In a basement bar in Yerevan, Iranian rebel fighters, artists, and refugees gather over beer to discuss the realities of life under the Iranian regime — but they can’t stop looking over their shoulder
Thanks you for that excellent reporting about Iranians in Armenia. That is not the kind of reporting that US media cares about any longer. Your courage and determination are admirable, and I look forward to your reporting on trump's new war with Iran. With trump and his incompetent admin at the helm, I have a filling that there will be more unexpected fallout from this attack. While the demise of ruthless dictators is better for all, I still wonder why trump supports the Butcher of Bucha. Much still left to be learned. Keep up the great work!
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and generous words, they truly mean a lot. Covering stories that don’t always receive sustained international attention is important to us, especially when they highlight the human impact of geopolitics rather than just the headlines.
What aspects of this developing situation concern you most, the regional consequences, the humanitarian impact, or the broader shift in global alliances?
Most of us are drawn in sympathy to the Iranian opposition because they tend to be more westernized, espousing democratic ideals and the equality of women, because we recoil against dictatorial systems such as theocracy, and because Iran has helped Russia in the drone war.
But I would issue a caution. Maybe two.
The obvious caution is that it matters *how* change comes about. The US strike on Iran is precisely the same kind of illegal and unjustifiable attack that Ukraine suffered. While even Trump probably isn't stupid enough to land troops in Iran, he very likely intends to take over Iran's oil, as is happening in Venezuela.
A great deal has been made about killing Khamenei. However, Khamenei--and old and ill man-- expressed a desire to be martyred, which will tend to unite the theocratic forces. He had no real power beyond what the council of mullahs granted him. The Iranian state is built around the replaceability of leaders.
The second caution is to beware of what one wishes for--or at least to understand what one is wishing for. The opposition is not homogeneous. It's a complex mix of everyone from true democrats to Kurdish nationalists, Marxists, monarchists--you name it.
The largely non-violent protesters are educated, westernized, and pro-democracy. But there's also a violent opposition that is none of those things. Indeed, we used to characterize the Kurdish element (mojahedin-e-khalq) of it as a terrorist group. While the MEK is not a factor now, it is emblematic of why one should not generalize about large groups of people. The US seems to be supporting the grandson of the former Shah. The likelihood of him delivering democracy is slim to none. The forces that planned the strike--the US, Israel, and the Gulf States--are not democratic.
It's easy to demonize the theocrats. They aren't nice people. It would be great if they could be replaced by democratic forces. But until one understands the context of how the mullahs came to power and have stayed in power for so long, one is vulnerable to being manipulated by our media which, sadly, has largely become state propaganda.
Our team remains based in Kyiv, but the Iran news is obviously dominating the world agenda over the last 36 hours. We've started a new publication that only covers Iran, which you can find at www.iranwar.news -- and that way we'll send those readers more on Iran, and you less.
Thanks you for that excellent reporting about Iranians in Armenia. That is not the kind of reporting that US media cares about any longer. Your courage and determination are admirable, and I look forward to your reporting on trump's new war with Iran. With trump and his incompetent admin at the helm, I have a filling that there will be more unexpected fallout from this attack. While the demise of ruthless dictators is better for all, I still wonder why trump supports the Butcher of Bucha. Much still left to be learned. Keep up the great work!
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and generous words, they truly mean a lot. Covering stories that don’t always receive sustained international attention is important to us, especially when they highlight the human impact of geopolitics rather than just the headlines.
What aspects of this developing situation concern you most, the regional consequences, the humanitarian impact, or the broader shift in global alliances?
Most of us are drawn in sympathy to the Iranian opposition because they tend to be more westernized, espousing democratic ideals and the equality of women, because we recoil against dictatorial systems such as theocracy, and because Iran has helped Russia in the drone war.
But I would issue a caution. Maybe two.
The obvious caution is that it matters *how* change comes about. The US strike on Iran is precisely the same kind of illegal and unjustifiable attack that Ukraine suffered. While even Trump probably isn't stupid enough to land troops in Iran, he very likely intends to take over Iran's oil, as is happening in Venezuela.
A great deal has been made about killing Khamenei. However, Khamenei--and old and ill man-- expressed a desire to be martyred, which will tend to unite the theocratic forces. He had no real power beyond what the council of mullahs granted him. The Iranian state is built around the replaceability of leaders.
The second caution is to beware of what one wishes for--or at least to understand what one is wishing for. The opposition is not homogeneous. It's a complex mix of everyone from true democrats to Kurdish nationalists, Marxists, monarchists--you name it.
The largely non-violent protesters are educated, westernized, and pro-democracy. But there's also a violent opposition that is none of those things. Indeed, we used to characterize the Kurdish element (mojahedin-e-khalq) of it as a terrorist group. While the MEK is not a factor now, it is emblematic of why one should not generalize about large groups of people. The US seems to be supporting the grandson of the former Shah. The likelihood of him delivering democracy is slim to none. The forces that planned the strike--the US, Israel, and the Gulf States--are not democratic.
It's easy to demonize the theocrats. They aren't nice people. It would be great if they could be replaced by democratic forces. But until one understands the context of how the mullahs came to power and have stayed in power for so long, one is vulnerable to being manipulated by our media which, sadly, has largely become state propaganda.
What happened to your coverage of the war in Ukraine?
Our team remains based in Kyiv, but the Iran news is obviously dominating the world agenda over the last 36 hours. We've started a new publication that only covers Iran, which you can find at www.iranwar.news -- and that way we'll send those readers more on Iran, and you less.
Thanks Tim.