Useful information for tourists about Iran, cities and resorts of the country. As well as information about the population, currency of Iran, cuisine, features of visa and customs restrictions of Iran.
Geography of Iran
The Islamic Republic of Iran is a state in southwest Asia. In the north-west it borders with Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkey, in the west - with Iraq, in the north - with Turkmenistan, in the east - with Afghanistan and Pakistan. Iran is washed from the north by the Caspian Sea, from the south by the Persian Gulf.
Most of the country's territory is occupied by the vast interior Iranian Plateau. average height 1200 m. It is formed by large plateaus, mountain ranges and intermountain basins. In the west rise the Zagros Mountains, in the east - the strongly dissected East Iranian Mountains, in the north - the powerful arcs of Elborz, in the south - Makran. Narrow strips of coastal lowlands stretch along the coasts of the Caspian Sea, the Persian and Oman Gulfs.
State
State structure
Iran is an Islamic republic. The head of state is the Supreme Leader. He determines the general policy of the country and is the supreme commander of Iran's armed forces. The second most important official in Iran is the president. The President is the guarantor of the constitution and the head of the executive branch. The legislative power is represented by a unicameral parliament - the Mejlis.
Language
Official language: Farsi (Persian)
In addition to Farsi, Turkic dialects, Kurdish, Turkish, Arabic, etc. are also used. English and French are used in business circles.
Religion
Shiite Islam is professed by 89% of the population (Shiism is the state religion of the country), Sunni Muslims make up 10% total number believers (there are also adherents of other Islamic denominations), some of the population professes Zoroastrianism (0.1%), Judaism (0.3%) and Christianity (0.7%).
Currency
International name: IRR
10 rials corresponds to one toman. There are banknotes in circulation in denominations of 10 thousand, 5 thousand, 2 thousand, thousand, 500, 200 and 100 rials, as well as coins in 250, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 rials. The presence of fogs greatly confuses tourists, so it makes sense to immediately clarify whether we are talking about rials or fogs.
In tourist areas, US dollars, pounds sterling and euros are accepted for payment; in other parts of the country, their use is technically illegal.
Currency can be changed at Tehran airport, in some hotels or banks, in exchange offices on the streets and markets, and only at the official rate. You can also exchange with numerous private money changers on the market, who usually offer a better rate, but this is officially considered illegal.
Credit cards and traveler's checks are accepted for payment only in large banks and hotels in the capital.
Tourism in Iran
Office hours
Banks are open from 08.00 to 15.00-16.00 from Saturday to Wednesday, some branches are open from 08.00 to 20.00. Closed days are Thursday and Friday, although large banks are open on Thursday from 8.00 to 13.00.
Previously, Iran was called Persia; the country is still called that way in many works of fiction. Often the culture of Iran is called Persian, Iranian civilization is also called Persian. The Persians are the indigenous population of Iran, as well as the people living in the countries of the Persian Gulf, the people living near the Caucasus, Central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Northern India.
Officially, the Iranian state is called the Islamic Republic of Iran. The name of the country "Iran" is currently used for modern civilization, now the Persians are called Iranians, they are a people living in the territory between the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf. Iranians have lived in this territory for more than two and a half thousand years.
The Iranians have a direct connection with the peoples who called themselves Aryans, who also lived in this territory in ancient times, they were the ancestors of the Indo-European peoples of Central Asia. Over the years, there have been invasions of the Iranian civilization, and due to this, the empire has undergone some changes.
Due to invasions and wars, the composition of the country's population gradually changed, the state expanded, and the peoples who fell into it spontaneously mixed. Today we see the following picture: as a result of a large number of migrations and wars, the territory and culture of Iran are claimed by European, Turkic, Arab and Caucasian origin.
Many of these peoples live in the territory modern Iran. Moreover, the inhabitants of Iran prefer that the country be called Persia, and they are called Persians, in order to indicate their similarity and continuity in relation to the Persian culture. Often the Iranian population wants nothing to do with the modern political state. Many Iranians have emigrated to the United States of America and Europe, but even there they do not want to compare themselves with the modern Islamic Republic of Iran, created in 1979.
Formation of a nation
The Iranian people are one of the oldest civilized peoples in the world. During the Paleolithic and Mesolithic times, the population lived in caves in the Zagros and Elborz mountains. The earliest civilizations in the region lived in the foothills of the Zagros Mountains, where they developed agriculture and animal husbandry, and established the first urban culture in the Tigris-Euphrates basin.
The emergence of Iran dates back to the middle of the 1st millennium BC, when Cyrus the Great created the Persian Empire, which existed until 333 BC. The Persian Empire was conquered by Alexander the Great. In the sixth century BC, Persia regained its independence, and the Persian kingdom existed until the seventh century AD.
The country was included in the Medina, and later in the Damascus caliphate with the advent of Islam on the territory of Persia. The original religion of the Zoroastrians practically disappears, having been completely suppressed by Islam. Up to the present time in Iranian history The same plot of unfolding events is repeated: the conquerors of Iranian territory ultimately become admirers of Iranian culture themselves. In a word, they become Persians.
The first of these conquerors was Alexander the Great, who swept through the area and conquered the Achaemenid Empire in 330 BC. Alexander died soon after, leaving his generals and their descendants on this land. The process of dismemberment and conquest of the country ended with the creation of a renewed Persian Empire.
At the beginning of the third century AD, the Sassanids united all territories to the east, including India, and successfully began to cooperate with the Byzantine Empire. The second Great Conquerors were the Arab Muslims who came from Saudi Arabia in 640 AD. They gradually merged with the Iranian peoples, and by 750 there was a revolution that pushed the new conquerors to become Persians, but interspersed with elements of their culture. This is how the Baghdad Empire emerged.
