Mehdi Monem Self-taught Photographer born 1961, Rasht, Iran.

Started working as a photographer for the Iranian News Agency (IRNA) in 1983 and spent five years photographing the front, including several military expeditions.

For the next 24 years, his work has been solely concerned with showing the effects of the war on people. His book, The Miracle of Hope, depicts injured fighters. War Victims is his second book, published in 2009, and shows the effects of war on civilians. He is now working on his next book which portrays MIA families.