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Scottish Sun
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Scottish Sun
Iran's aging & paranoid Ayatollah is hanging by a thread – I know how it will all come crashing down, says ex-ambassador
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) IRAN'S merciless regime is "fully on its heels" - leaving the Ayatollah's days numbered, a former US ambassador says. But the West will not be able to topple Tehran's brutal dictatorship, Mark D. Wallace, CEO & Founder of United Against Nuclear Iran, warned. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 10 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on July 5 Credit: Getty 10 A building on fire after an Israeli strike in Tehran Credit: AFP 10 Airstrike craters at Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP) Credit: AFP The ex-ambassador to the UN said it will be down to the Iranian people - who have suffered outrageous repression for decades - to finally end the regime's rule. Iron-fist fanatics have used violent and ruthless measures, including executions and torture, in a twisted bid to stamp out opposition and silence critics. The regime's future now appears to be hanging by a thread, however, as it sits in a "combustible state" following the obliteration of its nuclear empire by the US and Israel. Several of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's top military brass were wiped out in the 12-day war - leaving the barbaric ruler vulnerable. Power held by Iran's terror proxies - including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - has also been severely depleted. Wallace told The Sun: "The regime isn't just wounded, they're fully on their heels. "The very old Ayatollah has been hiding in a bunker somewhere, and there's clearly going to be some sort of transition. "Remember, there have only been two Ayatollahs. The question is, is there going to be a third." Iran's first Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power during the revolution of 1979 - ousting the Shah empire and transforming the state into a theocratic Islamic republic. His bloody rule was taken over by Khamenei following his death a decade later. Iran's Ayatollah breaks silence after WEEKS cowering in bunker during Israel's blitz and 'obliterating' Trump strikes Since then, Tehran has ramped up its nuclear ambitions and become an increasingly bigger threat to not only the Middle East but the West too. The US and Israel then took decisive action last month by staging an unprecedented blitz of Iran's nuclear bases. It dealt a major blow to Khamenei's top military brass - wiping out the commander in chief, deputy commander and boss of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. At least seven other generals were killed, as well as politician Ali Shamkhani - a close confidant of the Ayatollah - and two nuclear scientists. Khamenei cowered in hiding in a bunker as the chorus of voices fighting against repression and calling for the regime to be overthrown grew louder. Before the 12-day war, Israel had almost diminished the capabilities of terror proxies largely funded by Ukraine. Wallace said the "incredibly weak" Ayatollah will now be fearing his remaining generals could be spies. 10 Mojtaba Khamenei could be a succssor 10 The Chief Justice of Iran, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i, may also be in the running Credit: Getty 10 Iran's former president Hassan Rouhani could be selected Credit: AFP 10 An Iranian ballistic missile over the skies near Jerusalem in two salvos of missiles Credit: EPA "And there's no clear succession," he added. "The Ayatollah is on his heels. When he finally came out [of hiding] he sounded very weak. He sounded like an 86-year-old man who had been hiding in a bunker, trying to keep his regime alive. "Really it does call into question how long he will be there. We know he's going to die of either natural or unnatural causes sometime in the next couple of years. "The question is, what happens next? And I think he's doing everything he can to try to find some sort of path to succession, to continue this revolutionary regime." Khamenei will now be scrambling to have a clear succession mapped out - with at least five of his top confidants thought to be in the running. The aging despot's son Mojtaba Khamenei is a cleric and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, so could be high on the potential list of successors. Also in the running is likely to be Assembly of Experts members Alireza Arafi and Hojjatal Islam Mohsen Qomi and reform-minded presidents such as Hassan Rouhani. The head of Iran's judicial system Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i meanwhile is thought of as a front-runner to take the reins. The ruling establishment will try to immediately name a successor to Khamenei if he is killed or dies naturally. Despite the international outcry against the regime waging war against its own people and the threat of aggression to other nations, Wallace argued the West cannot help remove the fanatics. 10 Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, pictured meeting Pope Francis, could be Khamenei's choice Credit: Alamy 10 Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (right) speaks with the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei's representative, Hojjatal Islam Mohsen Qomi Credit: Getty 10 A demonstrator holding an Israeli flag and an Iranian flag in a protest against the Iranian government Credit: Reuters "The only path ultimately is for the regime to fall - but that is solely in the control of the Iranian people," he said. "Sadly, the Iranian people will suffer, and a good number will likely have to die for that to happen, and they're being persecuted as we speak. "There's this regrettable debate going on about regime change, as if somehow we can engage in a direct strategy to engage in regime change. We can't. "We can do everything we can to support Iranian people and degrade the regime's ability to threaten all of us through nuclear weapons or threaten us with terrorism and transnational oppression. "We can also do everything we can to sanction and impede the ability of the state security apparatus to oppress its own people. "But, ultimately, the kinetic moment when the dry leaves and the twigs of a forest catch fire, as a metaphor for revolution, is up to the Iranian people."