The next conquerors who came with the tide Turkic peoples to the lands of Iran in the eleventh century. They established courts in the northeastern part of Khorasan and founded several large cities. They became patrons of Persian literature, art and architecture.
Consecutive Mongol invasions The thirteenth century took place during a period of relative instability that lasted until the beginning of the sixteenth century. Iran regains its independence with the rise to power of the Persian Safavid dynasty. They established Shiism as the state religion. And this period became the heyday of Iranian civilization. The Safavid capital, Isfahan, was one of the most civilized places on earth, long before the emergence of most cities in Europe.
The subsequent conquerors were Afghans and Turks, however, the result was the same as that of the previous conquerors. During the period of the Qajar conquest of Iran from 1899 to 1925, Persia came into contact with European civilization in the most serious way. The Industrial Revolution in the West has seriously shaken Iran's economy.
The lack of a modern army with the latest military weapons and transport leads to large losses of territory and influence. Iranian rulers made concessions, allowing the agricultural and economic institutions of their European competitors to develop. This was necessary in order to attract the funds necessary for modernization. Most of the money went directly into the pockets of the rulers.
A few years later, the country again comes to prosperity, thanks to the founding new dynasty. In 1906, a constitutional monarchy was proclaimed in Iran, which existed until 1979, when Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown from the throne. In January 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini proclaims Iran an Islamic republic.
Ethnic relations of Iran
In Iran, there are generally no inter-ethnic conflicts, especially considering the fact that a huge number of different nationalities live there. It is safe to conclude that no one persecutes or terrorizes ethnic minorities in Iran, much less open discrimination exists.
Some groups living in Iran have always strived for autonomy. One of the main representatives of such peoples are the Kurds living on the western border of Iran. These people are fiercely independent and constantly pressure the Iranian central government to make economic concessions towards them and accept their autonomous decision-making powers.
However, outside of urban areas, the Kurds already exercise impressive control over their regions. Iranian government officials navigate these areas very easily. The Kurds in Iran, along with their brethren in Iraq and Turkey, have long wanted to create independent state. The immediate prospects for this are rather dim.
Nomadic clan groups in the southern and western regions of Iran also pose some problems for the country's central government. These peoples herd their goats and sheep and, as a result, are constantly nomadic for more than half the year, these peoples have always been historically difficult to control.
These peoples are, as a rule, self-sufficient, and some of them are quite wealthy people. Attempts to settle relations with these tribes have often met with violence in the past. They are currently trying to negotiate a fragile peace with the Iranians. central authorities authorities.
The Arab population in the southwestern Persian Gulf province of Khuzestan has expressed its desire to break away from Iran. During the conflict between Iran and Iraq, Iraqi leaders supported the separatist movement as a way to counter Iranian officials. Severe social persecution in Iran was directed at the religious. Periods of relative calm alternated with periods of discrimination over the centuries. According to the current law of the Islamic Republic, these minorities experienced hard time.
Although in theory they should have been protected as "People of the Book" under Islamic law, Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians faced charges of spying for Western countries or for Israel. Islamic officials also have a vague understanding of their tolerance for alcohol consumption, as well as relative freedom in relation to the female sex.
One group, which was widely persecuted, dates back to the nineteenth century, but its religion was seen as a heretical strain of Shia Muslims.
Islamic Republic of Iran(Persian. جمهوری اسلامی ایران - Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Irɒ́n), abbreviated - Iran(pers. ایران [ʔiˈɾɒn]), until 1935 also Persia- state in . The capital is a city.
The Achaemenid Empire at its peak
After the death of Cambyses and the subsequent civil strife in his inner circle and riots throughout the country, Darius Hystaspes came to power. Darius quickly and harshly brought order to the empire and began new campaigns of conquest, as a result of which the Achaemenid Empire expanded to the Balkans in the west and to the Indus in the east, becoming the largest and most powerful state that had ever existed at that time. Darius also carried out a number of internal reforms. He divided the country into several administrative units - satrapies, and for the first time in history the principle of separation of powers was implemented: the troops were not subordinate to the satraps and at the same time the military leaders had no administrative power. In addition, Darius carried out a monetary reform and introduced the gold darik into circulation. Combined with the construction of a network of paved roads, this contributed to an unprecedented leap in trade relations.
Darius patronized Zoroastrianism and considered priests to be the core of Persian statehood. Under him, this first monotheistic religion became the state religion in the empire. At the same time, the Persians were tolerant of the conquered peoples and their beliefs and culture.
The heirs of Darius I began to violate the principles of internal structure introduced by the king, as a result of which the satrapies became more independent. There was a rebellion in Egypt, and unrest began in Greece and Macedonia. Under these conditions, the Macedonian commander Alexander began a military campaign against the Persians, and by 330 BC. e. defeated the Achaemenid Empire.
Parthia and Sassanids
Sasanian Empire at the beginning of the 7th century
After the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. e. his empire broke up into several separate states. Most of the territory of modern Iran went to Seleucia, but the Parthian king Mithridates I soon began campaigns of conquest against the Seleucids and included Persia, as well as Mesopotamia, into his empire. In 92 BC. e. a border was drawn between Parthia and Rome along the bed of the Euphrates, but the Romans almost immediately invaded the western Parthian satrapies and were defeated. In a return campaign, the Parthians captured the entire Levant and Anatolia, but were driven back to the Euphrates by the troops of Mark Antony. Soon after this, civil wars broke out in Parthia one after another, caused by Rome's intervention in the struggle between the Parthian and Greek nobility.
In 224, Ardashir Papakan, the son of the ruler of the small town of Kheir in, defeated the army of the Parthians of Artaban IV and founded the second Persian Empire - Iranshahr ("Kingdom of the Aryans") - with its capital in, becoming the founder of a new dynasty - the Sassanids. The influence of the aristocracy and the Zoroastrian clergy increased, and persecution of non-believers began. Administrative reform has been carried out. The Sassanids continued to fight the Romans and the nomads of Central Asia.
