
The Iran Watcher
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Iran & Persian Gulf | Politics, Geopolitics, Military & Proxies 🇮🇷
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🚨 An Iranian police officer says the economic situation has become unbearable even for the security forces the Islamic Republic depends on to keep itself in power. In an extraordinary appeal, the officer says many Iranians assume police and security personnel live comfortably or have other sources of income. He says the reality is very different, with officers themselves increasingly struggling to survive financially. He says he has been unable to afford milk for his own household for a long time and describes the same desperation among his colleagues. “Who can I tell my pain to? I look at my colleagues and they are all like me.” But his criticism goes beyond his salary. He pleads with authorities to address the suffering of ordinary Iranians, says those currently in charge are incapable of solving people’s problems and that there are better people who could govern, and even describes those responsible as godless while urging them to “return to God.” This is particularly significant coming from inside the police. The Islamic Republic depends on its security apparatus to contain unrest, enforce its authority and ultimately protect the political system. When ordinary Iranians cannot afford basic necessities, the Islamic Republic has a social crisis. When the police officers expected to contain that anger say they cannot afford them either, it has a security problem too.
The Iran Watcher1,764,525 views • 1 month ago

🚨 A drive-by shooting targeting a purported Basij member has surfaced in a newly circulating video from Iran. As internet access slowly returns across parts of the country, the footage reportedly shows armed anti-regime militants opening fire on a man outside a supermarket before chasing him inside and fleeing the scene. It is widely believed that armed grassroots anti-regime movements have begun forming inside Iran to confront the regime’s brutality.
The Iran Watcher4,452,408 views • 4 months ago

State TV has denied that IRGC Brigadier General Ali Azmaei was killed in tonight’s strikes. But such denials are far from definitive. The same state media previously claimed President Raisi’s helicopter had safely landed in Tabriz and that the presidential convoy was returning by land - before his death was later confirmed. Narrative control, contradictory reporting, and disinformation have long been part of how the Islamic Republic manages sensitive military and political crises. [شبنامه]
The Iran Watcher 🇮🇷3,300,803 views • 4 months ago

"We knocked the USA to the ground and had our foot on its chest, ready to finish the job. Then suddenly we went to the negotiating table, seeking a deal so that the USA could come and put its foot on our chest." — Nabavian, Member of Parliament This quote gets to the heart of the problem. A large segment of the Islamic Republic's supporters believe they already defeated the USA. They believe the USA failed to stop Iran's nuclear program, failed to force regime change, and failed to break the regime through sanctions and pressure. From that perspective, negotiating with the USA is not a victory. It is surrender. This is why the proposed MOU faces serious internal resistance and why any deal could still collapse. The Islamic Republic is not a normal state driven solely by strategic interests. At its core, it is a revolutionary movement shaped by ideological and often apocalyptic beliefs, with hostility toward the USA embedded in its identity. For many of its most loyal supporters, compromise with the USA is not diplomacy. It is betrayal.
The Iran Watcher1,673,918 views • 4 months ago

🚨 We are now seeing some of the devastating ecological consequences of the Islamic Republic’s deliberate oil dumping in the Persian Gulf. Here, marine animals can be seen dead after exposure to the massive oil contamination. The Shia Republic only brings havoc, destruction, and instability wherever it goes - in Iran and beyond.
The Iran Watcher887,669 views • 5 months ago

🚨 Iranian IRGC personnel are reportedly being killed alongside the Houthis as Yemeni government forces continue advancing in the strategically critical Al-Jawf front. Government forces say they seized Al-Mathafat, Al-Masariyah Hill and roughly 20 km of Houthi berms and trenches east of Al-Hazm, while images circulating from the fighting show Iranian identity documents said to have been recovered from dead personnel. 🔻 The geography makes these gains important. Al-Hazm is the capital of Al-Jawf and sits on an axis connecting Houthi-held territory toward Sana’a and Saada, while the desert routes running south and southeast connect toward Marib and the Saudi border. Al-Jawf has historically been a gateway through which the Houthis could pressure Marib from the north. (Sana’a Center) 🔻 Taking positions east of Al-Hazm can disrupt Houthi movement and resupply across that desert corridor, while forcing the Houthis to defend Al-Jawf at the same time they are fighting government forces on fronts in Al-Bayda, Taiz and Hodeidah. Government forces have also warned civilians away from major Al-Jawf/Marib routes leading toward Sana’a as their counteroffensive expands. (Al Jazeera) 🔻 Geopolitically, Al-Jawf matters far beyond one battlefield. It borders Saudi Arabia, connects toward the Houthi heartland of Saada and provides an approach toward Sana’a. Pressure here also forces the Houthis to divert manpower and weapons away from their offensives toward Marib and the Red Sea coast. (Sana’a Center) The broader significance is what this could mean for the Islamic Republic. If Iranian personnel are confirmed among those killed, it would be another indication that Iran is being forced to put its own people closer to the battlefield as its most strategically important surviving proxy comes under pressure from multiple directions. Al-Jawf is not Sana’a, but pushing west through it threatens one of the corridors protecting the Houthi capital and turns what was once a Houthi route toward Marib into a potential government route back toward the heart of Houthi-controlled Yemen.
The Iran Watcher173,145 views • 1 month ago

