Iran: Introduction

K no wn as Persia until 1935, I ran becam e an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling
monarchy was overt hrown and S hah Mohammad Reza PAHLAVI was forced into exile.
Conservat ive clerical f orces led by Ayatollah Ruhollah KHOMEINI established a theocratic
s yst em of governm ent wit h ult imate political authorit y vested in a learned religious scholar
ref erred t o commonl y as t he Supreme Leader who, according to the constitution, is
account able only to t he Assembly of Experts - a popularl y elected 86-member bod y of clerics.
US-Iranian relat ions became strained when a group of Iranian students seized the US
Em bass y in Tehran in Novem ber 1979 and held embassy personnel hostages until midJanuary 1981. The US cut off diplom atic relations with Iran in April 1980. During the period
1980-88, I ran f ought a blood y, indecisive war with Iraq that eventuall y expanded into the
P ersian Gulf and led to clashes bet ween US Nav y and Iranian military forces. Iran has been
designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the
world and remains subject t o US , UN, and EU economic sanctions and export controls
because of its continued involvement in terrorism and concerns over possible militar y
dimensions of it s nuclear program. F ollo wing the election of reform er Hojjat ol-Eslam
Mohammad KHATAMI as president in 1997 and a ref ormist Majles (legislature) in 2000, a
campaign t o f oster political ref orm in response to popular dissatisfaction was initiated. The
movement f loundered as conservat ive politicians, supported by the Suprem e Leader,
unelect ed inst it ut ions of aut horit y like the Council of Guardians, and the securit y services
reversed and blocked ref orm measures while increasing security repression. Starting with
nat ionwide municipal elections in 2003 and continuing through Majles elections in 2004,
conservat ives reestablished control over Iran's elected governm ent institutions, which
culm inat ed with the August 2005 inauguration of hardliner Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD as
president . His controversial reelection in June 2009 spark ed nationwide protests over
allegat ions of elect oral f raud. These protests were quickly suppressed, and the political
opposit ion t hat arose as a consequence of AHMADI-NEJAD's election was repressed.
Det eriorating economic condit ions due primarily to governm ent mism anagement and
int ernational sanctions prom pt ed at least two major econom ically based protests in Jul y and
O ct ober 2012, but I ran's internal security situation rem ained stable. President AHMADINEJAD's independent streak angered regime establishm ent figures, including the Suprem e
Leader, leading t o conservative opposition to his agenda for the last year of his presidenc y,
and an alienat ion of his political supporters. In June 2013 Iranians elected a moderate
conservat ive cleric, Dr. Hasan Fereidun RUHANI to the presidenc y. He is a long-time senior
member in the regime, but has made promises of reform ing societ y and Iran's foreign polic y.
T he UN Securit y Council has passed a num ber of resolutions calling for Iran to suspend its
uranium enrichm ent and reprocessing activities and compl y with its IAEA obligations and
responsibilit ies, but in Novem ber 2013 the five perm anent members, plus Germany, (P5+ 1)
signed a joint plan with Iran t o provide the country with increm ental relief from international
pressure f or posit ive steps t oward transparency of their nuclear program .

Iran: Government
conventional long form: Islam ic Republic of Iran
conventional short form: Iran
local long form: Jomhuri-ye E slami-ye Iran
local short form: I ran
former: Persia
Government type:
t heocratic republic

Capital:
name: Tehran
geographic coordinates: 35 42 N, 51 25 E
time difference: UTC+ 3. 5 (8.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins f ourth Tuesda y in March; ends fourth Thursda y in
S eptem ber
Administrative divisions:
31 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Alborz, Ardabil, Azarba yjan-e Gharbi (W est
A zerbaijan), Azarba yjan-e S harqi (E ast Azerbaijan), Bushehr, Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari,
E sf ahan, F ars, G ilan, Golest an, Hamadan, Horm ozgan, Ilam , Kerman, Kermanshah,
K horasan-e Jonubi (Sout h Khorasan), Khorasan-e Razavi (Razavi Khorasan), Khorasan-e
S hom ali (North K horasan), K huzest an, Kohgilu yeh va Bo wyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan,
Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom , Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan
Independence:
1 April 1979 (Islam ic Republic of I ran proclaim ed); notable earlier dates: ca. 550 B.C.
(Achaemenid (P ersian) Empire est ablished); A.D. 1501 (Iran reunified under the Saf avid
D ynast y); 12 December 1925 (modern Iran established under the PAHLAVI Dynast y)
Constitution:
previous 1906; latest adopt ed 24 O ct ober 1979, effective 3 Decem ber 1979; amended 1989
(2013)
Legal system:
religious legal system based on secular and Islamic law
International law organization participation:
has not submit ted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-part y state to the ICCt
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI, Ayatollah (since 4 June 1989)
head of government: P resident Hasan Fereidun RUHANI (since 3 August 2013); First Vice
P resident Eshaq JA HA NG IRI (since 5 August 2013)
cabinet: Council of Minist ers select ed by the president with legislative approval; the Suprem e
Leader has some control over appointm ents to the more sensitive ministries

