William R. Polk provides an informative, readable history of a country which is moving quickly toward becoming the dominant power and culture of the Middle East. A former member of the State Department’s Policy Planning Council, Polk describes a country and a history misunderstood by many in the West. While Iranians chafe under the yolk of their current leaders, they also have bitter memories of generations of British, Russian and American espionage, invasion, and dominance. There are important lessons to be learned from the past, and Polk teases them out of a long and rich history and shows that it is not just now, but for decades to come that an understanding of Iran will be essential to American safety and well-being.
About this product: Former U.N. Ambassador Dore Gold shows why engaging Iran through diplomacy is not only futile but also could be deadly. In the West, liberal politicians and pundits are calling for renewed diplomatic engagement with Iran, convinced that Tehran will respond to reason and halt its nuclear weapons program. Yet, countries have repeatedly tried diplomatic talks and utterly failed. In The Rise of Nuclear Iran, Gold examines these past failures, showing how Iran employed strategic deception and delay tactics to hide its intentions from the West. He argues that Western policymakers underestimate Iran s hostility toward us and explains why diplomacy will continue to backfire, no matter which party or president is in power.
About this product: In a reappraisal of Iran's modern history, Ervand Abrahamian traces its traumatic journey across the twentieth century, through the discovery of oil, imperial interventions, the rule of the Pahlavis and, in 1979, revolution and the birth of the Islamic Republic. In the intervening years, the country has experienced a bitter war with Iraq, the transformation of society under the clergy and, more recently, the expansion of the state and the struggle for power between the old elites, the intelligentsia and the commercial middle class. The author is a compassionate expositor. While he adroitly negotiates the twists and turns of the country's regional and international politics, at the heart of his book are the people of Iran. It is to them and their resilience that this book is dedicated, as Iran emerges at the beginning of the twenty-first century as one of the most powerful states in the Middle East.
Pause on the Grand Stairway at Persepolis and imagine trumpeters heralding your arrival Indulge in rosewater ice cream as you stroll between centuries-old bridges in Esfahan Believe it when you see it: check out the world's most unexpected ski resorts Rent a room with a view in a mountain village and watch life unfold as it has for centuries
In This Guide:
Two authors, five months of on-the-ground research, 379 invitations to tea Packed with tips for overlanders, women, and solo travelers Incorporates Farsi words and script throughout Get up-to-the-minute info from other travelers on the Iran branch of the Thorn Tree: lonelyplanet.com
About this product: In the years since 9/11, the U.S. war on terror has focused on al-Qaeda, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Coverage of Iran has been devoted almost exclusively to its nuclear ambitions. Yet, as Ronen Bergman's groundbreaking reporting in this vital investigative history reveals, for thirty years, Iran has been the world's leading sponsor of global terror and stands as the most formidable sponsor of terror in the world today.
Bergman, one of Israel's top investigative reporters, gained unprecedented access to extra-ordinary sources from top to bottom in the Mossad and intelligence agencies around the world. Based on over ten years of research and more than three hundred exclusive interviews with key intelligence figures, he reveals that Iranian terrorist masterminds have crisscrossed the globe, conducting bombings and assassinations with impunity -- even renting apartments and planning bombing attacks in New York City. Iran's proxy, Hizballah, has virtually taken over southern Lebanon and threatens Israel with high-powered weaponry supplied by Iran. Iran and Hizballah worked closely with al-Qaeda and other Sunni terrorist groups in developing their terrorist operations, and Iranian commandos trained Iraqi insurgents in the crafts of suicide bombing and the building of the roadside bombs that have killed so many U.S. troops in Iraq.
In response, and largely beneath the public's radar, a vast clandestine war has been fought with Iran and Hizballah on one side and the CIA, Israel's Mossad, and their European counterparts on the other. The full story of that secret war, told for the first time here, will fundamentally change the debate about U.S. national security priorities.
A new axis of evil is emerging from Iran and spreading around the world, and Ronen Bergman shows that the CIA and Mossad have so far been unable to thwart it. The Secret War with Iran is riveting and urgent.
