What Makes the Iranian Protests Different This Time

"On Friday, the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, threatened to continue cracking down on protesters who have risen up against his regime, calling them "vandals" working for the Americans. Years of Western sanctions and internal mismanagement have caused Iran's economy to crater; in response to increasing domestic anger, Iran's government has cut off access to the internet, and protests have been met violently by security forces."

"(Rights groups have reported dozens of deaths; a doctor told Time magazine that six hospitals in Tehran alone had recorded more than two hundred protester deaths.) The protests are only the latest problem facing Khamenei's regime, which had much of its leadership assassinated by Israel during a twelve-day war last June. (President Trump also ordered the bombing of Iranian nuclear-enrichment sites in June.) Meanwhile, Iran's network of allies across the Middle East has been severely weakened."

"I recently spoke by phone with Fatemeh Shams, an associate professor of Persian literature at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a feminist activist and, since 2009, has been an Iranian exile. During our conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity, we discussed what has made this round of protests against the Iranian regime unique, how the regime's humiliation by Israel has weakened its standing at home, and why the crackdown on protesters might get even more brutal than in earlier eras."

Iran is experiencing widespread unrest driven by an economic collapse caused by Western sanctions and internal mismanagement. The government has cut internet access and security forces have responded to protests with violent crackdowns, with rights groups and hospital reports indicating dozens to hundreds of deaths. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei labeled protesters "vandals" and signaled continued repression. Iran's regional influence has eroded after leadership assassinations attributed to Israel, military strikes including U.S. bombing of nuclear-enrichment sites, and setbacks in Syria and Lebanon that diminished allied proxies. Observers warn the regime's response may intensify as domestic pressure grows.

Read at The New Yorker