The Antiregime Iranian Unrest
It may have seemed like the unrest in the wake of the protests organized by the Iranian people following the murder of Mahsa Amini (for “not wearing her hijab properly”) has started to die down, but that is not the case. There have been a lot of protests in Iran, mainly organized by women and young people, all of which have been rocking the country and definitely upsetting the Islamic Republic, which does not take threats to its authority well.
The crackdown has been brutal against these protestors, who have been pretty much peaceful over the course of the last few months: people have been beaten, killed, and forcefully imprisoned by the state, with many stories of brutal torture being implemented even against minors having rocked the public. What’s worse, a lot of those arrested have been executed after “trials”, which many human rights organizations call shams.
It is obvious that the civil unrest there is not going to stop anytime soon. These protests, which follow a number of other protests that started even back in 2021, just cement that the regime has angered the society.
The recent arms deal with Russia and Iran’s possible withdrawal from the nuclear deal are also points about which many analysts are worried. There is a possibility that any UN sanctions may make the Islamic Republic back down from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which, given the animosity of countries in the region, could lead to rash decisions by a nuclear power.
It is a conflict that, while not an active war, is still important, and we should keep our eyes on it.
