Iran Can’t Run Away From Tehran’s Disasters

Moving the capital is an old idea and a perennial nonstarter.

The Amir Kabir Dam along the Karaj River in Iran's northern Alborz mountain range is seen on June 1. November 26, 2025, 1:56 PM Comment icon View Comments ( )

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian recently warned that Tehran might soon face evacuation—or even relocation—because of water shortages. His remarks sparked panic, but this is hardly the first time officials have floated moving the capital.

The idea has perennially resurfaced, usually after earthquake scares—after the 1990 Manjil-Rudbar quake and later after Bam in 2003, when the scale of deaths and destruction pushed senior officials to talk about shifting the capital out of quake-prone Tehran. Now the water

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