The students and young people of Iran are again demonstrating in opposition to the regime. So far they have not been suppressed by the army. Why ?
The army may not be reliable and may side with the demonstrators.
Leading commentators and diplomats have been pondering for quite some time why the Iranian leader is not prepared to act against the revolution in a major way. The “China model” could be applied, a brutal, fast, and extremely violent strike against the opposition. According to conventional wisdom, tyrants will use all means to eliminate their opponents. So why haven’t the mullahs adopted Chinese methods?
First, China did not use soldiers who were from the area around Beijing. The soldiers who suppressed the students in 1989 were from the provinces and may not have spoken Mandarin.
The army has published an open letter to the regime.
Together we fought in the war with our brothers in the Revolutionary Guards in order to defend the country, the people, and the honor of the nation. They also emphasize that “the value of the land means the value of the Iranian nation.” This is very interesting. ??Value of the nation.
No mention of Islam or the Mahdi.
“The army is a haven for the nation and will never want to suppress the people at the request of politicians. We shall remain true to our promise not to intervene in politics. But we cannot remain silent when our fellow citizens are oppressed by tyranny.”
They go on: “Therefore, we warn the Guards who have betrayed the martyrs (from the war between Iran and Iraq) and who decided to attack the lives, the property and the honor of the citizens. We seriously warn them that if they do not leave their chosen path, they will be confronted with our tough response. The military is a haven for the nation. And we will defend the peace-loving Iranian nation against any aggression.”
The army seems to be making a statement beyond which they do not wish the regime to go.
Maybe Iran will deal with the mullahs without the help of Obama.
Tags: Iran
Maybe so.
Funny thing – I was having this exact conversation with a friend on Thursday morning.
I’m a bit abashed to admit that I hadn’t been following event in Iran, but you’ve gotten me up to speed, doc.
BILL
Perhaps it would be prudent for them to *count* on not having help from Obama. Ultimately, too, this would be better for them in the long run.
It’s interesting how this new wave of increasing protest has been backburnered in western media.
I think Iran might solve its own problem. I hope the Israelis are helping the students. Obama is hopeless on this but he may be getting briefed about developments that convince him the regime may be doomed.