Raz Zimmt

Conclusions from a discussion among Iranian experts, in which criticism was voiced against Tehran's war strategy

Mojtaba Khamenei succeeded his father following his assassination last February, but has not appeared in public since. How is Iran working to preserve the Supreme Leader's legitimacy, and how might his continued absence impact the regime's stability?

The debate within Iran’s leadership over the possibility of a nuclear breakout, and its implications for the Islamic Republic’s nuclear policy following two military campaigns

How does Tehran view the defense agreement signed between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan?

How have the war and the subsequent worsening economic crisis accelerated the ongoing erosion of Iran's middle class — and what are the social and political implications of this process?

Since the end of 2024 there has been growing criticism from ultra-conservative and revolutionary factions in the Islamic Republic on issues of domestic and foreign policy. Most of the criticism has focused on Iran’s lack of response to the Israeli attack on October 26, 2024, Iranian failures in Syria in view of the collapse of the Assad regime, and the decision to postpone implementation of the hijab law, which is intended to increase the severity of penalties for breaches of the Islamic dress code. Although disagreements between the main political streams in Iran are a regular feature of the system, the protest by radical groups is a subject of intense public and political interest, mainly because it centers around decisions that are not the sole responsibility of the government and that were taken by political institutions directly subordinate to the supreme leader, particularly the Supreme National Security Council. Therefore, sections of the conservative camp have expressed concern that the challenges to government policy posed by the radicals could not only further undermine social cohesion but also damage the unity of the governing elite. Even if the radical elements’ growing criticism of regime policy does not constitute an immediate and significant threat to the unity of the Iranian political and security elite, it could undermine the basis of the regime’s ideological support and harm its long-term ability to deal with more important threats to its stability.