Iran is one of the oldest major civilizations. The different Persian Empires marked the history of Southwest-Asia as well neighboring regions through thousands of years. Modern Iran is a founding member of the United Nations, NAM, OIC, and OPEC.

Today’s Iran as the Islamic Republic of Iran was established in 1979. As governmental controls faltered, the Shah fled Iran on January 16, 1979. Ayatollah Khomeini returned and led religious revolutionaries to the final overthrow of the shah's government on Feburary 11.

On September 22, 1980, Iraq invaded Iran, commencing an eight-year war primarily over the disputed Shatt al Arab waterway. The war left close to 1 million dead on both sides.

Khomeini died in 1989 and was succeeded by Iran's president, Sayid Ali Khamenei. The presidency was soon filled by Ali Akbar Rafsanjani. In 1997, Mohammed Khatami , a moderately liberal Muslim cleric, was elected president. In April 2000 a coalition of reformist lawmakers emerged victorious after the parliamentary elections with 189 seats. President Mohammad Khatami was rewarded with a new term in 2001. The presidential elections in June 2005, were won by the conservative mayor of Tehran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Tensions with the United States increased after the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq in March 2003, as U.S. officials increasingly denounced Iran for pursuing the alleged development of nuclear weapons. Iranian government support for strongly conservative Shiite militias in Iraq also further soured U.S.-Iranian relations.


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