A few weeks before the anti-regime protests began, the ruling theocracy’s Supreme National Defense University issued a report warning authority that “three out of every four Iranians participate in protests.”
On Saturday, December 24, Iran will mark the 100th day of its nationwide uprising. Iranian cities have been witnessing the bravery of people from all walks of life for the past 100 days. Following the death of a young Kurdish girl in the custody of the so-called “morality police,” protests erupted across the country. Within hours, protesters’ slogans began to target the entire regime, particularly its supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.
According to the report “Iran after [the Persian Year] 1400,” the two large-scale protests in January 2018 and November 2019, as well as the sanctions, the regime’s mismanagement of economic impulses, and its policies over the last three decades, “promise a deep social change in the near future.”
Khamenei, as usual, unleashed his thugs and resorted to a brutal crackdown. According to the People’s Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI/MEK), over 750 people have been killed, two detained protesters –Majid Reza Rahnavard and Mohsen Shekari– have been hanged, and tens of thousands have been arrested.
The clerical regime does not have a viable solution to Iran’s economic and social problems. The systematic corruption, squandering of the nation’s national wealth on terrorism and obtaining a nuclear bomb, and fortifying the oppressive apparatus are what have caused the country’s economic crisis.
The regime’s primary vulnerability, which drives its strategic orientations, stems from its domestic historical, political, religious, and social illegitimacy. Without a popular domestic base, the regime is sailing too close to the wind. Human rights violations, support for terrorism, and the pursuit of their nuclear weapons program are as essential to Khamenei and his regime as breathing.
As a result, the mullahs’ only option is a brutal crackdown. In fact, the regime’s entire military apparatus is geared toward putting down uprisings.
In such a case, the continuation of protests confirms that they are indeed organized. The MEK’s Resistance Units Network has been a major driving force behind this organization. By torching the mullahs’ symbols, posters, and statues, this network has spread a culture of defiance in the face of the regime. Resistance Units have also taken the lead in the current uprising.
Furthermore, the Iranian Resistance has successfully mobilized the international community to further isolate the ruling theocracy. The MEK’s activities have compelled regime officials to issue warnings about its impact on Iranian society, particularly youth.
The presence of organized opposition, a viable alternative, and the continuation of the democratic revolution despite the regime’s harsh crackdown portend a change on the horizon and Tehran’s absolute powerlessness.
The time has come for the international community to recognize the legitimacy of the Iranian people’s fight and self-defense against this evil and terrorist force, to blacklist the regime’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and Intelligence Ministry as the regime’s main crackdown arsenal, to provide the Iranian people with 24/7 uninterrupted internet access, and to sever all diplomatic and economic ties with Tehran.
The mullahs will only retreat when confronted with a truly perplexing strategic choice that threatens the regime’s survival, not when given a platform to deceive and outwit.
MEK Iran (follow us on Twitter and Facebook), Maryam Rajavi’s on her site, Twitter & Facebook, NCRI (Twitter & Facebook), and People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran – MEK IRAN – YouTub