Eye For Iran

Ordinary Iranians are bearing unprecedented economic pain as their Islamic government's row with its hated enemies Israel and the United States ramps up and Tehran prioritizes military spending to shore up defense and its regional clout. Iran implemented a 200 percent increase in military spending for the Persian year beginning this month and will aim to boost revenue through higher taxes despite...

Iran will witness a turning point this year, marked by what may be the most consequential decision yet to be made by the country’s Supreme Leader. The outcome will likely come down to two options: pursuing a nuclear deal or facing the prospect of war. That’s according to Mark Dubowitz, the CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and a well-known voice on Iran policy. He told Eye for...

Iran and Russia seem closer than ever since Vladimir Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with Tehran emerging as a key supplier of drones and missiles to Moscow. However, journalist Tanya Lukyanova suggests this partnership may not be as solid as it appears, especially as shifting geopolitical tides—including Donald Trump’s return to the White House—reshape global dynamics. With a Russia-Ukraine cea...

Global alliances are in flux as President Donald Trump casts doubt on U.S. commitments. Amid rising geopolitical tensions, a 40-year insurgency between Turkey and the outlawed PKK has ended in a ceasefire. Ankara has reportedly offered peacekeepers to Ukraine, contingent on a war-ending agreement. As Turkey navigates domestic challenges, it could seek to replace Iran as the dominant regional power...

To understand why a peaceful resolution between Israel and Palestine remains so elusive, one must first recognize that the conflict extends far beyond the two peoples directly involved. Regional powers, particularly Iran, play a pivotal role in sustaining the turmoil, award-winning author and foreign correspondent Yardena Schwartz told Eye for Iran. According to Schwartz, the plight of the Palesti...

Sina Azodi, an expert on U.S.-Iran relations, told the Eye for Iran podcast that Iran could rebuild nuclear facilities hit by air attacks which would delay but not resolve the crisis. Azodi's analysis comes as Israel weighs striking Iran’s nuclear sites, per U.S. intelligence assessments cited by The Wall Street Journal in February. Iran could rebuild nuclear facilities hit by air attacks within 6...

US President Donald Trump’s ultimatum to Hamas is doomed to fail unless Tehran is under threat and faces consequences, a former US Intelligence officer and military adviser told Iran International. This comes after Trump set a deadline to return all the hostages in Gaza and warned that “all hell will break out” if the Israeli hostages are not freed by the weekend. Michael Pregent, appearing on Eye...

Ambassador John Bolton, appearing on this week's episode of Eye for Iran, argues that Trump has issued conflicting statements on Iran. While reinstating his maximum pressure campaign to cut Iran’s oil exports to zero, Trump has also expressed a willingness to negotiate, aiming for a verifiable agreement to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. During the signing of an executive order memora...

Iran is undergoing a demographic crisis as Iranians are not getting married and having babies. Diving deep into the issue is Holly Dagres from The Washington Institute on why there's been such a generational shift and how the clerical establishment is now trying to shape Gen Alpha and Beta as the model citizens of the Islamic Republic.#iraninternational #Iraninternational #ایران_اینترنشنال #iran #...

Donald Trump's first day of returning to the White House saw a flurry of activity, including the firing of Brian Hook, the special envoy for Iran during the first Trump administration who championed heavy sanctions. Hook's dismissal to observers wondering how Trump will approach its foreign policy on Iran. Alexander Farley, a program associate at the Wilson Center, told the Eye for Iran podcast th...

The ceasefire deal announced this week between Israel and Hamas sends a signal of defeat to the Islamic Republic of Iran, a former hostage in Tehran who was also part of influencing the ceasefire negotiations told Iran International. Nizar Zakka, the head of Hostage Aid Worldwide, was kidnapped in 2015 by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) after being invited to attend a conference in Te...

As the United States bid farewell to former President Jimmy Carter on Thursday, his legacy surrounding Iran's 1979 revolution returned to the spotlight. For Yitzhak Segev, Israel's last military attaché in Iran before the revolution, it is Carter who is partially responsible for the rise of Islamic rule in Iran. Serving as military attaché in Iran from 1977 to 1979, Segev shared the conversations...