Ahura Mazda (right) gives Ardashir a symbol of royal power - a ring. III century n. e.
Under King Khosrow I (531-579), active expansion began: Antioch was captured in 540, and Egypt in 562. The Byzantine Empire became tax dependent on the Persians. The coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula were occupied, including. At the same time, Khosrow defeated the Hephthalite state on the territory of modern. Khusrow's military successes led to a flourishing of trade and culture in Iran.
The grandson of Khosrow I, Khosrow II (590-628) resumed the war with Byzantium, but suffered defeat after defeat. Military expenses were covered by exorbitant taxes on merchants and levies on the poor. As a result, uprisings began to break out throughout the country, Khosrow was captured and executed. His grandson, Yazdegerd III (632-651) became the last Sasanian king. Despite the end of the war with Byzantium, the collapse of the empire continued. In the south, the Persians faced a new enemy - the Arabs.
Arab conquest
Arab raids into Sasanian Iran began in 632. The Persian army suffered its most crushing defeat at the Battle of Qadisiyah in 637. Arab conquest Persia lasted until 652 and was incorporated into the Umayyad Caliphate. The Arabs spread Islam to Iran, which greatly changed Persian culture. After the Islamization of Iran, literature, philosophy, art, and medicine developed rapidly in the Caliphate. Persian culture became the basis for the beginning of the Golden Age of Islam.
In 750, the Persian general Abu Muslim led the Abbasid campaign against the Umayyads to, and then to the capital of the Caliphate -. In gratitude, the new caliph granted the Persian governors a certain autonomy, and also took several Persians as viziers. However, in 822, Tahir ben-Hussein ben-Musab, the governor of Khorasan, declared the independence of the province and declared himself the founder of a new Persian dynasty - the Tahirids. By the beginning of the Samanid reign, Iran had practically restored its independence from the Arabs.
Turkic and Mongol conquests
Ghaznavid Empire in the 12th century.
Despite the adoption of Islam by Persian society, Arabization in Iran was not successful. The introduction of Arab culture met resistance from the Persians and became the impetus for the struggle for independence from the Arabs. Important role in recovery national identity The Persians were influenced by the revival of the Persian language and literature, which peaked in the 9th-10th centuries. In this regard, Ferdowsi's epic “Shahnameh”, written entirely in Farsi, became famous.
In 962 Turkic commander Alp-Tegin opposed the Samanids and founded the Turkic state of the Ghaznavids with its capital in (). Under the Ghaznavids, Persia's cultural flourishing continued. Their followers, the Seljuks, moved the capital to .
In 1220, the northeast of Iran, which was part of the Turkic Khorezm kingdom, was attacked by the troops of Genghis Khan. The whole of Khorasan was devastated, as well as the territories of the eastern provinces of modern Iran. About half the population was killed by the Mongols. The conquest of Iran was completed by Genghis Khan's grandson Hulagu. In the state he founded, his descendants, the Ilkhans, ruled until the middle of the 14th century.
The great Turkic ruler and commander Emir Timur, more popular in the west as Tamerlane established control over Iran. Tamerlane brought thousands of skilled craftsmen from Iran to his capital, who built masterpieces of world architecture in Samarkand. For example, masters built the Gur Emir mausoleum in Samarkand. Under the reign of Timur's youngest son Shahrukh, science and culture flourished in Iran. It continued during the reign of Timurid Sultan Hussein Baykara.
The centralization of the Iranian state resumed with the rise to power of the Qizilbash Safavid dynasty, which put an end to the rule of the descendants of the Mongol conquerors.
Dynasties (1501-1979)
Shia Islam was adopted in Iran as the state religion under Shah Ismail I of the Safavid dynasty. After defeating Alvand Khan, the ruler of the Turkic state of Ak-Koyunlu, near Sharur (in), Ismail victoriously entered, where in July 1501 he proclaimed himself Shah of Azerbaijan. Ismail soon subjugated all of Iran - and in May 1502 he crowned himself Shah of Iran. The city became the capital of the Safavid state; subsequently the capital was moved to, and from there to. The Safavid Empire reached its greatest prosperity under Abbas I, defeating the Ottoman Empire and annexing the territories of modern, parts of, territories, parts of and, as well as provinces and on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Thus, Iran's possessions already extended from the Tigris to the Indus.
The conquered territories brought wealth and prosperity to Iran. Culture began to flourish. Iran became a centralized state, and the armed forces were modernized. However, after the death of Abbas the Great, the empire fell into decline. Mismanagement led to the loss of Baghdad. In 1722, the Ghilzai Afghans raided Iran, immediately taking Isfahan, and installed Mahmud Khan on the throne. Then Nadir Shah, the commander of the last Safavid ruler, Tahmasp II, killed him along with his son and established Afsharid rule in Iran.
First of all, Nadir Shah changed the state religion to Sunnism, and then defeated Afghanistan and returned Kandahar to Persia. Retreating Afghan troops fled to . Nadir Shah urged the Indian Mogul, Mohammed Shah, not to accept them, but he did not agree, then the Shah invaded India. In 1739, Nadir Shah's troops entered, but soon an uprising broke out there. The Persians carried out a real massacre in the city, and then returned to Iran, completely plundering the country. In 1740, Nadir Shah made a campaign in Turkestan, as a result of which the borders of Iran advanced to the Amu Darya. In the Caucasus, the Persians reached. In 1747, Nadir Shah was assassinated.
Persia on the map of the late 19th century.
