{"id":129312,"date":"2024-05-23T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kendallharmon.net\/?p=129312"},"modified":"2024-05-23T17:50:22","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T21:50:22","slug":"new-yorker-what-raisis-death-means-for-the-future-of-iran","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kendallharmon.net\/?p=129312","title":{"rendered":"(New Yorker) Robin Wright–What Raisi\u2019s Death Means for the Future of Iran"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The theocracy in Tehran is in deep trouble on every front<\/strong>. \u201cThe divide between the population and leadership has only increased\u2014as evidenced by public apathy\u201d at parliamentary elections held in March, Sanam Vakil, an Iran expert at Chatham House, told me. Only forty-one per cent of eligible voters cast ballots\u2014the lowest percentage since the revolution. The reason for public disillusionment is partly economic. Inflation hovered at thirty-five per cent in February; the Iranian rial plummeted to an all-time low last year. Under Raisi, the government cut back on food and fuel subsidies and did little to sustain support for health, education, and welfare. The average Iranian feels<\/a> trapped in economic purgatory. And, in April, the regime, which has the largest missile arsenal in the region, was humiliated militarily<\/a>. It fired more than three hundred ballistic missiles and drones at Israel in retaliation<\/a> for Israel\u2019s attack on an Iranian diplomatic facility in Syria, which killed three top generals. Iran\u2019s weaponry either failed, was shot down, or was intercepted by Israeli, U.S., and Jordanian forces, among unnamed others. The U.S. called Iran\u2019s brazen operation \u201cembarrassing\u201d and a \u201cspectacular\u201d failure. <\/p>

Quoted in \u2066@wrightr<\/a>\u2069 What Raisi\u2019s Death Means for the Future of Iran The theocracy in Tehran is in deep trouble on every front. \u201cThe divide between the population and leadership has only increased\u2014as evidenced by public apathy\u201d https:\/\/t.co\/FJ7scYyjf4<\/a><\/p>— Sanam Vakil \u0635\u0646\u0645 \u0648\u0643\u0649\u0644 (@SanamVakil) May 21, 2024<\/a><\/blockquote>