In the months since Iran's contested June 2009 presidential election, the Basij Resistance Force has emerged as one of the regime's main pillars of support against the democracy movement. In the long term, however, it is uncertain whether the militia is capable of prevailing in a prolonged fight against a

Ali Alfoneh

War Games Explore Options on Iran

What if Iran's hardline leadership emerges from the current confrontations at home strengthened and emboldened? If so, the nuclear issue will be back with a vengeance. And three recent war games focused on the Iranian nuclear weapons issue suggest that the prospects for halting the regime's progress toward nuclear weapons

Jeffrey White

Articles & Testimony

America and the Iranian Political Reform Movement:

First, Do No Harm

On February 3, 2010, Institute senior fellow Mehdi Khalaji and Keston Family fellow J. Scott Carpenter, director of the Institute's Project Fikra, testified before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia on ways the United States can best support the movement for political

Mehdi Khalaji
J. Scott Carpenter

Articles & Testimony

The Iranian Republic of Fear

Iran's clerical regime governs by a simple formula: He who is the most frightening wins. "Victory by terrifying" is a trope that is present in many of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's speeches. Indeed, it is a reliable guide to his political philosophy. This view was not invented by Khamenei

Articles & Testimony

Revolutionary Ayatollah:

How My Father Went from the Prison of the Shah to the Prison of Khamenei

In the very cold winter of 1979, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, returned to Qom, the spiritual capital of the Shiite world, for the first time after his long exile. A huge crowd came out that day. As he made his way to the

The Iranian Opposition, the Nuclear Issue, and the West

On January 14, 2010, Patrick Clawson and Ray Takeyh addressed a special Policy Forum luncheon at The Washington Institute to discuss the twin challenges of resolving the nuclear impasse with Iran and responding to its ongoing domestic protests. Dr. Clawson is deputy director for research at the Institute, where he

Patrick Clawson
Ray Takeyh

In-Depth Reports

Much Traction from Measured Steps:

The Iranian Opposition, the Nuclear Issue, and the West

Resolving the nuclear standoff with Iran remains a serious concern of major Western powers. At the same time, the international community has an interest in promoting Iranian human rights and democracy. The June 12 presidential elections in Iran brought the tension between these two objectives to a head, with Iranian

Patrick Clawson

Statement on the Arrest of Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Khalaji in Iran

Institute senior fellow Mehdi Khalaji made a public statement on January 14, 2010, regarding the January 12 arrest of his father, Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Khalaji, by agents of Iran's Ministry of Intelligence. The Washington Institute requests all governments, international agencies, and nongovernmental organizations with access in Tehran to take up

Mehdi Khalaji

Saudi Public Backs Iran Sanctions but Split on Military Action

A highly unusual and credible private poll of Saudi citizens taken in late November 2009 by a reputable regional firm shows solid popular support for tough measures against Iran, even though domestic economic issues loom larger in the public's perception. Conducted in partnership with Pechter Middle East Polls, a new

David Pollock

Islam vs. Iran's 'Islamic Republic'

A new opportunity is now emerging for the "Green Movement" in Iran to demonstrate opposition to the Islamic Republic and the manipulated presidential election results earlier this year. Friday, December 18, marks the beginning of the months of Muharram and Safar in the Islamic lunar calendar. For the regime in

Mehdi Khalaji

Polling Saudis and Egyptians:

Iran, Jihad, and the Economy

New data from credible private polls of the Egyptian and the urban Saudi public show strikingly high levels of support -- especially among Saudis -- for tough action against Iran's nuclear program. At the same time, these findings demonstrate clearly that economic concerns, rather than foreign policy or domestic political

David Pollock

Saudi Royals Reunited?

Crown Prince Sultan Returns Home

Late on December 11, Crown Prince Sultan arrived home to Saudi Arabia after a year's absence that included medical treatment in the United States and a nine-month convalescence at his palace in Morocco. Although described as "enjoying full health" and looking animated, Sultan is believed to still be unwell. In

Simon Henderson

In-Depth Reports

Beyond a 'New Beginning':

Obama Administration Middle East Policy

FEATURING Dan Meridor, Ataollah Mohajerani, Aharon Farkash, Jackson Diehl, Michael Mandelbaum, Hossein Bastani, Khalil Shikaki, Mortimer Zuckerman, Ronald Neumann, Charles Wald, and many other distinguished speakers The Proceedings In June 2009, President Barack Obama traveled to Cairo to deliver a speech outlining what he hoped would mark a "new beginning"

Articles & Testimony

When Islamist Foreign Policies Hurt Muslims

What is an Islamist foreign policy, exactly? Is it identifying with Muslims and their suffering, or is it identifying with anti-Western regimes even at the cost of Muslims' best interests? Turkey's foreign policy under the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government demonstrates that far from protecting Muslims and their

Dubai's Debt Problem and the Gulf

Late on November 25, just before the start of the Islamic Eid festival and, coincidentally, Thanksgiving in the United States, Dubai's flagship investment company Dubai World announced that it would be requesting a six-month delay on paying its debts. Within hours, Dubai's reputation was being rewritten, and its ambition to

Simon Henderson

Articles & Testimony

The Dilemmas of Pan-Islamic Unity

Throughout the 20th Century, the countries of Iran and Egypt have had a very complex relationship with one another. Among other things, Iran, a leading majority Shiite country that is also ruled by Shiites, and Egypt, the cultural and theological center of Sunni Islam, are home to two of the

Articles & Testimony

Disrupting Iran's Weapons Smuggling

Even as the West seeks to engage Iran in negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program, Iran continues to arm rogue regimes and terrorist groups in blatant violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1747. Such aggressive behavior on the part of Iran in support of terrorist groups and rogue regimes highlights a

Iran and Hizballah: Significance of the <em>Francop</em> Interception

PolicyWatch #1600 is the first of a two-part series examining recent military developments involving Hizballah and Hamas. The second part will focus on Hamas's acquisition of long-range (60 km/37.5 mile) artillery rockets. On November 3, 2009, Israeli naval forces intercepted an Antigua-flagged cargo ship approximately 100 miles off Israel's coast

Jeffrey White

Small War or Big Problem?

Fighting on the Yemeni-Saudi Border

Long-running tension between the government of Yemen and a rebellious clan in a remote border area has the potential to erupt into a major regional crisis, with media reports suggesting that the tension has the characteristics of a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. On November 10, the Iranian

Simon Henderson

Iranian Missiles and U.S. Missile Defense

On November 2, 2009, Uzi Rubin and Michael Elleman addressed a special Policy Forum luncheon at the Washington Institute to discuss how U.S. missile defense capabilities match up to Iran's growing missile arsenal. Uzi Rubin was the founder and first director of the Missile Defense Organization in the Israeli Ministry

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Supported by the

Viterbi Program on Iran and U.S. Policy

Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran poses the most serious and urgent set of security challenges to the United States and its allies in the greater Middle East. Since the Khomeini revolution in 1979, Iran has sought to export its radical ideology through the use of terrorism, subversion, and support to ideological fellow-travelers throughout the Muslim world.

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Featured experts

Farzin Nadimi

Farzin Nadimi, a Senior Fellow with The Washington Institute, is a Washington-based analyst specializing in the security and defense affairs of Iran and the Persian Gulf region.

Patrick Clawson

Patrick Clawson

Patrick Clawson is the Morningstar Senior Fellow and Research Counselor at The Washington Institute.

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