Islamic Republic of Iran is situated in south-western part of Asia. It borders with Armenia from the north, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan from the south, from east with Afghanistan and Pakistan, for the west – with Iraq and Turkey. Its northern territories are washed by Caspian Sea, from the south it borders with Oman bay, Ormuz strait and Persian Gulf.

The area of the country is 1648000 km2. Population of Iran (1998) is 68960000 people. Main ethnic groups are Persians, Azerbaijanis, Kurds and etc. Most people are Muslims.

State language is Persian.

The capital is Tehran.

In antiquity, the names Ariana and Persis were used to describe the region, as exhibited on this world map by Eratosthenes (c. 200 BCE)

In former ages, the names Āryānā and Persis were used to describe the region which is today known as the Iranian plateau. The earliest Iranian reference to the word (airya/arya/aryana etc), however, predates the Iranian prophet Zoroaster (est. anywhere between 1200 to 1800 BCE, according to Plato and other Greek sources as early as 7000 BCE.) and is attested in non-Gathic Avestan; it appears as airya, meaning noble/spiritual/elevated; as airya dainhava (Yt.8.36, 52) meaning the land of the Aryans; and as airyana vaejah, the original land of the Aryans.

During the Achaemenid dynasty (550-330 BCE), the Persian people called their provincial homeland Pārsa, the Old Persian name for Cyrus the Great's kingdom which belonged to the Persian tribe of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranians and which can still be found in the term Pars or Fars as part of the heartland of Iran and for example in the map by

Eratosthenes and other historical or modern maps

Xerxes I of Persia, 485-465 BC. A recreation, probably from the stone carving at the Xerxes Palace, Persepolis.
However, the country as a whole was called Aryanam. The word Ariya, noble/spiritual/elevated, is attested in the Inscriptions of Darius the Great and his son, Xerxes I; it is used both as a linguistic and a racial designation as Darius refers to this at the Behistun inscription (DBiv.89), which is written in Aryan language/airyan, also known as Old Persian. Both Darius and Xerxes state in Naqsh-i Rustam (DNa.14), Susa (DSe.13), and Persepolis (XPh.13):
Adam Pārsa, Pārsahyā puça; Ariya, Ariya ciça...

"I am Persian, son of a Persian, an Aryan, having aryan lineage. " --Darius the Great (549 BCE - 486 BCE)
In Parthian times (248 BCE–224 CE), Aryanam was modified to Aryan. In the early Sassanid Period (224–651 CE), it had already evolved to Middle Persian Ērān or Ērān Shahr which finally resulted in New Persian Iran or Iran Shahr.

At the time of the Achaemenid empire, the Greeks called the country Persis, the Greek name for Pars (Fars), the central region where the empire was founded; this passed into Latin and became Persia, the name widely used in Western countries which causes confusion as Persia is actually Pars (Fars) province.[3][4][5]

In the 20th century, a dispute arose over whether Iran or Persia is the correct name for the country. On 21 March 1935, the ruler of the country, Reza Shah Pahlavi, issued a decree asking foreign delegates to use the term Iran in formal correspondence in accordance with the fact that "Persia" was a term used for a country called "Iran" in Persian.

In 1959, after some scholars protested the change of the nation's name, Reza Shah's son and successor, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, announced that both Persia and Iran were acceptable, and could be used interchangeably.[citation needed] The 1979 Revolution led to the establishment of the present day theocracy that is officially called the Islamic Republic of Iran, but the noun Persia and the adjective Persian are still commonly used.Iran has been inhabited by humans since pre-historic times and recent discoveries have begun to shed light upon what ancient culture was like in Iran, centuries before the earliest civilizations arose in nearby Mesopotamia.[6]

The written history of Persia (Iran) begins in about 3200 BCE with the Proto-Elamite civilization, followed by the Elamites. The arrival of the Aryans (Indo-Iranians), and the establishing of the Median dynasty culminated in the first Persian Empire, the Achaemenid Empire (648–330 BCE), founded by Cyrus the Great.

Cyrus the Great created the Cyrus Cylinder, considered to be the first declaration of human rights. He was the first king whose name was suffixed with the word "Great" and the first Shah of Iran to be properly called. After Cyrus' death, his son Cambyses ruled for eight years (530-522 BC) and continued his father's work of conquest, making significant gains in Egypt. A power struggle followed Cambyses' death and, despite his tenuous connection to the royal line, Darius was declared king (ruled 522-486 BC). He was to be arguably the greatest of the ancient Persian rulers.

