Afshon Ostovar will join us to discuss his new book, Vanguard of the Imam: Religion, Politics, and Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps, Iran's most powerful armed force. The book is a thematic history of the Islamic Republic from the roots of its revolutionary system in the Islamic revivalism of the 19th century to the impact of sanctions and the Arab Spring on Iranian foreign involvement. Ostovar is an Assistant Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School with decade of experience working on Department of Defense and federally-funded projects related to national security and the Middle East.