Mora Namdar , Attorney and former acting assistant secretary of state for consular affairs On 10/6/22 at 6:30 AM EDT To those who have studied U.S. national security, human rights, and Iran, the question has always been "when" and not "if" the Islamic theocracy in Iran would meet its end. The death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was brutally beaten by Iran's morality police until she ultimately died for improperly wearing her hijab, is widely seen as a breaking point…

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); October 8, 2022: At least 185 people, including at least 19 children, have been killed in the nationwide protests across Iran. The highest number of killings occurred in Sistan and Baluchistan province with half the recorded number. Iran Human Rights condemns the killing of protesters in the strongest possible terms once again, particularly the killings in Zahedan which it considers to amount to crimes against humanity. Speaking at a Human Rights Council side event on October…

By Dr. Ardavan Khoshnood and Erfan FardSeptember 17, 2021 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The new president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, has selected cleric Esmail Khatib as Minister of Intelligence. Khatib is a radical Islamist with close ties to both Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. During his tenure, we can expect a more aggressive approach by the Ministry of Intelligence, meaning more terrorism and violence at the hands of the Islamic regime. Ebrahim Raisi…

By Erfan Fard September 6, 2021 BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 2,147, September 6, 2021 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The US invaded Afghanistan in 2001 to overthrow the Taliban regime and al-Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks. Iran opposed the US presence, as it strove (and continues to strive) for regional hegemony. Despite its distaste for the Sunni Taliban, Tehran constantly undermined US efforts to stabilize Afghanistan by collaborating with the extremist group. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks on the American homeland in…

By Erfan FardJuly 26, 2021 BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 2,105, July 26, 2021 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: At the end of July 2021, a delegation of eight Iranian opposition members will visit Israel to take part in cultural and political meetings planned by the Institute for Voices of Liberty (IVOL). These meetings could lay the basis for a future relationship between Israel and Iran after the collapse of the ayatollahs’ dictatorship. At the end of this month, eight Iranian members of…

By: Erfan Fard {@EQFard} Nowadays, the mullahs in Iran celebrate a sham event of election which was similar to a circus. the mullah’s regime or “the most corrupt and disgraceful government of Allah on earth with their pure Muhammad Islam and the representative of the imam of the time“, now have a new president. Alas, Iranian regime will shape a junta under the cover of mullah’s tyranny! surely, American diplomacy with this mullah’s regime and new president is an absurd…

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The US Office of the Director of National Intelligence recently released its annual threat assessment, in which Iran is mentioned no fewer than 60 times as part of a “diverse array of threats” facing the US. Iran is moving toward its goal of full domination of Iraq and the expulsion of the last remaining US forces from that country, a result that would represent a great success for the Islamic Republic. The annual threat assessment released in April…

By: Erfan Fard {@EQFard} The available data indicate that the Quds Force is a specialized division or an elite paramilitary arm of IRGC in Iran. Quds Force built up a widespread network in the war-torn country, such as Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Yemen and elsewhere. In most of those states, IRGC-QF, recruited local people and supporting Shia’ militias and working with Shia’ allied with The USA. Almost certainly, the Quds Force and its network operate clandestinely overseas. On 25 October…