MembersA Virtual Tour of Tehran: What It’s Like Being Jewish in Iran

In recent days Iran elected hardliner Ebraihim Raisi, who is known as the “executioner of Tehran,” to be president. Yet as the West and Iran are closer than ever to signing another nuclear deal, many Westerners have demonstrated that they do not know how to play chess Persian-style and instead have decided to give in to the mullahs’ dictates. However, if Westerners learned to understand Persian culture, it need not be like this. The famous warrior Sun Tzu once stated, “If you know your enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.”

In a recent lecture at the Babylonian Jewish Heritage Center, David Nissan, an Iranian Jewish lecturer who had an illustrious career in the Israel Defense Forces, gave a virtual tour of Tehran, thus offering Israelis the opportunity to learn to play chess Persian-style. In the past, he gave the very same virtual tour of Tehran to IDF soldiers that were dispatched to engage in operations in Iran: “It is important to understand Iran not only technologically but also culturally.” To...