Iran

The Essential Guide to a Country on the Brink

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• Publisher: Trade Paper Press
• Year: 2007
• Print ISBN:
  9780471741510
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9780470255414
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Middle Eastern History
• Index: History

On June 24, 2005, after nearly ten years of supporting liberal reform, the people of Iran surprised the world by electing the conservative mayor of Tehran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as their new president. Soon after, the new president announced Iran would restart its uranium enrichment program, drawing international criticism and condemnation from leaders in Europe and the United States. Many observers suspect it is the desire to produce not nuclear energy but nuclear weapons that lies behind Iran's controversial decision.Ever since President George W. Bush described Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as the "Axis of Evil, " Iran has garnered increased international attention and threatens to become the new focus of European and American foreign policy. Now you can have at your fingertips up-to-date, must-know details on this complex, pivotal country-straight from one of the most trusted sources of information around the globe.The first in a major new series from Encyclopedia Britannica, Iran presents a balanced, sophisticated examination of Iran's social, cultural, and political landscape, past and present. From the constitutional revolution to the hostage crisis to weapons of mass destruction, this thorough guide provides the necessary background to comprehend all the important, ongoing issues surrounding this enigmatic country.Information on such leaders as Cyrus the Great and Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi, as well as on historical events like the Iran-Contra Affair and the Iran-Iraq War, place current developments into the broader context of world history, the Muslim world, the War on Terror, and the push for democratic reform in the Middle East. Every concise entry-from Afghanistan and Ayatollah Khomeini to Shari'ah law and the Shah-promotes the deeper understanding of issues and events that only Encyclopedia Britannica can provide.Since 1768, Encyclopedia Britannica has been a leading provider of learning products and one of the world's most trusted sources of information.www.britannica.com

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Note to the Reader
• Introduction
• Afghanistan: “Operation Enduring Freedom”
• Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud
• Armed Forces
• “Axis of Evil”
• A Closer Look Bush, Iraq, and the World
• Clerics
• The Constitutional Revolution (1905)
• Culture
• Cyrus the Great
• Darius I
• Dynastic History
• Ebadi, Shirin
• Economy
• Farsi and Other Languages
• Flag
• Iran-Contra Affair
• Iran Hostage Crisis
• Iran-Iraq War
• Iraq: “Operation Iraqi Freedom”
• A Closer Look: Warfare in the 21st Century
• The Islamic Revolution (1978–1979)
• The Islamic World
• Judicial System
• Khamenei, (Ayatollah) Ali
• Khatami, Mohammad
• Khomeini, (Ayatollah) Ruhollah
• Kurds
• Land
• Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi
• Mosaddeq, Mohammad
• Oil
• People
• Persia
• Political System
• Rafsanjani, Ali Akbar Hashemi
• Reforms
• The Revolutionary Guards
• Reza Shah Pahlavi
• Schools
• Shah ‘Abbas I
• Shah Isma’il
• Shari’ah
• Shi’ites
• Sunni
• Tehran
• The United Nations
• A Closer Look The UN Security Council
• Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)
• The White Revolution (1963)
• World Heritage Sites
• Xerxes I
• Bibliography