u.s. of backing saddam hussein. in 1988, the u.s.s. "vincenze" shut a passenger jet off the coast, killing 290 people. the u.s. never formally apologised for the attack. despite the bad blood, most iranians we talked to say they liked america, just not their foreign policy. i liked american muscle cars. i don't hate america. so the current people that you see - it's 40 years or younger - they have no memory of the shah's regime. they don't have a memory of americans doing bad things. and now we have the nuclear negotiations. this is an opportunity for the west. >> our national security. >> now that a deal on the programme is in place with the u.s. and other world powers,

some are hoping it signals a new direction in the history of hostility. it will not happen overnight. the nuclear deal is done now the u.s. has to sort out who it is dealing with. we have problems. for starters human rights watch saw no significant improvements in human rights in the first full year that president hassan rouhani has been in office. since he's been in office iran executed 1500 people. many for nonviolent crimes, the country has more than 900 political prisoners. in 2009 my al jazeera colleague roxana saberi spent four months in prison whilst working for another company. accused of being a spy and subjected to severe hardships she did get out. many in prison with her were not happy. >> in 2003 i had a chance to work as a journalist in my

father's native land iran. >> many women feel their voices were not heard. >> people asked where are you from. i thought should i say america. i was in my home when at 9 o'clock in the morning, four many came to my home. >> iranian american reporter roxana saberi sailed in train. >> i was interrogated, blindfolded, facing a wall for up to four men, and was in solidary confinement for several days. >> the charges against her are baseless. she has been subjected to a process that has been nontransparent. arbitrary. >> we were told that she'll be free as of today.

>> welcome home. >> i'm so happy to be back home. >> i went to iran because i wanted to learn more about my father's home country and learn the language, and i learned to love the country. definitely i hope to come back one day. i had a chance to talk to roxana saberi, a correspondent with al jazeera america, and someone who is familiar with how dangerous works as a journalist in iran could be. >> i was living and working in iran for six years. i was a journalist. one day four intelligence agents took me away and brought me to the prison a notorious prison in iran. >> they wouldn't let us take pictures of it. >> they don't want to take managements of it. political prisoners - if you are a journalist you better not be

caught. they said i was a spy from the united states. >> on what basis. >> they said i was interviewing too many people. i was working on a book. i was interviewing a lot of people so i could show a broad perspective. they said it's not possible you can interview so many it must be esbian age for the united states. who told you to write the book. >> they didn't believe you. >> that's right. e said i was lying and unless i tell the truth. i wouldn't go home. >> it's like the tv shows admit you are spying. >> yes, you have to confess being a spy. agree to spy for us. >> what happened then. >> i gave in under their pressure, i was in solidary confinement.

this is what they do to political prisoners. to put the maximum amount of political pressure on people. they are the only path to the outside westerly direction. i didn't know what to do. i decided they make a false confession. if anyone sees the video, i'll say it's a bunch of lies. i made the false confession. i was taken out of solitary and met others. they gave me courage to take back my false confession. i did jason in prison now, had a hearing this week didn't get a notice of when his hearing would be. they let him know a couple of hours, let his lawyer know goes in has a hearing and sits in gaol for a month. >> it seems arbitrary, specially

when you are in the cell. i remember on the iranian state-run tv roxana saberi is going to go on trial on whatever date, and i'd by really i didn't know. it's good to know i'll find out through the tv. >> how did you survive in that environment. what was it leek you being in a sell, in solitary confinement. >> it was hard. it was two weeks. for jairch it's been several months and others as well. >> the thing that is difficult about solitary is you are alone with your thought and you don't get books, pen or paper or a tv. you get so alone you thick to yourself, talk to yourself you wonder if you'll lose your sanity you are so alone, you would rather speak to your integrator than to be alone. >> what happened. >> they sentenced me to eight years in prison. i was fortunate because people found out where i was and many

people thankfully stood up for me i believe the pressure helped sent me free. >> you got out in 100 days. >> i did. >> how has that changed snu. >> it changed me immensely. in certain ways - i appreciate freedom a lot more. i had reported on people in prison, but never knew what it felt like to have basic freedoms taken away the freedom to read what you want, interview what you want. walk in the streets walk without being handcuffed or blindfolded. the basic freedoms. it's a battle for influence in the middle east. america on one side iran on the other. coming up. i'll show you first hand how a little respect can go a long way.

