CV

    Dr. Raz Zimmt is the Director of the Iran and the Shiite Axis research program at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). He is also the co-editor of the institute’s journal, Strategic Assessment. He holds a master's degree and a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern history from Tel Aviv University. His Ph.D. dissertation focused on Iranian policy towards Nasserism and Arab radicalism between 1954 and 1967. Additionally, he is a research fellow at the Alliance Center for Iranian Studies at Tel-Aviv University.

    He is the author of the book "Iran From Within: State and Society in the Islamic Republic" published (in Hebrew) in 2022, and has published extensively on Iranian politics, society, and foreign policy. He has also regularly provided expert commentary to Israeli and international media. Dr. Zimmt is a veteran Iran watcher in the Israeli Defense Forces where he served for more than two decades.

    Raz Zimmt
    Raz Zimmt
    Director of the research program "Iran and the Shiite Axis"
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    razz@inss.org.il
    03-640-0400
    INSS Insight
    Islamization from Above, Secularization from Below: Turkey and Iran as Case Studies
    What is causing more and more citizens to go against the strict religious policies of Erdoğan’s regime in Turkey and the ayatollahs’ rule in Iran?
    10 July, 2025
    INSS Insight
    The Israel–Iran War: Concluded but not Resolved
    After 12 days of fighting—the peak of a decades-long confrontation between Jerusalem and Tehran—how should Israel prepare for what lies ahead?
    25 June, 2025
    INSS Insight
    The Campaign against Iran: Situation Assessment, Dilemmas, and Implications
    Iran is approaching a crossroads regarding the continuation of the fighting against Israel: What dilemmas is it facing—and what should Israel be preparing for?
    17 June, 2025
    Database
    Interactive Map: Iran - Real-Time Updates
    On June 13, 2025, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion (“Am KeLavi”) targeting Iran’s missile and nuclear program. This interactive map highlights the locations of direct attacks on Iranian territory attributed to Israel, along with Iran’s key military and nuclear facilities. The map is updated regularly and as accurately as possible, based on open-source intelligence assessments and media reports.
    14 June, 2025
    INSS Insight
    The Need to Reexamine the Concept of the “Shiite Axis”
    Following the collapse of the Assad regime, Hezbollah’s erosion, and increasing pressures on the Shiite militias, is there still a cohesive “Shiite axis” under Tehran’s strategic guidance?
    27 May, 2025
    Strategic Assessment
    Overtaking on the Right: The Iranian Ultra-Conservative Challenge and its Implications for Regime Unity
    Since the end of 2024 there has been growing criticism from ultra-conservative and revolutionary factions in the Islamic Republic on issues of domestic and foreign policy. Most of the criticism has focused on Iran’s lack of response to the Israeli attack on October 26, 2024, Iranian failures in Syria in view of the collapse of the Assad regime, and the decision to postpone implementation of the hijab law, which is intended to increase the severity of penalties for breaches of the Islamic dress code. Although disagreements between the main political streams in Iran are a regular feature of the system, the protest by radical groups is a subject of intense public and political interest, mainly because it centers around decisions that are not the sole responsibility of the government and that were taken by political institutions directly subordinate to the supreme leader, particularly the Supreme National Security Council. Therefore, sections of the conservative camp have expressed concern that the challenges to government policy posed by the radicals could not only further undermine social cohesion but also damage the unity of the governing elite. Even if the radical elements’ growing criticism of regime policy does not constitute an immediate and significant threat to the unity of the Iranian political and security elite, it could undermine the basis of the regime’s ideological support and harm its long-term ability to deal with more important threats to its stability.