Iran fears that a US strike could break the Islamic regime’s grip on power by prompting renewed protests, the sources said

“People are extremely angry,” said one former official, adding that a US attack could inflame the Iranians again. “The wall of fear has been broken. There is no fear left.”

Iran’s leadership is increasingly concerned that a U.S. strike could break its hold on power by sending an already angry public back into the streets, following a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests, according to six current and former officials.

In high-level meetings, officials told Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that last month’s crackdown, the bloodiest public outrage since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, had reached a point where fear was no longer a deterrent, four current officials briefed on the discussions said.

Officials said Khamenei was told that many Iranians were ready to face security forces again and that external pressure, such as a limited US strike, could embolden them and cause irreparable damage to the political establishment.

An official told Reuters that Iran’s enemies were looking for more protests to end the Islamic Republic and that “unfortunately,” there would be more violence if the uprising took place.

“An attack coupled with demonstrations by angry people could lead to the collapse (of the ruling system). That is the main concern among top officials, and that is what our enemies want,” said the official, who, like other officials contacted for this story, declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The reported comments are significant because they suggest private confusion within the leadership at odds with the protesters and Tehran’s defiant public stance toward the US.

The sources declined to say how Khamenei responded. Iran’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on this account of the meeting.

Multiple sources told Reuters last week that US President Donald Trump was weighing options against Iran, including targeting security forces and leaders to incite protesters, although Israeli and Arab officials said air power alone would not topple the clerical rulers.

The public is very angry, says the former official

Any uprising in the wake of the US strike would stand in contrast to the Iranian response to the Israeli and US bombing of Iran’s nuclear program in June, which was not followed by anti-government protests.

But a former senior middle official said the situation had changed since the crackdown in early January.

“People are extremely angry,” he said, adding that a U.S. attack could inflame the Iranians again. “The wall of fear has been broken. There is no fear left.”

Tension between Tehran and Washington is increasing. The arrival of a US aircraft carrier and Trump’s willingness to support warships in the Middle East after repeatedly threatening to intervene in a bloody crackdown on Iran have expanded the ability to take military action.

Former President Rouhani has said, ‘The regime must make major reforms or face widespread opposition

The Iranian regime needs to make major reforms, or it will face more opposition, former president Hassan Rouhani was quoted as saying. telegraph As such.

“People have demands and we must answer them with big reforms, not small reforms,” ​​Rouhani said.

“If you make a small change, God forbid, we can face the problem in two or three months or even 10 days,” he added.

Nasrullah Pejmanfar, a hardline member of the Iranian parliament, condemned Rouhani’s comments, saying, “Today is the time for great reform, which is the time to arrest and execute Rouhani.”

‘Game over,’ says the former prime minister

Several opposition figures, who were part of the establishment before coming out with it, have warned the leadership that “simmering public anger” could lead to the collapse of the Islamic system.

“The river of warm blood that flowed in the cold month of January will not boil until the pattern of history is changed,” former prime minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who has been detained without trial since 2011, said in a statement published by the pro-reform Kalameh website.

“In what language do people have to say they don’t want this system and don’t believe your lies? Enough is enough. Game over,” Mousavi added in the statement.

Khamenei’s catastrophic domestic, international interference, results in a dire state of affairs policies, says former parliament speaker Karroubi

Iran’s current situation is a “direct result of destructive domestic and international interventions and policies” by Khamenei, former parliament speaker and reformist cleric Mehdi Karroubi was quoted as saying. telegraph As such.

“The expensive and fruitless nuclear project and the heavy consequences of sanctions in the last two decades on the country and the people” were examples of failed policies, according to Karroubi.

“The Depths of Tragedy [of protester deaths and injuries] So profound that no excuse or justification can be accepted for this horrific and merciless massacre and the bodies of the victims are disrespected,” he added.

The only way out of the crisis while maintaining peace is to “recognize the right of the people to self-determination in a free referendum,” he said.

Security forces use lethal force to destroy the demonstration

During the early demonstrations in January, witnesses and rights groups said, security forces crushed the demonstrations with lethal force, killing thousands and injuring many more. Tehran has blamed the violence on “armed terrorists” linked to Israel and the US.

Trump has not stopped short of threats to intervene, but he has demanded nuclear concessions to Iran. Both Tehran and Washington have signaled they are ready to revive diplomacy in the long-running nuclear dispute.

Anger, ‘threat of bloodshed’

Analysts and insiders say that while the streets are quiet now, deep-seated grievances have not gone away.

Economic collapse, political repression, a widening gap between rich and poor, and rampant corruption have left many Iranians feeling trapped in a system that offers no relief and no way forward.

“It may not be the end, but it’s not just the beginning,” said Hossein Rassam, a London-based analyst.

If protests resume amid mounting foreign pressure and security forces use force, six current and former officials said they fear protesters will be emboldened by previous unrest, emboldened by experience and driven by a sense that they have little left to lose.

An official told Reuters that even though people were angrier than before, the establishment would use tougher methods against protesters if they came under US attack. He said the result would be bleeding.

Ordinary Iranians contacted by Reuters said they expected Iran’s rulers to crack down on any further protests.

A resident of Tehran whose 15-year-old son was killed in a demonstration on January 9 said that the protesters were simply seeking a normal life, and were answered “with gunfire”.

“If America attacks, I will take to the streets to avenge my son and the children killed by this regime.”

Iran’s Khamenei compares protesters to Islamic State

Amid ongoing protests, Khamenei compared Iranian protesters to Islamic State terrorists in a post on X/Twitter on Monday.

In one post, the Supreme Leader claimed that “traitors in Iran burned people alive. They cut off people’s heads. They committed atrocities similar to those committed by the Islamic State.”

Khamenei, who called the protests “treason”, said the defining characteristic of the demonstrations was violence and claimed that the protests in Iran were orchestrated by the United States and “Zionists”.