Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: Defeat Iran’s oppressive regime

Thanks to Israel’s strategic defense, Iran finds itself in its most vulnerable position since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

By Dr. Majid Rafizadeh, Gatestone Institute

Rarely in history does an opportunity arise to confront a brutal regime that has not only oppressed its own population but also destabilized the world with support for terrorism and terrorist allies.

The Iranian regime is such a dictatorship. For more than four decades, this regime has systematically crushed the rights and freedoms of its citizens, and silenced dissent through violence, imprisonment, and execution.

Beyond its borders, Iran’s regime has acted as a malignant force, spreading instability by funding and arming proxy groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, while forming alliances with regimes hostile to the US and the West in regions as far-flung as China and Latin America.

The regime’s actions have sown chaos and bloodshed across the globe, leaving a trail of destruction and despair. Now, for the first time in decades, the Iranian regime is at its weakest point, presenting a rare moment of unity for its adversaries to strike decisively to ensure a long-term future of stability and peace.

The consequences of missing this opportunity cannot be overstated. History provides a clear warning of what happens when bellicose regimes are given the chance to recover.

A prime example is the 2015 “nuclear deal” brokered under President Obama. Just as Iran’s economy was collapsing under the weight of international sanctions, Obama’s deal allowed the regime to have an unlimited number of nuclear weapons after about a decade.

The deal also provided Iran with significant economic relief and global legitimacy. This lifeline not only rejuvenated the regime but also enabled it to expand its hegemonic activities.

Billions of dollars flowed into Iran’s coffers, fueling the growth of terror organizations such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, all of which carried out devastating attacks across the Middle East.

Iran also strengthened its ties with Russia by providing arms, which exacerbated the war in Ukraine.

The resurgence of Iran’s power, while neglecting to help its own people – 653 of whom it executed in just one year, 2023 — culminated in acts of violence.

These include Hamas’s massacres in Israel when the terrorist organization murdered more than 1,200 people on October 7, 2023, and took 251 more people as hostages — and a direct Iranian attack against the Jewish state.

This trajectory mirrors that of Hitler’s Germany, which, after being allowed to rearm, unleashed devastation on an unprecedented scale. It would have been so much less expensive in life and treasure to have stopped Hitler before he crossed the Rhine.

The lesson is clear: offering concessions to such regimes only delays the inevitable conflict while giving one’s adversary more time to build and strengthen his military capabilities.

Today, thanks to Israel’s strategic defense, Iran finds itself in its most vulnerable position since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The regime and its proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, have suffered devastating losses.

Israeli military campaigns have significantly reduced the regime’s capacity to project power and destabilize the region.

Last month, Iran’s strongest ally in the region, the Assad regime in Syria, also collapsed, partly due to the weakened state of Hezbollah, which could no longer prop up Assad’s government.

With its proxies and allies in disarray, Iran’s regional influence has eroded. This geopolitical shift creates a window of opportunity that must not be wasted.

Domestically, Iran also faces unparalleled challenges that threaten its grip on power. Public discontent has reached unprecedented levels, with many citizens from all walks of life calling for regime change. From young women to workers, the Iranian people are united in their call for freedom and justice.

The economy, plagued by hyperinflation, widespread unemployment and recent energy shortages, is in a free-fall that has forced the government to shut down critical industries.

The regime’s inability to provide basic services has only increased the anger of its population, thereby offering a historic chance to dismantle the regime’s oppressive machinery.

The question now is whether the West will seize this moment or allow it to slip away. Iran’s mullahs would surely love nothing more than to cut a deal with the incoming Trump administration that would enable them to stay in power, build their nuclear weapons and unleash them at a later date.

Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and research facilities must be dismantled or destroyed, to prevent it from becoming a nuclear-armed state capable of threatening global security.

Its oil and gas extraction infrastructure, which serves as the primary source of funding for its terrorist activities and internal repression, must be incapacitated to cut off its financial lifelines.

Simultaneously, the West must stand firmly with the Iranian people in offering loud, unequivocal support for their aspirations for regime change.

Leaders in the West need to follow the example of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has courageously voiced his support for the oppressed Iranian population, perhaps galvanizing a movement that may finally bring an end to decades of tyranny.

Appeasement and inaction in the face of tyranny only help to escalate a conflict. Bribing adversaries to stop only provides funding, which finances their military so they can attack us later with bigger weapons.

That is how North Korea and Iran built their nuclear weapons programs. China’s was built by direct investment: a gift to kill us from Uncle Sam.

Let us please ensure that Iran’s brutal theocratic tyranny will be gone for good. So long as it holds power, there will never be a peaceful future for the Middle East.

IranMiddle EastpeaceTerrorism