Intensifying Conflict between Ruling Factions
The conflict at the top of the regime is intensifying because one side wants to manage the broken economy to prevent the uprisings . The opposing side, however, believes that any kind of reform will only open the door for new uprisings. They argue that the only way to block protests is through war and suppression. This is exactly why the regime has reached a complete dead end, at a crossroads between ending the war and continuing it . The other factor driving the regime’s factions into a confrontation is the status of Khamenei’s son. It was only by exploiting the wartime and emergency conditions following his father’s death that he was able to become the supreme leader. At least forty clerics out of the eighty-four members of the Assembly of Experts refused to vote for him . One member of the Assembly admitted that during the session to choose the supreme leader, the votes were not even counted; instead, a senior member of the Assembly quickly glanced at the ballots and announced that ...