Coat of arms of the Shah of Iran on a 1938 banknote
In 1750, power passed to the Zend dynasty led by Karim Khan. Karim Khan became the first Persian in 700 years to become the head of state. He moved the capital to . The period of his reign is characterized by a virtual absence of wars and cultural flourishing. The power of the Zends lasted only three generations, and in 1781 it passed to the Qajar dynasty. The founder of the dynasty, the eunuch Agha-Mohammed Khan, carried out reprisals against the Zends and the descendants of the Afsharids. Having strengthened the power of the Qajars in Iran, Mohammed Khan launched a campaign against Georgia, defeating and killing more than 20 thousand inhabitants of the city. The second campaign against Georgia in 1797 did not take place, since the Shah was killed by his own servants (Georgian and Kurdish) in Karabakh. Shortly before his death, Mohammed Khan moved the capital of Iran to.
As a result of a series of unsuccessful wars with the Russian Empire, Persia under the Qajars lost the territory now occupied by Azerbaijan and Armenia. Corruption flourished, control over the outskirts of the country was lost. After prolonged protests, the country experienced a Constitutional Revolution in 1906, resulting in Iran becoming a constitutional monarchy. In the summer of 1918, British troops occupy all of Iran. On August 9, 1919, the Anglo-Iranian Agreement was signed, establishing full British control over the country's economy and army. In 1920, the Gilan Soviet Republic was proclaimed in Ostan, which would exist until September 1921. On February 21, 1921, Reza Khan Pahlavi overthrew Ahmed Shah and was declared the new Shah in 1925. On February 26, 1921, the RSFSR signed a new treaty with Iran, recognizing the full independence of Iran.
Pahlavi coined the term “Shakhinshah” (“king of kings”). Starting from the Persian New Year, that is, from March 22, 1935, the name of the state was officially changed from Persia to Iran. Large-scale industrialization of Iran began, and the infrastructure was completely modernized. During World War II, the Shaheenshah also refused the Soviet Union's request to station its troops in Iran. Then the Allies invaded Iran (see “Operation Concord”), overthrew the Shah and took control of the railways and oil fields. In 1942, Iran's sovereignty was restored, and power passed to the Shah's son, Mohammed. However, the Soviet Union, fearing possible aggression from Turkey, kept its troops in northern Iran until May 1946.
Mohammed Mossadegh
After the war, Mohammad Reza pursued a policy of active Westernization and de-Islamization, which did not always find understanding among the people. In 1951, Mohammed Mossadegh became Chairman of the Government of Iran, who was actively engaged in reform, seeking a revision of agreements on the distribution of profits of the British Petroleum company. The Iranian oil industry was nationalized. However, in the United States, a coup plan was immediately developed and with the active participation of British intelligence services, carried out in August 1953 by the grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt, Carmit Roosevelt. Mossadegh was removed from his post and imprisoned. Three years later he was released and placed under house arrest, where he remained until his death in 1967.
In 1957, the secret police SAVAK was founded.
In 1963, Ayatollah Khomeini was expelled from the country as a result of a series of radical reforms (the White Revolution). Transformations and de-Islamization led to active anti-government propaganda. In 1965, Prime Minister Hassan Ali Mansour was mortally wounded by members of the Fedayan Islam group. In 1973, as part of the policy of strengthening the power of the Shah, all political parties and associations were banned. By the end of the 1970s, Iran was gripped by mass protests that resulted in the overthrow of the Pahlavi regime and the final abolition of the monarchy. In 1979, an Islamic revolution took place in the country and an Islamic republic was founded.
Islamic republic
Ayatollah Khomeini
The Islamic Revolution in Iran was the transition from the Shah's monarchical Pahlavi regime to an Islamic republic led by Ayatollah Khomeini, the leader of the revolution and the founder of a new order. The beginning of the revolution is considered to be mass anti-Shah protests in January 1978, suppressed by government troops. In January 1979, after the country was paralyzed by constant strikes and rallies, Pahlavi and his family left Iran, and on February 1, Khomeini arrived in exile in Iran. The Ayatollah was greeted by millions of jubilant Iranians. On April 1, 1979, after a popular referendum, Iran was officially declared an Islamic republic. On December 3 of the same year, a new constitution was adopted.
The internal political consequences of the revolution were manifested in the establishment of a theocratic regime of the Muslim clergy in the country and the increasing role of Islam in absolutely all spheres of life. There have also been dramatic changes in foreign policy. Iran's relations with Iran have become extremely strained. Diplomatic relations were severed on November 4, 1979, when the US embassy in Tehran was seized and diplomats were held hostage for 444 days. The invaders (students, among whom, according to some sources, may have been Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who later became the president of Iran, then an IRGC special forces officer and an activist of the youth organization “Institution for Unity Cohesion” - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) claimed that they were pursuing CIA agents who were planning to overthrow the revolutionary government. They also demanded the extradition of the fugitive Shah. Only in 1981, through mediation, was the crisis resolved and the hostages released to their homeland.
Iran-Iraq War
Meanwhile, the President of neighboring Iraq, Saddam Hussein, decided to take advantage of internal instability in Iran and its strained relations with Western countries. Iran has been (not for the first time) made territorial claims over areas along the Persian Gulf coast east of the Shatt al-Arab River. In particular, Hussein demanded the transfer to western Iraq, where the majority of the population were Arabs and there were huge oil reserves. These demands were ignored by Iran, and Hussein began preparing for a large-scale war. On September 22, 1980, the Iraqi army crossed the Shatt al-Arab and invaded Khuzestan, which came as a complete surprise to the Iranian leadership.
Iran-Iraq War
Although Saddam Hussein achieved considerable success in the first months of the war, the advance of the Iraqi army was soon stopped, Iranian troops launched a counteroffensive and by mid-1982 drove the Iraqis out of the country. Khomeini decided not to stop the war, planning to “export” the revolution to Iraq. This plan relied primarily on the Shiite majority of eastern Iraq. Now already Iranian army invaded Iraq with the intention of overthrowing Saddam Hussein. However, in subsequent years, Iran's military successes were insignificant, and in 1988 the Iraqi army launched a counteroffensive and liberated all territories occupied by Iran. After this, a peace agreement was signed. The Iran-Iraq border remains unchanged.
