Four days after the fall of former Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad, the leader of the Iranian regime, Ali Khamenei, alarmed by the consequences of losing his regime’s strategic depth, took the stage to encourage his forces and boost their morale while attempting to neutralize the stagnation and inactivity engulfing the regime through unrealistic statements and unattainable promises.
Khamenei referred to the perilous situation of the regime, stating, “In our region, which is one of the world’s most sensitive areas, events are unfolding,” and added, “Lessons and warnings should be drawn from these incidents. The public is also engaged with these issues; they have questions and comments, and ambiguities must be addressed.”
Admitting the passivity affecting his forces resulting from the significant defeat, Khamenei said, “In failures, passivity is poison; sometimes its danger exceeds the event itself.”
To counteract this passivity and demoralization, Khamenei resorted to unrealistic statements and promises of regaining Syria, saying, “The occupied areas of Syria will be liberated by the brave youth of Syria; rest assured, this will happen. The U.S. will also be expelled from the region by the resistance front.”
Fearing the turmoil and internal crisis within the regime and the growing fear and anxiety among regime forces, as well as being aware of revelations about failures in Syria and the squandering of vast resources from the Iranian people’s pockets, Khamenei openly resorted to threats to silence dissent, stating, “If anyone inside makes an analysis or statement that demoralizes the people, it is a crime and must be pursued. Some are determined to demoralize the people, and this should not happen.”
This threat was immediately echoed by some regime leaders, such as Majlis Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and Khamenei’s judiciary summoned several regime officials for the same alleged crime of “demoralizing the people” in an attempt to quell the wave of “questions and ambiguities” sweeping through the regime.
In an attempt to justify his massive strategic failure, which cost tens of billions of dollars and the loss of at least 6,000 IRGC members along with thousands of proxy forces, Khamenei blamed the defunct army of Syria’s fleeing dictator, saying, “In Syria, Qassem Soleimani trained, armed, and organized a group of several thousand youths from among their own people, preparing them to stand firm; if that country’s army showed weakness, these Basij forces couldn’t do much, and unfortunately, this happened.”
Continuing his desperate rhetoric, Khamenei resorted to repeating claims of defending holy sites, inconsistently adding, “Our forces were present in both Iraq and Syria for two reasons: one was to uphold the sanctity of the holy shrines… the other reason was security; officials understood that if this insecurity wasn’t curbed here, it would spread and engulf our vast country in insecurity.”
Khamenei, denying his humiliating defeat witnessed by the entire world, insisted on continuing his regional interventionist policies, stating, “Ignorant analysts unaware of the meaning of resistance think that when the resistance weakens, Iran will also weaken. I assert that Iran is strong and powerful, and it will become even stronger. The U.S. will also be expelled from the region by the resistance front.”
By persisting in regional interventions and exporting crises to escape the peril of uprisings, Khamenei dashed the hopes of those inside and outside the regime who expected him to relent on issues such as the nuclear program and regional meddling.
Once again, Khamenei demonstrated that although he hears the signs of his regime’s end from every corner, amidst an exasperated society and organized resistance, he lacks the capacity for such maneuvers at the crossroads of death or suicide.