Iran opposition says bombing alone cannot topple clerical rule
Paris, A senior official from a Paris-based Iranian opposition group said on Thursday that the ongoing war involving the United States and Israel against Iran would not by itself overthrow the country’s clerical leadership, arguing that only a popular uprising supported by internal resistance could bring about political change.
Mohammad Mohaddesin, head of foreign policy at the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said during a news conference in Paris that sustained airstrikes had weakened elements of Iran’s military and security apparatus but would not be sufficient to remove the ruling system.
“The 12-day war in June, and the current war, now in its 12th day, proved that bombings cannot overthrow the regime,” Mohaddesin said, adding that political change would require widespread public mobilization inside Iran.
Mohaddesin said that even a substantial deployment of foreign troops would be unlikely to achieve regime change without support from the Iranian population.
“You need a popular uprising,” he said, arguing that internal resistance combined with popular protest would be necessary to challenge the country’s leadership.
He added that he did not consider a deployment of U.S. ground troops a realistic scenario in the current conflict.
Nearly two weeks of fighting have killed around 2,000 people in Iran, including the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, according to figures cited in the conflict, while military strikes have damaged parts of Iran’s defence and security infrastructure.
Iran has responded with retaliatory actions that have widened tensions across the Middle East and disrupted global energy markets and transport routes. The country’s powerful security force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has tightened its control and warned it would suppress any unrest.
The NCRI, also known by its Farsi name Mujahideen-e-Khalq, was designated as a terrorist organisation by the United States until 2012 and remains banned in Iran. Analysts say its level of support inside the country is difficult to assess.
Along with monarchist groups supporting Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s former shah, it is among the few opposition movements outside the country capable of organizing political gatherings and advocacy efforts.
Mohaddesin acknowledged that his organisation alone could not bring down Iran’s political system but said large-scale protests similar to demonstrations earlier this year could re-emerge once airstrikes cease and eventually shift the balance of power.
Israeli officials have said weakening Iran’s security structures is among the objectives of the campaign, arguing it could enable Iranians to determine their own political future.