Darius' first capital was at Susa, and he started the building programme at Persepolis. He built a canal between the Nile and the Red Sea, a forerunner of the modern Suez Canal. He improved the extensive road system, and it is during his reign that mention is first made of the Royal Road (shown on map), a great highway stretching all the way from Susa to Sardis with posting stations at regular intervals.

Major reforms took place under Darius. Coinage was introduced - the daric (gold coin) and the shekel (silver coin) - and he greatly increased the efficiency of administration. The Old Persian language appears for the first time in royal inscriptions, written in a specially adapted version of cuneiform.

Under Cyrus the Great and Darius the Great, the Persian Empire eventually became the largest and most powerful empire in human history up until that point, ruling and administrating over most of the then known world.

Alexander the Great, also known in the Zoroastrian Middle Persian Arda Wiraz Nāmag as "the accursed Alexander" (due to his conquest of the Persian Empire and the destruction of its cities, including the capital Persepolis), conquered Persia in 333 BCE only to be followed shortly by two more vast and unified Persian empires that shaped the pre-Islamic identity of Iran and Central Asia: the Parthian (250 BCE – 226 CE) and Sassanian (226 – 650 CE) dynasties. The latter dynasties also defeated the Roman empire at the height of its power on several occasions.

Parthia was led by the Arsacid dynasty, who reunited and ruled over the Iranian plateau, taking over the eastern provinces of the Greek Seleucid Empire, beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 150 BCE and 224 CE. It was the second native dynasty of ancient Iran (Persia). Parthia (mostly due to their invention of heavy cavalry) was the arch-enemy of the Roman Empire in the east; and it limited Rome's expansion beyond Cappadocia (central Anatolia).

The Parthian armies included two types of cavalry: the heavily-armed and armoured cataphracts and lightly armed but highly-mobile mounted archers. For the Romans, who relied on heavy infantry, the Parthians were too hard to defeat, as both types of cavalry were much faster and more mobile than foot soldiers. On the other hand, the Parthians found it difficult to occupy conquered areas as they were unskilled in siege warfare. Because of these weaknesses, neither the

Romans nor the Parthians were able to completely defeat each other.

Before the Islamic conquest of Persia, Zoroastrianism was the national religion of the Sassanian Empire of Persia, and played an important role in the earlier Achaemenid and Parthian dynasties. The Iranian Prophet Zoroaster is considered by numerous scholars as the founder of the earliest religion based on revealed scripture. Many scholars point out that Judaism and subsequently, Christianity and Islam have borrowed from Zoroastrianism in regards to the concepts of eschatology, angelology and demonology. Zoroastrian monotheism has had major influence on the religions of the middle eastern monotheisms in adaptations of such concepts as heavens, hells, judgment day and messianic figures. These concepts amongst many others, reflect the dualism of Persian culture which has influenced Eastern and Western civilization. According to Professor Mary Boyce, who was the world's leading doyenne of Zoroastrian studies and Iranology, Zoroastrianism is the oldest of the revealed credal religions, and it has probably had more influence on mankind, directly and indirectly, than any other single faith. Nonetheless, claims of Zoroastrianism influencing ancient Jewish thought are disputed by some Jewish and Christian scholars.

Ardashir I, the first king Sassanian Empire started reforming the country both economically and militarily. The empire's territory encompassed all of today's Iran, Iraq, Armenia, Afghanistan, eastern parts of Turkey, and parts of Syria, Pakistan, Caucasia, Central Asia and Arabia. During Khosrau II's rule in 590–628 Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon was also annexed to the Empire. The Sassanids called their empire Erānshahr (Iranshæhr) "Dominion of the Iranians (Aryans)"

