Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is terrified that the implementation of the second round of sanctions, particularly those related to Iran’s oil industry, will destroy the Iranian economy once and for all, leading to the overthrow of the mullahs.
That’s why, on Thursday, he tried to boost morale amongst his weary troops with a speech entitled “Power manifestation”, but this merely reflected how weak and desperate the Iranian Regime has become, facing external sanctions and a domestic uprising.
He told the Basij forces that those who talked of reconciling with the US were betraying the Iranian Regime and that so long as he was alive, he would not allow that to happen. He said that certain Regime officials and the mercenaries who have defected were showing “fatigue, destitution and disability” and called them “easy-hearted, insincere and hypocrite intellectuals,” and “disheartened, demoralized, cowardly, opportunistic, self-defeating …. hopeless and lazy people”, who, “if not the agent of the enemy, are not nevertheless men of the field to the country’s progress”.
He then said that the growth of the Iranian Regime was “superior to our defections”, before moving on to a tirade about the free press and internet in Iran.
It is clear that he fears the overthrow of the Regime as he told the Basij and the Revolutionary Guards to fire freely wherever it was needed, which was obviously a reference to the large and near-constant crowds of protesters that gather in every city of Iran.
He also is scared of regime change from foreign powers, which is almost certainly unofficial US policy, so he brought up a supposed quote from Donald Trump about the Iranian Regime being removed within two to three months. It is not clear where this quote came from, but if the Regime were overthrown during 2018, the Iranian people would finally be free.
Khamenei said, likely because of his fears of regime change, that regional interference and missile projects were necessary for the survival of the regime, which is why Iran will not give them up; something that Trump wants if he is to offer a new nuclear deal.
He called on the Basijis to slam the US by helping to thwart the sanctions, although it is not clear how they were supposed to do that.
Of course, Khamenei is not the only one who fears regime change in Iran. Many mullahs do, especially those close to Khamenei. Some former loyalists are even challenging Khamenei’s methods, but make no mistake, this isn’t moderation. These mullahs are just worried about saving their own necks as the organized resistance movement grows and protests spread.
The MEK wrote: “Khamenei lacks the power, influence, and capability to take actions against such voices. This weakness is realized by all of Iran’s society and a growing number of people no longer fear the crackdown imposed by the regime’s security apparatus.”
Source » ncr-iran