Learning From Khomeini—Leadership, Coalitions, and Defeating the Instruments of RepressionBy Major Nathaniel MartinsDespite remaining essentially leaderless, social unrest precipitated by death of Mahsa Amini in September continues at a scale and intensity in Iran unseen since the Revolution of 1979. [5]Although some scholars assert that Marxist guerillas played a critical role in defeating the Shah’s security apparatus in February 1979, Khomeini achieved the decisive internal collapse of the military beforehand. [16]An Initial Comparison—Similarities and ShortfallsToday’s protests in Iran are undeniably large, but do they possess the requisite social diversity to overcome Iran’s security apparatus? To overcome Iran’s formidable instruments of repression, protests must win meaningful clerical support. However, his method of defeating the Shah’s security forces was sound.

Source: Wall Street Journal January 15, 2023 08:46 UTC