![\"iran](\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/iran-ashura-muharram-khamenei-1.jpg\" "\\"iran")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The events of Muharram in 2023 brought to light a stark reality: the people of Iran differentiate between the turban-wearing hypocrites ruling Iran and their deep faith and religion. This revelation has become an onerous weight for the leaders of the Iranian regime. In recent days, many of them have striven to camouflage this revelation through speeches that they term “therapeutic discourse,” an attempt to invigorate the flagging morale of their diminishing supporters.<\/p>\n
On August 6, during a session that the state-controlled media presented as a gathering with “commanders of the Navy, the 86th Naval Group, and their families,” the Supreme Leader of the Iranian regime, Ali Khamenei, unveiled<\/a> his deep concern.<\/p>\n Khamenei initially claimed, “The first ten days of Muharram were more fervent, more vibrant, and more productive than previous years.” But shortly thereafter in the same speech, he revealed his true perspective with phrases like “dulling the spirit of Muharram by the ‘enemies!” which inadvertently demonstrated how he has received the people\u2019s protesting slogans and eulogies<\/a>.<\/p>\n Four days before Khamenei\u2019s speech, Mohammad Bagheri, the Chief of Staff of the regime\u2019s Armed Forces, had claimed that \u201cthe enemies’ plot to undermine the observance of the first ten days of Muharram had been unsuccessful.\u201d However, in the very speech that was devised to project strength, he found himself admitting genuine concerns.<\/p>\n During a session organized for the paramilitary Basij forces, he stated, “To protect the youth and adolescents in this environment, we need to act strategically and wisely. If the Basij are not in control of the neighborhood, other efforts become futile… The Basij’s significance in mosques and neighborhoods is considerable, and it must have strength. Neighborhood-centered development needs to be robustly pursued. We should identify both strengths and weaknesses thoroughly.”<\/p>\n On August 6, Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf<\/a> also attempted the same in an open session of the Majlis. He stated, “The scheming enemies of the Iranian nation, who had planned to create a divide between the people and the leadership, have once again failed, demonstrating to the world that we are a nation of Imam Hussein and the enduring flame of the people’s love for the descendants of the Prophet [referring to the Ali Khamenei] will burn even brighter.”<\/p>\n Though he also made sure to express special gratitude to “all anonymous soldiers and guardians of Imam Mehdi [a term regime officials use to refer to agents of the Ministry of Intelligence] and the selfless police forces who, during the days of Muharram, managed to protect the system from the threat of rebellion.”<\/p>\n In the age of communication, the true state of affairs in Iran cannot be obscured by mere rhetoric and propaganda. The written records and visual evidence of statements by Friday Prayer leaders<\/a> and other state officials, who expressed concerns about the “diversion of Muharram and religious ceremonies,” are accessible to all.<\/p>\n However, what particularly concerns the leaders of the hypocritical regime traces back many years. In 1979, when the then Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini hijacked Iran\u2019s anti-monarchial revolution and steered it towards establishing an absolute clerical monarchy, he obtained concurrent legitimacy from three sources that offered him a comprehensive and interwoven authority: religious authority, assumption of revolutionary leadership, and political legitimacy with unprecedented powers.<\/p>\n Khomeini managed to suppress his opponents under the banner of “Islam,” “Shiism,” and “Revolution.” Yet he encountered an obstruction with one entity: the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization<\/a> (MEK\/PMOI). This organization cast doubt on Khomeini’s legitimacy across all three dimensions, as it represented the largest organized Muslim opposition group during the Shah’s dictatorship, of whom all its leaders and members were either executed or tortured by the Shah’s regime.<\/p>\n During this year\u2019s #Muharram<\/a>, #Iranians<\/a> demonstrated a profound devotion to the martyrs of uprisings and protests by visiting their burial sites, offering flowers, and singing songs in their honor.https:\/\/t.co\/vWubd7Synq<\/a><\/p>\n — NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) August 3, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nDeep-rooted divide<\/h3>\n
\n