Topic: Persia

Editor's Blog The greening of the West

Long the province of mountain men and rugged individualists, the Intermountain West is drawing a new generation of entrepreneurs, knowledge workers, and venture capitalists keen on experiencing the region's natural wonders while staying connected to the global economy.

Energy Voices The many empty meanings of 'energy security'

We have talked about the concept of ‘energy security’ so much that it no longer means anything, Holland writes. It is time to retire the term.

The Cyrus Cylinder, symbol of Persian tolerance, heads to US

The 2,600 year old Cyrus Cylinder, a promise of tolerance from the ancient Persian King, is heading to the US for the first time.

Global News Blog Good Reads: Women in crime, democracy's era, digital mapping, a history in heels

This week's good reads include an interview with a photographer who documented female prisoners in Mexico, debunking theories about which nations are 'ready' for democracy, how smart phones disorient their users, and the surprising history of high heels.

When dictators fall, so do their banknotes

The following now defunct or possibly soon-to-be defunct banknotes are imbued with the symbols and iconography of their leaders, past and present.

Chapter & Verse 'Games Without Rules' dominate Afghanistan's tangled history

Afghan-American author Tamim Ansary tracks the past of his native country

Editor's Blog Is it Iran's leader -- or Iran?

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is known as "God's deputy on earth." He is Iran's ultimate powerbroker. Understanding what makes him tick is crucial to understanding Iran. But it isn't enough. You also have to understand Iran.

Netanyahu's simple bomb graphic confuses the nuclear experts

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu sought to simplify the Iranian nuclear issue with the diagram he brought out on the UN podium, but experts say he actually made it more confusing.

Iranian president needs a history lesson, Israeli president says (+video)

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who on Monday said that the Israeli people had 'no roots' in their territory, was scolded by his Israeli counterpart, Shimon Peres, who called the Iranian president's speech 'embarrassing.'

Backchannels Netanyahu gives Obama the Book of Esther. Biblical parable for nuclear Iran?

Esther tells of a Persian plot against the Jews that was thwarted through cunning and the intercession of a gentile king. Purim, the holiday that celebrates the story, starts tonight.

How Iran could beat up on America's superior military

America's defense budget is roughly 90 times bigger than Iran's. But Iran has a well-honed strategy of asymmetric warfare.

Terrorism & Security In first month after US exit, Iraq's sectarian clashes have killed 170

A series of bombings hit Baghdad today, killing 14. The violence in Iraq has claimed 170 lives already this year. 

Regime change: How fear of Iran nukes, and campaign politics, revived the call

A tough-talking debate over pursuing regime change is all the rage again, this time focused on Iran. But proponents say they prefer economic sanctions to military force as the main lever. 

British embassy attack exposes tensions outside – and inside – Iran

Some Iranian conservatives praised yesterday's attack on the British embassy, while others condemned it as endangering national security as tensions rise with the West.
11/30/2011 01:09 pm

Global News Blog Good Reads: Why British diplomats consider Tehran a 'hardship post'

Yesterday's rampage by Iranian 'students' are just the latest example of how Iranian domestic anger gets focused on diplomats.
11/30/2011 09:49 am

Looking back: The Monitor's coverage of 9/11

Ten years ago, The Monitor had recently moved into a renovated newsroom on the second floor of the venerable Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston. It featured new, modular desks, carpeting instead of linoleum, and many large TV monitors hung from the ceiling. They were tuned to various network and cable channels, but with the sound turned off, normally. So the first indication of a crisis on 9/11 was a chilling silent image of smoke billowing from the North Tower of the World Trade Center, an image that spread from screen to screen across the newsroom. When the second plane hit, 17 minutes after the first, it was clear that the United States was under attack. We had four hours till deadline that day. Four hours in which to try to make sense of what had just happened. Reporters, editors, photographers, editorial writers, columnists, feature writers, even editors and writers of the religious article that appears in the Monitor daily, sprang into action. It was the beginning of days, weeks, and months of reporting and analysis of that incident and its aftermath that would follow. The list below represents some of the most significant reporting and writing we did that day and on subsequent days. The 9/11 stories and images are The Monitor's first draft of the history of that moment. Like most first drafts, some could do with some revising now. But give credit to the swiftness with which they had to be written -- especially those produced that first day and week -- and the decades (if not centuries) of accumulated wisdom, knowledge, and expertise they represent on the part of a staff that worked around the clock to bring them to you.
09/06/2011 03:00 pm

In Pictures America's United Nations of Cable TV

Judgment Day? Five failed end-of-the-world predictions

Judgment Day is coming this Saturday, May 21, beginning at 6 p.m., according to Harold Camping, the president of the Christian broadcaster Family Radio. Could he be wrong? He wouldn't be the first. Here are five failed Judgment Day predictions.
05/18/2011 05:47 pm

Photos of the Day Photos of the Day 03/21

Photos of the Day Photos of the Day 03/20

Photos of the Day Photos of the Day 03/18

Photos of the Day Photos of the day 03/16

Diggin' It Roses: New research raises questions about their history

A British author questions many things we think we know about the history of roses.
02/07/2011 05:07 pm

North Korea and Iran: How the two states test US diplomacy

North Korea is seen as an unpredictable 'spoiled child.' Iran is seen as a rational but aggressive nation. Each have nuclear programs, but pose unique problems for US security.
12/12/2010 11:15 am

Opinion A whole new world for US and Asia: Can America adapt to the power shift?

President Obama's trip to Asia shows just how much the global power balance has shifted. China and India now hold the key to Western economic recovery. In this climate, the US must learn a new form of international leadership.
11/17/2010 05:12 pm