The politics of Iran was the scene of drastic and diverse developments over the past calendar year (the Iranian year 1396, March 21, 2017 to March 20, 2018).

Here we will be doing a review of the most significant of these developments. We do so by going about the domestic developments first and then international relations.

Domestic policy in the year 1396

The most important event of the year was probably the May 19 presidential election, in which President Hassan Rouhani was re-elected, wining 23,636,652 votes out of a total of 41,366,085.

Rouhani’s nearest challenger was Ebrahim Raisi, custodian of the Astan Quds Razavi, who received 15,835,794 of the votes. 

Other candidates were former Culture Minister Mostafa Mir-Salim, former Physical Education Organization Mostafa Hashemitaba, Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri and then Tehran Mayor Mohamamd Baqer Qalibaf, with the latter two withdrawing in favor of Rouhani and Raisi respectively.

Upon winning his landslide victory, Rouhani maintained that “Iranians clearly and explicitly sent their message to the world through the Friday elections”. He also said, “Our nation wants to live in peace and friendship with the world, but at the same time, it will accept no humiliation or threat.”

Less than a month after the election, two simultaneous terror attacks were carried out in the capital Tehran, leaving 17 civilians dead and 43 wounded, bringing tears to the nation’s eyes. 

The attacks were carried out on June 7 against the Parliament building and the mausoleum of Imam Khomeini, both in Tehran. Daesh (ISIL) terror group claimed responsibility for the attacks.

The shootings were the first terror attacks in Tehran in more than a decade, and the first major terrorist attack in the country since the 2010 Zahedan bombings.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei downplayed the attacks, calling them mere “firecrackers” which would not cause a crack in the Islamic Republic’s determination to fight terrorism. 

“These firecrackers have no effect on Iran. They will soon be eliminated,” the Leader noted.

Because of their targets, the attacks were described as an attempt to undermine the democratic and religious foundations of the Islamic Republic.

Months later, in late December and early January, another event shocked the country. What seemed to be a small demonstration in Mashhad over economic grievances, quickly turned into widespread protests across the country.

The protests soon died down but the significance of the unforeseen turmoil was that it opened up a lively national discussion on the deep-rooted issues, including the people’s economic, social and political demands.

Misusing the legitimate grievances by people, Donald Trump made repeated tweets provoking unrest in Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei said the enemies of Iran got united “with all the tools they had including money, weapon… to cause harm to the Islamic system.”

President Rouhani said the protests were an opportunity to notice the problems and find solutions for them.

The president emphasized that the people did not come to the streets just because of economic problems. “One of the people’s demands is a more open atmosphere.”

A month after the widespread protests, Tehran witnessed clashes between security forces and members of a Dervish cult in the Pasdaran neighborhood which left five security forces killed.

The clashes occurred overnight when members of the Gonabadi Dervishes held an illegal gathering at a police station. Three policemen were killed when a bus was driven into their ranks. Two Basiji volunteer forces also lost their lives in separate car-ramming and stabbing attacks at the site.

More than 300 rioters, including the drivers of the bus and the car and also the main elements behind the incident, were arrested.

The police force were later lauded by a number of officials for their maximum tolerance in dealing with both the Dervishes as well as protests across the country.

The year 1396 also saw Tehran’s new military achievements, the top of which was the successful test-launch of its new ballistic missile, called Khorramshahr, with a range of 2,000 kilometers.

Khorramshahr is the name of a city in southern Iran which was occupied by the invading Saddam Hussein Army in the autumn of 1980.

Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Aerospace Force, said the missile can carry multiple warheads, up to 1,800 kilometers.

Iran’s foreign policy in 1396

Iran’s foreign policy has always been based on friendly and good interaction with other countries. As a principle, this policy got boosted with the conclusion of the nuclear deal, officially being known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 

However, U.S. President Donald Trump is so against the nuclear deal that his unprincipled remarks have put the destiny of the international agreement in confusion. However, Iran has remained committed to fulfilling its obligations under the JCPOA which has been confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency for ten times, the last of which announced on February 22.

Officials in Tehran have repeatedly announced that Iran will not be the first to quit the nuclear deal and will remain committed to it as long as the other side meets its obligations.

Under the nuclear agreement, endorsed by the United National Security Council, Iran is obliged to put limits on its nuclear activities in exchange for termination of economic and financial sanctions.

So far, Trump has extended waivers of sanctions, but he issued a statement on January 12 giving a four-month time to Congress and Europeans to overhaul the nuclear agreement or he would unilaterally withdraw the U.S. from it. The deadline falls on May 12.

Iran’s principled policy has been and will be expansion of relations with all neighbors based on good intention and good neighborliness. In line with this policy, the country helped eliminate Daesh. 

Iran also rushed to the help of Qatar when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain closed land, air and sea routes to the tiny country on June 5. After the emergence of the crisis, Iran became the only lifeline to the besieged Qatar, sending food and other essential items to the Arab country.

Iran also continued to provide advisory help to Iraq and Syria in their fight against Daesh. Armed forces in Iraq and Syria, backed by popular mobilization units and Iranian military advisors, managed to flush Daesh militants out of their last strongholds in both countries, declaring full victory over the notorious group in November.

During the past year, Iran, along with Russia and Turkey, made relentless efforts to silence the guns in Syria through the Astana peace talks. The most important achievement was the establishment of four “de-confliction zones” inside the war-torn Syria. The deal was signed on May 4, 2017. 

President Rouhani also called for more Tehran-Ankara-Moscow cooperation and consultation on Syria in February 2018.

In line with the policy of helping regional peace, security and stability, Iran also made repeated calls for ending war in Yemen. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sent a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in November 2017, insisting it is essential to end the war on Yemen.

On December 14, 2017, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley presented a charred tube and other material that she claimed were from an Iranian-made ballistic missile fired from Yemen at the King Khalid International Airport near the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on November 4.

Iran strongly denied the claim, saying that the country has no arms link with Yemen and described the evidence as “fabricated”.

Also, on Feb. 28, President Rouhani put forward a proposal for establishing a “big union” with Arab states on the southern shores of the Persian Gulf. This followed similar gestures by the Foreign Ministry in the form of “regional dialogue forum”.

Conclusion

The year 1396 can be said to have been a busy year on the political arena, both domestic and foreign. In the domestic sphere the country experienced the presidential election which saw Rouhani elected to a second term; a long unprecedented terror attack on the Majlis premises and the shrine of Imam Khomeini; the country-wide protests around the turn of the Christian year; and the deadly Dervish cult riots.

On the foreign policy scene, Iran faced a number of issues that range from the announcement of the annihilation of Daesh, where Iran played a key role; the Trump administration’s fumbling with the implementation of the JCPOA with the aim to frustrate Tehran; European countries’ pressure to forge a new deal with Iran regarding its defense program; and an ever-present Israeli-Arab threat that verged on talk about military action against Iran.

Rounding up, it can be said that Tehran has done successfully in both home politics and international politics. In the first sphere, it successfully boosted national morale in elections, managed to handle public sensitivity during the protests, and reestablish a peaceful feeling. In the foreign policy, Tehran has kept pushing through a whole gamut of problems created by the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia, while at the same time keeping the opportunity for constructive talks with Europe on the horizon.

NA/MH/SP/PA