Muhammad Sahimi
Encyclopedia
Muhammad Sahimi is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, and holds the NIOC Chair in petroleum engineering
at the University of Southern California
(USC) in Los Angeles. He is also active in journalism, writing frequently on Iranian politics.
and the Huffington Post. He has been a regular columnist for Tehran Bureau
since 2008, and has written occasional pieces for the Los Angeles Times
, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal the Harvard International Review
and The Progressive
.
Sahimi writes in broad support of moderate and reformist elements of Iranian politics, considering himself a member of the Green Movement
and often reprinting statements of prominent Greens. He holds the view that Iran's disputed 2009 election was fraudulent.
He has on many occasions defended Iran's nuclear program as being
peaceful, and the actions of Iran as being essentially legal and justifiable (originally in a seven-part series at Payvand entitled Iran's Nuclear Program). In the process, he has frequently levelled criticism against other writers on the subject, accusing Con Coughlin (of the UK Daily Telegraph) of knowingly spreading lies and disinformation, and David Albright of exceptional bias. (Albright responded to the criticism in a program on antiwar.com radio). He has also criticized two former Deputy Directors-General of the IAEA, Olli Heinonen
and Pierre Goldschmidt
, citing unnamed sources to accuse Heinonen of breaking the IAEA protocols by leaking confidential information (to David Albright) and of spreading unconfirmed claims about the contents of a laptop that was supposedly stolen from Iran and given to Western intelligence agencies, as part of a "crusade against Iran." He also accused Goldschmidt of having a "personal agenda" about Iran's nuclear program, whilst also disputing his assessment that Iran has violated the NPT.
In his writings on Iran's nuclear program Sahimi has also expressed
the view that the United Nation's Security Council sanction resolutions
against Iran are illegal. Because of his strong support for the Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear program and the similarity of his arguments to those used by the Iranian government in its IAEA submissions, he has been accused of being close to the government in Tehran. Sahimi has denied these accusations, but has stated that his articles have been used without his knowledge by members of the Iranian political establishment including Ayatollah Rafsanjani.
Petroleum engineering
Petroleum engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the activities related to the production of hydrocarbons, which can be either crude oil or natural gas. Subsurface activities are deemed to fall within the upstream sector of the oil and gas industry, which are the activities of...
at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(USC) in Los Angeles. He is also active in journalism, writing frequently on Iranian politics.
Career
Sahimi received his B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Tehran in 1977. After briefly working for the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), he received a scholarship from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and travelled to the USA in 1978 (where he has since remained), completing his PhD at the University of Minnesota in 1984. He then moved to the University of Southern California, becoming Chairman of his department from 1999–2005. Since then he has held the NIOC Chair, which was formerly known as the "Shah Chair", having been endowed by Shah Reza Pahlavi. He has also been a visiting professor in Australia and Europe, and a consultant to many industrial corporations.Political views
Since 2003, Sahimi has written many articles on the subject of Iranian politics (particularly the Iranian nuclear programme) for websites such as Payvand, Antiwar.comAntiwar.com
Antiwar.com is a website devoted to opposing aggressive war, imperialism, and assaults on freedom associated with both. The editors describe their politics as libertarian. Their stated motiviation is, "to show how the imperialistic tendencies of the American government lead to a loss of civil...
and the Huffington Post. He has been a regular columnist for Tehran Bureau
Tehran Bureau
Tehran Bureau is an online news magazine covering politics, foreign affairs, culture and society in Iran and the Iranian Diaspora. It was founded by Iranian-born journalist Kelly Golnoush Niknejad in February 2008, initially as a blog...
since 2008, and has written occasional pieces for the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal the Harvard International Review
Harvard International Review
The Harvard International Review is a quarterly journal of international relations published by the Harvard International Relations Council...
and The Progressive
The Progressive
The Progressive is an American monthly magazine of politics, culture and progressivism with a pronounced liberal perspective on some issues. Known for its pacifism, it has strongly opposed military interventions, such as the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. The magazine also devotes much coverage...
.
Sahimi writes in broad support of moderate and reformist elements of Iranian politics, considering himself a member of the Green Movement
Green Movement
The Green Movement refers to a series of actions after the 2009 Iranian presidential election, in which protesters demanded the removal of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office...
and often reprinting statements of prominent Greens. He holds the view that Iran's disputed 2009 election was fraudulent.
He has on many occasions defended Iran's nuclear program as being
peaceful, and the actions of Iran as being essentially legal and justifiable (originally in a seven-part series at Payvand entitled Iran's Nuclear Program). In the process, he has frequently levelled criticism against other writers on the subject, accusing Con Coughlin (of the UK Daily Telegraph) of knowingly spreading lies and disinformation, and David Albright of exceptional bias. (Albright responded to the criticism in a program on antiwar.com radio). He has also criticized two former Deputy Directors-General of the IAEA, Olli Heinonen
Olli Heinonen
Olli Heinonen is a Senior Fellow at Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Previously, he was the Deputy Director-General for Safeguards at the International Atomic Energy Agency.-References:...
and Pierre Goldschmidt
Pierre Goldschmidt
Mr. Pierre Goldschmidt, a Belgian nuclear scientist, retired June, 2005, as Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Safeguards at the International Atomic Energy Agency, , succeeded by Olli Heinonen. Mr...
, citing unnamed sources to accuse Heinonen of breaking the IAEA protocols by leaking confidential information (to David Albright) and of spreading unconfirmed claims about the contents of a laptop that was supposedly stolen from Iran and given to Western intelligence agencies, as part of a "crusade against Iran." He also accused Goldschmidt of having a "personal agenda" about Iran's nuclear program, whilst also disputing his assessment that Iran has violated the NPT.
In his writings on Iran's nuclear program Sahimi has also expressed
the view that the United Nation's Security Council sanction resolutions
against Iran are illegal. Because of his strong support for the Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear program and the similarity of his arguments to those used by the Iranian government in its IAEA submissions, he has been accused of being close to the government in Tehran. Sahimi has denied these accusations, but has stated that his articles have been used without his knowledge by members of the Iranian political establishment including Ayatollah Rafsanjani.
Books
- Applications of Percolation Theory (1994)
- Flow and Transport in Porous Media and Fractured Rock (1995); second edition (2011).
- Heterogeneous Materials I, Linear Transport and Optical Properties (2003)
- Heterogeneous Materials II, Nonlinear and Breakdown Properties and Atomistic Modeling (2003)