The United States and Israel continue to bomb Iran, killing at least 1,045 people since Saturday.
Tehran has responded with drone and missile attacks on Israel and several Gulf states, causing many casualties.
According to a recent poll, only one in four Americans approve of US attacks on Iran. Approval remains strong among Republican supporters of President Donald Trump, with 55 percent saying they approve of the strikes, 13 percent disapprove and 32 percent unsure.
About 74 percent of Democrats disapprove of strikes, with 7 percent approving and 19 percent unsure.
How big is Iran?
Iran is the 17th largest country in the world by area, after Sudan and Libya. It covers about 1.65 million square kilometers (636,000 square miles).
To put this in context, Iran is one-sixth the size of the United States, one-fifth the size of Australia, roughly half the size of India, four times the size of Iraq, and about 80 times the size of Israel.
Iran is located in West Asia and shares land borders with seven countries, the longest with Iraq, followed by Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Armenia.
How big is Iran compared to the 50 US states?
Iran is about the size of Alaska, the largest state in the US, and twice the size of Texas. To equal the land area of Iran, you would have to combine the areas of Texas, California, Montana and Illinois.
If you put Iran on the east coast of the US, it would swallow almost everything from Maine to Florida.
The map below shows how big Iran is compared to each of the 50 US states.
Iran at a glance
With 92 million people, Iran’s population represents about a quarter of the US’s roughly 350 million people. Most of the population lives in the western part of Iran, where rugged mountains, fertile valleys, and river basins sustain the population.
The country is rich in oil and gas, ranking as the world’s ninth largest oil producer and third largest producer of natural gas.
Iran’s gross domestic product (GDP) is $375bn, ranking 43rd globally, and it has an unemployment rate of around 9.2 percent.
In the north, the highlands endure long, bitterly cold winters. To the south and east, the climate changes dramatically. The central and southern provinces of Iran experience intense summer heat. The southwestern city of Ahvaz recorded temperatures above 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), the highest ever measured.
Iran’s vast central plateau, comparable to the arid regions of Arizona or inland California, is shaped by a sparse population and harsh desert climate.
Where are the major population centers of Iran?
With 9.6 million inhabitants, Tehran is the most populous city in Iran. Its scale is comparable to the most populous city in the United States, New York, which has 8.5 million residents within its city limits. Both serve as the cultural and economic hearts of their respective nations.
Tehran has been the capital since 1795, but the city’s history goes back more than 6,000 years.
Mashhad in the northeast is Iran’s second largest city with 3.4 million people, putting it within range of Los Angeles with 3.8 million people.
Mashhad has more than 1,200 years of history and is an important religious and cultural center. It is also home to Imam Reza Shrine, which attracts millions of pilgrims from all over the world every year.
The third largest city, Isfahan, is home to 2.3 million people and is comparable to Houston with roughly the same number of people.
More than 2,500 years old, Isfahan was once the capital of the Safavid Empire, which lasted from 1501 to 1722. The city has leading educational institutions and is a center for the textile, steel, manufacturing and nuclear and aerospace industries. A large area of Isfahan was one of the nuclear sites bombed by the US towards the end of the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June.
Other populous cities across Iran are: Shiraz (1.7 million), Tabriz (1.7 million), Karaj (1.6 million), Qom (1.4 million) and Ahvaz (1.3 million).
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