During the war, Iraq enjoyed political, financial and military support from most Arab countries, the Soviet Union, China, as well as the United States and its allies. Iran was supported in one way or another by China, the USA, Israel and some other countries. During the fighting, the Iraqi army repeatedly used chemical weapons, including against Iranian civilians. More than 100,000 people in Iran may have died from toxic agents. Total losses Iran's number in the eight-year war exceeds 500,000.
In 1997, Mohammed Khatami was elected President of Iran, proclaiming the beginning of a policy of tolerant attitude towards culture and the establishment of closer ties with Western countries. In the late 90s, European states began to restore economic ties with Iran that had been interrupted by the revolution. Nevertheless, the United States remained unchanged in its position. The American leadership has accused Iran of sponsoring terrorism and developing weapons of mass destruction. Later, US President George W. Bush labeled Iran as an “Axis of Evil” country.
State structure
Current Iranian President Hassan Rouhani
According to the constitution adopted in 1979, Iran is an Islamic republic. As of 2018, Iran is one of the few existing theocracies in the world.
The head of state is Senior leader. It determines the general policy of the country. Rahbar - supreme commander Iranian Armed Forces, head of military intelligence. The Supreme Leader appoints people to key positions in the state: the presidents of the courts, the head of the police and the commanders of all branches of the military, as well as six of the twelve members of the Council of Guardians of the Constitution. The senior leader is elected by the Council of Experts and is accountable to it.
The second most important official in Iran is the president. The President is the guarantor of the constitution and the head of the executive branch. Decisions on key issues are made only after the approval of the Senior Manager. The President appoints members of the Council of Ministers and coordinates the work of the government. Ten vice-presidents and 21 government ministers are confirmed by parliament. Although the President appoints the Secretaries of Defense and Intelligence, nominations must be approved in advance by the Supreme Leader. The President is elected by direct popular vote for a four-year term. Presidential candidates must be pre-approved by the Guardian Council.
The legislative branch is represented by a unicameral parliament - Majlis(Persian. مجلس شورای اسلام - “Islamic Consultative Council”). The upper house was disbanded after the revolution in 1979. The Majlis consists of 290 members elected by popular vote for a four-year term. Parliament's responsibilities include drafting legislation, ratifying international treaties and drawing up budgets. All candidates for deputies of the Majlis are also approved by the Council of Guardians.
Unrest in Iran in 2009
Council of Guardians of the Constitution consists of 12 members, 6 of whom are appointed by the Chief Executive. The remaining 6 members are appointed by Parliament on the proposal of the Chairman of the Supreme Court. The Guardian Council approves candidates for key positions, including candidates for the presidency, members of the government and parliament. The main responsibility of the Council is to check bills for compliance with Islamic law. If there are disagreements with Sharia, the bill is sent for revision. In addition, the Council has the right to veto any decision of the Mejlis.
Expediency advice resolves controversial issues arising between the Mejlis and the Guardian Council. The Expediency Council is also an advisory body to the Supreme Leader. The Chairman of the Council, former Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, is Rahbar's personal advisor.
Expert advice consists of 86 members of the Islamic clergy and meets for a week every year. The Council of Experts elects the Supreme Leader and has the right to remove him from office at any time (although there has been no such precedent: the current Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, is only the second in the history of the country, while the first, Khomeini, died while still in office). Meetings of the Council are closed. Council members are elected by popular vote for an eight-year term.
Local authorities are present in all cities and villages of Iran and are elected by popular vote for a four-year term. City (rural) councils elect the mayor, monitor the work of the bureaucracy, and are responsible for the development of education, medicine, housing and communal services and other everyday issues. The first elections to local councils were held in 1999. Since the activities of the councils are exclusively administrative and executive in nature, candidates for council members do not require approval by the Council of Experts.
Judicial system comprises People's Court, dealing with civil and criminal cases, and Revolutionary Court, whose competence includes special crimes, including against the state. The verdict of the Revolutionary Court is not subject to appeal. In addition, there is Special spiritual court. The decisions of this court are also not subject to appeal; it acts separately from the general judicial system. The highest authority of the Spiritual Court is Rahbar. He also appoints the chairmen of the People's and Revolutionary Courts.
Human rights
The laws of the Islamic Republic are based on Islamic law. The state apparatus is closely intertwined with the Islamic clergy. In this regard, there are restrictions on human rights, primarily related to religion. In particular, in the system government structure There is a special body - the Council of Guardians of the Constitution, whose activities prohibit non-Muslims from holding senior government positions, and members of parliament from drawing up bills that contradict Sharia. According to the Constitution (Article 13), in addition to Islam, only three religions are recognized: Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism; believers of all other religions (Buddhists, Baha’is, etc.) are considered “unprotected infidels”; they cannot be represented in parliament and have virtually no legal rights.
Sexual minorities are also persecuted. Homosexual intercourse is a criminal offense punishable up to the death penalty (see LGBT rights in Iran). Cases of execution of minors are not uncommon: the most widely publicized case was the case of two 16-year-old teenagers Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, who were accused of raping a minor and publicly hanged in the city square in the presence of a huge crowd of onlookers (they were also charged with drinking alcoholic beverages, disturbing public order and theft in the central square in). It is characteristic that the execution took place two weeks after the victory of the extremely conservative politician Ahmadinejad in the presidential elections.
One of the opposition leaders (Mehdi Karoubi) accused the Iranian authorities of using torture against political prisoners. An article posted on his party's website mentions cases of brutal rape of prisoners.
Iran ranks second in the world (after) in the number of executions. In 2006, at least 215 people were executed in the country, including seven minors, which is a violation international convention about children's rights. According to statistics from human rights group Amnesty International, Iran executed more than 200 people for serious crimes in 2007.