An interesting chapter of Iran's history followed after roughly 600 years of conflict with the Roman Empire. According to historians, the war-exhausted Persians lost the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah (632 CE) in Hilla, (present day Iraq). The Persian general Rostam Farrokhzād had been criticised for his decision to face the Arabs on their own ground, suggesting that the Persians could have prevailed if they had stayed on the opposite bank of the Euphrates. The first day of Battle ended with Persian advances and the Arab force appeared as though it would succumb to the much larger Sassanian army. In particular, the latter's elephants terrified the Arab cavalry. By the third day of battle, Arab veterans arrived on the scene and re-enforced the Arab army. In addition a clever trick whereby the Arab horses were decorated in costume succeeded in frightening the Persian elephants. When an Arab warrior succeeded in slaying the lead elephant, the rest fled into the rear, trampelling numerous Persian fighters. At dawn of the fourth day, a sandstorm broke out blowing sand in the Persian army's faces resulting in total disarray for the Sassanian army and paving way for the Islamic conquest of Persia.
The Sassanian era, encompassing the length of the Late Antiquity period, is considered to be one of the most important and influential historical periods in Iran, and had a major impact on the world. In many ways the Sassanian period witnessed the highest achievement of Persian civilization, and constituted the last great Iranian Empire before the Muslim conquest and adoption of Islam. Persia influenced Roman civilisation considerably during the Sassanians times; their cultural influence extending far beyond the empire's territorial borders, reaching as far as Western Europe, Africa,China and India and also playing a prominent role in the formation of both European and Asiatic medieval art. This influence carried forward to the early Islamic world. The dynasty's unique and aristocratic culture transformed the Islamic conquest and destruction of Iran into a Persian Renaissance. Much of what later became known as Islamic culture, architecture, writing and other skills, were taken from the Sassanian Persians into the broader Muslim world.

Islamic Persia and Islamic Golden Age of Persia

After the conquest Persians began to look for ways in which they could remain Muslim but also define themselves as Persians and sought the "Persianisation" of Islam. In the 8 C.E. (2 H.) they helped the Abbassids to overthrow the Ummayad dynasty, an Arab-oriented regime that was largely disdainful towards Persians and Persian culture. Under the Abbasids, Persians (and other non-Arabs) began to take on a more meaningful role in the Islamic Empire's intellectual, cultural, and political realms. Persians entered the Abbassid government as ministers, among those were the Barmakids. They established new dynasties in some parts of Iran, which derived legitimacy from the caliphs. Tahirid dynasty and Samanid dynasty were among those. One of these dynasties (Buwayhid) also conquered Baghdad.

Also a cultural movement emerged during the 9th and 10th centuries. There was a resurgence of Persian national identity. It was not against Islamic identity but against Arabization of Islam and Muslims. The most notable effect of the movement was the survival of Persian language, the language of the Persians, to the present day. The movement never moved into apostacy though, and has its basis in a verse from the Qur'an (49:13).

Persia's first encompassing Shi'a Islamic state was established under the Safavid dynasty in 1501. The Safavid dynasty soon became a major power in the world and started the promotion of tourism in Iran. Under their rule the Persian Architecture flowered again and saw many new monuments. The decline of the Safavid state in the 17th century increasingly turned Persia into an arena for rising rival colonial powers such as Imperial Russia and the British Empire that wielded great political influence in Tehran under the Qajarid dynasty. Iran however, managed to maintain its sovereignty and was never colonized, making it unique in the region. With the rise of modernization in the late 19th century, desire for change led to the Persian Constitutional Revolution of 1905–1911. In 1921, Reza Shah Pahlavi staged a coup against the weakened Qajar dynasty. A supporter of modernization, Reza Shah initiated the development of modern industry, railroads, and establishment of a national education system, but his autocratic rule and unbalanced social reforms created discontent among many Iranians.

During World War II, Britain and the USSR invaded Iran from August 25 to September 17, 1941, to stop an Axis-supported coup and secure Iran's petroleum infrastructure. The Allies of World War II forced the shah to abdicate in favor of his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, whom they hoped would be more supportive. In 1951, an eccentric pro-democratic nationalist, Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh rose to prominence in Iran and was elected its first Prime Minister. As Prime Minister, Mossadegh alarmed the West by his nationalization of Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (later renamed BP), which controlled all of the country's oil reserves. Britain immediately put an embargo on Iran. Members of the British Intelligence Service approached the United States under President Eisenhower in 1953 to join them in Operation Ajax, a coup against Mossadegh. President Eisenhower agreed, and authorized the CIA to assist the BIS in overthrowing Mossadegh. The Shah at first attempted to formally dismiss Mossadegh, but this backfired and Mossadegh convinced the Shah to flee to Baghdad.
Regardless of this setback, the covert operation soon went into full swing, conducted from US Embassy in Tehran under the leadership of Kermit Roosevelt, Jr.. Agents were hired to facilitate violence; and, as a result, protests broke out across the nation. Anti- and pro-monarchy protestors violently clashed in the streets, leaving almost 300 dead. The operation was successful in triggering a coup, and within days, pro-Shah tanks stormed the capital and bombarded the Prime Minister's residence. Mossadegh surrendered, and was arrested on 19 August 1953. He was tried for treason, and sentenced to three years in prison.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was then reinstated as Shah. His rule became increasingly autocratic in the following years. With strong support from the US and UK, the Shah further modernized Iranian industry, but simultaneously crushed all forms of political opposition with his intelligence agency, SAVAK. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini became an active critic of the Shah's modernization efforts and publicly denounced the government. Khomeini, who was popular in religious circles, was arrested and imprisoned for 18 months. After his release in 1964, Khomeini publicly criticized the United States government. Instead of executing Khomeini, the Shah was persuaded to send him into exile by General Hassan Pakravan. Khomeini was sent first to Turkey and then to Iraq. While in exile, he continued to denounce the Shah and gained more popularity among Iranians.

