News

Nearly a year after Palestinian militant group Hamas launched the deadliest attack on Israel in its history on October 7, Israel announced it was shifting its focus to securing its border with Lebanon. As Iran’s supreme leader vows to fight Israel, alongside allies, defending his country’s missile strike on its arch-foe, FRANCE 24’s Oliver Farry is joined by Shahram Akbarzadeh.  Watch Now

Shahram Akbarzadeh is interviewed by BBC World News on the situation between Iran and Israel.  Watch Now

This issue brief examines the significance of armaments in Iran’s strategic thinking, particularly how they support Iran’s long-term objective of changing the status quo and transforming global order. It demonstrates that Iran’s strategy presents serious implications for the aerial balance of power in the region and is highly unlikely to be impacted by the deaths of President Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian earlier this year.  Read Publication

Read the latest publication by Shahram Akbarzadeh, Amin Naeni, Galib Bashirov & Ihsan Yilmaz.  Read Publication

Masoud Pezeshkian is a reformist politician who has been a member of parliament since 2008 and served as the deputy speaker from 2016 to 2020. The 69-year-old heart surgeon was Iran’s health minister in the early 2000s. Pezeshkian favours engagement with the West and supports the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated under former Iranian president Hassan Rouhani.  Watch Now

Voting is underway in Iran’s snap presidential election. The country is choosing a successor to Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash last month. Shahram Akbarzadeh, professor of Middle East Politics at Deakin University explains.  Watch Now

Despite pressing domestic and foreign policy issues, Iranians could stay away from the polls in record-breaking numbers in a sign of their disillusionment.  Read Article

Most of these candidates have previously supported internet censorship, highlighting the paradox in their campaign strategies. For instance, in February, Jalili advocated for more stringent internet restrictions, warning that without bold action, “the country will face damage”. Yet, the campaigns are now strategically using social media to highlight issues likely to resonate with younger voters.  Read Article

The Islamic State’s conquest of Mosul left behind a brutal legacy and uncertain future. A decade on, Iraq and the international community will need to prepare for the potential resurgence of the Islamic State or the emergence of a new, more violent terrorist network.  Read Article

Iran President Ebrahim Raisi was killed in a helicopter crash along with the foreign minister and other officials on the 19th, local time. Raisi had been tipped as a possible successor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran has spent decades supporting armed groups and militants in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and the Palestinian territories, and so this recent death is expected to reverberate across the Middle East.  Watch Now

On 22 April 2024, Professor Shahram Akbarzadeh moderated an international webinar on Iran in the Middle East. This session was co-hosted by the Middle East Council on Global Affairs (Doha) an the Middle East Studies Forum at Deakin University.  The panel included Dr Azadeh Zamirirad, Deputy Head of Africa and the Middle East, German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Prof Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government, Georgetown University in Qatar & Director of Iranian Studies Unit at the Arab Center for Research & Policy Studies, and Dr Hamidreza Azizi, Visiting Fellow, German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), and Non-resident Fellow, Middle East Council on Global Affairs. The panel discussed how conflict between Iran and Isarel impacts Iran’s relations with its neighbours and its implications for its global agenda.

There have been conflicting reports of progress towards a truce in Gaza following a new round of ceasefire talks in Cairo. Egyptian state media earlier reported the talks are making progress, but a Hamas official has denied the claims. Shahram Akbarzadeh from Deakin University has more on the prospect of a ceasefire.  Watch Now