Kian Sharifi

Why Trump's Gaza Takeover Proposal Has Drawn Strong Reactions Worldwide U.S. allies and adversaries alike have strongly criticized President Donald Trump's proposal to displace Gaza residents, paving the way for a U.S. takeover of the enclave.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to displace Palestinians from Gaza and have the United States take control of the territory has drawn strong reaction worldwide, potentially upending Washington’s longstanding Israeli-Palestinian policy.

www.rferl.org/a/trump-gaza...

Election Of New Lebanese President Signals Iran's Waning Influence Lebanese lawmakers have elected army chief Joseph Aoun as the country’s new president, ending a two-year gridlock in a clear sign of the weakening of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed political party and ...

I was quoted in this RFE-RL piece by @kiansharifi.bsky.social on the election of #Lebanon‘s president and its implications for #Iran & #Hezbollah 👇
www.rferl.org/a/joseph-aou...

Fall Of Assad Unravels Iran's Decades-Old 'Axis Of Resistance' Syria was the lynchpin of the Iran-led axis of resistance. Losing the country delivers an irreparable blow to Tehran’s ability to fund and arm its partner, Hezbollah, and unravels the network.

Iran spent decades building the axis of resistance.

Syria was key to that; a top Iranian figure once described it as the "golden ring" of the resistance chain.

But the ring is broken & the axis is unraveling.

www.rferl.org/a/iran-syria...

Lebanon Cease-Fire Deal Seen As Major Victory For Israel The Lebanon cease-fire deal is a major victory for Israel, experts say. Israel managed to decouple Hezbollah's attacks on northern Israel from the Gaza war. Hezbollah, while still dangerous, is now a ...

Hezbollah tied its attacks on northern Israel to the Gaza war. Israel succeeded in decoupling those fronts.

Hezbollah is left militarily and politically weakened -- but don't write it off yet.

Russia And Yemen's Huthis United In Their Animosity Toward The West Russia has been expanding its strategic ties with the Iranian-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen to hurt Western interests in the Red Sea. The Kremlin may even consider arming the Huthis with advanced weapo...

What do the Kremlin and the Houthis have in common? Both harbor a deep dislike for the West, and Putin has a knack for befriending anyone who becomes a nuisance to Russia's rivals.

www.rferl.org/a/russia-hut...

How Iran Is Using Mental Illness As A Tool Of Repression A clinic is being launched in Iran to "treat" women who violate the country’s hijab law. Experts say the clinic in the capital, Tehran, is the latest attempt by Iranian authorities to use mental-healt...

Autocratic states have decades used punitive psychiatry -- the misuse of psychiatric diagnoses, treatments, and institutions to punish, control, or repress individuals -- to target critics.

In Iran, it's being used against women who defy the mandatory hijab.

www.rferl.org/a/iran-women...

With Trump 2.0 Looming, Saudi Arabia Pursues 'Cautious Detente' With Longtime Rival Iran Experts say Iran and Saudi Arabia, decadeslong rivals in the Middle East, are pursuing “cautious detente” amid growing fears of a full-blown war in the region.

Since Trump's election win, the Saudis have sent their top general to Tehran, accused Israel of committing "collective genocide" in Gaza, and condemned it for attacking Iran.

Are they cozying up to Iran or hedging?

When Amir-Abdollahian became Iran's foreign minister in 2021, he put up a pic of Qasem Soleimani behind the lectern where a visiting FM would stand in a presser.

That caused trouble last month when the Saudi FM visited. They've now moved the pic behind the Iranian FM's lectern.

Iran's President Raisi will travel to Africa on Tuesday. Iranian media say he'll visit three countries but haven't named them.

Iran's foreign ministry has summoned Britain's charge d'affaires to "strongly condemn" the UK's "illegal" decision to sanction Iranian officials.

The UK gov't today announced plans to sanction officials behind what it called hostile activities in Britain.

So, some Iran news.

The foreign ministry has issued a travel warning for France, urging against all non-essential travel.

Iranian hardliners are really enjoying this because Macron met Iranian opposition figures during last year's anti-establishment unrest & condemned the crackdown on protests.

Hello, world. I'm here because Elon broke Twitter.