The Sun
12-07-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Iran's aging & paranoid Ayatollah is hanging by a thread – I know how it will all come crashing down, says ex-ambassador
IRAN'S merciless regime is "fully on its heels" - leaving the Ayatollah's days numbered, a former US ambassador says. But the West will not be able to topple Tehran's brutal dictatorship, Mark D. Wallace, CEO & Founder of United Against Nuclear Iran, warned. 10 10 10 The ex-ambassador to the UN said it will be down to the Iranian people - who have suffered outrageous repression for decades - to finally end the regime's rule. Iron-fist fanatics have used violent and ruthless measures, including executions and torture, in a twisted bid to stamp out opposition and silence critics. The regime's future now appears to be hanging by a thread, however, as it sits in a "combustible state" following the obliteration of its nuclear empire by the US and Israel. Several of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's top military brass were wiped out in the 12-day war - leaving the barbaric ruler vulnerable. Power held by Iran's terror proxies - including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - has also been severely depleted. Wallace told The Sun: "The regime isn't just wounded, they're fully on their heels. "The very old Ayatollah has been hiding in a bunker somewhere, and there's clearly going to be some sort of transition. "Remember, there have only been two Ayatollahs. The question is, is there going to be a third." Iran's first Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power during the revolution of 1979 - ousting the Shah empire and transforming the state into a theocratic Islamic republic. His bloody rule was taken over by Khamenei following his death a decade later. Iran's Ayatollah breaks silence after WEEKS cowering in bunker during Israel's blitz and 'obliterating' Trump strikes Since then, Tehran has ramped up its nuclear ambitions and become an increasingly bigger threat to not only the Middle East but the West too. The US and Israel then took decisive action last month by staging an unprecedented blitz of Iran's nuclear bases. It dealt a major blow to Khamenei's top military brass - wiping out the commander in chief, deputy commander and boss of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. At least seven other generals were killed, as well as politician Ali Shamkhani - a close confidant of the Ayatollah - and two nuclear scientists. Khamenei cowered in hiding in a bunker as the chorus of voices fighting against repression and calling for the regime to be overthrown grew louder. Before the 12-day war, Israel had almost diminished the capabilities of terror proxies largely funded by Ukraine. Wallace said the "incredibly weak" Ayatollah will now be fearing his remaining generals could be spies. 10 10 "And there's no clear succession," he added. "The Ayatollah is on his heels. When he finally came out [of hiding] he sounded very weak. He sounded like an 86-year-old man who had been hiding in a bunker, trying to keep his regime alive. "Really it does call into question how long he will be there. We know he's going to die of either natural or unnatural causes sometime in the next couple of years. "The question is, what happens next? And I think he's doing everything he can to try to find some sort of path to succession, to continue this revolutionary regime." Khamenei will now be scrambling to have a clear succession mapped out - with at least five of his top confidants thought to be in the running. The aging despot's son Mojtaba Khamenei is a cleric and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, so could be high on the potential list of successors. Also in the running is likely to be Assembly of Experts members Alireza Arafi and Hojjatal Islam Mohsen Qomi and reform-minded presidents such as Hassan Rouhani. The head of Iran's judicial system Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i meanwhile is thought of as a front-runner to take the reins. The ruling establishment will try to immediately name a successor to Khamenei if he is killed or dies naturally. Despite the international outcry against the regime waging war against its own people and the threat of aggression to other nations, Wallace argued the West cannot help remove the fanatics. 