A-Infos (en) Italy, FAI, Umanita Nova #2-26 - Iran: Systemic Crisis. Repression and Revolt Against the Logic of Power (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

In recent months, the internal situation in Iran has spiraled into a 
historic crisis, marking a breaking point in the long conflict between 
the Islamic Republic's theocratic regime and a population increasingly 
exhausted by years of economic stagnation, largely due to US sanctions, 
political and religious repression, and structural inequality. The 
protests that erupted on the night of December 27, 2025, are not an 
isolated phenomenon; they are part of a dynamic of accumulating social 
and geopolitical tensions that demonstrate how the Iranian political 
system has reached a terminal crisis point.

On the surface, the immediate trigger for the mobilization was economic: 
the collapse of the national currency, rampant inflation, and the 
unsustainable burden of international financial sanctions (primarily 
US), which have blocked approximately $100 billion in Iranian funds 
abroad, have brought the productive and social fabric to its knees. 
According to international sources, inflation has exceeded 50% and 
millions of people are living below the poverty line, while substantial 
segments of the population struggle with shortages of essential goods.

The Iranian government and military are branding the protests as 
orchestrated by an external enemy. This is not a new argument for the 
regime's propaganda, which uses this rhetoric to justify the harsh 
repression and appeal for national unity. However, there is undoubtedly 
a pattern of extremely high tension between the states. Some analysts 
interpret the current situation as an indirect continuation of the 
12-day war of 2025, arguing that the conflict with Israel is continuing 
undeclared. The Israelis themselves have declared support for the 
protests, while Donald Trump-politically strengthened by recent imperial 
actions in Latin America-continues to openly threaten Iran. Tehran's 
response is equally clear: any attack would involve strikes against 
American bases in the region and perhaps against Israel itself. A 
particularly significant element of this phase is the direct deployment 
of the regular army onto the streets in support of the government, 
something unprecedented compared to many previous protests. This signals 
that the authorities no longer view dissent as a manageable internal 
issue, but as an existential threat, potentially linked to regional 
warfare involving the US and Israel.

Iran experienced major waves of protest in 1999, 2009, 2017, 2019, and 
2022, but the current phase presents new elements. In 2009, the central 
demand was for fair elections; today, the slogan is often regime change, 
albeit in contradictory forms. The protests appear to be taking place 
predominantly at night (although daytime protests are increasing these 
days), adapting to a highly militarized context, and are geographically 
more widespread than the available data suggests.

Iranian authorities have imposed a nationwide internet blackout starting 
January 8, 2026, cutting off access to digital communications as a tool 
of social control, and have intensified the use of brutal violence 
against protesters. Not only humanitarian organizations like Human 
Rights Watch, but also the Iranian government itself are reporting 
thousands of deaths. The numbers of injuries and arrests vary depending 
on the source but are nevertheless extremely high. Meanwhile, foreign 
media are trying to document the events despite the blackout. The images 
that emerge-though fragmentary, given the censorship-reveal an 
indiscriminate crackdown, including the shooting of civilians and 
arbitrary detentions. This escalation of violence highlights the nature 
of the Islamic Republic: a highly militarized apparatus that exercises 
power through a complex array of security forces, including the IRGC, 
the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, which holds a near-monopoly on 
"legitimate" violence.

The slogans echoing in the streets are varied-"Death to Khamenei," 
"Basij, Sepah, ISIS: you are all the same"-also expressing an anger that 
no longer distinguishes between internal repressive apparatuses and 
global logics of violence. This symbolic equivalence reveals a 
widespread awareness: the problem is not a single leader or faction, but 
an entire system founded on coercion, hierarchy, and the authoritarian 
management of society.

One of the most striking aspects of the current mobilization is the 
absence of a recognized leadership or traditional political forces 
capable of directing it. The protests appear to be organized 
horizontally, based on informal networks, community relations, local 
shops, and-when possible-the use of social media (almost all internet 
has been blocked in recent days). This structure reflects both an 
implicit political choice and a material necessity, since nearly all 
grassroots organizations have been systematically destroyed by the 
regime over the years. In this scenario, some sectors within the regime 
are attempting to propose a "reformist" interpretation, presenting 
themselves as a moderate alternative to the collapse. This, however, is 
a transparent attempt to repurpose the same elites under new labels, a 
well-known strategy that aims to preserve the existing order by changing 
only its aesthetics (our Leopard).