There are some restrictions on press freedom: after the conservative wing came to power, most pro-reformist newspapers were closed. Broadcasting of Western music is prohibited. The restrictions do not only apply to print media and television. The Internet is also censored. The activities of providers, including commercial ones, are controlled by the Ministry of Information. All newly registered websites in the .ir domain are subject to verification, and there is automatic email filtering. Pornographic and anti-Islamic sites are prohibited. The websites of opposition organizations are mainly located on foreign servers.
Human rights organizations are also persecuted in Iran. For example, the case of the authorities of this country confiscating the Nobel Peace Prize and the Legion of Honor from the famous Iranian human rights activist Shirin Ebadi, as well as the closure of her Human Rights Center, received wide international resonance.
Foreign policy
Khatam Al-Anbiya Mosque on the territory of the residence of the Iranian Ambassador in Moscow
Until 1979, Iran was a generally pro-Western state. The Islamic Revolution of 1979, which took place in the wake of anti-Americanism, radically changed the country's foreign policy. The victory of the Islamic Revolution was marked by an international scandal with the taking of hostages at the American embassy in . This crisis entailed a deterioration in relations with all Western countries, and also served as a reason for the breakup diplomatic relations s, which have not yet been restored.
The revolution coincided with the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan, which had an extremely negative impact on relations with the USSR. Iran maintained diplomatic relations with Soviet Union, however, proposals from the Soviet leadership to hold a bilateral meeting were ignored. It is also known that in 1988, the Ayatollah sent Gorbachev a telegram in which he suggested that he build an Islamic republic in the USSR.
The revolution ruined relations not only with the West, but also with the Arab world. In 1980, it invaded the oil-rich region, starting the Iran-Iraq War. Having driven Iraqi troops out of Iran, the country's leadership planned to “export” the Islamic revolution to Iraq with the help of a counteroffensive. However, due to the rapid depletion of troops and the use of chemical weapons these plans were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, Iranian-American relations became even more complicated after an American missile cruiser in the Persian Gulf shot down an Iranian passenger plane.
After the end of the Iran-Iraq War and with the death of Khomeini, Iran's relations with Europe began to gradually improve, which was largely facilitated by Rafsanjani's pragmatic policy. New relations were built with the independent republics of the collapsed USSR. In particular, Iran condemned Chechen separatism, thereby providing tacit support to Russia in this matter. Today Iran is taking part in economic recovery. Largely thanks to the diplomatic efforts of Iran, Russia was able to partially restore its lost influence in the Middle East and in. Russia agreed to continue the construction of a nuclear power plant begun under Pahlavi.
However, Iran's relations with the United States remain tense. This was largely facilitated by the victory of the ultra-conservative Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the presidential elections in Iran in 2005. His harsh statements regarding this spoiled relations with this state. The US and Israel accuse Iran of sponsoring terrorist organizations (in the US, Israel and the EU, Hezbollah, in particular, is considered a terrorist organization) and developing nuclear weapons. According to unconfirmed reports, the United States is preparing a missile attack on nuclear facilities Iran.
Iran has diplomatic missions in most countries of the world. At the same time, like many other Islamic states, Iran does not recognize Israel. In official statements of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Israel is referred to as the “Zionist regime.” There are no diplomatic relations with the United States either. Iran is a member of the UN (since 1945), OIC, OPEC, SAARC, and is also an observer at the SCO.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Russia since January 2009, Reza Sajjadi, has been blogging about Iran in Russian.
In 2012, Iran became the leader of the Non-Aligned Movement, becoming in August for 3 years the chairman country of this movement, which is the second largest international structure after the UN.
Territorial disputes
There are territorial disputes between Iran and over three islands in the Strait of Hormuz that control the entrance to the Persian Gulf. In the late 1940s, the islands were alternately owned by the sheikhs of the emirates of Abu Dhabi and those under British protectorate. In 1971, after leaving the region, the islands were supposed to go to the UAE, which included both of these emirates, but they were captured by the Shah's Iran. The islands still maintain a significant military contingent.
There are also claims to the territories of Azerbaijan and Afghanistan and part of the territory of Pakistan.
Geography
Mount Damavand Amol
Iran is located in southwest Asia. In terms of area (1,648 thousand km²), the country ranks seventeenth in the world. Iran borders on (border length - 611 km (with - 179 km) and (36 km) in the northwest, with (992 km) in the northeast, with (909 km) and (936 km) in the east, with ( 499 km) and (1458 km) in the west. In the north it is washed by the Caspian Sea, in the south by the Persian and Oman Gulfs of the Arabian Sea.
Dasht-Kevir
Most of Iran's territory is located on the Iranian Plateau, with the exception of the Caspian Sea coast and. Iran is a generally mountainous country. Dozens of mountain ranges and ridges separate the river basins and plateaus from each other. Most populated West Side country is at the same time the most mountainous, where are located Caucasus Mountains and Elburz. The highest point of Iran is located in the Elborz chain - Damavand Peak (5604 m). The east of Iran is mainly covered with saline deserts and semi-deserts, including the largest - Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut. The dominance of deserts in this region is explained by the impossibility of penetration of moist air masses from the Arabian and Mediterranean seas from behind the mountains. With the exception of a few oases, these deserts are practically uninhabited.
Large plains are found only in the north of Iran along the coast of the Caspian Sea, as well as in the southwest - at the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab River along the shore of the Persian Gulf. Shallower plains occur along the southeastern coast of the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman.
