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Iran Releases American Student in Prisoner Swap

Updated: December 9, 2019
On December 7, the United States and Iran conducted a rare prisoner swap. An American graduate student, Xiyue Wang, was released in Switzerland in exchange for Massoud Soleimani, an Iranian national held in an Atlanta prison for allegedly violating U.S. sanctions.  President Donald Trump,…

U.S. Sanctions Iran-backed Iraqi Militia Leaders

On December 6, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned three Iran-backed Iraqi militia leaders for their alleged role in the killing of innocent protestors. Protests erupted on October 1 over government corruption, unemployment and a lack of basic services. The demonstrations also targeted growing Iranian…

Iran’s Resilience is “Dangerously Fraying”

Suzanne Maloney I see the recent unrest and the brutal response as indicative of a system whose resilience is dangerously fraying. The diagnosis that I’ve been using for a while is a slow-motion metastasis that is echoing across the political establishment, the economy, and society. The November…

FACT SHEET: Protests in Iran 1979-2023

Updated: May 30, 2023
1979 Islamic Revolution Killed: Estimates range from 2,000 to more than 3,000 Detained: Thousands Flashpoint: Social Injustice, Political Repression, Corruption, and Religious Motives Location and Scope: Protests spread to nearly all major cities and included millions of participants Major…

U.S. Interdicts Iranian Arms to Yemen

On November 25, a U.S. warship seized a significant cache of Iranian weapons bound for Yemen’s Houthi rebels. A U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard boarding team interdicted the weapons during a flag verification of a small wooden boat in the northern Arabia Sea. “An initial investigation indicates that…

State Department on Protest Crackdown, Intervention in Yemen

In a wide-ranging briefing, U.S. Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, alleged that Iranian security forces may have killed more than 1,000 people, including at least a dozen children, in response to demonstrations that were sparked by a gas price hike on November 15. The protests swept 100…

Europeans Warn U.N. on Iran’s Missile Program

On December 4, Britain, France and Germany accused Iran of developing missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads. They argued that Iran’s activities were inconsistent with the 2015 U.N. resolution that enshrined the nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). In…

Protests: Government Response

Updated: December 4, 2019
Protests spread across Iran in response to increased fuel prices and rationing. The government’s move, announced overnight on November 15, triggered an angry reaction. "Have shame [President] Rouhani, Leave the country alone!" and "Have shame dictator, Leave the country alone!” protestors…

News Digest: Week of December 2

Updated: December 9, 2019
December 2 Human Rights: At least 208 people had been killed by security forces since protests began on November 15, according to Amnesty International. The watchdog reported that families of victims were warned not to hold funeral ceremonies or talk to the media. Amnesty also reported…

News Digest: Week of November 25

Updated: December 2, 2019
November 25 Diplomacy: General Hossein Salami, head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, accused the United States, Britain, Israel and Saudi Arabia for instigating protests that began of November 15. He threatened to “destroy” the enemies of the state. “If you cross our red line, we will…

U.S. Intelligence on Iran’s Military Power

Iran has expanded its military capabilities and is poised to purchase more advanced weapons starting in 2020. Tehran’s “combination of lethal conventional capabilities and proxy forces poses a persistent threat” to U.S. interests and allies in the Middle East, according to a new Defense…

U.S. Sanctions Iranian Communications Minister

On November 22, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned Iran’s communications minister, Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, for his role in internet censorship. In a surprise overnight announcement on November 15, Iran hiked gas prices—by up to 300 percent—and introduced a new rationing system. The government’s…

Leaked Iran Cables Reveal Influence Game

On November 18, 2019, The Intercept and The New York Times published 700 pages of classified Iranian intelligence cables that illustrated the depth of Tehran’s penetration of Iraqi politics, intelligence and the military. The cables, written between 2013 and 2015, also detailed meticulous efforts…

News Digest: Week of November 18

Updated: November 25, 2019
November 18 Economics: The government announced that 12 people had been killed in clashes with security forces during protests against a sudden fuel price hike. But activists claimed that at least 40 people had died.  Government Spokesman Ali Rabiei claimed that…

Protests: U.S. Reaction

Updated: December 5, 2019
The Trump administration offered support to Iranians protesting a hike in gas prices announced on November 15. “We condemn the lethal force and severe communications restrictions used against demonstrators. Tehran has fanatically pursued nuclear weapons and missile programs, and supported terrorism…

