Iranian Officials Double Down On Warmongering Amid Regional Tensions – OpEd
On the morning of Saturday, October 26, during Israel’s aerial attacks targeting various military sites in Iran, the government-affiliated Khabar Fouri Telegram channel issued an announcement about “the serious consequences of sharing images and news with opposition media.” Labeling this action a “crime,” the channel warned, “Anyone who cooperates with hostile foreign governments against the Islamic Republic of Iran, unless considered an enemy combatant, will be sentenced to between one and ten years in prison.”
Previously, Massoud Ali, a cleric close to the office of regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei, referenced internal conflicts and disputes within the regime during wartime crises, doubled down on the regime’s warmongering in the region. He advocated for prosecuting and threatening dissenting voices against the regime’s costly interventions in the region. He questioned, “Why isn’t the judiciary taking the actions necessary during wartime? This is wartime; they should be tried as they would be in war.” He elaborated, “Some of these people, if we assume generosity, may be called ignorant; otherwise, they’re traitors.”
The cleric also cited additional instances of turmoil and infighting within Iran’s regime and called for more aggressive terrorist interventions in the region. Ali said, “After the martyrdom of Ismail Haniyeh, we refrained from action for two months, and nothing happened. During these two months, on social media and in some outlets, there was talk. God is my witness, I can barely bring myself to say it. Commanders like Bagheri, Salami, and Hajizadeh were accused of ‘political impotence.’ I apologize to them all, but this term—political impotence! This language circulated, questioning why they hesitated to act. Has this created deep-seated distrust—should it be like this?” (Regime television – October 25).
A little earlier, on October 25, Alireza Arafi, the government-appointed head of the regime’s seminaries, spoke on state television, condemning any person and institution who opposes the financial and social costs of war and supporting a two-state solution.
Arafi emphasized, “We are at a historical turning point and a sensitive moment, requiring vigilance, wisdom, foundational decisions, bold steps, and resilience against those adversaries who seek to weaken the Islamic world [i.e., the mullahs’ regime]. This is a new scenario entirely. In this grand struggle and monumental confrontation, the first condition is to hold the correct and principled positions.”
This “immense clash” and “historical turning point,” as this alarmed cleric describes, are the grim consequences of the regime’s warmongering, which has now entrapped his regime. The fact that Iranian officials are doubling down on warmongering and chaos despite overwhelming opposition against these actions within Iran reveals much about the regime’s nature. The regime intended to use war to counter uprisings within Iran and position himself as a regional power and global player. However, this strategy has backfired, leading to fear, division, and internal conflicts within the regime’s war-driven quagmire. And the regime’s costly intervention in the region, which has come at the expense of the most basic needs of millions of Iranians, will give the people more reason to rise up against this regime and take their destiny and country back from the criminal mullahs.
