Iran Responds to External and Internal Challenges with Threats and Charades
PDKI’s new strategy of linking the struggle of the Peshmerga Forces in mountains with that of the civilian population in the cities of eastern (Iranian) Kurdistan has presented the Islamist regime in Iran with different challenges. The Iranian regime has responded to these challenges with a combination of military threats and political charades.
Iran has responded to PDKI’s deployment of the Peshmerga Forces to eastern Kurdistan with threats of military action against southern (Iraqi) Kurdistan. In fact, when Iran’s military forces suffered heavy losses in clashes with the Peshmerga Forces from June 15 onward, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a terrorist designated paramilitary entity, shelled villages in eastern Kurdistan. Later, the IRGC extended its military aggression by attacking civilian populated areas in southern Kurdistan.
During the past weeks, senior Iranian military officials have threatened to attack southern Kurdistan. On July 18, these kind of threats, including threats of “annihilating” southern Kurdistan, was renewed by Mohsen Rezaee, former commander of the IRGC and the secretary of the Islamist regime’s so-called Expediency Council.
Meanwhile, a visit for Hassan Rouhani, Iran’s president, to the province of Kermanshah in eastern Kurdistan was organized on July 17 to showcase popular support for the regime. The charade failed.
People had been compelled to show up during Rouhani’s visit. They used the opportunity to show their contempt for the Iranian regime. Kurdish women openly defied the regime by dancing traditional Kurdish folk dance. Others were mocking Rouhani for his unfulfilled pledges of improving the people’s economic conditions and lessening the cultural oppression of the Kurdish people by the islamist regime in Iran.
Rouhani, who usually stays calm, could not hide his anger when he was repeatedly interrupted by the crowd. Rohani ended his speech early and shouted that people should listen to him and that “slogans” will not resolve any problems. Ironically, his own government is by now infamous for having only lofty slogans instead of policies to solve Iran’s political, social, cultural and economic problems.
Such visits by Iranian officials to various parts of Kurdistan are usually managed in detail. Considering the fact that eastern Kurdistan is the center of resistance to the Islamist regime in Tehran, Iranian authorities are extremely keen to organize charades of various sorts in order to showcase popular support.
Knowing that they cannot compel too many Kurds to attend these kind of charades, the Iranian regime brings citizens from other parts of Iran to showcase popular support.
Consistent with PDKI’s expectation, the strategy of linking the struggle of the Peshmerga Forces in the mountains with that of the civilian population in the cities has empowered the people of eastern Kurdistan. People are openly defying the regime.
The sacrifices of PDKI’s Peshmerga Forces have emboldened the Kurdish people in resisting the brutal islamist regime in Iran more openly.