For some countries in the Middle East, 2024 was a year of historic changes and milestones, but for Iran it appears to be one of setbacks and defeat for its clerical establishment. The fall of Iran’s greatest Arab ally in the region, Bashar Al-Assad capped off a disastrous year that saw Iran’s proxy forces diminished that further fueled domestic and economic unrest. Kamran Matin, an international r...

Iran carried out 862 extrajudicial executions across the world, according to a landmark report by US-based rights group the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center (ABC) for Human Rights in Iran. Negar Mojtahedi spoke to Roya Boroumand, the executive director of the centre, about how documenting these cases helps expose the Iranian government's tactics and motives behind its transnational repression. #iran #...

We are just weeks away from Donald Trump's return to the White House as President Joe Biden's term nears the end. Many are already asking what Biden's legacy has been on Iran and what the next Trump administration plans to achieve in the Middle East? Democratic Congressman and senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Brad Sherman joined Eye for Iran this week to answer those questions...

With Iran losing Syria, one of its greatest Arab allies and satellite states, president-elect Donald Trump will likely still strike a deal with Iran. Trump’s maximum pressure policy was never aimed at regime change, despite some expectations, his last special envoy for Iran told Iran International's Eye for Iran podcast. It was about making a deal. Elliott Abrams, the former special representative...

Iran is willing to do everything to keep their grip on Syria through their support of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. But with Russia's attention diverted to Ukraine, the Islamic Republic will struggle to manoeuvre the battlefield like it did in 2016. That's how Qutaiba Idlbi, a Senior Fellow from the Atlantic Council’s Syria Initiative, sees the rapid developments unfolding in Syria. Idlbi, w...

While global attention is focused on the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah this week, a former Israeli intelligence official told Iran International that Syria may become the next target of the Jewish state as it continues to counter Iran-backed proxies. Avi Melamed told the Eye for Iran podcast that what transpires in Lebanon cannot be separated from Syria, where Iran and Hezbollah...

Former UN inspector David Albright told the Eye for Iran podcast that he feels worried about the future with Iran getting closer to a nuclear bomb, saying that the current mechanisms are not working to detect suspicious activity. Albright, who is the founder and president of the non-profit Institute for Science and International Security, told Iran International there's overwhelming evidence to su...

Major (ret) Andrew Fox joined the 'Eye for Iran' podcast to discuss the future of Iran with the return of Donald Trump to the White House and the clues his cabinet picks offer. While many believe Trump's arrival and choosing the likes of Iran hawk Marco Rubio as Secretary of State spell trouble for Tehran, Fox sees it more as "baby steps" for change in the Islamic Republic down the road but nothin...

Donald Trump's return to the White House will likely mean Jared Kushner, the President-elect's son-in-law, will have the task of figuring out again how peace can be established in the Middle East. That's what Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a former informal adviser to Trump, told Iran Internationa's Eye for Iran podcast. #donaldtrump #jaredkushner #israelhamaswar #middleeast #podcast #geopolitics #uspolitics...

Iran International's Eye for Iran speaks with two Iranian Americans, one who was a former Democrat turned Trump supporter and the other a Democrat who won't vote this time around due to his dissatisfaction with both candidates. Find out what this election means to them and why it's proven to be one of the toughest for them emotionally - not just politically. #iraninternational #ایران_اینترنشنال #t...

When Israel struck Iran on October 26, many wondered if the limited attack would push the Islamic Republic into a corner or embolden them. Eylon Levy, a former Israeli government spokesman, told this week's Eye for Iran podcast that the latter option was the most likely outcome. With Iran's proxies deteriorating and direct strikes occurring between the two regional rivals, Levy is asked if Iran wi...

Afshon Ostovar, an associate professor at the Naval Postgraduate School and author of Wars of Ambition, joined Eye for Iran to discuss what a potential Iran-Israel war might entail. Ostovar explained that if Israel perceives an existential threat from Iran, it will likely have the will to pursue a prolonged conflict. He warned that as a war drags on, the risk of targeting nuclear facilities increa...

Abstract: Amichai Stein, an Israeli journalist with Kan news, reveals his insider knowledge on Sinwar's death, what that means for the fate of the remaining hostages and how it impacts Iran. Stein says the killing of Sinwar is forcing Iran to attempt to try and scale down Israel's planned reprisal against the Islamic Republic out of fear now that Hamas has been severely weekend along with Hezbolla...