The Conflict

Iran is an Islamic fundamentalist state that has repressed dissent for the last twenty years. There have been recent attempts at secularization—attempts to offer dissenting views and liberalize lifestyles.

Political

• Iranians have supported reform party candidates, and seem to want a country with meaningful political choices and participation, including multiple views and lifestyles.
• Many younger Iranians—who were not born when the Shah ruled Iran—are not as threatened by and hostile toward the West.
• Iran's leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, has warned against reformers and reforms and has threatened to nullify elections if reform candidates win.

Religious

• Some Islamic leaders believe that they must have an Islamic state, where all law is based on the Qor'an (also spelled Koran), in order to be moral and holy.

In 1997 the citizens of Iran elected...