1979 saw an increase in protests against the Shah, culminating in the Iranian Revolution. The Shah fled the country again, after which Khomeini returned from exile in France on February 1, 1979 and eventually succeeded in taking power. Khomeini's new Islamic state instated conservative Islamic laws and unprecedented levels of direct clerical rule.
Iran's relations with the United States were severely strained after the revolution, especiallly when Iranian students seized US embassy personnel on November 4, 1979, labeling the embassy a "Den of Spies" and accused its personnel of being CIA agents trying to overthrow the revolutionary government. Khomeini did not stop the students from holding embassy employees hostage and instead encouraged the kidnapping, a move which only increased his popularity among the revolutionists. Women, African Americans and one hostage diagnosed with multiple sclerosis were soon released. Despite attempts made by the administration of US President Jimmy Carter at negotiation and rescuing the remaining hostages through such methods as Operation Eagle Claw, Iran refused to release them and threatened to put the hostages on trial for espionage. The students demanded the handover of the shah in exchange for the hostages. However, this exchange never took place, and after 444 days of captivity, embassy employees were finally allowed to leave Iran and return to the United States.

Meanwhile, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein decided to take advantage of what he perceived to be disorder in the wake of the Iranian Revolution and its unpopularity with Western governments. Of particular interest was that the once-strong Iranian military had been disbanded during the revolution. With the Shah out of power, Hussein had far-reaching ambitions to assert himself as the new strong man of the Middle East and planned a full-scale invasion of Iran, boasting that his forces could reach the capital within three days. The Iraqi army's assault took the country completely by surprise and the destructive Iran-Iraq War called "Saddām's al-Qādisiyyah" in Iraq, and the "Imposed war" in Iran had begun.

Tens of thousands of Iranian civilians and military personnel were killed when Iraq used chemical weapons in its warfare. Iraq was financially backed by Egypt, the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf, the United States (beginning in 1983), France, the United Kingdom, Germany, the People's Republic of China (which also sold weapons to Iran), the Soviet Union, and the Warsaw Pact states. All of these countries provided intelligence, agents for chemical weapons as well as other forms of military assistance to the Iraqis. Iran's principal allies during the war were Syria, Libya, North Korea, Cuba and Yugoslavia

Although Saddam Hussein's forces made several early advances, by 1982, Iranian forces managed to push the Iraqi army back into Iraq. Khomeini refused a cease-fire from Iraq which was demanding huge reparation payments and an end to his rule. Khomeini also sought to export his Islamic revolution westward into Iraq, especially on the majority Shi'a Arabs living in the country. The war then continued for six more years until 1988, when Khomeini, in his words, "drank the cup of poison" and accepted a truce mediated by the United Nations. With the fall of Saddam's regime in Iraq in April 2003 and his capture in December of that year, Iran announced it had sent its own indictment against Saddam to Iraq's government, with the list of complaints including the use of chemical weapons. The total Iranian casualties of the war were estimated to be anywhere between 500,000 to 1,000,000. Although Iran itself also possessed chemical weapons, it never used them during the war.

In contemporary Iranian politics, it is believed that internal political factions are divided between conservatives who call for keeping the original ideology of revolution and the professed reformists who want to review the old ideologies with respect to today's world. The Iranian people themselves are largely excluded from the political arena and many hold anti-Islamic regime sentiments. Being a model police state, dissidence is not tolerated in Iran. The apparent struggle between the reported reformists and conservatives continues today through electoral politics, and was a central focus in the Iranian presidential election of 2005, which resulted in the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Since then, there has been an increase in tensions between Iran and the US. However, given the opacity of Iranian politics, these assertions involve at least as much speculation as they do analysis.

