Justice for Iran

Seismologists have warned that Tehran is liable to be struck by a catastrophic earthquake in the foreseeable future. It is not clear whether a new capital will be built from scratch or sited in an existing city.

Qajar king Agha Mohammad Khan declared it capital in 1795. Since then, it has become home to 12 million people, up from 250,000 at the start of the 20th century.

Professor Bahram Akasheh, a seismologist and dean of the faculty of basic sciences at Tehran Azad University: “I warned of this 40 to 50 years ago and if they had listened to me then, Tehran wouldn’t have grown into a macro-city, but now control is lost over it. The city is growing bigger every day and so are the poor suburbs around it.”