On June 19, the Iranian government’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, appointed Ebrahim Raisi as the mullahs’ new president in an effort to consolidate power inside his system.
Raisi’s history of human rights breaches
Many observers are now asking why Khamenei made this decision considering Raisi’s history of human rights breaches, particularly his role in the 1988 massacre and the execution of protestors during Iran’s massive uprisings in 2019.
Raisi, on the other hand, is sanctioned by the United States, and international bodies like Amnesty International have urged for his trial for crimes against humanity.
Khamenei is well aware that his regime is vulnerable to popular uprisings. The dictatorship is dealing with a series of uncontrollable problems, and Raisi’s “selection” is the regime’s answer.
Iran’s economic situation is the worst
“Iran’s economic situation is the worst it has been over the last century… There is rampant poverty everywhere. We witness tragic trends such as “grave dwelling.” People are forced to sell their organs to earn a living. On the other hand, the situation has reached such explosiveness that any social protest rapidly takes on political overtones, and people demand regime change,” said the chairman of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Mohammad Mohaddessin, on October 14.
“The Iranian society has reached a level of awareness that the only solution for meeting even the most basic challenges to improve living conditions is simply regime change,” Mohaddessin added. “Thus, any social protest is rapidly dominated by political demands.”
The flames of resistance
Furthermore, the emergence of the People’s Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI / MEK Iran), “Resistance Units” around Iran has fanned the flames of resistance, and their spread poses an existential threat to the regime. Resistance Units have not only maintained but also expanded the resistance fire across the country over the previous three years. Despite the regime’s decades of demonization efforts and vilification of the MEK, Iran’s younger population is drawn to its beliefs and supports its methods.
To maintain his regime, Khamenei commits a slew of crimes. Khamenei has left the Iranian people vulnerable in the face of the coronavirus during the last two years. Following the approval of Covid-19 vaccinations, governments rushed to vaccinate their populations. Despite this, Khamenei barred the entry of American and European vaccines into Iran, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iranians.
Mass casualties by exploiting the coronavirus outbreak
“Khamenei intended to launch mass casualties by exploiting the coronavirus outbreak. He calculated that if the coronavirus could result in mass casualties, people would naturally be disillusioned, and no one would have the energy to rise up against the regime. Thus, there would be an atmosphere of despair and hopelessness in society,” Mohaddessin noted.
The MEK’s Resistance Units have not only kept the flames of resistance alight in every arena during the last three years, but they have also increased their actions. They have motivated younger generations of Iranians to follow in the footsteps of the MEK, despite the regime’s efforts to keep them from discovering the MEK’s true message and demonization campaign. As a result, Khamenei’s callous program of mass casualties failed, and the regime now faces significant challenges.
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