{"id":328770,"date":"2025-02-18T17:34:54","date_gmt":"2025-02-18T16:34:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=328770"},"modified":"2025-11-04T19:41:24","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T18:41:24","slug":"khameneis-speech-reveals-his-deepest-fear-the-iranian-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/khameneis-speech-reveals-his-deepest-fear-the-iranian-people\/","title":{"rendered":"Khamenei\u2019s Speech Reveals His Deepest Fear: The Iranian People\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Iranian regime’s Supreme Leader addressed his forces on February 17, 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Three-minute read<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

On February 17, <\/span>in his latest speech<\/span><\/a>, t<\/span>he regime\u2019s<\/span> Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei exposed the regime\u2019s primary vulnerability\u2014not external military threats, but the growing discontent of the Iranian people. Addressing a carefully selected audience under the guise of a meeting with \u201cthe people of East Azerbaijan,\u201d Khamenei dismissed the prospect of foreign intervention while acknowledging the existential crisis posed by domestic opposition.<\/p>\n

Khamenei confidently asserted that Iran faces no external military threats, boasting that the regime\u2019s defense capabilities are at an \u201celite level\u201d and that \u201cboth friends and foes\u201d recognize its strength. \u201cThe issue today is not a military threat,\u201d he claimed, signaling that the clerical regime has secured its position against conventional warfare through years of regional proxy conflicts and military entrenchment. He reassured his audience that \u201cfrom the perspective of hard defense, from the perspective of hardware threats by the enemy, we have no worries or problems. Today, both we and our enemies know that Iran is at a high level of capability to counter hard threats.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, in stark contrast to this bravado, Khamenei\u2019s real concern emerged when he warned of <\/span>\u201csoft warfare\u201d<\/a>\u2014a term he used to describe internal dissent and what he sees as the enemy\u2019s manipulation of public opinion. He acknowledged that \u201ccreating doubt about the core principles of the Islamic Revolution\u201d is the real battleground, admitting that the clerical dictatorship\u2019s greatest weakness is the growing skepticism within Iranian society. He warned that the \u201cenemy aims to create division, to instill doubt in the fundamental beliefs of the revolution, and to weaken the people’s steadfastness in standing against adversaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

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#Khamenei<\/a> Spins Narratives to Boost Low Morale Amid #Iran<\/a>\u2019s Mounting Criseshttps:\/\/t.co\/zEOHf5dAQf<\/a><\/p>\n

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) January 23, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n