Before the Islamic revolution, Iran had signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and some argue that it still retains the legal right to use and research nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.On numerous occasions, the Bush administration has threatened Iran with economic sanctions — and has not ruled out the use of military force — if Iran refuses to halt uranium enrichment. Britain supports this position, while other members of UN Security Council, in particular Russia and China, oppose any military action or sanctions. Significantly, Iran was recently elected vice-chair on the UN Disarmament Commission. Recently, Iran announced it is researching the construction of a P2 centrifuge, which is a more efficient technology to enrich uranium. Despite the U.S and Iran being at odds with each other, both countries have sent allowed scholars and scientists to visit each other. However, the number of Iranian students who have come to the United States to study is only a small percentage of the number that came to study prior to the Islamic revolution when the largest number of international students in the United States came from Iran.

The 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict has turned Iran into a regional power broker and custodian of the Palestinian cause. U.S. allies in the region — Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt — now count for far less than its enemies. Anger on the Arab Street threatens them, and where Sunni regimes rule over Shiite populations — Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf emirates — rising sectarian tensions could be destabilizing. Iran's geostrategic position, vast energy reserves, large population and economic output, not to mention its growing military power and regional influence, make it difficult to easily contain. Excluding Iran will only give Tehran greater incentive to subvert the region.

Iran is a founding member of the United Nations organization and also a member of the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Non-Aligned Movement.
The political system of the Islamic Republic is based on the 1979 Constitution called the "Qanun-e Asasi" ("Fundamental Law"). The system comprises several intricately connected governing bodies.

Supreme Leader

The Supreme Leader of Iran is responsible for delineation and supervision of "the general policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran". The Supreme Leader is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, controls the military intelligence and security operations; and has sole power to declare war. The heads of the judiciary, state radio and television networks, the commanders of the police and military forces and six of the twelve members of the Council of Guardians are appointed by the Supreme Leader. The Assembly of Experts elects and dismisses the Supreme Leader on the basis of qualifications and popular esteem.[22] The Assembly of Experts is responsible for supervising the Supreme Leader in the performance of legal duties. By the definition of monarchy and elective monarchy the Supreme Leader is arguably an unelected monarch.[3] However, it should be noted that Iran is constitutionally defined as a Republic, and is regarded as such in the common understanding of the term.

Executive

The Constitution defines the President as the highest state authority after the Supreme Leader. The President is elected by universal suffrage for a term of four years. Presidential candidates must be approved by the Council of Guardians prior to running in order to ensure their allegiance to the ideals of the Islamic revolution. The President is responsible for the implementation of the Constitution and for the exercise of executive powers, except for matters directly related to the Supreme Leader, who has the final say in all matters. The President appoints and supervises the Council of Ministers, coordinates government decisions, and selects government policies to be placed before the legislature. Eight Vice-Presidents serve under the President, as well as a cabinet of 21 ministers, who must all be approved by the legislature. Unlike many other states, the executive branch in Iran does not control the armed forces. Although the President appoints the Ministers of Intelligence and Defense, it is customary for the President to obtain explicit approval from the Supreme Leader for these two ministers before presenting them to the legislature for a vote of confidence.

Council of Guardians

The Council of Guardians comprises 12 jurists including six appointed by the Supreme Leader. The head of the judiciary, who is also appointed by the Supreme Leader, recommends the remaining six, who are officially appointed by Parliament. The Council interprets the constitution and may veto Parliament. If a law is deemed incompatible with the constitution or Sharia (Islamic law) , it is referred back to Parliament for revision. In a controversial exercise of its authority, the Council has drawn upon a narrow interpretation of Iran's constitution to veto parliamentary candidates.

Expediency Council

The Expediency Council has the authority to mediate disputes between Parliament and the Council of Guardians, and serves as an advisory body to the Supreme Leader, making it one of the most powerful governing bodies in the country.
Parliament (The Majles)

Majles-e Shura-ye Eslami (Islamic Consultative Assembly) is comprised of 290 members that are elected for four-year terms. The Majlis drafts legislation, ratifies international treaties, and approves the national budget. All Majlis candidates and all legislation from the assembly must be approved by the Council of Guardians. Before the Islamic Revolution, Iran's legislature was bicameral with both the Majlis and a Senate; the Senate was eliminated in the 1979 constitution.

