Posted on 01/03/2018 6:17:56 AM PST by RoosterRedux
The wave of violent protests churning across Iran differs dramatically from the last major uprising that rocked the country in 2009 and could spiral out of control if the regime moves too quickly toward military-style tactics to crush the unrest.
While the abortive Green Revolution eight years ago was driven mainly by the children of wealthy political elites in Tehran in the wake of a questionable election, the spontaneous protests this time around are unfolding across the country and driven by what analysts describe as “the working poor” — a segment of the population that has little to lose in the face of a crackdown by the regime.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has tread lightly since the protests began last week, weighed in for the first time Tuesday by claiming the protests were being spurred on by “enemies of Iran.” His remarks came in the wake of harsh comments from President Trump on Twitter on the government’s handling of the popular protests amid reports of hundreds of arrests and 21 deaths caused by the unrest.
The White House said Tuesday that Mr. Trump was weighing new sanctions on Iran in light of the unrest. Mr. Trump on Twitter said the Iranian nuclear deal President Obama helped negotiate in 2015 was in part to blame for giving Tehran billions of dollars to fund the military and repress dissent at home.
Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, called on the Security Council and the U.N. Human Rights Council to hold emergency meetings on the crisis.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
Iranian Sans-Culettes. Instead of the guillotine bring out lots of stones.
Not to worry. Our State Department collection of marshmallow major idiots are tirelessly working to make sure that nothing will be done to injure the Dorkbama the Muslim eunuch wonder boy’s legacy of continued treason, incompetance, and idiocy.
God bless Trump AND his security detail.
Rarely has the future rested so much on one man.
a French Connection ???
Talking about it ain’t gonna get it done.
The MSM speaking dismissively of those thirsting for a little freedom.
Don’t see that every day...
Eh ???
Our State Department collection of marshmallow major idiots
—
Headed by the Pillsbury Dough Boy his self Rex, the King, Tillerson ...
It’s so hard for us to tell from far away if this will be successful or not. One thing I agree on from numerous articles to include this one, watch the military and police. If they do not start cracking down or refuse to crack down, then it could be the beginning of the end for the Mullahs. When theocratic dictators lose their enforcers, it’s all over.
The question after that will be, what’s next? Civil war? Another crazy coming to power? Gasp, some form of democracy?? I hope our boys in the CIA are earning their pay this month!!!
Bottom line: Are Iranian military and law enforcement willing to kill thousands of their countrymen to keep the oppressive regime in power? Are soldiers and cops there selected for their religious reliability, the way military and police leaders were selected for their political reliability in the old Soviet Union and the Obama administration?
Don’t bet on the CIA being on top of the situation. These protests actually began weeks ago, then metastasized after events in Mashhad last week, spreading like wildfire across Iran. It would be interesting to see if the initial unrest actually made the Presidential Daily Brief, which is (largely) the work of the gang at Langley. Based on my own experience, I can almost predict that analysts and their supervisors:
- Didn’t include any mention of the protests (before Mashhad), believing them to be insignificant
- Downplayed scope/tenor of the uprising as “not a threat” to the regime (after being forced to report on the escalating situation in Iran)
- Ignored key differences between the 2009 protests and the current revolt. The Green Revolution of nine years ago was rooted in a corrupt election; this time around, it’s about economic issues; most of the protestors are working-class Iranians who are tired of high unemployment, stagnant wages spiraling inflation—and many feel like they have nothing to lose in rising up against the mullahs.
To be fair, there are probably some analysts who have been on the Iran revolt from the beginning, but if their supervisors and agency leadership don’t publish their work, it never sees the light of day. And there are still plenty of Brennan clones at Langley, senior officials fully invested in the nuclear deal and the “partnership” with the current government.
This time the revolt is coming from rural areas across Iran. Rural people generally love freedom more and are more resourceful than the pampered class. We should support their cause.
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