Climate
The climate of Iran varies from arid, characteristic of the predominant territory of the country, to subtropical along the coast of the Caspian Sea and in the northern forest areas. There, in winter the temperature rarely drops below 0°C, and in summer it rarely exceeds 29°C. The average annual precipitation is 1700 mm in the west of the Caspian region and 680 mm in its east. In the west of Iran, in the Zagros mountains, in winter the temperature is almost always below 0°, heavy snowfalls and strong wind. The central and eastern regions of the country have an arid climate with an average annual precipitation of less than 200 mm and average summer temperatures above 38°C. On the plains along the shores of the Persian and Oman Gulfs, winters are generally mild and summers are hot and humid. The average annual precipitation is 135-355 mm.
Main cities
67.5% of Iran's population lives in cities. By 2030, this value is expected to reach 80%. The largest city - with a population of 8.7 million people (14 million in the metropolitan area). More than half of the country's industrial power is concentrated in Tehran, including automobile, electronic, weapons, chemical, food production. The second largest city is, holy city Shiites.
Cities with population:
Cities of Iran with a population of 300 thousand people. and more (as of 2016)
Administrative divisions of Iran
The main administrative unit of Iran is the ostans (Persian: استان - ostān; pl. h. - استانﻫﺎ - ostānhā), which are divided into shahrestans (Persian: شهرستان), and those in turn are divided into bakhshi (Persian: بخش). The largest city in Ostan is most often its capital (Persian: مرکز - markaz). Each stop is governed by a governor (ostandar - استاندار). Iran is divided into 31 regions:
| 20. Hormozgan |
Iran is an industrial country with a developed oil industry. There are oil refining and petrochemical enterprises. Extraction of oil, coal, gas, copper, iron, manganese and lead-zinc ores. Mechanical engineering and metalworking, as well as the food and textile industries are widely represented. Handicraft production of carpets and hardware has been developed. Among the most important agricultural crops are: wheat, barley, rice, legumes, cotton, sugar beets, sugar cane, tobacco, tea, nuts, pistachios. Livestock farming is based on the breeding of sheep, goats, camels, and cattle. 7.5 million hectares of land are irrigated. 45% of budget revenues come from oil and gas exports, 31% from taxes and fees. In 2007, GDP was $852 billion. GDP growth was 5%; in 2008 growth of 7% is predicted. Inflation is 15.8%.
Main export items: crude oil and petroleum products, metal ores, fruits and nuts, carpets. The main buyers in 2008 were China 15.3%, Japan 14.3%, India 10.4%, South Korea 6.4%, Turkey 6.4%, Italy 4.5%. Main import items: heavy engineering and chemical industry products, cars, iron, steel, minerals, food, consumer goods, textiles, paper. The main suppliers in 2008 were the UAE 19.3%, China 13%, Germany 9.2%, South Korea 7%, Italy 5.1%, France 4.3%, Russia 4.2%. Iran is a key member of the Economic Cooperation Organization, which includes the countries of southwest Asia and the Central Asian republics former USSR. Iran is actively developing economic ties with the countries of the region and aims to form a free trade zone similar to the EU. Free trade and industrial zones are being developed in Chabahar and on Kish Island. According to Al-Arabiya TV channel, the Islamic Republic is now in its deepest crisis since its formation 32 years ago. Tehran is unable to cope with the economic challenges facing the country. The reason for this was the failure economic policy President Ahmadinejad and economic sanctions imposed on Iran by the world community. Energy
Iran has 16% of the world's natural gas reserves. The main deposits are located on the shelf of the Persian Gulf and in the northeast of the country. By 2010, it is planned to increase gas production in Iran to 290 billion cubic meters per year. At the same time, full-scale gas exports should begin. In 2005, Iran supplied 7 billion cubic meters of gas annually to. Currently, construction is underway on a gas pipeline from the South Pars field to a liquefied natural gas plant on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf. The construction of the Iran - - gas pipeline is being discussed. In 2005, the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline was opened. To expand gas exports, an attempt may be made to restore the IGAT gas pipeline network, including IGAT-1 with a capacity of 9.6 billion cubic meters per year, built in 1970 to supply gas to and, and IGAT-2 with a capacity of 27 billion cubic meters per year, construction which was not completed due to the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Both gas pipelines require reconstruction. Their reactivation could allow Iran to supply gas through the EU. As an alternative, the expansion of the existing gas pipeline from Iran to Turkey to . In 2005, Iran had 132 billion barrels of proven oil reserves (about 10% of world reserves). Iran produces 4.2 million barrels per day, of which about 2.7 million barrels are exported. Iran was the fourth largest oil exporter in the world (second in OPEC), as well as the largest supplier of oil to China. According to the Iranian constitution, the sale of shares in national oil production enterprises or the granting of oil concessions to foreign companies is prohibited. The development of oil fields is carried out by the state-owned Iranian National oil company(INNK). Since the late 1990s, however, foreign investors have come to the oil industry (French Total and Elf Aquitaine, Malaysian Petronas, Italian Eni, China National Oil Company, as well as Belneftekhim), who receive part of the produced oil under compensation contracts, and upon expiration of the contract, the fields are transferred to the control of INNK. Despite its enormous hydrocarbon reserves, Iran is experiencing a shortage of electricity. Imports of electricity exceed exports by 500 million kilowatt-hours. The national program developed in this regard implies reaching a level of 53 thousand megawatts of installed capacity by 2010. The program provides for the development of hydroelectric power and nuclear power. The first Iranian nuclear power plant was built with the assistance of. Tourism