Judiciary

The Supreme Leader appoints the head of the Judiciary, who in turn appoints the head of the Supreme Court and the chief public prosecutor. There are several types of courts including public courts that deal with civil and criminal cases, and "revolutionary courts" which deal with certain categories of offenses, including crimes against national security. The decisions of the revolutionary courts are final and cannot be appealed. The Special Clerical Court handles crimes allegedly committed by clerics, although it has also taken on cases involving lay people. The Special Clerical Court functions independently of the regular judicial framework and is accountable only to the Supreme Leader. The Court’s rulings are final and cannot be appealed.

Assembly of Experts

The Assembly of Experts, which meets for one week annually, comprises 86 "virtuous and learned" clerics elected by adult suffrage for eight-year terms. As with the presidential and parliamentary elections, the Council of Guardians determines candidates' eligibility. The Assembly elects the Supreme Leader and has the constitutional authority to remove the Supreme Leader from power at any time. The Assembly has never been known to challenge any of the Supreme

Leader's decisions.

City and Village Councils

Local councils are elected by public vote to four-year terms in all cities and villages of Iran. According to article seven of Iran's Constitution, these local councils together with the Parliament are "decision-making and administrative organs of the State". This section of the constitution was not implemented until 1999 when the first local council elections were held across the country. Councils have many different responsibilities including electing mayors, supervising the activities of municipalities; studying the social, cultural, educational, health, economic, and welfare requirements of their constituencies; planning and co-ordinating national participation in the implementation of social, economic, constructive, cultural, educational and other welfare affairs.

Human rights

The violation of human rights by the Islamic Republic of Iran continues to be significant, despite many efforts by Iranian human right activists, writers, NGOs and some political parties. Human rights in Iran face the issues of governmental impunity, restricted freedom of speech, and gender inequality. Despite severe national and some international criticism, the Islamic government of Iran still continues to disregard the Universal Declaration of Human

Rights in several aspects.

Human rights in Iran can be said to derive from two elements; firstly, traditional Islam and Sharia law allow for significant gender inequality, persecution of homosexuals, and public executions. Secondly, the Iranian government itself, in its continual drive to secure its own political power base, as well as to maintain centralized control over a fragmented multi-ethnic society, disregards human rights. However, unlike some Middle Eastern countries, women have the right to vote and receive an education, and there are several female members in the Iranian parliament.

Public health

Over the last 20 years, The Islamic Republic of Iran has made remarkable progress in the health sector with much improvement in various health indices. An elaborate system of health network has been established which has ensured provision of Primary Health Care (PHC) to the vast majority of public. However, access and availability of health care continues to be somewhat limited in lesser developed provinces where the health indices are also lower as compared to national averages. The country is in an epidemiologic transition and faces double burden of the diseases. New emerging threats should also be considered. The demographic and epidemiological transition underway will have a significant effect on the pattern of morbidity and mortality in the near and distance future, especially as it affects the emergence of chronic non-communicable diseases and the health problems of an aging population.

Iran has one of the highest percentages of population in the Middle East with access to safe drinking water, with an esimated 92% of its people enjoying such access. ] Despite the fact that Iran consists of an agrarian economy, there is a high degree of malnutrition within the country. Approximately one fourth of all young children have stunted or wasted growth characteristics due to undernourishment; moreover, as an indicator of the poor food distribution capability, the percentage of undernourished children in villages is much higher. As an additional measure of public health and inefficient food distribution, about thirteen percent of the young people are classified as obese, according to the same United Nations

FAO sources.

Cholera has been a persistent problem in Iran. In the 2005 epidemic which involved loss of lives, state television warned people not to eat vegetables or buy ice blocks on the streets. Salads were also banned in some restaurants. The 1998 epidemic involved considerably more cases and loss of life. There is a considerable shortfall in wastewater treatment; for example, in Tehran the majority of the population has no wastewater treatment, with raw sewage being injected directly into the groundwater. As the water crisis deepens with an expanding population, this pollution of groundwater causes increasing health risks.

According to the United Nations, AIDS has been increasing in Iran at a rapid rate. Christian Salazar, Chairman of the UN AIDS Theme Committee states: "The HIV epidemic is rapidly increasing in Iran. The major factor fuelling the epidemic until now has been injecting drug use, while there is an increase in sexual transmission of the disease."The hiv epidemic in Iran are however still very low compared to international standards.