1. Politics of the Middle East
Iran

3. People
Iran is home to one of the world's oldest continuous major civilizations, with historical settlements from 4000 BC
Population 75 Million
61% Persian, majority
Shi’ite Muslim 89%

4. Late History During WWI occupied by British, Russians and Ottomans
Following the Russian Revolution Britain attempted to establish a protectorate, Failed
1925 Pahlavi Dynasty; Nationalism, Secularism, Westernisation
1941 Anglo Soviet Invasion
1946 Soviets withdraw, promises of oil concessions.
Conditions revoked, and Soviet puppet state overthrown

5. 1947 – 1951 Six different Prime Ministers
1951 Prime Minister Mohammed Mosaddeq elected
1953 Operation Ajax Deposed Mossadeq
Ruled as an autocracy with US support from that time.
1979 Iranian Revolution
Muhomed Reza Shah overthrown

6. 1979 Islamic Revolution Khomeini returned on 1 February 1979
Pahlavi left the country for exile in January 1979
velayat-e faqih, the idea advanced by Khomeini that everyone requires "guardianship", in the form of rule or supervision by the leading Islamic jurist

7. Iran Iraq War
Khomeini sought to export his Islamic revolution westward into Iraq, especially on the majority Shi'a Arabs.
War continued until 1988 armistice
100,000 Iranian victims of chemical weapons attacks
Iranian casualties 500,000 and 1,000,000. .

8. Government Theocratic Presidential Democracy Supreme Leader
Assembly of Experts
Guardian Council
President
Parliament
Expediency Council

10. President
Elected for 4 Years by universal suffrage
Appoints Ministers, Drafts laws to be approved by Parliament, Approves laws drafted by Parliament
Does not control the military
Candidates Approved by Guardian Council

11. Parliament
290 members elected to 4 year terms.
draft legislation, ratify treaties, approve national budget.
candidates and all legislation from the assembly must be approved by the Guardian Council.

12. Guardian Council
12 jurists, 6 clerics appointed by Supreme Leader, elected by the Parliament
interprets the constitution, rejects bills incompatible with the constitution or Sharia
approves candidates for national election

13. Expediency Council
mediates disputes between Parliament and the Guardian Council
Consists of the heads of the three government branches, clerical members of the Guardian Council and other members appointed by the supreme leader for three-year terms

14. Assembly of Experts
88 ‘virtuous and learned’ clerics
Elected to 8 year terms
Candidates must pass a written examination administered by the Guardian Council
Meet twice annually
Appoint and remove the Supreme Leader

15. Supreme Leader
There have been only two; Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ali Khamenei
Appointed and supervised by the Assembly of Experts
Head of State with powers over defence
and religious affairs
Veto legislation
Declare War and Peace
with 2/3 approval of Parliament

16. Corps of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution
Protect the Revolution and assist the ruling clerics in the enforcement of the new government's Islamic codes and morality
Preventing foreign intervention, military coupe, border security
125K guards 90K Basiji militia
Quds Force, special forces unconventional warfare roles providing assistance and training to various organizations around the world

17. Modern History
1989 On his deathbed Khomeini appointed a 25-man Constitutional Reform Council which named Ali Khamenei as the next Supreme Leader
Rafsanjani served two 4 year terms focused efforts on rebuilding Iran's economy, cut military spending and normalized relations with neighbors
Neutral during Gulf War I
1997 Mohammad Khatami. His presidency was defined by tensions between the reform- government and a conservative active clergy.
 re-elected 2001
‘Dialogue of Civilizations’

18. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Elected 2005 62% of the vote
2009 Disputed elections
Street Protests, Mir-Hossein Mousavi and his supporters alleged voting irregularities
Hassan Rouhani elected 3 August 2013

19. Nuclear Negotiations P5 + 1 China, Russia, US, UK, France, Germany
Points of contention
Stockpiling
Sanctions,
Enrichment
Resistance from US Congress

20. Current Affairs Iran play a significant role in Iraq
Strong supporter of al Assad government
Nominal support for Houthis in Yemen
Saudi and Israel have successfully sold Iran and its proxy Hezbollah as a regional and global threat
Rouhani wins recent election
Nuclear deal under threat