>> we're here to fully get into the nuances of everything that's

about 10 years ago we were doing a story on the strait of

hohmuse, it's been a point of contention, the choke point where oil from the oil producing companies goes to the indian ocean and the world. every day 17 million barrels of oil goes out through its point. at its narrowest the distance between iran and oman an arabian country, is 21 miles, it's a tension point. we said one day we'll get down there. when we went to iran we went down. it was the middle of summer and the feel as i pulled it up on my phone, it was 137 degrees, and people asked why are you going down there. we couldn't explain that it was in our destiny, we were going down to the gulf. general business trade, things going out or in has dropped by 27% because of sanctions. you can't pay for the things how do you buy cars if you can't transfer the money. water looks like water, the

strait of hormuse looks like any other water if oil is the currency of the middle east, influence is the prize that it buys. saudi arabia sunni allies and israel fear that lifting sanctions will give iran the financial fire power to advance its agenda opening the door to a cash windfall by way of new oil exports. this chart from bank of america and merrill lynch gives you an idea of how much of a boost it could give iran. it shows without sanctions the iranian economy would be double its current size in 2014, making the economy as big or bigger than saudi arabia's economy. in iran where the game of chess was invented many are getting ready as the nuclear deal moves pieces across the board. iran considers itself a superpower in the middle east. and it wants the world to give it the respect it thinks it

deserves. and despite agreeing to kerbs on nuclear ambitions, the regional influence is bound to go as sanctions are lived and economic sanctions end. >> it's time for american and some european leaders to realise that iran is a major player. and live with it the same way as russia and china, why not live with iran. if they decide to do that they'll encourage forces within iran that are willing and able to accommodate western interests. >> one thing that iran is eager to help with is confronting i.s.i.l. both iran and the u.s. backed the iraqi government in the war against i.s.i.l. fighters. but in neighbouring syria, where i.s.i.l. controls territory, iran and the u.s. work at

cross-purposes. that is because they back opposing sides in syria's civil war. in fact, in almost every contentious area and issue facing the middle east syria israel, yemen and the flow of oil to the world, iran and the u.s. are on opposite sides. nowhere is that more important than in the strait of hormuz. a narrow waterway connecting oil tanker traffic between the waters of the gulf and the indian ocean. at its narrowest point, 21 miles separates rain from the countries of the arabian peninsula on the other side. let me give you a sense of how choke a point this is. across the state there are american installations, iran considers it a threat and said it will mine the straight if it's attacked. it has done it before. the u.s. navy is escorting american-flagged ships through

the state and are doing it for other vessels too. besides military force iran has many ways of wielding power and influence, and uses soft power to win the hearts and minds of people in the region. >> iran was a natural soft power in the hearts and minds of the shia populations. in in part of the world and internationally. it's like the vatican for the catholics. iran used both military and soft power to give backing to shia parties in conflict zones throughout the middle east. in lebanon, iran has backed hezbollah in a fight against israel. the iranians became a life line for syria's embattled president, and they lend crucial military and critical support to the shi'a dominated government. and recently iran weighed in on

the side of houthi rebels, triggering a sectarian proxy war with sunni dominated saudi arabia. the democrats may alarm the u.s. and allies in the region voices in iran say it's willing to use its influence in cooperation, to solve the myriad of problems consuming the middle east today. >> iran has emerged as a major player. the islamic resolution has a lot of influence in many parts of the islamic world. there's a lot of different areas where iran plays a prominent role. particularly in dealing with peace and security in the region. >> i talked to a former republican party chief counsel and senior advisor to the senate committee on foreign relations saying the u.s. made too many concessions and will only

embolden iran as a regional player. >> iran plays on outside role, often through proxy. you see hezbollah and houthis. they blah a roll. -- play a role. the question is will this nuclear deal make them more of a nuclear power. it gives them more money and influence with neighbours. >> i'm interested to hear you say that. i talked to people on tuesday and people said this emassualates iran they were free to do what they wanted but now have to follow rules by the international community. >> that's an interesting point. an argument that has been made. iran has a terrible track record of following rules it agreed to. that's a problem. beyond that iran was brought back to the community of nations. they'll receive a lot of relief, and what people see is

vindication. or work on ballistic missiles. this is a vindication of running the programme. iran in 2003 was found to have plans for nuclear armaments. when these sanctions started, iran had 64 or something centrifuges. now it has close to 20,000. at some .1 has to question the effectiveness of the sanctions. they had some effect. but it was in making people dell the iranian government you are crushing us. the stuff i saw was lower class people, lower income people middle cas people. the upper class and governments and elite not. >> it's an important point. the thing about the financial sanctions is they have been in place since 2010. we have had sanctions in place,

but the ones with a biting effect on the government were those started through the elite classes. that is what was brought to the table. we were only beginning to see the effects when the deal came about. there's an argument that had we kept them in place longer we would have gotten a better deal. >> we heart people say they don't like the deal. scott walker said it - he said it faster than it took me to read the pages. he said no deal. the option of having a deal you don't like, is suggestions of how to get a deal you do like as opposed to deal or no deal - that's the tv know not the real world. >> there's a debate whether we could have gotten a better deal. the iranians had a sense from the administration. the administration wasn't going to walk away. at every turn when the iranians arrived for a concession they

got it. every time they wanted an extension, they got it. we have seen a shift in the position. all the way to today, even in april when they cut the final deal. they said we are not going to do on ballistic sanctions, but you look at the draft, and it looks like it pretty much doesn't do anything on ballistic missiles other than calling on iran to stop its work. it's amazing how much is given up. >> the criticism is the tactics. when it comes to the content of it. what is it that people who oppose it deal. at least republicans, what would they have wanted differently never mind that america was moving. what would a good deal look like. >> i think a great deal involves no enrichment by iran. that would be consistent with the administration's position of what they call a gold standard. this administration invented in

