The new semester is set to begin in Iran, but students returning to\ncampuses are continuing to voice their opposition to the Khamenei\nregime.<\/p>\n
Since last Saturday (February 21), images and videos of student\nprotests have been circulating online. Witnesses from seven Iranian\nuniversities reported that memorial ceremonies were held for the victims\nwho died during the wave of protests in January.<\/p>\n
However, the current protests are much smaller than those held last\nmonth.<\/p>\n
Although citizens are still \u201cshaken\u201d by the deaths of thousands, some\nstudents are still \u201cstaunchly\u201d displaying anti-regime slogans such as\n\u201cDeath to the Dictator\u201d or \u201cDeath to the Islamic Republic\u201d.<\/p>\n
Some are also calling for the return of the monarchy with the exiled\ncrown prince, Reza Pahlavi, who has emerged as a prominent figure in the\nopposition to the regime.<\/p>\n
A number of students demonstrating chanted \u201cmonarchy\u201d-themed slogans\nat the elite University of Sharif in Tehran, the Iranian pro-regime news\nagency Fars reported over the weekend.<\/p>\n
The news agency described the small protests as separate incidents\nfrom the memorial ceremonies for the martyrs killed in the national\nprotests and insisted that those killed were not victims of the security\nforces\u2019 repression, but rather \u201cterrorists\u201d who had infiltrated the\ndemonstrators.<\/p>\n
The latest student demonstrations and almost all other protests by\nthe media are often described as \u201criots\u201d.<\/p>\n
Basij militia monitors students<\/p>\n
A 19-year-old student from Tehran, who asked to remain anonymous,\ntold DW that the anger felt by fellow students is palpable.<\/p>\n
The student participated in the anti-regime protests in December,\nalong with millions of other Iranian citizens across the country.<\/p>\n
Many were shocked by the brutality of the security forces, especially\nthat of the Basij militia, a paramilitary group within the Revolutionary\nGuard, which was deployed to crack down on protesters since January\n18.<\/p>\n
Members of the Basij militia, which has a representative office at\neach university, also participated in the student protests, as seen in\nvideos of clashes on campus that have circulated online.<\/p>\n
Basij members are now reportedly tasked with checking everyone\nentering the campus area, recording the number of students present, and\nhow long they stay.<\/p>\n
Iranian citizens demand accountability<\/p>\n
Iranian citizens who spoke to DW said they want those responsible for\nthe deaths of protesters to be held accountable. Some even hope that the\nUnited States will kill specific individuals involved.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people start relying on foreign assistance or attacks to fight\nagainst state repression, it reflects despair,\u201d said a sociologist at\nthe University of Tehran who chose to remain anonymous for security\nreasons. This despair means that people have lost hope that civic\nengagement, including large-scale demonstrations demanding reform or a\nreferendum, can change the situation.<\/p>\n
There is almost no legitimacy left for the Iranian leadership in the\neyes of its people. This happened even before the large-scale protests\nerupted in December and January. The regime\u2019s response to these protests\nwas the harshest response to criticism of the regime since the 1979\nIslamic Revolution.<\/p>\n
Concerns about US-Iran war escalate<\/p>\n
US President Donald Trump had previously threatened Iran with\nmilitary action over the crackdown on protesters. In recent weeks, Trump\nhas again threatened the use of military force, denouncing Iran\u2019s\nnuclear program.<\/p>\n
Iran warned the United States on Monday (February 23) that any attack\nwould be met with a \u201cstrong response\u201d. Trump, in turn, warned that the\ntime for negotiating a nuclear deal is running out.<\/p>\n
With negotiations between Tehran and the US scheduled for February 26\nin Geneva, tensions in the Middle East have escalated. The US insists\nthat Iran halt its nuclear enrichment capabilities, while Iran insists\nthat its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes.<\/p>\n
Matthew Hoh, a former US Marine captain and analyst at the Center for\nInternational Policy think tank, told DW that the possibility of war\nwith Iran is very high. This is indicated by the increased US military\npresence in the Middle East. \u201cIn my opinion, all of this is preparation\nfor war. The most likely way to avoid war at this time is for Iran to\nsurrender,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Regime change in Iran?<\/p>\n
Analysts are skeptical that military escalation will lead to a\nsecular democracy in Iran. Kamran Matin, a lecturer in international\nrelations at Sussex University, refers to the US National Security\nStrategy document published in November, which states that the era of\n\u201cnation-building democracy\u201d is over and that the US focus has now\nshifted from the Middle East to China. Without a political alternative\nto the current regime in Iran, a deal with the current regime is the\nmost realistic option for the US.<\/p>\n
Damon Golriz, a strategy analyst at the Hague-based Institute for\nGeopolitics, also doubts that a US attack will pave the way for a\nsecular democracy: \u201cThe resilience of the Tehran regime after killing\nmore than 30,000 protesters, without significant internal defections,\nshows how far a democratic transition still is from reality.\u201d A more\nlikely scenario is the emergence of an authoritarian military government\nor, in the worst-case scenario, the collapse of the state and a regional\nwar.<\/p>\n
This article was first published in German.<\/p>\n
Adapted by Sorta Caroline<\/p>\n
Watch Live DetikPagi:<\/p>\n
Watch the video \u2018US Vice President Claims to Have Evidence That Iran\nIs Rebuilding Nuclear Weapons\u2019:<\/p>\n
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