Despite ebbs and flows, Iran’s protests will only escalate

 By Mahmoud Hakamian

Recent protests in the city of Abadan, southwest Iran, erupted following the May 23 collapse of the 10-story Metropol tower that left at least 39 killed. The local protests, however, quickly spread to other cities and people in the streets began voicing slogans specifically targeting the regime in its entirety, calling for regime change.

A few weeks prior, various cities throughout Iran were scenes of anti-regime protests over rising inflation and skyrocketing prices of food staples. Those rallies also quickly gained political overtones, with people chanting: “Death to the velayat-e faqih principle!” referring directly to regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and “Death to Raisi!” in reference to regime President Ebrahim Raisi.

In the city of Andimeshk, southwest Iran, women were seen bravely chanting “Death to the dictator!” and sparking their local protests. The regime’s plainclothes agents were immediately dispatched to prevent the protests from spreading and quell the rallies. Nevertheless, locals rallied in force and forced the regime’s oppressive units to flee the scene.

In the city of Abadan, a senior ranking mullah, while shedding crocodile tears for the victims, attempted to divert popular protests by calling on people into mourning ceremonies. People began protesting and responded by chanting: “Shame on you!”

Authorities in Abadan have also been threatening “legal action” against those launching “illegal gatherings.” Locals responded by rallying in larger numbers and chanting more anti-regime slogans, sending a clear message to both the regime’s local officials and all way up to Tehran about how utterly loathed their entire apparatus is among the Iranian people.

Regime officials have also disrupted, and at times completely disconnected the internet. All the while, the Iranian people have continued their determined protests by finding ways to continue sending their reports and footage of their courageous anti-regime protests to the outside world. The very fact that the mullahs’ regime feels it is necessary to disrupt the internet is further proof of how concerned senior officials are about the dangerous potential of these ongoing protests.

Again, regime officials dispatched anti-riot units and a variety of security forces to the streets to compel people into returning to their homes. Locals have been relentless in their protests and brave elderly mothers have been seen taking footage of the security forces and demanding their members to chant “Death to Khamenei!” These signal a shifting tide among the Iranian people and the general public overcoming the regime’s continuing initiatives aimed at instilling an atmosphere of fear throughout society.

In the city of Masjed Soleyman, the regime’s suppressive forces attacked local gatherings in an attempt to disrupt popular rallies before they would take shape. In today’s circumstances throughout Iran, such measures have the opposite effect and fuel more protests.

This is only the tip of the iceberg of the persistent face-off between the Iranian people and their organized resistance on one side and the mullahs’ regime on the other. Even senior regime officials are voicing concerns regarding these sensitive developments. “Go easy on the people,” warned Seyed Javad Alavi Broujerdi, a senior religious figure, on May 29.

This indicates that Iran is ready for change and the society is seeking regime change by the Iranian people and their organized resistance. The people reject the ruling regime, and the establishment cannot resolve the country’s growing list of crises.

As a result, the vendetta continues to evolve and can only result in the Iranian society’s powder keg exploding against the regime. In such circumstances, any and all protests are considered significant national security concerns for the regime, while bearing in mind that more crackdowns will only ignite further protests.

This article was first published by english.mojahedin