Erfan Fard

Articles by this Author
Anti-Israel hostility stoked by the Islamic Republic of Iran has rendered Jews, who play a significant role in Persian and Iranian history, vulnerable to oppression and violence.
Dhimmitude Project
Recognized, Yet Suspected: Iranian Jews and the Paradox of Citizenship under the Islamic Republic
From Dhimmitude and Pahlavi-Era Citizenship to the Politics of Loyalty after 1979
September 10, 2026
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Erfan Fard
The Islamic Republic of Iran, established by Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979, imposes different systems of oppression on adherents of the Baha’i and Zoroastrian faiths. Under the 1979 constitution, Zoroastrians are a recognized minority granted limited ritual freedoms and a reserved parliamentary seat, while Baha’is—the country’s largest unrecognized religious community—are denied legal existence and subjected to systematic exclusion from education, employment, and property.
Dhimmitude Project
Neo-Dhimmitude in Iran: Religious Hierarchy and Minority Life Under the Islamic Republic
A Comparative Study of the Baha’i and Zoroastrian Communities
August 22, 2026
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Erfan Fard
Hossein Taeb (left front) is commander of the Basij paramilitary unit and former head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Intelligence Organization.
Middle East Forum Observer
Iran’s Military Reshuffle Reflects the Regime’s Narrowing Pool of Trusted Officials
Six Appointments Show an Architecture Built Around Institutional Memory, Loyalty, and Coercive Power Is Taking Place
August 15, 2026
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Erfan Fard
Mohammad Baqer Zolghadr, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, headed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ irregular warfare division.
Middle East Forum Observer
The Revolutionary Guard Factions Now Competing to Rule Iran
Several Radical Figures Continue to Promote Hardline, Anti-American Positions That Undercut Diplomatic Signaling
April 20, 2026
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Erfan Fard