2009, with the u.a.e. which is no enrichment for a country that wants an enrichment programme. worse, we'll let them continue to advance r&d so if and when they break out. they'll do it quicker. iran's mastered the nuclear field cycle. they have ta chance to work on the rest of it. they'll do it under surveillance. doesn't mean we'll find deal - they did all of this without a deal. aren't we worried about that without a deal where would they do what they were doing. >> you are right. they would continue forward, but the question is will they do it with international prestige with the money that they were going to get or would they be under pressure. if we ratchet up the pressure in 2010. they came to the table, we cue use that opportunity to get a

better deal. we give up a lot in making the deal. >> people say there are benefits, we get more surveillance, that is true. is it good or a bad deal. my sense is bad deal. >> forget everything you ning you know about women. coming up i'll take you inside iran for a look at gender and power. bewarned, we are about to shatter some stereotypes. teens on -

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so we were really interested in talking to government officials and business owners and regular working people about politics about the economy. i hadn't really scheduled to do a lot of cultural things. everyone said you have to go to this area on thursday nights in the muslim world, it is like friday night in the western world. we went into this one area a

few windy little streets, everyone was cruising. people had their cars and they were shiny and nice. they'd drive windows open young guys on motorcycles, for lack of a better word, cruising for girls. women would be together walking. we'd go do an art gallery and they'd show an exhibition of artists pub, the boundaries of graphite drawing. and it occurred to me you are pushing the strains of this particularly piece of art in a country built on not pushing the boundaries of everything, of listening to what the authorities tell you you are supposed to do. you start to wonder who are the dismons, who are the people who we don't know that's not to say there are real problems or people see the world

differently, but the bases are the same economic reforms are a big part of hassan rouhani's message in 2013. so is it in improving the lives of iranian women. iran is a far cry from saudi arabia where women rights are severely restricted. but in iran it is dictated what women can wear and do hardliners oppose more rites. some iranian women have been attacked with acid for not wearing the hijab or head score. for a look at iran you have to look beyond the veil the image of the iranian woman covers head to toe as mandated by the islamic government, can come across to the west as one of submission or second class status. look past the hijab, and you'll find an astonishing level of

participation in all levels of iranian society. >> you have over 50% of women gratituding from university. women are delaying marriage, limiting children that they are having and they want to be actively engaged in the workforce. >> women account for nearly 60% of all college students. they gained greater access to health care and birth control, and 17% of adult females joined the workforce. >> translation: we have many women who are active in various sectors of business trade, impore export and international transportation portation. >> reporter: iranian women have taken on political life. this is one of two female vice presidents in president hassan rouhani's government and is in charge of women and family affairs, but she is still the exception. do you have a say at the table that is equal to men?

>> we still need more women to be integrated within the system. we must create room for full potential of women rain is 137 out of 142 countries when it comes to gender quality. along with a lack of political representation, equal pay is an issue, iranian women earn 59%, to basic family rights. iran is not saudi arabia. with all of that said legal discrimination exists in the civil and penal code. if at some point in time a woman runs into the legal system to the courts that's where they'll realise that there's a huge disconnect between their role as a woman in society, and what they are up against in the court system. and hardliners in iran continued to fight further progress. they have threatened women's rights activists, pushing for tougher enforcement of the

female address code and prevented women attending sporting events. >> it's disturbing. it's not that. after a time it's like you have to talk like that, or you can't be in that position. in is tough. it's a limit here. >> ultimately that means president hassan rouhani's government will have a tough time appeasing islamic conservatives and increasingly female voter agitating for human rites. the fight will continue. women are more than half of the university graduates. they are not paid as much as men for the same jobs. you are trying to get women into government positions and become members of parliament. can women be full and equal participants in the society. >> in the last two years, despite the poor condition passed on by the previous government, we tried hard to

gain the trust of society and our women. due to economic changes we have not been able to address women's issues. the president pointed out the importance of equal participation and gender equality needs to be created. >> in the course of all my travels, one thing was clear to me about iran, there isn't just one thing about iran. the country is as varied politically as culturally, with hardliners and conservatives jockeying for positions against liberals and moderates. the unusual suspects are lining up to tell you why the other side can't be trusted. when it comes to the nuclear agreement there's one thing all sides agree on, it's going down history. president obama and president hassan rouhani have each taken a landmark step and however it's viewed, each man is now tasked with charting a way forward for his country in what are largely u.n. chartered waters. what happens next is wide open.

i'll be here to keep you informed and take you behind the deal. >> i'm ali velshi, thank you for joining us. >> hi bae. in my school no one gives a (bleep) if i'm gay or not. but at home, it's just harder to be myself. >> i really want my father to just tell me. i support you and i love my gay son. >> i go to lubbock high school which is really intense and rigorous. first, i wanted to pursue maybe science or law but i can't imagine my life without dance. >> not only do i have to apply for the colleges academically i also have to audition. not having the most perfect ballerina body can be really