In his June 4 speech commemorating the anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini’s death, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei launched a harsh verbal attack on U.S. officials, calling them “rude and arrogant” and accusing them of repeatedly demanding a complete halt to uranium enrichment “in different languages.” However, he stopped short of explicitly accepting or rejecting the written U.S. proposal delivered to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Despite previously declaring that negotiations with the U.S. were “neither honorable nor wise,” Khamenei was ultimately pushed to the negotiating table by a hidden yet potent force: the nationwide network of resistance units affiliated with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, known as PMOI/MEK. Operating across the country, these units have continued to expand in both scale and influence, despite widespread crackdowns.
The ‘Neighborhood-Based Management’ initiative
On June 2, Iranian state media reported a high-level meeting on a new “Neighborhood-Based Management Model.” Participants included President Masoud Pezeshkian, IRGC Commander Hossein Salami, the Minister of Interior, the Minister of Culture and senior Basij commanders.
Though the initiative was officially framed as a plan to boost social cohesion and reduce inequality, the presence of top military and security officials made the real purpose clear: strengthening regime control over society through hyper-local surveillance and suppression. Commander Salami’s emphasis on the readiness of 64,000 Basij bases across the country revealed the initiative’s heavily militarized and security-oriented nature, masked as “public service and social resilience.”
It reflects the regime’s profound fear of another looming uprising.
Expanding control over schools and students
In late April, the Ministry of Education signed an agreement with security agencies to tighten political and security oversight of students and teachers in middle and high schools. Around the same time, Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei announced that nearly 90,000 individuals – many of them students – had been arrested during the 2022 nationwide protests.
A less costly path to resolving the Iranian regime crisis
Despite its reputation as a symbol of brutal repression, Evin Prison has become a site of defiance. In early May, political prisoners staged a protest inside the prison, chanting slogans against Khamenei. Outside, their families demonstrated to demand an end to executions.
These actions mirror a broader societal unrest. Over the past year, workers, teachers, nurses and retirees have repeatedly taken to the streets in protests and strikes. Currently, a massive truck drivers’ strike is underway, spanning 155 cities across Iran.
The regime is increasingly encircled by public discontent. In a speech on March 31, Khamenei admitted that the greatest threat to his rule doesn’t come from the U.S. or Israel, but from within: domestic unrest and uprisings. He pledged to confront this internal danger.
For over 30 years, the international community has urged Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions. Yet Tehran has used negotiations as a stalling tactic while expanding its nuclear infrastructure. The regime’s investment – reportedly exceeding two trillion dollars – makes its true intent clear: the development of nuclear weapons.
The first essential step to blocking Iran’s path to the bomb is activating the U.N. Security Council’s snapback mechanism and restoring full sanctions. Dismantling the regime’s nuclear infrastructure, particularly its uranium enrichment sites, is equally crucial.
However, the ultimate and most sustainable solution lies in regime change driven by the Iranian people and their organized resistance. This path is not only less costly, but offers a real chance to eliminate the broader threat the regime poses.
The ruling theocracy has usurped national sovereignty and left the people without a voice. Supporting the Resistance Units – who continue their courageous struggle against the IRGC – is the only viable route toward restoring democracy and legitimate governance in Iran.
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