Muhammad Sahimi

Since February 2003, Iran’s nuclear program has undergone what the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) itself admits to be the most intrusive inspection in its entire history. After thousands of hours of inspections by some of the most experienced IAEA experts, the Agency has verified time and again that (1) there is no evidence of … Continue reading “Who’s Telling the Truth About Iran’s Nuclear Program?”

Presidential candidate Barack Obama promised during his campaign that his administration will take a new approach to the crises in the Middle East and, in particular, to the long-standing confrontation with Iran. He promised that his administration would negotiate with Iran without any preconditions. Most recently, President Obama told the al-Arabiya TV, "If countries like … Continue reading “Iran’s Fist Is Clenched for a Reason”

Diplomatic relations between Iran and the United States were broken off by President Jimmy Carter in April 1980, after the American embassy in Tehran was overrun by Iranian students in November 1979 and 53 Americans were taken hostage. The Reagan administration tried to secretly establish working relations with Iran, but that led to the infamous … Continue reading “Who’s Afraid of US-Iran Détente?”

I must admit that, like most progressives and antiwar activists in the coalition that played a crucial role in the victory of President-elect Barack Obama, I have been greatly disappointed with his national security team (NST). Gone are all the hopeful signs of real change in the American foreign policy that we saw – as … Continue reading “The Mindset That Got Us Into War Is Alive and Well”

In August 2002, the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK), an armed Iranian opposition group listed by the State Department as a terrorist organization but supported by the neoconservatives within and without the Pentagon, provided the first concrete evidence of the existence of Iran’s uranium enrichment facility in Natanz. In February 2003, Iran formally declared the existence of … Continue reading “Iran, the IAEA, and the Laptop”

Much has been written about the war between Russia and Georgia. Neoconservatives, as Justin Raimondo pointed out, have suddenly discovered the “democratic” republic of Georgia, which has been a historical "victim” of the Russian “empire.” Never mind that not only was Georgia not a democracy before it was devoured by the Soviet Union in 1921, … Continue reading “Political Pipeline”

The latest report on Iran’s uranium enrichment program by the International Atomic Energy Agency, made public in early June, provides strong evidence that the facts on the ground are changing. According to the report, Iran has been making progress in mastering uranium enrichment technology. It has managed to increase the efficiency of the enrichment process … Continue reading “To Prevent War With Iran,
a Paradigm Shift Is Needed”

The U.S. House of Representatives is considering a resolution (HR 362) that calls on the Bush administration to take strong action against Iran, including a naval blockade of its ports. A similar resolution is being considered by the Senate (SR 580). The two resolutions are supposedly non-binding. They also mention explicitly that they are not … Continue reading “Deconstructing the Anti-Iran Resolutions”

No part of the world, not even the United States, has been more deeply affected by George W. Bush’s presidency than the Middle East. From the lofty goals of starting a “democratic revolution,” making a “new Middle East,” and helping the Palestinians to have their own independent state, to the bogus “war on terror,” invasions … Continue reading “Explosively False Propaganda”

In one of the most embarrassingly absurd, historically baseless, and astonishingly one-sided speeches any U.S. president has ever given, President Bush compared Iran to Nazi Germany in his speech to Israel’s Knesset. In doing so, the president repeated the same diatribes that Norman Podhoretz, the godfather of the neoconservatives, and Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of … Continue reading “Iran Is No Threat, Unless Bush Makes It One”