The Intriguing Legacy of Mazdakism Mazdakism, a proto-socialist religious movement, emerged in the Sasanian Empire during the 5th century CE. Led by the charismatic Mazdak, this movement sought to challenge the established socio-religious order, advocating for communal ownership and social equality. Historical records, including those from Persian and Arab historians, shed light on the radical […]
The Timeless Allure of Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism traces its origins to the Bronze Age, around 2000 BCE, making it one of the world’s oldest practiced religions. Historical records, including those from ancient Greek historians like Herodotus, provide glimpses into the religion’s early practices and beliefs. The core tenets of Zoroastrianism were codified in the Avesta, its […]
Written by Jordan Richard Schoenherr, Assistant Professor, Psychology, Concordia University Along with the recent reciprocal drone strikes by Iran and the United States in Syria, Russia continues to unleash its arsenal on Ukrainian civilian and military targets alike. While the Russian armies have started using outdated weapons, novel technologies remain the objects of fascination on […]
Written by Roodabeh Dehghani, PhD candidate, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa Since the death of Mahsa (Jina) Amini in September 2022, much has been said and written about the protests in Iran. Amini died while in the custody of Iran’s morality police. She was arrested for supposedly wearing her hijab incorrectly. Her death triggered widespread protests […]
Written by Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Baker Institute Fellow for Kuwait, Rice University The fact that Saudi Arabia entered a rapprochement deal with Iran and chose China to broker it came as a surprise to many international observers. The agreement, officially called the Joint Trilateral Statement, was signed in Beijing on March 11 and begins the […]
Written by Jose Caballero, Senior Economist, IMD World Competitiveness Center, International Institute for Management Development (IMD) China’s billions of dollars in global investments and infrastructure projects seem to be paying off politically and economically. Just recently, Honduras signalled it is set to cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan, having been one of the few remaining countries […]
Written by Ronald Suny, Professor of History and Political Science, University of Michigan Just a few days after being branded a war criminal in an international arrest warrant, Russian President Vladimir Putin was talking peace with his most important ally, Chinese president Xi Jinping. The setting for the get-together was the late-15th-century Faceted Chamber, the […]
Written by Richard Forno, Principal Lecturer in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, University of Maryland, Baltimore County The Biden administration released its first National Cybersecurity Strategy on March 2, 2023. The last version was issued in 2018 during the Trump administration. As the National Security Strategy does for national defense, the National Cybersecurity Strategy outlines […]
Written by Mona Tajali, Associate Professor of International Relations and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Agnes Scott College It’s been six months since the latest spark ignited mass protests in Iran — the death of 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian Mahsa (Jina) Amini in morality police custody after she was arrested for allegedly failing to wear her hijab […]
Written by Paul Rogers, Professor of Peace Studies, University of Bradford Following political developments in the past fortnight, two state-level policy changes in the Middle East are likely to combine to have a substantial impact on regional stability. On March 10, in a deal brokered by China and signed in Beijing, Saudi Arabia and Iran […]
Written by Simon Mabon, Professor of International Relations, Lancaster University After more than four decades as seemingly implacable enemies on either side of a deep political-religious divide in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and Iran have agreed to restore diplomatic relations and reopen embassies. The deal, which was signed in Beijing, comes seven years after […]
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