note: also considered part of t he E xecutive branch of government are three oversight bodies:
1) Council of Guardians of the Constitution or Council of Guardians or Guardians Council
(Shora-ye Negban-e Qanon-e Asasi) determines whether proposed legislation is both
const it ut ional and f ait hf ul t o Islam ic law, vets candidates in popular elections for suitabilit y,
and supervises nat ional elect ions; 2) Assem bl y of Experts (Majles-e Khoebregan), an elected
consult at ive bod y of senior clerics constitutionall y mandated to select, appoint, supervise,
and dismiss the Supreme Leader; 3) Expedienc y Council or the Council for the Discernment
of Expediency (Majma-ye- Tashk his-e -Maslahat-e- Nezam) resolves legislative issues when
t he Majles and t he Council of G uardians disagree and since 1989 has been used to advise
nat ional religious leaders on matt ers of national polic y; in 2005 the Council's po wers were
expanded t o act as a supervisor y body for the government
elections: suprem e leader appointed f or life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected b y
popular vote f or a f our-year term (eligible for a second term and additional nonconsecutive
t erm ); elect ion last held on 14 June 2013 (next election to be held in June 2017)
election results: Hasan Fereidun RUHANI elected president; percent of vote - Hasan
F ereidun RUHANI 50.7%, Mohammad Baqer QALIBAF 16.5%, Saeed JALILI 11.4%, Mohsen
REZ AI 10. 6%, Ali Akber V ELAYATI 6. 2%, other 4.6%
Legislative branch:
description: unicam eral I slamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e Shura-ye Eslami or
Majles (290 seat s; members direct ly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by tworound vote; members serve 4-year t erm s); note - all candidates to the Majles must be
approved b y the G uardian Council, a 12-mem ber group of which 6 are appointed b y the
suprem e leader and 6 are jurists nominated by the judiciar y and elected b y the Majles
elections: last held on 2 March 2012 (first round); second round held on 4 Ma y 2012; (next to
be held on 26 F ebruar y 2016)
election results: percent of vot e by part y - NA; seats by party - NA
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): S uprem e Court (consists of a president and NA judges)
judge selection and term of office: Suprem e Court president appointed by the head of the
S uprem e Judicial Council in consult at ion with judges of the Suprem e Court; president
appoint ed f or a 5-year term; other judge appointments and tenure NA
subordinate courts: Penal Court s I and II; Islam ic Revolutionary Courts; Courts of Peace;
S pecial Clerical Court (f unctions out side the judicial s ystem and handles cases involving
clerics); military court s
Political parties and leaders:
note: f orm al polit ical parties are a relatively ne w phenomenon in Iran and most conservatives
still pref er t o work t hrough political pressure groups rather than parties; often political parties
or coalit ions are f ormed prior to elections and disbanded soon thereafter; a loose pro-reform
coalition called t he 2nd Khordad F ront , which includes political parties as well as less formal
groups and organizat ions, achieved considerable success in elections for the sixth Majles in
early 2000; groups in t he coalition included the Islam ic Iran Participation Front (IIPF),
E xecutives of Construction P art y (K argozaran), Solidarit y Part y, Islamic Labor Part y, Mardom

S alari, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO), and Militant Clerics Societ y
(MCS; Ruhaniyun); the coalit ion participated in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004 but
boycott ed them af ter 80 incumbent ref ormists were disqualified; following his defeat in the
2005 president ial elect ions, f ormer MCS Secretar y General and sixth Majles Speaker Mehdi
K ARUB I f ormed the National Trust Part y; a new conservative group, Islamic Iran Developers
Coalition (Abadgaran), took a leading position in the new Majles after winning a majority of
t he seats in F ebruar y 2004; ahead of t he 2008 Majles elections, traditional and hardline
conservat ives at tem pt ed t o close ranks under the United Front of Principlists and the Broad
P opular Coalit ion of Principlists; several reformist groups, such as the MIRO and the IIPF,
also cam e together as a ref ormist coalition in advance of the 2008 Majles elections; the IIPF
has repeatedl y complained that t he overwhelming majority of its candidates were unfairly
disqualif ied f rom t he 2008 elect ions
Political pressure groups and leaders:
groups that generally support the Islamic Republic:
A nsar-e Hizballah
F ollo wers of t he Line of the Imam and the Leader
I slamic Coalit ion Part y (Mot alef eh)
I slamic Engineers Societ y
Tehran Militant Clergy Association or MCA (Ruhani yat)
active pro-reform student group:
Office of St rengthening Unit y or O SU
opposition groups:
F reedom Movem ent of I ran
G reen Path movement [ Mehdi K ARUB I, Mir-Hosein MUSAVI]
Marz-e Por G ohar
Nat ional F ront
various et hnic and monarchist organizations
armed political groups repressed by the government:
Democrat ic P art y of Iranian K urdist an or KDPI
Harekat-e Ansar-e Iran (splinter f act ion of Jundallah)
Jaysh l-A dl (f ormerl y known as Jundallah)
K omala
Mojahedin-e Khalq O rganization or MEK (MKO)
P eople's F edayeen

