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Diplomacy on a Plank
In the latest episode of the Islamic Republic’s long-running political drama, the supreme cleric marches resolutely toward the void — cane in hand, finger raised skyward — as if divine guidance might double as a parachute.
While the E3 (UK, France, and Germany) pleads for dialogue, the regime’s factions remain absorbed in their favorite pastime: arguing over whether to surrender gracefully or go down gloriously. One camp whispers about diplomacy — perhaps even another “grand bargain” with the West. The other, cloaked in revolutionary nostalgia, dreams of building the bomb. The clerical leadership calls this strategic autonomy. The Iranian people call it hardship, poverty, and empty refrigerators.
The E3, ever hopeful, clings to the edge — balancing principle and patience. The Ayatollah, meanwhile, marches onward, certain that the laws of diplomacy do not apply to those chosen by divine right.
For the 86 million Iranians watching from below, it feels less like an act of faith — and more like a test of gravity.
Welcome to the Kayhan Life Week in Review
►This week’s developments underscore the breadth of the Islamic Republic’s crises: failed diplomacy abroad, repression and hypocrisy within, and growing despair among ordinary Iranians.
The Islamic Republic’s isolation, rooted in the 1979 revolution’s anti-American foreign policy, and the export of its revolutionary ideology in the Middle East, which fueled sectarian divides, has deepened following a series of recent miscalculations that have cost the establishment dearly, writes Kayhan Life’s Ahmad Rafat. Among those grave errors, Rafat cites misguided support for militia groups that have galvanized conflicts in the region and efforts to claim control of the disputed Persian Gulf islands.
►While the Iranian regime’s leaders project defiance abroad, conditions inside Iran continue to deteriorate. Reports of rising child labor highlighted the deepening economic crisis as families struggled to survive. Experts estimate that nearly 30 percent of the population now lives below the poverty line. The country faces a toxic mix of stagflation—high inflation coupled with stagnation—alongside deepening recession and unemployment. Analysts blame chronic mismanagement, systemic corruption, and wasteful spending by the Islamic Republic for the worsening collapse.
►In other news from Iran, a leaked video showing the wedding of the daughter of senior regime insider Ali Shamkhani—wearing a revealing gown— provoked public outrage just as authorities announced the deployment of 80,000 additional morality police officers to enforce hijab laws. Shamkhani, who led the National Security Council during the regime’s brutal 2022 crackdown on protesters, now stands at the center of renewed debate over corruption and double standards within the ruling establishment.
►The Islamic Republic executed another citizen accused of spying for Israel—one of several such cases since June. The regime now ranks among the world’s leading executioners of men, women, and children.
►Amid this hardship, public anger toward the ruling elite has intensified. Videos circulating on social media on Tuesday, October 21, showed a new wave of demonstrations at Golshahr Metro Station, located between Tehran and Karaj. In the footage, crowds chanted slogans such as “Down with Khamenei,” “Reza Shah, may your soul rest in peace,” and “Long live the Shah,” echoing defiance toward Iran’s ruling establishment.
►One video captured protesters shouting “Not Gaza, not Lebanon — my life for Iran,” a slogan first heard during the 2009 Green Movement. Over the years, it has come to symbolize opposition to the Islamic Republic’s foreign interventions and proxy wars, while affirming a desire to prioritize Iran’s own freedom, prosperity, and dignity.
►Attempts by the U.S. to revive negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program remained unsuccessful, as Tehran accused Washington of making unreasonable demands.
►The Iranian regime’s reputation abroad also took another hit when Maria Corina Machado, Venezuela’s opposition leader and recent winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, added her voice to concerns about the Islamic Republic. She said the Islamic Republic was a threat to Venezuela and Israel.
►Meanwhile, the International Service for Human Rights accused allies China and Russia of blocking U.N. efforts to investigate Tehran’s abuses, a move described as a “weaponization of the budget process.”
►Finally, 15 U.N. staff remained confined in their U.N. compound in Sanaa following an invasion by the Iran-aligned Houthis militia group, which controls much of Yemen. The Houthis have accused the U.N. of using their staff to spy on the group, a claim the intergovernmental organization has denied. An additional 53 U.N. staff remain arbitrarily detained by the Houthis, according to U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
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