10 10 10 "The only path ultimately is for the regime to fall - but that is solely in the control of the Iranian people," he said. "Sadly, the Iranian people will suffer, and a good number will likely have to die for that to happen, and they're being persecuted as we speak. "There's this regrettable debate going on about regime change, as if somehow we can engage in a direct strategy to engage in regime change. We can't. "We can do everything we can to support Iranian people and degrade the regime's ability to threaten all of us through nuclear weapons or threaten us with terrorism and transnational oppression. "We can also do everything we can to sanction and impede the ability of the state security apparatus to oppress its own people. "But, ultimately, the kinetic moment when the dry leaves and the twigs of a forest catch fire, as a metaphor for revolution, is up to the Iranian people." Inside Iran's brutal crackdown on its own people by Katie Davis, Chief Foreign Reporter (Digital) TYRANNICAL leaders in Iran have demanded citizens act as undercover informants to turn in anyone who dares oppose the regime, insiders say. Panicked mullahs have also ordered "telecom cages" be installed around prisons as the regime wages war against its own people. Political prisoners - largely banished to death row on trumped-up charges - have been subject to extreme torture and a disturbing rate of executions in the face of growing tensions in the Middle East. Insiders say their treatment is being weaponised to deter opposition. The fight against repression has loomed large for decades in the rogue state - but the so-called 12-day war last month has made the barbaric Ayatollah more fearful than ever of being toppled. With Ali Khamenei's grip weakened by the unprecedented Israeli and US blitz, the incapacitated supreme leader has discharged fresh hell on his own people in a corrupt bid to stifle uprising. Sources inside Iran told The Sun how a direct alert has been issued to the public, urging them to report any activity linked to resistance groups of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Regime loyalists have been implored to act as informants - compiling detailed reports with photos, times, locations, licence plates and facial features of suspected individuals.
The Irish Sun
12-07-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
Iran's aging & paranoid Ayatollah is hanging by a thread – I know how it will all come crashing down, says ex-ambassador
IRAN'S merciless regime is "fully on its heels" - leaving the Ayatollah's days numbered, a former US ambassador says. But the West will not be able to topple Tehran's brutal dictatorship, Mark D. Wallace, CEO & Founder of United Against Nuclear Iran, warned. 10 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on July 5 Credit: Getty 10 A building on fire after an Israeli strike in Tehran Credit: AFP 10 Airstrike craters at Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP) Credit: AFP The ex-ambassador to the UN said it will be down to the Iranian people - who have suffered outrageous repression for decades - to finally end the regime's rule. Iron-fist fanatics have used violent and ruthless measures, including executions and torture, in a twisted bid to stamp out opposition and silence critics. The regime's future now appears to be hanging by a thread, however, as it sits in a "combustible state" following the obliteration of its nuclear empire by the US and Israel. Several of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's top military brass were wiped out in the 12-day war - leaving the barbaric ruler vulnerable. More on Iran Power held by Iran's terror proxies - including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - has also been severely depleted. Wallace told The Sun: "The regime isn't just wounded, they're fully on their heels. "The very old Ayatollah has been hiding in a bunker somewhere, and there's clearly going to be some sort of transition. "Remember, there have only been two Ayatollahs. The question is, is there going to be a third." Most read in The Sun Iran's first Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power during the revolution of 1979 - ousting the Shah empire and transforming the state into a theocratic Islamic republic. His bloody rule was taken over by Khamenei following his death a decade later. Iran's Ayatollah breaks silence after WEEKS cowering in bunker during Israel's blitz and 'obliterating' Trump strikes Since then, Tehran has ramped up its nuclear ambitions and become an increasingly bigger threat to not only the Middle East but the West too. The US and Israel then took decisive action last month by staging an unprecedented blitz of Iran's nuclear bases. It dealt a major blow to Khamenei's top military brass - wiping out the commander in chief, deputy commander and boss of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. At least seven other generals were killed, as well as politician Ali Shamkhani - a close confidant of the Ayatollah - and two nuclear scientists. Khamenei cowered in hiding in a bunker as the chorus of voices fighting against repression and calling for the regime to be overthrown grew louder. Before the 12-day war, Israel had almost diminished the capabilities of terror proxies largely funded by Ukraine. Wallace said the "incredibly weak" Ayatollah will now be fearing his remaining generals could be spies. 