For the most part Turley is right. There are a lot of moving pieces to this drama. So I will try to make this simple.
The regime is fractured and there are basically 3 main camps jockeying for position and power over the country and the resources. The IRGC, who control the guns and a large share of the state owned enterprises and infrastructure. The Paydari Group who are the ultra hardline revolutionary jihadis that have no real power within the government, but they do have the people power from the support of the minority of Iranians that are also hardline jihadis. These are the ones CNN and the BBC are always showcasing in their videos. Less than 5% of Iranians fit into this group. Then there is the Office of the Supreme Leader that are the cardboard supreme leader, the mullahs, and the civilian government apparatus like the President, the foreign ministry, the judiciary, and the Parliament. Everything flows down from the supreme leader who provides the ideological legitimacy for the rest of the government.
There is no clear ruling entity within Iran to make a deal with right now. There are no "moderates." They are all just as equally bad. The only difference between them is that some are more ideologically hardline while the others still believe in the Revolution but are more pragmatic. The hardliners are fine with going down in flames for the cause and refuse to negotiate with the Americans, while the others that are more pragmatic, want to survive to come back and fight another day. None of them are "reformists." It appeared for awhile that the IRGC was going to be successful in a military junta takeover, but that has run into some roadblocks.
Just a note on Pezeshkian. The president of Iran is a tool and a scapegoat to blame when things go bad for the regime. The president has no real power within the government. Pezeshkian has even less power than he did before, which was little to none. So it really doesn't matter much if he is sidelined. The only reason he has not been arrested or killed at this point is because he is the scapegoat to blame when legitimacy falls apart. The resignation is Islamic Republic propaganda. Take it with a huge grain of salt. Remember, there are several groups fighting for power and they attempt to frame, smear, and discredit each other.
What the regime fears more than the US, is the 5% of loyalists that could turn on the regime. That 5% is what has allowed to regime to survive and gives them their ideological legitimacy. If they turn, and it sounds like that could happen, they have already vowed they would die bringing the regime down for betraying the Revolution. These are hardline jihadis. Along with them are the Basij forces, who are armed. The Basij are more hardline and are more aligned with the Paydari camp. They will turn on the IRGC that they view as not jihadi enough.
The majority of Iranians who are more secular, Muslim in name only, and Christians on the DL, don't want to be shot and are unarmed. The 5% however, some of them are armed. The regime had armed them to keep the rest of the Iranians in line. Oops. If they end up finding out that their beloved supreme leader really is a cardboard cutout and that they were lied to by the regime, it's over. The regime crumbles. That is when the rest of the Iranians, the Artesh/Army, and the Immortal Guards step in to clean up after the rest of them tear themselves apart and are weakened even more. This latest assassination was probably an inside job by either the Artesh or the Immortal Guard.
The IRGC has tried to bait Trump into full scale reengagement. But he is not biting. The regime wants to goad Trump because that would unite the factions and the 5% against an outside enemy. It works well for the regime. So Trump and company will keep being ambiguous, push negotiations, all while allowing things to take their course. Don Tzu will defeat the enemy without even engaging in battle. Never interfere with an enemy that is in the process of destroying themselves.
There is Not much reported on this, good wait and watch
72h rule, right?
Yeah, sounds kinda suss
For the most part Turley is right. There are a lot of moving pieces to this drama. So I will try to make this simple.
The regime is fractured and there are basically 3 main camps jockeying for position and power over the country and the resources. The IRGC, who control the guns and a large share of the state owned enterprises and infrastructure. The Paydari Group who are the ultra hardline revolutionary jihadis that have no real power within the government, but they do have the people power from the support of the minority of Iranians that are also hardline jihadis. These are the ones CNN and the BBC are always showcasing in their videos. Less than 5% of Iranians fit into this group. Then there is the Office of the Supreme Leader that are the cardboard supreme leader, the mullahs, and the civilian government apparatus like the President, the foreign ministry, the judiciary, and the Parliament. Everything flows down from the supreme leader who provides the ideological legitimacy for the rest of the government.
There is no clear ruling entity within Iran to make a deal with right now. There are no "moderates." They are all just as equally bad. The only difference between them is that some are more ideologically hardline while the others still believe in the Revolution but are more pragmatic. The hardliners are fine with going down in flames for the cause and refuse to negotiate with the Americans, while the others that are more pragmatic, want to survive to come back and fight another day. None of them are "reformists." It appeared for awhile that the IRGC was going to be successful in a military junta takeover, but that has run into some roadblocks.
Just a note on Pezeshkian. The president of Iran is a tool and a scapegoat to blame when things go bad for the regime. The president has no real power within the government. Pezeshkian has even less power than he did before, which was little to none. So it really doesn't matter much if he is sidelined. The only reason he has not been arrested or killed at this point is because he is the scapegoat to blame when legitimacy falls apart. The resignation is Islamic Republic propaganda. Take it with a huge grain of salt. Remember, there are several groups fighting for power and they attempt to frame, smear, and discredit each other.
What the regime fears more than the US, is the 5% of loyalists that could turn on the regime. That 5% is what has allowed to regime to survive and gives them their ideological legitimacy. If they turn, and it sounds like that could happen, they have already vowed they would die bringing the regime down for betraying the Revolution. These are hardline jihadis. Along with them are the Basij forces, who are armed. The Basij are more hardline and are more aligned with the Paydari camp. They will turn on the IRGC that they view as not jihadi enough.
The majority of Iranians who are more secular, Muslim in name only, and Christians on the DL, don't want to be shot and are unarmed. The 5% however, some of them are armed. The regime had armed them to keep the rest of the Iranians in line. Oops. If they end up finding out that their beloved supreme leader really is a cardboard cutout and that they were lied to by the regime, it's over. The regime crumbles. That is when the rest of the Iranians, the Artesh/Army, and the Immortal Guards step in to clean up after the rest of them tear themselves apart and are weakened even more. This latest assassination was probably an inside job by either the Artesh or the Immortal Guard.
The IRGC has tried to bait Trump into full scale reengagement. But he is not biting. The regime wants to goad Trump because that would unite the factions and the 5% against an outside enemy. It works well for the regime. So Trump and company will keep being ambiguous, push negotiations, all while allowing things to take their course. Don Tzu will defeat the enemy without even engaging in battle. Never interfere with an enemy that is in the process of destroying themselves.
Install the new jew leader. Typical