Day after day in Tehran, Isfahan, Tabriz, and other cities, the Iranian government exhorts the greatness of the nation's Shiite Islamic faith. It does so more cautiously in recent months, however, as a revival of Iranian nationalism questions the political legitimacy of mullahs who have controlled the country for over...

Much has been written recently about the fundamentalist revolutionary low points and gradual democratic highlights of Iran's late Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri (1922-2009). Little needs to be added for now about his religiopolitical career.

But attention should be drawn to his viewpoint on the religious minorities in...

Iran's "re-elected" president faces turmoil of his own making.

Next week, on August 5, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is scheduled to be inaugurated for a second term in office as Iran's president. He faces a hornets' nest. Iran's society is in the worst political turmoil since 1979. Its economy is sliding downward...

A major shortcoming of private security firms and official intelligence agencies is that they frequently lack on-the-ground, in-country, sources and do not fully utilize experts who travel to and study the country. Human intelligence is woefully lacking, so too much reliance is placed on signals intelligence. Those organizations under-exploit the...

Iran has a checkered history of clergymen's involvement in politics. Ali Khamenei follows in troubled footsteps.

The Magus Gaumata was stabbed to death for attempting to seize the throne in the late 6th century BCE. The High Magus Kirdir became infamous for persecuting religious minorities in the late 3rd century,...

Vacillating bolsters the fundamentalist Ayatollahs.

When it comes to grappling with the challenges posed by events in Iran, the Obama administration seems to be at sea. President Obama cited "fixed national security interests" on July 4th as the basis of negotiating with Iran's government despite its increasing unpopularity. A day...