10 Mojtaba Khamenei could be a succssor 10 The Chief Justice of Iran, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i, may also be in the running Credit: Getty 10 Iran's former president Hassan Rouhani could be selected Credit: AFP 10 An Iranian ballistic missile over the skies near Jerusalem in two salvos of missiles Credit: EPA "And there's no clear succession," he added. "The Ayatollah is on his heels. When he finally came out [of hiding] he sounded very weak. He sounded like an 86-year-old man who had been hiding in a bunker, trying to keep his regime alive. "Really it does call into question how long he will be there. We know he's going to die of either natural or unnatural causes sometime in the next couple of years. "The question is, what happens next? And I think he's doing everything he can to try to find some sort of path to succession, to continue this revolutionary regime." Khamenei will now be scrambling to have a clear succession mapped out - with at least five of his top confidants thought to be in the running. The aging despot's son Mojtaba Khamenei is a cleric and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, so could be high on the potential list of successors. Also in the running is likely to be Assembly of Experts members Alireza Arafi and Hojjatal Islam Mohsen Qomi and reform-minded presidents such as Hassan Rouhani. The head of Iran's judicial system Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i meanwhile is thought of as a front-runner to take the reins. The ruling establishment will try to immediately name a successor to Khamenei if he is killed or dies naturally. Despite the international outcry against the regime waging war against its own people and the threat of aggression to other nations, Wallace argued the West cannot help remove the fanatics. 10 Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, pictured meeting Pope Francis, could be Khamenei's choice Credit: Alamy 10 Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (right) speaks with the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei's representative, Hojjatal Islam Mohsen Qomi Credit: Getty 10 A demonstrator holding an Israeli flag and an Iranian flag in a protest against the Iranian government Credit: Reuters "The only path ultimately is for the regime to fall - but that is solely in the control of the Iranian people," he said. "Sadly, the Iranian people will suffer, and a good number will likely have to die for that to happen, and they're being persecuted as we speak. "There's this regrettable debate going on about regime change, as if somehow we can engage in a direct strategy to engage in regime change. We can't. "We can do everything we can to support Iranian people and degrade the regime's ability to threaten all of us through nuclear weapons or threaten us with terrorism and transnational oppression. "We can also do everything we can to sanction and impede the ability of the state security apparatus to oppress its own people. "But, ultimately, the kinetic moment when the dry leaves and the twigs of a forest catch fire, as a metaphor for revolution, is up to the Iranian people." Inside Iran's brutal crackdown on its own people by Katie Davis, Chief Foreign Reporter (Digital) TYRANNICAL leaders in Iran have demanded citizens act as undercover informants to turn in anyone who dares oppose the regime, insiders say. Panicked mullahs have also ordered "telecom cages" be installed around prisons as the regime Political prisoners - largely Insiders say their treatment is being weaponised to deter opposition. The fight against repression has loomed large for decades in the rogue state - but the so-called 12-day war last month has made the barbaric Ayatollah more fearful than ever of being toppled. With Ali Khamenei's grip weakened by the unprecedented Israeli and US blitz, the incapacitated supreme leader has discharged fresh hell on his own people in a corrupt bid to stifle uprising. Sources inside Iran told The Sun how a direct alert has been issued to the public, urging them to report any activity linked to resistance groups of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Regime loyalists have been implored to act as informants - compiling detailed reports with photos, times, locations, licence plates and facial features of suspected individuals.
