Iran on the brink: Key reasons behind growing unrest named
Photo: Grounds for mass protests are growing in Iran (Getty Images)
Amid the Middle East conflict, the ground for mass protests is intensifying in Iran. Beni Sabti, an Iran expert at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv, names the country's leadership's failure to meet the basic needs of ordinary citizens as one of the reasons.
"We see that IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps - ed.) is running the country, like a kind of what happened with Hamas, and the people don't matter to them. So they just want to survive, to remain in the regime, and this is the reason that last night they pushed Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the last leader, to be the leader," Sabti said.
According to him, this is their way of controlling the country. They have power, but that doesn't mean they've managed to provide resources for civilians or solve critical issues like water shortages.
"They care only about remaining in the regime, just like what happened with the military part of Hamas in Gaza. There is, because of that, actually, and because of bringing Mojtaba to be the new leader, there can be even more potential for more protests," the expert added.
He also emphasized that Israel and the US are targeting and bombing even the IRGC headquarters, meant to suppress uprisings.
"There are so many, and it takes time, so for now we don't see the people come out. I think President Trump can call them out, so it can have a huge effect," Sabti concluded.
Previously, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the future of Israel-Iran relations depends on the Iranian people themselves. According to him, Iranian citizens must rise against the current regime if they want to change the country’s political course and pave the way for normalization of ties between the two states.
Netanyahu stressed that only internal changes in Iran could create conditions for restoring friendly relations with Israel.