At the same time, Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Shah (King), is 
attempting to symbolically appropriate the protests. Despite having some 
supporters, most of whom live abroad, his figure remains tied to an 
authoritarian past and a clear pro-American stance. The fact that some 
voices today are calling for a "return to the monarchy" does not 
indicate genuine popular nostalgia, but rather the political vacuum 
created by decades of repression, in which any alternative is presented 
as preferable to the status quo.

Geopolitically, Iran is perceived as a key player in the Middle East, 
not only because of its nuclear program and its influence over allied 
militias (Hezbollah, Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria), but also 
because of its relations with global powers such as Russia and China. 
Intervention by the US, Israel, or their allies, while it currently 
appears to be a somewhat diminished threat, remains possible.

Mainstream analysis tends to interpret the crisis as a risk to regional 
stability and energy markets, emphasizing the dynamics of the balance of 
power between competing powers. According to some reports, Iranian 
instability could impact oil prices and the security of the Straits of 
Hormuz, a crucial hub for global energy exports. But this could 
undoubtedly have further negative consequences for the Chinese and 
Russian economies, as well as for Europe, thus contradicting what 
currently appear to be US interests.

The Iranian crisis is not simply a struggle between governments and 
protesters, nor a phenomenon to which imported democratic reform 
packages can be applied. Rather, it reveals the profound limits of state 
power and the hierarchical structures that dominate modern societies.

The Iranian theocratic state is not a neutral entity from which to 
obtain greater freedom, but a coercive apparatus based on a monopoly on 
violence and the bureaucratic management of society. Economic 
inequalities and the lack of social autonomy are not accidental, but 
rooted in the very functioning of the state and global capitalism. The 
protests of 2025-2026 are not a sudden outburst of aggression, but an 
expression of profound desires for self-determination, community 
solidarity, and the rejection of hierarchies imposed from above.

Movements like Women, Life, Freedom in Iran represent much more than 
simple reformist opposition: they embody a radical critique of the very 
foundations of power. They link demands for individual and collective 
freedom with the struggle against multiple oppressions-gender, economic, 
ethnic, and political-in a vision that rejects all forms of domination.

This is also the position of the Iranian Anarchist Front (Anarchist 
Front), founded in 2009 by the merger of The Voice of Anarchism and the 
Era of Anarchism, active primarily in Iran and Afghanistan. In a January 
5 interview with freedomnews.org.uk, the Front described the protests as 
genuine (and unguided), acknowledging the presence of external 
influences but rejecting the idea that they are the root cause. For 
Iranian anarchists, the root of the uprising is undoubtedly economic, 
but above all political and structural: a rebellion against the very 
logic of power. One member of the Front, Afshin Heyratian, is currently 
detained in Evin Prison, a historic symbol of political repression in 
Iran. The Front firmly opposes any Western, US, or Israeli intervention 
and does not define itself as a military organization. However, it does 
not rule out the possibility of reorganizing should conditions require it.

We anarchists hope that the goal of this revolutionary movement is not 
to replace one ruling elite with another, nor to use the state apparatus 
to protect civil rights. Since the modern state is founded on the 
vertical division of power and reliance on institutionalized violence, 
true emancipation is achieved only through the construction of 
horizontal, cooperative, and radically democratic forms of 
self-organization capable of breaking with traditional coercive 
structures. In other words, the revolution is not simply about 
overthrowing rulers, but about overcoming the very structures of state 
power that produced them.

The Iranian crisis thus appears to be multilayered: it is an internal 
power struggle, a question of global geopolitical dynamics, and at the 
same time a reflection of the unsustainable tensions generated by the 
state and contemporary capitalism. The unfolding events have a weight 
that transcends national borders, as they call into question not only an 
authoritarian regime, but the very concept of political legitimacy based 
on coercion. The synergy between widespread social protest and radical 
critique of authority could-if cultivated with awareness and 
international solidarity-represent not only a change of government, but 
the beginning of a radical transformation of Iranian society and, by 
extension, of power structures worldwide.

Gabriele Cammarata

https://umanitanova.org/iran-crisi-sistemica-repressione-e-rivolta-contro-la-logica-del-potere/
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