The Sun
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Neighbour spying on neighbour, execution sprees & ‘telecom cages': How Iran is cracking down on critics after 12-day war
TYRANNICAL leaders in Iran have demanded citizens act as undercover informants to turn in anyone who dares oppose the regime, insiders say. Panicked mullahs have also ordered "telecom cages" be installed around prisons as the regime wages war against its own people. 5 5 Political prisoners - largely banished to death row on trumped-up charges - have been subject to extreme torture and a disturbing rate of executions in the face of growing tensions in the Middle East. Insiders say their treatment is being weaponised to deter opposition. The fight against repression has loomed large for decades in the rogue state - but the so-called 12-day war last month has made the barbaric Ayatollah more fearful than ever of being toppled. Ambassador Mark D. Wallace, CEO and Founder of United Against Nuclear Iran, said the Ayatollah is "on his heels" and is "engaging in a purification campaign". He told The Sun: "The Ayatollah is incredibly weak and I think what he's doing is out of fear that his regime is going to collapse. "He's looking around, most of his generals have been killed. Those that are alive, he is probably suspicious that they are spies. "There's no clear succession, and I think the Ayatollah is on his heels. "He's doing everything he can to try to find some sort of path to a succession, and the continuation of this revolutionary regime." With Ali Khamenei's grip weakened by the unprecedented Israeli and US blitz, the incapacitated supreme leader has discharged fresh hell on his own people in a corrupt bid to stifle uprising. Sources inside Iran told The Sun how a direct alert has been issued to the public, urging them to report any activity linked to resistance groups of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Iran's supreme leader the Ayatollah, 86, breaks cover with first appearance since Trump ordered Israel not to kill him Regime loyalists have been implored to act as informants - compiling detailed reports with photos, times, locations, licence plates and facial features of suspected individuals. Orders were publicised in an official government news outlet - marking a distinct shift in the paranoid regime's usual strategy of covert suppression. Insiders noted it points to the regime's growing perceived threat posed by the PMOI's grassroots operations. The PMOI has long fought for a secular, democratic Iran, and is understood to be gaining traction amid frustration with economic hardship, political repression, and international isolation. Iranians have lived under the iron-fist rule of fanatics ever since the revolution in 1979 saw the country transformed into an Islamic republic. The close-knit cadres have attempted to thwart opposition by any means necessary for 46 years - but now lie incredibly vulnerable. Anxious mullahs forced a complete shutdown of internet access in government offices during the conflict last month to take full control of information flow. Iran regime massacres inmates by Katie Davis, Chief Foreign Reporter (Digital) IRAN'S ruthless regime massacred defenceless inmates at a prison before blaming their deaths on shrapnel from airstrikes, insiders revealed. Cold-blooded regime dictators have also ordered the arrest of hundreds after accusing them of having links to arch-foe Israel. As Israeli missiles rained down on a nearby military site on June 16, panicked inmates at Dizel-Abad Prison in Kermanshah begged to be moved to safety. But they were instead met with a hail of bullets from the regime's merciless enforcers in a "deliberate and cold-blooded act", a witness said. The source from within the prison said: "The prisoners insisted they be moved from areas where windows had shattered and where they feared further missile strikes. "The regime's answer was bullets. "The special forces opened fire directly at unarmed, defenseless inmates who were merely trying to flee a danger zone." Insiders said the prisoners faced live ammunition after guards began beating inmates when they tried to breach internal doors in a bid to get to safety. At least ten people were killed and a further 30 injured. Regime authorities are now said to be attempting to cover up the deaths. One source said: "Officials are planning to falsely attribute the deaths to shrapnel from the airstrike, not their own gunfire." READ MORE HERE Universities were mandated to create "war monitoring rooms" on every campus - which continue to put the personal social media activity of professors and students under surveillance. Meanwhile, the Supreme National Security Council is installing "telecom cages" at prisons around the state to sever any external communications inmates have. Jamming devices have been deployed to disrupt messages and calls being made - preventing any contact with the outside world. It comes as execution numbers have spiralled in recent weeks - with 424 recorded since March 21, according to figures from the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). In just three days during the conflict between Israel and Iran, 17 prisoners - including one woman - were executed. One source said: "This surge is a deliberate tactic to instill fear and crush resistance." 