At the Ministry of Intelligence in Tehran, a man in a checkered shirt sits down in an easy chair. He removes several documents from his pocket and hands one to Haleh Esfandiari, a sixty-seven-year-old Iranian American grandmother he has interrogated and detained for what seems to be an endless number of weeks. This is your arrest warrant and we are taking you to Evin Prison," he says.
This stunning arrest was the culmination of a chain of events set into motion in the early-morning hours of December 31, 2006—a day that began like any other but presaged the end of Esfandiari's regular visits to her elderly mother in Iran, and her return to the United States. That morning, the driver arrived on time. Her mother held the Quran over her head for blessing and luck. From the car, Haleh waved good-bye. She checked for her passport and plane ticket. But as the taxi neared the airport, a sedan forced them to pull over. Three men, armed with knives, threatened her and her driver while going through her pockets and stealing her belongings—including her travel documents. She was left unharmed but would not fly home to the States that day. An ordinary robbery," Esfandiari insisted to friends and family. She took steps to secure a new passport and book a new flight. But it would not be until eight months later that she would leave Iran.
Esfandiari became the victim of the far-fetched belief on the part of Iran's Intelligence Ministry that she, a scholar with the Woodrow Wilson International Center in Washington, D.C., was part of an American conspiracy for regime change" in Iran. In haunting prose and vivid detail, Esfandiari recounts how the Intelligence Ministry subsequently ordered a search of her mother's apartment; put her through hours, then weeks, of interrogation; tapped her phone calls, forcing her to speak in code to her husband and mother; and finally detained her at the notorious Evin Prison, where she would spend 105 days in solitary confinement.
Through her ordeal, Esfandiari came face-to-face with the state of affairs between Iran and the United States—and witnessed firsthand how fear and paranoia could create a government that would take her captive. Weaving her personal story of capture and release with her extensive knowledge of Iran, My Prison, My Home is at once a mesmerizing story of survival and a clear-eyed portrait of Iran today and how it came to be.
About this product: A comprehensive history of Iran, from the glories of the Persian Empire to the Islamic Republic's newly powerful--and much vilified--role in the Middle East.
Iran is a land of contradictions. It is an Islamic republic, but one in which only 1.4 percent of the population attend Friday prayers. Iran's religious culture encompasses the most censorious and dogmatic Shi'a Muslim clerics in the world, and yet its poetry insistently dwells on the joys of life--wine, beauty, sex. Iranian women are subject to one of the most restrictive dress codes in the Islamic world, but make up nearly 60 percent of the university student population.
In A History of Iran, a leading expert on Iran chronicles the rich history of this complex nation from the Achaemenid Empire of sixth century B.C. to the present-day Islamic Republic. In accessible prose, Michael Axworthy explains the military, political, religious, and cultural forces that have shaped one of the oldest continuing civilizations in the world.
Concluding with an assessment of the immense changes the nation has undergone since the revolution in 1979, A History of Iran offers general readers an essential point of entry into a troubled region.
About this product: The moving, inspiring memoir of one of the great women of our times, Shirin Ebadi, winner of the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize and advocate for the oppressed, whose spirit has remained strong in the face of political persecution and despite the challenges she has faced raising a family while pursuing her work.
Best known in this country as the lawyer working tirelessly on behalf of Canadian photojournalist, Zara Kazemi – raped, tortured and murdered in Iran – Dr. Ebadi offers us a vivid picture of the struggles of one woman against the system. The book movingly chronicles her childhood in a loving, untraditional family, her upbringing before the Revolution in 1979 that toppled the Shah, her marriage and her religious faith, as well as her life as a mother and lawyer battling an oppressive regime in the courts while bringing up her girls at home.
Outspoken, controversial, Shirin Ebadi is one of the most fascinating women today. She rose quickly to become the first female judge in the country; but when the religious authorities declared women unfit to serve as judges she was demoted to clerk in the courtroom she had once presided over. She eventually fought her way back as a human rights lawyer, defending women and children in politically charged cases that most lawyers were afraid to represent. She has been arrested and been the target of assassination, but through it all has spoken out with quiet bravery on behalf of the victims of injustice and discrimination and become a powerful voice for change, almost universally embraced as a hero.