🚨 Economic rage is boiling across Iran, with furious citizens now physically attacking company executives and regime-linked figures who they blame for corruption, broken promises and financial ruin. In the latest incident, angry customers physically attacked a Farda Motors executive after being told they would have to wait several more months for cars some had already been waiting roughly two years to receive. Customers had paid large sums for vehicles originally promised within months. After years of delays, inflation eating away at the value of their money and repeated promises of delivery, they were again told there were no cars available and they needed to keep waiting. This is a small snapshot of the enormous rage building across Iran. Years of economic deterioration, austerity, corruption, broken promises and collapsing purchasing power have pushed patience to the breaking point. Farda Motors is only one example. Across the economy, Iranians have watched savings evaporate, businesses struggle, promised goods fail to materialize and their currency collapse while connected elites remain insulated from the consequences. Now the Trump administration's “Economic D-Day” campaign is compounding those pressures, seeking to sever the Islamic Republic's remaining financial lifelines as the regime struggles to contain mounting economic anger. The confrontation is bigger than one car company. It is a glimpse of what happens when decades of corruption and economic failure collide with unprecedented external pressure and a population increasingly unwilling to quietly absorb the losses.
The Iran Watcher231,880 views • 1 month ago

🚨 Ghalibaf is openly letting everyone know he is the man in charge. The more he speaks, the more it sounds like we’re witnessing a series of Freudian slips from a man who already sees himself as Iran’s real decision-maker. Listen to how many times he says “I.” Not “the government,” not “the system,” not “we” - just “I.” “I will decide.” At one point he effectively tells others to help formulate policy while he makes the final decisions. For a man who is supposedly just the Speaker of Parliament, he sounds remarkably comfortable speaking as the country’s ultimate authority. This is the same Ghalibaf who has been empowered and legitimized by Trump and his allies through negotiations that have elevated him from a regime insider to a central figure in Iran’s future. The more he talks, the more it appears that Ghalibaf—not the elusive Mojtaba Khamenei or the clerics—is consolidating power behind the scenes. The question is no longer whether there is a power struggle, but whether Ghalibaf has already won it.
The Iran Watcher 🇮🇷485,982 views • 4 months ago

☠️ Drugs are a critical part of the Islamic Republic's strategy, fueling both its global narcotics trafficking networks and the widespread drug use associated with the IRGC and its proxy groups. Here, an IRGC sniper is seen using drugs before murdering Iranian youths and protestors. Across the Islamic Republic's proxy network, Hezbollah has been linked to Captagon use and trafficking, while khat is widely chewed by the Houthis. Drugs can numb empathy, lower inhibitions, and help normalize extreme violence, making it easier for fighters to commit brutal acts. Beyond the battlefield, narcotics have long been intertwined with the financing, operations, and culture of many of the Islamic Republic's proxy forces.
The Iran Watcher292,713 views • 2 months ago

🚨 IRGC soldiers tasked with guarding the Strait of Hormuz have been caught on video using drugs. The men are reportedly from Kerman, Qassem Soleimani’s hometown, and are seen consuming opium. These are the same forces the Islamic Republic portrays as elite defenders of one of the world’s most strategically important waterways. The Islamic Republic’s proxy network—including Hezbollah—and elements of the IRGC have been repeatedly linked in documented investigations and sanctions to international drug trafficking and money laundering networks. This footage adds to the image of a force that projects military strength while grappling with drug use within its own ranks.
The Iran Watcher263,887 views • 2 months ago

🚨 A Hezbollah commander’s bombed-out house is filled with stacks of U.S. dollars and gold, while the Islamic Republic drives Iranians into abject poverty. The home belonged to Radwan Force commander Ali Samir al-Hajj Hassan, who was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon. The footage comes as the dollar has smashed through 200,000 tomans on Iran’s free market for the first time, devastating purchasing power. The Iranian rial is now the weakest currency in the world by nominal exchange rate. For decades, the regime has blamed sanctions for Iran’s economic misery while lavishly spending Iran’s wealth abroad through its proxies, patronage networks and well-connected insiders. Billions have flowed into Hezbollah and other armed terrorist groups as ordinary Iranians have watched their savings and living standards collapse. Stacks of dollars and gold in Lebanon while Iranians are driven into poverty at home. The regime blames sanctions, but its own priorities tell the real story.
The Iran Watcher174,181 views • 1 month ago