5 5 Wallace, who served as the US ambassador to the United Nations, said the regime has ramped up its "vicious clampdown" to prevent "people pouring out in opposition in the streets". The ex-diplomat added: "You see real Iranians suffering every day in those streets, and we cannot forget about them. "The only path ultimately for the regime to fall is solely in the control of the Iranian people. "Sadly, the Iranian people will suffer, and many will likely have to die for that to happen, and they're being persecuted as we speak today. "I'm sure there are people being imprisoned and likely will meet their death because of the crackdown of that state security apparatus. "It's really essential that we do not forget the people of Iran that are the victims of this regime." The NCRI has warned how four political prisoners are facing severe torture as regime enforcers try to extract forced confessions to try and link them to the deaths of two notorious regime judges. Plight of four prisoners FOUR political prisoners are being subjected to prologner interrogation and torture in efforts to extarct fabricated confessions, insiders say. NCRI sources say the regime is trying to link Arghavan Fallahi, Bijan Kazemi, and Mohammad and Amirhossein Akbari Monfared, to the deaths of regime executioners Moghiseh and Razini. Fallahi, 25, was arrested at her home in Tehran on January 25, and was taken to Ward 241 of Evin Prison. She spent 25 months in solitary confinement and after the prison was evacuated last month she was moved to solitary confinement in Fashafouyeh (Greater Tehran Prison). Fallahi was previously arrested in November 2022 along with her father, Nasrollah Fallahi, a political prisoner from the 1980s, and was later released. Nasrollah, who is serving a five-year prison sentence, is now being held in Fashafouyeh Prison. Kazemi, meanwhile, was arrested by intelligence agents in Kuhdasht on January 20 and was put in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin Prison before being moved to Fashafouyeh. Interrogators claim Kazemi, 44, provided weapons to the assailants of Razini and Moghiseh. Kazemi was arrested before in March 2020 and imprisoned for over two years in Khorramabad Prison. He was released but was fitted with an ankle monitor for more than a year for surveillance. Amirhossein, 22, was detained on January 19 - a day after Razini and Moghiseh were killed. He was taken to Ward 209 of Evin Prison and has been subjected to severe torture, insiders say. Two days later, intelligence agents raided his home again and arrested his father Mohammad. Mohammad was previously a political prisoners in the 1980s, and was also arrested during the 2022 uprising. Four members of their family were executed in the 1980s - PMOI members Alireza, Gholamreza, Abdolreza, and Roghieh Akbari Monfared. Their sister, Maryam Akbari Monfared, is serving her sixteenth year in prison for seeking justice for her siblings. Arghavan Fallahi, Bijan Kazemi, and father and son Mohammad and Amirhossein Akbari Monfared have been subjected to prolonged interrogation and could face the death penalty. Despite this, defiant campaigners have continued their "No to Execution Tuesdays" movement - uniting activists and the families of inmates. Zolal Habibi, of the NCRI's Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Sun: "Even in the midst of war, the clerical regime in Iran has not paused its machinery of executions and repression for a single day. "This chilling reality underscores a deeper truth: the primary war in Iran is not external, but internal — a war between the Iranian people and their organised resistance on one side, and the ruling religious dictatorship on the other. "Yet amid this brutality, the resilience of the Iranian people shines through. "Last Tuesday, political prisoners across 47 prisons -the most tightly controlled spaces in the country - continued their campaign against the death penalty for the 74th consecutive week. "Their defiance is a source of pride for every Iranian who dreams of freedom."