Protests: Overview and Timeline

Updated: December 18, 2019
In a surprise overnight announcement on November 15, Iran hiked gas prices—by up to 300 percent—and introduced a new rationing system. The government’s goal was to raise funds to help the poor, but it backfired. Protests erupted across the country. The sudden move followed rising inflation and…

U.S. Renews National Emergency Regarding Iran

On November 12, President Donald Trump, like his predecessors, renewed the national emergency with respect to Iran. The emergency status was first declared on November 14, 1979, shortly after the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. The following is the full text of the White House press release…

U.N.: Iran Violating Nuclear Deal

Updated: November 13, 2019
In its quarterly report, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said that Iran had violated the 2015 nuclear deal by increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also reported that its inspectors had found traces of uranium “at a location in Iran not declared to…

News Digest: Week of November 11

Updated: November 19, 2019
November 11 Nuclear: In its quarterly report, the world’s nuclear watchdog said that Iran had violated the 2015 nuclear deal by increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also reported that its inspectors had found traces of uranium “at a location…

Iran’s Hegemony Tested in Iraq, Lebanon

Updated: December 6, 2019
By Andrew Hanna In late 2019, Iran faced challenges to its influence in Iraq and Lebanon that, for the first time in a more than a decade, weakened its hold on two countries critical to its regional ambitions. Protesters in both countries criticized Tehran’s role in their domestic politics. Iran…

International Reactions to Iran’s Nuclear Moves

Updated: November 12, 2019
On November 5, President Hassan Rouhani announced a major increase in Iran’s uranium enrichment capacity. He said that Iran would start injecting gas into centrifuges at Fordo, heavily fortified facility. Built inside a mountain, Fordo was intended to be a research facility under the 2015…

Report: Internet Censorship in Iran

In 2018 and 2019, internet freedom in Iran remained highly restricted, according to a new report by Freedom House. Authorities “handed down harsh prison sentences to online journalists and other users, and continued to block access to independent news sites and a number of social media and…

Iraqis Storm Iranian Consulate

As Iran marked 40 years since the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iraqi protestors stormed the Iranian consulate in Karbala. On November 3, demonstrators scaled concrete barriers protecting the building and lobbed stones and firebombs over the wall. They accused Iran of interfering in Iraq’…

News Digest: Week of November 4

Updated: November 12, 2019
November 4 Foreign Policy/Society: More than 1,000 rallies were held across Iran to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. embassy. Outside of the former U.S. mission, thousands of Iranians chanted “Death to America,” as army chief Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi condemned…

U.S.: 40 Years After Its Embassy Takeover

The United States marked 40 years since the seizure of its embassy in Tehran by announcing new sanctions on Iran. “Forty years later, the revolutionary regime in Tehran has proven, time and again, that its first acts after gaining power were a clear indication of its evil character,” Secretary…

Iran: 40 Years After U.S. Embassy Takeover

On November 4, thousands of Iranians chanted “Death to America” outside of the former U.S. embassy in Tehran. It was one of more than 1,000 rallies held across Iran to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the embassy’s seizure. In 1979, students stormed the compound to protest the Carter…

Khamenei: 40 Years After U.S. Embassy Takeover

On November 3, Iran’s supreme leader renewed the ban on talks with the United States. “No problem will be solved with meetings and with negotiations,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told students on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. “The same wolfish qualities…

U.S.: Iran Worst State Sponsor of Terror

Iran “remains the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism,” according to a new State Department report. In the latest edition of “Country Reports on Terrorism,” Washington alleged that Tehran “has spent nearly one billion dollars per year to support terrorist groups that serve as its proxies and…

U.S. Sanctions Iran’s Construction Sector

On October 31, the U.S. State Department announced sanctions on Iran’s construction sector and the sale of certain materials used in Tehran’s nuclear, military or ballistic missile programs. The sale of raw and semi-finished metals, graphite, coal, and software for integrating industrial purposes…

Detainees in Iran and the U.S.

Updated: December 15, 2024
Hostage seizures and arrests have been a recurrent feature of the troubled relationship between the United States and Iran since revolutionary students captured the U.S. Embassy—and 52 diplomats—on Nov. 4, 1979. That 444-day drama ended on Jan. 20, 1981, the day President Ronald Reagan was…