About Iran
Situated in the Middle East, the Islamic Republic of Iran is a country of 92 million, with a young median age given a “baby boom” that occurred in the 1990s. While Iranians vote in regular quadrennial elections for a president and elect their parliament, the Majlis, Iran remains one of the most authoritarian countries in the world, formally led by an appointed Ayatollah. The Guardian Council, an extra “branch” within Iran’s governing structure heavily vets any proposed political candidate to ensure that they follow the precepts of the strict Twelver Shia Muslim governing model.
Iran is also a significantly heterogeneous society. There are several major ethnic and linguistic minorities, including Azeris, Kurds, Arabs, Balochis, and Turkmen, among others. Some of these groups desire substantive change, including advancements towards federalism that would provide them with greater autonomy. This has led to some unexpected outcomes in Iranian foreign policy. For example, Iran often sides with their majority Christian neighbor, Armenia, instead of their majority Muslim neighbor, Azerbaijan – the reason for this is that the Iranian regime fears Azeri irredentism that they perceive as a threat to Iranian sovereignty and the continuation of the regime.
What has happened in Iran recently?
Since December 2025, largescale protests have enveloped all 31 of Iran’s provinces, with focal points in the major urban centers. The reasons for these protests are numerous, but include a sputtering economy, high youth unemployment, and a currency that is very difficult to exchange on the world market. Coupled with a highly authoritarian government, and seismic social changes including millions of people self-identifying as following a new religion, the people of Iran are demanding change.
In this backdrop, the Iranian regime then massacred thousands of protesters. While estimates vary, at minimum, thousands of people have been killed, with an upper estimate noting that as many as 35,000 protesters and civilians lost their lives at the hands of regime security forces. The major reason for the differences in the reporting of fatalities is that the Iranian regime cut off the internet, cauterizing the flow of information to the outside world.
Why military strikes?
Iran has long been known, especially through its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of sponsoring terrorism throughout the Middle East, whether via Hamas, Hezbollah, Ansar Allah, or militia proxies in Syria and Iraq. Coupled with the shedding of the innocent blood of protesters by the regime, Iran has been inching towards the completion of a nuclear weapon. Israeli intelligence tends to be at the forefront of measuring Iran’s progress towards a nuclear bomb, a threat that is taken very seriously in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. After all, a former Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinjad, once said that he would “wipe Israel off the map.” In the past, Israel’s main external intelligence agency, Mossad, has employed the tactic of neutralizing Iranian scientists. Yet, after Iran directly attacked Israel for the first time in April 2024, Israel sees the threat through a much more concerned framework.
Now that direct military strikes have been utilized, a major question of end goals is apropos. Iran is a very mountainous country with a sizable population and numerous nuclear and military sites, so further military action must be heavily weighed given the potential of entering a quagmire or creating another Yugoslavia or Syria. Yet, what should be done with a recalcitrant regime that has slaughtered civilians for years? Remove the regime, let it stay in power, or demand a transition – this is the decision on what comes next.
Glen Duerr is professor of International Studies at Cedarville University and a City Councilman in Beavercreek.
Credit: Scott Huck
Credit: Scott Huck