Interior of Sheikh Lutfallah Mosque Iran's tourism industry was severely damaged by the Iran-Iraq War but is currently being revived. In 2003, 300 thousand tourist visas were issued, the majority to pilgrims from neighboring Islamic states heading to and. In 2004, 1.7 million foreign tourists visited Iran. While for Muslims the main interest is probably in sacred places, Europeans are mainly interested in archaeological excavations and ancient monuments. In 2004, tourism industry revenues exceeded $2 billion. The development of tourism is greatly hampered by inadequate infrastructure. In terms of budget revenues from tourism, Iran is in 68th place. 1.8% of the population is employed in the tourism business. According to forecasts, this sector of the economy is one of the most promising in the country; in the coming years it is expected to increase by 10%. TransportIn Iran, driving is on the right (drive on the left). Iran has a developed transport infrastructure. The total length of roads is 178 thousand km, of which 2/3 are paved. There are 30 personal cars per 1000 people. The length of railways is 8400 km (2005). There is a railway connection with Azerbaijan Newspapers and television and radio broadcasting
Broadcasting:
News agencies:
Armed forces
Armed forces Iran's armed forces consist of two main components: the Army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Both components report directly to the Chief Executive. In addition, there are Law Enforcement Forces (internal and border troops, police). IN total About one and a half million people serve in the armed forces. The reserve is 350 thousand. Iran also has a paramilitary organization within the IRGC - the Basij, where 90 thousand volunteers and 11 million reservists, including women, serve on a permanent basis. Thus, the total number of armed forces, including reserves, in Iran exceeds 12 million people. Iran's combat capabilities are kept strictly secret. In recent years, the production of ballistic missiles has been established, including the Shahab-3, the Dastan tank, and the modernized T-72 tank. And if formerly Iran spent 3.3% of GDP on the military budget, which was much less compared to other countries in the Middle East, especially Israel, then recently arms costs in Iran have increased greatly, in addition, Iran has a satellite in space. Military-technical cooperation with ChinaTehran's cooperation with Beijing military sphere even, perhaps, closer than with Moscow: in 1987-2002, the PRC supplied weapons and military equipment worth $4.4 billion to Iran. The PRC supplied fighter jets, anti-ship missiles, military transport aircraft, artillery pieces, medium tanks, as well as a number of technologies. Space achievementsHaving launched the Omid (Hope) satellite on February 2, 2009 using its own Safir-2 launch vehicle from the Semnan Cosmodrome, Iran became the tenth space power on its second attempt. In early February 2010, Iranian media reported that Iran was on a launch vehicle own production Kavoshgar-3 sent a capsule with living organisms into space. Iran also successfully launched a new satellite, Navid (New), into orbit on February 3, 2012. One of its tasks is to photograph the Earth's surface. First start spacecraft Iran produced with a monkey on board in January 2013. The Pioneer spacecraft with a monkey on board was launched into an orbit at an altitude of 120 km. According to Iranian television, the device returned to Earth without damage. The “capsule of life” was delivered into space by the Iranian-made Kavoshgar-5 launch vehicle. Earlier, the head of the Iranian space agency, Hamid Fazeli, explained that launching a monkey into space is a preparatory part of a project involving human space flight. Iran plans to carry out a manned space flight in the next 5-8 years. In February 2010, the Kavoshgar-3 launch vehicle carried mice, turtles and worms into space for scientific research. The next launch in 2011 was unsuccessful - the satellite with a monkey on board did not enter orbit. Iran has its own space agency. see also
Notes
Literature
Science articles
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The name of the country comes from the ethnonym of the Aryan tribe - “noble”.
Capital of Iran. Tehran.
Iran Square. 1648000 km2.
Population of Iran. 66129 thousand people
Location of Iran. Iran is a state in the southwest. It borders with, and in the north, with and - in the east and and - in the west. It is washed in the north and by the Gulf of Oman, the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf in the south.
Administrative divisions of Iran. 24 ostans (provinces).
Form of government of Iran. Theocratic parliamentary republic.
Head of State of Iran. President (secular head of state), elected for a term of 4 years. The head of the country (spiritual head of state) is the Ayatollah.
Higher Legislature Iran. The unicameral parliament is the Assembly of the Islamic People (Majlis), whose term of office is 4 years.
Supreme executive body of Iran. Absent.
Major cities of Iran. Mashhad, Tabriz, Shiraz.
Official language of Iran. Farsi (Persian). Religion. 94% of the population is Shiite.
Ethnic composition of Iran. 51% - Persians, 24% - Azerbaijanis, 8% - Gilaks and Mazandarans, 7% - , 3% - Arabs, 2% - Lurs, 2% - Balokhi, 2% - .
Currency of Iran. Iranian rial = 100 dinars.
Iran. Iran by climatic conditions can be divided into three zones: the hot coast of the Persian and Oman Gulfs, but the arid climate of the central highlands and the cold climate in the Elbrus region. average temperature January from + 2°C in the north to + 19°C in the south, July - respectively + 25°C and + 32°C. Less than 500 mm falls per year, only on the northern slopes of Elbrus - 2000 mm.
Flora of Iran. In the Zagros Mountains there are areas where oak, walnut, elm, and pistachio trees grow. On the slopes of the Elbrus Mountains and in the Caspian Valley, a large number of ash, elm, elm, oak, and birch grow. cacti and thorns grow in areas.
Fauna of Iran. The fauna of Iran is quite diverse. Rabbit, fox, wolf, hyena, jackal, leopard, deer, porcupine, ibex (mountain goat), bear, tiger, badger live here. A large number of pheasants and partridges, and on the Persian Gulf coast - flamingos and pelicans. Beluga, herring and sturgeon are found here.
Rivers and lakes of Iran. mostly low-water. The main navigable river of the country is Karun. The largest lake is Urmia (Rezaie).
Sights of Iran. Bastan Museum, Imam Mosque, Aqa Shrine, burial place of Ayatollah Khomeini, Shahiyad Tower, Ethnographic Museum in Tehran. Tombs of the Persian poets Hafiz and Saadi, Qom Museum and Pars Museum in Shiraz. Tomb of Esther and Avicenna's tomb in Hamadan. Tomb of Omar Khayyam in Nishair and many others.
Useful information for tourists
As a result of the unstable situation, there are practically no foreign tourists in the state.