🚨 More and more Islamic Republic security forces are openly voicing economic despair as the crisis begins eating into the very apparatus the regime depends on for survival. A young Iranian police officer says his 26 million toman monthly salary, worth roughly $120, is no longer enough to survive, adding that if he cannot make ends meet, ordinary Iranians must be suffering far worse. He says personnel who complain about crushing prices risk being branded “terrorists,” while wearing the uniform in public increasingly draws open hatred from Iranians. Similar complaints have increasingly surfaced from security personnel struggling with collapsing purchasing power and soaring living costs. For the Islamic Republic, this is particularly dangerous because the same economic collapse fueling public anger is now crushing the morale and livelihoods of the forces it relies on to suppress that anger.
The Iran Watcher120,885 views • 1 month ago
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🚨 A car has plowed directly into a pro-IRGC gathering in Mashhad, with multiple Basij members reportedly killed and dozens injured. The vehicle struck one of the Islamic Republic’s nightly pro-regime gatherings on Eqbal Lahori Boulevard, where government supporters and Basij members had assembled. Videos circulating from the scene show people on the ground, scattered flags and debris, and a heavily damaged vehicle as bystanders rush around the area. Opposition accounts are claiming at least four Basij members were killed and dozens injured, while regime-affiliated accounts acknowledge deaths and injuries but claim the driver was drunk. The circumstances remain unclear, including whether the driver deliberately targeted the gathering. The driver has reportedly been detained. These nightly gatherings have become a regular show of support for the Islamic Republic in Mashhad and other cities since Khamenei’s death, making tonight’s incident particularly significant.
The Iran Watcher131,488 views • 1 month ago

The Islamic Republic admits it faces a siege by sea and air, and warns that a ground blockade could be next. An expert on Iranian state television said that if Iran cannot break its air isolation, its enemies will move against its land routes. Those crossings with Turkey, Iraq, Pakistan, and other neighbors are becoming more important as access through Iranian ports and airports shrinks. Iranian oil loadings fell from roughly 1.7 to 2 million barrels a day before the war to an estimated 220,000 to 260,000 in August. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claims 80 to 90 percent of Iran’s external flights are now grounded. At the Turkey border, one report put the truck backlog at 1,200, compared with a normal level of about 200. That is the danger for the regime. Trucks cannot replace tankers, and congested border crossings cannot replace an international aviation network. If the United States persuades neighboring countries to restrict the banks, transport firms, and traders serving those routes, the Islamic Republic’s remaining lifelines could narrow sharply. The regime is talking about a ground blockade because it understands the sequence. Its oil revenue has been hit, its aircraft are being shut out, and the land borders are increasingly exposed.
The Iran Watcher60,473 views • 20 days ago

🚨 More than 150 Iranians stormed dormitories housing Iraqi students at Semnan University as tensions surrounding their presence on Iranian campuses continue to grow. The confrontation comes amid growing resentment over the Islamic Republic providing Iraqi students with scholarships and other educational benefits while Iranian students face severe economic pressure and deteriorating conditions at home. Part of that anger is driven by the Islamic Republic’s deep relationship with Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). PMF-linked educational programs send members to Iranian universities, and Iraqi “students” with connections to Iran-backed militias have become a growing source of suspicion on campuses. PMF-linked individuals are also used to monitor students and activities inside Iranian universities, further blurring the line between education and the Islamic Republic’s security and proxy networks. Tensions have been building for some time, including previous confrontations involving Iraqi students at Iranian universities. The Islamic Republic has spent years pouring Iranian resources into its Iraqi proxy network while its own population struggles economically. Now the resentment created by those policies is spilling directly onto Iran’s university campuses. Videos show crowds confronting Iraqi students inside the dormitories, with police later present outside the university housing.
The Iran Watcher116,308 views • 1 month ago

🚨 A Shia terrorist from England says he is going to fight for the Islamic Republic. He is from Leeds and openly says he is going to Iran to fight for the IRGC, even brazenly showing his UK passport. This is a serious security concern and he should be barred from re-entering the country, Keir Starmer.
The Iran Watcher466,886 views • 6 months ago

🚨 “South Iran should be sacrificed for South Lebanon.” The Islamic Republic’s state television is now openly propagating the idea that Iran itself is expendable for the regime’s ideological project abroad. Reyhaneh Ghasemizadeh, a presenter on the Islamic Republic’s state broadcaster IRIB, made the extraordinary declaration while attacking opponents of the regime. Few statements capture the regime’s priorities more starkly. This is an anti-Iranian political system that subordinates Iran’s national interests to its ideological project, Shia sectarian networks and armed proxies across the region. For decades, Iranians have watched their country’s wealth diverted to Hezbollah and other Islamic Republic-aligned groups abroad. Now the mentality is being stated openly on state television: Iran itself is expendable for the regime’s regional project.
The Iran Watcher112,938 views • 2 months ago

🚨 Tehran’s police chief just exposed the truth - it was the regime, not foreign agents, that massacred protesters. For months, the regime and its Western apologists blamed the January massacre on “Mossad/CIA agents.” Now Ahmad Reza Radan himself calls it a “second war” and an “urban war” against Iranians and admits pride in it. This wasn’t foreign interference. It was the Islamic Republic regime waging war on its own people where over 45,000 unarmed Iranian protestors were massacred. Lies don’t stay hidden forever.
The Iran Watcher255,375 views • 5 months ago