Her memoir is a gripping story – a must-read for anyone interested in Zara Kazemi’s case, in the life of a remarkable woman, or in understanding the political and religious upheaval in our world.
About this product: As the United States weighs a change of approach toward the Iranian government after thirty years of confrontation, John Limbert steps up with a pragmatic yet positive assessment of how to engage Iran. Through four detailed case studies of past successes and failures, he draws lessons for today s negotiators, and he challenges both Americans and Iranians to end decades of mutually hostile mythmaking. While he acknowledges that any progress at best will be measured in baby steps, Limbert provides clear reasons for renewing dialogue and outlines 14 principles to guide the American who finds himself in a negotiation commercial, political, or other with an Iranian counterpart. John Limbert writes from a personal and professional perspective, combining a deep appreciation and knowledge of Iranian culture and history, first-hand diplomatic experience, and an understanding of what it means to negotiate for the lives of Americans. Anyone interested in understanding U.S.-Iranian history and relations will find this volume invaluable.
About this product: During Dr. Mike Evans research for this book in Israel in late 2009, he was told by a high-level Israeli government official that should Iran achieve its nuclear ambitions, it would then have a nuclear umbrella which would allow it to accelerate terrorism throughout the Sunni Gulf oil states in an attempt to fulfill its vision of a world caliphate. An ensuing multi-trillion dollar nuclear arms race between the Sunni and Shia states in the region would drive the price of oil to never-before-seen levels for decades to come. The estimate given him was that oil prices could go as high as $200 per barrel. This would further decimate the world economy. With the ascension of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the position of power in Iran, much has been said about the Mahdi. Al-Mahdi was the Twelfth Imam in the line of Ali, who disappeared down a well at the age of five. Refusing to believe that he was dead, his followers imbued him with timelessness. They declared him to be merely hidden, or in a state of occultation, and declared that on some future date he would suddenly reappear to reestablish an Islamic caliphate worldwide. The Twelver's eschatology, however, proved problematic; it espoused an apocalyptic upheaval in order for the Mahdi, or Hidden Imam, to ascend to his rightful place of leadership. These Twelvers championed the tenet that every individual, regardless of his religious belief, would one day bow to Islam or die. In Ahmadinejad's mind, an atomic bomb in Tel Aviv would usher in the Mahdi, and all the world's demise (Jews and Christians) would instantly be converted to Islam. Compared to Ahmadinejad and his Twlever band, al-Qaeda resembles Boy Scouts ushering little old ladies across busy streets. What does the world really think of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Twelver beliefs? Are most people aware of his devotion to the Mahdi? Do most understand that he is an ardent Twelver, a dedicated disciple of the Twelfth Imam, who will do anything to insure that the world is made ready for the second coming of a false messiah even if it requires manufacturing his own apocalyptic event to insure a rush to Armageddon? When Dr. Evans met Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's spiritual advisor in New York City for a UN meeting in 2007, he declared that his leader would usher in the Mahdi the twelfth descendant of Mohammad through such an apocalyptic event within three years. President Obama seems incapable of fully accepting his culpability should he pursue talks with Iran's bloody regime. He was given a legitimate chance to support change for the good of the Iranian populace following the June, 2009 Iranian election. He had an opportunity to respond vigorously, yet he failed to do so in a timely manner. America's forty-fourth president has all but acquiesced to Iran's nuclear course. Even during the election process Mr. Obama signified that he was agreeable to a meeting with the regime: I would [talk to Iran's leaders without preconditions]. And the reason is this, that the notion that somehow not talking to countries is punishment to them -- which has been the guiding diplomatic principle of this [Bush] administration -- is ridiculous. The Iranians saw this as weakness on the part of the American presidential candidate. Since taking office, Mr. Obama has done nothing to counter that opinion. Ahmadinejad has declared the issue closed, not worthy of talks with the leader of The Great Satan. He has rebuffed the advances of a man who apparently wants to dance with Iran. Ahmadinejad feels he is in the driver's seat, and unless a backbone transplant is in the offing, Mr. Obama will likely acquiesce to whatever terms Ahmadinejad demands prior to any face-to-face talks with the American president. The countdown to Armageddon has begun.
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