🇮🇷 Failing to implement environmentally sound policies will only deepen the crisis, further imperilling both Baluchestan’s fragile ecosystems and its already vulnerable communities. Our latest report explains why: www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...

📈 Rising temperatures, sporadic rainfall, over-extraction and poor planning have converged to make water scarcity a major crisis in Sistan and #Baluchestan – and an increasingly pressing concern across #Iran.

🇮🇷 #Baluchestan has been plagued by neglect and a sense of exclusion and growing grievances have at times manifested in unrest and militancy. Growing water scarcity could deepen public discontent in Iran’s semi-arid region.

NEW OP-ED | How a Historic Israel-Iran Non-aggression Pact Could Change the Middle East The only sustainable solution is a diplomatic one. Donald Trump should seal the deal. www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...

"A dash toward nuclear weapons in a secret facility is still something that Iran can do. It has the knowledge, the material, and the equipment needed. And without inspections, the world will be blinded to that possibility." More from @crisisgroup.org's Ali Vaez: ip-quarterly.com/en/iran-down...

NEW STATEMENT | How Trump and Tehran Can Find an Exit from an Escalating War As Israel pummels Iran, the U.S. is weighing direct involvement. Washington should look to diplomacy, while Tehran should offer meaningful incentives for it to do so. www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...

Friday, May 16, 11 AM ET: Join us for a timely conversation with @alivaez.bsky.social, Iran Program Director at @crisisgroup.org, and DAWN's @sarahleah1.bsky.social, on the shifting dynamics of nuclear policy in the Middle East on the heels of Trump's trip. On X Spaces: twitter.com/i/spaces/1Zk...

Wow. Will be looking for US follow through due to possibility of some in the administration seeking to slow roll this. Erdogan and MBS seemed to have played key roles. wapo.st/43aWW9R

Astonishing news on Trump’s lifting of Syria sanctions. Much still depends on follow through and implementation and there is a Congressional piece as well, but I would never have predicted this; I’m sure some members of his administration feel the same.

@richardgowan1.bsky.social examines how the Trump administration’s approach could make or break UN reforms in @wpr.bsky.social. www.worldpoliticsreview.com/trump-united...

This week, the Trump administration issued NSPM-2, laying out the economic and diplomatic tools of a renewed "Maximum Pressure" campaign, while POTUS @realDonaldTrump called for a "Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement" with Iran.  🧵 on reading the early tea leaves.

Told @WSJ: There is no Axis without access. t.co/KEVwRwqr5i

Told @NYTimes: The fall of Assad puts an exclamation point on the fact that decades of Iranian strategy and investment in the Levant have come undone in a matter of weeks. www.nytimes.com/2024/12/08/w...

Man, history has a sense of irony. Hamas initially supported the Syrian revolution, but Yahya Sinwar came along and played a key role in reconciling the group with the Assad regime, only for Sinwar to then trigger a chain of dominoes that led to the Assad regime losing Aleppo