P eople's F ree Lif e Part y of K urdist an or PJAK

International organization participation:
CICA, CP, D-8, E CO , FAO , G -15, G -24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees),
I CRM, I DA , IDB, I FAD, I FC, IF RCS, I HO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO,
I TS O, I TU, MI GA , NA M, O IC, OP CW , OPEC, PCA, SAARC (observer), SCO (observer), UN,
UNA MI D, UNCTAD, UNES CO , UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNW TO, UPU, W CO, W FTU (NGOs),
W HO, W IPO, W MO, W TO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
none; note - I ran has an Interest s S ection in the Pakistani Em bass y; address: Iranian
I nt erests Sect ion, P akistani Embass y, 2209 W isconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007;
t elephone: [ 1] (202) 965-4990; FAX [ 1] (202) 965-1073
Diplomatic representation from the US:
none; note - t he US I nt erests S ection is located in the Embassy of Switzerland No. 39 Shahid
Mousavi (G olestan 5t h), P asdaran Ave., Tehran, Iran; telephone [98] 21 2254 2178/2256
5273; FAX [98] 21 2258 0432
Flag description:
t hree equal horizont al bands of green (top), white, and red; the national em blem (a st ylized
represent at ion of t he word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a s ym bol of martyrdom ) in red is
centered in the whit e band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated
11 t imes along the bot tom edge of t he green band and 11 tim es along the top edge of the red
band; green is t he color of I slam and also represents gro wth, white symbolizes honest y and
peace, red stands f or bravery and mart yrdom

Iran: Military

Military branches:
I slamic Republic of Iran Regular Forces (Artesh): Ground Forces, Nav y, Air Force (IRIAF),
K hatem olanbia Air Def ense Headquart ers; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah-e
P asdaran-e E nqelab-e Eslam i, I RG C): Ground Resistance Forces, Nav y, Aerospace Force,
Q uds Force (special operat ions); La w Enf orcement Forces (2011)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age f or compulsor y milit ar y service; 16 years of age for volunteers; 17 years of
age f or La w Enf orcement F orces; 15 years of age for Basij Forces (Popular Mobilization
A rm y); conscript milit ar y service obligation is 18 months; women exempt from military service
(2012)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 23,619,215
females age 16-49: 22, 628, 341 (2010 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:

males age 16-49: 20,149,222
females age 16-49: 19, 417, 275 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 715, 111
female: 677,372 (2010 est .)

Iran: International Issues in the

past

Disputes - international:
I ran prot ests Af ghanistan's limiting f lo w of dammed Helm and River tributaries during drought;
I raq's lack of a maritime boundar y with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes be yond the mouth of
t he S hatt al Arab in t he Persian Gulf ; Iran and UAE dispute Tunb Islands and Abu Musa
I sland, which are occupied by I ran; Azerbaijan, Kazak hstan, and Russia ratified Caspian
seabed delimitation t reat ies based on equidistance, while Iran continues to insist on a onef if th slice of t he sea; Af ghan and Iranian commissioners have discussed boundar y monument
densif icat ion and resurve y
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
Refugees (country of origin): 2. 4 million (1 million registered, 1.4 million undocumented)
(Af ghanistan); 32, 000 (Iraq) (2014)
Trafficking in persons:
Current situation: I ran is a source, transit, and destination country for men, wom en, and
children subject ed to sex t rafficking and forced labor; Iranian women and children are
subject ed to sex t rafficking in I ran, Pakistan, the Persian Gulf, and Europe; Iranian children
are f orced, som et imes b y their parents or crime net work s, to beg, to work in s weatshops, or
t o be prostitutes in I ran and abroad; Azerbaijani and, reportedl y, Uzbek women and children
are also sexuall y exploited in Iran; Pakistani migrant workers are sometim es subjected to
f orced labor, including debt bondage; criminal organizations pla y a large role in hum an
t rafficking in I ran

Tier rating: Tier 3 Iran does not comply with the minim um standards for the elimination
of trafficking, and is not making signif icant efforts to do so; the government does not share
inf orm at ion on it s anti-t rafficking efforts making it difficult to assess the countr ys human
t rafficking problem or the government s attem pts to curb it; Iranian law does not prohibit all
f orm s of human trafficking; existing laws against human trafficking, forced labor, and debt
bondage report edly rem ain unenf orced because of a lack of political will and widespread
polit ical corruption; Iran has no apparent protection services or rehabilitation program s for
victim s and has report edly punished sex trafficking victim s for crimes committed as a direct
result of being trafficked (2014)
Illicit drugs:

despite substant ial int erdict ion efforts and considerable control measures along the border
with Af ghanistan, Iran remains one of the primary transshipm ent routes for Southwest Asian
heroin t o Europe; suff ers one of t he highest opiate addiction rates in the world, and has an
increasing problem wit h s ynt hetic drugs; regularly enforces the death penalt y for drug
offences; lacks ant i-money laundering laws; has reached out to neighboring countries to
share counter-drug intelligence