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iran regime escalates repression toward 'North Korea-style model of isolation and control'
In the wake of the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, the regime appears to be turning inward — escalating repression with chilling speed. According to Kasra Aarabi, director of IRGC research at United Against Nuclear Iran, the Islamic Republic is accelerating toward what he said is a "North Korea-style model of isolation and control." "We're witnessing a kind of domestic isolation that will have major consequences for the Iranian people," Aarabi told Fox News Digital. "The regime has always been totalitarian, but the level of suppression now is unprecedented. It's unlike anything we've seen before." Saudi Defense Minister Secretly Meets With Trump To Discuss Iran De-escalation, Israel: Sources A source inside Iran confirmed to Fox News Digital that "the repression has become terrifying." Aarabi, who maintains direct lines of contact in Iran, described a country under siege by its own rulers. In Tehran, he described how citizens are stopped at random, their phones confiscated and searched. "If you have content deemed pro-Israel or mocking the regime, you disappear," he said. "People are now leaving their phones at home or deleting everything before they step outside." Read On The Fox News App This new wave of paranoia and fear, he explained, mirrors tactics seen in North Korea — where citizens vanish without explanation and information is tightly controlled. During the recent conflict, Iran's leadership imposed a total internet blackout to isolate the population, blocking Israeli evacuation alerts, and pushed propaganda that framed Israel as targeting civilians indiscriminately. "It was a perverse objective," Aarabi said, adding, "They deliberately cut communications to instill fear and manipulate public perception. For four days, not a single message went through. Even Israeli evacuation alerts didn't reach their targets." The regime's aim, he said, was twofold: to keep people off the streets and erode the surprising bond that had formed between Iranians and Israelis. "At the start of the war, many Iranians welcomed the strikes," Aarabi noted. "They knew Israel was targeting the IRGC — the very forces responsible for suppressing and killing their own people. But once the internet was cut and fear set in, some began to question what was happening." Dr. Afshon Ostovar, a leading Iran scholar and author of "Vanguard of the Imam: Religion, Politics, and Iran's Revolutionary Guards," said domestic repression remains the regime's most reliable strategy for survival. What's Next For Iran's Terror Army, The Irgc, After Devastating Military Setbacks? "Repressing the people at home is easy. That's something they can do. So it's not unlikely that Iran could become more insular, more autocratic, more repressive — and more similar to, let's say, a North Korea — than what it is today. That might be the only way they see to preserve the regime: by really tightening the screws on the Iranian people, to ensure that the Iranian population doesn't try to rise up and topple the regime," he told Fox News Digital. Inside the regime's power structure, the fallout from the war is just as severe. Aarabi said that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is facing an internal crisis of trust and an imminent purge. "These operations couldn't have taken place without infiltration at the highest levels," he said. "There's immense pressure now to clean house." The next generation of IRGC officers — those who joined after 2000 — are younger, more radical and deeply indoctrinated. Over half of their training is now ideological. Aarabi said that these newer factions have begun turning on senior commanders, accusing them of being too soft on Israel or even collaborating with Mossad. "In a twist of irony, Khamenei created these extreme ideological ranks to consolidate power — and now they're more radical than he is," Aarabi said. "He's struggling to control them." A purge is likely, along with the rise of younger, less experienced commanders with far higher risk tolerance — a shift that could make the IRGC more volatile both domestically and internationally. With Iran's conventional military doctrine in ruins, terrorism may become its primary lever of influence. "The regime's three pillars — militias, ballistic missiles, and its nuclear program — have all been decapitated or severely degraded," Aarabi said. "That leaves only asymmetric warfare: soft-target terrorism with plausible deniability." Despite the regime's brutal turn inward, Aarabi insists this is a sign of weakness, not strength. "If the Islamic Republic were confident, it wouldn't need to crush its people this way," he said. "It's acting out of fear. But until the regime's suppressive apparatus is dismantled, the streets will remain silent — and regime change remains unlikely."Original article source: Iran regime escalates repression toward 'North Korea-style model of isolation and control'
